Aktiebolaget Radius by Ross Mellows In January 1913 a strike broke out at the Primus factory in Stockholm, Sweden. At this time the Trade Unions were not so powerful & the union backing the striking Primus workers was faced with the financial burden of supporting a strike that could go on indefinitely. In a brave move the union decided to form a new company producing the same goods that the workers were familiar with. The union used 10% of it's own capital to start the company, raising the rest from outside investors. This was the birth of Aktiebolaget Radius. A small building was bought in Tellusborg, south of Stockholm while a new bigger factory was built & fitted out with specialist machinery & tooling. The new company started trading on the 14th June 1913. Its first director was J.T. Johansson, the former Union representative. Other directors were Tor Bonnier, Eric Lange, Eric Lundberg & Olof Lundberg. The new factory was finished by the end of 1913 & by the middle of 1914 Radius were ready to deliver their first orders. Just as things seemed to be coming together for the new company disaster struck in August 1914 with the outbreak of World War One. The war made export very difficult & the home market was hit by a paraffin shortage. The first temporary factory The new factory under construction in 1913 The new company was faced with difficult decisions. Like a lot of other factories Radius had to lay-off a lot of it's work-force due to the loss of production. This brought the workers into conflict with the management. The workers felt they had more control due to their Trade Unions share in the company. The union committee however fully appreciated the difficulties that the company was facing & was able to prevent industrial action. The dispute did however lead to the directors proposing that the union make a choice - either acquire all the shares in the company or sell their own holding. At the unions congress in 1916 the decision was taken to sell their shares. During the war Radius was forced to diversify. I don't know what they produced at this time but they were able to keep the company going until, at last, the war came to an end & the laid-off workers could return to work, hopefully to look forward to a brighter future. With the war over & a big potential export market Radius was eager to develop, they sent out their representatives to renew foreign trade contacts & forge new business. An extensive worldwide network of agents was set up & at last the company could more forward after a very difficult start. So successful were their products abroad that exports at times accounted for 90% of the companies production. Competition however was fierce. Their competitors had been making the same paraffin burning equipment for up to 25 years before Radius came on the scene & there was little to distinguish the Radius products from the others on the market. The directors therefore decided to focus on quality & innovation. Radius introduced several new patents to their products. Among these was an adjustable burner with built-in cleaning needle, a fuel gauge & a safety pressure release valve. Radius patented adjustable "Atmospheric Vapour Burner" with built-in cleaning needle. 1932* Radius patented "Liquid Level Gauge". 1937* In 1924 Radius introduced storm lanterns, table lamps, heaters & sanitary fittings to their range of paraffin cookers & petrol & paraffin blowlamps. In 1927 production had increased enough to require a new extension to the factory to double the capacity with further expansion in 1936. Radius factory 1927 Radius factory 1936 Radius diversified their product range over the years. In their time they patented an automatic gear box for automobiles, an electric, steam insect killer & in the 1940's produced a range of fishing reels! In Britain & possibly other countries Radius set up separate companies. In the UK the Radius Stove & Lamp Co. Ltd traded from London & described themselves as "Manufacturer's Merchants & Importers". This 1938 letterhead also named the directors. The UK director was P.R. Weaver & company secretary P.W. Smith. The Swedish directors were J.T. Johansson & N.T.O. Jitelius. 50 years after their formation in 1963 Radius stopped production & the sole rights to the Radius trademark was sold to rival manufacturer Optimus. The trademark however was not used again - the shooting star unfortunately, had burnt out. ------------------ ------------------ Acknowledgements Thanks to Bo Ryman & Mikael Bonnevier (archivist - Kommunstyrelsekontoret Upplands Väsby Kommun) for their help providing information for this article. *Crown Copyright - reproduced with permission from the UK Patent Office
A translated & Swedish account of the strike is posted here: The 1913 Primus Strike & formation of Radius - a trade union's view.
