Cambridge Vacuum Engineering (CVE) and Ford have completed a £430,000 research project demonstrating that electron beam welding can improve the production of electric motor stators — a key component in electric vehicles (EVs) — potentially helping to lower costs and accelerate the UK’s transition to net-zero transport.
The 12-month initiative, funded by Innovate UK under its Driving the Electric Revolution challenge, showed that the technology offers advantages over traditional laser welding methods used in manufacturing copper hairpin stators. According to the partners, electron beam welding delivers stronger, more consistent joins and eliminates the need for pre-weld preparation.
CVE’s proprietary technology operates in a vacuum, enabling “completely pore-free” welds in oxygen-free copper and delivering joints with a tensile strength six times the minimum industry threshold. The process is also unaffected by the reflectivity issues that can hinder infrared laser systems.
Bob Nicolson, Chief Executive of CVE, said the results could have wide-ranging industrial implications: “As automotive brands look to deliver higher-performance, longer-range electric vehicles at lower costs, it’s clear that electron beam welding has a major role to play. We’re seeing the same pattern in other sectors such as wind energy and nuclear power, where the technology enhances both quality and efficiency.”
Lee Turner, Ford’s Director of EU Powertrain Manufacturing Engineering, said the automaker saw “clear opportunity” to make significant gains by adopting electron beam welding. “Our team has led developments in laser parameter set-up and repair processes, but this collaboration with CVE shows how we can take the next step towards full-scale industrialisation,” he added.
Venn Chesterton, Deputy Director of Driving the Electric Revolution at Innovate UK, said the project demonstrated the strength of the UK’s advanced manufacturing ecosystem. “This is a world-class technology that will be produced at scale both in the UK and globally,” he said. “It’s one of many projects ensuring that UK manufacturing supply chains benefit from electrification.”
Founded more than 60 years ago, Cambridge-based CVE specialises in the design and manufacture of electron beam systems used across industries including aerospace, nuclear, and automotive. The company’s equipment ranges from 50–200kV with beam powers up to 100kW.
The partners now aim to explore the commercial deployment of electron beam welding in large-scale EV production.
