Pressed Metal Corporation
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Automotive manufacturing |
| Founded | Late 1930s |
| Fate | Ceased operations in April 1999 |
| Headquarters | Enfield, Sydney , Australia |
Area served | Australia |
| Products | Automotive bodies, vehicle assembly, bus bodies |
Pressed Metal Corporation was an Australian company specializing in automotive body manufacturing and vehicle assembly, headquartered in New South Wales.
History
Founded in the late 1930s, Pressed Metal Corporation (PMC) emerged as a collaborative enterprise between Larke Hoskins, the Austin representatives for New South Wales, and Larke, Neave & Carter, the state's Chrysler distributor. The company operated on a 22-acre property located in the Sydney suburb of Enfield. Initially, PMC assembled a range of Austin automobiles and commercial vehicles until 1954, when the establishment of BMC Australia led to much of Austin's assembly being transferred to Melbourne.
By 1956, PMC was manufacturing Leyland bus chassis, Land Rover vehicles, Morris commercial trucks, and Austin utility models such as the A40 and A50/A55, with body designs developed internally. The firm also undertook subcontracted assembly for BMC products including the Austin-Healey Sprite, Austin Gipsy, MG MGA, MG MGB, MG Midget, and Morris J2. Bus body construction and assembly were conducted at PMC's Milperra location until operations moved to Revesby in 1965.
In 1966, PMC briefly partnered with Datsun Australia under an 18-month contract to assemble Datsun Bluebird 1300 vehicles.
PMC became part of Leyland Australia in 1968. From May 1967 through October 1990, the company produced bodies for 2,289 out of the total 2,603 buses delivered to the State Transit Authority and its antecedents, while also supplying approximately 3,000 buses to private sector operators. Bus body manufacturing concluded in January 1991 with the final vehicle being a Leyland Tiger for St Ives Bus Services. Starting in 1975, PMC assembled various models at Enfield including the Leyland Mini, Leyland Moke, Land Rover Series vehicles, Leyland National bus chassis, and Mercedes-Benz bus chassis.
In July 1996, PMC was part of the acquisition of JRA Limited's bus divisions (formerly Leyland Australia) by Clifford Corporation. The facility was repurposed for bus refurbishment but ultimately ceased operations in April 1999 following Clifford's financial collapse.