Water jetting pioneer Bill Crompton dies aged 90

Bill Crompton, described as one of the pioneers of the water jetting industry in the UK, has died at the age of 90.

Bill founded Waterblast Ltd in 1973 and co-founded Neolith Pumps London Ltd in 1986 with his son, Bruce, and Allan Earnshaw. He went on to work as a consultant with Lanes for Drains, which later become Lanes Group plc.

Bill also played a key role in the foundation of the Association of High-Pressure Water Jetting Contractors, which later became the Water Jetting Association (WJA).

WJA Director David Kennedy, who worked with Bill at Neolith Pumps London Ltd, said: “It was very sad to hear the news of Bill’s death. He was a pioneer in the early days of water jetting, an astute businessman and a loyal friend.

 “Bill was highly competitive but always had the best interests of the water jetting industry at heart. He became a great supporter of the WJA because he always set high standards in his work and recognised the need to promote those standards across the industry.”

Mike Donaldson, former Head of SLD Pressure Jetting Ltd, part of Hanson Trust, who first called a meeting to set up a water jetting contractor’s association, said: “Bill was the first person I contacted. Put it this way, if you were in the trenches, Bill was the person you wanted alongside you.”

Wayne Earnshaw, Managing Director of Lanes Group, and son of Allan Earnshaw, Bill’s long-term business partner, said: “Bill was a fantastic person and one of the most diligent businesspeople I have known.

“He led from the front. If he asked his people to do something, it was because he’d done it already himself. His expertise was essential in the building of our rail business. He will be sadly missed.”

As owner of Waterblast Ltd, Bill’s technical expertise helped develop and refine new applications for water jetting across many sectors, including power generation, petrochemicals and water utilities.

Under his close supervision, Waterblast teams worked across the UK, on the Continent, in the Middle East, and in South Africa.

Bill and Bruce collaborated with Allan Earnshaw, owner of Neolith Ltd, to found Neolith Pumps London Ltd which hired and sold high-pressure water jetting equipment to companies across the world.

He played an important part in developing an innovative water jetting and air lift system used to remove clay from the piles sunk for One Canada Square, at Canary Wharf, still the second tallest building in the UK.

In 1998, they both joined Lanes for Drains, which had been bought by Allan Earnshaw and was expanding rapidly into a national drainage business.

Bruce became director of the company’s Rail Division, with Bill working as a consultant. Together, they laid the foundations for what has grown into one of the cornerstones of the Lanes business.