Mathers Foundry, The Final Tour.

Tour of Mathers Foundry Newton Heath prior to closure 27 june 2017

[@leewat3742]

Hiya Pete, I work for what is now Johnson Controls, formally Tyco, formally Wormald, formally Mather & Platt. I only ever used the gym at the old Mather and Platt factory, that was if I remember correctly was over the pattern shop, I was never a Mathers man as the company I originally worked for was taken over after the new office block and workshop were built on Grimshaw Lane/Oldham road. There are still quite a few of the Mathers guys still here. I do remember the football matches, Foundry v's Wormald at the social club. Foundry guys usually won. I loved the social club and could be usually found there after work for a couple before going home. My motorcycle was nicked from inside the fencing in 2000 and the cheeky gits pushed it round to the canal on the side that the pool table was on that looked out to the football field, I must have been at the bar at the time as I was playing pool that evening. Great vid, I only ever saw the outside and the gym. On a slight another side, I saved a few drawings for fire doors originally from the 1920's and not updated until 1947 quite a few years ago (before the building refurb) for Eamon O'Brian who was collecting Mathers things for the Manchester museum of science and industry. Thanks for sharing , cheers, Lee.

[@MrOldways]

I used to drive the overhead electric cranes in the foundry in the 70`s, old Joe was my teacher.

[@keithbutler1997]

Great video i worked for worthington simpson one of your competitors, also gone

[@opelstu]

So sad it's gone! I had a brief spell in the pump shop upto Christmas in 93! Great bunch guys.

[@manchester1972]

Shame seeing this... I worked in the offices from 88 until 93..some great years.. The lads from the foundry Crap hat and Russ... Taught us how to drink.. Me and my great friend Lee Carroll started together straight from school. Lee rip sadly passed away very young.. But we had some fantastic times... I was stuck in the offices on the shop floor. Think on 10 bay. With Harry and Lorna.. Lorna, was sound and super chilled was my boss.. .i Had to be there everyday at 7am..i was on the 5.45 am 80 bus from Moston Ben Brierley unpo Newton heath. Get off the stop passed Sharps, bacon butty then the walk down to the shop floor... Finished at 4.30. Straight in the social club or the Gibraltar for a game of killer with the foundry lads.. With all them lads, was 1 girl who worked with all the lads.. Good looking lady with a suntan.. Wonder if anybody remembers her.. Somebody will as she stood out.. As I think the only female working on the shop floor.. Meaning non office... I did spend time in accounts bit the shop floor with the smells and the burning metal. And the stray cats was the place that interested me.. So sad to see it's all gone.. People are lost without it.. I see an older guy.. He was at mathers grafting day in day out.. Now if I call for a pint, he is always sat on his own in weatherspoons middleton. I said u ok pal.. He said I miss my days in graft and miss the lads and a sense of belonging.. That's what out industry's was built on... Sad to see the government ripped the industry apart... But I will always be thankful for the work ethic I got from mathers. It held me in good sted.. I'm 52 now and I'm a call centre manager, so it turned out OK for myself.. I just hope everyone else turned out OK..I had a massive crush on a girl there, Tina Brooks, haha.. I often wondered how she got on.. I left when I was 24 and moved away for a time, so I lost touch with everyone.. But again Thank you mathers for the memories.. The memories I had with Lee are priceless to me..

[@iainwalker8701]

I owned a Colchester 2000 CNC Lathe that used to be in this plant. Interesting to know where it came from. I find it rather depressing hearing factories like this being quiet.

[@MrPetewoody]

Mather&Platt the best engineerings company in Manchester. My father Cliff Woodworth worked for many years in them dressing booths, I started my apprenticeship at Mathers in 1975, with 46 years continuous service with M&P/Weirs/Trillium, great memories of going in the foundry to have a word we my Dad, but didn’t say too long due to the fumes, don’t know how them guys managed to work in them conditions God only knows?

[@manchester1972]

Plenty of beer was sunk after work. In the social or the gib. Lol.. Hard workers the lot of them and deserved a drink.

[@chrisb6602]

Only just found this, my dad worked here. He died when I was 17. Thank you so much for doing this.

[@chrisb6602]

I'm 41 now, so to be able to see this is amazing, thank you.

[@davidm-1965tb]

My dad worked there too. Great to see this

[@ruk2023--]

Fascinating video, thanks. Shame this era ended. I used to go past this place fairly regularly a few years ago on a canal boat and I aways wanted to know what was going on in there. There was a regular air release noise that sounded like a lot of pressure escaping that I had come to the assumption was some kind of air hammer or moulding but I can't see what would cause that noise?

[@peterobinson828]

That will have been the arc air booths the air pressure used behind the arc air rods to blow the molten metal away from the operatives , it was very loud

[@ruk2023--]

@@peterobinson828 Thanks, that's been something I have always wondered about.

[@mikeharland3358]

I worked in the drawing office, hydraulic design, so sad.

[@mikeharland3358]

Send the video to the Tory government.

[@touchstar100]

thanks for showing us around

[@cairankelly9881]

Does anybody know what the small out building with radiation signs on it was used for?

[@peterobinson828]

Cairan Kelly It the old xray room

[@cairankelly9881]

pete robinson Thanks

[@ashleyrolfe9121]

Does anyone know if they manufactured the Hydrostats here?

[@tckerr1]

Was this part of Mather & Platt..

[@spex357]

Another one gone.

[@peterobinson828]

Yes it was