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News Release from: Heller Machine Tools
Edited by the Manufacturingtalk Editorial
Team on 29 November 2005
Machine company yields skillful
apprentices
For the second year running, the Apprentice of the Year award has been won by a Heller apprentice.
For the second year running, the Apprentice of the Year award has been won by a Heller apprentice Mark Johns, who is in his second year with the Heller apprentice programme, achieved the accolade against stiff competition from the other regional finalists
This article was originally published on Manufacturingtalk on 27 Feb 2002 at 8.00am (UK)
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Mark joined Heller in August 2004 as a school-leaver and is already performing senior tasks within the company.
MD of Heller, Geoff Lloyd, said "We are of course delighted with Mark's success.
He has worked very hard to win this award.
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We feel it reflects very well not only on him but on all our apprentices and on our training procedures.
Developing the engineers of the future is of paramount of importance: engineering in the UK can only ever be as good as its people.
The future of Heller - and the future of the industry - depends on the standard of training.
As the managers of the future, it is important that apprentices are fully able to build machines as well acquiring academic skills.
"We now have five Apprentice of the Year winners working at Heller.
We are proud to have them and to offer their exceptional skills to our customers as part of our customer service capability.
Previous winners in our employ are Joanne Savastio, last year's winner and who is now continuing her studies at Warwick University, Eddie Rouse (production control), Steve Watson (production manager) and Eric Pollard (sales manager)".
Heller has maintained a commitment to the apprenticeship programme for many years.
Every year it seeks suitable school leavers interested in and with an aptitude for engineering to take into the apprenticeship programme and such is the commitment that the number of places is unlimited.
Over 20% of Heller's current workforce has been apprenticed at the company and it has apprentices at every level of the apprenticeship programme.
Heller supports each apprentice through his or her first year of college, after which the apprentice starts work at the Heller manufacturing plant in Redditch with day release to complete their HNC or City Guilds and the NVQIII in engineering.
Each apprentice has a dedicated trainer, selected from Heller's workforce to suit the temperament and needs of the individual.
The trainer remains alongside the apprentice, and is responsible for all aspects of his welfare, until he or she becomes a fully fledged engineer.
Apprentices work in all parts of the Heller factory, including materials planning and purchasing, design and inspection.
This is partly to ensure a good overall grounding and partly to allow each individual to identify and develop his or her own talents.
During the training, apprentices have the opportunity to work in Heller Germany to further develop their skills and also to become fluent in the German language.
Once the apprenticeship is completed, there is no restriction on the apprentice's career path: the company assists its apprentices through university should they choose to continue studying and has a policy of selecting the best person for the job when a vacancy arises and prefers to promote from within its existing workforce.
Geoff concluded "The essence of Heller Machine Tools is that we support our customers whenever they need our assistance, be it as simple as a spare part or as complex as developing or revising a manufacturing process.
To do that well, and to continue to do so, we make a serious investment in our people.
Without good people, it is almost irrelevant how well built, how fast, how productive our machines are.
It is the people we employ, their skills, and their attitudes which makes Heller an outstandingly successful company". Request free introductory details about products from Heller Machine Tools ...
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