New defence engineering factory opens in Swindon
A former army officer who also led Amazon’s operations in Swindon has opened a precision engineering factory in the town.
Jonathon Griffiths set up the factory on Paddington Drive as a franchisee of the national manufacturing firm Isembard. Currently looking to recruit three new machinists and programmers – the factory makes precision parts for aerospace, defence, and robotics companies and is already shipping orders.
Isembard and Jonathon found the 5,050 sq ft site with the help of Swindon North MP Will Stone, who chairs the Cross-Party Group to Strengthen the UK Defence Supply Chain.
After visiting Isembard’s HQ in London earlier this year, Stone supported the company’s search for a site in Swindon and introduced Griffiths to the estate agent marketing the property.
This is the latest factory in a growing network run by Isembard, a London-based manufacturer founded in 2024.
While Jonathon owns and runs the factory as a franchise, Isembard supplies the orders, software, training, and quality accreditation. Its computer-controlled cutting machines can make parts accurate to within a tenth of the thickness of a sheet of paper, with production managed through Isembard’s own software.
Jonathon trained at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and was commissioned in 2015 into the Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME).
After leaving the army in 2018, he spent more than seven years at Amazon, where he launched and ran delivery operations in London and across the south of England. In 2024, he moved to Swindon as a senior manager, working within one of Amazon’s largest operations in Europe.
Isembard chose Swindon for its long manufacturing history and its rapid emergence as a centre for defence technology.
The town is now also home to a growing cluster of drone manufacturers and the Uncrewed Systems Centre, a Ministry of Defence testing facility, with a new defence excellence college in development to train the next generation of workers.
Jonathon said, “In the Army, my job was to make sure that when soldiers needed their vehicles and equipment, it worked. An army is only as good as the kit behind it, and that kit has to come from somewhere. I’ve spent the last few years working alongside people in this town, and with Isembard’s technology behind us, a small team here can make parts for the companies building the drones and systems that will keep this country safe. I want this to be a factory where people in Swindon can learn a trade and stay for the long term.”
Alexander Fitzgerald, Founder and CEO of Isembard, said, “With generations of engineering skill and a growing defence and drone industry on its doorstep, Swindon was the obvious choice for our next factory. Jonathon has spent his career making sure critical equipment is ready for the people who depend on it, and he already knows the local workforce from leading teams here at Amazon. That’s exactly who we want running our factories. Our franchise model opens factory ownership to a new generation of operators, and we want to find more of them in every town and city.”
Heidi Alexander MP, Member of Parliament for Swindon South and Secretary of State for Transport, added, “Swindon has always been a town that makes things, from Great Western Railway locomotives to Spitfires and cars. When Honda left in 2021, people worried those skills would leave with it. This factory shows they are still here and still in demand. It means skilled local jobs, a locally owned business, and one more reason for defence and drone companies to grow in Swindon.”
Pictured: The factory’s computer-controlled cutting machines can make parts accurate to within a tenth of the thickness of a sheet of paper
