BURNING BRIGHT

Series

Series Name

Mining Review 8th Year

Issue

Issue No.

1

Date Released

Sep 1954

Stories in this Issue:

1. 1COMBINED OPERATIONS
2. 2BOWman
3. 3BURNING BRIGHT
4. 4PLOUGHING FAST

Story

Story No. within this Issue

3 / 4

Summary

BFI Summary - teaching lamp testing station.
NCB Commentary - These are bulbs for miners’ cap lamps. Thousands of them are in use at all hours of the day and night in Britain’s collieries, and of the thousands a sample percentage arrive at a laboratory in Treorchy, in this South Wales valley.
Here specimens from each batch are tested first for correct dimensions and then for their physical strength as well as in many other ways. A high frequency current will show if the gas has leaked from a bulb.
The filaments must be positioned in exactly the right line. This projection machine throws an enlarged image of each filament on to the screen.
Under the direction of Dr. Owen Richards scientists at the Lamp Testing Station have developed new and original techniques. This photometer gives an accurate measurement of the light output of the builbs.
The final test for most of the samples at Treorchy is a life sentence. Placed on racks the bulbs are allowed to burn themselves out shile measurements are taken of their efficiency at different intervals.
The Coal Board buys 60% of the cap lamp bulbs made in this country. Underground the miner depends for his safety on these tiny bulbs. The work that is being done at Treorchy helps to make sure that they won’t let him down.

Researcher Comments

Commentary recorded 5 August 1954.

Keywords

Science and technology; Mining; Safety devices

Locations

Wales

Written sources

British Film Institute Databases   Used for synopsis
Film User   Vol.9 No.109, November 1955, p570.
The National Archives COAL 32   /3 Scripts for Mining Review, 1949-1956

Credits:

Production Co.

Documentary Technicians Alliance

Sponsor

National Coal Board