Engineering Technician Review

The role involves carrying out planned preventative and correctional maintenance tasks on a diverse range of engineering assets around Gatwick airport. Having 8 individual engineering departments across Gatwick Airport, there is always different equipment and systems to work on. You could be carrying out routine maintenance on the shuttle system to then fault-finding on the lighting circuits across the Taxiways.

Having worked on 8 different engineering departments, I have gained extensive knowledge in mechanical, electrical and control systems. I have been given the opportunity to work in one of the most diverse working environments and developed the necessary skills required to carry out the job role. The apprenticeship also allows you to take what you have learnt in the classroom and apply it in real life situations.

With such a diverse working environment, every day gives you new experiences and challenges. The teams are very supportive and make the whole learning experience very enjoyable. The company are very keen to promote team building and organise week long team building activities. This is a brilliant way to encourage good working behaviours while having fun at the same time.

The apprenticeship is well structured. There is a good balance between college theory and on-site practical work. There is a mentoring system in place which works well and there are always people happy to assist the apprentices. One area for improvement would be maintaining consistency between managers. Throughout the 4 year apprenticeship, I had 6 different managers. This could be a problem when trying to prepare for end of year reviews because performance feedback wasn't always passed between managers on handover.

Despite having 6 separate managers over the 4 year apprenticeship, I received all of the required support. Having the mentoring system gives the apprentices another point of contact for guidance without going directly to their line manager. Every engineering department is very supportive of the apprenticeship scheme and are happy to help with any problems.

The training provider has some very good teachers who are willing to help you in any way they can. Unfortunately, we also experienced some very poor teachers. These teachers have since left the training provider and they have hired new ones. I'm not sure if the standard has since improved.

The qualifications obtained on this apprenticeship have proved to be extremely useful in the job role as a technician. Understanding how things work and the theory behind them is extremely useful when trying to fix thing in a safe manner. Practical lessons from the training provider such as electrical installations and welding has also been very useful for carrying out the job role.

The company arrange for an outward bound trip every year to help encourage teamworking and promote company values. This is a very good opportunity to get to know yourself and other apprentices on the course. The course allows you to develop working attitudes and gain new skills such as leading a team.

Yes

The Gatwick apprenticeship offers such a vast and diverse experience which you couldn't get from any other apprenticeship. The airport is like a small town with so many different engineering departments. The departments include: Shuttle, Electronics, Motor transport, Environment Utilites and Estates, HVAC, Life Safety Systems, Airfield and Baggage. Each section plays a huge part in ensuring that the airport remains operational 24 hours a day 365 days a year.

I would recommend this apprenticeship to anybody who is enthusiastic about engineering and willing to work hard to gain the necessary practical skills and qualifications to carry out the job role. I would advise anybody starting the apprenticeship to make the most of the opportunities given to them and try and gain as much experience from the technicians as they can.