The old DOT Motorcycles factory stands on Ellesmere Street, just off the Mancunian Way. I must have driven past this place countless times and never noticed it which is slightly embarrassing given my ability to spot old mills and industrial buildings from hundreds of metres away, often at great speed.

It was once the home of DOT motorcycles, a small manufacturer of motorbikes that I’m sure I’ve heard of somewhere along the line but hadn’t realised they were built in Manchester. Interestingly, the brand has been revived recently up the road in Bolton which is also home to another manufacturer CCM, a company I’ve definitely heard of as I used to work with some of its ex-employees, so possibly who I heard about DOT from. But I digress.

Production ended many years ago, but the building was used by the company until 2016-ish, for the sale of spares. Planning permission was submitted for a large scale development in the area that included – inevitably – a 35 storey tower block and renovation of the DOT Factory into apartments, because, well, Manchester doesn’t have enough apartments does it? I’m not sure where the proposal is up to, as of my visit in March 2023, the building was empty.