Down to the Wire – BHP Sydney Wiremill
BHP WIRE PRODUCTS: THE CLOSURE OF THE SYDNEY WIREMILL (1884-1998)
photos and text by Michael mangold
National Library of Australia Cataloging-in-Publication entry
Mangold, Michael
BHP Wiremill, 1998
ISBN 0 958 6281 0 6
This book condensers the long history of the Sydney Wiremill into a few short pages; the record levels of production, the technological innovations and the essential role its products have played in Australia’s rural and construction Industries.The book’s main purpose however is to pay tribute to the generations of people who made all of these things happen through the strength of their character and their willingness to work together for the satisfaction and security at gave them.
Acknowledgements
First and foremost I would like to thank BHP for being so open and responsive to the idea of documenting the BHP Sydney Wiremill to commemorate its official closure on Saturday 5 December 1998. BHP has handled the closure with intelligence, responsibility and great sensitivity.
Many thanks to Ross Mulholland, Manager Wiremills Development, BHP Wire Products, who instigated this book and supported if wholeheartedly from beginning to end. Ross, as mentioned elsewhere in the book, began his career with BHP as a trainee at the Sydney Wiremill.
Thanks to Greg Knight, Quality Assurance Technical Officer, who also began his career at the Sydney Wiremill. It was Greg who Ross entrusted with guiding me, my assistant and a hefty load of camera and lighting equipment, safely through the Wiremill while it was still very much in operation.
Special thanks to all Wiremill employees for their cooperation and generosity of spirit during the photography and interviews for this book. The time taken to adjust lights and check exposures made standing in front of the camera difficult, especially in the record heat of the summer of 1997/ 98, but no one complained.
Photo captions
Front page: The Cleaning House
Inside Cover: Wire netting from the Sydney Wiremill proudly displayed by Wire Workers Union, 1 October 1906.
Title Page: The gatehouse on Blackwall Point Road, Chiswick, where generations of employees punched the bundy clock before entering the factory.
Preface [PAGE 3 – 4]
I first became aware of the BHP Sydney Wiremill while I was photographing sections of the historic Nestlé site, next door, for Drummoyne Council. I had visited and worked part-time in factories like these as a student in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The lineage of these factories connected them directly with the full thrust of the industrial revolution in the 19th Century.
The harnessing of massive amounts of energy in driving finely tooled machinery to transform raw materials into high quality finished products is something that has always fascinated me. When I was photographing the Wiremill and almost all of the 220 remaining employees, I was conscious time was running out with the impending closure of the Wiremill at the end of 1998.
The chance to interview a number of these people was a privilege. One employee (Tony Yannopoulo) who set down in front of my microphone had left school at 15 and had been with the company for almost 30 years. He spoke five languages and had a perspective on life that, as he said himself; “No textbook for university could ever teach.”
As surely as it manufactured wire netting, the Wiremill meshed engineering, quality assurance, logistics, administration and customer service into a culture of cooperation and teamwork. A modern purpose-built wiremill would align its processes very closely so that each stage flowed smoothly and efficiently into the next. This could never happen at the Sydney Wiremill because its layout and its links to the marketplace had been formed too long ago to change.
Tradition, teamwork, and new technology wherever possible, were used to overcome the limitations of the site and to keep the Wiremill profitable right up to its closure at the end of 1998. One fellow I photographed was shocked to discover I was using black and white film. He was convinced the photos would look old even before they were published. He had a point that black and white photographs last indefinitely compared to colour photographs.
A selection of photographs from this book is to be placed in the State Library of New South Wales, where the Curator of Photography, Alan Davies, values black and white photography for its archival properties.
Another fellow was not convinced he should be photographed in his overalls but I believe the strength and dignity of every employee who has ever worked at the Wiremill is highlighted by the opportunity to see this, the last of a very long line of Wiremill employees, at work.
Michael Mangold
Photo caption
Page 3: “The site selected for the Factory was at Five Dock, on the Parramatta River, about 5 miles from the metropolis, where the industry has been carried out ever since with varying fortune.” Brothers & Co. corporate capability brochure, 1910 edition.
Strands of wire [page 5 – 6]
“When you are working in a place and change comes, it is not sudden, it is bit by bit.” Con Stratis, Section Leader, Wire Products, August 1998
Wire runs through Australian economic and social history like the threads in our clothing. Anyone who has ever seen wire netting being manufactured at the BHP Wiremill, on the shores of Parramatta River at Five Dock in Sydney, will know exactly what I mean. Strands of silvery wire endlessly unwinding from bobbins to the hissing and thumping of steel weaving machines turning out all-Australian products that are literally the fabric of rural industry in this country.
It was an amazing sight, to stand alongside these machines was like being taken back to the mysteries of childhood when curiosity about where things come from and how they are done, made life interesting, exciting and satisfying. The transformation of individual wires into woven mesh for fencing was magical to watch. The sweet smell of well-oiled machines and the sweat of men permeated the air, powerful evocations of industriousness and purpose.
The BHP Wiremill was originally built in 1884 and although there have been many changes down the years, some of them involving the development of the most advanced galvanising technologies in the world, the factory became inescapably old. Changes in the wire market, business costs and the escalation of real estate values for harbourside properties and the residential developments surrounding the Wiremill made its closure inevitable. Yet when Lysaght Bros. of Great Britain originally built the Wiremill at Five Dock, the site offered a unique pathway to lucrative new markets in the rural industry .
Steamships brought the wire feed from Germany to Sydney where it was unloaded onto barges before being taken up the Parramatta River to the Wiremill. Manpower was then used to push trolleys along rails to the machines at the top of the ridge. The logic of the factory layout utilised gravity to assist in the transfer of materials through various processes and in bringing the finished products back down to the wharf for despatch.
One of the most striking features of archival photos of the Wiremill from earlier this century is the familiarity of many products and areas of the factory. Spread out over a period of more than 100 years even quite dramatic changes in technology and layout seem gradual. The history of the Wiremill is layered. The overlapping of generations of workers has seen their knowledge of machines, techniques and experiences from days gone by, handed down and kept in the corporate memory of the site. It is a proud tradition of values fairly and squarely centred on the family and the work ethic.
Photo captions
Page 5: Coiling Shop for wire netting, 1935.
Page 6: Wet wiredrawing of weaving wire, c. 1920.
Netting the market [page 7 – 12]
There can be no doubt that the break in continuity was an important factor in the feelings of loss experienced by the last generation of personnel to work in the Wiremill before all operations ceased on Saturday 5 December 1998. It is worth noting that the pressures on this business, as they are on any business, have been significant right from the very beginning. The Wiremill has been on the brink of closure on at least two occasions previously.
“The works were carried on at a heavy loss for sometime, and the late Mr John Lycett hater special visit to discuss the situation, when it was seriously thought of closing the factory. “ Lysaght Bros. & Co corporate capability brochure, 1910 edition, page 7.
Lysaght Bros. were the first and only manufacturer of wire in Australia for many years. They were already supplying most of Australia’s requirements for galvanised sheet and roofing materials from their factories in Great Britain. They also had a significant technological advantage. The weaving looms they used for wire netting were invented and patented by John Lysaght in the 1850s. The introduction of the rabbit to Australia in 1859 and the plagues that followed created a huge market for wire netting.
The looms that the new wiremill in Sydney were originally powered by steam produced on the site before the advent of electricity. However the operation of the Wiremill remained labour intensive to varying degrees right through to the 1980s. This was the case despite the introduction of new technologies because the limitations of the site’s layout ultimately prevented a more streamlined process. The fact that the company was able to maintain a stranglehold on its market also assisted in ensuring that the operation remained economic throughout its history even though labour continued to be a significant cost factor.
The annual demand for wire netting in Australia reached 10,000 km by 1890 and 50,000 km by 1913. Lysaght Bros. market share was around 50% by 1904, 10 years later the Wiremill’s labour force had increased from 25 to almost 400 and the company’s market share was just about 100%! Archival copies of some of the company’s early corporate capability brochures reveal a sophisticated marketing strategy based on product quality, premium pricing, recruiting, new technology, customer service, and vigorous political lobbying.
The Lysaght Bros. & Co. Ltd. corporate capability brochure A Description of the Works from 1910 details the company’s long-term strategies:
“In the early days of its existence the Firm had a serious obstacle to contend with in a prejudice which no doubt existed against Colonial made goods, but in the course of time this was not only overcome, but buys came to freely admit the superiority of the locally made article, and for many years a premium has been paid for it.”
“It is almost entirely owing to the fact that a preference is given by the public for LYSAGHT’S Netting, and a consequent higher price paid, that the Company has been able to do battle against the fierce competition of European manufacturers, and while paying more than double the rate of wages, still keep its head above water, although for years past it has been a hard fight for the Company.”
“The number of men and boys employed under the same conditions is about 500.”
“Altogether the Plant and Machinery is of a most up-to-date and modern character, in many cases unique and special processes being used.”
“… the expenditure of still further capital has made yet further improvements, both in the weaving of the Netting and its galvanising, and with the loyal support its customers can still boast that it not only holds its own, but controls the major portion of the State in this article.”
Photo captions
Page 7: Cvetko Livrinski
Page 8: 1. (L to R) Wayne McMillan, Rodolfo Leon, Sione Huaku and Tony Garofolo. 2. (L to R) Neville Duthie, Christos Nicolaids, Christ Vrentas, Dallas Beattie and Chris Nikifordis. 3. (L to R) Carlos Roncero, John Bojarski, Bob Hallworth and Steve Nicki. 4. (L to R) Tonny Gallo, Ferdinand Arimado, Larry Martins, Richard Costello and Chris Benn.
Page 9: Left (L to R): Rey Pasaporte, Istvan Dudas, Ilidis Gaspar, Vasa Topal, Dragan Karanovic, Alois Rujicica, Selmo Sehovic, Fausto Da Costa, Laureano Fernandez, Jose Galdamez, Ricardo Vera and Edgardo Palces.
Page 10: Netting Galvanising Shop, 1935.
Page 11: (L to R): Yue-Min Wang, Ledua Guana, Jim Xenofontos, Peter Lawton and Tony Renderio. (Kneeling L to R): Emmanuel Kariotakis and Frank Ciano.
Page 12: 1. (L to R) Chris Arimado, Ahmet Matezic, Reynaldo Dela Torre, Allan Jack and Ibrahim Preljevic. 2. (L to R) Dennis Adams, Joe Monebit, Nick Matheos and Chris Marousis. 3. (L to R) Asaf Balca, Carmelo Ferraro, Cameron Hay, Anil Singh and Manuel Valente. 4. (L to R) Barry Odium, Scott Cool, Paris Patos and Sam Vang.
Jobs that built communities [Page 13 – 16]
The labor intensive nature of the Sydney Wiremill’s operations meant a continuing reliance on immigration. The size of the labour force reached its peak at 1,300 in the 1930s at a time when jobs were scarce. Up until the late 1940s materials were moved through the factory almost entirely by manpower. Other factories in the area such as the Dunlop Tyre Factory at Birkenhead Point, the Dulux Paint factory, and the Nestlé factory right next door to the Sydney Wiremill all had a strong demand for skilled and unskilled labour, particularly in the boom years following World War 2.
Communities grew up in the vicinity of these factories because buying a car to drive to work was not an option for ordinary workers. Almost everyone walked to work, rode a bicycle or caught a bus. Life was also less pressured and friends and relatives from extended families tended to seek work together. Secure and stable employment was the order of the day for employers and their workers. A job at the Sydney Wiremill was ‘a job for life’ with prospects of good pay and good training.
“Many of the personnel at the Sydney Wiremill could, and can, boast 40 to 50 years of employment. Sons often succeeded fathers and a number of interrelated families were employed. “ AWI Growing Up With Australia, Sydney Wiremill Centenary, page 18.
At the beginning of 1998 when the reality of the closure of the Wiremill was being accepted by even the longest term employees he was a unique opportunity to use the months ahead to take a long and final look at the legacy of the Sydney Wiremill.
Amongst other things that closure of the Wiremill highlights the enormous external pressures of social and technological change of the past 10 to 20 years. Whereas once the Wiremill and neighbouring factories had been surrounded by the freestanding dwellings of their workers, a rising tide of residential home unit developments was now lapping at the boundaries of the site. It was only a matter of time before the Wiremill would be redeveloped for housing. The globalisation of markets and the dismantling of remaining barriers to international finance and trade also put tremendous cost pressures on the site.
BHP had steadily acquired a controlling interest in the Wiremill and in the majority of wire manufacturers in Australia from about 1918 on. The strength of the parent company bought the Sydney Wiremill time but the factors already mentioned and the opportunity to consolidate the company’s wiremill operations in Newcastle close to the steelworks, meant the Sydney Wiremill’s days were numbered. The rationalisation of the wire industry parallels the rationalisation and restructuring of many other Australian industry sectors, including the rural sector that provided the market originally responsible for the Wiremill’s prolonged growth. Australia no longer ‘rides on the sheep’s back’ and rabbits are now being attacked biologically.
Photo captions
Page 14: (L to R): Graziano Beotich, Ottavino Forner, Owen Salmon, Ron Tenisi, Aurel Zahortea, Con Dovitsas, Antonio Verissimo, Phillip Kilazoglou, Jan Kraus and Selim Salaj.
Page 15: (L to R): Alberto Chrzastowski, David Macadam, John Natoli, Jeffrey Stocker, Marek Plucinski, John Rogers, Mark Brunner, Wayne Watson and Luigi Mariotto.
Page 16: 1. (L to R) Garry Gaffney, Eugene Assan, Edwin Brown, Simone Seiuli and Mark Edwards. 2. (L to R) Uso Mackic, Allan Lee, Antonio Guevarra and Richard Tuapola. 3. (L to R) Elpidio Tumapang and Vindeun Khouangrasvongsy. 4. (L to R) Tai Anderson, Theos Marinos, Lino Wilson and Jon Hiku.
Growth through technology [Page 17 – 20]
“The technology has changed a lot. We used to do a lot of manual work then they introduced cranes, forklifts and computers. “ Con Dovistas, Supervisor, Wiremill, January 1998
No one can say BHP’s Wiremill at Five Dock has not been a success or has been slow to move with the times. In 1925 the Wiremill employed 1200 ‘Men and Boys’ and its annual output was approximately 36,000 tons of wire. By 1984, the Wiremills centenary, employee numbers were down to 500 but the capacity of the factory had grown to 190,000 tonnes! The Wiremill’s galvanising technologies are still amongst the most advanced in the world.
In the 1960s the introduction of forklift trucks( known as ram trucks at the 1 mil because of their long thick rhinoceros like spike) and other materials handling equipment, speeded up the flow of materials between processes and reduced the amount of physical effort required. Timber pillars, and sections of the original wooden plant flooring impregnated by oil over the years, were removed to provide passages for the ram trucks.
“The process of wiping the zinc off, that’s the real black magic in galvanising, that’s what separates us from second best.” Max Porter, Manager, Medium Wire Galvanising, February 1998
“Ten, fifteen, twenty years ago you should have seen how it was. Now everything is press button and it lifts up. Before, we had to strip all the coils by hand, manually. It wasn’t easy I’ll tell you. Now it’s like a holiday.” PeterContellis, Training Officer, Wire Galvanising, January 1998
Photo captions
Page 17: Test House.
Page 11: (Standing L to R): Peter Wilson, Adam Ayoush, James Robert, Antonio Figueira and Ilija Aceski.
Page 19: (L to R): Wayne Watson, Mark Brunner, John Rogers and Paul Kightly.
Page 20: (L to R): Jose Termesana, Donato Carnevale, Antonio Carrasqueira, Vincenzo De-Fina, Tom Moore, Dennis Prodromidis and Panagiotis Capaleris.
A new generation of trainees [page 21 – 24]
“The general manager we had when I first started was one of the nicest and most caring men you could ever come across but we would have more contact with Frank (Theuns) than we did with Mr Henderson. That’s another difference too, I called him Mr Henderson.” Adele Marsden, Pay Clerk, April 1998
Management styles changed markedly at the Sydney Wiremill in the past 40 years with less and less emphasis on hierarchy and more and more on communication. The days when the general manager had an assistant manager and a secretary had also disappeared long ago.
“I started straight from school and right at the bottom as an apprentice fitter machinist. So I work from there right up to the top engineering job on this site.” Geoff Jupp, Engineering Services Supervisor, January 1998
The 1960s were a time of full employment in Australia and whether you were a young high school graduate, a youth seeking an apprenticeship, a qualified tradesperson or an unskilled labourer, there was no shortage of permanent positions and career opportunities. There was even an incentive scheme at one stage that paid a reward of $40 to employees for introducing a new employee to the company. The Sydney Wiremill was still trading as Lysaght Bros. but by then was part of a AWI (Australian Wire Industries). AWI was formed by BHP in 1958 to coordinate the management, production and distribution for the Sydney, Newcastle, Geelong and Kwinana Wiremills, the Wire Rope Works and Bullivants Pty Ltd.
Training and development at all levels have been high on the agenda throughout BHP for many years and Sydney Wiremill was no exception. Until recent times around 20 apprentices were taken on at the Wiremill each year.
“It was a family type company, the fathers and then the grandfathers and so on, the sons got a job here one after the other but in recent times that has slowly changed. I just happened to be living not far from here and I was after a job and a position for an apprentice fitter machinist came up. I applied for it and made a career at BHP.” John Bojarski, Supervisor, Medium Product Line, January 1998
Traineeships were also very important. Ross Mulholland, Max Porter and Frank Theuns were among those who took up traineeships at the Wiremill. The irony of having started as a trainee at the Wiremill and having responsibility for its closure many years later, is not lost on Ross Mulholland, Manager Wiremills Development, BHP Wire Products. Another trainee who gave decades of service at the Wiremill was Greg Knight.
“I started in February 1960 after I’ve done my Leaving Certificate. I noticed a job advertised in the papers for Production Engineering Trainees and I rang the personnel department and they said ‘yeah, you can start next week on a traineeship’.” Frank Theuns, Manager, BHP Sydney Wiremill, March 1998
“I started in 1972 as a Trainee Electrical Engineer. It was my first job when I left school. I applied for about half a dozen jobs and I think I got five out of six jobs. One of the jobs I was considering was with Qantas, it paid about the same, $40 a week before tax but because I lived just across the river I decided to come here.”
“When I first started here the machines were electromechanically controlled as opposed to electronic. Computers and solid state control circuitry would be the major technological advances that I have seen. It moved quickly too. You had to keep your skills up.” Greg Knight, Quality Assurance Technical Officer, April 1998
Photo captions
Page 21: (L to R): Paul Kightly, Spiros Hantes, Tony Di Giacomo, Geoff Jupp, Michael Bartley and Christopher Dow.
Page 23: 1. (L to R) Alfonso Salazar, Ibrahim Arican, Elle Attie and Antonio Zaccognino. 2. (L to R) Taliitai lo, Domonic Losinno, Ntinos Polyviou and Alexandru Ciobotaru. 3. (L to R) Eduardo Casim, Inoke Munivai, Mustafa Oztan, Hugo Schythe and Meftun Ozdemir. 4. (L to R) Mehmet Kahuecioglu, Surya Sundaresan, Hakki Sahin and Antoin Kalouche.
Page 24: Peter Contellis, winding frames No.1 Galvanising Plant.
Multicultural and multiskilled [Page 25 – 30]
One of the most palpable characteristics of the Wiremill and yet probably the most difficult for an outsider to appreciate was the attitude of the people towards teamwork, mutual support and cooperation. The shared experience of generations of migrants facing the difficulties of establishing themselves in a new country seemed to be at the root of what can only be described as the spirit of the Wiremill.
The Wiremill has employed an incredible range of different nationalities. The variety of people, the challenge of communicating, even the smells of foods from different cultures coming from the lunchroom made working at the Wiremill very interesting.
“I have met so many different nationalities; Greeks, Italians, Maltese, Japanese, Americans, yes we had Americans working here. It has been a big experience, an interesting experience, to me it is something you don’t learn at school, you could learn it from textbooks but it is not the same when you are dealing with the real thing, the actual person.” Tony Yannopoulo, Team Leader, Wire Galvanising, August 1998
“I came from Greece, it took 30 days. I lived with my sister in Balmain, she had migrated to Australia in 1956. Her husband was working at the Wiremill as a packer in the Zinc Oxide area. A week after I arrived I got a job there too. For the first few months I borrowed my brother-in-law’s push bike to ride to work and then I caught the bus regularly.”
“There were plenty of other Greeks at the Wiremill and Italians, Yugoslavs, and people from Poland. Whenever there was the opportunity for overtime we grabbed it because we needed the extra money. We were working a lot but we expected to, we knew if we wanted to earn any money we had to work harder. We all expected that.”
“One and a half years after I arrived I bought my girlfriend from Greece, we married and had two kids, they are married now. After I got married I bought a house at Balmain and sold it a few years later to buy a house just across Lysaght Park near the Wiremill. We have lived there for 30 years, we came here young and now we have grown older.” PeterContellis, January 1998
Migrants willingly took on many of the unskilled jobs at the Wiremill but their prominent role in the skilled trades in engineering services is sometimes overlooked.
Unskilled migrants also made the most of the opportunity to establish themselves in Australia through sheer hard work . Italians and Greeks in particular gravitated to the Sydney Wiremill and other factories in the Drummoyne, Five Dock and Abbotsford areas through connections with family and friends already settled there. The availability of well paid work including almost unlimited overtime, affordable accommodation, and the security of being with other workers who spoke the same language, attracted southern, eastern, central and western European migrants. Migrants from South-East Asia and the Americas joined the workforce at the Wiremill in more recent years.
“Most of the workers have been migrants; bricklayers, electricians and welders. Out of the 25 people working for me I’d say there would probably be 20 migrants. The Italians for example are proud people, committed to doing a good job.” Geoff Jupp, August 1998
Photo captions
Page 26: (L to R): Sompong Kongvongsa, Peter Vainerere, Juan Covelo, Marathon Faufili, Juan Hernandez, Tony Yannopoulo and Tokoa Aumata.
Page 27: Left (L to R): Darrell Robinson, Ahmet Topkara, Mehmet Cetintas and Tony Seminara.
Page 27: Right (L to R): Peter Contellis, Barry Hallinan, Pedro Robles, David Byron, Raveen Kanagaratnam, Eddie Pagaduan, Ben Yu and Alex Carrasco.
Page 28: (L to R): Laszlo (Les) Rovatkay and Siegfried Gandras.
Page 29: (L to R): Constantinos Stratis, Barry Sutton, Allan Wright, Danny Kelly, Jose Martinez and Mehmet Unal.
Page 30: Magazines on Wiredrawing Machines.
Page 30: Sam Kaddour.
Nation building [Page 31 – 34]
The metaphor of strands of wire being drawn and woven into Australian history also applies to the contribution the Wiremill has made to the prosperity of the families of the men and women who worked there.
“For me BHP has been good. I built my family, I built my house and I have nothing but good things to say about BHP, the boss, the staff, the superintendent, everyone, to me it is very good.” Frank Ciano, January 1998
Australia was and still is the young country and for many young migrants who found their way into work at the Wiremill it was not so much the prospect of nation building that attracted them as the sparkle of adventure.
“I was born in Greece, the last in a family of five kids. When I finished my National Service in Greece I wanted some adventure, so I took off to Australia. It was a lot different to Europe in its sense of space, it was a totally new world for me. I felt like a dot in a big painting.”
“The first year I worked here the wage was $52 a week. In those days it was good money but not enough to establish yourself. So the first year instead of making $2,500 gross I finished up making $7,500. That means I worked not five days, I worked seven or eight days a week but it gave me a boost in establishing myself.” Con Dovistas, January 1998
Photo captions
Page 31 (L to R): Rolando Bunyi, Colin Wailes, Nassim El-Hage, Tony Giunta, Peter Popa, Emmanuel Kariotakis and Frank Ciano.
Page 32: (L to R): Kelvin Maber and Georges Ghosn.
Page 33 (L to R): Richard Normoyle, Wei Qiang Li, Railesh Prasad, Juan Urrutia, Seng Rattakone and David Prescott.
Page 34 (L to R): Mehmet Mekuz, Alvaro Ribeiro, Harry Sidiratos, Ottavino Forner, Marijo Olic and Skender Salaj. Kneeling: (L to R) Alfredo Quijano, Kaipo Taua and Gokhan Cevik.
Quality products and services [page 35 – 38]
The historic standing of the Wiremill and the nature of the industry and its products tend to overshadow the importance of Administrative Services and Quality Assurance. Computers and offices are difficult to romanticise in comparison to the noisy drama generated by men suited up to battle with machines with nicknames such as ‘the Dragon’.
The logistics, administration and computing involved in managing product cycles, transportation and deliveries of endless kilometres of wire in various forms across vast distances require extraordinary dedication, skill and teamwork. Monitoring and casting materials, orders and the management of payrolls are is essential to the productivity of the Wiremill as steel rod.The announcement of the closure of the Wiremill if anything placed greater importance on these services because an essential part of BHP’s strategy was to maintain market share was selected machinery was progressively relocated to the BHP Newcastle Wiremill.
Quality Assurance, Engineering and Safety are other specialised areas where the BHP Sydney Wiremill has long and proud traditions. The foundations of the company’s Quality Assurance and Engineering excellence go back to the Wiremills early days.
“The Company has an up-to-date laboratory and testing room for the examination of its products and purchases of raw material.”
“The Engineer’s Assembling and Repair Shop is a feature of the works, and, in addition to all ordinary repair and running work, a great deal of the construction and assembling of new plant is undertaken, especially in connection with the Company’s own designs. There is also a Sheet-Iron Shop and Carpenter’s Shop run in connection with this department.” Lysaght Bros. & Co. 1925 edition, page 26.
Photo captions
page 35: (L to R): Sione Huakau and Rodolfo Leon, General Store.
Page 36: (L to R) Jorge Ferrieira, Ricardo Pusillico, Tej Singh, Peter Banno, George Dib, Joaquim Miguel, Atanis Velkovski, Uamaki Tiaiti, Phillip Cheong, Jose Feligueira, Admad Meheich and Benjamin Taboada.
Page 37: Hat Rack and Noticeboard No.1 Gal.
Page 38: Netting Machine.
Traditions of engineering and teamwork [page 39 – 44]
“You never feel like you are competing for space, this makes work much easier. Here, people go out of their way to help each other out, to help get the job done, and even if the opportunity arose they wouldn’t drop each other into trouble, people at the Wiremill have always dealt very decently with each other.” Geoff Jupp, August 1998
When Geoff Jupp, Engineering Services Supervisor, first joined the company as an apprentice, stone rollers were still used for galvanising wire. One of Geoff’s first jobs was to machine them on a lathe before putting them back into service. High tech synthetic and ceramic materials eventually replaced them. In his capacity as Engineering Services Supervisor, Geoff has been instrumental in the modernisation of the Wiremill with the introduction of new machines, better lighting, higher roofs and better and more productive conditions of work all round .
It became standard practice for everyone, from the office to the factory floor, to tour the Wiremill to gain an understanding of the business and how the efforts of their individual departments fitted together. The compact size of the site, the traditions, and the interaction of people developed ‘a unique sense of teamwork at the Wiremill. Geoff Jupp says Sydney Wiremill has a ‘unique sort of flavour to the way it deals with people’.
Kelvin Maber, Department Manager, has been with the company for just over eight years, in what is a relatively short time in the history of the Wiremill. In many ways he typifies the modern era of the company. Beginning in theTest House as the Senior Quality Assurance Officer before becoming Shift Superintendent and then Process Superintendent in the Galvanising Plant, with a two year interlude as Production Manager for another BHP company, Fastener Products, Kelvin was promoted to the position of Production Manager in the Wiredrawing area. The breadth of his experience is indicative of an even greater emphasis on customer requirements and customer service.
Globalisation and the pressures of competition, quality and the costs that come with it have never been allowed to compromise safety at the Sydney Wiremill. Various incentive schemes and changes in procedures and in the demarcation of vehicle and pedestrian areas plus strictly enforced policies on the use of safety equipment such as protective glasses, have contributed to a sustained improvement in reducing the number of Lost Time Injuries at the Wiremill.
“BHP got more and more involved, different people took over and there was a different managerial style. We started to improve amenities for people and their hours of work and the type of work they did.” Frank Theuns, August 1998
“The challenge has always been to keep people motivated so that they stay focused and leave Sydney Wiremill as fit and healthy as they were when they arrive.” George Valentine, Safety Officer, September 1998
“You are making a whole range of products, normal fencing products where there is not a whole lot of quality requirements and you are also making other ones that are going into high speed machines. They have to have very low variation, very accurate finish on them, and they have to be made and looked at completely differently to just your normal agricultural type products.”
“It is very satisfying to be able to help customers with their technical requirements. There are all sorts of products, from wire hooks and coat hangers through to supermarket trolleys. They all want to be able to produce more with less so we have to try and supply them with the material that will enable them to do that.” Kelvin Maber, September 1998
Photo captions
Page 39: (L to R): Mick Gallagher, John Gallagher, Steven Sparkes,Ricardo Sestoso, Nick Rassios and Danny Kelly.
Page 40: Frank Theuns.
Page 41 (L to R): Andrew Kavuzlu, Roger Brown,Bob Holmes,George Valentine, Peter Smith and Marek Mlozniak.
Page 42 left (L to R): Kait Gotham, Carlo Sciara, Geoff Bates and Greg Knight.
Page 42 right (L to R): Theos Marinos, Max Porter, John Beattie and Tom Moore.
Page 43: 1. (L to R): Joe Akkawi, Robyn Griffith, Flora Scott, Sally Wright, Monica Christensen and Adele Marsden. 2. (L to R): Joe Orsini, Miguel Valenzuela, Ionel Golban, Diosdado Capulong and Harun Kozar. 3. (L to R) David Tukuniu, Somxay Senabouth, John Hancock, Catherine Green and Dana Wade. 4. (L to R): Roslyn Murphy and Kay Hemmings, Works Canteen.
Page 44: (L to R): John Khoury, Sisavath Vongphrachanh, John Vano, Egmidio Waga, Roberto Greveno and Mark Asomaning.
Closure opens new future [page 45 – 48]
So what is the legacy of BHP’s Sydney Wiremill? It’s difficult to quantify. The briefest conversation with anyone who has worked at the Wiremill is an opportunity to see the human face of heavy industry in this country. Happy memories of social club events with families and friends across the road in Lysaght Park (donated by the company to the community many years ago), Harbour cruises, film nights, car rallies, open days at the factory, retiree functions and Christmas parties for the kids. The struggles of hard physical work, beyond the comprehension of anyone who wasn’t there .
Recollections of the hilarious theatrical performances by workmates overcoming language barriers. The indescribable satisfaction of a job well done. The pride that comes from long and sustained service. The pain of an injury. The relief of new automated machinery and materials handling equipment. Vivid memories of leaving work for the births of sons and daughters. Marriages between people who met at the Wiremill. Gratitude to managers and mates who took the time to understand personal problems. Riding to work on a bike, catching the bus, and buying a car. New jobs, promotions and new skills.
All of these strands of woven together and while the closure of the one else seems a finality it is anything but. The best technology from the Wiremill has been consolidated at the BHP Newcastle Wiremill and together with the BHP Geelong Wiremill the company is in a stronger position to continue on. On the people side even more amazing things have happened. Just as the current generation of employees might have thought they were headed for the scrap heap a new generation of employee emerged as their guardian angel, counsellor and personal trainer.
Guided by the wisdom only a woman possesses I followed Robyn Griffith, Executive Assistant, through the open door of an office in one of the cottages at the top of the Wiremill site near the old Barb Shop. My previous interview was with a man who worked at the Wiremill for almost 40 years, the man in the doorway of the office in the cottage was 26 years old and have been at the Wiremill for less than a year. John Hancock, Human Resources Coordinator, was like a breath of fresh air, some would say a tornado. His logic and determination left no room for failure. Assigned the monumental task of preparing and retraining all employees for life after the Sydney Wiremill, that is exactly what he did, with the management team at the Wiremill right alongside him.
The cottage was central command for a mission to reshape the skills and attitudes of the remaining 220 employees at the Wiremill during its last year of operation. People who have seen a job at BHP Sydney Wiremill as ‘a job for life’ were taught how to get a new job and a new life. So the last pages in the story of the Wiremill have been written by the people themselves. People who have in many cases taken a lifetime of skills and experience learned from the only employer they have ever known and successfully re-entered a world where gaining employment is a skill in itself.
The following extracts, from letters written by employees and published in the Sydney Wiremill newsletter over the past year, show the depth of feeling they have for the Wiremill and their gratitude for the assistance they received from Sydney Wiremill management and the BHP Pathways Program.
“BHP Sydney Wiremill has been a second home to me for just over 20 years. I made so many friends during this time and it is a wrench to say goodbye. Thank you all for your help, guidance, cooperation and companionship. This has been a good workplace with many memories of good times and fun (and also some stressful days too!)”
“Especially I would like to thank Catherine Green and Joe Akkawi for their understanding of the last 18 months. Also, thanks to John Hancock and Steve Woodman for their recent help in putting my resume together and brushing up on interview skills and for confidence gained in that process, after not having to meet those challenges for so long.”
“John’s strike rate is soaring, with employees gaining jobs outside BHP more easily than they imagined. “
“I am moving to part-time work with Avon – no, not an Avon Lady!! – and am looking forward to a job in a totally different field away from WIRE!”
“Good luck everyone with your own job searches or retirement and I wish you all good fortune and health for whatever the future holds.” – Flora Scott, August 1998
“I wish to sincerely thank the following people who have assisted me to secure a senior supervisory position with an international food company, well before my ‘use by date’ with BHP.”
“A lot of hard work, by many people, went into it. Starting with John Hancock for his endless energy and encouragement – practising interview technique with me many times over and giving me an expert hand with all my job applications. Steve Woodman reshaped my resume impeccably. Roger Brown and Robyn Griffith helped with and type my covering letters. Kelvin Maber did it and never the job as a referee, also Max Porter, John Beattie, Ian Kerr and Frank Theuns.”
“My technical advisory members with Geoff Bates, Greg Knight, Cameron Hay, George Valentine, Vanessa Pitt, John Natoli, Chris Nicholaidis, Phil Gaggler, Kait Gotham, Nassim El-Hage’s brother Ziya. Peter Struik and his wife Toni – all of these people provided me with professional information for various jobs I applied for in a number of different Industries. I appreciate very much your individual contributions and my success belongs to you all.”
“Good luck to you all with your future endeavours and many thanks once again.” – Andrew Kavuzulu, August 1998
“This Friday will be my last day with BHP after 10 years of service. I would like to take this opportunity to say goodbye to all my friends, co-workers and superiors. I wish you all the best in your future endeavours.”
“I would like to pay a special thanks to John Hancock and the Pathways Program for helping me obtain an excellent resume, interview skills and the confidence to pursue and get the job of my choice. I will be starting a career in nursing as of next week. Good luck to all and best wishes.” – Barry Hallinan, W/Galv, August 1998
Photo captions
Page 45: Barb Wire production area.
Page 46: Welded fabric production area.
Page 46 left: (L to R): Tony Renderio, Ron Tenisi and Frank Ciano.
Page 46 centre: The Barb Shop.
Page 46 right :(L to R): Selmo Sehovic, Selim Sehovic and Youssif Zeinoun.
Page 48: (L to R): Cvetko Livrinski and John Hancock.
Back page: The deserted wharf of the Sydney Wiremill.