An Explosive ROF was a UK Government-owned

Royal Ordnance Factory Royal Ordnance Factories (ROFs) was the collective name of the UK government's munitions factories during and after the Second World War. Until privatisation, in 1987, they were the responsibility of the Ministry of Supply, and later the Mini ...

(ROF), which specialised in manufacturing

explosives An explosive (or explosive material) is a reactive substance that contains a great amount of potential energy that can produce an explosion if released suddenly, usually accompanied by the production of light, heat, sound, and pressure. An expl ...

during and after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. Note: In

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, the name used in the UK for Government-owned explosives factories was National Explosives Factory; and the

Cordite Cordite is a family of smokeless propellants developed and produced in the United Kingdom since 1889 to replace black powder as a military propellant. Like modern gunpowder, cordite is classified as a low explosive because of its slow burn ...

factory at Gretna was known as HM Factory, Gretna. These Second World War factories were built for the

Ministry of Supply The Ministry of Supply (MoS) was a department of the UK government formed in 1939 to co-ordinate the supply of equipment to all three British armed forces, headed by the Minister of Supply. A separate ministry, however, was responsible for airc ...

with the Ministry of Works, in all cases except ROF Irvine, acting as

agent Agent may refer to: Espionage, investigation, and law *, spies or intelligence officers * Law of agency, laws involving a person authorized to act on behalf of another ** Agent of record, a person with a contractual agreement with an insuranc ...

. Explosive ROF's specialised in producing either

high-explosive An explosive (or explosive material) is a reactive substance that contains a great amount of potential energy that can produce an explosion if released suddenly, usually accompanied by the production of light, heat, sound, and pressure. An expl ...

s, such as TNT (

trinitrotoluene Trinitrotoluene (), more commonly known as TNT, more specifically 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, and by its preferred IUPAC name 2-methyl-1,3,5-trinitrobenzene, is a chemical compound with the formula C6H2(NO2)3CH3. TNT is occasionally used as a reage ...

) or RDX; or

propellant A propellant (or propellent) is a mass that is expelled or expanded in such a way as to create a thrust or other motive force in accordance with Newton's third law of motion, and "propel" a vehicle, projectile, or fluid payload. In vehicles, the ...

s, such as

cordite Cordite is a family of smokeless propellants developed and produced in the United Kingdom since 1889 to replace black powder as a military propellant. Like modern gunpowder, cordite is classified as a low explosive because of its slow burn ...

, but there were minor exceptions to this demarcation. The products from these Explosive ROFs were shipped to

Filling Factories A filling factory was a manufacturing plant that specialised in filling various munitions, such as bombs, shells, cartridges, pyrotechnics, and screening smokes. In the United Kingdom, during both world wars of the 20th century, the majority of ...

for filling into

munition Ammunition (informally ammo) is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. Ammunition is both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines) and the component parts of other wea ...

Pyrotechnic Pyrotechnics is the science and craft of creating such things as fireworks, safety matches, oxygen candles, explosive bolts and other fasteners, parts of automotive airbags, as well as gas-pressure blasting in mining, quarrying, and demolition. ...

s, such as fuzes and screening smokes, tended to be made at the

and filled directly into

munitions Ammunition (informally ammo) is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. Ammunition is both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines) and the component parts of other weap ...

Comparable WW II factories not part of the ROF organisation

ICI and Ministry of Supply Agency Factories

A number of UK World War II explosives factories were built and owned by ICI. These privately owned explosives factories were not considered part of the ROF Organisation and they were not called ROFs. ICI also managed numerous munitions factories constructed with Ministry of Supply funding; these were known as ''Agency Factories''. ICI

Nobel Nobel often refers to: *Nobel Prize, awarded annually since 1901, from the bequest of Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel Nobel may also refer to: Companies *AkzoNobel, the result of the merger between Akzo and Nobel Industries in 1994 *Branobel, or ...

's Ardeer site and its World War II agency factories produced, for example, 35% of the combined ROF and Agency Factories output of Cordite and 15% of the combined output of

TNT Trinitrotoluene (), more commonly known as TNT, more specifically 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, and by its preferred IUPAC name 2-methyl-1,3,5-trinitrobenzene, is a chemical compound with the formula C6H2(NO2)3CH3. TNT is occasionally used as a reagen ...

.Reader, Volume II, Chapter 15: ''War Production''.

Royal Naval Factories

In both World War I and World War II the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against Fr ...

had its own government-owned factories producing propellants and explosives, for naval guns. These were the

Royal Navy Cordite Factory, Holton Heath The Royal Naval Cordite Factory, Holton Heath (RNCF) was set up at Holton Heath, Dorset, England, in World War I to manufacture cordite for the Royal Navy. It was reactivated in World War II to manufacture gun propellants for the Admiralty and ...

(RNCF),

Dorset Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset. Covering an area of , ...

(World War I & World War II), and the

Royal Navy Propellant Factory, Caerwent The Royal Navy Propellant Factory, Caerwent was a facility at Caerwent, Monmouthshire, Wales, UK, (later RAF Caerwent) which was originally dedicated to the manufacture and storage of Royal Naval munitions. Since its closure as an armament works ...

(RNPF),

Monmouthshire Monmouthshire ( cy, Sir Fynwy) is a county in the south-east of Wales. The name derives from the historic county of the same name; the modern county covers the eastern three-fifths of the historic county. The largest town is Abergavenny, wit ...

(World War II only), respectively. They both closed as explosive manufacturing sites after World War II. Naval propellants were then manufactured at ROF Bishopton and filled at ROF Chorley, and later

ROF Glascoed ROF Glascoed (today BAE Systems Munitions Glascoed) was initially a UK government-owned, Royal Ordnance Factory (ROF). It was designed as one of 20 munitions filling factories. It was planned as a ''permanent'' ROF with the intention that, unli ...

National Explosives Factories (WW I)

* HM Factory, Gretna * NEF Pembrey *

Barnbow Barnbow was a small settlement situated near the city of Leeds in the township and parish of Barwick in Elmet. The site is noted as the location of a munitions factory founded during the First World War. It was officially known as National Filli ...

National Filling Factory No 1, later ROF Barnbow To be expanded

Royal Navy Factories (WW I & WW II)

(RNCF) * Royal Naval Gun Factory,

Westhoughton Westhoughton ( ) is a town and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, southwest of Bolton, east of Wigan and northwest of Manchester.Royal Navy Propellant Factory, Caerwent The Royal Navy Propellant Factory, Caerwent was a facility at Caerwent, Monmouthshire, Wales, UK, (later RAF Caerwent) which was originally dedicated to the manufacture and storage of Royal Naval munitions. Since its closure as an armament works ...

(RNPF)

UK high-explosive ROFs (WW II)

* ROF Bridgwater *

ROF Drigg Sellafield is a large multi-function nuclear site close to Seascale on the coast of Cumbria, England. As of August 2022, primary activities are nuclear waste processing and storage and nuclear decommissioning. Former activities included nucl ...

* ROF Irvine *

ROF Pembrey A World War I explosive factory, which was to be later known as NEF Pembrey was built, by Nobel's Explosives, with British Government approval, near the village of Pembrey, Carmarthenshire, Wales. The factory was built on a site consisting of ma ...

Propellant ROFs (WW II)

* ROF Bishopton *

ROF Ranskill The Royal Ordnance Factory (ROF) Ranskill was a United Kingdom Ministry of Supply, World War II, Explosive ROF. It was built to manufacture cordite and the site was located adjacent to what is now known as the East Coast Main Line railway at Rans ...

ROF Sellafield Sellafield is a large multi-function nuclear site close to Seascale on the coast of Cumbria, England. As of August 2022, primary activities are nuclear waste processing and storage and nuclear decommissioning. Former activities included nucl ...

* ROF Wrexham

Notes

References

* Cocroft, Wayne D., (2000). ''Dangerous Energy: The archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture''. Swindon: English Heritage. . * Kohan, C.M., (1952). ''History of the Second World War: United Kingdom Civil Series: Works and Buildings''. London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office and Longmans, Green and Co. * Reader, W.J. (1975). ''Imperial Chemical Industries: A History. Volume II: The First Quarter-Century 1926-1952''. London: Oxford University Press. . {{DEFAULTSORT:Explosive Rof