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'{{short description|Former type of UK government munitions factory}} {{EngvarB|date=February 2017}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2017}} {{Redirect|Royal Ordnance Factories|the football club|Royal Ordnance Factories F.C.}} '''Royal Ordnance Factories''' ('''ROFs''') was the collective name of the UK government's [[munitions]] factories during and after the [[World War II|Second World War]]. Until [[privatisation]], in 1987, they were the responsibility of the [[Ministry of Supply (United Kingdom)|Ministry of Supply]], and later the [[Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)|Ministry of Defence]]. ==Origin== Prior to the 1930s, Britain's ordnance manufacturing capability had been concentrated within the [[Royal Arsenal]], [[Woolwich]]. In the late nineteenth century, the term 'Royal Ordnance Factories' began to be used collectively of the manufacturing departments of the Arsenal (principally the [[Royal Laboratory]], [[Royal Gun Factory]] and Royal Carriage Works) which, though they shared the same site, operated independently of one another. This use of the term is seen in the name of the [[Royal Ordnance Factories F.C.|Royal Ordnance Factories Football Club]] (founded 1893) and it continued through the [[World War I|First World War]]. The emerging threat of [[air strikes|aerial bombing]], however, prompted the government to consider dispersing its ordnance factories around the country. ==Development== The majority of the ROFs were built during the [[Rearmament (UK, 1930s)|re-armament]] period, just before the start of the [[World War II|Second World War]], to enhance the capacity of the three ordnance sites that had continued in operation after the end of the First World War: the Royal Arsenal, Woolwich, the [[Waltham Abbey Royal Gunpowder Mills|Royal Gunpowder Factory]] (RGPF) [[Waltham Abbey (town)|Waltham Abbey, Essex]] and the [[Royal Small Arms Factory]], (RSAF) [[Enfield Town|Enfield]]. These three sites were in or near London and were considered to be vulnerable to aerial [[bombing]] from continental Europe. The Royal Arsenal designed many of the ROFs and was also the [[wiktionary:agent|agent]] for the construction of all of the Rifles ROFs, the Medium Machine ROF and the Small Arms Ammunition ROFs. The Ministry of Supply, the [[Ministry of Works (United Kingdom)|Ministry of Works]], and two other private companies were agents for the construction of the remaining ROFs.<ref name=kohan>Kohan (1952).</ref> ===Other Second World War explosive factories=== A number of Second World War [[munitions]] factories were built, and owned, by [[Imperial Chemical Industries]] (ICI). These [[ICI Nobel|ICI Nobel Explosives]] owned factories were not considered part of the Ministry of Supply's Royal Ordnance Factory organization, and they were not called ROFs. ICI also managed munitions factories constructed with Ministry of Supply funding. These were known as "agency factories" and three of them became part of [[Royal Ordnance]] upon the ROFs' privatisation. ====Agency factories==== Some of the ROF Filling Factories built later, during the Second World War, were government-owned, but managed, as Agency Factories, by private companies unconnected with the explosives industry. For example, [[J. Lyons and Co.|Joseph Lyons & Co]] ran [[ROF Elstow]] throughout the war.<ref name=bates>Bates (n/d).</ref> Other Filling Factories were run by [[Imperial Tobacco]], [[Courtaulds]], the [[Co-operative Wholesale Society]] (CWS), Metal Closures and [[Lever Brothers]]. == Siting of the ROFs == The new ROFs were to be built in areas regarded as "relatively safe". Until 1940, this meant from [[Bristol]], in the south, and then west of a line that ran from (roughly) [[Weston-super-Mare]], in Somerset, northwards to [[Haltwhistle]], Northumberland; and then northwestwards to [[Linlithgow]], in Scotland. The South, South East and East of England were regarded as "dangerous" and the [[English Midlands|Midlands]] area, including [[Birmingham]] as "unsafe". This definition of "safe" area was later changed, and in 1940 ignored in the case of ROF Chorley.<ref>Hornby (1958) Chapter IX.</ref> Siting of the individual ROFs north and west of this line was of vital importance. ROFs involved with [[explosive]] manufacture or filling needed, on safety grounds, to be located away from centres of population. However, they needed access to good transport links, such as railways; the availability of adequate workers within reasonable travelling distance; a plentiful guaranteed supply of clean process water; and (to avoid the danger of frozen explosives) tended to be located at or just above sea level. Some ROFs located in [[Wales]] and Scotland were the result of political [[lobbying]] as these areas had high unemployment rates in the 1930s. The ROFs were guarded by what was to become the [[Ministry of Defence Police]]. == Responsibilities and functions == {{Main|Explosive ROF|Filling Factories}} The Royal Ordnance Factories were set up with six generic types of factories: * [[Engineering ROF]]s; * [[Explosive ROF]]s; * [[Filling Factories]], including [[small arms]] ammunition (SAA) Filling Factories; * Medium Machine Shops, specifically [[ROF Patricroft]]; * Rifles ROFs, specifically [[ROF Fazakerley]] and [[ROF Maltby]]; and, * Small Arms Ammunition (SAA) Factories. The three main types were: Engineering, Filling and Explosives. The largest ROFs tended to be the Explosive ROFs and the Filling Factories as these needed an explosives safeguarding zone around the [[perimeter]] of the factory; as well as separation, or reduced separation and traverses, between buildings. [[ROF Bishopton]] occupied over {{convert|2000|acre|km2}} and [[ROF Chorley]] was {{convert|900|acre|km2}}. === Management of the ROFs === Each ROF tended to be self-contained, apart from its raw [[Raw material|material]]s: with their own coal-fired [[power stations]], for generating [[steam]] for heating and process use, and electricity via high-pressure steam [[turbines]] if needed; engineering workshops; [[plumbers]] and chemical plumbers; leather workers; electricians; buildings and works departments; [[House|housing]] and [[hostels]] for workers; [[Canteen (place)|canteen]]s; [[Laundry|laundries]] and medical centres. The UK's ROFs were set up and operated as production factories. The design of [[explosives]], [[propellants]] and [[munitions]] was carried out at separate government-owned research and development establishments such as the Research Department, which was initially based at the [[Royal Arsenal]], [[Woolwich]] and then [[Halstead, Kent|Fort Halstead]], in [[Sevenoaks]], Kent; and at PERME Waltham Abbey, Essex, which later moved to become RARDE Fort Halstead. ==Post-war history== === Closures of temporary ROFs === {{see also|1957 Defence White Paper}} A number of the ROFs were designated ''temporary'', for use during the war's duration only. They closed shortly after the end of the Second World War. Other ROFs were designated ''permanent'' and they remained open into more recent times. In 1957, a Defence [[White paper]] led to a reorganisation of the aircraft industry, a restructuring of the [[British Army]] and a concentration on [[missile]] systems. A number of the ''permanent'' ROFs closed in the late 1950s, after the end of the [[Korean War]], and others closed in the 1970s. The largest of these, based at the [[Royal Arsenal]] in [[Woolwich]], formally closed on 31 March 1967.<ref>Saint, A., Guillery, P. (2012). ''[[Survey of London]], Volume 48: Woolwich''. Yale Books, London. {{ISBN|978-0-300-18722-9}}. p. 184.</ref> The temporary ROFs, or ROFs which closed in the 1950s and 1970s, tended to be taken over by other government departments. Some closed ROFs and [[Admiralty]] explosive sites, such as the [[Royal Navy Propellant Factory, Caerwent]], were retained by the Ministry of Defence as ammunition storage areas; others became government industrial estates or trading estates; others were used as [[brownfield status|brownfield]] sites to build prisons or open prisons. Part of [[ROF Thorp Arch]] became the [[Boston Spa]] depository of the [[British Library]]. Three of the seven hostels that served [[ROF Swynnerton]] became a training school for [[General Post Office (United Kingdom)|General Post Office]] (GPO) Telephones, which later became [[British Telecom]], and is now the Yarnfield Park Training and Conference Centre and run by [[Accenture]]. [[ROF Elstow]] was taken over by the [[CEGB]] and became a storage depot. The site has been cleared; and, as of 2008, is in the process of becoming the new town of [[Wixams]]. === Trading fund === In July 1974, the Royal Ordnance Factories were set up as a [[trading fund]], under the [[Government Trading Funds Act 1973]].<ref name=nevell-4>Nevell, Roberts and Smith (1999), Chapter 5: "From Royal Ordnance Factory to Plc, 1957–1984".</ref> ===Privatisation of the remaining ROFs=== {{Main|Royal Ordnance|Dstl|QinetiQ}} As part of its [[privatisation]] process in the 1980s, the UK Government transferred some of the, formerly separate, research and development capability of the [[Defence Research Establishments]] into the ROFs. Other parts of the UK's defence research and design capability were later closed down; remained with the UK [[Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)|Ministry of Defence]], as [[Dstl]]; or became part of [[QinetiQ]]. On 2 January 1985 the majority of the Royal Ordnance Factories were vested in the UK government-owned company [[Royal Ordnance|Royal Ordnance plc]]; it was bought by [[British Aerospace]] in 1987.<ref>Vickers, John and Yarrow, George (1993). ''Privatization: An Economic Analysis''. Cambridge Massachusetts and London, England: Massachusetts Institute of Technology. {{ISBN|0-262-22033-4}}, page 173.</ref> The [[Ministry of Defence Police]] left most of the ROFs on or within a few years of privatisation. The small number of ROFs involved in [[nuclear weapon]]s production, [[Atomic Weapons Establishment|ROF Burghfield]] and [[ROF Cardiff]], were removed from ROF management and did not pass over to Royal Ordnance upon privatisation. They were transferred to the control of AWRE; which later became the [[Atomic Weapons Establishment]]. ==See also== *[[Filling Factories]] *[[List of prisons in the United Kingdom]] *[[List of Royal Ordnance Factories]] *[[Royal Arsenal]] *[[Royal Small Arms Factory]] *[[Waltham Abbey Royal Gunpowder Mills]] *[[Ruddington Depot]] == References == === References === {{Reflist}} === Bibliography === * [[H.E. Bates|Bates, H. E.]] (n/d). ''The Tinkers of Elstow: The story of the Royal Ordnance Factory managed by J. Lyons & Company Limited for the Ministry of Supply during the World War of 1939–1945''. London: n/p. * Bowditch, M.R. & Hayward, L. (1996). ''A Pictorial Record of the Royal Naval Cordite Factory, Holton Health''. Warham: Finial Publishing. {{ISBN|1-900467-01-1}}. * Hay, Ian. (1949). ''R.O.F.: The Story of the Royal Ordnance Factories: 1939 – 48''. London: [[Her Majesty's Stationery Office|His Majesty's Stationery Office]]. * Hornby, William. (1958). ''Factories and Plant: ([[History of the Second World War#United Kingdom Civil Series|History of the Second World War: United Kingdom Civil Series]])''. London: [[Her Majesty's Stationery Office]] and Longmans, Green and Co. * Kohan, C.M. (1952). ''Works and Buildings: ([[History of the Second World War#United Kingdom Civil Series|History of the Second World War: United Kingdom Civil Series]])''. London: [[Her Majesty's Stationery Office]] and Longmans, Green and Co. * Nevell, Mike, Roberts, John & Smith, Jack. (1999). ''A History of Royal Ordnance Factory, Chorley''. Trowbridge: Carnegie Publishing. {{ISBN|1-85936-063-7}}. [[Category:Explosives manufacturers]] [[Category:Filling factories|*]] [[Category:Royal Ordnance Factories| ]] [[Category:Former nationalised industries of the United Kingdom]]'