The History of Ruddington Depot
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Dismantling And Disposal
A new role for the Depot
A
slinger with a large Cole crane which lifted the heaviest vehicles and equipmentBy
1950 the Ruddington Ordnance and Supply Depot had found a new purpose and
raison d’etre. It was the disposal of government stores and equipment
which was no longer required, either by selling it at auction or reducing
it to scrap which was bought by dealers for re-cycling. At first it was goods
formerly used by the armed services which were dealt with, but later goods
and materials, including vehicles, from other government departments were
included. Local authorities eventually began to use the Ruddington Depot for
disposal too. The flow of materials continued long after the initial war-time
surplus had passed through, so the major purpose and predominant activity
of the Depot was disposal and re-cycling for over thirty years. It even changed
its name and became Ruddington Ordnance, Supply and Disposal Depot.
Anything which could be of further use, or could provide spare parts, was sold at auction. Other goods were dismantled or cut up into scrap, because they could be sold more profitably to dealers for re-cycling. Some very large items were dismantled simply because there was no demand for them any more. This was officially known as “reducing to produce”.
The Story > Chapter 6 > Section 6.01