The origins of the Treforest Industrial
Estate lie with the formation of the 'South Wales and Monmouthshire
Trading Estates Ltd.' in June 1936. This was a non-profit
making company whose aim was to establish one or more trading
estates in Wales to diversify employment and to provide
some alternative to the coal and steel industries, which
were in decline. Their first and most difficult task as
a company was to find a site for the first Trading Estate,
and on the 20th of July, after detailed reports on a number
of sites had been considered, an agreement was reached
that the Treforest site was the most suitable for their
purpose.The first sod was cut on the 29th December 1936 and
by the end of 1937 three small factories were completed
and occupied, employing 69 people. The first building contract
awarded was in fact for a large factory for the British
Coated Board and Paper Company Ltd (Wiggins Teape), who
were to have a long and successful relationship with Treforest
Industrial Estate.
Right: The site before the development of the Trading
Estate showing the rural nature of the landscape.
When war broke out a few years later the Trading
Estate was well on the road to success and throughout the
war years the estate played an increasingly important role
in the war effort and national economy. The growing importance
of the estate was reflected in 1941 when it received a royal
visit from King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. The operation
of the Estate was seriously disrupted during this period
with many factory buildings requisitioned by the Government
and their occupants re-housed in makeshift buildings away
from the estate. Extensions and even whole new factories
were built by Government departments for their own purposes
from 1939 to 1945. These activities led to a dramatic increase
in the number of people working on the estate, with almost
16,000 people being employed there by the beginning of 1944.
The end of the war saw the release of requisitioned space,
and the return of a number of firms that had been moved from
the estate, many of which required premises larger than they
had previously held.
At this period the estate was to come under the control
of a number of different bodies. The first change occurred
in 1946 when it came under the control of the Wales and Monmouthshire
Industrial Estates Ltd. Further changes occurred in 1960
and 1976 when the Estate came under the control of the 'Welsh
Industrial Estates Corporation' and the Welsh Development
Agency (who still manage the site today).
The site has changed over the years, with many of the old
factory units being replaced by larger and differently designed
factories to meet the demand of the 21st century. In recent
years there has been a change in the types of businesses
leasing properties on the estate with a move towards providing
leisure facilities and out of town office accommodation.
However despite these changes, perhaps even because of them,
the Treforest Industrial Estate is still a highly successful
venture, providing employment for large numbers of people.
