Mechanical Engineering Apprentice Review

I am a mechanical machinist currently working on a manual lathe to produce parts for turbochargers and relevant tooling for turbo production/testing. I have to create these parts from provided material to a set of standards concerning dimensions, geometry, and appearance.

All of the machining skills I have developed are new to me, as I had no prior experience of working with machines when I started my apprenticeship, and have also gained knowledge of the workings of turbochargers and their purpose. I have been shown how engine and turbo test cells work and been given a brief overview of how to run them properly, in addition to learning how to build and modify a turbo from it's constituent parts.

I enjoy the process of machining and modifying parts very much, as well as enjoying building turbochargers for testing, especially when the work goes smoothly. It can be very frustrating at times when tooling is unavailable or when certain features cannot be machined due to factors beyond my control, but these are almost always overcome in the end. The only real issue with my apprenticeship course is the college work which accompanies it, as I find the majority of the BTEC qualification to be irrelevant and highly tedious, adding unnecessary stress to my working life.

I feel as though Cummins make an active effort to look after me and ensure that I am well enough to do my job effectively while I am at work, and provide options for me if I am struggling in any way. This makes me feel like a valued part of the business.

The rotation between departments at Cummins is organised relatively well, although there are certain parts of the programme which do not seem necessary or should probably be changed/reordered slightly. However all in all the programme allows me to experience most of the various different job roles and departments at my company and so can be considered relatively effective.

Excluding the monthly review meetings at my workplace, Kirklees College provide very little support unless I go out of my way to seek it out. I can contact my course tutor for discussions concerning my course and the work it entails but he is not always available due to the fact that he has lessons to teach.

I have monthly review meetings with the training staff and a college representative to check on my progress and see whether I have any concerns which need addressing, but on top of this one of the training staff will come round to my work station occasionally to ask how I am doing and generally support me if it is required.

My salary covers the costs of living to an acceptable degree, although I feel that wages in general are too low for people working manual/physical jobs and so I would rather it were somewhat higher. One thing which I dislike is that I have to pay for my own travel into work, in spite of the fact that I am effectively doing a service to the company by turning up and working for them, and so my travel should be paid for in the form of a higher wage or some form of monthly grant.

My company run various community projects around the local area which I am able to get involved in, as well as offering training courses in various new skills relevant to engineering. There are also discounted holidays and trips away available through membership of certain in-company clubs/societies, and each department often runs internally-organised events such as sweepstakes which the workforce can get involved in.

Yes

The quality of resources which Cummins have at their disposal means that an apprentice learning here can develop their skills in the most effective environment possible, while earning a wage which exceeds most other apprenticeship providers.

The application process is long and quite intense, so extensive preparation for each stage is a good idea as it will help you to get an advantage over the competition. It is also a good idea to learn a lot about the business before applying, as knowledge of this kind will impress the interviewers. Being a corporation, a lot of the workings of Cummins are very drawn-out and procedural and this can be frustrating/irritating at times, but remember that it is the corporate nature of the company which allows them to pay a reasonable wage to you.