GKN plc
Type	Public (LSE: GKN)
Founded	1902
Headquarters	Redditch, United Kingdom
Industry	Vehicles and Equipment
Products	Automotive & aerospace engineering
Revenue	£4,447m GBP (2004)
Operating income	£268m GBP (2004)
Net income	£65m GBP (2004)
Employees	40,600
Website	www.gkn.com

GKN plc is a British engineering company formerly known as Guest, Keen and Nettlefolds and tracing its origins back to 1759 and the birth of the industrial revolution. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. Image File history File links GKNplc. ... The Source by Greyworld, in the new LSE building Paternoster Square. ... Church Green and St. ... Revenue is a U.S. business term for the amount of money that a company earns from its activities in a given period, mostly from sales of products and/or services to customers. ... Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT), also known as operating income and operating profit, is a term used to describe a companys earnings. ... Net income is equal to the income that a firm has after subtracting costs and expenses from the total revenue. ... Employment is a contract between two parties, one being the employer and the other being the employee. ... A website (or Web site) is a collection of web pages, images, videos and other digital assets and hosted on a particular domain or subdomain on the World Wide Web. ... Engineering is the design, analysis, and/or construction of works for practical purposes. ... 1759 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... A Watt steam engine. ... The Source by Greyworld, in the new LSE building Paternoster Square. ... The FTSE 250 Index is a capitalisation weighted index of 250 companies on the London Stock Exchange. ...

History

Foundations: 1759 to 1899

The origins of GKN lie in the founding of the Dowlais Ironworks in the village of Dowlais, Merthyr Tydfil, Wales by landowner Wyndham William Lewis. John Guest was appointed manager of the works in 1767. He discovered coal on Lewis's property and used it to replace charcoal for smelting. He became a partner in the business in 1782 with Lewis and salesman William Taitt who later became his son-in-law. The Dowlais Ironworks was a major 19-century ironworks located near Merthyr Tydfil, in Wales. ... Merthyr Tydfil (Welsh: ) is a town and county borough in Wales, with a population of about 55,000. ... This article is about the country. ... John Guest can refer to: John Guest, United States Navy officer John Josiah Guest, British industrialist John Guest, John Josiahs grandfather This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... 1767 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... Coal Coal (IPA: ) is a fossil fuel extracted from the ground by coal mining, either underground mining or open-pit mining (surface mining). ... Charcoal is the blackish residue consisting of impure carbon obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from animal and vegetation substances. ... Electric phosphate smelting furnace in a TVA chemical plant (1942) Chemical reduction, or smelting, is a form of extractive metallurgy. ... 1782 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ...

Thomas Guest succeeded his father in 1787. Though there have been claims of steam power at Dowlais as early as 1753, it is more likely that it was Thomas who introduced steam for blowing the furnaces with a Watt steam engine in 1795. Year 1787 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... A steam engine is a heat engine that makes use of the potential energy that exists as pressure in steam, converting it to mechanical work. ... 1753 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Watt Steam Engine - showing the improvement of the separate condenser, which was not found on the Newcomen steam engine. ... 1795 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ...

By the time John's grandson, John Josiah Guest became sole owner in 1815, the company was the largest iron and steel producer in the world, becoming the first organisation to license the Bessemer process for steel production. The first Bessemer steel was rolled at the works in 1865. John Josiah Guest (February 2, 1785 - November 26, 1852) was an engineer and entrepreneur. ... April 5-12: Mount Tambora explodes, changing climate. ... General Name, Symbol, Number iron, Fe, 26 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 8, 4, d Appearance lustrous metallic with a grayish tinge Atomic mass 55. ... The steel cable of a colliery winding tower. ... Bessemer converter, schematic diagram The Bessemer process was the first inexpensive industrial process for the mass-production of steel from molten pig iron. ... 1865 (MDCCCLXV) is a common year starting on Sunday. ...

John Josiah Guest was assisted in the management of the Dowlais Works by his wife Lady Charlotte Guest. John Josiah Guest (February 2, 1785 - November 26, 1852) was an engineer and entrepreneur. ... Lady Charlotte Elizabeth Guest, (nee Bertie) (May 19, 1812 – January 15, 1895), was an important figure in the history of the study of Welsh literature and language. ...

On John Josiah Guest's death, the works was administered by his trustees, G. T. Clark and Henry Austin Bruce, 1st Baron Aberdare. After the death of the former in 1898, John Josiah's son, Ivor Bertie Guest, 1st Baron Wimborne, became active but was distracted by other interests and responded to an approach in 1899 from Arthur Keen. George Thomas Clark (May 26, 1809 - April 6, 1885) was a British engineer and antiquary, particularly associated with the management of the Dowlais Iron Company. ... Henry Austin Bruce, 1st Baron Aberdare (April 16, 1815 - February 25, 1895) was a British statesman who served in government during the late 19th century, most notably as Home Secretary and as Lord President of the Council. ... 1898 (MDCCCXCVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Sir Ivor Bertie Guest, 1st Baron Wimborne (29 August 1835)- (22 February 1914), in Dowlais, Wales was the son of Lady Charlotte Guest, translator of the Mabinogion, and John Josiah Guest, owner of the worlds largest iron foundry. ... Year 1899 (MDCCCXCIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar). ... Arthur Keen (January 23, 1835 - February 8, 1915) was a British entrepreneur, the Keen in engineering firm Guest, Keen and Nettlefolds, later GKN plc. ...

Nuts and bolts: 1900 to 1965

On 9th July 1900, the Dowlais Iron Company and Arthur Keen's Patent Nut and Bolt Company merged to form Guest, Keen & Co. Ltd. July 9 is the 190th day of the year (191st in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 175 days remaining. ... Year 1900 (MCM) was an exceptional common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar, but a leap year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. ... Arthur Keen (January 23, 1835 - February 8, 1915) was a British entrepreneur, the Keen in engineering firm Guest, Keen and Nettlefolds, later GKN plc. ... Arthur Keen (January 23, 1835 - February 8, 1915) was a British entrepreneur, the Keen in engineering firm Guest, Keen and Nettlefolds. ...

Nettlefolds Limited, a leading manuacturer of fasteners, had been established in Smethwick in 1854 and was acquired in 1902 leading to the change of name to Guest, Keen and Nettlefolds. Joseph Henry Nettlefold (September 19, 1827 - November 22, 1881) was a British industrialist, the Nettlefold in Guest, Keen and Nettlefolds. ... Smethwick (pronounced Smethick) is a town adjacent to Birmingham and West Bromwich in England. ... 1854 (MDCCCLIV) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... 1902 (MCMII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ...

These mergers heralded half a century in which the name GKN became synonymous with the manufacture of screws, nuts, bolts and other fasteners. The company reflected the vertical integration fashionable at the time embracing activities from coal and ore extraction, and iron and steel making to manufacturing finished goods. Screws come in a variety of shapes and sizes for different purposes. ... A nut is a type of hardware fastener with a threaded hole. ... Screws come in a variety of shapes and sizes for different purposes. ... A fastener is a hardware device that mechanically joins or affixes two or more objects together. ... It has been suggested that Vertical expansion be merged into this article or section. ...

Beyond the fastener: 1966 to the present

In 1966, in a programme of diversification, the company acquired Hardy Spicer Limited of Birmingham, England, a manufacturer of constant-velocity joints. Historically, such joints had had few applications, even following the improved design proposed by Alfred H. Rzeppa in 1936. However, in 1959, Alec Issigonis had developed the revolutionary Mini motor car which relied on such joints for its novel front wheel drive technology. The massive expansion in the exploitation of front wheel drive in the 1970s and 1980s led to the acquisition of other similar businesses and a 43% share of the world market by 2002. 1966 (MCMLXVI) was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1966 calendar). ... The city from above Centenary Square. ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London (de facto) Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2006 est. ... Cross-section through a typical outer CV joint (Saab 96) Constant Velocity Joints (aka homokinetic or CV joints) allow a rotating shaft to transmit power through a variable angle, at constant rotational speed, without an appreciable increase in friction or play. ... Alfred H. Rzeppa was an engineer working at Ford who invented a version of constant velocity joint in 1926. ... 1936 (MCMXXXVI) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Year 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The machine factory (shown here in a company letter of 1910) founded by Demosthenis Issigonis, Alecs grandfather, was one of the thriving Greek businesses in Smyrna (now Izmir). ... For the new MINI, see MINI (BMW). ... Front wheel drive is the most common form of engine/transmission layout used in modern passenger cars, where the engine drives the front wheels. ... 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday. ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... For album titles with the same name, see 2002 (album). ...

During the 1980s, GKN sought to invest its earnings from constant-velocity joints in developing other nascent technologies. However, little success attended these efforts and in 1991 the company resolved to abandon further research and to redivert its development efforts towards its constant-velocity joint business in which it was facing increasing competition from Japan. During the same period, the company finally withdrew from the manufacture of fasteners and from steel production. Changing its name to GKN plc, it diversified into military vehicles, aerospace and industrial services. 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Look up aerospace in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

In 1994, GKN acquired the helicopter manufacturing business of Westland Aircraft. In 1998 the armoured vehicle business was sold to Alvis plc, and subsequently incorporated into Alvis Vickers Ltd. In July 2000 Finmeccanica and GKN agreed to merge their respective helicopter subsidiaries to form AgustaWestland. In 2004 GKN completed the sale of its 50% shareholding in AgustaWestland to Finmeccanica. 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal by United Nations. ... The Bell 206 of Canadian Helicopters Robinson Helicopter Company (USA) R44, a four seat development of the R22 A helicopter is an aircraft which is lifted and propelled by one or more horizontal rotors consisting of two or more rotor blades. ... Westland Aircraft was a British aircraft manufacturer located in Yeovil in Somerset, formed just before the start of World War II. During the war the company produced a number of generally unsuccessful designs, but their Lysander would serve as an important liaison aircraft with the RAF. After the war the... Alvis Vickers in context of the evolution of the land systems division of BAE Systems, 1970s to Land & Armaments formation Alvis Ltd. ... Alvis Vickers logo Alvis Vickers Ltd was a defence company formed by the combination of Alvis plcs defence business with Vickers Defence Systems in 2002. ... Finmeccanica is Italys second largest industrial group. ... AgustaWestland is a helicopter design and manufacturing company based in Italy and the United Kingdom. ... AgustaWestland is a helicopter design and manufacturing company based in Italy and the United Kingdom. ... Finmeccanica is Italys second largest industrial group. ...

From the late 1990s, the company built a major global business in powder metallurgy, which operates as the GKN Sinter Metals group. For the band, see 1990s (band). ... Powder metallurgy is a forming and fabrication technique consisting of three major processing stages. ...

GKN's turnover for the year ended 31 December 2004 was just under £3.5 billion.

Bibliography

• Jones, E (1987) A History of GKN Volume 1: Innovation and Enterprise 1759-1918
• Jones, E (1990) A History of GKN Volume 2: The Growth of a Business 1918-45

External links

• Official website
• Yahoo profile