THURSDAY, 1 JA N UARY 2026 between 48 and 72 man-hours per rifle were required, with virtually all of the time requiring skilled tradesmen. Such men were widely available in Britain – but not so in Australia. With the more mechanised Pratt & Whitney production practices, 23.5 man-hours per rifle were needed to build an SMLE 303 rifle, of which only 10 minutes required a skilled tradesman (for barrel straightening). However, it should be noted that the practices used by Pratt & Whitney required skilled labour in terms of toolmakers and millwrights for making tools, jigs, gauges and undertaking machinery modifications. The Drawing Office also required skills. In fact, the Lithgow Factory had to supply a lot of its own production equipment beyond that supplied with the original contract. Much of the production equipment was managed by the Factory but supplied and installed by local and UK contractors, such as the major power plant – this being in 1910 to 1912. At the time and subsequently, the machinery-based production methods of the US proved their value. The initial annual volume of 15,000 rifles and bayonets was soon increased in 1913 to 20,000. This was further increased to 35,000 in 1914. The working week increased from 48 hours per week to 68 hours. Initially, this move was on a one shift basis – people were asked to work extended hours from September 2014 to July 2015. It soon became apparent that this was harming worker health and it was in July 2015 that a two-shift production process was introduced. Employee numbers soared from 120 in 1912 to 1300 in 1918. At the end of WW1 and after, rifle production was ongoing but at a significantly reduced rate of 3000 per year. One-off defence requirements were in play such as producing spare parts and converting rifle barrels for the new Mk VII ammunition. In the lead up to WW1 and during most of the WW1 period, the SMLE used Mark VI ammunition. As the war progressed, so did ammunition technology and in 1917, the new ammunition – Mark VII – with aerodynamically superior projectiles gave the rifle bullets a 24% higher muzzle velocity than the Mk VI version. And so, there were many rifles which needed to be updated to take the Mk VII ammunition. Kicking in commercial production Commercial manufacture began in 1920 and continued through to 1986. In the 1920s, commercial works made up about 3% of total production, rising to 31% in 1930, to 80% in 1932, and falling to 7% in 1939. Commercial work was less than 1% in 1942 but gradually rose to 6% 1945, and flourished in the 1950s and 1960s. With WW1 behind them, the Defence hierarchy had not been too keen on the Factory taking on commercial work. They didn’t want a Government run establishment competing against private industry. But keeping the Factory open was a The first Pinnock Sewing Machine, made in the Factory in 1949. necessity to preserve valuable skills and keep the machinery From the SAF Museum Archives. ready for when it would be needed again. It transpired that commercial work could be done as long as it related to products which otherwise were not or could not be made in Australia. And so began the transition. There was uncomplicated commercial work including toasting forks, washers, air brake parts for trains, artificial limbs, aircraft parts and hand tools. The workforce numbers slipped to around 300 to 350 during the 1920s. As the Depression hit, the Government changed its position and encouraged the Factory to seek more commercial work.
Maggie Marriott's nom de guerre
Maggie Marriott
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