About Us

Wilson & Gilkes was es­tab­lished in 1945 by Alex Wilson and Eric Gilkes. Orig­i­nal­ly man­u­fac­tur­ing pho­to­graph­ic equipment, the business developed the culture of precision, quality and ingenuity that continues to define it today.

In 2024, Wilson & Gilkes was acquired by OPIE Man­u­fac­tur­ing Group, marking the beginning of an exciting new chapter. As part of a proudly Aus­tralian man­u­fac­tur­ing group, Wilson & Gilkes is building on eight decades of expertise while exploring new markets, strength­en­ing its ca­pa­bil­i­ties and creating greater op­por­tu­ni­ties for in­no­va­tion and col­lab­o­ra­tion.

Today, Wilson & Gilkes is recog­nised as one of Australia’s leading sheet metal fab­ri­ca­tors. Our engineers and in­dus­tri­al designers work closely with customers to review com­po­nents and products, identify cost-saving op­por­tu­ni­ties, improve man­u­fac­tura­bil­i­ty and deliver more efficient pro­duc­tion outcomes.

Since opening its doors during Australia’s post-World War II economic re­con­struc­tion, Wilson & Gilkes has suc­cess­ful­ly adapted to dramatic changes in man­u­fac­tur­ing, tech­nol­o­gy and society. From its early precision-man­u­fac­tur­ing foun­da­tions to today’s automated laser cutting and advanced fab­ri­ca­tion systems, the business has continued to evolve without losing sight of what matters most: skilled people, de­pend­able quality and practical solutions.

Our team includes qualified in­dus­tri­al designers, me­chan­i­cal engineers, elec­tri­cians, sheet metal trades­peo­ple, fitters and ma­chin­ists, tool­mak­ers, powder coaters and welders. Combining their expertise with world-class man­u­fac­tur­ing equipment enables Wilson & Gilkes to deliver flexible, high-quality solutions tailored to each customer’s re­quire­ments.

Wilson & Gilkes is a com­pet­i­tive and agile Aus­tralian man­u­fac­tur­er spe­cial­is­ing in sheet metal products, com­po­nents and complex fab­ri­cat­ed as­sem­blies. The company is also a trusted supplier to major in­fra­struc­ture and defence projects. For one traffic-tunnel project, our team trans­formed an initial concept for fire-service metal struc­tures into a modular system that sig­nif­i­cant­ly reduced on-site in­stal­la­tion time.

Our col­lab­o­ra­tive approach extends well beyond fab­ri­ca­tion. We work closely with customers and man­u­fac­tur­ing partners to improve product designs, simplify pro­duc­tion, reduce costs and achieve better long-term outcomes. Backed by OPIE Man­u­fac­tur­ing Group, Wilson & Gilkes is well po­si­tioned to build on this approach and pursue a bold new direction in Aus­tralian man­u­fac­tur­ing.

Our specialty is Aus­tralian-designed and man­u­fac­tured products, including complex cus­tomised solutions for in­fra­struc­ture, defence, secure storage, au­dio­vi­su­al, education, corporate en­vi­ron­ments, in­for­ma­tion tech­nol­o­gy and digital signage. Ca­pa­bil­i­ties include SCEC-related storage products, server racks, custom en­clo­sures and spe­cialised fab­ri­cat­ed as­sem­blies.

In­no­va­tion remains central to our future. In response to a customer re­quire­ment, Wilson & Gilkes designed and patented a secure, lockable, server-rack-mounted enclosure for sensitive IT hardware—an example of how our team turns complex chal­lenges into practical, pro­duc­tion-ready solutions.

With a proud history behind us and the strength of OPIE Man­u­fac­tur­ing Group sup­port­ing our next chapter, Wilson & Gilkes is ready to deliver new ideas, expanded ca­pa­bil­i­ties and trusted Aus­tralian man­u­fac­tur­ing for gen­er­a­tions to come.