At the recent Centenary Dinner of the Manufacturing Technologies Association (MTA), Sir David McMurtry and John Deer — the founders of Gloucestershire-based engineering company Renishaw — were honoured for their outstanding contribution to British engineering.

They started the company (www.renishaw.com) in 1973 after the invention of the touch-trigger probe, which revolutionised three-dimensional co-ordinate measurement.

Throughout its history Renishaw has invested 13-18 % of its sales revenue in R&D. Until 1976, the company was based at John Deer’s home in Chepstow; today, it is a global brand employing over 5,000 people in 36 countries.

Will Lee, Renishaw’s chief executive, who accepted the award on Sir David’s behalf, said: “At Renishaw, we all feel extremely proud of Sir David and John’s achievements over the past 45 years.

"They have overseen the growth of a hugely successful global company based on their founding principles of disruptive innovation, high-quality manufacturing, excellent customer support and the development of talented people.”

MTA CEO James Selka said: “The achievements of Sir David and John are a true British success story, and Renishaw has grown from strength to strength under their guidance.

“They have been great supporters of the MTA throughout their history and champions of engineering excellence.”