By Executive Order, President Roosevelt established the War Production Board on January 16th, 1942 and shortly after appointed Donald M. Nelson, an executive at Sears, as its chairman. The powers of the board included general direction over war procurement and production programs including the allocation of materials and production facilities.

One of Nelson's first orders was to halt automobile production. Beginning in February of 1942, automobile manufacturers began producing diesel engines, aircraft engines, machine guns, tanks, trucks, and airplanes.

On March 8, 1942 the War Production Board issued regulation #L-85, which regulated every aspect of clothing.

The following excerpt is from Vice President Henry G. Wallace's address before the Free World Association on May 8, 1942:

"... If we really believe that we are fighting for a people's peace, all the rest becomes easy. Production, yes-it will be easy to get production without either strikes or sabotage; production with the wholehearted cooperation between willing arms and keen brains; enthusiasm, zip, energy geared to the tempo of keeping at it everlastingly day after day. Hitler knows as well as those of us who sit in on the War Production Board meetings that we here in the United States are winning the battle of production. He knows that both labor and business in the United States are doing a most remarkable job and that his only hope is to crash through to a complete victory some time during the next six months."

Limitation order #L-98 from the War Production Board stopped sewing machine production completely by June of 1942. At this time, the board also froze the majority of Singer's production stock at the Elizabethport, New Jersey plant for use by government agencies.

Singer's American factories were responsible for the development and production of anti-aircraft fire director equipment; airplane navigation equipment and gyro compasses; hydraulic and electric motor control units for airplane control; gun turret castings; aircraft engine piston rings and other internal engine parts such as rocker arms for the Merlin engines; surgical instruments; bomber gun sights; pistol, carbine, and machine gun parts; ammunition boxes; fuse assemblies; propellers, and other items. Singer also worked with many other factories to convert them to the large scale manufacture of sewn articles needed for the war effort.

Singer did produce, at their Elizabeth facility, industrial sewing machines. These machines were used for stitching tents, tarpaulins, ignition pads, clothing, parachute harnesses, etc. At least one machine, Model 31SV52, was made for the armed forces in the field for general repair work and could be dropped by parachute.

At the end of the war, President Truman released an Executive Order on Reconversion. The following excerpt is from the August 18th, 1945 issue of the New York Times:

"... The War Production Board shall move as rapidly as feasible without endangering orderly reconversion and the stabilization of the economy to free business from its controls.  During the transition it shall use all of its authorized powers to expand the production of materials which are in short supply; limit the manufacture of products for which materials or facilities are insufficient; control the accumulation of inventories so as to avoid speculative hoarding and unbalanced distribution which would curtail total production, grant priority assistance to break bottlenecks which would impede the reconversion process; facilitate the fulfillment of relief and other essential export programs, and allocate scarce materials or facilities necessary for the production of low-priced items essential to the continued success of the stabilization program."

Sources: Singer in World War II - 1939 to 1945, Singer Manufacturing Company, USA, 1946; New York Times archives; Office of War Information, Washington, D.C.