“Training for the future of BG Engineering is very important to us; we firmly believe in growing and nurturing our own talent through apprenticeships,” says Chris Brown, director at Cooper Brown Enterprises, which in 2017 bought a strategic stake in BG. “We currently have four apprentices at different stages of training. In addition, we have recruited three more apprentices to start this month, by which time apprentices will make up 20% of our team. These are exciting times around Chesterfield and Sheffield, with developments such as the AMRC, Boeing and McLaren all happening. This brings with it lots of investment in the greater manufacturing community, and we want to play our part. In addition to our own apprentices, we are also involved with Work-Wise.co.uk and Getuptospeed.org.uk, two charities that are actively involved in inspiring young people to choose a career in engineering and manufacturing.”
The apprentice machining cell at BG Engineering comprises an XYZ SMX 5000 ProtoTRAK bed mill, with axis travels of 1,524 by 596 by 584 mm in X, Y and Z, table capacity of 850 kg, and a 5.75 kW spindle with programable speed range of between 40-5,000 rpm. Alongside the SMX 5000 sits an XYZ SLX 355 ProTURN lathe, which is equipped with a 5.75 kW 4,000 rpm spindle. The ProTURN can swing parts up to 360 mm over the bed and turn up to 900 mm in length.
“The XYZ machines are unlike anything else we have on the shop floor, and provide the perfect introduction to CNC machining,” says Brown. “Our apprentices are making full use of the ProtoTRAK control’s features, such as TRAKing, as well as learning manual machining skills. They are gaining experience of the ‘feel’ you only get by winding handles to produce parts, thanks to the XYZ machine’s ability to operate in full CNC or manual mode.”
Apprentices at BG Engineering are trained under the guidance of the company’s senior engineers. As well as machining, they will experience all aspects of the business, and are encouraged to take their academic training as far as they can, whether this be Level 3 BTEC National Diploma in Mechanical Engineering, HNC or beyond.
