Simms Motor Units Limited Oak Lane East Finchley

[FredRogers]

I have got my Dads apprenticeship paperwork He served his time with Simms Motor Units Limited in the 50s.He was based in Falconar??Street Newcastle  but also spent time in East Finchley where it seems the company was based .Does anyone know much about this garage or the area it was.
Thank You

[coombs]

Hi Fred

Try this link. They have a lot of info on Frederick Richard Simms the founder of the company and a mention of their Finchley garage.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_Simms

This link shows some papers of Frederick R Simms.

http://www.royalautomobileclub.co.uk/archive/archive_navmain5.asp?groupid=13&t=subsub

Ben

[FredRogers]

Thanks for the info.

[Jerry Jameel]

Hello Fred,
My name is Jerry Jameel. Currently I live in USA. In my younger days, I worked at Sim ms Motor Units in Oak Lane, East Finchley. I worked there from 1955 until 1964. I worked there as a Lab assistant and then as a designer of starter motors. Sim ms Motor Units was my first job in England after arriving from India in 1955.
Sim ms was not a garage. It was a sizeable company employing some 3 hundred people.  We designed, developed and manufactured electrical and fuel injection equipment for cars and trucks. The electrical division was bought by US Ford in1962 or so and the fuel injection division was bought by Joey Lucas of Birmingham. 
If your dad worked at the East Finchley plant, then I must have known him because I knew almost everyone who worked there in the labs or offices.

For many years I have been trying to contact my colleagues at Sim ms but did not have much luck. Will be delighted to know if you know any.

Jerry

[casaceri]

I was working at Simms Motor Units on the Diesel Fuel Injection side and retired in the USA

[Tommy Lawton]

Hi I worked for Simms Motor units fro 1960-1979 First in Glasgow which was the first branch outside london.I work in oak lane in 1963-1964,and my wife Nancy work in Accounts in the grange. We lived in Church Lane and frequented the Tally HO bar in North Finchley,our oldest sun was born in Barnet Hospital.
I  returned to Glasgow for a short time and then manager at Simms in kempston Bedford.some seven years later I took over the Glasgow branch but left in 1979 to pursue other carreer.
There is a book " ACCELERATION" Simms development in this age of progress1891 to 1964 published by Newman Neame LTD Fritzroy Square London.

[FredRogers]

Thank You Cascera and Tommy Lawton for the information.I have not been on rootschat for ages so I apologise for not responding earlier.

[ken Horton]

Hi,  I am a new member and only found this web page when searching for Sims Motor Units in the general Google search.
I also worked for Sims ( as it was in those days) starting in the Sheffield depot in 1960 as a diesel injector trainee repairer under Manager George Paget and worked my way upwards to the Diesel Chargehand and then overall chargehand, (*) Cowling took over when George Paget died and shortly afterward In 1965 I moved to a as yet new unopened depot at West Molesey as the Workshop Superintendent under (*) Hughes, and due it's close location to the HQ at Boreham Wood soon got to know (*) Duncombe Manager at Boreham Wood, (*) Broom Director  and the redoubtable (*) Bell the branch controller.   I am sure Tommy Lawton will have know all these men. Later I became the depot manger at West Molesey and then L.S.U.K took over, finally under 'rationalisation' as they called it with too many depots in the same area West Molesey was closed . I moved eventually to CAV as an area team member, and finally was made redundant as they 'rationised' CAV and got rid of all the teams in the late 1980's !  While at Sheffield I had (*) Fenton working with me in the diesel shop, he took over the Bedford depot when Tommy Lawton moved on.   small world !

[Biggles39]

Hi there,

I worked at Simms Motor Units Ltd from 1955 to 1960 as a plant layout apprentice in the engineering office in East Finchley.

 I've always wondered what happened to a friend that I had there. His name was (*) Munsen and he was another apprentice. He stayed on after I left in 1960.  He lived in Enfield.  My boss was (*) Jacobs.

It would be great to know if anyone knows what happened to him and where he might be now.

I'm married and living in Herts.

Many thanks
Peter Diggins