- ROF Patricroft
The
Royal Ordnance Factory , ROF Patricroft, was an Engineering factory and was classified as a Medium Machine Shop. It was located inPatricroft , near thetown of Eccles, in theCity of Salford ,Greater Manchester , England; adjacent to both theLiverpool and Manchester Railway and theBridgewater Canal .The Ministry of Supply took over, an existing engineering works, The Bridgewater Foundry, founded by
James Nasmyth andHolbrook Gaskell , owned by thelocomotive manufacturerNasmyth, Gaskell and Company . They had ceased manufacturing locomotives in 1938 but continued, on a smaller scale, makingsteam hammer s and machine tools. The company ceased trading, in November 1940.The Ministry of Supply took over the works, on
1 June 1940 , to convert it into a Royal Ordnance Factory. Staff from theRoyal Arsenal ,Woolwich , acted as Agents for the Ministry of Supply. It reopened as an ROF in February 1941.The site consisted of a square mill-like building, known as "The Tower", and various surrounding buildings including a
machine shop , afoundry and a blacksmith's shop. It remained in use as an ROF until the late 1980s.War time production
ROF Patricroft was opened during
World War II to supplement the work of the Royal Arsenal, Woolwich. Some 3,000 men and women were employed at ROF Patricroft in WW II.Parts for the
Bofors 40 mm gun , the "Bofors gun", were manufactured. Other buildings on the site were used to fabricate welded parts; particularly oil tanks to enablesteam locomotives to run on oil instead ofcoal .Closure
ROF Patricroft was privatised in 1984 along with a number of Royal Ordnance Factories to become a constituent part of
Royal Ordnance Plc; which was later bought in April 1987 byBritish Aerospace (BAe). Shortly afterwards, in 1988 and 1989, respectively, both theRoyal Small Arms Factory atEnfield Lock and the Patricroft site were closed down and sold off for redevelopment.The former Royal Ordnance Factory, Patricroft, is now part of a business and technology centre: Nasymth Business Centre.
References
* Cantrell, John, (2005). "Nasmyth, Wilson & Co.: Patricroft Locomotive Builders". Stroud: Tempus Publishing. ISBN 0-7524-3465-9.
* Hay, Ian, (1949). "R.O.F.: The story of the Royal Ordnance Factories, 1939 - 48". London: His Majesty's Stationery Office.ee also
*
List of Royal Ordnance Factories
*Royal Ordnance Factory
*Link to 1967 picture of the Tower. http://www.transportarchive.org.uk/printobject.php?rnum=T1654&searchitem=factory&mtv=T1&pnum=1
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