Engineering 1998 - Company News Summary

Powell Duffryn has acquired Kvaerner Ships Equipment, the manufacturer of cargo-handling equipment, for £24m, and will merge it with its Hamworthy Marine division.
24-Dec-1998

Styles Precision Components is to recruit an additional 60 employees at its plastic prototype models business in Teesside and in a new German facility.
23-Dec-1998

The South Crofty tin mine in Cornwall is set to reopen, and about 25 workers will be taken on initially with more jobs being created later.
23-Dec-1998

Schroder Ventures has bought LK Group, the measuring equipment manufacturer, and sister company Lock from TransTec, in a £32m deal.
22-Dec-1998

Ocean Resource is planning to set up a plant at Newport Docks in Wales to make specialist buoys and shallow-water platforms, creating 200 jobs.
22-Dec-1998

SBF Agrico has been set up to create one of Scotland's biggest farm machinery manufacturers and dealers by acquiring Oldmeldrum-based George Sellar & Son, Rothienorman-based Fraser Agricultural and Markinch-based A&J Bowen, in a £5m deal.
22-Dec-1998

Arco, the safety equipment and industrial products company, is planning to build a national distribution centre in Hull, creating 100 jobs.
21-Dec-1998

English Partnerships has announced plans to build a £6m industrial and commercial facility at Seaton Barracks in Plymouth, creating up to 1,000 jobs.
21-Dec-1998

Bridgend County Borough Council is linking up with Macob Projects to expand the Bridgend Science Park, which will create enough new space to provide several hundred jobs.
21-Dec-1998

Firth Rixson has acquired the Sheffield steel group TW Pearson for £4.6m.
21-Dec-1998

Bearing Power, the power transmissions company, is being acquired by Mining & Allied Investments for £6.3m.
21-Dec-1998

Thomas Sanderson Blinds is opening a new £2.2m factory and office complex in Waterlooville, creating 40 additional jobs.
18-Dec-1998

British Aerospace is to create more than 100 jobs at its Broughton aircraft wings factory.
16-Dec-1998

AEA Technology is selling its Dorset-based specialist instrumentation business to Packard BioScience Company of the US for £6.9m.
16-Dec-1998

Flymo is to create 135 jobs at its Newton Aycliffe lawnmowers factory in a £2.1m project funded by Electrolux and a DTI grant.
16-Dec-1998

BBA is acquiring AMR Combs, the US business aircraft service concern, from AMR Corporation for £101m.
16-Dec-1998

Moorcroft, the Stoke-based pottery company, is to build two new factories creating more than 200 jobs.
15-Dec-1998

European Metal Recycling has acquired Lloyds Metal Processors, the Salford-based scrap metal company, for undisclosed terms.
14-Dec-1998

CVC Capital Partners is planning to acquire 50% of Wavin, the Dutch plastic pipes company, from Shell Petroleum for about £225m.
12-Dec-1998

Renold is to acquire Jones & Shipman, the abrasive machine tools company, for £5m.
11-Dec-1998

Tricom Supplies, the heating and plumbing products company, has been bought by management from parent group Mannesmann.
10-Dec-1998

Waterloo Air Management has bought Advanced Climate Technology, the Littlehampton-based ventilation firm that was on the brink of closure, for undisclosed terms.
10-Dec-1998

Naturelle Consumer Products is to invest £1.2m in the expansion of its disposable products factory in Omagh, creating 25 new jobs.
10-Dec-1998

Carclo Engineering has bought the Combined Optical Industries division of Quadramatic for £11m, in order to expand its coin handling business.
08-Dec-1998

Aggreko is acquiring the rental business of the US cooling tower manufacturer Tower Tech for £8m.
08-Dec-1998

Bullough has sold three refrigeration businesses to Hubbard Taylor for £17m, in order to focus on the expansion of its specialist engineering business.
08-Dec-1998

GKN has acquired Interlake, the US manufacturer of powdered metals and aerospace components, for £335m.
08-Dec-1998

Perstorp of Sweden is to invest £10m at its resins plant in Newton Aycliffe, creating 20 jobs.
07-Dec-1998

Kvaerner Oil and Gas is to recruit hundreds of workers on Teesside to transform a giant tanker into a floating North Sea oil platform.
07-Dec-1998

John Wood Group of Aberdeen has sold its fire and safety division to Wormald Ansul for undisclosed terms.
07-Dec-1998

Pall Europe is planning a £3.5m expansion at its filters factory in Redruth, which will create about 40 jobs.
04-Dec-1998

Vosper Thornycroft is acquiring Brisco Engineering, the Great Yarmouth-based manufacturer of marine electronics.
04-Dec-1998

Babcock International has sold its water engineering operations to Earth Tech of the US for £13m, which completes a three-year restructuring programme to focus on facilities management and materials handling.
03-Dec-1998

Volex has acquired a 60% stake in Telepart Industria, the Brazilian cable assembly company, for about £8m, as part of a strategy to improve service to multinational customers.
03-Dec-1998

Vickers is to acquire Ulstein, the Norwegian marine engineering group, for £344m, which will create the largest marine propulsion company in the world.
01-Dec-1998

Slumberland is planning a £2m expansion at its Oldham factory to increase production of bed springs, and 100 jobs will be created.
01-Dec-1998

Delta has sold four materials operations to Marmon of the US for £20m in order to focus on its core electrical and engineering services business.
27-Nov-1998

Astec, the power converters company, has accepted a new approach from Emerson Electric of the US for the 49% stake it does not already own, in a deal that values Astec at £265m.
26-Nov-1998

Langford Lodge is investing £8m at its precision engineering plant in Northern Ireland with the creation of 56 jobs, having won a contract to supply aerospace components to Lucas.
24-Nov-1998

Quadramatic is selling the bulk of its instruments division to 3i for £27m, and buying two US vending machine component companies - Ardac and Mid-South Enterprises - for a total $13m.
24-Nov-1998

Siebe and BTR are merging to create a £9bn control systems and automation group, and about 1,000 UK jobs could be lost as a result.
24-Nov-1998

Roxboro is acquiring Norwich Aero Products, the US temperature sensors company, for £4.7m.
20-Nov-1998

NFC is to acquire Vanguard Engineering, the industrial plant relocation business, and will merge it with Pickfords Industrial.
19-Nov-1998

Whitecroft is selling its Chalmit industrial lighting operation to Hubbell of the US for £17m, and is also looking to sell its furniture trimmings and coatings business.
19-Nov-1998

Clyde Blowers has received a £24m takeover offer from Redwood, a new company partly owned by Clyde's management.
19-Nov-1998

Eclipse Blinds has acquired Scientific Plastics, the US blind component maker, for £4.5m.
19-Nov-1998

Masco, the US furniture company, has launched a £40m takeover offer for Heritage Bathrooms, the UK bathroom manufacturer.
13-Nov-1998

Gael Force Marine of Inverness has acquired Seaboard Anchors, the Portmahomack-based anchor manufacturer.
13-Nov-1998

OMB Speciality Valves of Italy is to set up a steel valves factory in Annesley, Nottinghamshire, creating 18 jobs.
13-Nov-1998

Senior Engineering is acquiring Jet Products Corporation, the US manufacturer of components for gas turbine engines, for £34m.
11-Nov-1998

Research International of the US has reopened a factory in Plymouth to make reflow ovens for the electronics industry, and plans to double its 20-strong workforce within 18 months.
10-Nov-1998

Tomkins has sold the FH Tomkins Buckle Company to a private investor for undisclosed terms, and is considering plans to sell its garden and leisure products division.
06-Nov-1998

Aerospace Systems & Technology, the Durham-based maker of a ice protection systems for aircraft, is being sold to management in a £20m deal.
05-Nov-1998

Smiths Industries is acquiring Stewart Hughes, the supplier of aerospace diagnostic systems, for £8m.
04-Nov-1998

Delta has sold its industrial fasteners distribution business in Australia to Coventry Group for £9m.
04-Nov-1998

Innovated Plastics of Leicester has bought Prestige Coatings, the Enderby-based product finishing company, for an undisclosed sum.
03-Nov-1998

Ultra Electronics is acquiring Raytheon's sonobuoy business in the US for £13m, and will integrate it with its Hermes operation in Canada.
03-Nov-1998

Mid Kent Laboratories is acquiring Dr Augustus Voelcker, the laboratory services company, for about £0.5m.
03-Nov-1998

SPS Technologies has acquired Chevron Aerospace, the Nottingham-based manufacturer of aircraft structural assemblies, in a £32m deal.
02-Nov-1998

GKN is acquiring Dow-UT Composite Products, the US manufacturer of aircraft components, for £37m, and will merge the business with its GKN Westland Aerospace division.
29-Oct-1998

Yorkshire Water has acquired Biochem Group, the Dutch environmental testing concern, for £15m.
27-Oct-1998

Charles Baynes is acquiring Beacon, the Australian valve distributor, for £2.5m.
27-Oct-1998

AD Aerospace Finishes, the aircraft paint company, is to relocate from Abingdon to new headquarters in Leicester's Meridian Business Park, and is looking for warehousing, production, technical, and office staff.
26-Oct-1998

Bodycote International has acquired Alpha Heat Treating, the US heat treatment company, for £6.3m.
24-Oct-1998

Dowding & Mills has acquired Scotlec, the electronic drives specialist with branches in Manchester and Sunderland, in order to offer a more complete service to customers.
23-Oct-1998

The David Sharp Studio is to double the size of its stoneware factory in Somercotes, Derbyshire, and recruit a further 10 staff.
22-Oct-1998

BTR is selling its Australian polymer products business to Austrim for £23m, as part of a strategy to transform itself from a conglomerate into a focused engineering company.
22-Oct-1998

BTP is selling its safety equipment division to Electra Fleming, the venture capital group, for £100m, in order to focus on the chemicals industry.
22-Oct-1998

Rexel of France is acquiring Gardiner, the distributor of electronic security products, for £31m.
21-Oct-1998

Smiths Industries has acquired Transtector Systems, the US power equipment company, for £21m.
20-Oct-1998

McKechnie is acquiring PTM International, the US jet engine parts company, for up to £12m.
15-Oct-1998

British Fittings Group of West Bromwich is selling its high pressure water jetting business to a management team for £4m.
14-Oct-1998

F Bailey is to create a further 60 jobs in Stoke having won a number of new heating and ventilating contracts.
14-Oct-1998

Showpla, the Walsall-based injection moulding company, has been bought from the receivers by Webgrove Holdings, saving 150 jobs.
13-Oct-1998

Stadium Group has sold the recently-acquired refrigeration division of Beales Hunter to Sabroe Refrigeration of Denmark for £7m.
13-Oct-1998

De La Rue has sold its US bank vault manufacturing division to Mosler of the US for £20m, which completes its withdrawal from the physical security market.
13-Oct-1998

British Aerospace and Daimler-Benz Aerospace are planning to set up a joint holding company early next year, and other companies will be able to join when they are ready in order to create a giant pan-European defence contractor.
12-Oct-1998

Sunderland Glassworks is creating 80 new jobs with the introduction of a stained glass-making facility at the city's National Glass Centre.
09-Oct-1998

Perlos, the Finnish plastic components company, is opening a new factory near Sunderland with the creation of 44 jobs.
09-Oct-1998

Darenth is opening a new vending machine factory after a fire destroyed its plant in Eckington near Sheffield, and it is now creating an additional 30 jobs.
09-Oct-1998

Glynwed has acquired Friatac, the German plastic pipes company, for £174m, which will give it a leading position in the world market as well as access to eastern Europe, Brazil and the US.
07-Oct-1998

Brunel Holdings has acquired the tobacco equipment operations of GBE International for £4.5m.
06-Oct-1998

British Vita is acquiring Caleppio, the Italian manufacturer of thermoplastic sheets, for £10m.
03-Oct-1998

Castle Mill International is to acquire British World Aviation in a £10m deal, in order to transform itself from a clothing wholesaler into an aircraft services company.
01-Oct-1998

Callender Aeropart has opened a new factory to manufacture fan blades for jet engines on the Altham Industrial Estate in East Lancashire, and plans to increase its 220 staff to 275 by 2001.
01-Oct-1998

Dowding & Mills has bought Peebles Field Services and Peebles Field Operations, which were subsidiaries of Rolls-Royce Power Engineering.
30-Sep-1998

Hewitt Refractories of Fenton is to create up to 30 new jobs following the launch of a new range of lightweight kiln furniture and ultra-lightweight insulation brick products.
30-Sep-1998

Pindar Print is installing a new £6m press at its Scarborough site as part of a £13m investment that will create 20 jobs.
30-Sep-1998

ACB Hydraulics is planning to extend its Cheadle headquarters and create at least 20 new jobs, due to an increase in work on industrial cranes.
29-Sep-1998

British Aerospace is looking to recruit more than 100 apprentices at its factory near Chester to cope with a recent rise in orders.
22-Sep-1998

Dexion, the warehouse and archive storage company, is to undergo a £350m merger with Norway's Constructor Group, and the enlarged business will be called Constructor Dexion Group.
22-Sep-1998

Rolls-Royce has sold its energy transmission division, which has plants in Newcastle, Edinburgh, Canada and Mexico, to VA Tech of Austria for £137m.
22-Sep-1998

Alan Nuttall Ltd of Dudley is creating an extra 50 jobs to expand production of shelving and display equipment for retailers.
21-Sep-1998

Motherwell Bridge has acquired Thomas A Metcalfe, the Manchester-based distributor of welding consumable products, for undisclosed terms.
21-Sep-1998

Unidare has sold its Southborough International division to Complex Tooling & Molding of the US for £4.3m.
21-Sep-1998

Cookson has acquired Matrix, the US manufacturer of micron-tolerance precision engineered products, for an initial £8m.
18-Sep-1998

SEP Industrial Holdings, the industrial fasteners company, is to sell its wholesale distribution division to Decco for about £12m.
16-Sep-1998

GKN and Alvis are to merge their tanks businesses with GKN swapping its interests for a 29.9% stake in Alvis, and the deal is expected to lead to the closure of Alvis's plant in Coventry.
16-Sep-1998

GEC is acquiring the computed tomography subsidiary of Elscint of Israel for £167m, which will increase its share of the world market from 12% to 18%.
15-Sep-1998

Dowding & Mills is acquiring Advanced Technical Services, the industrial repair company, for undisclosed terms, and is in discussions to acquire two more UK companies.
15-Sep-1998

Cookson has acquired Accel Corp, the US manufacturer of speciality cleaning systems for the electronics sector, for £9m.
12-Sep-1998

Babcock International has bought AKI Dryer Manufacturers, the US producer of panel dryers for the building materials sector, for £4.5m.
09-Sep-1998

David Brown, the pumps and gears concern, is being acquired by Textron, the US industrial group that is building up a global fluid and power systems business, for £195m.
05-Sep-1998

TLG, formerly Thorn Lighting Group, has received a £321m takeover offer from Cooper Industries of the US, and a rival bid may now emerge.
05-Sep-1998

BE Aerospace has acquired the CF Taylor aircraft galley structures business from TI Group for £15.4m.
05-Sep-1998

Mainetti is to expand production of microlight fibre optic cable sheathing at its Burnfoot manufacturing plant in Hawick, creating up to 30 jobs.
04-Sep-1998

Yorkshire Water is acquiring 3C Waste from Cheshire county council for £120m.
03-Sep-1998

Siebe is selling North Safety Products, the US maker of personal safety products, to Norcross Safety Products of the US for £137m.
03-Sep-1998

Gilbert Gilkes & Gordon, the Kendal-based pump manufacturer, has acquired Wallwin Pump and Armfield from Biwater Industries for undisclosed terms.
03-Sep-1998

Powerscreen International is selling SDC Trailers, its Northern Ireland-based trailer subsidiary, to a new company called Reltan Manufacturing for £6.75m.
02-Sep-1998

JDR Cable Group, a cable system manufacturer for the oil and gas industry, has been bought out from its parent company, BI, by NatWest Equity Partners in a £36m deal.
01-Sep-1998

Gough Engineering has acquired Burslem-based Roltech Conveyors from the receivers for an undisclosed sum.
28-Aug-1998

Stadium, the Teesside plastics and electronics group, is planning to create a further 40 jobs at its Harlepool factory by the end of the year to cope with rising demand.
27-Aug-1998

Berisford has announced the £41m acquisition of Aladdin TempRite, the US catering equipment supply business, and the £8.7m acquisition of Viscount Catering, the UK maker of ranges and fryers.
27-Aug-1998

BBA is acquiring UNC Airwork, the US engine maintenance business, from UNC for £32m, as part of a strategy to focus on aviation and materials.
26-Aug-1998

Baxi Air Management is planning to create an additional 200 jobs in Preston, in order to keep up with anticipated demand for its new Clean Air ventilation system.
25-Aug-1998

City Technology, the Portsmouth-based gas sensor maker, is acquiring Endress & Hauser Gastec of Germany for £1.3m.
25-Aug-1998

Eliza Tinsley is to acquire James Dickie, the US engineering group, for £12.6m, which will provide its first US manufacturing base.
22-Aug-1998

Meggitt is to acquire Vibro-Meter, the manufacturer of vibration monitoring systems, from Electrowatt of Switzerland for £42m.
21-Aug-1998

BTR has acquired Swichtec Power Systems, the New Zealand manufacturer of power equipment for the telecoms sector, for up to £44m.
20-Aug-1998

American Tool of the US has launched a £33m takeover offer for Polyhedron, the manufacturer of power tools, in order to expand its presence in the UK market.
19-Aug-1998

Waste Recycling is acquiring Yorkshire Water's refuse management business in an all-share deal that will give Yorkshire a 46% stake in the enlarged group.
18-Aug-1998

McLeod Russel is planning to acquire Trion, the US air cleaning equipment company, for £32m.
18-Aug-1998

Trifast, the fastenings company, has acquired Samson Industries of the US for £2.6m.
15-Aug-1998

Durr has acquired Acco Systems, the US maker of industrial conveyor systems, from FKI for £14m.
13-Aug-1998

L Gardner is acquiring Cleveland Guest, the supplier of aerospace components, for an initial £2.4m.
12-Aug-1998

SEP Industrial is acquiring Diss, the fastener maker, for £2.3m.
12-Aug-1998

Ring has acquired PH Products, the supplier of products to the domestic plumbing and gas installation markets, for £1.4m.
11-Aug-1998

Weir is acquiring SEBIM Holding, the French valve and actuator company, for £8m, in order to improve its market position in Europe, Africa and the former Soviet Union.
07-Aug-1998

McKechnie has sold nine metals businesses in Australia and New Zealand to MCK Holdings for £65m, in order to raise funds to expand its remaining aerospace, engineered plastics, and fixings operations.
07-Aug-1998

BTR is selling its Dunlop and Standard aerospace operations to Doughty Hanson for £510m, which will complete its transformation from a conglomerate into a focused engineering group.
01-Aug-1998

Wall Colmonoy is planning a £2m expansion at its metal alloy facility near Swansea, creating 70 jobs.
30-Jul-1998

GKN is set to acquire a US manufacturer of powder metal forged connecting rods from Borg-Warner Automotive, in a deal thought to be worth around $40m.
29-Jul-1998

Booth Industries is to acquire CHB, the engineering and manufacturing company, for £3.1m.
29-Jul-1998

Rentokil Initial has bought eight businesses for a total £6.5m, including companies involved in pest control, environmental services, electronic security, tropical plants, and textile services.
29-Jul-1998

Vickers has sold Cantieri Riva, the Italian maker of luxury motor yachts, to Stellican for undisclosed terms.
27-Jul-1998

Enron of the US has launched a £1.36bn agreed cash bid for Wessex Water, as part of a strategy to build a global water business.
25-Jul-1998

Neutrik Marketing has acquired Rean Products, the maker of control knobs and electrical components, from Lilleshall for £3m.
24-Jul-1998

Hampson Industries, the specialist engineering concern, has acquired Walburton Holdings and its trading division WB for £2.7m.
23-Jul-1998

WST Engineering has acquired Wilmid, the supplier of metal tube components to the auto industry, from Wagon Industrial for £1.9m.
23-Jul-1998

British Vita has acquired JGP, the thermoplastic compounding company, for £2.2m.
22-Jul-1998

BBA has sold Ajax Magnethermic, the supplier of melting equipment and induction furnaces, to management for £82m, which completes its exit from specialist electrical activities.
22-Jul-1998

Trifast is acquiring Lancaster Fasteners, the supplier of thread cutting screws, for £2.25m.
17-Jul-1998

Siebe has acquired Electronic Measurement, the US power supplies manufacturer, for £34m, and it will form part of a new North American division called Lambda EMI.
17-Jul-1998

Cooper Cameron has acquired Brisco Engineering's Aberdeen operation from Industrial Control Services for £7.7m.
16-Jul-1998

Tomkins has agreed to sell the toe cap business of its Firth Cleveland Engineering division to Dinkie Heel, the footwear component company, for £1.5m.
15-Jul-1998

Caverdale is selling its industrial products business to management for about £10m.
14-Jul-1998

Glynwed International has acquired Williams Refrigeration for £44m, which will give it a leading position in the market for commercial catering equipment.
14-Jul-1998

Severfield-Reeve has sold Structural Metal Decks to a subsidiary of Firth Steels for £1.8m.
08-Jul-1998

WR Group has acquired the General Refrigeration contracting business from Bullough for £1.5m, which will allow Bullough to focus on office furniture and engineering.
07-Jul-1998

TI Group has increased its stake in Lips, the Dutch supplier of marine propulsion equipment, from 30% to 100% at a cost of £88m.
30-Jun-1998

IMI has sold IMI Pactrol, its electronic controls division, to White-Rodgers of the US for £10m, in order to focus on its valves business.
30-Jun-1998

Duggan Steel is acquiring Tube Rollers, the Irish steel tube maker, from Jones Group for £1m.
23-Jun-1998

Eadie Holdings is acquiring Black and Luff, the specialist engineer, for £2.5m.
17-Jun-1998

Autokuhler of Germany is to invest £3m in a new heat exchangers production plant in South Wales.
16-Jun-1998

Tomoe of Japan is planning a £6m expansion at its valves factory in Newport, Gwent, that will create 100 jobs.
08-Jun-1998

Yeoman, the navigational instrument maker, is to acquire Global Marine Electronics, the holding company for Brookes & Gatehouse, in a £2.7m reverse takeover.
04-Jun-1998

AEA Technology is forming a £12m joint venture with Japan Storage Battery and Mitsubishi Materials to set up a plant in Thurso to produce lithium batteries for the defence and communications sectors, in a move that will create 130 jobs.
04-Jun-1998

EIS Group is selling Betol Machinery and Kabel Technik to Davis-Standard for £3.6m in order to focus on its fluid and precision technology business.
04-Jun-1998

Kingston Metals is acquiring Glynwed's metals distribution business for £100m, leaving Glynwed free to focus on pipe systems and its consumer and food service products business.
26-May-1998

Greenway has acquired Excelube, the lubricants blender and distributor, from Brasway for £2.4m.
23-May-1998

Hydra Tools has acquired Clarkson Osborn from FKI for £10m.
23-May-1998

Carclo Engineering has acquired the Wipac electrical components business from Wolseley for £2.3m.
23-May-1998

IMI has sold Birmingham Mint, the coin manufacturer, to an institutional buy-out led by 3i for £18m, as part of the continuing transformation of its specialist engineering division.
22-May-1998

McKechnie is acquiring two US aircraft component companies - Arger and Jesse - for £54m in order to improve its engineering capabilities and gain access to blue-chip clients.
22-May-1998

Orbis is acquiring Hi-Security, the property security business, for £16m.
21-May-1998

TI Group is to acquire EIS Group, the fluid technology and aerospace concern, for £267m, and is now said to be interested in bidding for Vickers' Kamewa marine propulsion business.
20-May-1998

Glynwed has acquired Straub Holding, the Swiss stainless steel couplings concern, for £34m and will integrate the business with its pipe-systems division.
19-May-1998

L Gardner has acquired the Ilkeston aerospace operations of Chromalloy UK for £8.7m.
15-May-1998

Filtronic is to acquire Sage Laboratories, the US microwave equipment manufacturer, for £11m.
15-May-1998

Cobham is acquiring Conax, the US maker of military equipment, for £40m.
13-May-1998

FKI has acquired Allen-Stevens Group, the US doors and windows hardware company, for £43m, which will give its existing US business a commanding position in the market for window locking systems.
06-May-1998

BTR has sold the Hawker Pacific and Hawker de Havilland aerospace businesses in Australia to Celsius of Sweden and Tenix of Australia respectively for a total £62m.
06-May-1998

Aida Engineering of Japan is to invest £3m in the expansion of its machine tools plant in Derby, to cater for rising demand for high-speed presses that stamp out small metal parts.
05-May-1998

Norman Hay is acquiring BK Engineering, the sub-contract precision engineering concern, for £2.4m.
04-May-1998

Powerscreen is selling its troubled Matbro specialist tractors business to John Deere of the US for £7m.
01-May-1998

Galgon Industries of the US is to open a metal-forming plant in Glenrothes with the creation of 100 jobs.
30-Apr-1998

International Aero Engines, the consortium that includes Rolls-Royce and Pratt & Whitney, has won a $2.3bn order for V2500 engines for a group of Latin American airlines, and they will be assembled in Derby.
29-Apr-1998

The British Standards Institution is to acquire Inspectorate for £36.5m, in order to help build up an international business for assessing quality standards and to benefit from its new-found commercial freedom.
29-Apr-1998

Siebe is to acquire Eurotherm, the industrial controls company, for £421m, which will make it the largest process automation group in the world.
28-Apr-1998

Sowester, the marine equipment distributor, has been sold to management for £10m by its US parent Krug International.
27-Apr-1998

BBA is acquiring Veratec, the non-woven fabrics operation, from International Paper of the US for £174m, which will greatly expand its international coverage and give it plants in Canada and Mexico.
22-Apr-1998

Newmond has acquired the water heating business of IMI for £20m.
21-Apr-1998

Cookson is set to acquire AlliedSignal's European copper-clad laminates business for about £10m, which will give it its first manufacturing base in Germany.
17-Apr-1998

Barclay & Mathieson has acquired Tatham & Miller, the steel stockholding business, from Hill & Smith for £1.75m.
15-Apr-1998

RPS Group is buying Utility Technical Services, the water management consultancy based in Durham, for £1.5m.
15-Apr-1998

Orbis is selling its manpower security division to a management buy-out called First Security for £9m, in order to focus on its property and electronic security business.
15-Apr-1998

GEC Alsthom has acquired Cegelec, the French electrical contracting business, from Alcatel Alsthom for about £400m.
10-Apr-1998

Severn Trent has acquired Fischer and Porter of the US for £10m, giving it a leading position in the world market for chlorine disinfection equipment.
09-Apr-1998

Cleanaway, the joint venture between GKN and Brambles Industries, is acquiring SKP Group, the German recycling and waste management business, for undisclosed terms.
07-Apr-1998

Biffa has acquired three companies for a total £23m, which will give it a waste collection business in Scotland and landfill sites in Swindon and Salisbury.
03-Apr-1998

Powerscreen International is selling its Universal Conveyor subsidiary to E-type Cars for £1.8m.
03-Apr-1998

Domnick Hunter has acquired Xebec, the Canadian compressed air and gas dryers company, for up to £1.5m.
03-Apr-1998

Fenner is selling its power transmission business to a management buy-in company called FPT Group, and will use the proceeds to invest in polymer products, hydraulics and conveyor belts.
01-Apr-1998

Bowthorpe is acquiring General Easter Instruments, the US supplier of humidity sensors, for £12.5m.
27-Mar-1998

Delta is to acquire Holec Holland, the Dutch electrical switchgear manufacturer, for £83m.
25-Mar-1998

Gerber Scientific of the US is acquiring Spandex, the signmaking equipment company, for £109m.
25-Mar-1998

Rubicon is selling its lead products and specialist castings divisions to a management team for £62m, and will use the proceeds to invest in electronic manufacturing services and magnets.
17-Mar-1998

CHC Airmotive has acquired Hunting Airmotive, the aero engine repairer, from Hunting for £25m.
17-Mar-1998

Smiths Industries is selling the recently-acquired Graseby's product monitoring and environmental divisions to Thermo Electron of the US for £44m, and will use the proceeds to cut debt.
17-Mar-1998

Apollo Metals has acquired Bunting Titanium, the titanium business, for £1.9m.
17-Mar-1998

Bullough is acquiring Flexiform, the steel storage maker, for £10m.
17-Mar-1998

Beck & Politzer, the industrial plant group, has been sold to management and Gresham Trust for £23m.
16-Mar-1998

Widney is selling its SPC International subsidiary to a management buy-out for £5.7m.
13-Mar-1998

GE Power Controls is acquiring a low-voltage components business based in Liverpool from GEC Alsthom.
12-Mar-1998

Haden MacLellan has acquired MBS Distribution, the industrial fastenings company, from Vector Industries for £24m, which will enable it to expand further into Europe and increase its presence in the automotive market.
12-Mar-1998

Avon Rubber is acquiring Hi-Life Rubber, the US manufacturer of liners for the dairy industry, for £22m, as part of a strategy to expand its product portfolio and geographical coverage.
10-Mar-1998

IMI has sold its industrial heat exchanger division to Chart Industries of the US for £21m.
06-Mar-1998

Faber Prest, the steel products distributor, is to be acquired by Harsco of the US for £57m, and the combined group expects to benefit from cost cutting and greater efficiencies.
05-Mar-1998

Hampson Industries has acquired Attewell Group, which includes Attewell and Pillar Seals & Gaskets, for £10m.
03-Mar-1998

Black & Decker is to invest £18m in the expansion of its County Durham plant to produce power tools for the professional tools market, creating 350 jobs.
26-Feb-1998

Shanks & McEwan is buying a number of Belgian waste management businesses from Sita for £67m.
26-Feb-1998

Siebe is to acquire Wonderware, the US supplier of factory-control systems, for £225m.
25-Feb-1998

Cookson has acquired Flogates and KSR, two Sheffield-based refractories companies, for £50m using the proceeds from its withdrawal from its joint venture with Johnson Matthey.
24-Feb-1998

AEA Technology has acquired Nycomed Amersham's industrial services unit for an initial £16m.
21-Feb-1998

Siebe is to acquire Coleman Safety and Security Products, the US maker of home safety equipment, for £64m.
20-Feb-1998

Roxspur is acquiring Clayhithe, the measurement systems company, for £30m, which will give it access to products complementary to its existing range in the areas of temperature, flow, level and pressure control.
19-Feb-1998

BICC and Delta have agreed a £40m asset swap that will see Delta acquire BICC's construction and building wire business and BICC acquire Delta's power and rubber cables business, and about 870 jobs could be lost as a result.
13-Feb-1998

Eurotherm has acquired Action Instruments, the US manufacturer of monitoring instrumentation, for £9.5m.
10-Feb-1998

Bodycote International has acquired Thermal Processing Group from TI Group for £15m.
07-Feb-1998

Senior Engineering has acquired Bredan Kompensator Fabrik, the Danish manufacturer of expansion joints, for £4.4m.
04-Feb-1998

Meggitt has bought Hayes Targets, the US developer of infra-red suppresser counter-measures and weapons training aids, from Pemco Aeroplex for $5m.
04-Feb-1998

TI Group's John Crane division is acquiring Safematic, the Finnish supplier of pulp and paper sealing systems, for £17m.
04-Feb-1998

Firth Rixson is selling its Lion Steel Equipment steel cabinets business to management for £3.6m.
04-Feb-1998

Harsco of the US has acquired Pandrol Jackson, the rail track maintenance company, from Charter for £42m, but the UK engineering company is keeping its railway track fastenings business.
03-Feb-1998

Cookson has sold its 50% stake in the Cookson Matthey Ceramics ceramic tiles joint venture to Johnson Matthey for £65m, as the two companies were having problems agreeing on the future of the business.
31-Jan-1998

Fairey has sold its Fairey Hydraulics division to a management buy-out for £55m, thereby ending its links with the aerospace and defence industries and enabling it to focus on electronic controls and process technology.
27-Jan-1998

Baker Hughes of the US has bought the process equipment operations of Weir for £10.6m.
26-Jan-1998

BWT of Australia is acquiring Kennicott Water Systems, the manufacturer of water treatment equipment, from Rolls-Royce for undisclosed terms.
23-Jan-1998

Glynwed has sold three businesses serving the construction markets for a total £3.3m - Leavlite Electropaint, IsoSystems and PTFE Fabricators.
17-Jan-1998

600 Group is launching a low-cost laser cutting system called LazerBlade that will sell for under £200,000, and about 40 jobs will be created at its Loughborough plant.
14-Jan-1998

Sheffield Forgemasters, the engineering group, has been sold to two US companies - Allegheny Teledyne and Atchison Casting - for a combined price of almost £100m.
13-Jan-1998

Bridport is acquiring Air Carriers Interiors, the US maker of air cargo restraint systems, for an initial £2.1m.
13-Jan-1998

Hunting Oilfield Services has acquired Chase Manufacturing, the Canadian maker of couplings for the oil industry, for £4.7m.
10-Jan-1998

Cobham has acquired Lincoln Laser, the US optical technology company, for $8.5m, and Nurad Technologies, the US microwave equipment maker, for $5.6m, as well as the passive microwave components business of Premier Microwave.
09-Jan-1998

Expamet International is acquiring the Hanover-based expanded metals business of Ernst Sorst for £2.1m, in order to gain a strategic foothold in continental Europe.
01-Jan-1998