AV Birch who can name giants like Bombardier, Ministry of Defence and Network Rail amongst their client list have recognised the need to bring young talent through the ranks with the appointment of Jake Beech, 17 from Telford and Ben Clark, 16 from Diddlebury in South Shropshire.
The pair who have embarked on two-year training apprenticeships, have chosen to start their engineering careers with hands on vocational training rather than choosing University. Ben, who studied at Ludlow Church of England School, spends a day a week at Shrewsbury College and the rest of the week on the job, learning from the existing workforce who are fabricating products such as cranes, presses or access platforms.
Jake is learning electrical engineering at Telford College and is part of AV Birch Automation Division wiring up control panels and sensors on some of the class-leading machines that AV Birch manufacture. Jake hopes to get even more involved with the robotics side of the business now that the firm have been appointed System Integrators with Kawasaki.
Graham Clark, Director of AV Birch welcomed the two apprentices We recognised we needed to grow our workforce in the light of our growing order book and our plans for the next five years. Taking on apprentices means that we will have staff who share our passion for quality, and can grow the business alongside our graduate employees who have come to us through a more academic route.
AV Birch have been manufacturing in Shropshire for over 40 years and employ around 50 people at their facility between Much Wenlock and Bridgnorth.