Camden Town enjoyed ready access for transport by canal and rail, proximity to the skilled furniture makers in the Tottenham Court Road area, and lay within easy reach of West End retailers and a wealthy clientele. These locational advantages helped it to become the centre of the piano industry. Collard and Collard were the oldest of the well-known piano manufacturing firms of the St Pancras area, having patented a form of upright ‘square’ piano in 1811 and the piano factory now known as the Rotunda was built for the firm in 1851. An open well in the centre was used to move pianos from floor to floor during the manufacturing process. The building has now been converted to offices.