The factory moved to a small French Town in 1847.
The plant is first intended to manufacture the rail bearings (part that fixes the rail to the ground) with primary cast iron.
It gradually became the "pipe factory", a nickname due to the manufacture of water pipes. However, at the beginning of the 20th century, its production was very diversified: manhole covers, standpipes (including some for Paris), candelabras, cast iron staircases, weights to weigh, alters...
During the First World War, due to a lack of manpower, the “munitionnettes” appeared alongside the men for the manufacture of thousands of shells which would supply the front. 2,500 shells leave the factory every day.
For more than a century, life in the town revolved around this factory. Its workforce approached around 1970 the 3000 workers. This increased need for labor has attracted many foreigners. In 1948, of the 5,500 inhabitants, 600 were Spanish, 200 Polish, 180 Portuguese and 150 Italian.
The plant is first intended to manufacture the rail bearings (part that fixes the rail to the ground) with primary cast iron.
It gradually became the "pipe factory", a nickname due to the manufacture of water pipes. However, at the beginning of the 20th century, its production was very diversified: manhole covers, standpipes (including some for Paris), candelabras, cast iron staircases, weights to weigh, alters...
During the First World War, due to a lack of manpower, the “munitionnettes” appeared alongside the men for the manufacture of thousands of shells which would supply the front. 2,500 shells leave the factory every day.
For more than a century, life in the town revolved around this factory. Its workforce approached around 1970 the 3000 workers. This increased need for labor has attracted many foreigners. In 1948, of the 5,500 inhabitants, 600 were Spanish, 200 Polish, 180 Portuguese and 150 Italian.
