A Day at an Engineering Works
Clip 1: Engineering works
2 min 23 sec
Taken from the sponsored film A Day at an Engineering Works (c1926)
Original title classification not known – this clip chosen to be PG
Availability of the complete title
Please note: this clip is silent
Curator’s clip description
A steel saw, made from a plain steel disc without teeth, cuts through the girders using only friction. A man turns a wheel which pulls the disc through to cut the girder. The cut girder is then lifted by a crane and guided away.
A guillotine machine cuts through large plates in one stroke of its blade. Four men and a crane help guide the large sheet into the machine which then cuts it into sections. The camera captures this from two angles.
In another area of the workshop, a man wearing face protection demonstrates the electric welding process. A pan of the blacksmiths’ workshop follows. The camera then pans across workers standing at a battery of high-speed drilling machines.
Curator’s notes
As well as providing an historical record of the Perry engineering works, footage such as this provides a vivid snapshot of the working conditions of the past. Common to the times, the lack of protective clothing and safety measures is something that can come as a shock to contemporary viewers. The machinery used in this clip is also an example of what was probably modern for the 1920s.
Lauren Williams, curator
