Derbyshire's industrial innovations: Ferodo

Derbyshire is famous for its scenery but it also has a rich industrial history. Here we profile brake and clutch lining manufacturer Ferodo Ltd, through 30 years of advertising.

Advertisement for Ferodo brake linings (1940/1944) by Ferodo LtdDerbyshire Record Office

Roman charioteers

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!

Advertising artwork for Ferodo brake linings (1920/1929) by Ferodo LtdDerbyshire Record Office

Advances in transport

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.

Ferodo brake linings advertisement (1927) by Ferodo LtdDerbyshire Record Office

Ferodo evolved imaginative advertising campaigns, such as this example from the 1920s.  'A Compleat Map of the Island of Nevacantell' is a pastiche of historic maps showing a fictional island in which all risks are averted due to vehicles having Ferodo brake linings.

Ferodo Friction Linings advertisement (part 1) (1900/1930) by Ferodo LtdDerbyshire Record Office

What's that squeak?

This car benefitted from Ferodo technology…

Ferodo Friction Linings advertisement (part 2) (1920/1929) by Ferodo LtdDerbyshire Record Office

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

Advertisement for Ferodo brake linings (1949) by Ferodo LtdDerbyshire Record Office

By the end of the 1940s, their brake and clutch linings were being advertised as the best in the world.

Advertisement for Ferodo brake linings (1951) by Ferodo LtdDerbyshire Record Office

Motor sport

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.

'Round the World' Austin motor car (1951) by Ferodo LtdDerbyshire Record Office

Around the world in 21 days

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.

Advertisement for Ferodo brake linings for shipping winches (1930) by Ferodo LtdDerbyshire Record Office

Brake linings on the high seas...

Not content with supplying products for road vehicles, Ferodo brake linings could be found on the winches of the 'world's best ships', as this advert from the 1930s explains.

Advertising poster for Ferodo brake linings (1953) by Ferodo LtdDerbyshire Record Office

... and above the clouds

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.

Aerial view of the Ferodo factory at Chapel-en-le-Frith (1950/1959) by Ferodo LtdDerbyshire Record Office

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.

Credits: All media
The story featured may in some cases have been created by an independent third party and may not always represent the views of the institutions, listed below, who have supplied the content.
Google apps