Bradford Industrial Museum has revived a dying art to produce specialist cloth which it supplies across the world.

The cloth, used to line saddles and bridals for horses, stopped being widely produced in the 1960s when the use of shire work horses declined.

Since then saddlers have been paying manufacturers to produce the cloth on power looms, which costs more due to the small quantities they typically order.

The Industrial Museum's loom specialist, Greg Kotovs, pictured, was approached last year by the Work Horse Museum to see if he was able to produce the specialist cloth.

Mr Kotovs, of Undercliffe, said: "In manufacturing terms, demand for the product is low, so saddlers face a substantial rise in costs, which in turn is transferred to the buyer of the finished product.

"Making the cloth on one of the museum's looms will help to reduce costs for equestrians.

"To determine if we were able to reproduce the cloth, I had to analyse an existing sample. I was delighted to find we could supply the industry while demonstrating working examples of looming techniques to our visitors.

"I am very proud to be involved in demonstrating techniques, as it is an important part of our cultural heritage."

Mr Kotovs said a horse working six days a week would probably need a new saddle and harness every six to eight months.

The heavy woollen cloth is produced on a pedal-powered Hattersley treadle loom which pre-dates the Industrial Revolution. It takes a week to produce 20 metres of the cloth.

The museum, at Moorside Road, Eccleshill, charges £14 a metre and all profits are re-invested into the museum.

Traditionally the cloth is made in a window-pane check of navy blue but a customer from America recently requested the cloth in yellow, white and black for their cart horse.

"The cloth can be used for many different things. We are already selling scarves made out of it," said Mr Kotovs.

"We have approached a firm in West Yorkshire that make suits for Gareth Gates and a number of Premier League footballers to design a suit made of the cloth, to display in a new exhibition here called Talking Textiles."