Russia fights its cold war with Crombies

have them.

Aberdeen woollen cloth manufacturers Crombie have won a major order

from the Soviet Union which will enable their citizens to keep the chill

out with the world famous coats.

Russia's ''top 10,000'' are well acquainted with the sombre

triple-thickness cloth produced on the banks of the River Don, but now

the reconstruction of the country's economy means every Boris, Ivan or

Sasha will have the opportunity to buy a Crombie.

Even though their trading link with Russia spans more than a century,

Crombie were taken aback at the size of the order which, at a time of

difficulty in the trade, has guaranteed the jobs of their workers

throughout this year.

The quality and durability of Crombie has made it popular in Russia

among the Politburo and other elite members of society since the first

ties were forged in 1880.

Chernobyl proved a major blow for Crombie because the nuclear tragedy

left no money available for the purchase of imported cloth and a

significant percentage of their turnover was lost.

In the past two years the Russian order has been restored but the #4m

contract just confirmed was more than they could have hoped for.

Managing director Mr Ronnie Lamb claims the route he had to follow in

five months of negotiations dealing through Belgium was more tortuous

than anything encountered by Indiana Jones, and says his success was

largely due to perestroika.

''There has been so little for the ordinary people to buy in Russia

for so long that their disposable income is high and the Soviets are

determined to show that perestroika works, in the short term, by getting

consumer goods on the shelves,'' he said. ''They will be able to afford

what are regarded as luxurious items.''

Last year's order from Russia would have made 20,000 overcoats. This

year's provides enough cloth for 100,000.

The order is in two parts with 190,000 metres going to Eastern Bloc

mills to be tailored into coats and 20,000 going direct to Russia for

the top people to pick their own lengths. These will then be sent to

Savile Row for tailoring because although the cloth is always the same

marled grey they like to keep up with the London styles.

Russia is in fact one of the few places where Crombie cloth is still

sent to be converted into coats. Since 1985 Crombie have preferred to

manufacture everything made from their cloth themselves.

To prevent the exploitation of their name by a few they stopped

supplies and invested millions in producing a full range of ladies and

gents clothing which are made in their own factory in England.

''The Crombie name was being prostituted and degraded,'' said Mr Lamb.

''The quality of manufacture of the garments was not up to the standards

we would have expected. Now the only garments on sale in Britian and

North America which bear the Crombie label will be those made by us. No

longer will people be able to turn a silk purse into a sow's ear.''

The Crombie name has been synonymous with quality since the company

was started by a canny Scot in 1805. To maintain the standards hi-tech

changes have been rejected and traditional techniques have been

maintained in many parts of the factory, although at least one old

process has been eliminated, to the immense relief of the staff -- and

probably Crombie wearers.

Early this century it was decided to abandon the urine scour. Buckets

of urine were bought at 1!/;1/d and mixed with much more expensive

pigs' dung at 1s a bucket, bullocks blood, ammonia and soap. This method

of scouring, which apparently speeded up the felting, was dropped when

soap became more economical and when flush systems were introduced in

toilets which diluted the main ingredient.

What does remain is the puzzle of how this scouring method evolved in

the first place.

The secret of Crombie quality, say the management, lies in the

finishing and there have been few changes in that over the past 184

years, although in 1805 no one had to remove meticulously the flecks of

polypropylene which infiltrate the raw cashmere from the sacks in which

it is carried from the Himalayan peaks.

It appears in the cloth as tiny white threads which are individually

plucked out by tweezers.

Crombie can boast some illustrious customers from royalty to armies.

During the First World War they made millions of yards of great coating,

serge, khaki and flannel. In the Second World War they produced 467

miles of cloth a year including the cloth for overcoats for 90,450

soldiers, 23,364 naval and RAF officers, 12,042 US Army officers and

142,042 civilians in 1943.

Their most unusual order came the previous year for a special shade of

dark grey for Norwegians being sent back home to organise resistance.

Another ''grey'' they produced was for the Confederate Army during the

American Civil War.

Crombie, it seems, will go to any length to get their order through.

In 1870 they used a hot air balloon to get one to Paris as the French

capital was under siege by the Prussians.

Mr Lamb, who claims that after five months of negotiations the

Russians now speak fluent Aberdonian, is leaving the company he joined

as an apprentice loom tuner 26 years ago at the age of 15 to take up a

new challenge in America.

He has been appointed vice-president of Amicale Industries in New York

who manufacture rare and exotic fabrics, including cashmere, camelhair,

alpaca and angora.

He will be reluctant to leave the mill, which has become a major

tourist attraction in Aberdeen since the opening of a visitors' centre,

but departs having secured one of the biggest orders since John Crombie

started the business in 1805 which made his name a household one.