The board changes are designed to ensure that the business retains its distinct approach and continues on the course that has seen it increase turnover five-fold in the past ten years, and they were announced to employees in September.

Projects director Nigel Baker becomes managing director, while finance director Kath Clarke becomes deputy managing director. Business development director John Argyle remains in post.

Tony Lowe will continue to support the company as a non-executive director.

Nuneaton Patterns Ltd was bought in 1997 by directors Tony Lowe and Oliver Johnson with finance from the Bank of Scotland in Southampton, when it was turning over £3m per year, and had 60 employees on the payroll.

Today NPL Technologies is recognised in the industry as one of the UK’s leading exponents of craftsmanship products for the automotive sector.

In the automotive sector NPL is now the leading cubing specialist. (The cubing of a car exterior and interior allows the styling and manufacturing specialists to review the proposed final product in an actual-size prototype.) Recent projects include Range Rover Sport and Land Rover Discovery 3. NPL is now transferring this experience to aerospace. But prototyping and low volume manufacture is also another major expansion area.

NPL has a composites facility that serves the F1 sector as well as automotive and a growing number of aerospace clients, and also has a low volume production facility offering component manufacture for a range of industries, including several in the medical technologies sector.

Together with a subsidiary in Mexico that the company acquired in 2002, NPL Technologies now has a turnover of more than £15m per year and a headcount of around 350. Its client list includes Jaguar Land Rover, Bentley, Mercedes, BMW, Airbus and BAe Systems.

New managing director Nigel Baker said: “We have achieved this growth through a strategy of ongoing investment in technology and skills.

“The business has taken steps to retain those with key craft skills, and also ensured a new supply of skilled workers through apprenticeship programmes and sponsored university training.

“It has also invested in core technologies including 3D CAD, CAM and high speed CNC milling, and in the creation, two years ago, of the composites facility.”

NPL Technologies became a part of the worldwide ARRK Group of companies in 2004, when ARRK acquired a 55% stake.

Taking the decision to leave NPL Technologies to pursue a number of personal ambitions, Tony Lowe has concluded the sale of the remainder of his shares to the ARRK Group.

Tony said: “I am leaving the company at a time when it has a very strong order book. It has won business valued at around £1m in each of the previous three months. In support of this, the company has invested in another large 5-axis gantry CNC machine and a fourth secure studio.

“NPL is currently working on programmes that will continue well into 2008 and the business is in a strong position to move forward.”

On leaving the business Tony will first concentrate on a long-held ambition to sail across the Atlantic. He will become a non-executive director of NPL and also pursue other business ambitions in the New Year, seeking to combine his entrepreneurial skills, his experience of completing a successful MBI, expertise as a Chartered Mechanical Engineer and a willingness to invest in growing businesses, to become involved with business angels networks and other private equity firms.