A SPECIALIST hydro dipping company in York has been acquired for an undisclosed sum.

Yorkshire-based Land Rover Defender specialists, Twisted Group has bought Hydrographics and plans to expand the services of the coatings company and its highly skilled team.

The group, which was established by Charles Fawcett and comprises Twisted Automotive, Twisted North America and LR Motors, also aims to quadruple the business’s turnover.

Twisted is looking to invest further in new equipment at the York-based premises over the next six months, with the aim of boosting turnover to £1m across the next three years.

Hydrographics was established in 1998 by Jon Sykes, a product of more than 20 years’ experience in the print and repro industry together with a keen interest in both painting motorcycles and customising rifles.

It is one of the oldest dipping specialists in the UK. In addition to coating prosthetic limbs which are exported to Austria, the business specialises in producing custom finishes for automotive parts, light aircraft and scooters, as well as to guns and rifles.

It has worked with Twisted Automotive for many years, and Charles Fawcett wanted to secure a long-term future for the team.

He said: “Hydrographics has been a long-time supplier of Twisted, providing quality, intricate, highly-specialised elements for the clock hands on our Defender dashboards.

“They’re an absolutely brilliant team with an unbelievable skill set.

"The detail involved in the work is very special, with some even carried out under the microscopes to ensure perfection.”

He plans to keep the current management team at the heart of Hydrographics, with the addition of a manager with an accountancy background to oversee the day-to-day running of the business.

Twisted Group employs 40 people, most of whom are based at company headquarters in Thirsk, North Yorkshire, and has an annual turnover of around £10m.

It has customers in the USA, Malaysia, Indonesia, the United Arab Emirates, Canada, Switzerland and New Zealand. The group also has plans to continue its domestic and international growth in 2020 through further acquisitions.

Twisted Automotive was established in 2001 by Charles whose love affair with the Defender started as a child when his father had been involved in the sale and repair of Land Rovers since the 1970s and ran a 4×4 off-road driving centre.