David Roberts McMurtry was born in 1940 in Clontarf, Ireland. He was brought up in Dublin and educated at Mountjoy School in Dublin.

McMurtry joined Bristol Aero Engines as an apprentice in 1958. In 1966, following an acquisition, he found himself employed by Rolls-Royce plc where he became Deputy Chief Designer and Assistant Chief of Engine Design at Filton. In 1973, while working on Concorde’s engines, he designed his first trigger probe.

In 1979 McMurtry joined his former colleague John Deer to set up Renishaw plc. In 1987 he acquired the patents for his trigger probes from Rolls-Royce plc and began to exploit the patents himself.

He was awarded the CBE in 1994 and was knighted in the 2001 New Year Honours.

McMurty received an honorary doctorate from Heriot-Watt University in 1998.

In 2001, McMurtry was elected a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering. In 2008 the University of Bath awarded him an honorary doctorate. In 2011 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society. McMurtry won the Institute of Physics Swan Medal and Prize in 2012.

In 2001 McMurtry started work on Swinhay House. The “£30m futuristic eco-house” appeared in the finale of the BBC television series Sherlock.

In 2018, McMurtry stepped down as chief executive of Renishaw and was replaced by marketing and sales director William Lee.