The History of N. V. Philips' Gloeilampenfabrieken: Volume 2, A Company of Many Parts

This is the second volume to appear in English of Mr Heerding's magisterial history of N. V. Philips' Gloeilampenfabrieken, first published in The Netherlands in 1986. It traces the growth and development of the firm from its establishment in 1891 until the retirement of Gerard Philips in 1922. This was a period of dramatic worldwide expansion, and Mr Heerding's vivid account assesses not merely the indigenous factors behind the company's success - notably its production system and marketing expertise - but also the wider technological developments that were shaping the lamp industry generally. Mr Heerding shows how from its earliest days Philips pursued a vigorous export policy bringing it into conflict with entrenched interests in Germany and North America in particular, and was thus able to survive when many of its competitors were floundering. Mr Heerding analyses the long struggle against the German Patentgemeinschaft, and Philips' extensive American involvement, culminating in lengthy negotiations with General Electric: the study provides an illuminating example of how a small company, building on the personal strengths of its founders, can in fact establish itself within a market dominated by monopolies and cartels. As with Volume 1, Mr Heerding provides far more than just the internal history of one company, examining in detail the socio-economic structure of Eindhoven, the Catholic provincial town that was to become the world headquarters of the Philips organisation. He shows how forms of profit-sharing, housing and educational schemes were progressively introduced, as the company, from being a suspiciously watched outsider, became the dominant presence in the town. Sadly, Mr Heerding died shortly after completion of Volume 2 of the Dutch edition: this English impression should make a fitting memorial to one of the foremost Dutch business historians of recent times.