WorldSkills UK A showcase of vocational training

The competitions, designed by industry experts, seek to help young people grow both personally and professionally, by developing their technical and employability skills. Aiming to provide employers, colleges and independent training providers with a proven method of upskilling and developing individuals, those who are age eligible and achieve the benchmark score, will be invited to opt into Squad UK. This year’s WorldSkills final will be held in Coventry, with a medal ceremony celebration in Manchester.

Oliver

Control Systems Electrician

Oliver joined BAE Systems aged 16 with a desire to pursue an engineering career, having undertaken a week of Work Experience at the Washington site during his time at school.

Unsure of what an apprenticeship entailed, but with a clear aim to undertake hands-on learning over a classroom-based course, Oliver successfully applied to BAE Systems and moved from his home in Hartlepool to begin a four-year apprenticeship with the team in Washington.

He finished his apprenticeship just four weeks ago and is now a Control Systems Electrician. He was initially made aware of the World Skills opportunity via his on-site Apprentice Master. Excited by what he heard, Oliver applied and joined team member Nathan to successfully complete the first stage of the competition – the building of an offline robot cell, to a 4 hour deadline.

Successful in the first round, Oliver and Nathan then progressed to a live competition in Liverpool, where they completed a brief requiring them to build and programme a robot to pick up and accurately place more than 13 puzzle pieces within a six-hour deadline.

Finishing as one of the top two teams, Oliver and Nathan will now progress to the final in Coventry on 14 November, competing against five other teams for the prestigious gold medal, before heading to the celebration event in Manchester.

Participation in the World Skills final is just one of the many opportunities Oliver has experienced as a BAE Systems apprentice.

Nathan

Electrical Maintenance Engineer

Keen to pursue a career in Electrical Engineering, Nathan applied for a range of apprenticeships, with the hope of securing an opportunity at BAE Systems.

Successful in his application, Nathan began his Maintenance Operations Engineering Technician Apprenticeship in 2019 at the BAE Systems Washington site.

He successfully completed his qualification a month ago and now works as an Electrical Maintenance Engineer, undertaking planned and reactive maintenance tasks on a range of CNC machinery and plant.

Utilising preventative checks for potential component failure, to ensure machines continue to run, while also repairing any malfunctioning machines as quickly and efficiently as possible, Nathan enjoys the variety of work he undertakes, commenting that he ‘never gets bored and is really passionate about his role.’

Recognising the additional training opportunities available as part of the WorldSkills competition, alongside the chance to meet new people from across the UK, Nathan teamed up with fellow engineer, Oliver, to successfully complete the first stage of the competition – building an offline robot cell within a 4 hour deadline.

The pair progressed to a live competition in Liverpool, where they were given six hours to complete a brief requiring them to build and programme a robot to pick up and accurately place more than 13 puzzle pieces. He and Oliver finished as one of the top two teams, allowing them to progress onto the national final in Coventry on 14 November. At that event they will compete against five other teams for the prestigious gold medal, before heading to the celebration event in Manchester.

Benefitting from additional robotics training as part of the WorldSkills competition, Nathan has acquired new skills, confidence and knowledge as part of the process, which he has shared with his wider team.