Derbyshire's industrial innovations: Ferodo

Ferodo was established in 1897 and was the first company to develop modern brake friction materials. If only they had been around two thousand years earlier, the Roman chariot races would have been much safer!

In 1922, Ferodo became the first company to supply original linings for a mass produced car, the Austin 7.  Their brakes were more reliable than those on the old-fashioned horse drawn vehicles.

This car benefitted from Ferodo technology…

...so there could only be one reason for squeaking brakes!

As innovators in the field of high-performance braking products, by the start of the next decade, Ferodo were branching out from the road car into the motor sports market.

The company continued their association with Austin when, in 1951, they teamed up for a 'Round the World' attempt in this Austin A70. The 30 day trip was completed in just 21, thanks to the 4-man driving crew, which included the holder of the England to Cape Town road record.

The sky was the limit for Ferodo's products as their brake linings were fitted to a wide array of aircraft, from the Blackburn Universal Freighter to the Vickers Supermaine Swift, the 1951 successor to the Spitfire.

From experiments in the garden shed of Herbert Frood in the 1890s, Ferodo (a derivation of his name) continues to operate in Derbyshire as part of the Federal-Mogul Company, designing and manufacturing friction products for markets worldwide.