RVB 21st – W.G. Goetz & Sons advertising

In May 1956, Goetz’s Hall Street neighbour RVB Engineering Products were celebrating their 21st anniversary. Not being one to usually advertise in the papers, Goetz took out a half page ‘congratulations’ style advertisement on page 9 of The Argus, 22nd May 1956 as part of the RVB celebration and promotion. Roy Butler is featured in the ad along with a photo of employees posing in front of the old Bickford, Smith & Co. Explosives building, which is set back from Hall Street, in between RVB and Goetz.

The caption reads ‘MR. ROY V. BUTLER, managing director of R. V. B. Engineering Products Ltd., surveys (top left) a picture of the company’s first home at North Melbourne, 21 years ago, and the staff of 230 at the present great Spotswood plant.’

Underneath , Goetz are saying ‘”WELL DONE” to an old friend – R.V.B. ENGINEERING PRODUCTS LIMITED’. RVB made tyre guages, automotive horns and other pneumatic equipment – some of it using Goetz machinery.

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Directors of RVB at times included names associated with W.G. Goetz and Sons. A newspaper clipping from The Argus on January 23rd 1951 regarding an RVB share offer following its conversion to a Public Company, lists directors including Captain J.H. Moss, O. Goetz, A.Goetz, F.C. Craddock and R.J. Burns.

RVB Engineering Products Limited was renamed as RVB Limited on 28 March 1974, which was in-turn deregistered on 26 April 1985. They had 11 patents listed with Intellectual Property Australia from 11 March 1954; the last being 24 March 1985 – a month before they were deregistered.