Sunday Times (Perth, WA : 1902 - 1954), Sunday 29 August 1937, page 30


MODERN KALGOORLIE BREWERY - A £100,000 UNDERTAKING COMPLETED '

EXPANSION OF IMPORTANT ENTERPRISE

Forty Years of Progress

UNBOUNDED confidence in the future of the goldfields is expressed in the expenditure, by the Kalgoorlie Brewing and Ice Co. Ltd. of approximately £100,000 in a modern brewery at Kalgoorlie for the production of "Hannans Lager."

The story of the Kalgoorlie Brewery is one of enterprise and progress. For 41 years it has played an important part in the industrial life of the Eastern Goldfields, and its equipment lo-day represents the most modem in Australia.

The success of the Kalgoorlie Brewing and Ice Co. Ltd.. as a business, undertaking is due to

three things-the business acumen of the late managing director, Mr. James Hurtle Cummins (1904 1936). the. high efficiency and un» . failing loyalty of the staff, and

the quality of the article pro-duced.

The story of the Kalgoorlie Brew-ery, the only survivor of 19 breweries once trading on the eastern goldfields,

is one of continued progresa The company was floated on February 24. 1S96. tila original shareholders being:

V. L. Solomon, merchant, Adelaide. R. Fagan, speculator. Kalgoorlie.

F. G. Brewer, speculator. Kalgoorlie. J. P. Lee. publican. Kalgoorlie.

E. S. Solomon, agent. Kalgoorlie.

G. Layland, mining agent, Kalgoor-

lie.

F. Wittenoom, mining agent. Kal-goorlie.

The capital of the company is .. £12.000 divided into 24.000 shares of

10/ each. The first secretary was Mr. .EL F.. Jack. He was succeeded by Mr. A. S. Linnet, who gave place to Mr. C. A, Kelson. It is to Mr. Nelson that the company owes its well-known otrade mark "Big K." In December, >1910. "Mr. H. L. Barnard was appointed secretary, which position he held until succeeded in 1933 by Mr. Percy Johnson.

The knowledge gained by Mr. -Johnson during his 25 years* experi-ence In the various, offices which he has filled ls a sound foundation for

the position be now occupies to the - advantage of the company.

During the infancy of the company the late R. D. McKenzie Esq., M.L.C., was chairman of directors, his co directors at: that time being the late J. H. Cummins. S. EL Hocking and J. J. Dwyer. Later. Mr. "McKenzie retired from active association with the company and his interest is to-day re-presented by W F. Widgery. Esq.

The late Mr. J. H. Cummins was appointed managing direc 4 tor in 1904. He immediately

threw the whole of his energy into the determination to make the Kalgoorlie Brewery the most . successful business of its kind

on the goldfields. :

. New brewing methods-such as the then novel chining and filtering of beer-were introduced and up-to-date items of plant purchased, with the re-

sult that the business of the company

began to leap ahead, so much so that Jn 1908 the directors passed a resolu tion expressing appreciation of the valuable services rendered by Mr. J ?>-BL Cummins during this period, and othat he had brought the brewery from .% critical state to a sound and divi Tdend-paying basis.

- The financial affaira of the company

CONTINUED TO DEVELOP. with the result that In 1912 the Lion

Brewery of Coolgardie, with five free

holda viz Denver City. Australia. Westralia. Victoria and United Ser-vice hotels, was purchased by Mr. Cummins. With commendable fore

Bigot, the absorption of the Langsford Brewery followed in 1918, and one year later, the interests of the Union Brewery were taken over.

The directors then decided that it would be beneficial to the company to move the headquarters of the brewery from the premises then occupied in Porter-street to those of the Union Brewery in Brookman-street. as the establishment there enabled them to

BUILT UP GREAT

UNDERTAKING

The late James Hurtle Cummins, director (1900-04) and manag-ing director (1905-36) of the Kalgoorlie Brewery and Ice Co. Ltd., who played a leading part in the growth of the enterprise.

substitute the then modern system of skimming for the old Barton Union system, which had been considered the best up to that time.

The introduction of this new plant and method further in-creased the popularity of the already favorably known "Big K" ale, and in 1920 the direc-tors were able to negotiate the purchase of the Boulder City Brewery.

During the years that followed, the success of the Kalgoorlie Brewery was further consolidated, and its products were well and favorably known throughout Australia.

Over the last decade, the trend of brewing, world-over, has gradually passed from the top to bottom fer-mentation. When this demand for the lager type of brew was made by the public of the goldfields, the directors

of the Kalgoorlie Brewery, following the established progressive tradition of their company, planned the erection of a modern lager brewery.

For 40 years, the company had sup-plied its customers with a drink which had never failed to satisfy. The new brewery, therefore, had to be of a type to produce only the best of lagers

With this ideal in view, the directors Invited quotes and specifications from the leading brewery engineers of Aus-tralla. England. Switzerland. Germany and America. After mature considera-tlon of the plans, particulars and ad-vice received from the world's fore-

most technicians, it was determined to

place contracts where

THE BEST EQUIPMENT

could be obtained, irrespective of the

expense involved.

The brewing equipment planned on the best German linea, was manufac-tured and supplied by the Australian firm of brewpry engineers. Messrs. Mauri Broa and Thomson. Ltd.. of Sydney, who had already equipped the brewing towers of Fosters. Tooths. Tooheys and Castlemaine-Perkins breweries. The glass-lined fermenting and storage vessels were Imported from Germany, and aré of the world famous "Pfaudler** type. Other Items of brewing plant were supplied by ; well-known firms In England and ! America William Adams and Co.. of Perth, supplied the English Crossley! engines and Lightfoot refrigeration for ' the well-designed engine room.

The erection of the large three storey building of concrete and steel, which houses the above-mentioned plant, was entrusted to the Structural Engineering Co. of W.A. and their

sub-contractors. Messrs. Todd Bros. . who lived un to the reauirpments of their contracts in a manner very nleasfng to the directors. It can be safely said that the plant provided tor the manufacture of Kalgoorlie's new lager is the most modern of tts kind In

Australia

The total cost of-building and equipping of mis modern brew-ery for the production of * "Han-nans Lager** has been approxi-mately £100.000. It will be evident from die moneys expen-ded by die directors of die com-pany that they have unbounded faith in the future prosperity of the goldfields, which they have served faithfully-for the past 40

years.

BELL'S WORLD-FAMED PRODUCTS

Products that are world -famed for their dependable .quality, are. manufac-tured by Bell's Asbestos and Engineer-ing (Aust.) Ltd.- who are located at Bestobell House, 336-340 Murray street Perth. Included in their supply of equipment to the new Kalgoorlie Brewery were valvea cocks, asbestos packings, and general engineering. Their Kalgoorlie representatives are W. Drabble Ltd. "