Oxfordshire: Reaction Engines graduates from Culham Innovation Centre

One of Culham Innovation Centre’s longest-established customers, Reaction Engines Limited (REL), is preparing to move to new offices at Culham Science Centre due to rapid expansion, which will see the company recruit 100 new staff over the next 12-18 months.

REL was the first company to sign up to a flexible licence agreement at Culham Innovation Centre when it first opened its doors in 2001.  Since then, the three-man team has grown to 45, and the company now boasts additional sites located at Wantage and Newbury.

Founding director Alan Bond said: “The Innovation Centre has played a major role in our growth through its flexible office arrangements, the special technology package with the CCFE in the early days, and the professional ‘front desk’ which impressed the people we have had to deal with over the years.  When we were first assembling labs, the Centre also played a key role in helping to make the safety case and the EDC documents with the (then) UKAEA.”

Based on the development of its SABRE (Synergetic Air-breathing Rocket Engine) engine and SKYLON, the first vehicle to be powered by the SABRE engines, REL has attracted significant private and public investment with £60 million government investment through the UK Space Agency alone.

According to reports, SABRE has the potential to create 21,000 high-value engineering and manufacturing jobs; will maximise the UK’s access to an estimated £13.8 billion launcher market over the next 30 years; and will provide economic benefits from spill-over technology markets.

Bond explained: “We have reached the point of very rapid expansion and the Centre is now too small for us.  During our time here we have received very important people from government and European industry, as well as other nations across the world, and the Centre staff have always gone out of their way to ensure they are welcomed and professionally received.

“In addition, we have had some occasions when the impact of our work on the media has provoked a flood of telephone calls, once jamming the switchboard for two days. On these occasions the support from the Centre staff has been outstanding. Because of all of the support we’ve received, we are very sorry this move has become a necessity. We are victims of our own success.”

REL is moving to building F5 at Culham Science Centre during November 2014 and will occupy 22,600 sq ft of office space to accommodate further growth.

Sandie Alcock, centre manager at Culham Innovation Centre, said: “The team here has been part of REL’s exciting journey since 2001 and we look forward to hearing about their continued success. Naturally, we are sad to see one of our longest-serving customers move on, but we are equally very proud to have been able to support such a groundbreaking business.”

Culham Science Centre is located in the Science Vale and organisations can benefit from a unique technical support package from Culham Centre for fusion energy. This provides companies with access to consultancy services along with mechanical, electrical and electronic engineering skills and technologies.

Culham Innovation Centre is managed by Oxford Innovation, the UK’s leading operator of business and innovation centres, and has over 10,000 sq ft of office space, with suites available from 100 sq. ft.