Opened in
All kinds
Capacity,

Reading: Reading Ice & Cold Storage Co. (Ltd.), 32 Lynmouth Road. 1901. William Sime, managing engineer. Capital, £35,000. of products handled. Ammonia absorption and compression. 60,000 cubic feet. Rochdale Rochdale Ice & Cold Stores (Ltd.), Exchange Street. A Kershaw, manager. All kinds of products handled. Carbonic-anhydride system, brine wall plates and pipes, and cold air. Scarborough: Scarborough Pure Ice & Cold Storage Co. (Ltd.), Swan Hill Road. Capital £24,900. Fresh, chilled, and frozen meat, game, poultry, rabbits, dairy produce, and fish handled. Ammonia compression; silicate-cotton insulation. Capacity, 15,000 cubic feet.

Southend-on-Sea H. Garon (Ltd.), Tylers Avenue. Meat and fish among the products handled. Carbonic-anhydride system; silicate-cotton insulation. Capacity, 45,000 cubic feet.

Watford Hertfordshire Ice & Cold Storage Co. (Ltd.). Opened in 1904. J. G. Crossman, managing director. Capital, £21,250. Ammonia compression; silicate-cotton insulation. Capacity, 15,000 cubic feet.

Whitstable: Whitstable Pure Ice Co., High Street. Opened in 1910. W. Warner, proprietor. Now used as stores for Canterbury Pure Ice & Storage Co. Capacity, 10,000 cubic feet.

Windsor Windsor Ice Co., Great Western Railway Arches. A branch of the Reading Ice & Cold Storage Co. (Ltd.). Opened in 1909. William Sime, managing engineer. Ammonia compression. Suction gas plant. Capacity, 12,000 cubic feet.

MANCHESTER DISTRICT

Consul Ross E. Holaday, May 12 and August 9 and 28

ICE-MAKING PLANTS

Approximately 40.000 tons of ice are consumed annually in Manchester. Unfavorable climatic conditions throughout the greater part of the year tend to limit the local demand. Summers, on the whole, have been cold and humid. During a hot spell in July, 1923, lasting 14 days, it was estimated that the city took 2,000 tons a day. The smaller ice works were reported to have received orders far exceeding their capacities and had to obtain stocks from the larger plants. Only a decided rise in the temperature occasions any appreciable demand for ice from the general public, although apparently there have been recent efforts to increase the householder's interest. The trade, for the most part, is confined to restaurants, public institutions, cafés, hotels, breweries, butcher shops, dairies, fish and public markets, and similar establishments.

American manufacturers may find Manchester a favorable field for the introduction of their equipment. It is only reasonable to expect that in course of time, when the public becomes accustomed to the use of ice, trade will increase, and present plants will need additional equipment. Within an area of 14 miles from the city of Manchester there is a population of over 2,500,000, the majority of whom do not even buy ice for the preservation of foodstuffs.

Ice Manufacturers of Manchester District.

The following ice-manufacturing plants, all British-registered companies, are located in the Manchester district:

The Crystal Ice Co., Mulberry Street, Hulme, Manchester: Operates a plant at Derby Street, Cheetham, Manchester. Capacity, 100 tons per 24 hours. Blocks, 4 feet by 3 feet 6 inches by 1 foot; weight, 784 pounds. Raw-water system with Sidley cells; ammonia compression. Equipment manufactured by Atlas, Copenhagen, Denmark, and Munktells, Eskeltund, Sweden.

The Lancashire Hygienic Dairies (Ltd.), Mulberry Street, Hulme, Manchester: Produces approximately 85 tons daily. Blocks, 4 feet by 3 feet 4 inches by 12 inches; weight, 784 pounds. Raw-water and cell system with air agitation; compression. Equipment supplied by Munktells, Eskeltund, Sweden, and Lightfoot Refrigeration Co., London.

The Trafford Park Cold Storage (Ltd.), Trafford Park, Manchester: Capacity of 39 tons every 24 hours. Blocks 3 feet 4 inches by 1 foot 9 inches by 7 inches; average weight, 224 pounds. Can system with water obtained from the city's mains and passed through a softening plant; 352 cans; air agitation; compression. Equipment consists of ammonic coils submerged in brine tank with brine-agitation propellers for circulation and automatic tipping and filling apparatus obtained from the Lightfoot Refrigeration Co., London.

The Pendleton Cooperative Industrial Wholesale Society (Ltd.), Pendleton, Manchester: Capacity, 18 to 20 tons daily. Blocks 4 feet by 1 foot 9 inches by 6.5 to 7 inches; average weight, 224 pounds. Raw-water and can system; ammonia compression. Equipment consists of a double-acting horizontal compressor supplied by Messrs. J. & E. Hall (Ltd.), 24 Barton Arcade, Manchester. The Bolton Pure Ice Co., Bolton, Lancashire: Capacity, 10 tons per 24 hours. Blocks 4 feet 6 inches by 2 feet 6 inches by 7 inches. Raw-water and cell system with paddle agitators and brine circulation: compression system. Equipment consists of one No. Va Lightfoot Refrigeration Co. compressor, driven by a 65-horsepower gas engine. Compressor and ice-making plant supplied by the Lightfoot Co. and the 65-horsepower gas engine by the National Gas Engine Co., Ashton under Lyne.

Other ice-making concerns located in this district are the Manchester Fish & Meat Salesmen's Ice Co. (Ltd.), Blossom Street, Manchester: the Manchester Patent Ice Co., 56 Minshull Street, Manchester; and the Salford Pure Ice Co., Clarendon Road, Salford.

COLD-STORAGE ESTABLISHMENTS

Cold-storage facilities at the port of Manchester include the third largest plant in Great Britain, containing special chambers for meat, fruit, eggs, bacon, butter, and cheese. This section of England is particularly suitable as a distributing center for food products, nevertheless, although imports of grain and green fruit are received on a large scale, local as well as American traders have not, as yet, utilized to any great extent the excellent facilities obtaining.

The service at Manchester includes the clearance of produce from the importing vessel direct to the cold store, which is adjacent to the Manchester docks. Merchandise is also delivered ex cold store to all parts of England by a railroad system and by insulated road vehicles connecting with the many thickly populated towns around this city.

The importance of this market should not be lost sight of by exporters of American foodstuffs, and shipping interests in the United States, no doubt, would find it profitable to investigate the possibility of making increased shipments of food products to the Manchester consular district. British steamship lines are alive to the situation, and the Manchester Liners (Ltd.) are reported to be arranging for a service of fast general cargo steamers with refrigerator accommodation between Canadian ports and Manchester, principally Montreal and St. Johns.

Bonded Warehouses in Manchester.

All classes of goods can be stored in the range of up-to-date warehouses which connect directly with the importing vessel. The buildings include special bonded sections for the handling of wines and other liquors, sugar, sugar goods, tea, cocoa, canned fruits, tobacco,

and other commodities. The operating company, the Port of Manchester Warehouses (Ltd.), states that produce can be received on consignment, and all details of storage, showing, and sale by public auction can be arranged by them. Cotton is supervised on the quay, mended, sampled, and stored to grade in fireproof safes, remarked and delivered either by railroad or motor wagon to the Lancashire cotton mills. Shippers of canned goods in the United States should also note that their goods can be received, stored (in bond or otherwise), examined, tested, labeled, rewrapped, and delivered according to instructions.

Trafford Park Cold Storage (Ltd.).

The Trafford Park Cold Storage (Ltd.), Trafford Park, Manchester, is by far the most important cold-storage concern in the Manchester district. It is a limited-liability company, registered under the British law. Marshall Stevens is chairman of directors and Charles Archer, manager. The principal products handled are frozen meat, butter, bacon, and by-products. The stores are fully equipped and have been specially designed for the handling of imports and for the distribution of produce. Their facilities are outlined as follows:

Bacon store.-Capacity, 500,000 cubic feet; any temperature from 26 to 45° F.; fitted with overhead electric cranes; mechanical and structural facilities provided for the rapid handling of imported bacon.

Butter store.-Capacity of insulated chamber, 25,000 cubic feet; machine installed capable of cutting box butter into quarter-pound, half-pound, and 1-pound blocks, which can be wrapped and packed into 1-pound cartons at the rate of 2,000 pounds per hour.

Chilled meat store.-Insulated chamber with capacity of 25,000 cubic feet; meat hung on special designed hooks which allow clear air circulation.

Egg chamber.-Capacity 25,000 cubic feet; by means of automatic alarm and check thermometers can be kept at an unvarying temperature of 29° F.; humidity of air controlled to avoid shrinkage.

Fruit chamber.-Constant temperature of 35° F. for apples, or any other stated temperature for fruit; facilities available to increase the storage capacity should the import of fruit demand it; special arrangements for control of humidity.

Meat store.-Capacity, 8,000 tons, divided into eight chambers; railroads both front and back, so that produce is handled with all dispatch, both by rail and road; roof provided with hatches and overhead gantry cranes, which speed up the work of delivering a ship's cargo into the store and result in the briefest exposure of meat to atmospheric conditions.

Railroad sidings, both back and front of the building, connect all of the main-line railroads. The railroad companies also provide insulated meat trucks, and the cold stores maintain a fleet of insulated road wagons and trailers. The plant uses the ammonia-compression system, with battery coolers for air circulation and directexpansion coils for chill rooms. Brine and air circulation is employed in the egg room, and all motive power is electrical. The equipment consists of overhead electric cranes, gravity runways, electric trucks, special handling platforms, as well as platform scales at all main doors. Lightfoot Refrigeration Co., London, supplied the machinery. Capacity: Between 32 and 40° F., 660,000 cubic feet; between 10 and 32° F., 1,000,000; 40° F. or above, and 0 to 10° F., none; at 10° F., the lowest temperature obtainable, 1,000,000.

The Manchester (Corp.) Cold Stores.

The Manchester (Corp.) Cold Stores, operated by the municipal authorities, have plants at Elm and Water Streets and at Smithfield Market, Manchester. The two stores are valued by the city at £28,719, and offer combined accommodation for about 1,000 tons of produce. The whole of the freezing space can be adjusted to any temperature between 10 and 32° F. The corporation caters largely to the needs of the wholesale and retail markets of the city. Description of the stores follows:

Elm and Water Streets.-Beef, mutton, bacon, butter, poultry, and fruit handled; space for hanging 1,000 chilled quarters of beef; quantities of bacon imported from Denmark and the United States and butter from Denmark. Excellent facilities for receiving goods include four large loading stages and five hydraulic hoists; cartage principally by motor trucks and horse-drawn wagons from the railroad goods depots, approximately one-quarter mile distant; road of granite sets. Equipped with 200-ton refrigeration compressor supplied by The Lightfoot Refrigeration Co., London. Facilities considered sufficient for present, but increasing market trade may lead to requirement of additional equipment in the near future. Capacity: 40° F. or above, 50,000 cubic feet; between 32 and 40° F., 56,000; between 10 and 32° F., 350,000; lowest temperature, 10° F.

Smithfield Market.-Beef, mutton, bacon, butter, poultry, fruit, and frozen fish among the products handled; bacon imported from Denmark and mutton from New Zealand and Australia. Direct connection with principal railroad depots in Manchester. Two loading stages and three hydraulic hoists; foodstuffs removed from markets to cold store, 100 to 440 yards, by motor trucks and horse-driven vehicles. Present facilities sufficient. Equipment consists of one 40-ton refrigeration compressor manufactured by Messrs. Peter Brotherhood Co., Peterborough, and one 25-ton and one 15-ton from Lightfoot Refrigeration Co., London. Capacity, 40° F. or above, 20,000 cubic feet; 32 to 40° F., 14,000; 10 to 32° F., 120,000; lowest temperature, 10° F.

The Union Cold Storage Co. (Ltd.).

The Union Cold Storage Co. (Ltd.), Miller Street, Manchester, operates two cold-air stores in Manchester and also plants at London, Liverpool, Hull, and Glasgow. Its recent increase in its ordinary share capital to £1,000,000 and the authorized issue of a further 3,300,000 of the company's £1 6 per cent cumulative preference shares, for development of the company's business, leads one to expect further extensions from time to time. The head office is at 13 to 16 West Smithfield, London, E. C. Manchester stores are located at Miller Street and at Weaste. Capacity: Weaste Cold Stores, 490,000 cubic feet; Miller Street, 215,000. Further details are not available, but it is believed that they do not differ materially from those of the Manchester Corporation.

Manchester Ship Canal Co.

The Manchester Ship Canal Co. operates three refrigerated transit chambers at No 2 shed, No. 9 Dock, Salford, Manchester, for the accommodation of meat and foodstuffs imported by steamer directly to the Manchester docks. The leading products handled are frozen mutton and chilled beef, received principally from Australia, New Zealand, the United States, and Canada. The chambers were designed simply for transit cold storage of frozen meat and were planned to cool the store to 14° F. Each is capable of being independently cooled. The plant, installed by the Haslam Foundry and Engineering Co., Derby, consists of four ammonia compressors, the necessary ammonia condensors, two separate air coolers complete

with ammonia-expansion pipes, brine tanks and pipes, as well as the necessary fans for circulating cold air through the stores to the various chambers. The chambers are cooled by a system providing a continuous circulation of dried and cooled air through the plant and capable of maintaining this temperature during the hottest summer weather. Capacity: No. 1 chamber, 79,000 cubic feet net storage; No. 2, 73,000; No. 3, 139,000.

Bolton Pure Ice Co.

The Bolton Pure Ice Co., Bolton, Lancashire, is located approximately 12 miles from Manchester and 30 miles from Liverpool. The principal products stored are beef, mutton, pork, bacon, cheese, butter, and hops. Some imported meats are handled, and the foodstuffs are placed into store by the importing firm who delivers the goods at Bolton by railroad or motor wagon from Liverpool and Manchester docks. The plant has the usual facilities for loading and unloading goods at the warehouse, and is within three minutes of the Bolton railroad goods depot. Ammonia direct-expansion system is used, with insulation of silicate of cotton. Equipment includes two No. Va Lightfoot compressors, driven by two 60-horsepower electric motors, supplied by Brooks of Manchester. Capacity: 32 to 40° F., approximately 50,000 cubic feet; 10 to 32° F., approximately 250,000.

PLYMOUTH DISTRICT

Consul Ralph C. Busser, October 23 and 25, 1923

ICE-MAKING PLANTS

In the Plymouth district the weather usually is cool in summer, and refrigerators are not used generally in private houses. The principal demand for ice is from dealers in fish, meat, and dairy products. During the warmer months of 1923 local hardware establishments reported a rather large sale of ice-cream freezers, and the sale of ice showed a corresponding increase. The several ice-manufacturing plants located in the district have a large surplus and work only half time, except during the summer season; nevertheless, there appears to be a good opportunity in Plymouth and other large towns for the establishment of other ice-making plants.

Plants in Plymouth District.

The following are reported as manufacturers of ice in this district:

B gwoods (Ltd.), St. Andrews Street, Plymouth: Two 25-ton plants with a total capacity of 50 tons per 24 hours. Blocks, 42 inches by 7 inches by 18 inches. Raw-water and can system with air agitation.

The Devon and Cornwall Ice & Cold Storage Co. (Ltd.), Brixham, Devon: Capacity of 20 tons per 24 hours. Blocks, 43.5 by 13.5 by 8.5 inches. Distilled-water can system, of German manufacture, installed in 1897.

The North Devon Ice & Cold Storage Co., Barnstaple, Devon: Capacity, 5 tons per 24 hours. Raw-water and can system with air agitation. Ammonia compress on. Plant installed by J. & E. Hall (Ltd.), Dartford, Kent. Power supplied by a crude-oil engine.

The Ilfracombe Ice Manufacturing & Cold Storage Co., Ilfracombe, Devon. The R. R. Bath & Newlyn Ice Co. (Ltd.), Newlyn, Cornwall.

The North Cornwall Ice & Cold Storage Co., Wadebridge, Cornwall.