Gondolas lined in leather. USA version 
Gondola for Sweden. STR The Gondola Gondola
The apparatus was, at first, copy the "Trimline" manufactured by Western Electric to Bell System (ATT) . It was designed by Henry Dreyfuss Associates, was on display at the Museum of Modern Art in New York and, in my opinion, is one of the best designs of telephone equipment before the era of microelectronics. In the USA was launched in 1965.
the end of 1968, and as a result of a visit by a U.S. manager of Telefonica, we were asked who will adapt to the needs Telefonica and manufactures in Spain.
remember one day Santiago Armisén back from a trip to Madrid has called us into the meeting room board and, showing us 3 photographs (two of the handset open and closed, and a base) told us: "There to calculate the cost of manufacturing this device. The result has to be on Monday in Madrid. " It was a Saturday. (Then he worked on Saturday mornings). So we set about the task, and a couple of hours we had a result. As you can understand the accuracy of the estimate would not be very high, but the fact is that accomplished its mission. Fortunately for
us, the model already being manufactured in the factory of ITT in Corinth (Mississippi), with the name of Trendline. So called technical information. Naturally this information was in units of the Anglo-Saxon and had to "translate." Between the preparation of engineering data and design and construction of tools did not start manufacturing until 1970. (The dates I give them without documents by hand.) Telefónica first year we placed an order for 30,000 units. With this data was prepared Product Plan for approval by ITTE (Brussels). The plan assumed that the investment is recovered in the first year. Despite opposition from some jerifaltes Brussels, saying that Spain would not succeed, it won approval. In later years Gondola Cites saved.
Some will remember that the mechanical design was devilish. The printed circuit board (which was in the handset) was flexible (Mylar), and make it welding of the components was very difficult. At first the "hook switch" It's made of springs that had to be adjusted. He later went on to use a microswitch. Also at first, and following the design of ATT, the disc is illuminated by a small incandescent bulb, fed by a transformer that was connected to the mains. This caused a conflict with the guards of Telefonica, said that its task was not to handle the 220 v. network. (Many subscribers do not have an outlet near the place of installing the device and asked the guard who will install one). So Telefónica Engineering (Plans and Standards) asked us to estudiásemos the possibility of using an LED (light emitting diode) which, at that time was very new. So I prepared an ideal LED specification and sent it to some manufacturers of LED's. To my surprise a manufacturer agreed and started using the LED. Verily, in that we anticipate to ATT, that when he learned he went to New York ITT for information. The Worldwide Technical Director Area Audiocomunicaciones, Frank Palen turned to me and I sent him the information. A few days later I sent a telex saying ATT technicians were concerned because, as the LED was in series with the telephone circuit, the dial, the LED is turned on and off following the disk drives, and they thought that such flares Intermittent could trigger seizures or migraines in predisposed subscribers. My reply was that if this was true in Times Square (where there are lots of flashing ads) many pedestrians suffer crisis. A few days later phoned me saying that when I answered in the technical sense of the ATT, they told him that the reason was very convincing, so included in LED design. (With improvements compared to ours, it must be said. Among other things, the LED technology has improved and it could be of other colors not just red as in the beginning).
Another anecdote, this personal-tinged, was next. Years after entering the gondola (to 1981) I attended a meeting of ITTE in Brussels to discuss the plans of the Product. The Product Line Manager Audiocomunicaciones, a Swede called Nordsieck, as an example negative Gondola Plan of CITES (well, not mention the name of the company, but the gondola that was clear), based on the investment was very high and there were doubts about the success of the project. I could not contain (I was young and impulsive) and I replied that, although investment was high, was recovering in the first year, and besides, the project was a success, significantly increasing orders. In short I left him badly in front of many people ITTE. What I could not imagine is that months later, I left the Engineering Development and I became Product Manager Audiocomunicaciones of CITES, linear dependence Director General (Manuel Vidal) and functional dependence of the Brussels Line Manager, ie Nordsieck. The result was that Nordsieck asked Vidal to dismiss me. Luckily Vidal not only ignored him, but told me the situation.
subsequently redesigned the unit, passing most of the circuitry to the base and removing the flexible printed circuit.
also designed a keyboard, which was not accepted by telephone, because the then Director of Engineering, Telefonica said that the keys were very small and did not see the numbers. However
keyboard Gondola did succeed in export. Sold in Sweden (which was to put a pike in Flanders, and which was the territory of our great rival, Ericsson). Japan was the first approved foreign phone. (The stories of the sale in Japan were lots of fun). Also sold in Australia as well as in many other countries.
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