At Plumbing & Gas Solutions, we are proud of a lot of things; the quality of work, our customer service, and the relationship we have with our clients, for a start. However, nothing makes us prouder than the way we are able to incorporate apprentices into our workforce, and help to nurture them into the next generation of skilled engineers and plumbers.
This #NationalApprenticeshipWeek, we are sharing a bit of insight into our experience putting apprentices at the heart of our business strategy, enabling us to provide an excellent service, while growing in a sustainable way.
Each day, we deploy a team of 12 out to support our clients with all of their plumbing and heating requirements. This team is comprised of 8 fully qualified technicians (four gas engineers and four plumbers), and then the remaining 4 are all apprentices [plus a bonus apprentice in our marketing team!]. This is a pretty high ratio, with a third of our team in training. But, there’s proof in the pudding.
Proven Results
We love the idea of developing the future of our region’s workforce, providing fully-qualified, home-grown commercial gas engineers and commercial plumbers, and have been passionate about doing this for a decade, now.
It’s not just a feel-good initiative, though. We’ve seen first-hand how beneficial it is to invest in apprentices.
In fact, five of our eight plumbers and engineers completed their apprenticeship with us!
Meet Kellan
This is Kellan, one of our longest-tenured engineers. He has been with the business for over eight years now, having joined as an apprentice. As you can see, he has grown up a little bit over that time!
Having worked incredibly hard during his time with us, Kellan is now an incredibly skilled and knowledgeable gas engineer – the absolute best of the best in our region – and is an integral part of our team. A fan favourite, with some of our longest-standing clients seeing his whole journey play out since 2017, KP is the perfect demonstration of why we believe in apprenticeships.
And now, he’s paying it forward.
A Self-Sustaining Cycle
Once an apprentice gains the necessary knowledge and skills to be a fully-qualified gas engineer or plumber, they are able to gain independence, and can work on their own, have their own company van, etc. In addition to this, they, in turn, become the next teachers.
When we bring in a new wave of engineers to join the team, Kellan is often the first to offer support and help to teach them. This is partially because he’s been there and done it. All of our senior engineers are bought into this process, and whether they did their apprenticeship with PGS or not, we’ve all been there. Everyone in this profession started in the same place, and we love seeing our veteran team members passing on their knowledge to the next generation.
Once a member of our team finishes their apprenticeship, they will be expected to share what they’ve learned and support the next wave as they follow in the same footsteps. This cycle is the key to building up a sustainable workforce and instilling your values into the team from day one.
Meet Our Plumbing & Heating Apprentices
More Than A Spare Pair Of Hands
The key to fully maximising the potential of apprentices and getting the most out of these young, enthusiastic team members is to get them involved as early as possible. And, when we say involved, we mean actually involved. From their first job they go to on day one, our experienced engineers will guide them through some of the simple tasks and less technical parts of the work.
Naturally, they won’t be thrust into doing anything dangerous or difficult, and we never assign them with tasks that could compromise a client’s plumbing or heating systems. However, from the moment they put on their safety boots and a PGS polo shirt, we start challenging them.
Whether it’s taking the flue readings during a commercial boiler service, cleaning a magnetic filter or bleeding a radiator, every small task contributes to the learning process. As our apprentices build confidence and become more comfortable over time, we push them to get more and more involved, until they can single-handedly service a boiler with supervision from one of our senior engineers.
Good Habits
One of the key benefits of training your workforce from the ground up is that they will learn to do things the way that you want them to do it. From simply wearing the appropriate PPE all the way to the actual execution of works we carry out. While you would obviously expect a fully-qualified engineer to be able to do a good job and have the knowledge required to get the job done, we take pride in being extremely thorough with our work, and it’s best to instil that from day one.
By training our engineers, we engrain a thorough, professional approach in them from the start, and we pair them with the best in the business to shadow and support as they learn. This gives us the ability to develop good habits and maintain the extremely high standards we hold ourselves to, well into the future.
Growing Together
Arguably the most valuable benefit to our apprentice-heavy approach, and one that has nothing to do with the standard of work or the sharing of knowledge, is actually the fact that our business feels more like a family.
Our engineers spend hours together every day, working in various pairings and groups, depending on the job, and they of course work alongside our fantastic admin team in the office. Over time, as our apprentices grow, they truly become key members of the team, and as they grow, the whole family grows around them.
As an apprentice progresses to become a fully-qualified senior commercial gas engineer, they get to see two whole new generations of apprentices, and then engineers, develop behind them. This helps us bridge the well-known skills gap in our industry [the daunting space between an apprentice and a 10-year experienced veteran] by creating a direct line of support between every rung of the ladder. Our most senior team members support the guys who are fully-qualified, but still growing, and then they pass their knowledge down to the apprentices, who will one day be coaching up their replacement.
If you want a plumbing and heating partner that is passionate about supporting and nurturing the next generation of highly-skilled tradespeople, and who understand that apprenticeships are more than just cheap labour and a spare pair of hands, reach out to Plumbing & Gas Solutions, today.
You can call us on 01908 569031 or drop us an e-mail to info@pgsolutions.co.uk
