Shadow factories and relocation in England
 

Can anyone help please with information on the establishment of shadow factories and relocation, pre-war and wartime, of military vehicle producers?

This is relevant here because the Canadian Mechanization HQ in London evidently did not have a plan to relocate the original Canadian Mechanization Depot in Southampton to anywhere else in the event of bombing. The first inkling of any plan was the attachment of some of 2 Detachment RCOC to Citroen Cars plant in Slough, Buckinghamshire in August 1940.

If you have read Dr William Gregg's book BLUEPRINT FOR VICTORY you will have seen the photos of the second CMD at Citroens which assembled Canadian Fords and then Jeeps from december 1940. However there is no evidence yet of any definitive plan on the lines of an alternative site for the original CMD.

Re: Shadow factories and relocation in England
 

David,
The only one I can think of at present is Daimler. They moved the assembling of Scout Cars (Dingo) to Bamfords at Uttoxeter, they were farm machery manufacturers. I read somewhere that the Daimler Armoured Car production was moved to Wolverhampton, but do not know if it was contracted out or if it was a Daimler plant. Assume this all happened as a result of the Coventry raids.

Richard

Daimler
 

It appears as though the Radford Daimler plant was levelled in the Coventry raid! I wonder where they relocated to?


http://www.daimler.co.uk/daimlermode...ford_works.jpg