PLC (Helio) at Maybush

Photo Litho Composing (PLC), previously known as Helio, (short for Heliozincography) was an area on the ground floor of Central Block where the Business Centre was later constructed. It took up most of this area except for the area beneath A-E spur and an adjacent strip of the vaulted roofed area that was used for the cameras in the Photographic section.

It moved from London Road and the huts at OSO Crabwood into the new purpose-built accommodation in 1968-69.

PLC produced printing plates from negatives created by the Photographic section by exposing them to light and various chemical processes.

Lie the Photographic section, this became obsolete in the 1990s when computer-to-plate (CTP) technology became available and a few items of equipment were moved to the front of the print floor (behind C062-64). The area formerly used by PLC was fitted with a removable raised floor and carpet then used as a decant area (article about that to come in the future) to temporarily accommodate staff displaced while the main office spurs were refurbished. After that it was redeveloped into the new Reception and then Business Centre; the latter opened in 2001.

The photos below, mainly from the early 1980s were kindly supplied by Robert WE Paul:

Last updated on Thursday 9 January 2020 by GaryReggae