Renishaw recorded first-quarter revenue of £251.8 million, an increase of 47% from a year earlier, as demand for position measurement equipment used in semiconductor production continued to strengthen. The Gloucestershire engineering group reported growth in all three operating segments and across its three sales regions during the three months ended 30 September 2026.
The unaudited figures cover the opening quarter of Renishaw's 2027 financial year. Revenue rose from £170.8 million in the comparable quarter and was 3% higher than the £244.2 million generated in the final quarter of FY2026. The company noted that the year-earlier comparison was weak, making the sequential improvement and the breadth of demand important qualifications to the headline growth rate.
Position Measurement provided the largest increase, with revenue rising 84% to £96 million. At constant exchange rates, growth was 85%. The business also exceeded its previous quarter's revenue by 17%, and Renishaw reported a further expansion in orders for open optical encoders and laser encoders supplied to semiconductor equipment manufacturers.
These devices provide highly accurate information about the position or movement of mechanical assemblies. In semiconductor production machinery, position feedback enables a controller to compare commanded movement with actual displacement, helping equipment place tools and substrates in repeatable positions. The required precision depends on the process and machine design, but measurement errors can affect alignment, repeatability and ultimately the conditions under which a product is made.
Renishaw is adding production capacity for the relevant encoder product lines. It has not specified the number of new machines, the associated expenditure or the additional units that will become available. Increasing output must encompass component supply, assembly, calibration and verification, because the manufacturing process has to maintain measuring performance while production volumes rise.
Demand is also growing for encoders designed to operate in demanding environments, including robotics, automation and space applications. Such equipment may experience variations in temperature, contamination, vibration or installation conditions that influence measurement performance. Renishaw did not provide separate revenue figures for those emerging applications, so they cannot be treated as equivalent contributors to the semiconductor-led increase.
Industrial Metrology, the largest segment by sales, generated £130.8 million, compared with £102 million a year earlier. That represented growth of 28% at actual exchange rates and 29% at constant exchange rates. Revenue was 9% higher than in the preceding quarter, supported by orders for five-axis coordinate measuring machines and shop floor gauging systems.
Coordinate measuring machines determine the geometry of manufactured components using measurements taken at defined positions. Five-axis configurations can orient the measuring head to reach complex features without repeatedly moving the workpiece. This can assist dimensional inspection of components with difficult-to-access surfaces, although the achievable accuracy and cycle time depend on the equipment, probing strategy and operating conditions.
Shop floor gauging brings measurement closer to production equipment, allowing manufacturers to check components during or between machining operations. Renishaw also reported stronger demand for metrology sensors supplied to machine tool and measuring machine builders, particularly from aerospace and defence, energy and consumer electronics customers. The company described those sales as improving after a relatively flat FY2026.
Specialised Technologies recorded revenue of £25 million, up 50% year on year at constant exchange rates. Additive manufacturing was the principal growth driver, with demand from aerospace, defence and medical customers. The division nevertheless recorded lower revenue than the unusually strong £42.7 million achieved in the preceding quarter, although its order book strengthened.
Metal additive manufacturing builds components from successive layers of material, allowing particular geometries that may be difficult to manufacture conventionally. Industrial adoption requires control of process parameters, material properties, dimensional conformity and post-processing. Renishaw's reported growth demonstrates equipment demand; it does not disclose customers' production yields or independently measured savings from those systems.
Spectroscopy revenue was marginally lower than in the comparable period, despite an improved order book, and the proposed divestment of the neurological business remains under way. These details distinguish the segment's additive manufacturing growth from a uniform increase across all of its activities.
Renishaw's latest figures follow its September report of a stronger FY2026 and the completion of the first phase of expansion at its Miskin manufacturing site earlier in October. Those were separate developments, while the new trading statement establishes performance for the subsequent financial quarter. The group identifies its largest manufacturing operations as being in the UK, Ireland and India.
Management expects continued progress in revenue and operating margin for FY2027, but cautioned that demand remains cyclical. Its immediate operating challenge is to expand production and its supply chain in line with growing orders without assuming that current semiconductor investment will continue at the same rate indefinitely. The next reporting periods will show whether wider industrial automation demand can sustain the growth alongside semiconductor equipment orders.
