David McMurtry

Sir David Roberts McMurtry, CBE FRS FREng FIMechE (born 15 March 1940) is an Irish billionaire, the co-founder of Renishaw plc, the United Kingdom's largest supplier of metrology equipment.

Sir David McMurtry
Born (1940-03-15) 15 March 1940[1]
Clontarf, Ireland
EducationMountjoy School
Known forCo-founder of Renishaw plc
Net worthUS$ 1.77 billion (April 2018)[2]
Spouse(s)Teresa
Children3

Early life

David Roberts McMurtry was born in 1940 in Clontarf, Ireland.[3] He was brought up in Dublin and educated at Mountjoy School in Dublin.[4]

Career

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]

In 1979 McMurtry joined his former colleague John Deer to set up Renishaw plc.[5] In 1987 he 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.[6]

He was awarded the CBE in 1994[7] and was knighted in the 2001 New Year Honours.[8]

McMurty received an honorary doctorate from Heriot-Watt University in 1998.[9]

In 2001, McMurtry was elected a Fellow[10] of the Royal Academy of Engineering.[10] In 2008 the University of Bath[11] awarded him an honorary doctorate. In 2011 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society.[12] McMurtry won the Institute of Physics Swan Medal and Prize in 2012.[13]

In 2018, McMurtry stepped down as chief executive of Renishaw and was replaced by marketing and sales director William Lee.[14]

Personal life

McMurty is married to Teresa and has two sons and a daughter.[15] He lives in Wotton-under-Edge, England.[2]

In 2001 McMurtry started work on Swinhay House. The "£30m futuristic eco-house" appeared in an episode of the BBC television series Sherlock.[3]

References
  1. Mosley, Charles, ed. (2003). Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knighthood (107 ed.). Burke's Peerage & Gentry. p. 2538. ISBN 0-9711966-2-1.
  2. "David McMurtry". Forbes.com. 1 January 1970. Retrieved 13 April 2017.
  3. "David McMurtry". Independent.ie. 8 March 2015. Retrieved 13 April 2017.
  4. "Irish-born designer receives knighthood". Irish Times. 15 January 2001. Retrieved 14 April 2019.
  5. "Renishaw: Biography". renishaw.com. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
  6. New Year Honour for David McMurtry Engineering Talk, 9 March 2001
  7. "No. 53863". The London Gazette (Supplement). 29 November 1994. p. 16701.
  8. "No. 56070". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 December 2000. p. 2.
  9. "Heriot-Watt University Edinburgh: Honorary Graduates". Heriot-Watt University. Retrieved 4 April 2016.
  10. "List of Fellows".
  11. comms@bath.ac.uk, University of Bath media team. "Internal News - 27 June 2008 - University of Bath". www.bath.ac.uk. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
  12. "Sir David Roberts McMurtry CBE FREng FRS". Royal Society. Retrieved 19 March 2012.
  13. Physics, Institute of. "The Swan/Business and Innovation medal recipients". www.iop.org. Retrieved 29 March 2016.
  14. "Co-founder of Britain's Renishaw to step down as CEO". Reuters. 24 January 2018. Retrieved 14 August 2020.
  15. Inventor's Probing Mind Defies UK Industry Meltdown Archived 14 April 2017 at the Wayback Machine Investing News, 16 June 2005
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