UK glass business Pilkington, part of the NSG Group, is celebrating its history and has created an online heritage hub, recognising its rich past in the glass industry. Historic images chart Pilkington UK’s almost 200-year history in glass making, and the lives of those involved in the business, from the three wealthy founding families, to the apprentices and production line workers.
The hub recognises the seminal contributions of Sir Alistair Pilkington, with his industry-shaping invention of the float glass process in 1958 – now the world standard for high-quality flat glass manufacture. The online archive has been created ahead of next year’s 70th anniversary celebration of work beginning on the float process, which also coincides with the UN International Year of Glass.
The hub reveals details about the process’ seven years in development, which required £28m of investment, equating to £150m in today’s money. It also offers an insight into other glass technologies, such as the crown process, which used a blow pipe to form the first transparent window glass. Pilkington UK’s original name, St Helens Crown Glass Company, was a nod to this process.
As the longstanding largest employer in St Helens, Pilkington UK has touched the lives of many, the business claims. Tony Clisham, for example, began as a labourer in 1956, aged 15, alongside his brother. Throughout his decades with the company, he was an apprentice glass cutter, a supervisor over the glass cutting machines, and is now a tour guide for Pilkington UK, aged 79.
Tony said: “During my time with the company, I’ve seen a huge amount of change. I saw the introduction of the float process and the monumental impact it had, and still has, on the glass industry. I also saw the switch from manual to machines, and my role moved from cutting glass by hand with a diamond, to supervising the cutting machines.
“But something that hasn’t changed is the family feel of the company. The Pilkingtons used to live in St Helens; they could’ve lived anywhere, but they chose to live among the families who worked for them. Sir Harry Pilkington was a rugby fan, and he used to come onto the factory floor to talk to me and the lads about it – some of them even played rugby for the Pilkington Recs. And the company has continued to look after me like family.”
In its more recent history, Pilkington UK was acquired by the NSG Group, in 2006. Matt Buckley, managing director at Pilkington UK, added: “Today, as part of NSG Group, Pilkington UK remains at the forefront of advanced glazing technology, creating innovative products such as antiviral and heated glass to solve a variety of challenges in the built environment. The heritage hub helps us to tell our story and show how, since our inception, we’ve continued to lead the way in new technologies.”
Pilkington invites anyone who has old photos or stories from the past about the business, to share them via its heritage hub, here. You can also share stories and images through the business’ social media channels (@PilkingtonUK).
