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News Release from: Advanced Engineering Skills Project
Edited by the Engineeringtalk Editorial
Team on 21 March 2002
Training initiative boosts SW
engineering
Three of SW England's leading engineering trade bodies have joined forces with national training organisation EMTA in a project to strengthen the prospects of the region's engineering sector.
Three of Southwest England's leading engineering trade bodies - EEF Western, WEAF and BEMA - have joined forces with national training organisation EMTA to launch a project to strengthen the prospects of the region's engineering sector Funded by the South West of England Regional Development Agency and the European Social Fund, the Advanced Engineering Skills Project is the result of a unique partnership within the region dedicated to reinforcing the foundations of this key sector to ensure its long-term success in a competitive international economy
Originally conceived as a project to help companies linked to the aerospace sector, the scope of the project has been expanded to help a wider range of engineering and manufacturing businesses.
The project will provide SMEs (ie companies with up to 250 employees) with free training audits to identify skills shortages and develop appropriate remedial strategies.
It will then provide subsidies of up to 50% to cover the costs of the training identified.
Steve Pressey, Project Manager for EMTA explained: "The Advanced Engineering Skills Project is designed to help companies in the aerospace supply chain and in what we have termed 'advanced engineering' .
This is a deliberately broad and open term that applies to companies that are either technically advanced or employ technologically advanced processes in areas of their work".
The project is a 'hands-on' initiative with a broad remit.
Training subsidies are available for activities as varied as lean manufacturing, CAD/CAM, sales, management training, IT and shop-floor upskilling.
Charlotte Foxall of EEF Western added: "Our remit is to ensure that smaller companies, many of which will be subcontractors, benefit from the expert help and training that is available to them.
Whilst mass component manufacture is tending to migrate to the cheaper Far East markets, the UK is still leading the world in technologically advanced engineering.
Investing in skills development will undoubtedly yield long-term benefits for these companies and help ensure that they remain at the forefront of their field".
The findings of this year's recently published BEMA state of trade survey highlighted that a third of companies had been unable to compete for specific contracts due to inadequately skilled staff.
Encouragingly, it also showed that 50% of firms intended to diversify their activities into other markets.
For these companies, the project will be of great benefit in helping them develop and perfect the skills necessary to make their new ventures a success.
John Whitlow, Director of BEMA added: "By helping such firms build a diverse client-base, the project will not only enhance their potential within the increasingly competitive international market - it will also improve their long-term stability in the event of sector specific downturns".
The initiative comes at a time when hundreds of companies involved in the aerospace supply chain have suffered from the recent reduction in global aviation spending.
On this, Roger Cox of the West of England Aerospace Forum, added: "Engineering companies involved in aerospace have been hit hard recently, however, contracts from the recently announced GBP 1.4 billion Virgin Atlantic order for the A340-600 Airbus will shortly filter through.
The skills project will continue to maintain and improve the world-class reputation of aerospace engineering in the UK and ensure its ability to compete globally well into the future".
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