Lancelot Richard Woodcock
Lancelot Richard Woodcock (1880-1939)
1939 Obituary [1]
"LANCELOT RICHARD WOODCOCK had a remarkably varied career as a constructional engineer, chiefly in connection with electric power stations in Europe, Asia, America, and Australia.
He was born in Brisbane in 1880 and was educated at Ipswich Grammar School, Queensland, and Brisbane Technical College. From 1896 to 1898 he served an apprenticeship with Messrs. Barton and White, electrical engineers, of Brisbane, after which he studied engineering at the University of Sydney. After his graduation, he became a demonstrator in mechanical engineering at the university, and in 1907 he went to Schenectady, New York, where for a year he received further training in the testing department and steam turbine station of the General Electric Company. Mr. Woodcock was next engaged on constructional work for the Washington Water Power Company, at Spokane, where he was chiefly concerned with hydro-electric plant, and in 1914 he was made superintendent of electrical construction.
Two years later he returned to Brisbane as manager of the electrical department of the Engineering Supply Company of Australia, the Queensland agents of the International General Electric Company.
He came to England in 1917 and joined the Ministry of Munitions, Factories Branch, London, as assistant electrical engineer, with offices in the Institution House at Storey's Gate.
In 1919 he went to Spain as resident engineer for Dr. H. F. Parshall, consulting engineer to the Ebro Irrigation and Power Co, and was engaged upon the construction of Camarasa Dam and Power House.
Two years later he again went to New York State, and joined the Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Co, who placed him in charge of inspection work during the construction of the Hell Gate Power Station, New York. He subsequently became senior engineer with the Brooklyn Edison Co, for whom he carried out inspection work in the constructional department. During 1923-4 Mr. Woodcock was appointed superintendent of electrical construction at Sherman Island Power Station, New York, operated by the International Power Company of Glens Falls. His next appointment took him to India as general superintendent of the 40,000 h.p. Sivasamudraw hydro-electric plant of the Government of Mysore, where he took charge of all constructional and maintenance and administrative work; his chief work here was the erection of four 3,000 kW. generators with pipe lines, and the raising and strengthening of the Cauvery river dam. In 1927 Mr. Woodcock again went to Spain for the Ebro Irrigation and Power Co, and was appointed chief of the Alto Noguera division, with offices in Tremp, Lerida. The division included four large power stations and a constructional department for building dams in the lakes of the Pyrenees. He was promoted to be manager of the company at Tremp in 1936, but the Spanish civil war broke out soon afterwards, and the power houses were occupied by the nationalist forces until the close of 1938. Mr. Woodcock's death occurred at Tremp on 1st July 1939. He was elected a Member of the Institution in 1930."