Cambridge Vacuum Engineering certified as ‘Great Place to Work’
Cambridge Vacuum Engineering (CVE), the Waterbeach-based company specialising in electron beam and laser in vacuum welding, has officially been certified as a Great Place to Work.
Aquasium Technology Ltd, trading as Cambridge Vacuum Engineering, began in the late 1950s in Cambridge with the founding of Torvac, a company specialising in the manufacture of electron beam welders and vacuum furnaces. Since then it has been supplying innovative welding solutions to some of the biggest names in aerospace, automotive, defence, nuclear, renewables and oil and gas – helping them solve major engineering challenges.
Demand for the company’s welding know-how has ramped up as industries seek to lower their carbon footprint and speed up the manufacture of electric vehicle batteries, wind turbines and nuclear reactors.
Today, CVE is headquartered in Waterbeach and has regional offices in Beijing, China and Massachusetts, US, as well as a global network of agents. The company exports around 95 per cent of its systems, with primary markets in the US, China, India, and Europe.
Earlier this year CVE received funding from Innovate UK under the Faraday Battery Challenge for its electron beam (EB) welding skills. EB welding is 20-30 times faster than standard submerged arc welding techniques, offering energy providers – such as wind turbine and nuclear reactor manufacturers – transformational gains in productivity.
Recognised worldwide, the Great Place to Work scheme is the only certification based entirely on what employees say about their workplace and is a benchmark for companies that provide an outstanding employee experience.
CVE gained its Great Place to Work status following a comprehensive survey of its employees and the completion of a workplace questionnaire by its management team.
Bob Nicolson, managing director at CVE, said: “At CVE our employees get to work on some of the most important engineering projects in the world – but we offer so much more than that.
“Alongside continuous professional development opportunities, staff can take advantage of subsidised gym membership, free pilates classes, and regular in-house wellbeing workshops. We have our own five-a-side football team. We organise regular social outings and take part in key events in the Cambridge business calendar – like the Dragon Boat Festival. All staff also get an annual health check and free flu jabs.
“We’ve known for a long time that we’ve created a special company where people like coming to work. Getting this rubber-stamped by the team at Great Place to Work is excellent news – particularly as the decision was based on what our staff had to say.”
With Great Place to Work status, CVE is now ranked alongside other like-minded organisations worldwide, which are committed to creating a positive and supportive working environment that fosters employee engagement, innovation, teamwork and professional growth.
