ERIKS WELCOMES ITS FIRST APPRENTICES

ERIKS HAS WELCOMED THE FIRST apprentices to its newly designed apprenticeship programme. The new programme demonstrates its commitment to fostering a new generation of engineers and bridging the engineering skills gap.

Thirteen apprentices aged between 17 and 27 will pursue Level 3 Engineering qualifcations across different ERIKS locations throughout the United Kingdom. In stark contrast to the persistent concerns around a lack of enthusiasm for engineering careers in the United Kingdom, ERIKS experienced a strong interest in its apprenticeship programme, with 500 individuals applying for the initiative.

Created from the ground up by Lori Broadhurst, Talent Development Partner at ERIKS, the programme represents an investment of £30,000 per apprentice. According to Lori: “The aim is to futureproof the company’s workforce by not only nurturing career-specifc skills but also fostering a
sense of community among apprentices”.

While the apprentices will primarily hone their skills at their respective sites, they will gather every 4-6 weeks for ‘block release learning’ at SMB College in Leicester, ensuring a well-rounded formal engineering education as well as a practical, hands-on one.

While this inaugural year focuses on engineering apprenticeships, ERIKS plans to expand the programme into other areas in the future, including sales, service, supply chain management, finance, and human resources.