Search by company

Automotive academy expands skills training

Edited by the Manufacturingtalk editorial team May 30, 2006

The latest UK Automotive Academy 'spoke' covers the greater London area, Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire.

The Automotive Academy has staged the second of its rolling launch programmes for London and East of England.

Based at CEME, the Centre for Manufacturing and Engineering Excellence, in Rainham, Essex, Academy personnel were joined by nearly one hundred automotive training providers, vehicle manufacturers and automotive suppliers to hear how the spoke will work to raise the skills of motor industry workforce.

The new spoke covers the greater London area, Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire, but will be based at CEME, alongside the Ford engine manufacturing facility.

John Bradley, the spoke manager for the region will be leading the drive to provide expert support and training to the 1,088 companies in the region's industry and the supply chain.

The Automotive Academy, led by the UK's leading automotive companies, promotes globally competitive standards of training and skill development throughout the UK's automotive industry.

It supports the whole supply chain, not just vehicle manufacturers, to encourage universal best practice set against the Academy's stringent validation process.

Speaking at the launch, John Bradley said, 'Despite recent events, it's by no means all doom and gloom for automotive manufacturing in the UK.

Our industry remains a vital contributor to the British economy worth £46 billion each year.

The thousand companies in our region have a workforce that must continue to develop, enhancing their skills to improve productivity.

Our drive to boost skills in engineering and manufacturing focuses on developing the highest quality training tailored to business needs, from large vehicle manufacturers to small companies.' Patrick McCall, Automotive Academy project manager said, 'The Automotive Academy has, over the past eight months, been working very closely with Ford at Dagenham, to deliver Academy courses in lean tools and techniques, aligned to the Ford Production System.

We're both fully committed to ensuring that this success is built upon, not only for existing employees, but also as a fundamental part of the new employee programme at the brand new engine facility.'.