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Welcome to Latch & Batchelor Ltd


Specialist manufacturers, stockists, and global distributors of high quality steel wire ropes and fittings.

Our company was founded in 1888 to develop T.C. Batchelor's inventions of the Locked Coil and Flattened Strand mine winding ropes, and to expand the sales of our associated specialised wire company, Webster and Horsfall Ltd, founded in 1720. Together the companies occupy a 16 acre site in Birmingham.

The early problems associated with these complicated ropes and the precise wire dimensions required have resulted in an unusually wide range of experience and manufacturing capacity, from 1.5mm to 75mm diameter, in galvanized, stainless or bright finish - depending on rope size.

Although the bulk of our production is still for mining shaft ropes - 60% exported - the steady decline in deep mines world-wide over the years has focused our attention on other rope applications. Over the last 15 years we have become the sole UK and Irish agents for several leading specialised crane rope manufacturers and developed an enviable reputation in this market.

Utilising our large diameter machines we entered the structural and mast stay spiral strand business, and now rope the tallest mast in the UK and have a thriving export market for these ropes.

Additionally, for commercial competitiveness, we stock a variety of other specialist manufacturer's general purpose ropes and have the most comprehensive stock of both wire and wire rope under one roof in the country.

Our rope service department includes a 30 tonne installation winch, a variety of reelers, a 100 metre (70 tonne capacity) pre-stretching range, a fully equipped splicing department and an inspection laboratory.

We take pride in our knowledge and experience of wire ropes and their correct applications and in addition to our ISO 9002 certification, are approved suppliers to the MOD, BNFL, Rolls Royce, and UK Coal.

Our latest development has been the establishment of Atlantic Ropes in Falmouth. Atlantic Ropes is a stockist of all kinds of ropes (fibre and wire), Rigging (architectural and boat), Mooring (buoys, chain and shackles) and Lifting Gear. We also have a fully qualified in-house testing team.





Latch & Batchelor Ltd, Hay Mills, Birmingham, England, B25 8DW. T. 0121 772 9799. F. 0121 766 7692.