Award-winning engineering business Reid Lifting has been sold to Pure Lifting, a holding company formed to create a global portfolio of portable equipment businesses, for an undisclosed sum.

The landmark acquisition includes all staff and assets of the Chepstow-based firm but not the company’s buildings and land, located on the Newhouse Farm Industrial Estate, which will remain in the ownership of Nick Battersby, former owner of Reid and outgoing managing director.

Nick Battersby will remain with the company as a director for the foreseeable future but the sale of the business will allow him and Elisabeta Battersby, sales and marketing director of the firm, to retire.

Simon Luke, who has many years of experience in ownership and leadership roles, principally in the fall protection sector, has taken up position as incoming managing director with immediate effect.

Mr Luke, one of a number of investors within the recently-formed Pure Lifting, said: “Nick and his team have done a tremendous job of positioning Reid as a standout manufacturer in the portable lifting equipment marketplace.

"We look forward to building on its success in addition to realising expansion and global growth potential. Continued innovation and an elevated profile of the many core strengths of the product range will be hallmarks of our ownership.”

Over recent years Reid Lifting has won a number of awards including the Queen's Award for International Trade, the Queen's Award for Enterprise, Company of the Year at the 2015 Monmouthshire Business Awards and the Manufacturing Innovation Award at the 2014 Made in Wales Awards.

Mr Battersby said: “Pure wants to invest in the existing facility and give energy to global growth endeavours from our Chepstow home. Elisabeta and I are certainly excited about witnessing continued expansion, albeit eventually from afar.”

The acquisition will create immediate employment opportunities with new sales leadership being sought to enable Elisabeta to retire this summer, in addition to positions in marketing and operations.

Mr Luke said: “Reid has done a fine job of maximising revenue from European markets and many others further afield, but we have earmarked a number of regions which represent growth potential, including the US, Canada, and South America."

Mr Battersby said: “Combining the new management team with a product range which presents clear advantages in terms of ease of assembly, range of capacity, diversity, and conformity with global certifications and safety standards, certainly whets the appetite. It’s business as usual for partners and customers in the short-term, yet plans are already afoot to increase investment in product development and innovation, which will remain at the company’s core.”