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Sir David Roberts McMurtry (5 March 1940 – 9 December 2024) was an Irish-British billionaire businessman, who was the co-founder and executive chairman of Renishaw plc, the UK's largest supplier of metrology equipment. As of December 2024, his net worth was estimated at US$1.3 billion.[1]
Sir David McMurtry | |
|---|---|
 McMurtry in 2012 | |
| Born | David Roberts McMurtry 5 March 1940 Clontarf, Dublin, Ireland |
| Died | 9 December 2024 (aged 84) Gloucestershire, England |
| Education | Mountjoy School |
| Years active | 1958–2024 |
| Title | Chairman and co-founder, Renishaw plc |
| Spouse |
Teresa Adams (m. 1966) |
| Children | 3 |
David Roberts McMurtry was born the second child of Frederick and Margaret McMurtry, on 5 March 1940, in Clontarf, Dublin, Ireland.[2] He was brought up in Dublin and educated at Mountjoy School (now the Mount Temple Comprehensive School) in Dublin.[3] McMurtry moved to the UK at the age of 18, in 1958.[4]
McMurtry joined Bristol Aeroplane Company as an apprentice in 1958.[5] In 1966, following an acquisition, he found himself employed by Rolls-Royce Holdings 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] He worked on the Turbo-Union RB199 engine.[6]
In 1973, he joined his former colleague John Deer to set up Renishaw plc.[5][1] The company floated on the Unlisted Securities Market in 1983, and gained a full listing the following year.[7] In 1987, McMurtry acquired the patents for his trigger probes from Rolls-Royce Holdings and began to exploit the patents himself.[5] In 1989, he became a Royal Designer for Industry.[8]
In 2018, McMurtry stepped down as chief executive of Renishaw and was replaced by marketing and sales director William Lee.[9]
On 2 March 2021, McMurtry, along with John Deer, indicated that they wished to dispose of their entire holdings in Renishaw, comprising some 53% of the shares, as 'we recognise that neither of us is getting any younger'. The Renishaw board then announced that it was launching a formal sale process for the entire company.[10] This process was terminated on 7 July 2021, after the board concluded that none of the proposals met their objectives.[11]
In June 2024, McMurtry stepped down as executive chairman of Renishaw and remained on the board as a non-executive director.[12]
According to the Sunday Times Rich List 2024, with a net worth of £1.2 billion, McMurtry was the 135th richest person in the UK. He was the 157th richest on the list the year prior.[13]
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McMurtry married Teresa Adams in 1966, who survives him, and had three children.[14][15][2] He lived in Wotton-under-Edge, England.[1]
In 2001, McMurtry started working on Swinhay House. After it was completed, the "£30m futuristic eco-house" appeared in an episode of the BBC television series Sherlock.[16]
McMurtry died in Gloucestershire on 9 December 2024, at the age of 84.[17][18][2]
McMurtry received the Queen's Award for Enterprise (now The King's Awards for Enterprise) in 1979.[19] He was awarded the CBE in 1994[20] and was knighted in the 2001 New Year Honours.[21]
McMurtry was an honorary fellow of Cardiff University. He was also a fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.[22] He was elected a fellow of the SME in 1988.[23] He was a recipient of the MacRobert Award.[4] McMurtry received an honorary doctorate from Heriot-Watt University in 1998.[24] In 2001, McMurtry was elected a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering.[25] In 2008, the University of Bath awarded him an honorary doctorate.[26] In 2011, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society.[27] He won the Katharine Burr Blodgett Medal and Prize in 2012.[28] In 2017, McMurtry received an honorary doctorate from the University of Huddersfield.[29] He was the recipient of the 2019 James Watt International Gold Medal.[30]
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