Alex Moulton

Alexander Eric Moulton CBE, FREng (9 April 1920 – 9 December 2012) was an English engineer and inventor, specialising in suspension design.[1][2][3][4][5]

A 1965/66 Moulton "New Look" Standard M1 bicycle

Alex Moulton
Born
Alexander Eric Moulton

(1920-04-09)9 April 1920
Stratford-upon-Avon, England
Died9 December 2012(2012-12-09) (aged 92)
Royal United Hospital, Bath, Somerset
EducationMarlborough College
King's College, Cambridge
OccupationEngineer
Engineering career
ProjectsMoulton Bicycle
AwardsOrder of the British Empire
Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering

Biography

Moulton was educated at Marlborough College and King's College, Cambridge.[6] He was the great-grandson of the rubber pioneer Stephen Moulton, the founder of the family business George Spencer Moulton & Co. Ltd., in which he worked after World War II, specialising in rubber suspension systems for vehicles. His father, John Coney Moulton, was a naturalist working in the Far East.

During the war he worked on engine design at the Bristol Aeroplane Company.[6] In the late 1950s, after the acquisition of the family business by the Avon Rubber Company, Moulton started up a new company, Moulton Developments Limited, to design the suspension system for British Motor Corporation's new small car, the Mini, that was being designed by his friend Sir Alec Issigonis.[7] The combination of conical rubber springs and small wheels was one of the many innovative developments that allowed Issigonis to achieve the Mini's small overall size. This was later refined into the hydrolastic and hydragas suspension systems used on later British Leyland cars such as the Austin Maxi, Austin Allegro, Princess and Rover Metro, and most recently on the MGF.

Moulton also designed the Moulton Bicycle, again using rubber suspension and small wheels. Moulton Bicycle Company[8] is based in Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire, England.

Awards and honours

In 1976, Moulton was awarded the CBE for services to industry. Other honours include:

Dr Moulton died on 9 December 2012 at the Royal United Hospital, Bath. His funeral, which was attended by 'Moultoneers' from all over the world, took place at Holy Trinity Church at Bradford-on-Avon on 19 December, after which he was interred in the family grave at Christ Church in the same town beside his great-grandfather, Stephen Moulton, who founded the Moulton dynasty in the Wiltshire town in 1848.

See also
  • Austin Gipsy, Austin's Land Rover competitor with all-independent suspension using Moulton's 'Flexitor' suspension units

References
  1. Weber, Bruce (18 December 2012). "Alex Moulton, Creator of Quirky Small-Wheeled Bike, Dies at 92, New York Times". The New York Times. Retrieved 22 December 2012.
  2. Nahum, Andrew (10 December 2012). "Alex Moulton obituary". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 22 December 2012.
  3. "Alex Moulton Obituary, The Daily Telegraph". London. 10 December 2012. Retrieved 22 December 2012.
  4. "Dr Alex Moulton CBE 1920 – 2012". Archived from the original on 25 November 2003. Retrieved 22 December 2012.
  5. "Dr Alex Moulton Dies". BikeRadar. 10 December 2012. Retrieved 10 December 2012.
  6. Parnell, Brid-Aine (11 December 2012). "Dr Alex Moulton: 'An inspiration for generations of engineers'". The Register. Retrieved 11 December 2012.
  7. "ALEX MOULTON". MiniWorld. Retrieved 8 March 2006.
  8. "MOULTON Bicycle Company". Retrieved 22 December 2012.
  9. "The Sir Misha Black Medal | Misha Black Awards". mishablackawards.org.uk. Archived from the original on 29 December 2016. Retrieved 29 April 2014.
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