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Our thanks
to
Robert [Rab]
Smith the ex
Office Sales
Manager who
tells the story:
Espieside United
Soccer Team
c1962 - Jim
Coats ,Rab Smith
,Gorden Russell.
The Lamberton
Story
Andrew Lamberton started his engineering works in 1882. A Coatbridge man and close friend of Andrew Carnegie. Lamberton became one of Scotland's most notable innovators, building his own steam engines, pumping water from the coalmines and creating rolling mills for the steelworks.Spreading far beyond his native Lanarkshire, he built lead mills and equipment for the goldmines of South Africa.
Continuity was important in 1927, when Andrew Lamberton's son Jack took over as chairman, in time for the problems of the Depression, which ground much of the nation's machinery to a halt.
''Lamberton was down to one man, who opened the mail. If there was any work in the post, he went down to the Fountain, in the town, and collected enough men to come up and do the job.''
Unfortunately, it took the approach of the Second World War to create business, which included the building of machinery to make shells. In the post-war period, Lamberton resumed its service to the steelworks, building rolling mills for people like Colvilles.
They were also making forgings and licensing their processes to the Italians. As a result, you will find Lamberton machinery, like forgings for gear-boxed and crankshafts, in Fiat factories all over the world.
The Building
Main range and offices probably built c1870 for William Baird & Co, iron and coalmasters, to manufacture their Gartsherrie coal cutter first successful Scottish machine of this type. Acquired 1880 by Lamberton and Co, engineers, who made heavy machinery for iron and steel industries.
MAIN RANGE:
brick with
painted
brick
voussoirs
above arched
opening.
Steel roof
trusses with
corrugated
iron
cladding and
strip
glazing. S
elevation
tall arched
windows with
timber-framed
multi-pane
glazing in
lower part
of wall,
grouped
2+2+2+2+2+2+6
W-E, 6 bays
on E may are
later. Name
LAMBERTON
painted
above
central
windows.
Cast iron
band steel
strip tie
plates,
irregularly
spaced.
Cills and
eaves band
moulded
brick.
Extension to
E, lower
part brick,
upper part
corrugated
iron clad,
roof slated
strip
glazing. W
ELEVATION:
gabled,
glazed at 2
levels with
round-headed
windows.
6 windows on
upper level,
3 on lower
level,
modern
sliding door
below 3 N
windows.
Name
LAMBERTON
painted
above upper
windows.
Gable head
corrugated
iron clad,
so roof may
originally
have been
piended.
Other
elevations
obscured.
INTERIOR:
wrought iron
in roof
extended to
E in steel,
N wall
slapped out
and carried
on steel
lattice
stanchions
which also
carries
travelling
cranes, one
of them
fish-bellied.
Robert [Rab]
Smith the ex
Office Sales
Manager
takes up the
story again:
Some of the
companies,
that
Lambertons
did
sub-contract
work for:
-
ABB
Vetco
Gray in
Aberdeen- Oil
Equipment
for
the North
Sea :
-
Haliburton
in
Arbroath-
Drilling
Equip.
for the
Rigs:
-
Howden
Group in
Glasgow-
Wind
Turbines
etc.:
-
Sheffield
Forgemasters
in
Sheffield-
name
speaks
for
itself:
-
Shepley
Engineers
in
Cumbria
-
Stainless
steel
parts
for
Brittish
Neuclear
Fuel.:
-
McTaggart
Scott in
Loanhead
Edinburgh-
Mainly
work for
the
Ministry
of
Defence
Originally
we worked to
planning
sheets
supplied by
them, which
was for the
old style
boring
mills, using
a line
boring bar,
since the
new machines
were very
accurate
when turning
the table I
re-planned
to suit.
Again I was
told on your
head be it,
well to cut
it short,
the quality
was better,
the customer
very happy,
to the point
of their M.
D. asking
Goldie for a
copy of my
planning,
which I
supplied.
Cameron Iron
Works in
Livingstone-
They had
a multi-ram
closed die
forging
press,
30,000 ton,
the largest
in the
world, which
worked in
conjunction
with a three
station
9,000 ton
press. They
could
extrude
seamless
pipe, which
they did for
torpedoes,
using their
own design
of jaws.
There lots
more, but
I'll not
bore you, I
remember
that we were
going to
brick up the
windows, as
the kids
kept
breaking
them with
stones. We
were stopped
by council,
and had to
get
permission,
to install
wire mesh on
the outside.
1991
is the year
I believe
the company
folded
Hi there...
I just
returned
from a
vacation in
Glasgow, and
while on the
train to see
my cousin we
stopped at
Coatbridge
and I saw
the
Lamberton's
Building.
Curious, I
googled it
when I
returned
home to
Canada as my
father used
to work
there before
immigrating
to Canada in
1968. In
your
Lamberton's
Group photo
circa 1963 -
I managed to
see him!
That was
great - as I
do not have
a copy of
that
photo. My dad
passed away
3 years ago
this
November 7th
after a long
battle with
cancer. He
is marked as
"unknown" in
the photo -
and I was
hoping that
you could
put a name
to his
face. He
was born
James
Forrester
White but
most called
him "Jim
(Big Jim )
White".
Sorry - I
forgot to
mention that
he is number
#33 in that
photo.
I thank you
in advance,
Sincerely,
April M.
White
Vancouver,
BC Canada
Hi Tom
I was
just
checking
some
family
history
place
data,
myself
being
descended
from a
Thomas
Boyd b
1791 who
was
married
in Old
Monkland
to a
Janet
Wotherspoon,
Noted
the name
Lambertons
with
interest
- I
worked
for many
years
for
Distington
Engineering
in
Workington,
where
latterly
we
designed
and
project-managed
continuous
casting
plants
worldwide.
Recall
that a
big
amount
of
engineering
work was
regularly
subcontracted
to
Lambertons,
so our
Expeditors
etc
should
have
been no
strangers
to you
or your
colleagues
!
Seem to
remember
too that
the
Workington
Moss Bay
railmaking
plant
had a
big 'Lambertons
Straightener'
too.
regards
David
Boyd
Hi
John
Thanks
for
the
offer
of
help with
Lamberton family
research.
I
have
more
or
less
found
all
the
family
on
this
side,
however
have
some
verification
to
do
with
the
records
office.
I am
now
trying
to
put
the
meat
on
the
bones
so
to
speak
such
as
finding
out
a
little
more
on
the
Lamberton
factory.
I
have
a
little
but
not
much
and
as I
said
to
Tom
I
would
send
it
on.
For
the
sake
of
posterity
I
would
love
to
find
a
name
plate
or
something
similar
with
the
Lamberton
name
so
if
you
ever
hear
of
anything
you
could
let
me
know.
Regards
Ian
Lamberton
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