Isembard Secures $9M to Reshore Precision Manufacturing

At Zyla Accountants, we’re incredibly proud to congratulate our client, Isembard, on their recent $9 million raise to support the reshoring of advanced manufacturing across Western economies.

As advocates of British innovation and industry, it’s a pleasure to see Isembard’s vision gaining momentum — and we’re thrilled to be supporting them on this journey.

The funding round, led by Notion Capital and joined by a range of forward-thinking investors including 201 Ventures, Basis Capital, and Material Ventures, marks a major step forward in Isembard’s mission to rebuild critical manufacturing infrastructure in the West.

Isembard’s CEO, Alexander Fitzgerald, explained the company’s ambition: to develop a distributed network of precision manufacturing sites powered by proprietary software, MasonOS. The company has already opened its first facility in London, where it can fulfill high-spec machining orders, with more locations to come.

“Let’s say you are making an uncrewed aerial system, like a drone,” said Fitzgerald. “You’ll send us a design for some key parts for that in a 3D file. We’ll give you a quote for how fast we can do that, and the price. And then we machine that part out of whatever material is required, and we ship it to you. And sometimes maybe we’ll do the actual final assembly.”

The Isembard team at work

Rather than building massive factories, Isembard’s strategy is to deploy smaller, tech-driven production units that can quickly respond to demand — all coordinated through their proprietary MasonOS system. This software doesn’t just handle quotes and timelines; it also automates machine programming, resource allocation, and supply chain management. It’s a modern alternative to the outdated systems still widely used across legacy manufacturers.

Fitzgerald’s perspective on the state of British supply chains is frank: many are fragmented, underfunded, and operating with outdated equipment or knowledge gaps left by a retiring workforce. Isembard’s solution aims to leapfrog these challenges by embedding cutting-edge technology and efficiency from day one.

The company’s current focus is on aerospace, defense, and energy — sectors where reliability, speed, and precision are non-negotiable. Although he declined to name customers, Fitzgerald noted that most early interest is coming from defense firms and ambitious startups, with ongoing conversations at higher levels, including with prime contractors and government stakeholders.

“We take the view that it takes too long, too much capex, and too much concentration of talent in one single place to build these large, 100,000-square-foot factories,” Fitzgerald added. “What we’re actually doing is a distributed factory model where we have lots of much smaller units, but all with the same operating model technology and automation.”

It’s a lean, modern approach that echoes the spirit of the company’s namesake. While the spelling may be slightly different, Isembard draws inspiration from the legendary engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel — and even more directly from his father, whose legacy of solving real problems in wartime Britain still resonates.

“When Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s father saw British soldiers returning from the Peninsula War with injured feet due to shoddy footwear suppliers,” Isembard’s manifesto recounts, “he founded a shoe factory.”

It’s that same practical, solutions-first mindset that powers Isembard’s approach today. Though small in team size — just 12 employees — the company’s ambition is global, with eyes on future expansions across North America, Australia, and New Zealand.

As their accounting and advisory partner, we at Zyla are excited to be a part of Isembard’s growth story.

With this new capital, Isembard is set to reshape the future of manufacturing in the West — and we’ll be cheering them on every step of the way.

Congratulations again to Alex and the entire Isembard team!

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