Back in 1912, this group made the rivets used in battleships and Ford’s Model T cars. Today, the Sheffield business makes fasteners for applications such as wind turbines, skyscrapers and railways. In 2017, chief executive Tony Brown, 54, led a buyout backed by American private equity firm Watermill Group, which acquired a majority stake. Last year, international sales reached £59.7m and the company bought French firm Beck Industries, creating a group with 17 sites spanning four continents.