Business Breakfast

6th March 2024 | 08.30-10.30 | Scottish Engineering office, Glasgow

We are delighted to be supporting Scottish Apprenticeship Week again this year and we’re holding a Business Breakfast on 6th March to celebrate. This event will shed light on the new Standards and Frameworks for the Engineering sector, and the benefits that work-based learning brings to:

• people of all ages and backgrounds
• employers of all sizes
• the economy

The theme for Scottish Apprenticeship Week is Skills Generation, which recognises that Scottish Apprenticeships are creating the new generation of Scotland’s skilled workforce.

At our breakfast event, you will hear first hand accounts of the value of work-based learning from successful young apprentices within the network, insight from an employer’s perspective, and an update from Skills Development Scotland on the new Standards and Frameworks as mentioned above. We’ll provide breakfast and refreshments, and there will be opportunities to network with attendees.

Please register your interest using the form below.

Register interest.

Agenda

Confirmed Speakers

Terry Dillon – Skills Development Scotland

Since joining Skills Development Scotland Terry has successfully led the delivery of a range of innovative programmes and projects, including the design and implementation of Foundation and Graduate Apprenticeships in Scotland.

Terry’s extensive knowledge of, and advocacy for, work-based learning has been instrumental in driving transformative change of Modern Apprenticeships in Scotland. Working with stakeholders across government, industry and employers, Terry led the design and implementation of the employer approach to apprenticeship development and frameworks which has improved industry engagement in workforce development whilst supporting inclusion and diversity in fair and productive workplaces.

Terry will share key information on the developments of the new Standards and Frameworks for the Engineering sector and showcase the opportunities this will bring to the future of engineering and skills generation.

Mark Diamond – Graduate Engineering Apprentice at Aggreko

Mark’s career started when he left school in 2020 and joined Aggreko as their first-ever Graduate Engineering Apprentice, where he is now in his final year studying towards an Honours Degree in Engineering: Design & Manufacture. His striving ambition to learn has given him the opportunity to work in many different areas of the Aggreko business – gaining invaluable skills and knowledge from a vast array of disciplines.

Mark played a key role in the teams who designed, installed, and commissioned Aggreko’s temporary power and HVAC equipment for both the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham and the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia. He also installed and integrated the remote monitoring equipment which would allow for vital, around-the-clock coverage of Aggreko and FIFA’s power equipment for the World Cup. The work Mark completed was critical in enabling a smooth delivery of power to the event which was broadcast to millions of people across the world.

Currently, Mark is completing the final year of his apprenticeship in the electrical engineering department at Aggreko’s manufacturing facility, honing his skills to design, develop and improve future and current Aggreko products.

Mark will share his journey and experiences over the past 4 years to present the value of apprenticeships.

Ellis Dunnachie – Aircraft Fitter at Spirit Aerosystems (Europe) Ltd 

Scottish Engineering’s Apprentice of the Year 2023 – Modern Apprenticeship in Aircraft Fitting 

Ellis started working for Spirit in August 2019 after a change in career path. From day one her attitude and enthusiasm to not only learn but adapt into a generally male dominated environment has been inspirational to other apprentices who have followed in her footsteps. She has exceeded both academically and gained meta-skills which in turn has made her stand out from her peers. As part of Ellis’s additional development she asked for the opportunity to participate in a strategic level Kaizen event within one of the production lines. She worked in a team for two days where she had the ability to interact and provide ideas back to the business at a senior leadership level. Again she and the teams’ collective ideas have been integrated into the businesses operating processes. Ellis has also helped in creating draft training documents that form the basis for training employees on advanced drilling processes. As well as this Ellis has created an easy guide manual for new start employees to utilise.  She has also represented the Prestwick site for a corporate video on ‘Values’ on our Spiritube channel.

Ellis will share her experience as a Modern Apprentice and the skills and benefits this brought her.

Michelle Quinn – Owner/Managing Director of Almond Engineering Ltd

Michelle started aged 17 as a temporary office junior with Almond Engineering Ltd, a successful Design and Precision Engineering company offering Design, Precision Engineering & Fabrication/Welding services to customers requiring high levels of service and technical excellence. Formed in 1979 in Livingston and now with 38 staff and an annual turnover of approx. £4million, they serve over 200 customers across most sectors dealing in a variety of materials including metals & plastics.

Nearly 19 years on from starting with Almond, and having worked her way up through the company gaining valuable knowledge and experience in all aspects of the business, Michelle is also currently a Regional Board member of DYW West Lothian, Director of EDETA Training School (Edinburgh), Mentor for Career Ready (West Lothian), Executive Committee Member of Scottish Engineering, a previous winner of the West Lothian Women in business award and most recently, has completed a MBO of the business to become joint owner.

Michelle is extremely passionate about being able to grow and continually improve Almond Engineering with the help of apprenticeships and by working with DYW and local schools to help transform how business and education engage in West Lothian in regards to apprenticeships in the local areas/Scotland. At the event she’ll talk about the way apprenticeships have shaped Almond Engineering, their experience in the past and hopes for apprentices in the future.