Nuffield Mechanizations and Aero

Nuffield Mechanizations and Aero Limited

Company type	Private company
Industry	Defence, aerospace, automotive engineering
Founded	1935
Founder	William Morris, 1st Viscount Nuffield
Defunct	1945
Fate	Ceased operations
Headquarters	Coventry and Birmingham , United Kingdom
Key people	William Morris, 1st Viscount Nuffield (Chairman), Oliver Boden, Herbert Clark, Andrew Walsh, Wilfred Hobbs
Products	Tank engines, Bofors 40 mm guns, aero engines (until 1936)

Nuffield Mechanizations and Aero Limited, also referred to as Mechanizations and Aero Ltd or Nuffield Mechanizations Ltd, was the private venture of William Morris, 1st Viscount Nuffield, dedicated to enhancing mechanisation and mobility capabilities for the British Army and the Royal Air Force's ground units.

Established in 1935 to separate the aircraft engine manufacturing activities of Wolseley Motors from its automobile operations—which had merged with Morris Motors—the company adopted the name "Nuffield Mechanizations and Aero Limited" in 1937 following its acquisition of Nuffield Mechanizations Limited.

Origin

Following Wolseley's insolvency during the 1920s, William Morris purchased the company in 1927 for £730,000. Although Wolseley commenced aero engine development in 1929, Lord Nuffield retained ownership of this division when he divested Wolseley Motors to Morris Motors in 1935.

The board of directors featured Lord Nuffield as chairman, alongside Oliver Boden, Herbert Clark, Andrew Walsh, and Wilfred Hobbs.

In 1935, at the behest of Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin, Lord Nuffield undertook modernising efforts for mechanisation within both the Army and the Air Force’s ground forces. As a result, the Wolseley Aero Engine factory transitioned to producing tank engines, while research teams were established to improve military mechanisation and mobility.

Aero engines

Nuffield encountered difficulties securing government contracts for aero-engine manufacturing because officials asserted that current suppliers sufficiently met demand and declined to award new contracts. He was excluded from the government's shadow factory initiative, which involved setting up new factories to produce components later assembled elsewhere. Despite proposing to manufacture engines at his existing facility, no interest was shown, leading him to announce the closure of his aero-engine operations in 1936. Following discussions with the prime minister, Wolseley redirected efforts toward tank engine production. The Secretary of State for Air Lord Swinton reassured Parliament that Nuffield’s organisational resources would be effectively utilised by the State.

Development of Wolseley aero engines ceased in September 1936. A sophisticated 250-horsepower Wolseley radial engine project was abandoned after Nuffield received fixed-price Intention to Proceed (ITP) contract terms from the Air Ministry, which he regarded as excessively bureaucratic. Consequently, he chose to collaborate exclusively with the War Office and Admiralty, deliberately avoiding engagement with the Air Ministry (see Airspeed).

Tanks

Nuffield’s first tank model was the Cruiser Mk III, derived from a Christie design developed in the 1930s and imported from the USA. Prototype vehicles were delivered in April 1937, with production "A13 Mark I" versions commencing in December 1938; sixty-five units were manufactured by Nuffield. This design evolved into the A13 Mk II, known as the Cruiser Mk IV, which featured upgraded armor; while Nuffield produced some units, other manufacturers supplied additional vehicles. These tanks employed Nuffield-built Liberty L-12 engines.

In response to a 1937 demand for a heavier cruiser tank, Nuffield developed a design under General Staff specification "A16," incorporating Christie suspension and powered by the Liberty engine. Only one prototype, designated A16E1, was constructed; neither it nor LMS's A14 design advanced beyond cancellation in 1939.

When LMS's Covenanter tank was ordered in 1939, Nuffield elected instead to produce their own design fulfilling the same specification using the Liberty engine, resulting in the Crusader tank. Though initially effective, Crusaders became known for reliability problems during North African operations and were withdrawn from frontline service by 1942; however, the Crusader III introduced the Mk. IV Liberty engine which addressed many of these issues.

Following this, Nuffield Mechanizations developed the Cavalier tank, also powered by the Liberty engine. Despite being produced in quantity, its limited engine power combined with increasing vehicle weight prevented it from seeing combat deployment. The final Liberty-powered tank was the A27L Centaur tank, essentially identical to the Cromwell tank but equipped with a less powerful engine output.

Bofors guns

Throughout the Second World War, the Coventry facility on Gosford Street was responsible for producing more than half of the United Kingdom's supply of Bofors 40 mm Automatic Guns, an essential weapon for anti-aircraft defense.

Locations

Nuffield Mechanizations maintained manufacturing sites at Drews Lane in Ward End, Birmingham, as well as on Gosford Street in Coventry.

References

• James Leasor, Wheels to Fortune, Cornwall, England, Stratus, 2001