Riveted construction continued until WWII. The technique of making welded joints in such heavy plate by arc welding developed in the USA. As in the shipbuilding industry, welding was adopted only rather slowly in the UK. Welding has the obvious advantage that a lighter construction is possible, without the extra weight of the straps. Kiln suppliers began to use welding after WWII, but on-site assembly continued using rivets because of the lack of the required skill at cement plants. Typically sections of length up to about 10 m - the longest that could be moved by road - were welded, then riveted together when in place.
Finally, from the late 1950s, all-welded kilns were installed. Although welded construction reduced the weight of kilns, it had the distinct disadvantage that the shell, without the reinforcement of thick straps, became somewhat less rigid, despite the adoption of thicker plate (25-35 mm).