An impressive anniversary for a member of our team passed recently with Project Supervisor, Mike Pritchard celebrating 25 years with Street Cranexpress. In 1997, Mike was referred to Street Cranexpress by our colleagues at our sister company, Street Crane Company. A quarter of a century later, Mike is still working with us, albeit in a much larger team than the one he joined.
“My first involvement with Street Cranexpress, was through an ex-manager of mine who at the time was working at Street Crane Company.
“They were looking for an installation engineer but wanted someone closer to their factory in Chapel-en-le-Frith. A move of house wasn’t an option for me at the time. So, Street Crane put me in touch with Street Cranexpress who were after an engineer for the Northwest of England.
“I never really had an interview as such, because I’d just had one with Street Crane Company. A day later I got a call from Steve Gillian (Former Service Manager for Street Cranexpress) who offered me a job as a Satellite Engineer working from home, carrying out servicing and breakdowns etc. on overhead cranes.”
Mike joined Street Cranexpress with a wealth of experience, starting as an apprentice Electrical Engineer at 16 years old at a local lifting gear company, before moving on to another crane company for a few years, and then finally landing at Street Cranexpress.
Throughout his 25 years, Mike has seen Street Cranexpress change over time.
“As you can imagine, I’ve seen a lot of change in the time I’ve been here. Seen a lot of people come and go, and quite a few come back again. I’ve met and worked with some good people that I’m still in touch with today. I think the most memorable part I have witnessed, is seeing how the company has grown. When I started there were about a dozen engineers and a handful of office staff. Compare that to the amount we have today!”
The humble team Mike joined has expanded to include over 40 engineers, with a similar number of office staff based in our head office facilities in Sheffield. Mike has remained throughout this period of significant growth for Street Cranexpress.
“25 years is a long time to stay at one place, so they must be doing something right to keep me. I think one of the main reasons that has kept me here for so long is the diversity of the job, and the flexibility of the company. Also, the fact that you are trusted when doing a job, which in turn leads to greater job satisfaction, and the development of customer relationships through prolonged good work ethics.”
Mike is now a senior member of the team of engineers working in our Projects department. With such a wealth of industry experience, and starting as an apprentice himself, Mike recommends exploring a career in engineering to school leavers and is evidence of the success you can earn.
“I have always liked engineering from when I was at school and knew I was going to go into some sort of engineering job when I left. Like all school leavers, I never really knew what I wanted to do exactly. My ambition first was to be a draughtsman but that never materialised. I was offered an apprenticeship as an electrical engineer at the tender age of 16. During that time, I went to college for a year and then progressed to become a lifting gear engineer over the following three years.
“I’d advise any young person either leaving school or having left school to go down the route to become an engineer through an apprentice scheme. The benefits can be wide open for you if you put a bit of time and effort into it yourself.
“Some of the benefits are; that it can lead you down many different paths in engineering, you learn as you go along with the job as well and study at college, and most importantly for some young people is that you get paid for doing all this as well, which doesn’t happen in some industries.”
Street Cranexpress have established a method of senior engineers working alongside apprentices on site, allowing the young engineers to learn from their senior colleagues’ experience. This helps with the development of the next generation of engineers. Managing Director, Ray Fletcher expands on this.
“Firstly, congratulations to Mike! It is an absolute pleasure to see members of our team reach these significant milestones in service. It is especially noteworthy with regards to the invaluable influence that this has on our apprentices and younger members of our workforce.
“Many of our engineers across the ranks have a significant record of long service, proof that long and rewarding careers can be achieved with SCE. This expanding bank of experience is essential with regards to the future development of our apprentices.”
Congratulations to Mike from all #TeamSCE
