Vickers plc
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| Industry | Defence, Engineering, Marine Engineering |
|---|---|
| Fate | Purchased by Rolls-Royce plc and re-named Vinters Engineering |
| Successor | Vinters Engineering Limited and Alvis Vickers |
| Founded |
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| Defunct | 1999 |
| Headquarters | United Kingdom |
| Parent | Vickers-Armstrongs |
| Subsidiaries | Vickers Defence Systems Cosworth |
Vickers plc was the remainder of Vickers-Armstrongs after the nationalisation of three of its four operating groups: aviation (as a 50% share since 1960 of British Aircraft Corporation (BAC) in 1977), shipbuilding (Vickers Limited Shipbuilding Group in 1977) and steel. It was purchased by Rolls-Royce plc in 1999, and the Vickers company name became defunct in 2004.
The company was created in 1977 from the rump of Vickers-Armstrongs following the nationalisation of its aviation, shipbuilding and steel businesses. During the 1980s the company acquired businesses in the Automotive Engineering sector (principally Rolls-Royce Motors), the Defence sector (principally Royal Ordnance Factory Leeds) and the Marine Engineering sector (principally Kamewa and Ulstein).
Rolls-Royce plc purchased Vickers plc for £576 million in 1999 for its marine engineering businesses. In 2002, Vickers Defence Systems was purchased by Alvis plc to form the subsidiary Alvis Vickers. In 2003, Rolls-Royce renamed its Vickers subsidiaries Vinters plc. The Vickers name lived on in Alvis Vickers. In 2004, the board of the parent group Alvis approved a £309m takeover bid by the American defence company General Dynamics. Within 3 months BAE Systems, which already had a 29% stake in the company, bid £355m for the company. The action was seen as a defence of the home market from a foreign rival. The bid was accepted by the majority of shareholders. In September 2004, BAE announced the creation of BAE Systems Land Systems, a new company bringing together the BAE subsidiaries, RO Defence and Alvis Vickers. This saw the end of the famous Vickers name after 176 years. In 2005, the acquisition of United Defense led to the creation of BAE Systems Land and Armaments Group.
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