We would like to Congratulate Lewis Williams who is employed by Detail Design Engineering Ltd in Sale, as he has been awarded a STEGTA Excellence Award for Outstanding Performance in Engineering Maintenance.

We asked Lewis how he felt about winning the award.

“My name is Lewis Williams, I work for a firm called Detail Design Engineering who are based in Sale, Greater Manchester and specialise in the design, installation, commissioning and maintenance of building energy management systems.

I have been with Detail Design Engineering since I left school at 16. 4 years later I have grown into a fully qualified engineer working within the maintenance team. Within my 4 years I have completed an Advanced Level Apprenticeship in engineering manufacture (Engineering maintenance). This included an NVQ Level 3 extended diploma in engineering maintenance and a Level 3 BTEC Diploma in Electrical/Electronic Engineering.

Thanks to the incredible support I received from STEGTA, especially my Training Officer, Dave Smith, I was able to complete my Apprenticeship and obtained a double distinction star in my BTEC level 3. This enabled me to attend University on day release and study toward my Foundation Degree which I will be finishing this year. Once completed, I will be able to attend a BSC top up course next year and so will obtain an Honorary Bachelor’s degree by the end of next year provided I pass my exams and coursework.

I was thrilled when I heard that had won a STEGTA Excellence Award as it is nice to have all of my hard work recognised and acknowledged. I would like to thank STEGTA for their ongoing support and investment in myself. I would like to especially thank both Dave Smith at STEGTA for his encouragement and guidance throughout my Apprenticeship. Jamila Flanagan from Detail Design Engineering for her support within the work place and striving to get the best training for myself and our other apprentices”.

Lewis’s Training Officer – Dave Smith commented:

“Lewis started his apprenticeship at DDE in September 2015 as a 16 year old Wellacre school leaver. He’d previously done some work experience at the company in school holidays and senior members of staff were very impressed by the maturity and organisation of someone who was so young.

He started to attend the Stegta Training Centre shortly after starting at company and quickly impressed his instructors with his quiet, determined attitude to get things right.
Lewis continued to have a quiet demeanour throughout our review sessions but always managed to ask the right questions and showed me that he fully understood what was being asked.

This unassuming demeanour continued during the NVQ process, but it was clear his confidence was beginning to grow. Work also noticed, that despite being quiet, he was growing in confidence and after a year or so in company was given his own company vehicle and started to attend service jobs on his own. The trust the company showed him at this young age is indicative of Lewis’s approach to work, and life in general, and is a positive affirmation of the ability he has in his chosen career.

Lewis completed his apprenticeship in October 2018, over a year earlier than expected, which is a reflection of the commitment put into the process. He could not have achieved this without dedication from himself, his mentor Jamila Flanagan and the rest of the team at DDE.

It is however, in his academic studies where Lewis has impressed the most. Lewis thrived during his time on his technical certificate and achieved distinctions in 10 of his 12 subjects, meaning his final BTEC grade was the maximum possible double distinction*.

After his BTEC, instead of progressing to a HNC, it was decided that Lewis may do well on a degree programme, and I advised him to apply to Glyndwr University for a part time foundation degree in Industrial Engineering.

Lewis completed the first year of this (attaining ‘first’ level grades), and is now well underway into the second year. He is on target to achieve his Fd Eng in Sept 2019 and his BEng in Sept 2020.

If Lewis achieves his BEng in 2020, just five years after starting a four year apprenticeship, whilst working full time and completing his Apprenticeship/NVQ at the same time I would say it would be a remarkable achievement.

I wish Lewis all the best in the future which, given the last four years, will undoubtedly be very successful indeed”.

We would like to Congratulate Alexander Christie who is employed by WSP in London, as he has been awarded a STEGTA Excellence Award for Outstanding Performance in Railway Engineering Design.

We asked Alexander how he felt about winning the award.

“I decided upon a career in engineering because I felt it best suited my practical and problem-solving mindset. Combined with doing well in maths and science at school.

I was helped through my Apprenticeship by my STEGTA Training Officer Hugh Mclay.

He helped me through the Apprenticeship by helping me organise all my information into one place and how to be more precise with my use of words instead of having long answers that miss the point of the question.

The part of my work that I have been most proud of is contributing to the method of track installation for phase 2b of HS2.

I am proud of this because it involved using all the technical knowledge I had learnt to create the fastest and safest installation method possible.

The future for my career is to start doing a rail engineering degree through WSP via day or block release and become an incorporated engineer after finishing my degree.

I’m pleased to have won this award because it means that my English skills have improved over the past 2 years and I have been able to put my thoughts down on paper a lot better than I could at the start of my Apprenticeship”.

Alexander’s Training Officer – Hugh Mclay commented:

“It’s been a pleasure to support Alex throughout his Level 3 Apprenticeship in Rail Engineering Design. He is a genuine, pleasant individual who is keen to learn, organised, self-motivated and a great team player.

Alex has also represented his employer within schools as part of the Brathay Challenge to talk to younger students about the benefits and journey of becoming an Apprentice.
I wish him well for the future and his career at WSP”.

We would like to Congratulate Rob Cully who is employed by Fresenius Kabi Ltd in Runcorn, as he has been awarded a STEGTA Excellence Award for Outstanding Performance in Apprenticeship Mentoring.

We asked Rob how he felt about winning the award.

“I was surprised and very proud to be told that I had won an excellence award from STEGTA. The support that I have received from STEGTA from the beginning of our apprenticeship programme has been top class. What our training officer, Dave Smith, doesn’t know about Apprenticeships probably isn’t worth knowing.

I think that the role of a mentor is a very important part in the apprentice’s journey, from providing professional guidance to offering advice on personal issues the involvement level is extremely high. I would recommend it to anyone as I feel that I’ve got much more out of it than I’ve put into it.

Our apprentices are fully supported throughout they’re employment with us, they will be fully qualified engineers up to and including HNC level.

The apprenticeship scheme has been a real success story within our business. Our last 5 appointments in our technical services department have all been apprentices and their drive and enthusiasm has had a positive impact on the whole department. Our sixth and newest apprentice is due to start with us shortly with approval for our seventh in 2020 already in place. The apprenticeship route has been adopted throughout our business in other departments largely down to the success of our technical services scheme”.

STEGAT Assistant Group Training Manager/Training Officer – Dave Smith commented:

“Rob has showed excellent levels of support, to all his many learners, over the past few years.

He is available at every review and proactively supports them during their learning journey. He has successfully mentored learners through the full cycle of an apprenticeship, with both his learners winning STEGTA Excellence Awards last year – reflecting the time and effort he has put into the process.

Rob’s experience and drive to help the learners’ means that he fully understands how the qualification works and he can support the learners directly. He realises the difficulties they may face achieving the high standards Fresenius Kabi expects and is always available to help at any juncture.

His affable demeanour means that Rob is always approachable and is thus able to help learners with problems or issues, which may not always be directly related to a work environment. He seems able to make that all important ‘connection’ with the learners, which means that they trust him and look up to him.

Learners at Fresenius Kabi are now encouraged to progress their apprenticeship past Level 3 and into Level 4. This is something which Rob has pushed hard to promote and the path which three more learners will take this September.

Learners who have been mentored by Rob are now taking up more experienced positions with the team and are themselves supporting new learners at the beginning of their apprenticeship.
Fresenius Kabi should be proud of Rob’s achievement, with five apprentices he has directly mentored taking up important roles in the Medical Devices team. I’m sure that in the future all of them will look back and recognise the contribution he made to their early career development.

Having worked with many workplace mentors over the past few years, I would like to finish my recommendation by stating that I wish all workplace mentors showed the same drive, commitment, dedication and enthusiasm as Rob Cully”.

We would like to Congratulate James Stretton who is employed by Saica Paper UK Limited in Manchester, as he has been awarded a STEGTA Excellence Award for Outstanding Performance in Process Engineering.

We asked James how he felt about winning the award.

“I am delighted to have received an award for the work I have done towards my Apprenticeship. I am grateful that I get to work and study towards something that I genuinely enjoy. I first chose to pursue a career in engineering because ever since I was a kid, I’ve always been interested in how things work. I love how every day is different and all of it requires creative and logical thinking to solve real problems.

The help that I receive from Saica and Andrea, my STEGTA Training Officer is unreal. I’m lucky to be working amongst such knowledgeable, supportive people who can answer any questions I have, and go out of their way to help me to learn everything I need in order to complete my Apprenticeship.

After completing my level 2 in chemical process ops, I am looking forward to moving onto my level 3. I don’t have any other current plans for further education but I definitely wouldn’t rule anything out. It would be nice to one day complete a degree level course”.

James’s Training Officer – Andrea Roberts commented:

“Jamie is in his second year of a Level 2 Apprenticeship in Process Industries Operations, and is progressing very well with this. He has a proactive attitude towards his training and is eager to learn new skills.

In addition to the requirements of his Process Ops training, within the first six months of starting his apprenticeship he had attended the Stegta Training Centre and completed a full Level 2 Diploma in Performing Engineering Operations.

This consisted of Hand Fitting, Electrical and CAD training. Also, during this time Jamie spent some time with Dave Harrison who gave him some familiarisation training on the lathes, as Jamie had mentioned that it looked interesting and was keen to learn more about it. The other instructors at STC have commented how they have enjoyed teaching Jamie in the workshop.

Jamie has recently returned from Germany where he attended the first session of an industrial training programme at Papierzentrum, learning how paper is manufactured. He has found this a valuable addition to his apprenticeship and enjoyed his two weeks there. He will return there for another three more two-week sessions during the course of this year, and will be completed before the end of his apprenticeship.

At work, Jamie has been getting some glowing feedback from his peers. They have commented on how polite, mature and professional Jamie is when at work. He listens well and makes efficient use of his study time. He is on track with his technical certificate as well as can be after some issues with the college delivery. Even so, this has not deterred Jamie from getting on with his studies and he continues to make progress in all areas.

I feel that Jamie has an amazing attitude towards his apprenticeship and should be recognised for his achievements so far. He is an example to other apprentices, and demonstrates how much you can achieve when you put your mind to it”.