A village in Renfrewshire, Inchinnan lies between the River Clyde and the M8 motorway, on the southern edge of Erskine, 3 miles (5 km) north of Paisley. Once the property of the Knights Templar, the village and parish of the same name are said to take their name from St Inan, a disciple of St Mungo. Until the 20th century this was principally an agricultural village, with quarrying providing an important additional industry. However, around the time of the First World War, Inchinnan became an important base for the manufacture of airships. The Beardmore Engineering Company built many of the R-series airships here for the Admiralty, including the R34 which completed the first double-crossing of the Atlantic in 1919. The plant closed in the early 1920s and was replaced by the iconic Art Deco India Tyre and Rubber Co. factory in 1930. When this cease production in 1981 the A-listed building became derelict and was a risk of demolition, but was restored in 2003 with the help of a grant from Historic Scotland as the headquarters of a computer software company. The following year Rolls-Royce opened an £85 million plant here to manufacture aircraft engine components, replacing their facility at Hillington. Other local industries include biotechnology, food and communications technology.
