Original North West Building At Harborough Rubber Works

The Original North West Building at Harborough Rubber Works is a former flour mill, built around 1860 for John Bland, and has been part of a rubber factory since 1894. The building features polychromatic brickwork, with red bricks laid in Flemish bond, accented by blue and white brick bands, a cornice, and white brick window arches. It has slate roofs with stone-coped gable ends.

The structure is rectangular in plan, likely with the engine house at the west end. It stands three storeys tall with an attic and has a three-bay north front. Each bay contains two round-headed windows, separated by flat pilaster buttresses that display a Lombardic frieze and a moulded brick eaves cornice made of polychromatic brick. The windows are framed in cast iron with glazing bars, topped by white brick arches and blue and white brick bands at the impost level, with moulded brick dentils at the cills between the pilaster buttresses. The band and cill courses extend to the right into two additional bays, which have one and two storeys and similar windows. The gable ends feature bands, with the west side showcasing cast-iron windows with glazing bars, while the east side has a loft door and hoist. The rear (south) elevation has later buildings, and a 1961 structure connects the original mill to the 1925 rubber works to the east. The building is located on the north side of the River Wellands.

Inside, the wooden floor beams are supported by thin iron columns. Originally a steam-driven flour mill for John Bland, it became the Harborough Rubber Company factory in 1894, producing bicycle pedal blocks and other automotive components. The name 'Dainite' was adopted during the First World War when the factory operated continuously, day and night.