Renishaw plc
Encyclopedia
Renishaw plc is an engineering
company based in Wotton-under-Edge
in Gloucestershire
, England
. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange
and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index
.
and John Deer in 1973. McMurtry had needed to measure fuel pipes on a prototype jet engine
: at the time, coordinate-measuring machine
sensors featured rigid styli, which required manual positioning on the surface and which yielded poor repeatability when measuring delicate components. To meet this need, McMurtry invented a touch-trigger probe device, which he then patent
ed. The probe featured an elegant 'kinematic' location for a spring-loaded stylus, providing a highly repeatable seated position for the stylus combined with the compliance needed to measure such components.
Renishaw was first listed on the London Stock Exchange
in 1983.
In 2006 the Company bought 'itp', a German
manufacturer of precision styli.
In early 2009 the global recession
reached Renishaw, resulting in a large proportion of the workforce being placed "at risk".
Since 2009, Renishaw has seen a turnaround in business, with orders doubling within a year, and the company stating that it had "recovered strongly since the worldwide recession".
and spectroscopy
and sells its products in the major markets around the world.
The company's strategy has been to grow organically sustained by patented innovations. The company's product portfolio has since expanded into touch probes for CNC machine tools, calibration
systems that optimise the performance of CNC machinery, linear encoder
systems, rotary encoder
systems, dental CAD/CAM systems, Raman spectroscopy
and medical devices for functional neurosurgery
applications.
, with several new buildings on a 26 acres (105,218.4 m²) site. It is a nature
oriented site, with dozens of bird
s (including duck
s and peacocks) and a large lake
. The site is also close to the village of Charfield
.
The company has a machine shop located at Stonehouse, Gloucestershire
and an assembly facility at Woodchester
, both near Stroud. There are further assembly facilities in Dublin (Ireland
) and Pune
(India
). Renishaw also has research facilities located in Wotton-under-Edge
, Edinburgh
and Exeter
.
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
company based in Wotton-under-Edge
Wotton-under-Edge
Wotton-under-Edge is a market town within the Stroud district of Gloucestershire, England. Located near the southern end of the Cotswolds, the Cotswold Way long-distance footpath passes through the town. Standing on the B4058 Wotton is about from the M5 motorway. The nearest railway station is...
in Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange
London Stock Exchange
The London Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located in the City of London within the United Kingdom. , the Exchange had a market capitalisation of US$3.7495 trillion, making it the fourth-largest stock exchange in the world by this measurement...
and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index
FTSE 250 Index
The FTSE 250 Index is a capitalisation-weighted index consisting of the 101st to the 350th largest companies on the London Stock Exchange. Promotions to and demotions from the index take place quarterly in March, June, September and December...
.
History
The Company was founded by Sir David McMurtryDavid McMurtry
Sir David Roberts McMurtry CBE is the founder of Renishaw plc, the United Kingdom's largest supplier of metrology equipment.-Career:...
and John Deer in 1973. McMurtry had needed to measure fuel pipes on a prototype jet engine
Engine
An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert energy into useful mechanical motion. Heat engines, including internal combustion engines and external combustion engines burn a fuel to create heat which is then used to create motion...
: at the time, coordinate-measuring machine
Coordinate-measuring machine
A coordinate measuring machine is a device for measuring the physical geometrical characteristics of an object. This machine may be manually controlled by an operator or it may be computer controlled. Measurements are defined by a probe attached to the third moving axis of this machine...
sensors featured rigid styli, which required manual positioning on the surface and which yielded poor repeatability when measuring delicate components. To meet this need, McMurtry invented a touch-trigger probe device, which he then patent
Patent
A patent is a form of intellectual property. It consists of a set of exclusive rights granted by a sovereign state to an inventor or their assignee for a limited period of time in exchange for the public disclosure of an invention....
ed. The probe featured an elegant 'kinematic' location for a spring-loaded stylus, providing a highly repeatable seated position for the stylus combined with the compliance needed to measure such components.
Renishaw was first listed on the London Stock Exchange
London Stock Exchange
The London Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located in the City of London within the United Kingdom. , the Exchange had a market capitalisation of US$3.7495 trillion, making it the fourth-largest stock exchange in the world by this measurement...
in 1983.
In 2006 the Company bought 'itp', a German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
manufacturer of precision styli.
In early 2009 the global recession
Late 2000s recession in Europe
While the recession of the late 2000s began in the United States, the crisis spread to Europe rapidly and has affected much of the region with several countries already in recession as of February 2009, and most others suffering marked economic setbacks...
reached Renishaw, resulting in a large proportion of the workforce being placed "at risk".
Since 2009, Renishaw has seen a turnaround in business, with orders doubling within a year, and the company stating that it had "recovered strongly since the worldwide recession".
Operations
Renishaw specialises in industrial metrologyMetrology
Metrology is the science of measurement. Metrology includes all theoretical and practical aspects of measurement. The word comes from Greek μέτρον , "measure" + "λόγος" , amongst others meaning "speech, oration, discourse, quote, study, calculation, reason"...
and spectroscopy
Spectroscopy
Spectroscopy is the study of the interaction between matter and radiated energy. Historically, spectroscopy originated through the study of visible light dispersed according to its wavelength, e.g., by a prism. Later the concept was expanded greatly to comprise any interaction with radiative...
and sells its products in the major markets around the world.
The company's strategy has been to grow organically sustained by patented innovations. The company's product portfolio has since expanded into touch probes for CNC machine tools, calibration
Calibration
Calibration is a comparison between measurements – one of known magnitude or correctness made or set with one device and another measurement made in as similar a way as possible with a second device....
systems that optimise the performance of CNC machinery, linear encoder
Linear encoder
A linear encoder is a sensor, transducer or readhead paired with a scale that encodes position. The sensor reads the scale in order to convert the encoded position into an analog or digital signal, which can then be decoded into position by a digital readout or motion controller.The encoder can be...
systems, rotary encoder
Rotary encoder
A rotary encoder, also called a shaft encoder, is an electro-mechanical device that converts the angular position or motion of a shaft or axle to an analog or digital code. The output of incremental encoders provides information about the motion of the shaft which is typically further processed...
systems, dental CAD/CAM systems, Raman spectroscopy
Raman spectroscopy
Raman spectroscopy is a spectroscopic technique used to study vibrational, rotational, and other low-frequency modes in a system.It relies on inelastic scattering, or Raman scattering, of monochromatic light, usually from a laser in the visible, near infrared, or near ultraviolet range...
and medical devices for functional neurosurgery
Neurosurgery
Neurosurgery is the medical specialty concerned with the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of disorders which affect any portion of the nervous system including the brain, spine, spinal cord, peripheral nerves, and extra-cranial cerebrovascular system.-In the United States:In...
applications.
Locations
Renishaw's main offices are situated in an old mill from the industrial revolutionIndustrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
, with several new buildings on a 26 acres (105,218.4 m²) site. It is a nature
Nature
Nature, in the broadest sense, is equivalent to the natural world, physical world, or material world. "Nature" refers to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general...
oriented site, with dozens of bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s (including duck
Duck
Duck is the common name for a large number of species in the Anatidae family of birds, which also includes swans and geese. The ducks are divided among several subfamilies in the Anatidae family; they do not represent a monophyletic group but a form taxon, since swans and geese are not considered...
s and peacocks) and a large lake
Lake
A lake is a body of relatively still fresh or salt water of considerable size, localized in a basin, that is surrounded by land. Lakes are inland and not part of the ocean and therefore are distinct from lagoons, and are larger and deeper than ponds. Lakes can be contrasted with rivers or streams,...
. The site is also close to the village of Charfield
Charfield
Charfield is a village and civil parish in South Gloucestershire, England lying near the Little Avon River and south-west of the town of Wotton-under-Edge....
.
The company has a machine shop located at Stonehouse, Gloucestershire
Stonehouse, Gloucestershire
Stonehouse, Gloucestershire is an urban area within the Stroud District, in the UK. It is home to a number of factories, such as Dairy Crest and Schlumberger. The town is close to the M5 motorway. Stonehouse railway station has a regular train service to London...
and an assembly facility at Woodchester
Woodchester
Woodchester is a Gloucestershire village in the Nailsworth Valley, a valley in the South Cotswolds in England, running southwards from Stroud along the A46 road to Nailsworth....
, both near Stroud. There are further assembly facilities in Dublin (Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
) and Pune
Pune
Pune , is the eighth largest metropolis in India, the second largest in the state of Maharashtra after Mumbai, and the largest city in the Western Ghats. Once the centre of power of the Maratha Empire, it is situated 560 metres above sea level on the Deccan plateau at the confluence of the Mula ...
(India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
). Renishaw also has research facilities located in Wotton-under-Edge
Wotton-under-Edge
Wotton-under-Edge is a market town within the Stroud district of Gloucestershire, England. Located near the southern end of the Cotswolds, the Cotswold Way long-distance footpath passes through the town. Standing on the B4058 Wotton is about from the M5 motorway. The nearest railway station is...
, Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
and Exeter
Exeter
Exeter is a historic city in Devon, England. It lies within the ceremonial county of Devon, of which it is the county town as well as the home of Devon County Council. Currently the administrative area has the status of a non-metropolitan district, and is therefore under the administration of the...
.