Partner Article

Army leavers find new careers as Teesside engineers

Ex-forces personnel are being helped to find new civilian careers on Teesside thanks to a collaboration between Catterick Garrison and the Tees Valley Engineering Partnership (TVEP). Over the past few months the TVEP has been working to build links between individuals leaving the armed forces and the partnership’s member companies.

National engineering organisation Fabricom Suez is one of the companies to get involved, recruiting two engineers from the MOD as a result of TVEP’s recruitment drive. The two individuals, who both served as mechanical engineers, are currently employed as Health and Safety Advisors at VOC and Fabricom’s Wilton site.

TVEP manager Malcolm Potter said: “According to experts, there are around 1,500 skilled engineers who leave the Armed Forces every year, at least 150 of whom seek new careers here on Teesside. Our partnership with Catterick Garrison is specifically designed to help these individuals to find work and, of course, to provide skilled workers to local firms, so it really is beneficial for all involved.”

Colin McMillan of Fabricom said: “Individuals leaving the armed forces are an ideal source of skilled labour because they are generally very hardworking, disciplined, and not afraid to get their hands dirty. It is true that in some cases they may need introductory training just to adapt their skills to ensure they are sector specific but this is to be expected with almost all employees and it helps that they have strong experience to build on. I would definitely recommend this recruitment route to other employers.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .