2 min read - 9 Jul, 2026
Sheffield Forgemasters marks new machine shop milestone
Sheffield Forgemasters has celebrated an important milestone in the development of its new machine shop, marking the occasion with a topping out ceremony as the final steel roof beam was installed.
To commemorate the achievement, the company’s machine shop teams and development contractors, McLaughlin & Harvey, came together at the site of the new 30,000 m² machine shop, where the framework is almost complete.
Attendees were invited to sign their names on the final roof beam before Sheffield Forgemasters’ longest serving machinist, Paul Haxton, with almost 50 years of service, and first year apprentice, Joe Garrett, were invited to tighten the golden bolt that will hold the last steel beam in place.
Fast becoming an iconic landmark for the city, the new machine shop is due to be operational by the end of 2028.
The final steel roof beam has been installed at Sheffield Forgemasters’ new machine shop / Picture: Sheffield Forgemasters
Gareth Barker, chief operating officer at Sheffield Forgemasters, said: “This event marks a significant milestone in the development of our new machine shop, and it is fantastic that so many people were able to join us to mark the occasion. Our new facility enables us to bring together our years of expertise and investment in state-of-the-art machines to deliver incredible accuracies and dramatically improve our ability to innovate, making Sheffield Forgemasters more competitive on the world stage.
“Attending the topping out ceremony were a number of our long-serving employees, some with almost fifty-years of service with the company, alongside our first-year apprentices, who’ll transfer this inherited skill and knowledge into future engineering practices. For many of our machinists, this was the first time they had visited the new site and what will eventually be their new workplace.”
The company’s new machine shop is being built alongside a new 13,000 tonne forging line, both of which underpin a £1.3bn recapitalisation programme being driven by its MOD owners.
Gareth added: “It’s less than two years until the site is due to become operational and will provide a working environment that is cleaner, faster and better in every way. This really is an exciting time for Sheffield Forgemasters.”
The machine shop project team consists of Arup, which handled the ecological and travel assessments, Bond Bryan Architects, and JLL, which acted on behalf of Sheffield Forgemasters for the site acquisition and planning submissions, and delivery support partner, Turner & Townsend.
