Meet the Teams - Upholstery
UPHOLSTERY Updated 1st December 2024
The Upholstery department is responsible for the seating in the carriages of the running trains.
When refurbishment is required in a carriage, the seats, backs and side panels are removed and transferred to the Upholstery Shop where they are stripped down, the springing inspected or replaced and new fabric installed.
The workshop is on the first floor of a modern building, is light and spacious and has storage space for all the materials and the components of the carriage being renovated.
The work is carried out by a team who are not necessarily professional but who are practical people looking for an interest in their spare time. Most volunteers work two days a week and working hours are left to the individuals themselves.
Seat covers are made from Moquette material which is largely a woollen fabric with a pile similar to a carpet and the patterns used are those of the regional railways existing when the carriages were built. Sewing this material is difficult because it has a pile and an industrial sewing machine with a walking foot is part of the equipment used by us to help feed the material under the foot.
Seats and backs have a spring mattress covered by horsehair. In the backs this is retained but in the seats it is being replaced by foam. The foam complies with the furniture safety regulations schedule 1, part 1.
Helen
Eve (also our Office Secretary)
Sally
John joined C&W in January 2008. On the induction training course it was suggested he would be better suited to C&W than Building Services, although he had been a structural engineer. He became Head of the team when John Randall retired. His knowledge of structural engineering enabled him to design the two gibbet hoists used for doors and corridor connections and the trolley used for the Upholstery hoist, and provide the necessary technical information for the type of hoist required. In his career he had also been Technical Director of Leofric Broadspan Buildings. When asked what he liked best about C&W, his response was the friendly atmosphere and the satisfaction of seeing a restored vehicle leave the workshop and go into service.
John and his wife Janet were also members of On Train Catering (now Railway Catering Services).
Jenny
After many happy years with Upholstery, Jenny has now transferred to the 3rd/4th Rake Maintenance team, primarily to do cleaning. Whisper it gently, she is also a very good painter!
The pre-pandemic team of Penny
and Dave (husband and wife - now retired), Dave (sadly died in April
2023), John (now retired) and Jenny (now with 3rd/4th Rake Maintenance)
When completed the seats are reinstalled in the carriage by the team and it is at this point that the team gets the satisfaction of seeing their hard work come to fruition.
As of May 2023 the team: -
1. now produces cushions, bags and spectacle cases made with spare moquette for sale in our shops and during galas, the sales of which are amazing!
2. has taken on three contracts for the Forest of Dean Railway and one for the Bluebell Railway
What you can expect working in the Upholstery Department:
- Fun! We are a friendly team with good camaraderie!
- Satisfaction in a job well done – all our passengers get to experience our work!
- Practical hands-on work but without too much heavy lifting (we get others in the Department to do that for us!)
The Team
Laura - Head of the Team
Helen
Eve (also our Office Secretary)
Chris (transferred from Metalwork)
Sally
Richard
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Former members
John - former Team Head
John joined C&W in January 2008. On the induction training course it was suggested he would be better suited to C&W than Building Services, although he had been a structural engineer. He became Head of the team when John Randall retired. His knowledge of structural engineering enabled him to design the two gibbet hoists used for doors and corridor connections and the trolley used for the Upholstery hoist, and provide the necessary technical information for the type of hoist required. In his career he had also been Technical Director of Leofric Broadspan Buildings. When asked what he liked best about C&W, his response was the friendly atmosphere and the satisfaction of seeing a restored vehicle leave the workshop and go into service.
John and his wife Janet were also members of On Train Catering (now Railway Catering Services).
Jenny
After many happy years with Upholstery, Jenny has now transferred to the 3rd/4th Rake Maintenance team, primarily to do cleaning. Whisper it gently, she is also a very good painter!
Dave and Penny Dron
Our husband and wife upholsterers announced their retirement in February 2022. Dave wanted to join the Railway but needed a fairly light job, so he joined C&W in 2010 initially as a generalist and then transferred to Upholstery. Penny joined in July 2011 having seen how much Dave enjoyed it and going straight into Upholstery as Dave said the team needed more help. Since then they have been very much a fundamental part of the team as will be seen in the Examples section that follows. Penny has also become well known for her wonderful paintings and drawings. For the Tim Mitchell Building during our Santa season, she also created the fabulous Christmas paintings and painted up the little moose and reindeer for the displays. Dave and Penny are very much missed.
Dave Hewitt
Dave was a great character and very skilled at his upholstering, often doing much of the woodworking and other structural aspects of the job. He will be remembered in particular for his epic Friday emails. Always cheerful and willing to help, it was a great shock when he passed away in late April 2023. He will be very much missed.
Stephen
John Hughes
John used to work in Upholstery on Tuesdays and was also a member of the Painting and Prep Team. He joined C&W in 2010 because of the large variety of work, allowing the use of existing skills and possibly learning more from others. There was also the pleasure of seeing our rolling stock transformed from decay into almost as new. Sadly we lost John at the end of 2020 from pancreatic cancer. He is much missed.
Vivien
Vivien also worked on Tuesdays. She is currently the Membership Secretary for the Friends of Winchombe Station and will frequently be seen with gardening tools in her hands during their Friday working days.
Pam
In late 2020 with Dave and Penny away, Pam became a temporary member of the team. Her former experience when self-employed in the refurbishing of the insides of period cars and light aircraft making her a very useful addition. Pam was originally involved with Metalwork, but is now a member of the Painting and Prep Team.
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The pre-pandemic team of Penny
and Dave (husband and wife - now retired), Dave (sadly died in April
2023), John (now retired) and Jenny (now with 3rd/4th Rake Maintenance)
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Many examples of the team at work over the past years
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Our Upholstery Team do a great job and many is the time we are complimented by our travelling public as to how nice the coaches are inside. A fair proportion of the praise will be about the lovely quality of the seating.