William Archibald Logan
William Archibald Logan (1885-1949)
1951 Obituary [1]
"WILLIAM ARCHIBALD LOGAN in the earlier part of his career had some experience as an electrical engineer but for the rest of his life was almost entirely concerned with the design and manufacture of coal mining machinery, in connexion with which he had several inventions and patents to his credit. He received his general education at Dollar Academy and his technical training at the Alloa Academy and at Motherwell High School. His apprenticeship was served between 1900 and 1905 with. Messrs. Mavor and Coulson, Ltd., Glasgow, electrical engineers, and the British Electric Plant Company, Ltd., Alloa, after which he held several short appointments including those of assistant erector at the Langlaagte Gold Mines, South Africa, shift charge engineer to the Clyde Valley Electrical Power Co and erection engineer in Scotland for the British Westinghouse Electrical and Manufacturing Company, Ltd.
In 1909 he was appointed engineer to the Diamond Coal Cutter Co, of Wakefield, and for six years was engaged on testing and supervising the introduction of coal face machinery throughout the coalfields of Great Britain. He was then made manager of the firm's branch works at Uddingston, Scotland, and after holding this position for six years was employed as sales engineer by the Metropolitan-Vickers Electrical Company, Ltd.
In 1923 he became managing director of the W. A. L. Coal Cutter Company, Ltd., Bradford, with responsibility for design and manufacture. His services were next requisitioned by the Uskside Engineering Company, Ltd., Newport, in connection with coal cutting machinery and from 1933 to 1937 he was engaged upon the design and development of a coal cutter-loader, an invention, which was subsequently patented by him. After acting as designer and inventor to Messrs. Mayor and Coulson, Ltd., Glasgow, he became attached to the Ministry of Supply, and was employed in the directorate of ammunition production as a senior technical assistant. In 1942 he was appointed works manager of three factories at Dundee, operating with a personnel of some 2,500 under the agency of Messrs. Ransome and Marles Bearing Company, Ltd., for the Ministry of Supply. At the time of his death he was managing director of the Logan Mining Machinery Company, Ltd., Lochee, Dundee. Mr. Logan had been an Associate Member of the Institution since 1943 and he was also an Associate Member of the Institution of Electrical Engineers.
His death occurred at Dundee on 1st April 1949 in his sixty-fourth year. "