Alex Moulton

Alexander Eric Moulton (9 April 1920 – 9 December 2012) was an English engineer and inventor, specialising in suspension design.

Early life and education Moulton's father, John Coney Moulton, was a naturalist working in the Far East. Alex Moulton was the great-grandson of the rubber pioneer Stephen Moulton, the founder of the family business called George Spencer, Moulton & Co. Ltd, based at Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire.

Moulton was educated at Marlborough College and the University of Cambridge

Career During World War II he worked on engine design at the Bristol Aeroplane Company. Moulton established Moulton Developments Limited to design the suspension system for British Motor Corporation's new small car, the Mini, that was being designed by Issigonis. The combination of conical rubber springs and small wheels was one of the many innovative developments that allowed Issigonis to achieve the Mini's small overall size. This was later refined into the hydrolastic and hydragas suspension systems used on later British Leyland cars such as the Austin Maxi, Austin Allegro, Princess and Rover Metro, and later on Rover Group's MG F sports car.

Awards and honours Moulton was appointed Commander of the British Empire (CBE) in the 1976 New Year Honours for services to industry. Other honours include: The Diploma di Medaglia d'Oro, Milan in 1964 Queen's Award for Technical Innovation 1967 Awarded Honorary degrees from the Royal College of Art (1967), University of Bath (1971), Cranfield University (1994) and Loughborough University (2006) Elected to the faculty of Royal Designers for Industry (1968), serving as master of the faculty from 1981 to 1983 Elected a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering (FREng) in 1980 Personal life Moulton lived at The Hall, Bradford-on-Avon a 17th-century mansion. He was a member of Brooks's gentlemen's club in London. In 2020 the trust was reorganised as a charitable incorporated organisation, the Alex Moulton Charitable Trust, which continues to preserve and maintain the Hall and its collections, and promote engineering and design. which has a small modern factory just east of the Hall.