William Press Group Explained

William Press Group
Type:Public
Fate:Merger with Leonard Fairclough & Son
Successor:Amec Foster Wheeler
Foundation:1913
Defunct:1982
Location:London, UK
Industry:Offshore engineering
Key People:Tony Hawken (Chairman) Ray Daniels (CEO)

William Press Group was a British engineering business which merged with Leonard Fairclough & Son to become a FTSE 100 company, AMEC.

History

The company was founded by William Allpress in 1913 in London.[1]

In 1954 it started to focus on developments in cathodic protection for pipelines forming Metal and Pipeline Endurance Ltd ('MAPEL').[2]

In the 1970s it converted about 50% of the UK's houses from town gas to natural gas.[3] It also diversified into offshore oil and gas under the leadership of Tony Hawken and Ray Daniels.[4]

The name of the company changed from William Press & Son to William Press Group in 1981.[5]

It merged with Leonard Fairclough & Son in 1982 to form AMEC.[1]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: About Us. Amec Foster Wheeler. 17 November 2015.
  2. http://prod.responsive.bacgroup.mogul.se/about-us/history BAC Group history
  3. https://books.google.com/books?id=vCPGrWeK04gC&dq=%22william+press%22+engineering+founded+1913&pg=PT388 Jubilee Line Extension by Bob Mitchell, Page 369
  4. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1438488/Ray-Daniels.html Obituary: Ray Daniels
  5. http://www.ftse.com/Research_and_Publications/Archive/FTSE_UK_Index_Series__1981.pdf Actuaries Indices 1981