Welcome to a new generation of engineers – we need them!

This past year has been a rocky one for many. Rightly, some of the focus has been on “students” – be they 5 years old or 21 – or 55! Much of the dialogue has been around university life and the pros and cons of online learning.  Engineering is one discipline though that really demands on-the-job, practical learning so it is fantastic that Norbord has welcomed four new recruits who are enrolled on the company’s Engineering Graduate Scheme.  In fact, the organisation has been operating apprentice schemes in one form or another for over 40 years.

For all the new recruits, the Norbord scheme is a continuation of their engineering training gained at university and they bring with them individual skills which will be put to good use. There is no stopping them now! Andrew Chapman, Grant McEwan, Deborah Ayebare and Luca Micheletti are based among Norbord’s plants in Cowie, South Molton and Inverness.

Andrew Taylor, Group Process and Engineering Manager at Norbord, is one of the graduate mentors and knows the importance of graduate schemes. “It’s a real pleasure to be able to support and mentor the introduction and development of our recent engineering graduate intake.  I started my career in the wood panels industry, some 25 years ago, as a graduate process engineer and know just how beneficial to my own development and experience this opportunity was” explained Andrew.

Despite the challenging times young people find themselves in with training and employment right now, Andrew Chapman says he has “already been exposed to a wealth of different areas within the business giving me a good understanding of the processes and the company as a whole”.  These sentiments are echoed by his fellow graduates who also say they have been made feel very welcome by their new colleagues across the company and already feel very much part of the Norbord family!

While Grant brings an analytical approach to solving problems enjoying “data analysis and finding ways to deconstruct and organise large data sets”, Luca favours 3D software packages to model and simulate real life problems. Deborah has a creative approach to tackling issues and Andrew feels that, being new to the business, he can “look at problems from a fresh perspective without being biased by what has been done historically”.