REMARKABLE FEAT

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume LXXI, Issue 13772, 15 October 1942, Page 3

REMARKABLE FEAT

WORKERS AT ARMS FACTORY

Tribute In House of Commons

New Secret Ammunition

For Convoy

One of the most remarkable feats ever performed by workers at a Royal Ordnance factory—to whom Sir Andrew Duncan, Minister of Supply, paid tribute in the House of Commons —has just been disclosed, states the “Overseas Daily Mail.”.

The workers numbered 20. A telephone call was received at the factory from the Admiralty on a Friday night. By Sunday morning, the superintendent was told. lorries would arrive to load a cargo of new and secret ammunition.

The load was destined for a warship, waiting to sail from a port hundreds of miles away. The safety of a convoy was at stake.

Work began at once, full of danger, since the factory had not produced this type of ammunition before.

There were the usual technical pitfalls. There were new dangers to be faced.

Worst of all was the desperate need of haste. Speed is a fruitful source of accidents in any kind of industrial process, let alone the manufacture of explosives.

All through Friday night the shift toiled. At dawn the day shift took over. At 3 p.m. on Saturday the superintendent telephoned the Admiralty;

“We’ll send as much as we can — but the full load is impossible.” The Navy replied: “The ship must sail. She’s on convoy duty . . .”

The production manager and the superintendent went into, the shops. They asked for the 2Q men to volunteer to work through the night and finish the job.

Many live far from the factory. One had a special reason for going home —his wife’s health was poor. She knew his job. She would worry. Every man volunteered.

“What about your wives?” asked the superintendant. One man replied grimly: “The missus will be upset—but women have to cry in war-time.”

The lorry drivers volunteered to make an all-night drive to the port. Two naval ordnance officers arrived. They found the superintendant and the production manager in shirtsleeves checking, gauging, and packing, and carrying the ammunition to the waiting vehicles.

Tragedy came at midnight on Saturday. A technical fault was found.

Every round of ammunition had to be specially scrutinised and the fault rectified. It meant practically starting all over again. The 20 men started again. They worked faster this time. The canteen had closed. The superintendant found some food. The men ate it as they worked. They wanted to smoke, desperately. But a smoke meant leaving the shop. They carried on without it.

At 3 a.m. on the Sunday the job was done. The last round was checked, packed, and loaded. The lorries pulled out with time to make the run to the waiting warship.

The convoy sailed with full protection —thanks to the 20 men of Factory “X." Footnote. —Before going home the gang cleared up the shop so that Sunday's dawn shift could get on with the job.