The commentary to the film is provided by Austin Baxter of Holmes and Baxter Ltd. He describes the activities of the firm from his arrival in the morning (when the first job is to read the mail with his fellow directors Albert Crowe and Dorothy Boke). We also see the arrival in the office of Mr Holmes. We are introduced to the firm's products in the sale room where examples of lace nettings and curtains are held up to the camera. Next in the design room we see draughtsman Mr Mace at work hand painting a design. Views inside the store room showing jacquards follow before we visit the factory floor itself. Processes in the manufacture of lace are shown beginning with the winding of yarn onto spools using a bobbin winding engine and another machine that adds the warp to the lace. We also see the jacquard cards transmitting the pattern. After the machine operation we visit the examination room where under the supervision of Frank Holmes women mend the lace by hand. This is followed by the finishing room where more repairs are done following the bleaching process (not shown) and hems are machine sewn. The completed lace is then packaged into crates and loaded onto a lorry for road despatch. Administrative scenes end the film with views of the pattern department that sends out samples and the invoice clerks at work. The final scenes show the directors again checking the mail, this time the outgoing post.
Produced by Compass Films in association with T.B. Browne Ltd
The University of Nottingham hold the papers of J. A. Walker who had a long history in the lace trade in the Nottingham area. According to their listings Walker was involved in the Basford Textile Group, a holiding company that included many other local manufactures including Holmes and Baxter Ltd. Basford Textile Group was originally formed as a consortium to buy Basford Dyers Ltd in 1953. After many changes (including manufaturing of lace in Scotland and moving its head office to Heanor in Derbyshire) the group went into liquidation around 1999.
One of the factories that may have been included in the film is situated on High Church Street in New Basford, Nottingham. In the film it is stated that Holmes and Baxter Ltd were formed in 1928.