OUR Large Company of the Year Award went to Cummins.

Darlington’s largest local employers, Cummins has been manufacturing in the town since 1965 and now has around 1,500 people working at its plant in various capacities.

Together they produced 66,000 engines in Darlington in 2021, and in January 2022 the factory celebrated a historic landmark: its 1.5 millionth mid-range engine.

But going about their core business is definitely not all Cummins does.

In March 2020 it made a major financial donation which enabled The Bread and Butter Thing charity to come to Darlington – perfect timing as it would happen, as the pandemic was just taking hold. The contribution helped to purchase a van so waste food from supermarkets and other retailers could be distributed through community hubs at a discounted cost.

The Northern Echo:

Today there are seven The Bread and Butter Thing hubs in the town and Darlington Borough Council is confident of reaching the milestone of a million meals by the end of this year.

Accepting the award on behalf of the company, Ed Bainbridge, Chief Engineer at Cummins’ Darlington plant, said: “Making a difference in the community is part of Cummins’ DNA – it’s just part of what we do.

“The future is bright, we are investing in hydrogen and we really want to be champions for our customers for whatever the future means.”

Our other finalists in this category were...

The Northern Echo:

HC-ONE whch is one of the UK’s leading providers of residential, nursing and dementia care services. The company fosters a culture that actively encourages simple kindness to make residents and colleagues feel good about themselves. This, in turn, they believe, nurtures many positive outcomes.

The Northern Echo:

GLAXOSMITHKLINE has opened a new £90m smart manufacturing facility at its Barnard Castle site, strengthening its role in bringing innovative new medicines for a range of diseases into production. This investment also demonstrates GSK’s commitment to the local area.