Classic Logo: British Transport Docks Board, 1965
Ben John and Ed Stone's 1965 logo for British Transport Docks Board
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The Transport Act was implemented in Great Britain in the early 1960s to re-organise the nationalised transport system. This triggered the dissolution of the British Transport Commission whose assets would then be allocated to five ‘successor bodies’. One of these would be the British Transport Docks Board (BTDB), which would oversee the management of former railway-owned docks throughout the country. On its formation, the board had no established design policy. And a report by Planned Public Relations Ltd in 1964 stated that BTDB was in need of a recognisable, unique and future-facing corporate identity that would help distinguish it from other transport corporations such as British Rail, whose groundbreaking corporate identity, nearly nine years in the making, was about to launch.
A team of designers from the London-based studio Unit Five Design were invited to research the project, report its findings and develop a new image. The report delivered by Unit Five Design revealed that, owing to the decentralised nature of the organisation and lack of a formal design policy, there had been nothing to link the various assets together visually, with outdated, disorganised and inconsistent stationery, for example. Furthermore, signage and liveries were confused, confusing and lacked standardisation.
BTDB Public relations officer John Crisford (formerly of Planned Public Relations Ltd) explained that the overall corporate identity had three key objectives:
1. To present to the political and business worlds a picture of a well-organised multiport authority, standing on its own feet and making a profit.
2. To get more trade to flow through the ports
3. To knit together a widely dispersed, decentralised organisation and imbue it with a sense of corporate Pride.”
The new program was planned and organised, starting with a new logo. There were two proposals put forward, created by designers Ben John and Ed Stone, one of which was derived from the silhouette of dockside bollard constructed from a single curvilinear outline.
In contrast to the slow and considered deliberation of most decision-making processes, Planned Public Relations and the BTDB liked the logo so much that it was adopted immediately and British Transport Docks Board announced it to the press. Whilst the designers stated that they would have preferred more time to develop the logo, they continued to the next stage; developing the rest of the visual identity.
With a vast number of docks and harbours, the new logo and logotype was developed in thirty five variations to accommodate not only the full name of British Transport Docks Board, but various port name lengths. Popular with many corporate identities of the era, Univers was selected as the leading typeface for signage, printed materials and stationery as it provided a cheaper alternative to a bespoke, commissioned font.
For colour, a bright pure blue (Forrest Azure Blue) was recommended as the key colour, selected for its clarity and contrast alongside black and white printing. For external applications, such as buildings and liveries, a muted version of this blue was chosen and used sparingly.
The new program was put into operation in 1965. At this time, John Crisford left Planned Public Relations Ltd to become the Docks Board's public relations officer and was put in charge of implementing the corporate identity scheme. Reflecting on the success of the project in ‘A Management Guide to Corporate Identity’ by the Council of Industrial Design, Crisford concluded “I think I can say unequivocally that without the successful partnership that we had, we could not have completed the programme.” And went on to say that “the results of a good scheme are worth the cost. Our scheme made a signal contribution to identifying the Docks Board in the political and business worlds as a well-run body; it aided our commercial activities; and helped to raise and maintain internal morale.”
One of the first nationalised industries to become privatised under Margaret Thatcher’s government, British the Transport Docks Board was abolished and its visual identity was retired by the 1981 Transport Act, it consequently became ‘Associated British Ports.’
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