“This is a slightly different answer to what I would have given four months ago. Our first priority is protecting our existing apprentices and businesses’ desire to upskill workers in the face of major cost pressures brought on by Covid-19.
“We need companies to maintain their commitment to the engineers of the future so that they have the talent and capacity they will require as the economy hopefully kicks back into life again. Employers, who are paying into the Apprenticeship Levy, should be looking at creative ways in which they could spend the money they’ve put in, including personal development courses and putting more mature workers through an apprentice where they can develop new skills, knowledge and behaviours.
“Longer-term, we need to continue the employer-led approach to training. What we offer shouldn’t be prescriptive or what government feels it should be; instead it should be developed and evolved from constant consultation with companies and finding out exactly what they need.”
Bekki Phillips is managing director of In-Comm Training
“Our entire thinking around teaching, learning, curriculum design and assessment needs to change, from lower education to the workplace.We need to shift from a largely knowledge-based society to one focused on creativity, evaluation and adding value, allowing people to demonstrate how they think and learn, rather than what they know and remember.
“Crucially, the curriculum needs refreshing. Rather than learning theory through traditional, and comfortable, subjects, a cross-curricular programme evaluated through process-based assessments and experimentation could cultivate essential skills, such as problem-solving and having the confidence to fail.
“Engineers need to be prepared to interact in person with potential employers and, later, colleagues and clients. At the tertiary level, this means complementing theory with social skills and creativity. In the workplace, it means being able to demonstrate your ideas, substance and drive.”
Nick Russell is a director at engineering consultancy Perega
“A critical enabler to a sustainable talent pipeline is attracting bright and enthusiastic apprentices, which makes good relationships with local schools, sixth-form colleges and universities essential.Every initiative needs to inform, inspire and educate. One of the best ways to learn what works is to knowledge share with your peer group.
“Among the most memorable experiences for a student is to take them through the entire project lifecycle from design through to construction, commissioning, operation and decommissioning. An initiative like that requires the involvement of the end-to-end supply chain. Networks regionally and nationally are also important, whether it’s a local working group or an initiative like the National STEM Ambassador scheme.”
Vicki Ashton is head of human resources at JDR Cable Systems
“Alongside upskilling those already working in manufacturing, we must provide pathways for those seeking to enter the industry. The most effective way to secure the future of UK businesses is to provide a stream of enthusiastic and automation-literate employees, capable of engaging with the latest technology.
“There has to be a concerted effort to engage young people, and the best way to do this is to continue to provide strong apprenticeship programmes. The key is to take a cross-party approach to this, because the health of UK industry is too important to be politicised. We must look at how funding can be used to foster growth – for example tax breaks could go to OEMs to enable them to improve training and prioritise apprenticeships.”
Tom Bouchier is managing director of FANUC UK
“At Datwyler, we collaborate with leading universities and institutes both globally and locally in proximity to our development centres. As a result, we are often involved in new engineering topics and research fields from a very early stage, ensuring our employees are engaged in a process of continuous learning. Sharing these learnings globally ensures our management system is an effective community of practice as a basis for innovation. It is inspirational to see how motivated the teams are to learn from each other across generations, continents and cultures. Offering project work, bachelor or master theses for students also gives us access to young talent with new skillsets. To attract the best talent, our topics and support need to stay interesting and attractive in the future.”
Frank Schoenis Vice President Technology & Innovation at Datwyler
“A lack of engineering skills, and specifically digital engineering skills, have been hampering the advancement of the industry for many years. Even before the coronavirus outbreak, plans to revolutionise the West of England’s digital engineering sector had been kick-started with the launch of the Digital Engineering Technology & Innovation (DETI) project, a research, innovation and skills initiative which aims to upskill the workforce - beyond those already working in academia, research organisations and the start-up community - and accelerate our digital engineering efforts.
“In a post-Covid-19 era, it feels more important than ever to find new ways of inspiring the next generation of engineers to help manage and recover from the crisis and I think supporting the national effort will be one of those motivators. If projects like DETI can be replicated across the UK, we’ll be well on our way to solving the engineering skills gap and helping tackle major global challenges – the size and scale of which we couldn’t have predicted even a few months ago.”
Ian Risk is Chief Technology Officer at the Bristol-based Centre for Modelling & Simulation
“Minimising manual configuration improves the perception of engineering careers and can also provide manufacturers with more flexible and customisable production techniques. Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and machine builders are under pressure to manufacture products in small amounts. Today’s customers want one-off, specialised equipment for their facilities, but producing machinery to meet these unique specifications is a colossal task.
Using automated engineering, OEMs can use pre-configured modules, as opposed to using one closed system. The module could describe an individual device, a piece of equipment or an equipment group, that are simply connected using Ethernet. By breaking up and replacing the traditionally rigid structures of automation, these modular applications allow OEMs to be more flexible in production.
Unlike traditional production management, this process also reduces complexity for employees and eliminates the need for engineers to repetitively program machines. As a result, there is a reduced likelihood of errors and faster time-to-market expectations. Flexible production can therefore kill two birds with one stone, improve staff’s enjoyment of their roles, as well as improving production processes."
Martyn Williams is managing director of COPA-DATA
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Content published by Professional Engineering does not necessarily represent the views of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.