Company profile
Motion Control Products
Motion Control Products Ltd is a Bournemouth-based motion systems supplier, incorporated in 1994 and owned by MCP Holdings (U.K) Limited. It is best known for its own slip ring and rotary joint ranges, alongside actuators, motors, gearboxes, pumps and controls.
| Legal name | MOTION CONTROL PRODUCTS LIMITED |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1994 |
| Founder | Stephen McKay |
| Owner / parent | MCP Holdings (U.K) Limited |
| Headquarters | Bournemouth, Dorset BH11 8NX, United Kingdom |
Buying Motion Control Products products in the UK
Headquarters
Bournemouth, Dorset BH11 8NXUnited Kingdom
UK enquiries
Motion Control Products products are available through our supply network. Our engineers handle UK enquiries for pricing, lead times, datasheets, CAD and help choosing the right model.
Contact our engineers →Motion Control Products product lines
| Slip rings | Capsule, through-bore, pancake, high-current, Ethernet, waterproof and explosion-proof slip rings |
|---|---|
| Rotary joints | Fibre optic, RF and pneumatic/hydraulic rotary joints, and hybrid slip ring assemblies |
| Linear actuators | Ballscrew, belt-drive, leadscrew and stainless in-line electric actuators |
| Harmonic actuators | MAH, MAT, MGM and MGU strain-wave actuator series |
| Motors | Stepper (NEMA 8 to NEMA 42), coreless DC, brushed DC, frameless torque, induction and drone motors |
| Gearboxes | Worm wheel, planetary, spiral bevel and harmonic gearboxes |
| Controls | PLCs, HMIs, remote I/O and an IoT remote-monitoring platform |
| Pumps | Wet-can BLDC micropumps and industrial wet-can pumps |
Who Motion Control Products is
Motion Control Products Ltd is a UK motion systems company based in Bournemouth, Dorset. It designs, sources and supplies components for OEM machines, and is best known in the UK for its own slip ring and rotary joint ranges. Around that core it offers electric linear and harmonic actuators, stepper and DC motors, frameless torque motors, gearboxes, pumps and PLC/HMI controls, plus configured and custom assemblies built to customer drawings.
The company describes itself as a one-stop supplier for OEMs, combining components with systems engineering. Its own pages state that it holds ISO 9001:2015 certification, with traceability, test procedures and documented build records, and that it is registered on JOSCAR, the supplier pre-qualification system used in the aerospace, defence and security supply chain.
History and ownership
Companies House records the business as MOTION CONTROL PRODUCTS LIMITED, company number 02910074, a private limited company incorporated on 18 March 1994. It traded first as C.E.T. Electronics Limited and changed to its current name on 30 January 1996. Its SIC code is 46900 (non-specialised wholesale trade) and its status is active.
The company’s about page says Stephen McKay founded the business in 1994 and remains Managing Director. The board listed on its website is made up largely of members of the founding family, alongside a finance director, and the company presents itself as family owned. Since 15 January 2018 the person with significant control has been MCP Holdings (U.K) Limited (company number 11029917), which holds 75% or more of the shares and voting rights. Before that date, the founder was the registered controlling individual.
On its about page, the company lists industry awards it reports winning: “Best Family Owned Motion Technology Company” (2021), “Automation Supplier Of The Year” (2022) and a CEO Global Award (2023).
Product portfolio
Slip rings and rotary joints
The slip ring range is the broadest part of the catalogue. It covers the AR/BR/CR capsule slip rings, the ER Series through-bore slip ring, PR/PSR pancake slip rings for low axial height, the BHR carbon-brush frameless type and the HR Faston type. Application-led variants include Ethernet, high-speed, waterproof, explosion-proof (ER-EX) and large-size designs.
For signals and media that cannot pass through brushes, there are the FR fibre optic rotary joint, the RR RF rotary joint and the QR pneumatic/hydraulic rotary joint, with hybrid units that combine electrical rings with fibre or fluid passages. Our slip ring hub explains how the types differ.
Actuators
Electric linear actuators include the LE semi-sealed and LEC fully sealed ballscrew units, LB belt-drive and LBC cleanroom modules, the G-Series leadscrew actuator and the LA in-line and stainless maritime LA families. Rotary joints for robots are served by four harmonic actuator series: MAH, MAT, MGM and MGU.
Motors, gearing and controls
The motor range runs from NEMA 8 to NEMA 42 hybrid steppers, D-Series coreless DC motors, ZYT brushed geared motors, the TI in-runner frameless torque motor, custom AC induction motors and the HDM-L and HDM-FC drone motors. Gearing includes the MCP2/MCP4 worm gearboxes. Controls cover the AK Series PLC, MK integrated HMI/PLC, RP20 remote I/O and the M-IoT monitoring platform. The catalogue also lists MP wet-can BLDC micropumps.
Engineering services
Beyond catalogue parts, the company says it runs its own manufacturing for higher volumes, clean assembly areas for configured builds, and stock holding against scheduled deliveries. It also offers electronic design for control hardware, from prototype to volume, using Altium for PCB layout with in-house embedded firmware, and covers hazardous-area constraints, miniaturisation, cooling and EMC as part of that work.
Quality systems and approvals
Two approvals are stated on the company’s own pages: ISO 9001:2015 for its quality management system and JOSCAR registration for defence and security supply chains. For an OEM buyer, the practical point is what those approvals cover. ISO 9001 relates to the supplier’s processes rather than to a specific product rating, so environmental figures such as IP rating, operating temperature or hazardous-area marking still need to be confirmed on the datasheet of the exact series and configuration being ordered. That matters most for the waterproof, explosion-proof and high/low temperature slip ring variants, where the rating usually depends on the build options chosen.
Industries served
Its website lists security and defence, transport and logistics, satellite and communications, energy, industrial machinery, medical equipment, entertainment, and food and packaging. The slip ring and rotary joint ranges map naturally onto several of these, for example radar and antenna pedestals, wind turbines and packaging machinery.
Global and UK presence
The UK head office and warehouse are in Bournemouth, Dorset. The company’s website also names Motion Control Products LLC in the USA and Motion Control Products (Asia) Ltd in Hong Kong, and it refers to partner facilities in the USA and Asia.
Series from its own ranges are available in the UK through our supply network. For pricing, lead times, datasheets, CAD models or help choosing between series for a new design, contact our engineers using the enquiry form on this page, or start with the spec builder.
Motion Control Products history: key dates
- 1994Incorporated on 18 March 1994 as C.E.T. Electronics Limited; founded by Stephen McKay
- 1996Company renamed Motion Control Products Limited on 30 January 1996
- 2018MCP Holdings (U.K) Limited registered as the person with significant control (15 January 2018)
- 2021Company reports winning 'Best Family Owned Motion Technology Company'
- 2022Company reports winning 'Automation Supplier Of The Year'
- 2023Company reports winning a CEO Global Award
Motion Control Products direct-drive and torque motors
Motion Control Products dc motors
D-Series DC Coreless Motors (Precision and Standard)
Brushed coreless DC motors with cog-free, low-inertia rotors in 13-40 mm frames (page quotes 4-50 mm), with optional encoders and gearheads.
ZYT PMDC Brushed Motors with MCP2/MCP4 Gearboxes
Permanent-magnet brushed DC motors 30-110 mm, 12-48 V, up to about 1.5 kW, pairable with worm gearboxes and parking brakes for traction and lifting.
Motion Control Products linear motors
Motion Control Products drone and uav motors
HDM-L
Brushless outrunner drone motors for small to medium UAVs, 4S-12S, from 28.8 to 108 mm OD and up to 3.8 kW.
HDM-FC
Flat-wire (hairpin) heavy-lift PMSM drone motor with ESC for large UAVs and eVTOLs, 12.5 kW peak and 76.5 kg thrust per rotor.
Motion Control Products other motors
Motion Control Products gearboxes
Motion Control Products harmonic actuators
MAH
Hollow-shaft harmonic servo actuator: strain-wave gearing, motor, encoder and brake in one unit, run from a separate servo drive. Six frame sizes, from 48 VDC to 220 VAC.
MAT
Large-bore version of the harmonic actuator with a frameless 16-pole motor, giving a much bigger through-hole for cabling. Two sizes.
MGM
Harmonic actuator with an integrated German-made Synapticon Circulo servo drive on EtherCAT, with STO and optional FSoE functional safety.
MGU
Compact robot-joint harmonic actuator with built-in EtherCAT/CANopen drive, dual 20-bit encoders and optional torque sensor, from 0.35 kg; aimed at humanoids and cobots.
Motion Control Products linear actuators
LE Ballscrew Linear Actuator (semi-sealed)
Ballscrew-driven linear module with built-in guide rail, supplied with or without an AC servo motor, for industrial positioning and multi-axis XY/XYZ systems.
LEC Ballscrew Linear Actuator (fully sealed)
Fully enclosed, dust-resistant version of the LE ballscrew module for cleanroom and contamination-sensitive work.
LB Belt-Drive Linear Actuator
Steel-belt driven linear module with integral guide rail, intended as a long-stroke, high-speed replacement for pneumatic cylinders.
LBC Belt-Drive Linear Actuator (cleanroom)
Fully sealed version of the LB belt module with added dust protection for cleanroom use.
SRB Linear Servo Actuator
Ball-screw servo electric cylinder in seven frame sizes from 32 to 150, with inline or reverse-parallel motor mounting and optional force sensing, aimed at hydraulic and pneumatic replacement.
BLM Built-in Linear Module
Compact C7 ballscrew linear module with built-in guide, matched to 100-400 W servo motors from the main Japanese and Taiwanese brands.
G-Series Leadscrew Linear Actuator
12/24 VDC acme leadscrew push/pull actuator with internal gearbox and built-in limit switches, for light-industrial, mobility and furniture automation.
GT44 Linear Actuator
Worm-gear acme screw DC actuator rated 6,000 N push with aluminium housing and stainless rod, for lifting beds, wheelchairs and automation.
GD Geared Linear Actuator
Compact 12/24 VDC acme screw actuator with powder-metal gearing in five ratios trading force (300-2,000 N) against speed.
LA In-line Linear Actuators
Slim tubular 12/24 VDC actuators with the brushed motor and planetary gearbox in line with the tube, in diameters 16-55 mm, for pergolas, marine, medical and building automation.
LA55Z High Speed Compact Linear Actuator
Fast, light-load brushed-motor in-line actuator (250 N at 150 mm/s) with built-in limit switches and IP66/67 sealing for space-limited OEM machines.
LA Stainless Steel In-line Actuator (Maritime, LA35M X2)
316 stainless, IP67M in-line actuator variant for opening hatches, doors and windows on yachts and vessels by remote control.
Motion Control Products servo motors
Motion Control Products slip rings
AR/BR/CR Series Capsule Slip Rings
Compact capsule slip rings that carry mixed power and signal in a small footprint, with gold-to-gold contacts for low noise and low torque. AR is the larger body, BR mid-size and CR the miniature range.
ER Series Through Bore Slip Ring
Through-bore slip rings with a hollow centre so shafts, pipes or cables can pass through, carrying power, signal and fieldbus data. Standard bores run from 12.7 mm to 100 mm and custom bores are offered.
BHR Series Frameless Type (Carbon Brush)
Heavy-duty carbon-brush slip rings for very high current and voltage, with copper-graphite power rings and precious-metal signal rings. Large and heavy by design, but straightforward to maintain.
PR/PSR Series Pancake Slip Ring
Flat, disc-style slip rings for machines with little axial height but room radially, available with or without a through hole. They pass power alongside signals such as USB, Ethernet, audio and video.
HR Series Faston Type Slip Ring
A small analogue power-and-signal slip ring with FASTON quick-connect terminals for fast wiring in dusty, high-cycle machinery. Optional IP65 sealing.
QR Series Pneumatic/Hydraulic Rotary Joint
A rotary union that passes air, gases or fluids through rotating interfaces, optionally combined with electrical circuits in one unit. Size, ports and channel count are customised to the machine.
FR Series Fiber Optic Rotary Joint
Fibre optic rotary joints that carry single-mode or multi-mode optical channels across rotation for high-bandwidth, interference-free data. Channel counts run from one to fifty.
RR Series Radio Frequency Rotary Joint
RF rotary joints that carry microwave signals across rotation for antennas and radar, with one to five channels. Single-channel models run to 50 GHz.
Ethernet Slip Ring
Slip rings with dedicated 100M or Gigabit Ethernet channels alongside power and signal circuits, offered in solid-shaft and through-bore forms.
USB Slip Ring
Slip rings that keep USB and IEEE1394 links working through continuous 360-degree rotation, combined with power circuits.
High Definition (HD) Slip Ring
Gold-contact slip rings for uncompressed HD video (HDMI, SDI) mixed with USB, Ethernet, RF and RS422, rated for 1080P at 60Hz and beyond.
Waterproof Slip Ring
Sealed slip rings rated IP64 to IP68 for wet, washdown and marine settings such as ships and harbour equipment.
Explosion-proof Slip Ring (ER-EX)
Flameproof (Ex d IIB T4 Gb) slip rings for gas hazardous areas, Zones 1 and 2, in oil, gas and chemical plant.
High Speed Slip Ring
Slip rings built for 800 to 15,000 rpm, mainly used on test rigs and non-destructive testing equipment.
Large Size Slip Ring
Large through-hole slip rings for heavy outdoor plant, with through holes quoted up to 1000 mm and long service life.
Multi-channel Slip Ring
High-circuit-count slip rings that carry hundreds of mixed power, digital, analogue, fibre and RF channels in one unit.
High & Low Temperature Slip Ring
Slip rings using heat-resistant materials for extreme temperatures from -55°C to +250°C, such as hot rollers and heating plant.
Fiber Optic Integrated Electrical Slip Ring
Hybrid units combining fibre optic channels with power and signal circuits, used on electro-optical pod systems.
Pneumatic/Hydraulic Integrated Electrical Slip Ring
Combined units passing hundreds of electrical circuits plus up to 16 gas or liquid channels, with pressures of 10 MPa or more.
RF Integrated Electrical Slip Ring / Cable Reel Slip Ring
Electrical slip rings with up to five built-in RF channels for radar and satellite antennas, grouped in the catalogue with cable-reel slip rings for cranes and masts.
Motion Control Products pumps
MP Series Wet Can BLDC Micropumps
Small sealless brushless DC pumps where the pumped liquid cools and lubricates the rotor, rated for 20,000 hours of continuous duty. Forty-four standard models from 6 to 24 VDC, with seven motor sizes.
WP Series Industrial Wet Can Pumps
Industrial sealless BLDC coolant pumps for thermal management, from 80 W units up to a 4 kW, 600 L/min model, on supplies from 12 V to high-voltage DC buses. Built for 20,000-hour continuous duty with IP67/IP68 protection.
Motion Control Products iot and remote i/o
M-IoT (IoT-Cloud) Remote Monitoring Platform
A cloud platform and app for monitoring, updating and recording machine data remotely, including remote control of Kinco HMIs, PLCs and servo systems via DToolsPro.
RP20 Remote IO
A remote IO coupler for distributed machine IO, with 100 Mbps multi-protocol communication and expansion to 16 modules.
AK Series PLC
A CODESYS-programmable PLC to IEC 61131-3 with EtherCAT motion control for up to 32 axes, used as the controller in IoT-connected machine solutions.
MK Series Integrated HMI/PLC
An all-in-one HMI and PLC with a high-speed CPU, DTools software, Ethernet and USB, and support for expansion modules.
Motion Control Products stepper motors
NEMA 8 High Torque (M20STH)
Miniature 20 mm 2-phase hybrid stepper in five lengths, for compact automation, medical and precision devices where space is tight.
NEMA 11 High Torque (M28STH)
28 mm 2-phase hybrid stepper offered in 28-51 mm body lengths, aimed at small automation and robotics axes where size and cost matter.
NEMA 14 Standard (M35ST)
35 mm 2-phase hybrid stepper with six windings across 34-45 mm lengths; 0.9 degree version on request.
NEMA 16 (M39ST / M39ST..J)
39 mm hybrid stepper in 1.8 degree and 0.9 degree (J suffix) versions, 20-44 mm long, for lab instruments, pumps, printing and vending.
NEMA 17 High Torque (M42STH)
42 mm 2-phase hybrid stepper with 18 standard windings from 29-60 mm long, the general-purpose size for CNC, 3D printing and robotics.
NEMA 23 High Torque (M57STH / M60STH)
57/60 mm 2-phase hybrid stepper, 1-4 Nm, mostly 8-lead for series or parallel wiring, for CNC and automation axes.
NEMA 34 High Torque (M86STH)
86 mm 2-phase hybrid stepper with 22 windings from 2.2 to ~12 Nm, for CNC and heavier industrial axes.
NEMA 42 High Torque (M110STH)
110 mm 2-phase hybrid stepper, 11-33 Nm, for high-torque industrial and CNC axes; pairs with high-voltage AC stepper drives.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Motion Control Products website?
The official website of Motion Control Products Ltd is motioncontrolproducts.com. It carries the company's product ranges (slip rings, actuators, motors, gearboxes, drives, encoders and controls) and its about-us pages. For pricing, lead times, datasheets or help choosing a series for a UK project, contact Specify Motion's engineers through the enquiry form on this page.
How do I get pricing or datasheets for Motion Control Products ranges in the UK?
Series from the company's own ranges are available in the UK through our supply network. Contact Specify Motion's engineers using the enquiry form on this page, or set out the requirement in the spec builder at /spec-builder/, for pricing, lead times, datasheets, CAD models and help selecting the right slip ring, rotary joint, actuator or motor.
Where is Motion Control Products' headquarters?
Motion Control Products Ltd is headquartered in Bournemouth, Dorset, United Kingdom, and Companies House records its registered office in Bournemouth too. The company also lists a stocking warehouse in the town, and its website names Motion Control Products LLC in the USA and Motion Control Products (Asia) Ltd in Hong Kong.
Who owns Motion Control Products?
Companies House lists MCP Holdings (U.K) Limited (company number 11029917) as the person with significant control, holding 75% or more of the shares and voting rights since January 2018. The company was founded by Stephen McKay, who is named as Managing Director, and describes itself as family owned.
When was Motion Control Products founded?
The company was incorporated on 18 March 1994 under the name C.E.T. Electronics Limited and took the name Motion Control Products Limited in January 1996. Companies House lists it as an active private limited company, company number 02910074, with SIC code 46900 (non-specialised wholesale trade).
What does Motion Control Products make?
It supplies its own ranges of slip rings and rotary joints, electric linear and harmonic actuators, stepper, DC, frameless and drone motors, gearboxes, pumps and PLC/HMI controls, alongside configured and custom assemblies. It also offers electronic design services from prototype to volume production.
Sources
- Motion Control Products: Contact
- Motion Control Products: About us
- Motion Control Products: About us (company overview and board)
- Companies House: MOTION CONTROL PRODUCTS LIMITED (02910074) overview
- Companies House: MOTION CONTROL PRODUCTS LIMITED persons with significant control
- Motion Control Products: Our products
Figures are summarised from the sources above and from manufacturers' published data on the date shown. Always confirm against the current datasheet for your exact part.
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