Machinery manufacturer JCB recently celebrated its 80th anniversary, a date it shared with the birthday of the founder’s son, Lord Anthony Bamford.
JCB was founded in Staffordshire, UK, by Joseph Cyril Bamford CBE on October 23, 1945 — the same day as Lord Anthony was born.
The 80th birthday celebrations of both the company and Lord Bamford began by stepping back in time to where it all began, with the unveiling of a blue heritage plaque on the spot where the original 12 by 15-foot garage stood in High Street, Uttoxeter.
Lord Bamford’s father rented the lock-up facility — which had no electricity — for 30 shillings a week and it was there he made his first product, a farm trailer built largely from wartime scrap, which he sold for £45 at Uttoxeter market.
Joseph stayed at the garage for 18 months until the owner asked him to leave because she didn’t approve of Sunday working. He then moved down the road to a stable block at Crakemarsh, a few miles north of the town.
Revealing the plaque at Hollydene House, Lord Bamford said his earliest memory of the business was of him playing in his father’s workshop.
“Other than my time at school and my apprenticeship in France with another company, I’ve been around ever since,” he said.
“We have developed the business and products along the way enormously. Probably one of the greatest pleasures for me has been in developing products with our formidable team of highly qualified engineers.
“As we celebrate JCB’s 80th birthday, it’s wonderful to be back at the spot where it all began. I’m delighted that in a small way we can highlight our origins and reflect on the continuing importance of our home county of Staffordshire.”
Later, Lord Bamford arrived back at the head office in Rocester — named JCB World Headquarters — where he was greeted by more than 3500 employees lining the Lakeside Works’ pathways to pay tribute and to celebrate his and JCB’s birthdays.
A spectacular cavalcade marked milestones and showcased machines he had introduced since becoming Chairman in 1975.
It starred the first Loadall from 1977, the classic 3CX, the world speed record-breaking JCBGT backhoe, the revolutionary 1991 Fastrac tractor and its 2019 World’s Fastest Tractor protégé, the multi-award-winning 19C-1E electric mini excavator, and finally the industry-leading Pothole Pro along with the game-changing hydrogen backhoe and hydrogen Loadall.
The procession also featured eight former students of the JCB Academy who have forged successful careers with the company.
It was Lord Bamford’s vision to found the school, which opened in 2010 to produce the engineers and business leaders of the future. In partnership with high-profile companies such as Rolls-Royce, Toyota and Hex Group, it has gone on to educate more than 3500 students from across Staffordshire and Derbyshire, with every student either entering employment or higher education.
The gathered crowds were also treated to the unveiling of a special JCB 3CX ‘Backhoe in a Box’ — a spectacular life-size 3CX Sitemaster backhoe packaged in the same way as toy manufacturer Britain’s packages its 1:32 scale models of the JCB machine. It will be displayed beside the JCB lake until January for members of the public to view.
Addressing the crowds of employees, Lord Bamford said his father would have been proud of JCB at 80.
“We have great products and great people making a difference in the world,” he said.
“We continue to hold true to his values of ‘jamais content’ (never content) and ‘always looking for a better way’. While my father retired at the age of 59, I — along with JCB — am now 80 and I’m still here.”
