Report - Nestle Coffee Factory - Hayes - June 2015

[Speed]

A big 8 out of 10 for security on this one. It really was comically good for once! The place was due to close in 2014 so i checked it out a few times last year and was each time annoyed to find steam still billowing from the roof. Eventually after infiltrating the ex-employees Facebook group claiming that we had worked in 'Green Bean Delivery' (a department we had entirely made up) from 2001 to 2007 (despite our hoax facebook age being just 18) we managed to get the exact closure date and it worked so well in fact we ended up getting invited to the group moderators birthday party too!

Arriving after shutdown for the first time i was more than slightly annoyed they had turned the average looking factory into some kind of fort knox with new fencing, razor wire, mobile CCTV and a foreboding Sikh security guard that seemed to constantly patrol the front fence line. We returned for an evening visit but this didn't go well ending in the dog unit doing a 10 second 1/4mile down the back of the factory towards me nearly running down a member of the public (who was not amused) who happened to be crossing the factory entrance on the way.

Next attempt went much better but i still found myself laying in the gutter within 10 seconds of getting over the fence and again on the way out we almost ran straight into a bloke strolling along in the darkness.. If you can get in here then well done!

As for what we found? well it was as expected really. The plant is massive and has loads of history being Nestles first UK factory but inside it was quite devoid of anything REALLY interesting. They have been stripping out parts for a few months now so that has contributed to the lack of stuff in there but really i think only a small part of the old factory was used after chocolate production ceased in 1990 anyway. Sadly this disused part of the plant was stripped almost bare. This said we did miss many areas. This place is way to big to get around in the 2-3 hours we were in there, especially as crossing between the different parts was far from straightforward.

The factory was opened in 1913 by Eugen Sandow, regarded by many as the father of modern bodybuilding, of all things, who rose to prominence in the late nineteenth century and who claimed that chocolate was the source of his strength.

This business venture was to prove a failure, however, and having been taken over by Hayes Cocoa just three years later in 1916, it was then bought by Nestlé and production began in 1929.

Shortly after the takeover, Nestlé were approached by the Brazilian Coffee Institute who were looking for ways to deal with their surplus coffee supplies.

Nestlé began experimenting with ways to dry and capture the flavours of the beans, and after eight years of trial and error, the world's first instant coffee was devised and introduced to the market in 1939.

The Hayes factory was earmarked as the site that would roll the revolutionary new product off the line, and tonnes of it were sent over to troops fighting in the Second World War.

Hayes also produced some of the company's chocolate products until the end of the 1990s, when all of the factory was given over to the production of coffee.

After getting on site one of the first things we found was the unlocked chimney. Would have been rude not to.

Then on inside straight into workshops and empty floors..

After a while we found the part of the original plant that seemed to have been used recently. Progress was stunted slightly by mag lock doors but we found more workshops, canteen complete with historical photos and our first 'pipes and tanks'

​

 

[Speed]

Next over to the amazing main entrance stairwell. Very nice 1930s building, be a real shame if they are allowed to get ride of it.

Last off we crossed to the more modern coffee section that was pure pipes and tanks and a bit meh. Reminded me very much of a modern brewery building.

​

 

[The_Raw]

That's fantastic mate, glad you got in there finally and good to see the results

 

[kevin arnold]

awesome work, i love it how you always manage to dig up some new stuff in london.

 

[Oxygen Thief]

Awesome stuff, as usual. I wasn't aware of the history of this place either. Interesting.

Thought I knew Hayes pretty well, can't even think where this is.

 

[WhoDerpsWins]

Awesome work. Bet you're glad to of finally got in. Some very nice nice bits and pieces by the looks of it. Particularly that stairwell.

 

[Ojay]

Devoid of anything you say

 

[A man called Martyn]

Very nice, would indeed be a shame if an unscrupulous developer destroyed the 1930s building. But as the fate of the firestone tyre factory down that neck of the woods shows, it can happen.

 

[mattdonut]

love the 30s building
good work

 

[Maniac]

Now that is fantastic! Cracking job as per usual Speed, you covered a lot of ground it would seem despite the issues with security!

 

[angelica]

Amazing stuff. I love that 1930s staircase and all the pipes and tanks. Wonder whether it still smells of coffee

 

[Rookinella]

I drive through Hayes all the time and I cannot place this. Is it a hidden delight? Reminds me a little of HP.

 

[The Amateur Wanderer]

Excellent work as per mate!

 

[Reverber]

This place seems made for 28 days later as kind of a test, if you can beat the security then you are rewarded by the history of the factory in the old newspaper articles and photos. Good job getting in and very nice photos. good report.

I wonder if the people on the fb group thought you were part of that green bean thing that was up in the factory, and that's why they didn't realize your profile was a fake, regardless I think it's a pretty good example of social hacking props to you.

 

[Speed]

Well i have a certain understanding of how they make coffee so it was a logical that they would need beans delivered at some point :P

I think there may be more to come from here. Theres a nice part at the front that was the old canteen and offices. Looks like its been disused a while..