Function and purpose

This series consists of files that contain descriptive lists of machinery handed over by the German government as war reparations, together with correspondence relating to the transfer of plant allocated to the Commonwealth. There are also some general files on the sale of reparations plant, a visit to a factory by a member of the Australian reparations team in Germany, some instruction books for plant, monthly accounts, British and French emergency allocations etc. The Division of Industrial Development's role in the allocations appears to have been as a go-between for Australian industry and the German factories advising what was available and assisting in the bidding process.

The files are arranged by single number corresponding to the ACA (Allied Control Authority) plant number to which each file relates. However, there are 20 items not allocated an ACA plant number, which have had an alphabetical letter ranging from [A] to [T] imposed by the National Archives of Australia. These have been placed at the end of the numbered files. As well as the ACA plant number, most of the files bear a multiple number file registration number with the primary and secondary number combination 2/312/-.  This multiple number has been entered on RecordSearch as an alternative file number. It is this correspondence number which relates this accession series to accession series MT105/8, General correspondence and administrative files, 1942-1952.


History Prior/Subsequent to Transfer:
On the abolition of the Division of Industrial Development of the Department of National Development in 1956 these records were taken over by the Industries Division of the Department of Trade. They were transferred to archival custody by the Victorian Office of that Department.
 
Administrative information
 
The following data was keyed from the paper documentation:
Form number:              CA 17
Creating department:      , National Development, Division of                           Industrial Development, Technology and                           Management Branch,
Transferring department:  , TRADE, VICTORIAN OFFICE, REGISTRY Date of transfer:         05/09/1957
Archives file number:     RWM54/1/9