| Charles Benjamin Colett was a skilled production man who, outside of the railway environment, was very much an introvert. However, he was most certainly capable of working closely with others, but he selected those in key positions under him carefully and made sure they followed his line of thinking. He had the great legacy of Churchward to build upon and, as such, his locomotives were to follow Churchward in their concept, subtly re-styled to give and impression of new thinking. The GWR Works at Swindon were, perhaps, the best example of excellence in railway engineering and production in the UK. Many flocked to see the up-to-date facilities in action. All Collett's working life was spent there and he rose from humble beginnings as a draughtsman to CME through sheer competence and ability. His private life was just that, private and, not surprisingly, little has survived concerning this. However, though the writings of several who knew him, a picture of a sometimes difficult communicator and single-minded production engineer is apparent. He certainly used Churchward's expertise to the full and ensured that the GWR Locomotives designed under him were good enough to last to the end of steam. He was also aware of the potential of diesel power and saw to its introduction on passenger services. It is hoped that this biography will give a picture of those days of the GWR ion the first half of the 20th century and how Collett played an important part in shaping the locomotive and stock developments that appeared. Contents:
- Foreword
- Preamble
- Introduction and Acknowledgements
- Collett, The Early Years
- The Works Days
- Consolidation and War
- The Top Job and Grouping
- The “Castle” Beginnings and Personal Tragedy
- Mixed Traffic and the “Halls”
- The “King” Class Developments
- Tanks and small Mixed-trafic Developments
- Works Improvements and Carriage and Wagon Stock Developments
- Railcars, Streamlining and Production techniques
- The “New” 4-4-0s and Some Final 4-6-0s Electrification, War Again and Retirement
- Swindon Works – A Lesson in Productivity
- ATC on the GWR
- GWR Financial Performance
- Collett Locomotives
- Other Collett builds of existing designs
- Preserved Collett Locomotives
- Preserved Churchward designs as built by Collett
- Bibliography
- Index
Continent: Europe
Country: UK |
