Historic manufacturer to close for good next month after 200 years in business | UK | News

A historic manufacturer that has been in business for more than 200 years is preparing to close next month.

Filtration manufacturer Cleanova, formerly known as Plenty, is based in Hambridge Road and comprises two floors of clerks.

The closure was due to international expansion; This means parts can now be made in the UK and other regions around the world.

Following a consultation process, a phased redundancy period for staff begins around Christmas 2024.

In July 2025, Douglas Michael Grant was appointed director of Cleanova’s Newbury site following the resignation of Neil James Ritchie.

The site is named after Plenty and Son, a historic Newbury engineering firm that produced agricultural machinery such as plows before switching to marine engines.

In 2001, Plenty became part of the SPX Flow Technology brand, headquartered in North Carolina.

50 years ago, in the 1970s, the company employed approximately 500 people.

The workforce currently consists of 62 to 68 employees. William Plenty founded Plenty in Southampton in 1790.

The millwright and agricultural engineer soon moved the firm to Newbury.

Until the 1970s the company was headquartered at the Eagle Iron Works on Cheap Street in central Newbury before demolition.

In 2019, a plaque was erected on Cheap Street to celebrate Eagle Iron Works’ distinguished industrial record.

Plenty initially specialized in marine steam engines before moving on to produce diesel engines and pumps at its King’s Road and Hambridge Road sites.

In 1817 the company created a lifeboat that is now recommended for general use by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.

From then on, the company continued to create important products.

The business produced steam engines and boilers for ships in 1865 and adapted diesel technology for ships, power generators, cranes and compressors in the 1920s.

In 1935 the rotary pump was introduced and 20 years later the company concentrated on liquid handling technology, including pumps, filters and mixers.