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        General >> Off Topic Subjects >> Inside Longbridge
        
(Message started by: - Mike - on Mar 11^th, 2007, 11:29am)

Title: Inside Longbridge
Post by - Mike - on Mar 11^th, 2007, 11:29am

Recent photos taken from inside the now deserted Rover plant.

http://www.migweb.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=306199

http://www.photoaddiction.co.uk/

What a waste, especially for those enthusiasts out there in years to come.

Title: Re: Inside Longbridge
Post by scorpio_man on Mar 11^th, 2007, 11:37am

some photos there!! really good find, mike.

Title: Re: Inside Longbridge
Post by Spannerdemon on Mar 11^th, 2007, 10:55pm

That is really sad, and another lesson to all these bloody unions who are always holding strikes in the UK.

Yes, cheap labour IS now in China, Eastern Europe etc, but we hand it to them on a plate every time the workforce downs tools, and production goes down the pan, because some useless t****r calls 'strike', and the workforce follow them like sheep.

Then they wonder why the jobs go abroad. It's not rocket science.

Remember, Shipbuilding, Coal Mining, Engineering, and Car Production (as here)!!

I remember when I used to ride motorcycles. BRITISH motorcycles. Triumphs, BSA's and Nortons. They all said that the Japanese bikes would never get a foothold in Britain!!!

Yeah........Right!!! ::) NOW go and find British bikes in the showrooms.

Time this country woke up to the shambles that it gets itself into sometimes due to bolshy union activists, clinging on to their self-important little 'jobs' who are about as out of date as Dinosaurs. :)

Title: Re: Inside Longbridge
Post by scorpio_man on Mar 12^th, 2007, 1:01pm

hi there

i need to disagree with you there regarding the union. yes, sometimes they get carried away with themselves, but most of the time, the 'bosses' force them into a corner.

take the latest rail strike in scotland. they have an agreement with network rail in england/wales but the company doesn't want to use it in scotland. yet it's all one company. go figure that out. >:(

i think there's a place for the union, but the union need to be flexible as well.

Title: Re: Inside Longbridge
Post by Spannerdemon on Mar 12^th, 2007, 4:36pm

I take your point, but personally I could never work for any organisation that had that kind of hold over my work.

I think sometimes, as you rightly say, that the bosses and unions want to get together in a cool dark room, and sort out their differences in a more amenable way. Too often, confrontation wins, and the end result is fewer and fewer jobs all round.

The shiny-assed pen pushers and accountants are the winners every time. I despise accountants. The slime on the face of the earth in my book. Only one level above Estate Agents. Money is all that matters to them. People are unimportant, unless of course THEY are in danger of losing their jobs.

Longbridge was a mess for years, but I still think it could have been there today making some marque of British cars with the right management, and not those cheating sods who fiddled it.

Title: Re: Inside Longbridge
Post by TiberiuS on Mar 12^th, 2007, 6:17pm

It's the same with most British owned companies. Heard the news today that Aston will be likely sold to the UK racing team Prodrive, at least they're back in British hands. But the likes of Land Rover and Jaguar face an uncertain time ahead, Jag in particular is losing Ford big bucks and they want rid of both the Cat and Land Rover together, a lot of enthusiasts are hoping the British firm JCB's interest will come to something before they go to Toyota...

It's the same with Rover. All the factions tear the company to bits then it gets sold off to an overseas buyer for next to nothing to pick over the bones and take what they want. You can't blame the overseas investors for seeing the opportunity, it's the fault of the powers that be for letting this happen.

It's a bloody crime, the 75 especially was an ace car but the rumors about it being a badge engineered BMW and about the company going broke never gave it a chance.

Really sad :'(

Regards, Bruce.

Title: Re: Inside Longbridge
Post by Dave on Mar 13^th, 2007, 8:21am

Guys,

have a look at:

www.28dayslater.co.uk

and go to the industrial section, have a wade through and there are quite a few Longbridge visits :o

Title: Re: Inside Longbridge
Post by dannynic on Mar 13^th, 2007, 4:45pm

If the unions hadn't been created in the first place we would all be still working for 14 hours a day 6 days a week just to have enough to eat so I'm all for the unions to be honest as long as you rightly say they are sensible which to be fair I think they all are now (certainly the one I'm in anyway, AMICUS). I think the loss of British manufacturing has as much to do with the greed of multinational companies and directors than the unions to be honest as well as the consumers need for constantly cheaper and cheaper products. :-/

Title: Re: Inside Longbridge
Post by Baz on Mar 14^th, 2007, 9:12pm

I gave up on unions years ago. I was in the EETU and worked as an electrical contractor on Kelloggs in Manchester for about 9 years. We had a disagreement with the electrical firm we worked for and picketed the gates. The local rep came to see us and just asked us straight away to go back to work as he didn't want to upset Kelloggs as they had just recognised the EETU!!

Needless to say he got his marching orders. But we still had to stay in the union because I would never have got onto another site if I had ripped my card up. Closed shop is not a good thing for democracy!!

Now as a business owner I know what it is like to employ people and frankly I'd rather be back on that picket line!!

Title: Re: Inside Longbridge
Post by lock3h on Mar 23^rd, 2007, 9:59am

You see that large flat sarna roof, i fitted that roof ;)

Also fitted the cladding on the new silver building you can see from the m42, which never got used at all, this was the time when BMW taken over the plant and wanted all the cladding changed to silver, the new building was ment for the mini which bmw took.

ive worked at rover for years, well subcontracted.

Title: Re: Inside Longbridge
Post by shaun on Mar 26^th, 2007, 8:48pm

great pics ....
:D