When Marshall placed their order for a replacement compressor, to replace its 15 year old faithful Avelair compressor, the clock went back to the early 80s
Loyalty to the Avelair product range
Marshall is a unique private company, founded in 1909. The Group has a turnover of £2.6bn and over 6,300 employees. Headquartered on a 900-acre site in Cambridge, Marshall has three principal arms to the business: Aerospace and Defence; Property; and Ventures. As a British business, it looks to support other UK based manufacturers. It couldn't keep things more local than with it's compressed air infrastructure – as it's used an Avelair compressor for the past 15 years – built less than 30 miles away. With the excellent service and support provided throughout this period, the organisation wanted its replacement compressor to be built by Avelair.
New purpose built highly efficient variable speed drive compressor with 8 years warranty
The new compressor will upgrade the system and supply air to all the hangers on the historic manufacturing site purchased in 1937. The manufacturing facilities serviced by the new compressor include air tools, spraying air, breathing air and air for Sandblasting. Marshall has been a long standing client of Cambs Compressors, but the investment in Cambs Compressors goes way back to well before the company was even founded.
Mark Fryer, Marshall engineering apprentice
Mark joined Marshall as an apprentice around the time of the Falklands Conflict, and has fond memories of completing his apprenticeship with the ground breaking company.
“It's an amazing place to work, either as an employee or as I do now, providing their compressed air solutions and support. The history envelopes you and it's incredible to be apart of the Marshall journey.”
Formed in 1908, Marshall has touched so many lives
The site was instrumental in training RAF pilots before the Battle of Britain commenced. By the end of the Second World War, the company had trained over 20,000 aircrew including pilots, observers and flying instructors. Alongside this training, Marshall also modified and repaired over 5,000 aircraft, ranging in size and complexity from the Oxfords and Ansons of Flying Training Command to such front-line operational types as the Mosquito, Spitfire, Hurricane, Wellington and B-17.
Postwar, aerospace engineering work continued to generate new business, civil and military, with many different types of aircraft passing through the company’s well-equipped hangars and workshops. The skills developed in the Aircraft Design office during the 1960s subsequently enabled Marshall Aerospace to undertake the design and manufacture of the Concorde droop nose and retracting visor in 1967, on behalf of the British Aircraft Corporation.
The air support of the Expeditionary Forces during the Falklands Conflict in 1982 was only made possible because of the installation by Marshall of air-to-air refuelling receiver equipment in RAF Hercules aircrafts. This vital modification was designed, manufactured, installed and flight trialled within 14 days, with the first aircraft in operational service within 3 weeks from the initial design request. Following this, the company modified 6 Hercules as tanker aircraft which remained in service until 1995. This hangar also accommodated DC10, MD11 and Boeing 747 aircraft.
The company also built special vehicles for the Queen’s Flight and the RAF’s Support Harrier Force; the first air portable containers for the Rapier Weapon System developed by the British Aircraft Corporation; specially modified vehicles for the Special Air Service (SAS); engineering mock-ups of armoured command vehicles and armoured signal vehicles for the Fighting Vehicles Research and Development Establishment (FVRDE).
With the British Armed Forces’ shift from a Cold War emphasis to Rapid Reaction Expeditionary Force, Marshall SV’s military business has evolved in recent years from Equipment Manufacturer to Systems Integrator. Today, the military business is centred on providing rapidly deployable systems for the UK MoD and military customers worldwide, for use in a wide range of situations and extreme environments as well as for humanitarian operations and by the United Nations.
September 2020 marked the 100th year of continuous apprentice intake at Marshall following its introduction in 1920. Cambs Compressors Managing Director, Mark Fryer, will always remember his formative years with a fond regard for both the people and the values Marshall instilled in him.
Marshall is a unique private company committed to making a difference through providing support and services to its growing customer base. At its core, Marshall is determined to develop and deliver long-term value whilst also noticeably contributing to making Cambridge a better place.
