EDITORIAL ROUNDUP

Princess Royal visits Saunders Valves

Earlier this month, Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal visited Crane Company’s new facility at Saunders Valves – its specialist diaphragm valve manufacturer in Cwmbran. Operating in the town since 1939, Saunders is a pioneer in diaphragm valve technology.

Guided by Saunders’ operations director Dafydd Lewis, HRH The Princess Royal toured the new 9290 m² facility’s assembly lines. She also met long-standing members of the workforce, some with more than 40 years of experience who bring their expertise and dedication to this specialist work.

More information www.cranecpe.com 

Vestas to repurpose Isle of Wight plant

Since 2002, the facilities of Vestas on the Isle of Wight have played an integral role in the
manufacture of turbine blades for wind projects across the world. At present, the
company’s factory focuses on manufacturing blades for the V174 offshore turbine. Demand
for this product is coming to an end, and constraints at the site mean it is not suitable for
the next generation of offshore blades. However, following an agreement in principle with
the UK Government, Vestas intends to repurpose the factory to build onshore blades,
mainly in support of the UK market.
More information www.vestas.com

Record sales for ramp manufacturer

UK aviation specialist Aviramp is on track for its best-ever trading year after notching up
sales worth £8m in the first nine months of the year. The company – a manufacturer of step-
free, non-slip aircraft boarding ramps – says it now hopes to smash the £10m barrier for the
full year after its super-successful third quarter. Between July and September, Aviramp
clinched deals with nine separate airports or operators, including a near £500,000 contract
with US giant Delta Airlines. Aviramp chief executive Graham Corfield said the deals meant
that there were now some 750 of its pioneering ramps in use across the world.
More information www.aviramp.com

Tribute to Sir David McMurtry

Metrology specialist Renishaw is sad to announce the death of its co-founder and non-
executive director, Sir David McMurtry. Sir David founded Renishaw in 1973 with John Deer,
a fellow Rolls-Royce engineer, to commercialise the 3D touch-trigger probe for CMMs. He
had invented the probe the previous year to solve measurement problems faced in the
manufacture of Olympus engines that powered the Concorde supersonic aircraft.
A brilliant engineer, he was employed at Rolls-Royce in Bristol for 17 years. Sir David went
on to be named on over 200 patents for Renishaw innovations. The company he co-founded
over 50 years ago today employs over 5000 people in 36 countries. His Knighthood was
awarded ‘for services to Design and Innovation’ and he was appointed a Royal Designer for
Industry (RDI) in 1989.
More information www.renishaw.com

3D printing for Xmas

Renishaw empowered students in Bristol to experience 3D printing first hand with a Christmas-themed initiative. Continuing its commitment to STEM education, Renishaw has partnered with the SS Great Britain Trust’s Future Brunels Programme. As part of the collaboration, Renishaw is sponsoring the Christmas tree in Brunel Square, next to Brunel’s famous SS Great Britain steamship, where students have designed and 3D-printed unique baubles to adorn the tree. The festive project aimed to motivate students to explore careers in engineering and science, encouraging them to become the next generation of innovators.

More information www.renishaw.com