Top talent

This process has been accelerated following an investment in a strategic stake in the business by Cooper Brown Enterprises Limited in 2017. Acquisitions include the recent purchase of Sheffield-based Pentag Gears and Oilfield Equipment, which has relocated to BG Engineering’s Chesterfield facility, while organic growth will focus on diversifying from existing markets of energy, process control, rail, automotive, defence, and specifically into the aerospace sector.

Here, BG Engineering is well on the journey to AS9100 accreditation, with a planned audit date of September 2018 to add to its existing Lloyds ISO 9001:2015 certification. To deliver on these plans the company is actively recruiting apprentices and has just invested £75,000 with XYZ Machine Tools to create a machining cell for use by apprentices to hone their machining skills.

“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.

“We currently have four apprentices at different stages of training: Sam H who is in his final year and is working in a production management role, James who is moving on to start his HNC in September, Sam S who has just completing his HNC and is working towards a production engineering role and Dylan who is focused on machining. The XYZ cell was purchased with him and those that follow in mind.

“We have also recruited three more apprentices to start in September 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 machine cell at BG comprises an XYZ SMX 5000 ProtoTRAK bed mill with axis travels of 1,524mm x 596mm x 584mm in X, Y and Z, table capacity of 850kg, along with a 5.75kW (7.5HP) spindle with programable speed range of between 40-5,000rpm

Alongside the SMX 5000 sits an XYZ SLX 355 ProTURN lathe – a highly versatile machine equipped with a 5.75kW (7.5hp) 4,000rpm spindle, which can swing parts up to 360mm over the bed and turn up to 900mm in length. Both machines are controlled by XYZ’s ProtoTRAK control system which with its simple to program capability makes apprentice training and the machining of one-off and small batch parts straightforward.

“The XYZ machines are unlike anything else we have on the shopfloor; they provide the perfect introduction to CNC machining and Dylan is making full use of the ProtoTRAK control’s features, such as TRAKing, as well as learning manual machining skills, gaining the experience of the ‘feel’ you only get by winding handles to produce parts, thanks to the XYZ machine’s ability to operate under full CNC or in manual mode,” Mr Brown adds.

“The machines’ capability, quality and cost-effectiveness make them perfect for what we want. Taking on apprentices is quite a commitment, but we have already benefitted by producing good engineers of our own and the philosophy of the business is to encourage employees to develop ownership of, and responsibility for, projects and be open to input from everyone in the company. Our aim is to embark on this journey and become a better business by including everyone in that journey and inspiring job satisfaction.”

Apprentices at BG Engineering are trained under the guidance of the company’s senior and technical engineers. In addition to 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. Their time on the XYZ machines will give them experience of the production environment, as they are entrusted with producing one-offs, small batch quantities and with the production of jigs and fixtures for the bigger machining centres BG owns. The XYZ machines are ideally suited for these tasks.

“Education has always been a strong sector for XYZ in terms of colleges and universities and it is now encouraging that progressive businesses such as BG Engineering are investing in apprentice training and giving these young people the opportunity to learn skills that will see them progress throughout their careers,” concludes XYZ’s managing director, Nigel Atherton. “Our ProtoTRAK controlled machines provide them with the best of CNC and manual machine operation.”

XYZ Machine Tools www.xyzmachinetools.com

BG Engineering www.bgeng.com