Co-operative Society Bakery, Mersey Street, Runcorn

NEW BAKERY, Etc. MERSEY STREET, RUNCORN - Builders' TENDERS are invited for the above. Drawings may be seen and copies of the bills of quantities obtained from the Co-operative Society's offices on Thursday 9 February on payment of a deposit of £1, which will be returned on receipt of a bone fide tender. The architect will be in attendance on the above date and also on 15th instant between the hours of 11.00 am and 4.00 pm to furnish any information and details required. The lowest or any tender not necessarily accepted. J.B. and W. Thornley, Architects, Library Street, Wigan, February 1911

RUNCORN CO-OPERATIVE SOCIETY. OPENING OF NEW BAKERY - An event or much importance to the large section of the Runcorn and Widnes community interested in the co-operative movement took place on Saturday afternoon. This was the formal opening of a new model bakery in Mersey-street, Runcorn, which marks a step forward in the progress of the local society. The arrangements are so designed that the bread in process is never touched by hand. The building is three storeys high and is of Runcorn red sandstone and brick. On the ground floor is the oven room, lined with glazed brick, floored with iron grids on concrete filled with granolithic. Adjoining is the cooling room, kitchen and domestic offices. On the first floor a bathroom is provided with hot and cold water for the use of the bakers. On the top floor is a patent blender elevator and sifter together with a sack cleaner which extracts the last grins of flour from the emptied sacks. On the next floor is the patent mixer attached to which is the tempering tank to bring the water to the required temperature. The flour, water and yeast are placed in the mixer and the machinery run for twenty minutes. The trough is brought up to the machine and the dough automatically tipped into it. When the dough has attained the proper state, it is taken up by the divider which weighs it up into 2lb and 4lb pieces which are dropped down to the ground floor two at a time. Here they are taken in hand by the prover and passed on tho the moulder where the machine does exactly what hands have hitherto done in preparing for the tins. They are dropped into the tins, the oven drawplate is drawn out, the tins placed upon it and the plate pushed into the oven where it remains for forty minutes. It is withdrawn with the bread baked with remarkable uniformity. The bread is placed on cooling trays and finally transferred to the cooling chamber. The capacity of the bakery is 28,000 4lb loaves a week, each oven capable of taking 400 loaves at a baking. There is also a confectionery section, the hot water for which is provided by a boiler heated by a refuse destructor. Runcorn Guardian - Tuesday 30 January 1912 page 4