North East based engineering group, British Engines, has today confirmed completion of the acquisition of the Michell Bearings business from Rolls-Royce PLC, which includes the Rolls Royce North East Training School.
The business, its assets and its employees are now part of the British Engines Group, which has six other engineering businesses based in the region and a long heritage of local employment within the North East.
British Engines announced its intention to purchase the business in April this year, with the main condition being the licence consents required to enable the business to trade under different ownership. These consents are in place and the Michell Bearings business will start trading as a standalone limited company within the British Engines Group from today.
Richard Dodd, chief operating officer at British Engines, said: “This is a really exciting time for us as a group and for the Michell Bearings business itself. We are delighted to add another business to the British Engines portfolio that has an excellent reputation for serving its customers around the world.
“Michell Bearings’ products complement our existing product portfolio and fit well with the group’s focus on value added engineering. The business will now trade under Michell Bearings Limited with hands-on local support from our directors and the investment required for future growth.
“The Rolls-Royce North East Training Centre (RRNETC) will continue its work across the region re-branded as the Engineering Training Centre (ETC) North East.
“British Engines has a firm commitment to the development and retention of talented and ambitious people in the North East, with a particular focus on training the region’s future engineers. We have trained more than 800 local apprentices since our in-house apprenticeship scheme was launched in 1966.”
Michell Bearings and the Engineering Training Centre both have new logos and corporate identities, which they will start using from today.
Michell Bearings is based on Scotswood Road in Newcastle, it designs and manufactures self-contained white metal (or Babbitt) and PTFE faced hydrodynamic bearings for the marine and defence sectors across the world.