ROLLS ROYCE

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Rolls-Royce grew from the electrical and mechanical business established by Henry Royce in 1884.  Royce built his first motor car in 1904.  He was introduced to Charles Stewart Rolls in a Manchester hotel on the May 4 1904 when the pair agreed a deal where Royce would manufacture cars, to be sold exclusively by Rolls.  Rolls was already selling quality cars.

Agreement was reached that Royce Limited would manufacture a range of cars to be exclusively sold by CS Rolls & Co – they were to bear the name Rolls-Royce. The company was formed on March 15, 1906. The company moved to Derby in 1908.

Charles Rolls    and    Henry Royce

In 1910, Rolls made the world's first there-and-back flight across the Channel, without landing, a monumental feat in its day. He took off from Swingate near the Duke of Yorks school, and just over an hour later he landed back in Dover after circling French soil by air. He was given a hero's welcome when he landed, as he had become a true aviation pioneer.

Rolls-Royce is a set of several companies, all deriving from the automobile and aero-engine company founded by Henry Royce and Charles S. Rolls in 1906.  Rolls Royce plc, by far the most significant in economic terms, is a British engineering firm these days specializing in turbine-based products, particularly aero engines, but providing a wide range of civil and military engineering products and services. Official site: http://www.rolls-royce.com/

Charles Rolls

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars made its debut at the 1904 Paris Motor Show, displaying two-, three- and four-cylinder cars, delivering 10hp, 15hp and 20hp respectively. An advert was placed in The Autocar magazine for "the first simple, silent Rolls-Royce", and with the launch of the six-cylinder, 30hp model (6177cc, 55mph) success was immediate. Rolls began to race a "Twenty" four-cylinder car - with its 4118cc 20hp engine delivering up to 52mph - and won the 1906 Isle of Man Tourist Trophy in a "Light Twenty" shorter-wheelbase model. 

Rolls Royce 15 hp

Royce understood the importance of motorsport in promoting the brand, and also the role of publicity stunts; he and Claude Johnson, now Managing Director of Rolls-Royce Ltd., came up with ideas including a drive from Monte Carlo to London (which took 37 hours, 30 minutes). Although a new V8-engined model known as the Legalimit failed to take off, the six-cylinder, 7036cc 40/50 (48bhp) was instantly popular, liked for its smoothness, refinement, flexibility and reliability.

It was the  Silver Ghost that in 1907 caused the motoring press to name Rolls-Royce the best car in the world. The characteristics of the Silver Ghost were silence, smoothness and power. Only 7876 cars   were built over a period of 19 years - by comparison Henry Ford in a similar period made over  15 million Model  'T' s.

Johnson took the 12th 40/50 produced for his own use, and had all its fittings silver-plated and the coachwork painted silver. The car became known as the Silver Ghost, a name then applied to all the 40/50 cars. The Silver Ghost - from £1,300 - was awarded a gold medal by the RAC for setting a long-distance record, driving 14,371 miles almost non-stop, and it covered a 2000-mile observation run averaging 20.86 miles per gallon. However, Charles Rolls was not to get the chance to enjoy the car's sales success: a keen aviator and the first man to fly over the Channel both ways, he became the first Englishman to die in a flying accident when his plane crashed at the Bournemouth air show in July 1910. Johnson continued to run Rolls-Royce after Rolls' death.

Rolls Royce Phantom III - 1936

The Silver Ghost, now with a 7428cc engine, then saw off a challenge from Napier in 1911, averaging 24.3mpg on a run between London and Edinburgh and a top speed of 78.2mph at Brooklands - the Napier managed 19.3mpg and 76.4mph. A Ghost fitted with a single-seater body managed 101.8mph at Brooklands later in the year, and specially-prepared cars took part in the Alpine Trials and then the Spanish Grand Prix of 1913, when the Marquis de Salamanca won the event (thanks to Rolls-Royce test driver Eric Platford, leading the race, pulling over to let the important client take the glory). Sales were strong, and Royce built a new factory in Derby to cope with the growing demand for his cars. A Rolls-Royce service and repair centre was opened in Cricklewood, London, and driving schools were opened to instruct owners and chauffeurs on the best techniques.

The famous mascot was created in 1911 when artist Charles Sykes was commissioned to illustrate the year's sales catalogue. Sykes drew a girl with arms outstretched, holding her flowing gown, and the figurine became known as 'The Spirit of Ecstasy', although she was originally called 'The Spirit of Speed' and also known as 'The Flying Lady' or 'The Silver Lady'.

The Spirit of Ecstasy is one of the most well known motor car mascot in the world. Designed by Charles Robinson Sykes, The Spirit of Ecstasy  has adorned the radiators of Rolls-Royce motor cars since 1911. This wonderful mascot was modeled after a young woman  who had bewitching beauty, intellect and esprit - but not the social status which might have permitted her  to marry the man with whom she had fallen in love.

AIRCRAFT ENGINES

At the start of the First World War, in response to the nation's needs, Royce designed his first aero engine – the Eagle, providing some half of the total horsepower used in the air war by the allies. The Eagle powered the first direct transatlantic flight as well as the first flight from England to Australia – both in the Vickers Vimy aircraft.

Henry Royce's last design was the Merlin aero engine, which came out in 1935 although he had died in 1933. This was developed from the R engine, which had powered a record-breaking Supermarine S6B seaplane to almost 400mph in the 1931 Schneider Trophy.)

The Merlin was a powerful V12 engine, and was fitted into many World War II aircraft: the British Hawker Hurricane, Supermarine Spitfire, De Havilland Mosquito (twin-engined), Avro Lancaster (4-engine), Vickers Wellington (2-engine); it also transformed the American P-51 Mustang into possibly the best fighter of its time, its Merlin engine built by Packard under license. Over 160,000 Merlin engines were produced.

Rolls Royce's most famous engine is the Merlin.  This motor was essential to Britain`s war effort, it not only powered the Spitfire, but also the Hurricane, Lancaster and Mosquito. The Spitfires in the Battle of Britain were fitted with the Merlin III of 1,030 horsepower.

Designed by Rolls-Royce as a private-venture, the Merlin was able to take advantage of the new 100 octane fuel developed in the U.S.A. The Merlin only had one disadvantage when compared with German engines, the latter were fitted with fuel injection to deliver a precise charge of petrol to the combustion chamber. The Merlin still used a carburettor, which had the advantage of being much simpler and needing much fewer components, but it did cause the Merlin to "conk-out" if negative G forces were applied. 

Thus a German pilot with a Spitfire on his tail could simply pull negative G nosing into a dive and the Spitfire would fall behind until the engine picked up, only a matter of a second or two, but that second was all the German needed. Spitfire pilots developed a way around this by doing a half-roll before following into a dive. This meant that the force of gravity acted in the opposite direction and the Merlin was unaffected. In 1941 a carburettor modification, developed by Miss Tilly Shilling, enabled the Merlin to carry on working with short periods of negative G, a vital stop-gap until the introduction of true negative G carburettors in 1943.

One thing that is often forgotten is that the capacity of the Merlin was quite small when compared to the opposition. The Merlin had a capacity of 27 litres, whereas the DB601 of the Messerschmitt was 39 litres and the BMW801 engine of the Focke-Wulf 190 had 42 litres. The superiority of the later Merlin engined Spitfires (ie Mk IX) over these Luftwaffe aircraft is all the more remarkable when this is remembered.

ROLLS-ROYCE MERLIN ENGINE.

TYPE- TWELVE CYLINDER 60 DEGREE UPRIGHT VEE LIQUID COOLED INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE.

BORE x STROKE= 5.4in x 6in (137.3mm x 152.5mm) CAPACITY= 1,647 cu in (27 litres)

MERLIN III

TAKE OFF POWER: 880 HP AT 3,000 REVS

INTERNATIONAL RATING: 990 HP AT 2,600 REVS AT 12,250 FT.

MAX POWER: 1,440 HP AT 3,000 REVS AT 5,500 FT.

WEIGHT: 1,375 LBS.

MERLIN 66

TAKE OFF POWER: 1,315 HP AT 3,000 REVS

MAX POWER: OVER 1,650 HP.

WEIGHT: 1,650 LBS

In parallel, Rolls-Royce began development of the aero gas turbine, pioneered by Sir Frank Whittle. The Welland engine entered service in the Gloster Meteor fighter in 1944 and Rolls-Royce had the confidence immediately after the war to commit itself to the gas turbine, in which it had a technological lead.

In the post-World War II period Rolls-Royce made significant advances in gas turbine engine design and manufacture. The Dart and Tyne turboprop engines were particularly important enabling airlines to cut journey times within several continents whilst jet airliners were introduced on longer services. The Dart engine was used in Argosy, Avro 748, Friendship, Herald and Viscount aircraft, whilst the more powerful Tyne powered the Atlantic, Transall, Vanguard and the SRN-4 hovercraft. Many of these turboprops are still in service.  Amongst the jet engines of this period was the RB163 Spey which powers the Trident, BAC 1-11, Grumman Gulfstream II and Fokker F28.

Rolls-Royce entered the civil aviation market with the Dart in the Vickers Viscount. It was to become the cornerstone of the universal acceptance of the gas turbine by the airline industry. The Avon-powered Comet became the first turbojet to enter transatlantic service and in 1960, the Conway engine in the Boeing 707 became the first turbofan to enter airline service.

The other major manufacturers in Britain between the wars were Armstrong Siddeley, Blackburn, Bristol, de Havilland and Napier. The leader among these was Bristol which, in 1959, merged with the motor car and aero-engine maker Armstrong Siddeley. Three other smaller engine companies were absorbed into Bristol Siddeley and Rolls-Royce in 1961. Finally, the capability of the British aero-engine industry was consolidated when Rolls-Royce and Bristol Siddeley merged in 1966.

During the late 50's and 60's there was a significant rationalisation of the British aero-engine manufacturers, culminating in the merger of Rolls-Royce and Bristol Siddeley in 1966 (Bristol Siddeley had itself resulted from the merger of Armstrong-Siddeley and Bristol in 1959). Bristol, with its principal factory at Filton, near bristol, had a strong base in military engines, including the Olympus, which was chosen for Concorde.

ROLLS ROYCE JET ENGINES

Rolls-Royce Avon jet engine.

The Rolls-Royce AVON series was developed in the late 1940`s - early 1950`s as a replacement for the NENE and entered production as the first Rolls Royce axial flow turbo jet. The AVON (in several varients) was fitted to the Hawker Hunter (x 1), English Electric (BAC) Canberra (x 2), Supermarine Swift (x 1), Supermarine Scimitar (x 1), Vickers Valiant (x 4), deHavilland Sea Vixen (x 2).

Rolls-Royce Orpheus  jet engine.

The Olympus is the only civil jet engine to use the reheat technique, in which fuel is injected into the engine's exhaust gases to produce additional heat and thrust for takeoff and transonic acceleration.

Early versions of the Olympus were fitted to the Avro Vulcan bomber and a higher-powered variant, the Olympus 320, was developed for the TSR2 supersonic strike aircraft.  The engine on display was extensively redesigned during the development programme, and dry thrust was increased from 102 kN (23 000 lb) to 138 kN (31 000 lb).

ROLLS ROYCE FINANCIAL PROBLEMS

With the emergence of the widebody airliners in the late 1960s, Rolls-Royce launched the RB211 for the Lockheed L-1011 Tri-Star.

Early problems with the RB211 led to the company being taken into state ownership, and the flotation of the motor car business in 1973 as a separate entity. The three-shaft turbofan concept of the RB211 has now established itself at the heart of the Rolls-Royce world-class family of engines.

Financial problems caused largely by development of the new RB211 turbofan engine led—after several cash subsidies—to the company being nationalized by the Heath government in 1971. (This delay has been blamed for the failure of the technically advanced Lockheed TriStar to succeed in the airliner marketplace, when it was beaten to launch by its competitor, the Douglas DC-10.) 

In 1973 the automobile business was spun off as a separate entity, Rolls-Royce Motors. The main business of aircraft and marine engines remained in public ownership until 1987, when it was privatized as Rolls-Royce plc, one of many privatizations of the Thatcher government.

In 1980 Rolls-Royce Motor Cars was acquired by Vickers. In 1998 Vickers sold the company on to Volkswagen (see below). A year later Rolls-Royce plc acquired Vickers plc for £576m.

Rolls-Royce returned to the private sector, undergoing a number of mergers and acquisitions to create the only company in Britain capable of delivering power for use in the air, at sea and on land.

In 1990, Rolls-Royce formed an aero engines joint venture with BMW of Germany. Rolls-Royce took full control of the joint venture from January 2000. The legal name of the company is now Rolls-Royce Deutschland Ltd & Co KG.

Allison Engine Company in Indianapolis was acquired. Allison brought with it major new civil engines including the AE3007 for Embraer's new regional jet, and existing, successful defence programmes.

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars was sold by Vickers to Volkswagen, although BMW hold the rights to the name and the marque for use on Rolls-Royce cars, having acquired the rights from Rolls-Royce plc for £40m in 1998. BMW will take over responsibility for Rolls-Royce cars from the beginning of 2003.

Rolls-Royce took full control of its oil and gas joint venture, Cooper Rolls, with the acquisition of the rotating compression equipment interests of Cooper Energy Services. It also acquired National Airmotive in California, a major repair and overhaul facility now part of Rolls-Royce Engine Services.

The 1990s ended with the £576m acquisition of Vickers plc which, with primarily the Ulstein and Kamewa products and capabilities joining the Rolls-Royce existing gas turbine activities, transformed Rolls-Royce into the global leader in marine power systems.

Today Rolls-Royce engines continue to power many of the world's civil and military aircraft and the company has been particularly effective in reducing noise and adverse emissions from its aviation products, anticipating international regulations arising from community campaigns and improved environmental understanding.

ROLLS ROYCE GOES TO SEA 

Rolls Royce bought Vickers marine in September 1999 at a cost of £576m, paying some 53% above the share value, which rocked the stock market and confidence in the business strategy.  The deal was concluded in les than a week by Rolls Royce chairman Sir Ralph Robins and Vickers chairman Sir Colin Chandler and so the famous British engineering company entered the marine market with the aim of creating a marine arm to mirror the success of their aerospace division.

Managing director, Bob Sunerton, said we need to gain access to the commercial marine market in growth areas such as the booming cruise ship market, water jets, etc.  Rolls Royce is also keen to promote its gas turbine replacements to traditional diesel engines for warships and super fast cargo vessels.  Hence growth in the marine market is mainly on the back of expected naval orders.

ROLLS ROYCE ROBOTICS

The lowly tugboat might not be the first vehicle that pops into your mind when you hear the name Rolls-Royce. We'd hardly blame you for that. After all, when a car company touts itself as making "the best car in the world," its hard to imagine it doing much else. But Rolls-Royce is far from a one-trick pony, and it seems that revolutionizing the shipping business will be its next goal.

STAR TREK FOR TUGBOATS

After recently unveiling its autonomous shipping fleet concept, Rolls-Royce has now turned its focus to the little boats that do all the real grunt work around the harbor. By the year 2025, Rolls-Royce imagines tugboat captains seated behind massive head-up displays, watching ice floes pop up onscreen after being detected by the ship's sensors. Even in the dead of night, objects and destinations will be perfectly visible, whether or not they're obscured by objects on the ship's deck.

Once the captain sets foot on the bridge, the entire room reconfigures itself, providing a perfectly ergonomic and user-specific environment. Video feeds from the boat's cameras can be seen not only by the captain, but can also be shared with deckhands and the crews of other vessels. This way, the tug's captain can provide visual instructions as well as verbal ones. Soon, augmented reality and drones could control every bit of the shipping industry, making it easier, quicker and safer to send things across the world's oceans.

Rolls-Royce cars from 1998

* 1998-2002 Silver Seraph - This shared its design with the Bentley Arnage, which sold in much greater numbers.

* 1992-2003 Bentley Continental R - This 6.75 L 400bhp car ended production and has now been superseded by the Continental GT.

* 1995-2003 Bentley Azure - This 2-dr convertible was Bentley's most expensive model, with about half of the models being customized by Mulliner.

* 2000-2002 Corniche - This 2-dr convertible shared its design with the Bentley Azure, and was the most expensive Rolls-Royce until the introduction of the 2003 Phantom.

* 2003 Phantom - Launched in January 2003 at Detroit's North American International Auto Show, this is the first model of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Limited, a BMW subsidiary having no technical or corporate connection with the original Rolls-Royce company, apart from the trademarks mentioned above. The car has a 6.75 L V12 engine from BMW, but most other components are unique to the car. Most parts are made in Germany, but the assembly and finishing is in a new factory in Goodwood, Sussex. The price starts at around £250,000.

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