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ROF Chorley
53°40′48″N 2°39′40″W / 53.680°N 2.661°W
ROF Chorley was a UK government-owned munitions filling Royal Ordnance Factory (Filling Factory No. 1). It was planned as a permanent Royal Ordnance Factory with the intention that it, unlike some other similar facilities, would remain open for production after the end of World War II; and, together with ROF Bridgend (Filling Factory No. 2), would replace the Royal Filling Factory located at the Royal Arsenal, Woolwich. It was built largely in Euxton, but was known as ROF Chorley.
After the privatization of the Royal Ordnance Factories in the 1980s it became part of the Ammunition Division of Royal Ordnance plc and later a production unit of BAE Systems Global Combat Systems Munitions. Chorley factory closed in 2005-07 and the majority of the site is now home to the new Buckshaw Village on the outskirts of Chorley, although many remnants remain.
The factory had a storage depot built deep into the Pennine hills, over Chorley, in the village of Heapey; the facility is still in use by BAE although its exact usage has still not been revealed.
In the late 1930s leading up to the outbreak of war in 1939, the British government developed a strategy to enhance the capacity of the existing three Royal factories and to disperse armaments and munitions production away from major cities and the southeast part of England which were felt to be especially vulnerable to bombing from the air. As a result, the Ministry of Supply built a number of Royal Ordnance Factories and satellite factories. ROF Chorley and ROF Bridgend were the two largest filling factories, but even before they were both finished it was realized that they would not have the necessary capacity to meet Britain's and the British Commonwealth's needs for ammunition. In all some 20 Government-owned World War II Filling Factories were built, but none was so large or employed as many people as these two.
Safety considerations were paramount. The design, style, and spacing of individual production buildings meant that they were separated by wide-open spaces, or, depending on the application, approximately 20 feet (6 m) high grassed embankments and extremely thick reinforced concrete walls and overbridges, called traverses. The purpose of the traverse was to deflect any explosion skyward rather than outward to any adjacent buildings or structures.
The site was built with extensive underground magazines, comprehensive lightning protection, and individual buildings linked by paths, roads, and railways.
The 928-acre (376 ha) site, which was built between Euxton and the town of Leyland, had a 9 mile (approximately 14.5 kilometer ) perimeter fence which until privatisation was guarded by what was to become the Ministry of Defence Police (MOD Police) Force. After privatisation they were replaced by private security guards.
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ROF Chorley AI simulator
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ROF Chorley
53°40′48″N 2°39′40″W / 53.680°N 2.661°W
ROF Chorley was a UK government-owned munitions filling Royal Ordnance Factory (Filling Factory No. 1). It was planned as a permanent Royal Ordnance Factory with the intention that it, unlike some other similar facilities, would remain open for production after the end of World War II; and, together with ROF Bridgend (Filling Factory No. 2), would replace the Royal Filling Factory located at the Royal Arsenal, Woolwich. It was built largely in Euxton, but was known as ROF Chorley.
After the privatization of the Royal Ordnance Factories in the 1980s it became part of the Ammunition Division of Royal Ordnance plc and later a production unit of BAE Systems Global Combat Systems Munitions. Chorley factory closed in 2005-07 and the majority of the site is now home to the new Buckshaw Village on the outskirts of Chorley, although many remnants remain.
The factory had a storage depot built deep into the Pennine hills, over Chorley, in the village of Heapey; the facility is still in use by BAE although its exact usage has still not been revealed.
In the late 1930s leading up to the outbreak of war in 1939, the British government developed a strategy to enhance the capacity of the existing three Royal factories and to disperse armaments and munitions production away from major cities and the southeast part of England which were felt to be especially vulnerable to bombing from the air. As a result, the Ministry of Supply built a number of Royal Ordnance Factories and satellite factories. ROF Chorley and ROF Bridgend were the two largest filling factories, but even before they were both finished it was realized that they would not have the necessary capacity to meet Britain's and the British Commonwealth's needs for ammunition. In all some 20 Government-owned World War II Filling Factories were built, but none was so large or employed as many people as these two.
Safety considerations were paramount. The design, style, and spacing of individual production buildings meant that they were separated by wide-open spaces, or, depending on the application, approximately 20 feet (6 m) high grassed embankments and extremely thick reinforced concrete walls and overbridges, called traverses. The purpose of the traverse was to deflect any explosion skyward rather than outward to any adjacent buildings or structures.
The site was built with extensive underground magazines, comprehensive lightning protection, and individual buildings linked by paths, roads, and railways.
The 928-acre (376 ha) site, which was built between Euxton and the town of Leyland, had a 9 mile (approximately 14.5 kilometer ) perimeter fence which until privatisation was guarded by what was to become the Ministry of Defence Police (MOD Police) Force. After privatisation they were replaced by private security guards.