The development of the Foundry can be traced back to 1762. Matthew
Boulton,
a Birmingham industrialist, decided to build the "Soho Manufactory"
on a
site about two miles from the present day Foundry. Here, in what
was one of
the most advanced factories of its kind at the time, Boulton and his
partner
John Fothergill manufactured a wide variety of products, including
steel
jewellery, buckles, buttons, silver plate articles. Though Boulton
was
prospering there was always the need for more power as he was using
the
adjacent stream in order to drive the machinery at the factory.
One of the
solutions he had in mind was the use of steam power.
At about the same time, the Glasgow engineer James Watt was experimenting
with his improvement in the efficiency of the steam engine and succeeded
in
developing a model that could drive rotating machinery. He also
invented the
centrifugal governor to control the supply of power to the engine.
In 1768,
on a return trip to London, he stopped off in Birmingham and met Boulton
who
asked him to send regular reports on the progress of the experimental
engine. Some time later Watt's partner in London, Dr John Roebuck,
got into
financial trouble. Roebuck owed Boulton a large sum of money and the
industrialist agreed to take a share in the engine patent as payment
for the
debt.
In 1775, Watt and Boulton entered into a 25 year partnership to build
parts
for, and to assemble Watt's engine at the Soho Manufactory. They
charged a
premium to customers who bought the engine, which amounted to one third
of
the saving in fuel made by their engine, compared with a common one.
The
engines created great interest, and enquiries and orders soon began
to arrive
at the Manufactory.