A Perth engineering company and Fife industrial instruments firm have combined for a joint venture to support the cask filling and disgorging industry in the UK.
Edwards Engineering and Glenrothes-based DPS Group have acquired the intellectual property of East Kilbride company JE Cockayne, which recently went into liquidation.
The rights, acquired for an undisclosed sum, include the brand, design and technology behind Cockayne’s Caskmaster cask filling machines and Flowlog recording system, which is used by the majority of distilleries throughout Scotland.
Edwards Engineering’s managing director Ben Carter said: “We have previously completed a number of projects that have incorporated the Cockayne capability into the overall solutions for clients.
“We’ve worked with the machines and technology and know how well they perform and the quality of the engineering and the intellectual property that underpins them.
“The acquisition of the Cockayne brand, designs and IP fits neatly with the Edwards mechanical engineering capability and the joint venture with DPS Group means that we will together be able to provide a new level of service to the industry.”
Cockayne customers will continue to be fully supported by the joint venture for annual servicing, operational support, upgrades and new installations.
The joint venture also seeks to modernise and developing new technical solutions to the cask filling and disgorging industries.
DPS Group director Martin Brownlee added: “We are pleased to have reached agreement with Edwards Engineering to deliver this new joint venture which will see us significantly expand our services across the whisky sector.
“Bringing together these established, highly successful and ambitious brands is good for the sector.
“With renewed choice, expertise and a commitment to outstanding customer service, we’re sure that this innovative provision under the Cockayne brand will serve clients well.”
Earlier this year Edwards Engineering outlined plans to grow its turnover to £20 million by 2022.
The 50-year-old firm, which operates from a 45,000 sq ft factory from Glenearn Road, was bought from the founding family in 2016 by investment group Cartalex.
rmclaren@thecourier.co.uk
