The constant need for talented engineers is an issue that is always being addressed by Street Cranexpress. It is a constant challenge to show young candidates that a career in this specialist field can be both financially and professionally rewarding, offering long term career prospects.
Operations Director, James Eastwood shared his thoughts on the task on hand.
“In our industry, it is extremely difficult to get hold of talent and that is why a few years ago we set out on a mission to plug that skills gap by creating our very own academy.
“With this came a lot of planning and hard work to deliver fundamental skills and experience with external training to our apprentices through our highly skilled team of engineers. We have many time served (Completed an apprenticeship) employees, managers and directors, so this subject is close to our hearts.”
The early success of the SCE Academy in and around our head office in South Yorkshire led to the directors considering expanding the programme and finding talent outside of our usual scope. James continues:
“We realised that this problem (finding talent) was not just unique to our area of South Yorkshire, but the wider country.
“We had an opportunity to develop one of our engineer’s children who was very remote to our head office. This then spearheaded an initiative to look at the locations of our remote engineers and ask them if they knew anyone that could join us.”
Jake Mort is the latest addition to our apprenticeship programme and the SCE Academy and is an example of an apprentice that isn’t based in Sheffield but is taking advantage of our expertise. Jake shared his experience:
“I am really enjoying the challenge of learning the technical aspects of my role and how we apply them on site with customers. The theoretical work alongside the practical experience has been a really enjoyable process.
“Engineering is an exciting industry and the opportunity to work on big projects for big name customers is something that interests me a great deal, and I look forward to the opportunity to work on them in the future.”
“Commuting has been made simple by Street Cranexpress, I have been offered support at every turn and couldn’t ask for more. Every arrangement is made with me in mind, enabling me to voice any concerns before they become a bigger deal. I couldn’t recommend the SCE Academy enough.”
The SCE Academy will give Jake first-hand experience with skilled engineers, it will show him the challenges they face daily, how they speak with customers, and how they solve the many issues they confront. Alongside this, Jake will gain in-depth technical knowledge, giving him the platform to have a long and successful career with Street Cranexpress, or explore his options elsewhere in the industry.
This path being laid out for Jake, is something that excites him:
“I am looking forward to a long and successful career in engineering and with Street Cranexpress in particular and can’t wait to get started on the exciting projects they have here.”
Street Cranexpress’ UK Service Manage, Josh Clegg, expands on the need for this investment from a customer-service point of view.
“We work on a national scale; providing maintenance, repairs, and breakdown cover to cranes and hoists of all makes and models. We have customers from the Isle of Wight, right up to the North coast of Scotland and it’s important we have a sufficient network of engineers to support them all.
“Apprenticeships and organic growth have been hugely successful for Street Cranexpress over the years. Of our current engineers out in the field, almost a third of them have graduated through the SCE Academy apprenticeships scheme. The focus in recent years has been in and around South Yorkshire as it’s been easier to manage from our central hub in Sheffield. Recently however, we’ve taken on apprenticeships from further afield and through the tutelage and support of existing engineers acting as a mentor, it’s been a huge success.
“Remote apprenticeships will help us grow as a business and are a great way to start your career in engineering.”
Following the recruitment of Jake, Operations Director James is committed to bringing more like him on board.
“Jake is now the second of this kind and we welcome him onto the team, hopefully with many more to come.”
#TeamSCE
Pictured: Jake Mort (Apprentice Service Engineer)