Cyber Innovate to Elevate: Case study
With cyberattacks on the rise across the UK, small businesses are increasingly concerned about getting caught out but for one engineering business, a Cyber Innovate to Elevate partnership with the University of Essex and Freeport East has provided a roadmap for modernisation that is protecting their systems, staff and revenue.
A small business with a global presence
With a 50-year heritage building precision grinding machines used across a range of industries, Curtis Machine Tools helps companies worldwide create everything from dental drills to fuel injector parts.
When Ed Mayhew joined as Operations Director in 2025 however, he spotted a weakness, out-of-date cybersecurity processes and infrastructure
Understanding the risks
After a cyberattack suffered by one of their suppliers left a client waiting for their delivery, Ed knew they needed to assess their own vulnerabilities.
The aim was to fully assess their IT processes, protections and infrastructure, to identify gaps, get expert support and strengthen the business. Improving security would also help them achieve Cyber Essentials certification, a requirement for businesses working in aerospace and defence.
The cyber challenges for SMEs
Professor Haris Mouratidis, Director of the Institute for Analytics and Data Science, led the Curtis Machine Tools cybersecurity audit.
With colleagues, he conducted a review of documentation, technical assessments and interviews with key staff. They focused on IT systems, operational technology, external dependencies, and security policies and procedures.
It was a process Ed describes as “quick, easy and not at all time-consuming.”
Like most small and medium sized businesses, Curtis Machine Tools faced several challenges familiar to Professor Mouratidis. They had overcome the major challenge of recognising they needed cybersecurity but lacked knowledge and expertise within the business.
“Cybersecurity is fundamentally a socio-technical challenge - human behaviour and digital systems cannot be separated. When the latest research shows that between 75% and 90% of data breaches stem from human error, it becomes impossible to treat security as a purely technical problem. For SMEs navigating compliance obligations across complex supply chains, that reality adds yet another layer of difficulty.” Professor Mouratidis explained.
A framework for security
The audit identified three critical vulnerabilities that needed addressing immediately as well as a range of security gaps which the researchers triaged as high or medium priority issues.
The result was a comprehensive framework that prioritised risks and provided a roadmap for fixing them.
Ed has put in place processes to fix the critical issues, educate staff and implement changes that will build business resilience.
Today Curtis Machine Tools has a cyber framework to match the high-tech, high-value machinery it manufactures and is working towards gaining Cyber Essentials accreditation.
![Photo of Ed Mayhew]()
"It's given me the evidence I need to get the funding to roll out fixes. In small businesses, cash flow is really important; we try and save money wherever we can. If I've got a strong business case, it makes it easier to find that money."
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