SEMBCORP Utilities UK has donated tens of thousands of pounds worth of equipment to a key safety training simulator at Middlesbrough College.
The industrial giant, which has sites around the globe - including Wilton - has given parts from Teesside’s old Boiler 6 to the £12m STEM Centre being built by Middlesbrough College.
Sembcorp bosses say the Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths training centre will ‘play a vital role’ in bridging industry’s ‘critical’ skills gap.
The new STEM centre is currently taking shape on the Middlehaven site, with doors due to open in 2015.
It will play a vital role in meeting the needs of employers across a wide range of sectors, by training future engineers and delivering bespoke training programmes for workers already in industry.
Boiler 6 – a coal-fired unit at Wilton Power Station - was decommissioned recently, after more than 60 years’ service.
Now the parts will operate the STEM Centre’s simulated COMAH site – Control of Major Accident Hazards – and operational procedures will be in force to raise awareness and develop the important safety behaviours required in industry.
The simulator will create a ‘real’ working environment, teaching trainees to prevent and mitigate the effects of major accidents involving dangerous substances, such as chemicals, petroleum gas and explosives.
George Ritchie, Sembcorp Senior Vice President for HR, said the donation demonstrated the company’s commitment to the centre and showed the level of support for the “massive leap of faith” the college is taking on behalf of the region and its employers.
He said: “It’s a critical time for industry on Teesside and the STEM Centre will play a vital role in bridging the skills gap, not just locally but right across the region providing traineeships, apprenticeships, higher apprenticeships and bespoke training for companies.
“It was very fortuitous that Boiler 6 closed recently and a lot of equipment had become surplus to requirements.
“It seems only right that we donate it to the STEM Centre where it will be used to help train the engineers of the future.”
The donation includes equipment from pumps, valves and pipework to fasteners, instrumentation, controls and racking.
It will assist in delivering first-class training across disciplines from advanced manufacturing, digital warehousing and logistics and process and engineering.
Courses will be available for students of all abilities, from entry level to HND and apprenticeships.
Zoe Lewis, principal and chief executive, said: “We’re overwhelmed by the generosity shown by the management team at Sembcorp, it’s beyond all expectations.
“We can assure them that the equipment will be put to good use.
“The STEM Centre is a natural progression of the relationship we’ve had with the area’s industry for many years – we’re just taking it to another level to guarantee that the Tees Valley remains an engineering skills hotbed.”
Employers keen to find out more about staff training, apprentices or even how they can get involved in working with the STEM Centre once the doors open next year are asked to contact Middlesbrough College on 01642 333322 or email icp@mbro.ac.uk
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