Obituary: Martin Butcher

It is with great sadness that Vaillant announces the death of Martin Butcher. Martin passed away peacefully on 24 December 2022 with his family by his side, after a long battle with illness.

With a devotion to his career of more than 42 years, Martin was renowned for his technical excellence not just in Vaillant Group but also the wider industry. He joined the company, known at the time as TI Glow-worm, in 1980, in the Research and Development department.

Martin grew his career in the department over many years, starting as a workshop technician, progressing to become a test engineer and finally an R&D manager, leading the development teams on projects such as the Glow-worm CXI and Flexicom ranges. Martin also worked on other ground-breaking products such as the Fuelsaver, Hideaway and the first condensing boiler on the market, the Glow-worm Energysaver.

When the parent company of Glow-worm, Hepworth Heating, was taken over by Vaillant Group in 2001, Martin used his research and development background to support starting the manufacture of Vaillant boilers in the UK.

In more recent years, he took on the role of Technical Quality Manager, managing a small team, supporting the business with understanding legislation changes, SAP updates and most recently working towards consultations on the Future Homes Standard and Part L updates.

Martin was also a prominent member and well-respected voice in the Heating & Hot Water Industry Council (HHIC) technical committee. Martin’s wealth of knowledge was never-ending: he showed patience to those who learned from him and was a mentor to many different people over the years.

Martin’s passion for the engineering and knowledge-sharing led to building life-long friendships across the industry and he will be greatly missed by many.