Royal Ordnance Factory - Royal Ordnance Factories

Royal Ordnance Factories

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

The majority of the ROFs were built in the Re-armament period just before the start of the 1939-45 World War to enhance the capacity of the three ordnance sites that had continued in operation after the end of World War I. They were the Royal Arsenal, Woolwich, the Royal Gunpowder Factory (RGPF) Waltham Abbey, Essex and the Royal Small Arms Factory, (RSAF) Enfield. All three were sited in or near to London and were considered to be vulnerable to aerial bombing from continental Europe. ROF Hereford, a Filling Factory, was a reopened World War I National Filling Factory (NFF).

The Royal Arsenal designed many of the ROFs and was also the agent for the construction of all of the Rifles ROFs, the Medium Machine ROF and the Small Arms Ammunition ROFs. The Ministry of Supply, the Ministry of Works and two other private companies were agents for the construction of the remaining ROFs.