Overview
Smiths Group plc is a British engineering company focused on mission-critical products for energy, construction, aerospace and industrial customers. Its businesses are John Crane, which supplies sealing and flow-control technologies for energy and process industries, and Flex-Tek, which supplies heating elements, ducting and tubing for construction, aerospace and industrial uses. Smiths describes its purpose as “engineering a better future” by helping customers improve efficiency and address challenges such as decarbonisation.[1][2][3][4][5]
Smiths has an international footprint: John Crane alone operates in more than 50 countries. The two retained businesses generated £915 million in revenue in the six months ended 31 January 2026. As an indication of scale, they employed about 10,100 people combined at the end of the 2025 financial year, before subsequent portfolio changes; that figure should not be read as a current workforce count.[6][7][8] [1][4][5][7][8][2][3][6]
Products & services
Smiths Group’s current products are supplied through John Crane and Flex-Tek. John Crane makes mechanical and dry-gas seals, seal-support systems, filtration equipment and power-transmission couplings for rotating equipment. Its Type 93AX coaxial separation seal is designed to reduce nitrogen consumption by up to 80% compared with conventional radial separation seals. John Crane also provides seal repair, asset-condition monitoring and reliability-management services.[9][10][11][12]
Flex-Tek makes components for moving gases and liquids and managing heat. Its products include HVAC ducting and heating elements, flexible stainless-steel gas piping, aerospace tubing and hose assemblies, and industrial heaters. Examples include Gastite FlashShield+ corrugated stainless-steel gas tubing and TUTCO Hi-Temp cartridge heaters, which are specified for continuous operation up to 1,200°F (649°C). John Crane and Flex-Tek represented approximately 60% and 40%, respectively, of revenue from Smiths’ continuing operations in the six months ended January 2026; this is a business-level split, not a breakdown by product.[3][13][14][15] [11][9][10][12][3][13][14][15]
Geographic presence
Smiths Group is headquartered in London and has an international operating footprint. It reports more than 16,000 employees in over 50 countries, while its products and services reach around 200 countries. It does not publish an employee breakdown by country or region.[16][17]
In the financial year ended July 2025, revenue from continuing operations by customer destination was £1,616 million in the Americas (55% of the total), £529 million in Europe (18%), £435 million in Asia Pacific (15%) and £335 million in the rest of the world (11%). The company does not provide separate US or UK revenue figures in this breakdown.[18]
Its operating locations span several regions. Smiths Detection identifies manufacturing sites in France, Germany, Malaysia, the UK and the US. Flex-Tek describes operations principally in the US and Mexico, alongside operations in India and China and facilities in France, Germany, Sweden and the UK. John Crane reports more than 200 manufacturing, sales and service facilities across more than 50 countries.[19][20][6] [21][21][21][21][21][22][16][17][18][19][20][6]
Business segments
Smiths Group’s continuing businesses are John Crane and Flex-Tek. John Crane supplies mechanical seals, couplings, filtration and related services for energy and process industries. Flex-Tek makes engineered products that convey or heat fluids and gases, serving construction, industrial and aerospace markets. Based on their combined FY2025 revenue, John Crane contributed approximately 57% and Flex-Tek 43%; these are calculated shares of the two continuing businesses, not separately reported percentages.[2][3][23]
The FY2025 four-division breakdown also included Smiths Detection, which supplied security-screening and threat-detection systems, and Smiths Interconnect, which supplied high-reliability electronic connectivity products. As shares of FY2025 group revenue, John Crane accounted for approximately 33%, Smiths Detection 29%, Flex-Tek 25% and Smiths Interconnect 13%. Interconnect and Detection were subsequently sold in 2026, so those four-division shares describe the former portfolio rather than the continuing segment mix.[23][24][25] [26][27][28][29][30][2][3][23][24][25]
Company history
Smiths Group traces its origins to 1851, when Samuel Smith opened a watchmaking and jewellery shop in south London. The business later expanded into motor-vehicle instruments and aircraft equipment, and floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1914.[31][32][33]
A major change came in 2000, when Smiths Industries merged with TI Group to form Smiths Group. The company sold its aerospace businesses to GE in 2007, acquired security-screening company Morpho Detection in 2017, and completed the sale of Smiths Medical to ICU Medical in 2022.[34][35][36][37] [31][32][33][34][35][36][37]
Sources
- SMITHS GROUP PLC — Presentation (2026 H 1)[1]
- www.smiths.com[2]
- www.smiths.com[3]
- SMITHS GROUP PLC — Full financial report (2025 Y)
- www.johncrane.com[6]
- SMITHS GROUP PLC — Press release (2026 H 1)[7]
- www.smiths.com[9]
- www.johncrane.com[10]
- www.johncrane.com[12]
- www.gastite.com[13]
- tutco.com[14]
- www.smiths.com[15]
- www.smiths.com[16]
- www.smiths.com[17]
- www.smiths.com[18]
- www.smithsdetection.com[19]
- flextekgroup.com[20]
- www.smiths.com[23]
- www.smiths.com[24]
- www.smiths.com[25]
- SMITHS GROUP PLC — Presentation (2025 Y)[26]
- SMITHS GROUP PLC — Press release (2025 Y)
- www.smiths.com[31]
- www.smiths.com[32]
- collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk[33]
- www.smiths.com[34]
- www.smiths.com[35]
- www.smiths.com[36]
- www.smiths.com[37]
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