.. GRANGE WORKS - CWMBRAN ..
The following information, believed to be written in the late 1940`s, gives an important and interesting insight, to the setting up of various departments and activities within Grange Works, Cwmbran; and was entitled ....
.. War Time Activities ..
Towards the end of 1939, the Air Ministry had selected the site where the factory now stands, and after preliminary negotiations the Company, having accepted the management of the Shadow Factory, was invited to submit brochures containing detailed proposals for the layout and construction of a factory intended to specialise in the production of gun turrets for aircraft . Several schemes were submitted and much discussion took place before the approval of the Air Council was obtained, and by this time the winter weather added to the difficulties of making any rapid progress with the building. Then came the dark days culminating in Dunkirk and the fear of invasion. Vital building materials could not be obtained, largely due to the hurried erection of anti-invasion defences all over the country, and progress was for a time very slow.
Meanwhile orders for machine tools and plant had been placed, and much of the equipment war, delivered before there was anything approaching
adequate facilities for its reception. No roads were made, the approach from the main road being deep mud in the wet weather which followed the abnormally fine summer of 1940. The plant was housed in the one building which had been roofed, although even this lacked doors; while in the same area a small staff was endeavouring to cope with the reception and storage of raw materials and the appropriate accounting records. At this stage, the staff had to collect a pair of, knee boots from the temporary hut erected for the Architects before crossing the sea of mud which separated the road from the building mentioned. Work began and ended with daylight, for at this time - the winter of 1940/41 - there was no lighting available, nor was there any heating other than coke stoves.
Despite the appalling conditions, work on the building continued, and a large area of the production shops was ready to receive machine tools
in February and March 1941. An immediate start was made, and components began to emerge from the machine shops. In June l 941, the factory was honoured by a visit from the Right Hon .C. R. Attlee, and several notable people, including the Regional Cornmissioner and the Lord Lieutenant of the County, were included in the party. This occasion, which really marked the start of production on a considerable scale, will always be remembered by those present, if only for the fact that on that day one member of the Organisation could justly lay claim to having stood -literally - in the shoes of the man who was later to become Prime Minister.
A number of selected personnel had been transferred from Birmingham, but the majority of the employees, even in the earliest days, were recruited
locally, and as the numbers grew it was necessary to build up a comprehensive transport system to enable the workers to travel to and from the factory. This was caused by the limited numbers available in the immediate locality, for other factories had absorbed much of the labour before Grange Works was built . Labour was recruited from up to forty miles away, and only special transport made it possible to do this. Advantage was taken of
the Government scheme for assisted travel, which subsidised fares in excess of 3/- per week.
The unsuitability and inexperience of much of the local labour quickly became apparent, and for some months even the stoutest hearted sometimes despaired. Then the fundamental soundness of the management planning began to tell, and as the labour became trained and more proficient, output began to rise steadily. Difficulties were still being experienced and changes in shift working tended to confuse and make more difficult the task of welding a team with a common goal.Relations between Management and workers improved steadily, due to both sides being willing to ventilate their views in a co-operative
spirit . The Joint Production Council did useful work on the inevitable problems which arose, and there was an excellent response to the Suggestions Scheme when it was introduced.In due course, a new spirit awakened, and keenness became the keynote. For the first time the Ministry programme was fulfilled, and nothing less than 100% of target became the aim of workers and Management alike.
The transformation was so marked that the reputation of the Factory spread, and numerous visitors, both Government Officials and Executives of other firms were frequently found at the factory, seeing for themselves the highly efficient unit which had been brought into being. That the Ministry production target would be reached monthly was now a matter of course, and the factory's record from the time it really got on its feet is one of which all connected with Grange Works will always be proud.
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