New Fabrication Shop

By 1979 the Glasgow Engineering workshops were busy with major work being done for A.P.P.M’s woodchip mill at Longreach, Forest Resources woodchip mill at Longreach and A.P.P.M’s mill at Triabunna and Burnie. Because of the enormous output of woodchips, around one million tons a year, these mills required first class service and maintenance to keep them running. Glasgow Engineering were manufacturing the knife clamps, carriers and knife holders, face plates and wear plates on the impact side of the chipper disc. The A.P.P.M chippers had a disc size of 153 inch in diameter and have a weight of around 20 ton. Numerous other jobs were encountered in the everyday running of these mills.

 

 Ship repair work was also being done for the Port of Launceston Authority in the William Hart Dry Dock on ships from all over Australia. At the time Glasgow Engineering had one of the biggest workshops in Launceston and the largest lathe in Tasmania. Thirty tradesmen were employed, some working nearly full time on site at the dry dock and at the woodchip mills. Mr Alfred Hutton extended the work shop to three times its original capacity to cope with the increased work load. A large fabrication shop was built, dirt floors were replaced with concrete in the machine shop, and all of the machinery updated. This increased productivity many times over.

 

Glasgow Engineering also began their Crane Hire business in 1979. The first mobile crane was a Cap 6 ton hydraulic truck crane originally mounted on an old Fuso truck. The old Fuso chassis was later upgraded to an Acco truck at the company’s works and was successfully operated for many years by Kevin Hughes. The move into the crane business was primarily to assist with the construction of the company’s new fabrication shop. Affectionately given the name Noddy the crane served the company successfully for many years.