The outbreak of war with Germany in 1914 led to lucrative contracts for the company including the production of 1,500 tons of TNT. The sites facilities were expanded considerably during the war including the construction of a new azo dyes plant (building 183) in 1918. TNT manufacture at the plant ceased following a series of accidents at other explosives factories such as those at Silvertown and Ashton-under-Lyne. Sylvain Dreyfus, a nephew of Charles Dreyfus, perished in the Ashton-under-Lyne disaster when the Hooley Hill Rubber and Chemical Works exploded. These and other accidents prompted the Government to concentrate explosives manufacture at factories sited well away from built up areas.
