When Ray Cross (64) and Rod Rogers (68) joined the Cartwright Group 49 and 46 years ago respectively it was a very different business.
Initially operating out of one site in Ocean Street, every trailer was built by hand – all from timber. There was just one production line operated by less than 30 employees each taking responsibility for the build process from beginning to end. Today the company has grown to have three production lines, an output of up to 120 trailers per week, over 1000 staff including 110 apprentices.
Yet both Ray and Rod, today Cartwright’s longest serving employees, have stood the test of time working through the many changes which have taken place over the years and are finally due to clock out for the last time this month.
Ray, who lives in Sale Moor and is employed as a storesman, first joined Cartwright when he was just 15. Initially working in bodybuilding, he moved to the paintshop where he worked as a sprayer. Twenty years later he moved into stores where he has worked for nearly 25 years.
Rod lives in Cheadle and describes his role as a ‘bit of everything’. Initially joining the company at the age of 24, having completed an apprenticeship at a local ambulance builder. Since he joined the business he has been involved in every aspect of bodybuilding from building trailers from scratch using timber to supporting on the more advanced production lines today.
Looking back both remarked upon how processes have changed over the years, not just from a manufacturing perspective but also in health and safety. Ray commented: “Health and Safety in those days was virtually non-existent. That’s not to say we weren’t looked after, it was just a case of getting on with the job. In the paint shop we always wore masks etc, but when you think that today the operatives in the paintshop have air fed masks and have a host of new machinery to help them in their daily task it just shows how far technology has developed.”
In his role Rod too has noticed huge changes. He commented: “The whole dynamic of trailer manufacturing has changed. When I first joined trailers were completely built by hand from measuring and cutting the timber to panelling, and welding. I used to have my own bay and would build one vehicle at a time with an apprentice to support.
Each bodybuilder was effectively responsible for their own vehicle from start to finish and if anything went wrong they were accountable. “Today the build process is much more exact with the responsibility now starting in the drawing office, however the craftsmanship and skill which has always been at the heart of Cartwright is still very much evident.”
The memories which Ray and Rod share are many such as working through the miner’s strike with their only source of power being generators. They also recall building the trailers for TNT used by Rupert Murdoch’s News International which had to be completely blanked out following his controversial step of moving the printing presses out of Fleet Street into East London. A bespoke trailer built for the Queen’s Jubilee also remains uppermost in their minds. All fond memories which will continue to endure when they both embark on a much deserved more restful life.
Despite the company’s growth both Ray and Rod have said that Cartwright has never lost sight of its roots and it is still very much a family business. Ray said: “In the early days, both the founder Alan Cartwright, who sadly passed away in 2011 and his brother Peter who is the Chairman of the Cartwright Group, were regularly seen on the shop floor and would always stop for a chat.
“There has always been a true family spirit and whilst we might not see the directors on the shop floor as much as we used to, the company has never lost that family feel even though it has grown massively.”
Indeed for Rod himself Cartwright is a true family affair. His son, Brian Rogers who has worked at Cartwright for 21 years is a Production Manager and his nephew Rob Rogers too has also joined the business 22 years ago and works in coachbuilding and his late brother Trevor Rogers also worked for the business for 44 years – between them amassing over 100 years of service.
Cartwright’s Group Managing Director Mark Cartwright commented: “Ray’s and Rod’s commitment and dedication over the years has been just fantastic and they will be missed. They have become part of the Cartwright family. “We are immensely grateful for their contribution over the years. Further the level of knowledge and skill sets which both have is what has always been at the very core of the Cartwright business and indeed has played a pivotal role in our continuing success story. We wish them both a very well deserved long and happy retirement.”
