£7m in today's money]. During his lifetime he was described as a "dapper little man with the bearing of a distinguished soldier rather than a quick-witted inventor or a successful man of business". During the First World War the firm made mess tins, hand grenades and shell components. After the war, competition from the US and an increase in the cost of raw materials led to a business decline. The factory closed after 1929 and the old factory was pulled down in the 1930s. Bibliography References External links Background Products Year of birth missing British inventors Mayors of places in Warwickshire 1931 deaths