Issue 12

A Word From Our Leader(s)

The nice weather has come and we’ve taken off stock over the past weeks, not much but at least it’s a start. I’ve chatted with most of you over the last few weeks about the change of culture that now seems to be spreading from the main man (Alan Murray) down to his loyal subjects (us). The main change is that we do jobs safely and not rush and cut corners to get the job running at all costs. So please think first. I have told you about two people that have been sacked because they contravened Health and Safety procedures even through their intentions were probably good. Gentlemen we need to work as a team it’s not a finger pointing exercise but if you are unlucky enough to be caught then the precedents have been set, so please think before you act. The wearing of safety glasses are to become mandatory in June, I have pairs of glasses plus cases to handout so that you may get to use them before the mandatory period starts, your cooperation will be appreciated but gents its non negotiable after June. I’ve mentioned the Swillington team ethic on a number of occasions before, and I must stress that we have 38 people on site and we need everyone to be pulling in the same direction. So it worries me that some people are abusing the rest of the team by having longer than their allotted breaks, these are set at 30 minutes only and going down to the showers in some instances 35 minutes early, well gents this has to stop. People found doing this will in future find them 1of7

selves losing money and if they continue to offend then face disciplinary action. Just remember it’s your mates who have to take up the slack. On another note, the survey results are back and it concerns me that people think quality and the customer are not affected by your actions. QUALITY IS EVERYONES RESPONSIBILITY. This starts as soon as you leave the changing rooms. If you see something that’s not quite right PLEASE SAY. The knock on effect could be; • Loss Of Bonus • Customer Complaint • Loss of customer • Ultimately loss of works We have a bright future with the new works but we need to stay focused on the job in hand working as a TEAM taking pride in our performance and our works. Swillington has a good name which has taken years to build but it can all go wrong in a heart beat if we don’t pull together. We want the good name to carry on for years to come. Anyway on a brighter “note”, the 3 peak challenge is here again, and a team lead by the veterans Den Fox, Ian Ball, David Zinis and supported by youngsters, N Hunter, L Ruecroft and M Schofield. Please sponsor the lads they are doing it for a worthy cause and they have a support team this year, they are, One Peak Billy Morton and Who ate all the pies Sean Ruecroft. Good Luck Lads

Making Bricks At Swillington People have been saying that the “Jungle Telegraph” has just been getting sillier and sillier well I have had a total rethink in this issue and have decided to adopt a much more “sensible” approach going forward, so with this I want to take you through the essential steps required to make bricks at Swillington. There are five basic steps to making bricks in general and here at Swillington things are no different. 1. WINNING. The first step is called winning, or mining the clay.

Before the steam shovel was invented, our brick makers here at Swillington had to dig for the clay with hand shovels. Obviously it was preferred if clay was found just under the topsoil in order to minimize much of the hard work. In those days the digging was usually done in the autumn. That way, the clay could be left exposed to the freeze-thaw cycles of the coming winter. The freezing and thawing over and over would help break the clay down. That made the clay softer and easier to work by hand in the spring. The winter exposure not only made the clay soft but also removed unwanted oxides. Oxides are minerals that have combined with oxygen and are considered undesirable impurities in brick making. Now at Swillington we dig for clay using very modern diggers and very experienced drivers like Don Fox we also have experienced people like Steve Todd who build huge stockpiles of exotic chemicals like blue black spray to add to the clay to achieve other colours other than red. 2. PREPARATION. The second step is preparation of the clay By spring the clay is suitable to be worked by hand. It is then ground into a powder and sifted through a screen to remove stones. The next process before we had Badger the clay was placed into a soaking pit where it was mixed with water to obtain the proper consistency for moulding. Next, the clay was kneaded with the hands and feet to mix all the elements together. This step was called tempering or pugging and was the hardest work of all. In 1993 The Badger driven pug mill (above) were installed here at Swillington to make this task easier.

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The clay was then removed from the soaking pit or pug mill by our temperer, Terry Capper who carried it to the moulding table to begin the next step in the process. 3. MOLDING. The third step is molding. Our assistant brick moulder was called Billy Bulsh*t. This job is to prepare a lump of clay (a clot) and give it to the brick moulder. The brick moulder, Darren Bell is the key to the operation and the head of the team. He stands (sometimes sits) and works at the moulding table for twelve to fourteen hours a day. With the help of the assistants Billy Bull and The German, Darren the brick moulder can make 80,000 to 90,000 bricks in a day. He takes a clot of clay, rolls it in sand and "dash" it (toss it forcefully) into a mould. A mould is a wooden frame that is the shape of a brick. The clay was then pressed into the mould with his hands. The excess clay is scraped from the top of the mould with a flat stick called a strike that had been soaking in water. This excess clay is then returned to the clot moulder to be reformed into later bricks.

Making one brick at a time has an advantage since even Mick Brayford and others like him can easily carry a single brick to the drying area. Beech wood is the preferred material for constructing the mould because it is believed that the clay does not stick to it. The top of the mould is laminated (covered by a thin layer) with iron to prevent wear. The mould is also coated each time with sand so the bricks will slide out easily. These types of bricks are referred to as "sand struck bricks." The next person on the team is called an offbearer. The off-bearer – David Zinnis walks up to the moulding table, removes the filled mould and takes it to a drying area on either a pallet or wheelbarrow. There it is placed on a level bed of sand. David removes the brick from the mould, stacks the brick to dry, then returns the empty mould to the brick-moulding table. At the moulding table he wets the mould and coats it again with sand. It is now ready for the brick moulder, Darren Bell, to form the next brick. 4. DRYING. The fourth step is drying.

Bricks being wheeled to the car park and stacked for drying by David Zinis Notice the colour of the bricks at this stage. The bricks are then left to dry for about two days. After about two days they are turned over. This is done to facilitate uniform drying and prevent warping. During this time tools called dressers or clappers are used to straighten the bricks and obtain a smooth surface. 3of7

After about four days in dry, hot weather (this can take longer in winter or when there is a lot of rain but future global warming should make this process more reliable) the bricks are sufficiently hard to allow them to be stacked on end. A finger's width space is left between each one to allow air to flow between them. This helps them dry faster. The stacking area is called the car park since it also is used to park the workers vehicles. The bricks are sometimes covered by a roof or with straw to protect them from the rain or harsh sun. After about two weeks the bricks were ready to be fired. 5. FIRING. The fifth step is firing, or burning. Simply heating bricks by placing them in an open fire is not sufficient for firing bricks. They would not get hot enough. In order to obtain the required temperature they have to be baked in a kiln. Since our bricks are made on the same site as where the clay is mined, a kiln has to be constructed each time. If fired bricks are left over from a previous batch, they were used to construct the outer walls of the kiln. The surface is daubed with mud to hold in the heat. If no previously fired bricks were available, the kiln is constructed entirely of green bricks. Green bricks are raw, unbaked bricks. The bricks are stacked in such a way that they act as there own kiln. Wood and coal are used for fuel. Even after drying for more than two weeks in the air, the green bricks still contained 9-15% water. For this reason the fires are kept low for the first 24-48 hours while the bricks continue to dry. At this time steam rises from the top of the kiln in huge white clouds-we call this steam "water smoke" and it is recycled through the office central heating system to keep Mick Lardner our manager warm

When the steam gases finally clear it is the sign to increase the intensity of the fire. If this is done too early, steam forms inside the bricks and causes them to explode. Intense fires are maintained in the fire holes around the clock for about a week. It takes that long to reach the required temperature of around 1,850 degrees F. Reaching the correct temperature is very important. When a brick reaches the correct temperature it begins to 'vitrify.' Vitrification happens when sand and other materials in clay melt and fuse together. This changes the clay into a glass-like material. Properly fired bricks are very strong in compression strength. Compression is the squeezing force on a material. In the case of bricks, most of the compression force comes from their weight on top of each other. Bricks that do not get hot enough during firing are weak in compression strength and will crumble under load. Bricks that become too hot will turn too glass-like and become too brittle. The trick for the brick maker was to get them just right. The correct temperature was just at the point when vitrification started and this is why we require the supervision of Mick Brayford who is our manager. Mick Brayford has to rely on years of knowledge and experience to guess when the bricks were done. When he says the time is right the fire holes of the kiln are bricked over, the fire was put out, and the firing process ended. It then takes more than a week for the kiln to cool down enough to remove the bricks. When cool, the kiln is disassembled and the sorting process begun. If green bricks had been used to make the kiln, those bricks from the outermost walls are kept to be used again in the next kiln. Some bricks that are closest to the fire received a natural wood ash glaze from the sand that fell into the fires, became vaporized, and 4of7

deposited on the bricks. These bricks are usually used in the interior (inside) courses of walls because of their attractive, slick and shiny appearance – they are called Doyley Smooth. Bricks that were severely over-burned, cracked, or warped were called Clinky Rustic and are used for garden walls or garden paths. They are called Clinky Rustic because of the clinking sound they made when they were struck together. They were too glassy and much too brittle to be used in buildings Those that were only slightly under-fired had a salmon color and have porosity (tiny air holes) that helps to insulate a structure. These bricks were placed on the innermost courses of a wall these are called Aero Multi (after the chocolate bar). This is an example of an Aero Multi Finally, the remaining bricks are carefully chosen for our premier superduper multis because they are the strongest and most durable the greater number we make of these the happier our supreme manager Mr Lardner is who overlooks the whole operation. The various bricks are then stacked in our huge brickyard by Andy and Gary Smith in between their many other scams.

Interview With Nick Hunter Nick kindly agreed to this interview provided no picture accompanied it…. Hi er, I am Nick Hunter and I came to work here straight from school on 4th April 1996 after working here for 3 weeks for my work experience the summer before while I was at school. Initially I was set on working with “Badger” who was responsible for setting me on the straight and narrow, Badger was a bit wild in them days, his

hair was all multicoloured, I think I just witnessed the tail end of his mad punk days. Over the last 10-11 years it has got much stricter here at Swillington, we can no longer race our remote control cars on top of the stockpile and the toy cupboard seems to be permanently locked now Darren Bell has the key. Steve Todds hair has also disappeared over the last decade, he used to have fancy Bobby Charlton quiffs but he shaved it all off around the time that I worked in the specials. I think my funniest moment here was when Ian Ball cut Dennis Fox’s (RIP) hair and made a right fu… er mess of it. Ian Ball had cut it all nice and neat with the shaver using a No1 or No2 I can’t remember which. He then told Den Fox that he was just going to “Square it off” at the back and took the attachment off the cutter like you do but then it all went a bit wrong which was a combination of Ian Balls Skill with the shaver and Dennis Fox’s deformed head. The result was at the back it was bald from just level with the top of his ears, Ian then went on to shave round Dens ears and this resulted in a sort of hexagonal shaping which looked really rather ridiculous. Ian Ball was my apprentice at cutting hair in them days and Den was his first live guinea pig, needless to say it was quite a short career for him I think my worst memory since I have been here has got to be getting laid off after 6 months but I then got reinstated and ended up making the teas and cleaning the showers. I spent two years as “Canteen Manager”, in fact both Billy and Neil Chamberlain had done this job in the past, back in those days it was just soup and bread rolls a bit like been in the nick. Mel Rob used to really love the powdered soup, I don’t know if he has been in the nick before, sometimes you got to wonder. Following my stint as canteen manager I was transferred into the specials plant which was subsequently closed down so I went on the Auger to become one of Steve Todd’s men before finally being demoted on to the kiln. What do I think of our managers, well Mick Brayford’s ok I guess, I suppose it’s a case of, 5of7

“better the devil you know”, he can be really nice sometimes when he has one of his fatherly moments and puts his arms around you. I cant say much about Mick Lardner cos I owe him a fiver now Leeds are to be relegated, I suppose he is ok too. If I won the lottery I would disappear off to Spain, live life fast with fast women, gamble a lot and drive big fancy cars. “Life after Death?” what a load of crap, made up by people with a very vivid imagination and if its so good how come you don’t see queue’s of vicars lining up to top themselves? Oh my nickname, Don Fox named me “Dougie” when I first came because I left school with absolutely no qualifications, I learned much more here than I ever did at school. My favourite music is Oasis and Robbie Williams and my hobbies are Golf and Rugby, I am still single with two children a boy and a girl. One last thing is that I want to join Steves Amway Corporation but he is keeping it all to himself along with his little horse racing tips.

Three Peaks… Sunday 6th May is the big day for a few of us who dare venture the 23.5 mile sponsored walk which takes us up nearly 1600m (5200ft) with 3 mountains. The mountains are Whernside the tallest at 736m (2414ft) then

Ingleborough at 723m (2371ft) and the smallest being the first we will conquer on the journey Pen-y-ghent at 694m (2276ft). Along with my 12 year old son, Luke and 13 year old niece, Rebecca, I will be accompanied by Dennis Fox (RIP) who has organized it all, Ian Ball, Lea Ruecroft, Daniel Lumb, Nick Hunter and David Zinis.

The event is in aid of the worth cause the McMillan Nurses and the sponsorship money raised will be matched by Hansons (up to £500), so far I have managed to get nearly £150 from the wagon drivers who come for loading and my friends at Alcoholics Anonymous, Luke has close to £200 and Rebecca at last count around £110. The other day I managed at 14 mile walk on the Canal bank near where I live and returned with my legs aching so I feel I might struggle a bit, in fact I have took my dog for so many walks just lately that when I shout walkies now she just hides. Dennis Fox has warned me not to follow David Zinis since he tends to go miles out of the way looking for little books to sign, but I must thank David Zinis for giving me a lift to Horton In Ribblesdale, I didn’t want to risk taking my car just in case I couldn’t drive home after. Anyway I will be taking my camera and will make a DVD of our trip plus a full report of the memorable event for the future

Works Statistics… Week Com Produced Sold 19/03/2007 451,584 361,520 26/03/2007 454,416 354,110 02/04/2007 447,748 385,896 09/04/2007 269,953 329,032 16/04/2007 460,800 391,082 23/04/2007 427,898 476,138 Positions Name ▲ 2 1 Caveman ▲ 3 2 Stumpy ▲ 6 3 Archers █ 4 4 Buddy Holly ▲ 7 5 Bruce Forcyth ▼ 5 6 Ken & Barbie NEW 7 CX55AEA █ 8 8 Piggys Friend █ 9 9 Greyhound NEW 10 V2RBC NEW 11 Dicky NEW 12 Y473PDN

Stock 15,666,560 15,766,866 15,828,718 15,765,775 15,821,920 15,773,680 Total 84,804 77,141 61,574 47,260 38,558 31,313 31,234 30,406 29,818 27,992 27,292 26,504

In April we broke our weekly record of 458,000 which was set in February to 476,000 which is obviously since I started keeping records. Also in the drivers, Caveman and Stumpy battle it out for the pole position Top 15 For Apr 2007

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Last mth █ 1 ▲ 3 ▼ 2 ▲ 6 ▼ 4 ▼ 5 ▲ 8 ▲ 14 ▲ 11 ▲ 15 NEW ▲ 13 ▼ 10 NEW NEW

pos 1 2 2 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

Name 73 Class B Hanson 65 Manchester 73 City Multi 65 Swaledale Drag 65 Cream Smooth 65 Ryedale Drag 73 Farmhse Brwn 73 Golden Brown 65 Golden Brown 65 Ridings Multi 65 Swaledale Rust 73 Class B Jewson 65 City Multi 65 Derwent Drag 65 Farmhse Brwn

Quantity 362,496 187,776 141,696 125,164 82,264 73,736 57,216 52,992 46,104 42,940 42,488 41,472 36,160 31,640 31,640

Quick Joke The Tax Collector At the end of the tax year, the Tax Office sent an inspector to audit the books of a synagogue. While he was checking the books he turned to the Rabbi and said: "I notice you buy a lot of candles. What do you do with the candle drippings"? "Good question", noted the Rabbi. "We save them up and send them to the candle makers, and every now and then they send us a free box of candles". "Oh", replied the auditor, somewhat disappointed that his unusual question had a practical answer. But on he went, in his obnoxious way: "What about all these biscuit purchases? What do you do with the crumbs"? "Ah, yes", replied the Rabbi, realizing that the inspector was trying to trap him with an unanswerable question. "We collect them and send them back to the manufacturers, and every now and then they send a free box of holy biscuits". "I see", replied the auditor, thinking hard about how he could fluster the know-it-all Rabbi. "Well, Rabbi", he went on, "What do you do with all the left over foreskins from the circumcisions you perform"? "Here, too, we do not waste", answered the Rabbi. "What we do is save up all the foreskins and send them to the Tax Office, and

about once a year they send us a complete dick".

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