BRITISH MANUFACTURES.

Taranaki Daily News, 17 December 1918, Page 3

BRITISH MANUFACTURES.

—£ «». WAR DEVELOPMENT. CAPTURING HUN TRADE. Some very interesting information has been received by the Wanganui Chamber of Commerce regarding the development of manufacturing industries in Great Britain since the outbreak of war, in an endeavor to capture some of the trade in article* which, prior to the war, were not, or only to a small extent, manufactured in Great Britain before the war Included ia the list of articles were the following:—Glove fabrics, cotton and knitted, manufactured by eight firms; moquettes, manufactured by four firms, needlework, canvas, penelope and congress, manufactured by four firms; silk piece goods for ties, seven manufacturers; slipper cloths, imitation camel hnir, three manufacturers; tapestry cotton, 49 firms; T.ezz caps, an entirely new line, two firms; fabric gloves, 12 firms. Previous to the war 90 per cent of the glove fabric was manufactured in Germany. The manufacture of margarine was an industry which was neglected by British manufacturers before the war, the weekly output being only 1300 tons- Now there are at least.2s firms engaged in manufacturing thi:4 product, the weekly output being 503-S tons. Dried vegetables was another neglected industry prior to the war, only two or throe firms manufacturing the article- But now at least 14 firms have seized the opportunity of adding dried vegetables to the list of ; their manufactures. Before the war all ■ rubber sponges sold in the United Kingdom were imported, principally from the Continent, but now British lhanufac--1 turers are supplying their own markets 1 with these goods. Other rubber articles not previously made in Britain are now ; being supplied bv British manufacturers Flooring and tiling is a comparatively ' young industry in Britain, dating back to 1914, but now there are at least 13 \ firms engaged in making these building materials. Compressed asbestos fibre for engine packing was before the war practically a Ge'rman product, but now it is quite n. feature of British Indus- ' trv. "Vfanv other articles previously supplied 'by Germany are now being manufactured in Great Britain, where the manufacturers are waking up to the necessity of capturing trade from the ' Huns.