Sir David McMurtry | |
---|---|
Born | David Roberts McMurtry 15 March 1940 [1] Clontarf, Ireland |
Education | Mountjoy School |
Known for | Chairman and co-founder, Renishaw plc |
Spouse | Teresa Adams |
Children | 3 |
Sir David Roberts McMurtry, CBE FRS FREng FIMechE (born 15 March 1940) is an Irish-British billionaire, the co-founder and executive chairman of Renishaw plc, the UK's largest supplier of metrology equipment. As of October 2021, his net worth was estimated at US$1.3 billion. [2]
David Roberts McMurtry was born in 1940 in Clontarf, Ireland. [3] He was brought up in Dublin and educated at Mountjoy School (now the Mount Temple Comprehensive School) in Dublin. [4]
McMurtry joined Bristol Aero Engines as an apprentice in 1958. [5] In 1966, following an acquisition, he found himself employed by Rolls-Royce plc where he became Deputy Chief Designer and Assistant Chief of Engine Design at Filton. [5] In 1973, while working on Concorde's engines, he designed his first trigger probe. [5] He worked on the Turbo-Union RB199 engine. [6]
In 1973, he joined his former colleague John Deer to set up Renishaw plc. [5] [2] The company floated on the Unlisted Securities Market in 1983, and gained a full listing the following year. [7] In 1987, McMurtry acquired the patents for his trigger probes from Rolls-Royce plc and began to exploit the patents himself. [5] In 1989, he became a Royal Designer for Industry. [8]
McMurtry was awarded the CBE in 1994 [9] and was knighted in the 2001 New Year Honours. [10]
McMurtry received an honorary doctorate from Heriot-Watt University in 1998. [11] In 2001, McMurtry was elected a Fellow [12] of the Royal Academy of Engineering. [12] In 2008, the University of Bath [13] awarded him an honorary doctorate. In 2011, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society. [14] He won the Institute of Physics Swan Medal and Prize in 2012. [15]
In 2018, McMurtry stepped down as chief executive of Renishaw and was replaced by marketing and sales director William Lee. [16]
On 2 March 2021, McMurtry, along with John Deer, indicated that they wished to dispose of their entire holdings in Renishaw, comprising some 53% of the shares, as 'we recognise that neither of us is getting any younger'. The Renishaw board then announced that it was launching a formal sale process for the entire company. [17] This process was terminated on 7 July 2021, the board concluding that none of the proposals met their objectives. [18]
McMurty and his wife, Teresa, have two sons and a daughter. [19] He lives in Wotton-under-Edge, England. [2]
In 2001, McMurtry started work on Swinhay House. Now complete, the "£30m futuristic eco-house" appeared in an episode of the BBC television series Sherlock . [3]
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