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Honda (UK) Hosts ‘See Inside Manufacturing’ Open Day

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Friday, 06 July 2012 08:44
See Inside Manufacturing event guests at the Honda InstituteHonda (UK) today hosted around one hundred guests from the teaching and careers advisory professions, as well as students of varying ages from across the South of England, at Honda’s award winning apprentice and management training facility - the Honda Institute. This activity was part of Honda (UK)’s commitment to supporting the government’s ‘See Inside Manufacturing’ (SIM) initiative, which debuted just last year.
‘See Inside Manufacturing’ is a joint initiative between the government’s Department for Business, Innovations and Skills (BIS) and Industry (the Automotive Council), designed to challenge and change outdated perceptions about manufacturing in the UK today and encourage more people to consider careers in engineering and manufacturing.

The scheme was first piloted in 2011 by the UK automotive industry when more than 30 companies opened up their doors to young people, teachers and career advisers to give a better insight into what it is like to work at an innovative, state-of-the-art manufacturing facility and also learn more about the great range of careers associated with manufacturing. The pilot was so successful that ‘See Inside Manufacturing’ has been expanded for 2012 to now also include the food and drink, aerospace and defence industries, in addition to automotive.

Honda (UK) is delighted to support this great initiative for the second year and today’s open day at the Honda Institute near Heathrow gave educators and career advisers, as well as over fifty young people, a better understanding of the varied career paths available within Honda’s extensive manufacturing, head office, training and dealership facilities within the UK.

The event was supported by Honda’s own apprentices, technicians and manufacturing production line staff, who spoke about their jobs and the reasons they chose their particular career paths, in order to provide guests with a real insight into the different routes into particular roles, the work involved and the enjoyment each of them finds in their working life.

Honda (UK)’s Corporate Communications Manager, Fiona Cole, said, “Today was an excellent chance for Honda (UK) to help demonstrate what a vibrant sector the automotive industry is to work in and the varied career opportunities the industry and Honda have to offer. It was encouraging to see so many guests from students at GCSE, A level and degree levels, right through to those in careers advisory professions, so clearly getting a better insight into both the opportunities within automotive manufacturing but also within Honda, that they themselves say they would never have imagined were available. We’re delighted to have been able to support BIS with their superb See Inside Manufacturing initiative and hopefully inspire more young people to consider automotive manufacturing, with its varied facets, as a real career choice.”

Business Minister, Mark Prisk MP, said, “I’m delighted that various companies within the automotive sector are once again pledging their support to the See Inside Manufacturing programme following the successful trial last year. It’s encouraging to have iconic names signing up to take part. Last year thousands of people got to see just what exciting opportunities lie in the sector and wider supply chain and I urge people to see for themselves what modern manufacturing is all about. It is an important step in giving teachers and careers advisers the opportunity to see, first-hand, the essential role that industry plays across the UK to help us achieve the sort of sustainable and balanced economic growth that the country needs. The Government is investing in more apprenticeships than ever before. Together with industry we must inspire more young people to see manufacturing and engineering as a viable and exciting career choice. We also need to ensure that UK manufacturing can take on its competitors head on and make the next decade one of the most dynamic and entrepreneurial periods in our history.”

To learn more about the automotive industry and ‘See Inside Manufacturing’ please visit www.smmt.co.uk and www.bis.gov.uk. To learn more about manufacturing, technical and apprenticeship career opportunities within Honda (UK) please visit www.hondapeople.co.uk and www.hondamanufacturing.co.uk.

Notes:
About Manufacturing in the UK (information provided by SMMT / BIS)
Contrary to wider misconception, the UK remains a leading manufacturing nation. Manufacturing has about 12% of the UK economy, half the exports on the goods side and provides 2.5 million jobs. Manufacturing also accounts for about 75% of business R&D. Despite the UK possessing a major modern manufacturing capability, far too often a common misconception holds sway that the UK makes very little, facilities use old style equipment and careers offer mainly repetitious, dirty, low tech and low paid work. Many young people who have potential skills that industry needs therefore still go elsewhere. Around 43% of those who graduated in 2009 did so with a degree in a STEM subject (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). But just one in 20 of them went to work in manufacturing. ‘See Inside Manufacturing’ is part of both redressing manufacturing’s image and also the reluctance of young people with STEM qualification to work within this environment.
The Honda Institute
- Honda’s Technical, Commercial & Product training facility - opened May 2001
- Purpose built £2.4m facility for people development
- 45,000 sq ft training facility
- Delivers training courses covering all Honda business areas
- Serves 10,000 people employed in Honda dealerships
- Delivers circa 25,000 people-days training per annum
- Works with Sector Skills and industry bodies such as Automotiveskills, The Institute of the Motor Industry, City and Guilds and The Learning and Skills Council
- Recently received ‘Outstanding’ grade by Ofsted
Honda (UK) Apprentice Scheme
- Trains 80-100 apprentice graduates per year
- Year round recruitment
- 1000 apprentices since 2001 covering England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales
- Graduate completion rate of 86.3% - 16.8% above national average
- Five different apprenticeship schemes: Car, motorcycle, parts operations, lawn & garden and marine engineering

Article source: Honda Press Office
 
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