Fort Vale Apprentice Arron Orr has won Gold in the CNC Turning finals at WorldSkills UK over the weekend. Here’s more from Arron about his gold achievement and his career so far…
How long have you been working at Fort Vale?
I have been working at Fort Vale since the start of September 2017, however, I attended full time college for the first year. Once I finished the first year, I transferred to Fort Vale. When I arrived, I received a monthly schedule to tell me which department I would be working in. I was working in the Apprentice Cell with Jake Lightbown (Trainer) for a duration, where I developed my CNC Turning skills.
What Apprenticeships/Qualifications have you been working towards during this time?
I am working towards my BTEC Level 3 and HNC qualifications which will be finished in June 2021. I studied at Training 2000 from September 2017 until June 2019.
Describe some of your daily tasks
Setting machines, usually NLX 3000 or NLX 2500.
Tell us about your World Skills journey
My journey began when Alan Emerton (Apprentice Training Manager) decided that I had the machining capability to enter, due to the training I had received from Jake Lightbown. I machined a part to the best of my ability and sent it to Semta for inspection. I then received a letter saying I had qualified. The part was 97.5% accurate which is the highest qualifying piece they have ever received. I started training every Thursday afternoon with Jake to develop further and learn a new skill; Mastercam. I then attended the WorldSkills UK final and won gold.
Where and when did the competition take place?
Birmingham NEC on the 21st – 23rd November
What tasks did you undertake in the WorldSkills competition, to win gold?
I received a drawing and had to use Mastercam to make the program. I posted this to the machine and machined it to the best of my ability.
What are your goals and development interest in the future at Fort Vale?
I would like to progress through the ranks in the Machine Shop and eventually be a Manager or work in the Quality Department. I would also like to pursue my WorldSkills future as far as possible (Euroskills and WorldSkills) as this will have benefits for the company and myself.