Lifelong undertaking

It has been almost two years since Union Electric Åkers received very special news; dr. Angelo Pesce, Official Historian of Scafati, a town located in southern Italy, informed us that the Naples Port Authority had donated four naval cannons to the municipality of Scafati  The date on the bearing of each cannon read “1773” and on the gun and the trunnion’s face, the monogram “ÅB” was clearly visible.  The ÅB stands in relief for “Åkers Bruk” and was Åkers Sweden’s logo between 1772 and 1974. From 1580 to 1866 todays' Åkers Sweden was a leading manufacturer of cannons for the Swedish military and export markets.  

Åkers 4 naval cannons

Dr. Pesce’s very first email read:  
 “I am aware that Åkers Bruck ended cannon production in 1866, and that significant corporate changes have taken place ever since, but having read all pertinent material available on the web, I dare all the same to kindly ask you whether Åkers still holds archival documents of any type that might be helpful in the compilation of a planned brochure on this new, most valuable property of our city.”
 

Indeed, we couldn’t resist dr. Pesce´s humble request, and within a matter of days, we were happy to inform him that we had found the following original documents about the naval cannons in our historical archive: 

  • The original drawing which measured 4 m in length
  • Purchasing contract
  • Memo which identified the name of the officer, who had test shot each of the four cannons  

Upon the receipt of the documents dr. Pesce was overwhelmed and replied: 

“Thanks for your instantaneous, encouraging answer to my query. In truth, I was thoroughly flabbergasted to get such a detailed reply in just a few hours' span – something we are not particularly accustomed to in this part of the world. I hastened to print your email and flutter it around: to family, neighbors and passers-by alike, as if it were a message coming at light speed from another world in our galaxy. Seriously, I am so happy at the prospect that something is bound to come out from Åkers Archive to suit my research.”  

We have established a personal and genuine contact with dr. Pesce, who from time to time sends us a report on the on-going cumbersome work to restore the cannons and other artifacts of our industry. Dr. Pesce plans to go to the National Archives in Naples to search for transaction records on the cannon purchase. If successful, he will have completed his research and will then produce an extensive booklet on the subject.  

In summary, customer satisfaction is very important to us and in addition to delivering the highest value products available in the industry, Union Electric Åkers has proven 100% Product Traceability, even as far back  in history as over 200 years.

Åkers srchive
Union Electric Åkers’ historical archive in Åkers Styckebruk, Sweden