I was lucky enough to have my poster for JCB selected and win a chance to visit the headquarters in Rochester, Staffordshire. Read about my experience and what I learnt.
The branding was extremely strong from the minute we got there. The letters JCB were on flags outside the building, as well as on every angle of the building itself, which was huge!
Walking in, the entrance was definitely a sight to see. Not only were there two of JCB’s flagship excavators, there was also a race car with their logo on representing their sponsoring of a variety of sports. It was clear to whoever was visiting that they were in the midst of a very strong and well established brand.
Once we had our name tags, we went to the building which housed ‘The Story of JCB’, a museum showing the story of JCB from it’s first tractor made from scrap material by Joseph Cyril Bamford. He passed away in 2001 and his son, 72 year old Lord Anthony Bamford, is now the chairman.
We then went to have lunch. It sure was VIP! We dined in a huge hall with many tables and chairs which is also where guests of the company dine. The food was all organic and made on site using ingredients from Lady Bamfords farm shop.
After lunch, we went to visit the factory. Their Rochester site manufactures two of their most popular products, the Backhoe loader and the Loadall. Wearing safety goggles and a high visibility jacket (and looking pretty ready for business), we walked through the factory. It really was something else. Structures everywhere, each huge machine with it’s own specific job.
We then made our way back to front where we were given goody bags and took some pictures by the entrance display.
Overall, I had a really fun day. I got a great insight into operations inside the headquarters of a huge company, which got me really excited to start my placement next year!
