LDC backs 105-year-old Yorkshire precision engineering firm Reliance
What's the deal? Private equity firm LDCDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → has backed Reliance PrecisionDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, a Yorkshire precision engineering business founded in 1920. The investment supports chief executive David Jennings, chief financial officer Ian Walter, and the management team in pursuing an organic growth strategy.
What does Reliance do? Headquartered in Huddersfield with a second site in Bandon, Ireland, it designs, develops, manufactures, and tests mission-ready components engineered at micron levels of accuracy. The business employs about 240 people across its two sites.
It partners with customers in the life sciences, defence, and space industries from early-stage prototyping through to long-term production.
Who's involved? The deal was led by LDC investment director Will Scales and investment executive Connie Smith, supported by partner and head of Yorkshire Dan Smith. Martin Whittaker — former chief executive of SurvitecDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → and Mettis GroupDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → — joins the board as non-executive chairman.
What's the endgame? Jennings said the partnership would "enable us to build an even more compelling and successful platform" and accelerate its Gemini Works new product development capabilities. He added that preserving the company's culture was "very important" as it takes this step.
The signal: LDC's backing of a century-old engineer reflects private equity's appetite for established manufacturers serving defence, space, and life sciences — sectors prized for long-term, process-critical demand.
Read more: insidermedia.com
Image credit: Fagor Automation
