CMB Engineering apprentices top winners at National WorldSkills UK

THREE apprentices from CMB Engineering grabbed first place at the National WorldSkills UK competition held from 13-15 November in Birmingham. This is the second time that trainees from the leading canmaking machinery won first prize at the yearly event.

Dominic Trees, Patrick Devanney, and Chris Renwick applied ‘excellence’ in ‘engineering’ in competing with other industry apprentices at the Manufacturing Team Challenge. Tasked to design, manufacture, assemble, and test a complex piece of machinery to demonstrate engineering expertise, the team presented an advanced remote controlled forklift capable of lifting up to 50kg of weight. The design was lightweight and sustainable, and was both time and cost-effective. 

CMB Engineering apprentices, Patrick  Devanney, Chris Devanney and Dominic Trees

The team qualified for the UK squad and will compete again in May 2015 at the WorldSkills finals in Brazil.

This year’s win echoed the success of another group of CMB trainees, the only team from the canmaking industry, who competed at last year’s The WorldSkills International tournament finals. According to George Moffat, who competed and helped to win first place at last year’s WorldSkills competition and mentored the current team, “It is a great honour to have the opportunity to mentor this year’s apprentices for the Manufacturing Team Challenge, especially as I was previously in their position competing in the same competition. I am sure that my participation in this process has also served as a good source of inspiration for this year’s apprentices, as my journey reflects that of many other CMB apprentices who progress to work in leading Engineering roles with exciting career prospects within the company.”

Mr Moffat said that the valuable knowledge and experience he gained as an apprentice, he now uses in his current role as development engineer, which requires him to service various machines from CMB’s product range and travel around the world. 

The three apprentices are pursuing an Engineering Apprenticeship Program at CMB Engineering, which requires them to undertake various tasks such as building canmaking machines, including CMB’s Neckers and Bodymakers. The aspiring engineers hope to take on full-time roles within the company as they complete their engineering degrees.

CMB Engineering general manager Andrew Truelove said the company’s participation at the yearly competition is part of its apprenticeship program because the WorldSkills Competition helps to enrich the learning experience of the trainees. He said the firm has always been committed to providing the best training possible to aspiring engineers toward helping them reach their goal and have a successful career in the canmaking industry. He added the firm gives importance to talented individuals who can commit themselves to the success of the company and its mission of providing the best service possible to customers.