John Lamb & CPC, the history as remembered by Jimmy Lamb

Following in the footsteps of my Dad John Lamb, I entered the Pool industry in late 1999. Some might say that I was born into the industry.

On leaving school, Dad completed a 5 year apprenticeship with an engineering company called Brown Brothers, Edinburgh followed by a stint as an engineer in the Merchant Navy.

During this time, my eldest sister Susan was born, prompting Dad to come ashore and home to Edinburgh where he spent a short period once again working for Brown Brothers.

A second daughter arrived, my sister Isobel, and a change in career, swimming baths management at Portobello Baths, Edinburgh. This was followed by a move south in late 1969 to become Baths Manager at Whiston Road Baths in deepest East End London. Upping roots and moving the whole family including his heavily pregnant wife Maggie, from Edinburgh to London was a big deal in those days.

Back then, this type of role came with accommodation. A couple of months into 1970, I was born in the adjoining flat of Whiston Road Baths, latterly known as Haggerston Baths. This is why I often explain to people that I was born in a swimming pool!

We were only in London for a short period before an exciting new opportunity came up at a brand new leisure centre in Cheltenham. Opened by the Queen Mother in May 1971, Dad secured the position of Deputy Manager at Pittville Recreation Centre. It was here that he first met Peter Horne. Peter was the owner of a company supplying pool chemicals called Complete Pool Chemicals (CPC). He started this business as an off shoot from a pool company based in Gloucestershire called Complete Gardener’s. Back then CPC pioneered private label supply of pool chemicals. Peter quickly struck up a great friendship with Dad as his preferred chemical supplier. Dad went on to work in management at two other leisure centres; Stroud in the mid 1970’s before another move to Stratford-Upon-Avon in 1979.

Not long after we had arrived in Stratford-Upon-Avon, Dad commissioned the building of more sports facilities at the leisure centre including Squash Courts. Peter invited Dad to join him back in Gloucestershire at CPC to develop the commercial market. Off we went back to Cheltenham in the summer of 1982 and a great partnership was formed between Peter and Dad. Out of two different trading units in Morelands Trading Estate in Gloucester, CPC grew quickly in the commercial pool market not just on chemicals but, with automatic dosing systems. Some brands that some of you ‘old timers’ might remember included Chemodata and Sunspot. CPC partnered with Olin as they were known back then and became one of the first to offer Fi-Clor and HTH brands. You can see some these products in the photos of what must have been the early days of a UK pool exhibition which ultimately became Spatex. Looks like it was as much fun then as it still is today.

During this period, as an active member of ISPE (Institute of Swimming Pool Engineers) Dad joined ISPE Council and is the author of the ISPE technical paper ‘Water Treatment for Pool Operators’. He also acted as the chemical tutor/examiner for the ISPE Student Home Study Course. He was presented with a Fellowship of ISPE in 1989 and was inaugurated as President in 1990, some two years before he was due to take up the position.

In 1990 and after years of solid market growth and establishing Complete Pool Chemicals as the market leader, Peter sold the company and the name changed to CPC Hydrochem. A move to brand new premises in Andoverford, Cheltenham ensued where Dad continued development of the commercial business with dosing and control equipment partnering with WDT, the German manufacturer of Granudos calcium hypochlorite feeders.

His experience and expertise in pool water treatment led Dad into becoming one of the leading providers of Pool Plant Operator courses on behalf of ISRM (Institute Sport & Recreational management) and ISPE. Not only was he already a Fellow of ISPE but, he was also presented with a fellowship of ISRM, today now known as CIMSPA.

It was 5 years before CPC Hydrochem was acquired by the European market leader of pool care products, Munich based Bayrol in 1995. The company name changed this time to CPC Bayrol.

A whole new concept of pool care was introduced in the form of Active Oxygen. As the pioneers of Active Oxygen, Bayrol had some exciting products then known as Bayroklar and Bayroplus. Over time this product developed into Duo Tabs and now exists in the form of Soft & Easy. A liquid version of Active Oxygen was also introduced in the form of Bayrosoft and dosed by a machine called Bayrosoft-Dos. Bayrol dosing systems remain available today in the Analyt, Pool Manager and Pool Relax.

In 1998, a year before I joined the company, Canadian based pool water treatment giant BioLab Inc. took over things from their German partners and BioLab UK was born. Many of niche Bayrol products such as the Active Oxygen range along with dosing systems were maintained in the product assortment. The international range of BioGuard and SpaGuard products were introduced into the UK market and changed the habits of pool owners across the country by encouraging them to visit pool retailers with a sample of their pool water for analysis. The personalised computer analysis of their pool water produced a ‘prescription’ of the required remedial treatment steps required to bring their pool water into balance. As a result, pool retailers benefitted by selling treatment products that they had never sold before and chemical sales went through the roof. BioGuard/SpaGuard quickly became the number 1 brand in the UK as pool dealers profits soared and pool owners enjoyed problem free pool water.

It was during this period that Dad reduced his working hours as he approached retirement age concentrating most of his time conducting Pool Plant Operator courses.

In the early autumn of 2006 a catastrophic fire in the packing factory at BioLab UK saw some big changes. Bayrol in Munich, Germany assumed control of the company trying to maintain crucial supplies of the BioGuard/SpaGuard brand via their existing manufacturing network in Europe.

This was a mammoth task considering that BioGuard/SpaGuard was an unknown brand in Europe compared to Bayrol. The time taken to replicate formulas, recipes and manufacturing technics meant long delays in supplies to the dealer UK network and these customers were forced to source goods from elsewhere.

By the time Bayrol were up and running, too much business was lost. The low volume for production had made the business non-viable and the decision was made to drop the two brands and instead introduce Bayrol and a full range.

Fast forward to 2012 at the Piscine pool show in Lyon, it was announced the Pollet Pool Group UK had been appointed official distributor of brand Bayrol for the UK and Ireland. Exiting members of the Bayrol UK team, Peter Turnbull, Lesley Hipkiss and I were invited to join the Pollet team to help ensure a fluid transition of the business. The Bayrol brand remains a very important assortment of products to Pollet Pool Group and Bayrol are now working with Pollet Group sister companies throughout Europe.

Dad now resides in a Dementia care home in Cheltenham and recently celebrated his 82nd birthday.