Editing Cordite (section)

== Manufacture ==

=== UK Government factories ===
[[File:War Industry in Britain 1939-1945 A25050.jpg|thumb|Cordite production during World War II at a Royal Naval armaments factory at Holton Heath. The long strings of cordite are being combed to eliminate short lengths.]]
In Great Britain, cordite was developed for military use at the [[Royal Arsenal]] by Abel, Dewar and Kellner, [[Woolwich]],<ref name=zukas>Zukas (2002)</ref> and produced at the [[Waltham Abbey Royal Gunpowder Mills]] from 1889 onwards.<ref name = hogg>Hogg (1970)</ref>

At the start of World War I, cordite was in production at [[Waltham Abbey Royal Gunpowder Mills]] and by seven other suppliers (British Explosives Syndicate Ltd, Chilworth Gunpowder Company Ltd, Cotton Powder Company Ltd, Messrs Curtis's and Harvey Ltd, National Explosives Company Ltd, New Explosives Company Ltd and Nobels Explosive Company Ltd).<ref name="ministry of munitions">Ministry of Munitions (1922)</ref> Existing factories were expanded and new ones built, notably by Nobel's at Ardeer, [[HM Factory, Gretna]], which straddled the [[Scotland]]-[[England]] border at [[Gretna, Scotland|Gretna]], and the [[Royal Navy Cordite Factory, Holton Heath]]. A factory was also established by the Indian Government at Nilgris. Both the Gretna and the Holton Heath cordite factories closed at the end of World War I.{{Citation needed|date=January 2021}}

By the start of World War II, Holton Heath had reopened, and an additional factory for the Royal Navy, The [[Royal Navy Propellant Factory, Caerwent]], opened at [[Caerwent]] in [[Wales]]. A very large [[Royal Ordnance Factory]], ROF Bishopton, was opened in Scotland to manufacture cordite for the British Army and the Royal Air Force. A new cordite factory at Waltham Abbey and two additional ROF's—[[ROF Ranskill]] and [[ROF Wrexham]]—were also opened. Cordite produced in these factories was sent to [[filling factories]] for filling into ammunition.{{Citation needed|date=January 2021}}

=== MoS Agency Factories and ICI Nobel in World War II ===
The British Government set up additional cordite factories, not under Royal Ordnance Factory control but as Agency Factories run on behalf of the [[Ministry of Supply]] (MoS). The company of [[ICI Nobel]], at Ardeer, was asked in 1939 to construct and operate six factories in southern Scotland. Four of these six were involved in cordite or firearm-propellant manufacture. The works at MoS Drungans ([[Dumfries]]) produced guncotton that was converted to cordite at MoS Dalbeattie (triple-base cordite) and at MoS Powfoot (monobase granulated guncotton for small-arms). A smaller site at Girvan, South Ayrshire, now occupied by Grant's distillery, produced cordite and [[Trinitrotoluene|TNT]].<ref name=cocroft-gaz>{{Harvnb|Cocroft|2000|loc=Gazetteer}}</ref> The ICI Ardeer site also had a mothballed World War I Government-owned cordite factory.<ref name="reader-2-14">{{Harvnb|Reader|1975| loc=Chapter 14: "Warlike Supply"}}</ref>

35% of British cordite produced between 1942 and 1945 came from Ardeer and these agency factories.<ref name="reader-2-15">{{Harvnb|Reader|1975| loc=Chapter 15: "War Production"}}</ref> ICI ran a similar works at Deer Park (which was also confusingly known as Ardeer after the adjacent suburb) near Melbourne in Australia and in South Africa.<ref name="reader-2-15"/>

=== Overseas supplies ===
Additional sources of propellant were also sought from the British Commonwealth in both World War I and World War II. [[Canada]], South Africa, and Australia had ICI-owned factories that, in particular, supplied large quantities of cordite.{{Citation needed|date=January 2021}}

==== World War I ====
[[File:Bird’s-eye view of a portion of Canadian Explosives Ltd., Nobel, Ontario - Vue à vol d’oiseau d’une partie de l’entreprise Canadian Explosives Ltd., Nobel (Ontario) (39057463364).jpg|thumb|right|Bird's-eye view of a portion of Canadian Explosives Ltd., Nobel, Ontario]]
[[Canadian Industries Limited|Canadian Explosives Limited]] was formed in 1910 to produce [[rifle]] cordite, at its [[Beloeil, Quebec|Beloeil]] factory, for the [[Quebec]] [[Arsenal]]. By November 1915 production had been expanded to produce 350,000&nbsp;lb (159,000&nbsp;kg) of cordite per month for the [[Imperial Munitions Board]].<ref name="carnegie">Carnegie (1925).</ref>

The Imperial Munitions Board set up a number of additional explosives factories in [[Canada]]. It built ''The British Cordite Ltd'' factory at [[Nobel, Ontario]], in 1916/1917, to produce cordite. Production started in mid-1917.<ref name = carnegie/>

Canadian Explosives Limited built an additional cordite factory at Nobel, Ontario. Work started in February 1918 and was finished on 24 August 1918. It was designed to produce 1,500,000&nbsp;lb (681,000&nbsp;kg) of cordite per month.<ref name = carnegie/>

Factories, specifically "heavy industry" (Long, and Marland 2009) were important for the provision of munitions. Cordite factories typically employed women (Cook 2006) who put their lives at risk as they packed the shells.{{Citation needed|date=January 2021}}