We regret to announce that Bob Dugard, chairman of the Hove-based machine tool company C Dugard Ltd (www.dugard.com), passed away at Royal Sussex County Hospital Brighton on 5 August after a long illness.

He leaves a wife, Margaret, children Charlotte, Martin and Paul, and a step-daughter Kathryn.

Bob Dugard had been with the company for 60 years. He started there when he was still at school, working during the evenings and at weekends, helping his father Charlie during the company’s formative years.

As a young man, he also combined his work at the business with a very successful career in motorcycle speedway racing, and he later went on to promote speedway at Eastbourne, Oxford and White City (in London).

Bob Dugard was key to building and developing C Dugard Ltd; he also started the company’s Polish machine tool business — MTI — years ahead of its competitors; MTI is now a major player in Poland.

In recent years, he took on the guiding role of chairman at C Dugard Ltd; and despite his ill-health over the last few years, he still came into the office every day until being admitted into hospital.