Plans are drawn up for a new factory in Chelmsford.

By 1912 the demand for the new wireless telegraphy equipment had increased tenfold and the works at Hall Street was far too small to meet demand. Due north from Hall Street the Chelmsford Cricket ground held an area of around 10 acres. The large railway coal yard opposite gave easy access to the main London Great Eastern railway. Rail trucks could bring coke to feed the company's power station, and the heavy components could be loaded directly onto trucks for nationwide delivery or to the docks for shipment overseas. The Company MD Godfrey Isaacs made up plans, not just for a new factory, but a small village. An agreement was made to purchase the local Cricket Ground. The new works would cover the whole of the site, and as can be seen on the plan here, to the north two new roads would be constructed between New Street and Victoria Place, where cottages would be built for the Company employees. Marconi commissioned the architects W Dunn and R Watson in London to draw up plans for the first factory to be specifically designed for the construction of Marconi's wireless equipment. The cricket ground was pegged out on February 10th, and the bricklaying started on February 26. Despite a building strike, seventeen weeks later The move from the Hall Street works to the new factory was to be completed over the weekend and all sections of the works were functioning in time for the International Radio-Telegraphic conference.

The International Radio-Telegraphic Conference delegates tour the factory.

The International Radiotelegraphic Conference delegates made their tour on 22 June 1912 where a special train brought delegates to Chelmsford for the Grand Opening of the new factory in New Street. The Mayor of Chelmsford (Ald. T.J.D. Cramphorn, J.P.), accompanied by his sister, the Mayoress, stood in the entrance hall to welcome Marconi and this all-world gathering to his borough. This plan of the works shows the route taken by the 250 delegates through the new factory. It is interesting to note how the men and women have separate dining quarters; these can be seen on the bottom right near to New Street. Typically Men worked on machine tools in the machine shop or in carpenter's shops, whilst the women worked in producing induction coils for the spark transmitters. The tour was to include full working demonstrations of the new Marconi Wireless Telegraphy system. From the main hall, over tongue and groove ash blocked floors the visitors were led to the left past the offices, where they were taken outside to the far side of the factory to start the main tour. The main buildings measured 466 ft. in length by 150ft. wide. Fire risk precautions were taken very seriously, fireproof doors separated each department and the entire building had been installed with Grennell sprinklers. Although commonplace today, sprinklers were a new innovation in 1912 The factory tour began with the Carpenters' shop where woods such as mahogany and teak were being crafted into mountings for the wireless components. The visitors were then taken into the machine shop, at the time one of the finest in Essex, being 187ft. long by 90ft. wide. Here large D.C. motors powered two overhead line shafts. From here the visitors continued through Raw Stores, where tons of ebonite and brass were stored. The next stop was at a point below the water tower, this tower housed a large 8,000 gallon tank, and is filled from a borehole 400 ft deep. Today the tower serves as a refuge for pigeons, which have left their signatures on the side of this great tank. From here the visitors were taken outside to the railway siding where railway trucks would deliver the raw materials and despatch the completed wireless telegraphy equipment. Opposite the railway siding could be seen the powerhouse containing a number of steam turbines including a 27,800 R.P.M., 45hp turbine engine. From here the delegates were taken through the Packing Department where the completed wireless equipment was packed for shipping; Finished Stores for items awaiting packing; and Finished Parts Stores, where sub-assemblies were housed; to the Condenser and Winding shop, the winding shop being staffed entirely by women. From here they continued on to the Mounting shop. It is here that wireless telegraphy sets could be seen on an assembly line, being mounted onto army carts. One of the problems during the Boar War in South Africa had been the cutting and tapping of the telegraph wires by enemy raiding parties. The new Marconi wireless telegraphy cart was to overcome the problem and many of the carts being shown to the delegates were already in use in Tripoli by the Italian Army. From the Mounting Shop to the Test Room, A long shop, situated behind the main façade alongside New Street, with the daylight entering the room from six cupola skylights along its length. On occasion one could hear the discharge from a spark gap like that of rifle firing by a company of soldiers. The tour still continued via the Power and Oil Test departments back to the main building and the showroom where many examples of the Marconi Wireless Telegraphy could be seen. During the tour, visitors could see a replica of a ships wireless cabin; military equipment including horse cavalry apparatus, carried by horses, various valve receivers, two 3-kilowatt sets with quick-change tuning of the primary circuits, a 1½ -kilowatt ship set, a new ½-kilowatt cargo set, and also a wireless equipped car, where an operator communicated with Hendon Airport, also on view, was the Bellini-Tosi direction finding system, by which the direction of a transmitting station relative to the stations receiving the message could be ascertained, and finally, the highlight of the tour was a demonstration of transmission and reception between the new works and the Wireless Telegraph site of Poldhu in Cornwall. A 15-kilowatt ship set, connected to the main aerial from a 250ft. high temporary tubular mast outside. Transmission wavelengths ranged from 600 to 2,800 metres, the set emitting a musical note of 400 Hz. After touring the works the visitors were taken past the location where the 250ft Mast had been erected, and on to the old cricket pavilion where a tape machine had been installed -The following message was sent: - "The President and delegates of the International Radio-Telegraphic Conference present to the staff of the station their very cordial greetings." And Poldhu replied: - "To the President of the International Radio Telegraphic Conference, - The engineers and staff on the Poldhu station have the honour to present their respectful homage to all the delegates." The inspection ended in a large marquee, where the caterers Messrs. Hicks, Son and Co. provided an elegant tea, with ices, strawberries and cream. The young Marconi was there dressed in a blue flannel suit with a fine white-stripe, and a straw hat.

The Banquet

In the evening Marconi and his Companies Directors entertained fourhundred guests to a magnificent banquet at the Savoy hotel in London. The company comprised all the delegates to the International Radio-Telegraph Conference, including Egypt, Japan, Turkey, Morocco and Siam. The Mayoress of Chelmsford wore black satin, trimmed with pink chiffon. They were received by Mr. Marconi and the MD Godfrey Isaacs, and then proceeded to the noble dining-room of white and silver, adorned with flowers, and illuminated with concealed lights, from the gallery came orchestral music of various nations. After the meal the Marconi company presented gifts to all the delegates, each lady receiving a silver perfume scent bottle, while each gentleman was presented with a silver cigar lighter, this firing a spark on to a wick charged with petrol. The lighter was in the shape of the Marconi famous disc discharger patented in 1907. After dinner speeches, were in French. Then Mr. Marconi spoke in English, stating that for the first time since the invention of wireless telegraphy representatives of every country in the world had assembled in London to help to form international regulations governing the application of this discovery. This was for him personally a great honour, and he had been pleased to receive them at the Chelmsford Works. He raised his glass to those who had assisted him thanking all present, and proposed a toast to the health of the delegates. The following weekend, the delegates visit Poldhu as part of a weekend programme. The tour concluding with a garden party at `Eaglehurst', Marconi's private residence on the Solent.

The views below show the main departments of the Marconi works in Chelmsford, as they looked in 1912