The buildings of the soap factory were taken over by Tunnel Refineries in 1934. This company had been founded by Callebaut Freres et Lejeune whose factory in Aalst, Belgium made glucose syrup from starch. By 1932 they thought it expedient to make starch for glucose production in England and so Tunnel Refineries was set up. The Callebaut family remained influential in the firm until 2000.
Tunnel produced its first batch of glucose syrup in 1935 using many of the old soap factory buildings and facilities but gradually small but significant improvements to the site were made. Clients came from all over the country - the South Shore Rock Co of Blackpool and Bassets Liquorice Co.
The Second World War led to serious shortages of raw materials and part of the premises was turned over to Thermalloys. - This was a filthy process – the ‘Black ‘Ole’ where a massive crucible smelted down scrap metal at extremely high temperatures to produce magnesium. From 1941 no glucose was made and the works produced tungsten powder for hardening of steel. An ersatz starch was also produced and the London Chain Company made bicycle chains. In 1943 Glenville moved in and began processing oils and fats.
After the war the idea was to produce glucose from starch. But the raw materials were poor and the glucose was of doubtful quality - they also made dextrose for medicinal purposes. Things gradually improved - Glenvilles returned and began producing custard powder and later instant milk and ice pops. (I used to be told dire tales of some pranks involving these). In the 1950s new offices were built and in 1957 they began to mill their own starch from maize. This led to the silos being built– described recently by a well known architectural commentator, as structures which ‘would make Le Corbusier weep with envy’. . By the mid 60s suction gear had been installed and American maize was offloaded from coasters or lighters transhipped from bulk carriers.
By the late 1960s they could afford to rebuild the site and in 1969 the curved building which came to dominate the road end of the site was completed to designs by Dennis & Partners. Inside the site brick walls remained still with the ‘Thames Soap Works’ signage on them. In the 1970s an administration and canteen block completed to designs by the Brunton Boobyer Partnership of Greenwich and a new Mill House was added. There was an expansion of the maize grind and a new plant for producing Isosweet, high fructose glucose syrup.
The plant employed around 400 people and in Belgium the Callebauts had pioneered good worker relations and mutual support - and these were an article of faith. The firm paid well, too. In 1982 dual processing of maize and wheat for starch began. Eventually despite the lesser purity of wheat-derived starch, maize was no longer used and the silos fell out of use as wheat was brought in by lorry from the company’s own mill in Suffolk. The factory was now no longer Tunnel Glucose but had taken on the parent company’s name of Amylum.
Some changes were attempts to counter the constant complaints about the smell. Smell is difficult to define, it can’t be measured and reactions to it are very subjective. There were endless reports while site engineers and council environmental staff struggled to sort it out. As new residents moved into the Peninsula they sniffed the air and complained. But just as many long term residents said they loved it and that it reminded them of home. It never was really resolved.
In the early 1990s the production of grain neutral alcohol began at a new plant on the old Molassine site initially as a joint venture with a Scottish distiller. It was the first all-new distillation plant in London since the Beefeater one as built in 1908.
In 2000 Tate and Lyle took over Amylum and all the local involvement and the funding for environmental projects which had come from Amylum ceased. In 2007 Syral, a subsidiary of a French conglomerate, Tereos, bought Tunnel from them. In 2009 Syral closed the Tunnel works.
Soon after closure local people noticed that demolition was going on at the site and it appeared that a French demolition crew was at work. They had not bothered with the formalities of informing Greenwich Council or the Port of London Authority as they were legally bound to do. One silo was blown up with no notice to neighbouring firms – some using precision equipment. To some extent this was sorted out by the authorities and the jetties were saved but the silos were demolished. Soon the site was almost completely bare – everything stripped away and removed. It is still awaiting redevelopment.
Alongside this and even smellier was Molassine – whose site was eventual largely taken over by Tunnel. A history of that firm has appeared in an earlier Weekender.
Writing this –and in retrospect – I realise how much of a good thing Tunnel Glucose was. I knew people who worked for them from the 1950s on and on the whole it seemed a good natured sort of work place. Later as a local councillor I discovered how much money and personal effort went into many local enviromental projects – and it was always positive. How many factories have a management which put in an effort with the local community? I guess there will be people telling me about lots of bad experiences
No comments:
Post a Comment