The son of a Lord Mayor of London, who opened a Stevenage building 50 years ago yesterday (8th April), has followed in his father’s footsteps by revisiting the building and adding to a time capsule first buried 50 years ago in 1963. The building was purpose-built as the headquarters of the Furniture Industry Research Association (FIRA), the leading trade body for the furniture industry. An old photo revealed that a time capsule was buried at the time of the opening, showing Lord Mayor of London, Sir Ralph Perring, adding to the capsule. His son, Sir John Perring, who attended the 1963 opening ceremony, visited to mark the 50th anniversary.
In preparation for the anniversary, staff decided to uncover the time capsule’s location, which had been concreted over. Unfortunately, they found that the original time capsule had been damaged by water and so many of the items were not salvageable. FIRA has added to and replaced these with additional items relating to the association as it stands today.
Phil Reynolds, COO for FIRA International Ltd, said: “Stevenage has changed a lot in the last 50 years. However, FIRA has remained a constant, providing unparalleled support to the furniture industry and employment to the surrounding area.”
Today, as well as providing a base for the association, the building is home to both leading furniture technology centre FIRA International Ltd, and The Furniture Ombudsman (TFO). As well as offices, the building houses a call centre for FIRA Service Technicians, a market-leading after care and repair service for the furniture industry, and a furniture testing facility, including specially-designed environment chambers and a flammability testing laboratory.
