Home Business Awards & Achievements Double success for Gateshead engineering specialist at BVCA Annual Awards

Double success for Gateshead engineering specialist at BVCA Annual Awards

Ian Lichfield (centre), chief executive of WHP Engineering, receives the BVCA award from (left) Dan Rosinke of Grant Thornton, awards sponsor, and Owen Trotter, chari of the BVCA judging panel.

Gateshead-based engineering specialist WHP is celebrating double success in this year’s BVCA Yorkshire & North East Management Team Awards.

WHP’s successful growth and improved performance earned the company the top award in both the Business Transformation Management Team and Growth Management Team categories.

The company’s focus on the delivery of precision engineered solutions for the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and other clean process and manufacturing industries has seen sales grow by 135% over the last two years, achieving significant growth in overseas markets and delivering export sales of £5.5m in 2018.

Several multi-million-pounds of business has already been secured for 2019 with further opportunities in the final stages of negotiation as the company targets further growth in existing and new market sectors.


WHP was nominated for the awards by private equity investor Endless LLP, which invested in the business from its Enact SME Fund in September 2016, with subsequent further strengthening of the management team and board.

In late 2017 WHP moved into a new 26,000 sq. ft. facility on Metro Riverside Park to provide the platform for growth now being demonstrated and more recently has signed a lease on a further large manufacturing facility at the Port of Tyne.

Success in the BVCA Awards reflects the company’s successful market expansion, which enabled it to increase its workforce to 83 last year and has since risen to over 100.

Ian Lichfield, WHP Chief Executive, said: “We are delighted that the hard work and tremendous efforts of everyone associated with the business has been recognised in this way. We are very proud of our recent performance and our focus is now on ensuring that the successful growth of the company is maintained.

“As part of this plan, recent investment in new facilities, technology and people have been made with the future very much in mind and will help to ensure that we remain at the forefront of providing innovative new solutions for the design and build of advanced cleanroom, manufacturing and process plant installations.”

The BVCA Awards are organised by the British Venture Capital and Private Equity Association and are the only awards to provide an annual showcase for the best businesses in the UK backed by private equity and venture capital.

WHP’s impressive growth was recognised by the BVCA Award judges in making their decision and who said: “Having set an ambitious turnaround plan including the investment in new single-site facilities in Gateshead, the business has both returned to profitability and substantially grown revenues and order book.”

As a winners of the regional awards, WHP will now go forward to the national final to be held later this year.