Why was the role of factories in the February Revolution not only economic?

Correct answer: They became centres of worker organisation and political protest

The governing concept is the political role of organised industrial workers. Factories were workplaces, but they also brought large numbers of workers together, allowing grievances about wages, food shortages, war and autocratic rule to be discussed and coordinated. Strikes that began in industrial areas could spread into demonstrations and connect with wider mass action in Petrograd. The factory therefore became a social and political space, not merely a place where goods were produced. It was not simply a warehouse, and ownership by the Tsar was not the test of political importance. Since factories actively contributed to organisation and protest, option A is correct.