The Fischer Bearings Co. Ltd. was originally a subsidiary of the German company Kugelfischer AG , which came to Wolverhampton in 1936 when it was acquired by Mr. Frank Farrer of Villiers Engineering Ltd.
The company occupied most of the old Sunbeam factory which had just ceased production in that part of the building.
Between the factory in Blakenhall and the shadow factory in Hednesford, they were responsible for a considerable proportion of Britain's ball bearing manufacture during the early war years, including bearings for the Spitfire aircraft, the first fighter jet, the Gloster Meteor, and the world's first 1000-mile-an-hour aircraft, the Fairey Delta.
In May, 1940, it was taken into custody as an enemy property, and sold to the experienced bearing makers the British Tunken Group (a subsidiary of the U. S. based Timken Roller Bearing Company). In 1959, they were acquired by another U. S. company, Fafnir Bearings Company, and changed their name to Fafnir Bearings Ltd. (they were founded in 1911, in response to the demands for ball bearings from the emerging motor car industry, and at that time were the largest independent American bearing firm)
Fafnir Ball Bearing Pillow Block
Fafnir Ball Bearings
