Davey Paxman steam engine at Depot Monumentenhalle of Deutsches Technikmuseum Berlin (dated 1921) on the regulator handle support above the
firebox. built in 1925 Paxman was founded by James Noah Paxman, Henry and Charles Davey as
Davey, Paxman & Davey, Engineers in 1865, later
Davey, Paxman & Co. which became a limited company in 1898. In 1920 the company became a member of the
Agricultural & General Engineers (AGE)
combine. In 1932 AGE collapsed and Paxman emerged as
Davey Paxman & Co (Colchester) Ltd. Davey, Paxman and Davey conducted business as general engineers and ironworkers. The company manufactured
steam engines, boilers, agricultural machinery, and mill gearing. By the early 1870s the company was supplying machinery to the
Kimberley diamond mines in South Africa. For an 11 year period starting 1906 the company built and sold
traction engines with a bit under 90 being built.
Ruston-Paxman In 1940,
Ruston & Hornsby purchased a controlling interest in the company; this co-operation led to the formation of
Ruston-Paxman Group. During
World War II Paxman supplied diesel engines for various naval vessels such as e.g., the
British U-class submarine and the
British V-class submarine. In 1954, the engine controls business of Paxman was reformed as a subsidiary,
Ardleigh Engineering. In 1962, Paxman acquired the engine controls division of the
Curtiss-Wright Corporation and merged the two businesses under the
Regulateurs Europa name.
English Electric and GEC In 1966, the Ruston-Paxman Group was acquired by
English Electric. The diesel engine businesses were merged into
English Electric Diesel Engines Ltd (later English Electric Diesels Ltd). Paxman became the "Paxman Engine Division" of English Electric. In 1968, English Electric was itself acquired by
GEC. In 1972, GEC renamed the engines division GEC Diesels Limited. In 1975, a reorganisation saw the creation of
Paxman Diesels Limited as a subsidiary.
Alstom In 1988, GEC merged its Paxman,
Ruston and
Mirrlees Blackstone diesels businesses with the Alsthom division of
Compagnie Générale d'Electricité (CGE) to form
GEC-Alsthom. Paxman became
GEC ALSTOM Paxman Diesels Ltd. In December 1997, GEC Alstom had its initial public offering as Alstom. The diesel engine businesses became Alstom Engines Ltd (AEL).
MAN B&W Diesel In 2000, Alstom Engines Ltd. was acquired by
MAN B&W Diesel to become MAN B&W Diesel Ltd. In 2005, MAN sold the Regulateurs Europa controls business to
Heinzmann. In November 2020, MAN announced the
Colchester factory would close with the remaining Paxman products to be supported by
MAN Energy Solutions's
Hazel Grove facility, the former
Mirrlees Blackstone factory. ==Diesel engines==