HR apprentices among recent trainees at Bentley The government is on course to create half a million apprenticeships this year, according to John Hayes, the minister for further education, skills and lifelong learning.

There were nearly 330,000 adult apprenticeship starts in the first nine months of this academic year, Hayes told attendees at an apprenticeship summit hosted by manufacturers’ organisation the EEF this morning.

This figure represented 114,000 more apprentice places than last year, and would far exceed the coalition’s commitment to create an extra 50,000 opportunities in its first 12 months, he said.

“With this kind of growth I’m confident we will reach half a million,” explained Hayes. “We will have far more apprentices in Britain then we have ever had in our history – that is the scale of the pace of change.”

He said “latent demand in the system” had contributed to the rise in the number of programmes offered by employers.

“I always believed there was sufficient demand to make an early impact and I don’t think we have tapped all of that,” he said. “Business are increasingly recognising the need for advanced skills. In order to prosper we need to re-think the position of business and commerce, and how we can deliver greater productivity and guarantee more competitiveness.”

Hayes called for the social status of apprenticeships to be raised and said the government would be tackling the “aesthetics” of such learning pathways, adding that the nation had become “too apologetic about practical learning.”

“People have to feel that their successes and achievements are recognised and celebrated by themselves and their peers,” he continued. “We have taken that for granted in academic learning, which has retained many badges and emblems, and we want practical learning to have them too.”

“Developing graduation ceremonies, awards, apprentice alumni networks and the publication of results are all things we are looking at. It’s not a question of whether, it’s a question of when we do that.”

Hayes told delegates that apprenticeships “were rising up the political agenda” and called on employers to continue to invest in such qualifications.

Christine Gaskell, member of the board for personnel at Bentley Motors, told the conference that the car manufacturer was not only increasing the number of individuals it was training in engineering, but also in the fields of HR, finance, sales and marketing, and hospitality.

“Our ethos is to grow our own talent, which is why even through the difficult economic downturn we continued to invest in more apprenticeships than we had done in previous years,” she said.

“Social and practical skills are key factors to success, alongside the academic ability of individuals,” she continued. “Apprentices have the added advantage of a work ethic and business understanding that graduates don’t always have.”

She added that Bentley Motors had seen applications for its apprentice places treble last year, as school leavers sought out alternatives to further education – and the accompanying student debt.
But today’s summit did raise concerns about the continued difficulty in recruiting young people with sufficient maths and science knowledge into engineering apprenticeships; and questioned the collaboration between employers, educators and apprenticeship training providers.

Terry Scuoler, chief executive of the EEF, said that while the UK manufacturing and engineering sector was showing promising signs of economic growth, only seven per cent of all apprenticeships were in that sector – a number that was proving “stubborn and challenging” to increase.

From here

A young engineer from Cambridge who believes the UK could learn from Sweden’s ambitious green energy plans has won a prestigious award to go and visit first-hand the country’s innovative hydroelectricity schemes. Emma Williams, civil design engineer at Mott MacDonald, was awarded £1,500 as the 2011 QUEST Eloise Plunkett award winner to explore her belief that the UK has much greater scope to expand its renewable energy generation.

Sweden is the first country to commit to becoming independent of fossil fueled energy generation by 2020 without building any more nuclear power stations. It currently generates more than 40 percent of its energy from renewable sources, a high proportion of which is hydroelectricity. In contrast, only two percent of the UK’s energy consumption comes from green sources.

Emma will be travelling to Sweden by cargo ship, a highly sustainable form of transport, and visiting several hydro schemes over a period of two weeks. She hopes to learn more about how the UK can adapt some of the innovative solutions Sweden has implemented.

“Hydroelectricity is an efficient form of renewable energy and the UK has a growing opportunity to install small hydro schemes. Experiencing successful renewable technology ‘in the flesh’ is far superior to other forms of learning,” she said.

The QUEST Eloise Plunkett award is granted from the Eloise and Katie Memorial Trust, set up in memory of sisters Eloise, a civil engineer with a passion for travelling, and Katie Plunkett who both died of cancer at an early age. The award grants £1,500 annually to enable a newly qualified female civil engineer to undertake an overseas civil engineering project or endeavour, which takes an innovative or unusual approach.

Regional director Glen Owens said, “ICE is committed to encouraging budding civil engineers to gain experience and knowledge through a variety of ways. The QUEST Eloise Plunkett award provides an invaluable opportunity for a newly qualified member to travel overseas to pursue a relevant project. We are very happy to be able to assist Emma on her quest.”

Emma’s is the 5th award made by the Trust, and to commemorate the occasion ICE invited Eloise’s parents Celia and David Plunkett, 2011’s winner Emma Williams and 2010’s winner Katalin Andrasi to a presentation at OGGS. To express the Institution’s gratitude for their initiation and continued support of the award, ICE president Peter Hansford presented Celia and David with a book containing the reports of past award winners and a certificate of appreciation.

From Cambridge Network

A revolutionary UK spaceplane concept has been boosted by the conclusions of an important technical review.

The proposed Skylon vehicle would do the job of a big rocket but operate like an airliner, taking off and landing at a conventional runway.

The European Space Agency's propulsion experts have assessed the details of the concept and found no showstoppers.

They want the next phase of development to include a ground demonstration of its key innovation - its Sabre engine.

This power unit is designed to breathe oxygen from the air in the early phases of flight - just like jet engines - before switching to full rocket mode as the Skylon vehicle climbs out of the atmosphere.

It is the spaceplane's "single-stage-to-orbit" operation and its re-usability that makes Skylon such an enticing prospect and one that could substantially reduce the cost of space activity, say its proponents.

Mature concept

The UK Space Agency (UKSA) had commissioned Esa to evaluate the design, and the European organisation's staff reported on Tuesday that they had not seen any obvious flaws.

 “From what we've seen so far, we can't identify any showstoppers”

"Esa has not identified any critical topics that would prevent a successful development of the engine," they write in their review.

Skylon has been in development in the UK in various guises for nearly 30 years.

It is an evolution of an idea first pursued by British Aerospace and Rolls Royce in the 1980s.

That concept, known as Hotol, did have technical weaknesses that eventually led the aerospace companies to end their involvement.

But the engineers behind the project continued to refine their thinking and they are now working independently on a much-updated vehicle in a company called Reaction Engines Limited (REL).

Sabre Engine (Reaction Engines)

Realising the Sabre propulsion system is essential to the success of the project.

The engine would burn hydrogen and oxygen to provide thrust - but in the lower atmosphere this oxygen would be taken directly from the air.

This means the 84m-long spaceplane can fly lighter from the outset with a higher thrust-to-weight ratio, enabling it to make a single leap to orbit, rather than using and dumping propellant stages on the ascent - as is the case with current expendable rockets.

But flying an integrated air-breathing and rocket engine brings unique challenges.

At high speeds, Sabre would have to manage 1,000-degree gasses entering its intake. This hot air would need to be cooled prior to being compressed and burnt with hydrogen. Reaction Engines' answer is a novel precooler heat-exchanger.

This would incorporate arrays of extremely fine piping to extract the heat and plunge the intake gases to minus 130C in just 1/100th of a second.

Ordinarily, the moisture in the air would be expected to freeze out rapidly, covering the network of fine piping in a blanket of frost and dislocating its operation.

Regulatory support

But REL says it has developed an anti-frost solution that will allow the heat exchanger to run and run. Esa's technical staff have witnessed this "secret technology" on the lab bench and can confirm it works. The agency's experts say they also fully expect a scaled up version of the precooler technology to function properly this summer when it is tested in conjunction with a standard jet engine.

"We've not looked at everything; we've focussed on the engine and the [Skylon's] structure," explained Dr Mark Ford, Esa's head of propulsion engineering. "But from what we've seen so far, we can't identify any showstoppers. It's a very interesting technology and would be very innovative if it works."

Assuming, this summer's test programme does indeed achieve its goals, Reaction Engines says private investors will release £220m ($350m) of funds to take Skylon into the next phase of its development.

This would include the production of a ground demonstrator that would show off Sabre's full engine cycle - its air-breathing and rocket modes and the transition between the two.

Test rig (Reaction Engines) Sabre's precooler technology will be put through its paces on a test rig this summer

The price for launching a kilogram of payload into a geostationary orbit - the location for today's big telecoms satellites - is currently more than $15,000 (£9,000). Skylon's re-usability could bring that down to less than $1,000, claims REL.

If the vehicle ever does go into full production, the investment required will probably be in the region of $9-12bn (), but the company will not be looking to government for that money.

"The government hasn't got that sort of money and we want this project to be a privately financed one," said Alan Bond, the managing director of REL.

"What government can do for us however is deal with the legislation that surrounds the eventual introduction of a spaceplane - how it is certified and how it conforms to certain aspects of international space law. And the government has already indicated it's willingness to do all this in the recent budget."

Original Article

BAM and PGGM form joint venture (joint press release) Bunnik/Zeist, the Netherlands, 19 May 2011 - Royal BAM Group and Dutch pension fund administrator PGGM announce the formation of a 50/50 joint venture between BAM PPP and PGGM.

This joint venture, BAM PPP PGGM Infrastructure Coöperatie U.A., marks a significant development, and is the first of its kind, in the European Public Private Partnership (PPP) market. It combines the capabilities of a proven developer of PPP concessions with the skills of a major long-term investor.

The objective of the joint venture is to provide a long-term partnership to invest in the developing social and transport PPP markets in the Netherlands, Belgium, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany and Switzerland.

The initial target value to be invested is €390 million. BAM PPP will transfer into the joint venture a total value of €150 million of existing PPP assets and the remaining €240 million will be allocated to new projects yet to be acquired.

BAM PPP will retain full responsibility for bid management for new projects and the provision of asset management services to the joint venture and will represent the joint venture in its transactions. PGGM will provide the majority of the required capital for existing projects, while new projects will be funded on a 50/50 basis. The board of the joint venture will be formed on an equal basis between the parties.

Nico de Vries, Chairman of the Executive Board of Royal BAM Group, said: “This innovative partnership with PGGM is strategically important for BAM. It provides access to a new source of long-term capital that will enable us to accelerate our growth in the European PPP market. It also facilitates our strategy of structured divestment and recycling of equity in operational projects whilst permitting BAM to continue as a longterm partner to the projects. Overall, it will help BAM consolidate its position as a leader in this field.”

Henk Huizing, Head of Infrastructure at PGGM: “This joint venture with BAM perfectly fits into our strategy of co-operating with strong strategic partners and investing directly in infrastructure projects. This investment in PPP infrastructure assets – including transport and public buildings, such as schools – is aligned with the ESG criteria in the investment policy of our institutional clients. Furthermore, the inflation-linked returns together with the stable long-term cash flows of these PPP projects meet our clients’ interests. The revenues from the PPP projects are secured through long-term concession agreements with governments and are therefore considered to have a modest risk profile. As part of this joint venture PGGM will invest directly in existing Dutch infrastructure projects as well as the development of future infrastructure projects in the Netherlands and other North West European countries.”

About BAM PPP
BAM PPP is an operating company of Royal BAM Group, a worldwide construction services company generating revenues of approximately €7.6 billion and listed on Euronext Amsterdam. BAM PPP is responsible for Royal BAM Group’s involvement in the PPP market. Operating from offices in Bunnik, Birmingham, Brussels, Dublin, Frankfurt am Main and Glasgow, BAM PPP is active in the road, rail, education, healthcare, judicial and general accommodation sectors and is well positioned to access most Western European markets.

About PGGM
PGGM is a leading pension fund administrator with origins in the care and welfare sector. PGGM provides pension management, integrated asset management, management support and policy advice for pension funds. PGGM currently manages around EUR 105 billion of pension assets of over 2.3 million participants. As a co-operative organisation, PGGM provides services for its 560,000 members that help them to secure a valuable
future.

Further information:

BAM:
- BAM PPP: V. Harris, +44 (0)141 779 8634;
- Royal BAM Group - Press: A.C. Pronk, +31 (0)30 659 86 21;
- Royal BAM Group - Analysts: P. Snippe, +31 (0)30 659 87 07.

PGGM:
David Uitdenbogaard, Spokesman
E-mail: david.uitdenbogaard@pggm.nl
Telephone: +31 (0)30 277 97 35
www.pggm.nl

Company:  Koninklijke BAM Groep nv

Taken from www.bam.eu

Subsea UK is to offer a series of scholarships to increase the number of highly qualified subsea engineers in the industry.

The industry body is investing in a scholarship programme which will enable successful candidates to study towards a post-graduate MSc in subsea engineering. Three full time and three part time scholarships are to be offered.

Eligible candidates, who will be invited to apply before the 15th July every year, will be graduate engineers normally living in the UK and who are supported by a Subsea UK member company.

Subsea UK chief executive, Alistair Birnie, said: “We are delighted to be able to contribute to the industry by developing both young and mature engineers alike who will drive forward the next generation of subsea services and technology.

“As a self-sustaining membership organisation, we are entirely funded by our members, generating revenue through subscriptions and our various initiatives and services. The success in delivering these services has allowed us to continually build a surplus which we are investing in the industry’s future.”

The Subsea UK scholarship will cover up to 80% of the total annual cost up to a maximum of £7,500 for a full-time course and £3,500 for a part-time one. As well as fees, the costs covered will include course material, books, travel, subsistence and accommodation where appropriate.

The post-graduate masters scholarships are intended to be either a one-year full-time programme or suitable part-time programme.  Students applying must have received an offer of a place at any UK university.  The scholarship will be paid to the sponsoring company and the student must undertake to continue in the employment of that company for a minimum of two years after completion of the degree programme.

Interested companies or individuals should visit the Subsea UK website for further information (www.subseauk.com)

Subsea UK champions the UK subsea supply chain, representing over 200 members. It acts as a focal point for all stakeholders to promote the sector and maximise its opportunities at home and abroad and provides a national forum for collaboration, diversification and technology development.

The last review of the subsea sector in 2007 revealed that the UK subsea sector comprised around 761 companies, supporting 50,000 jobs, generating £6 billion in revenues and exporting around 56% of those revenues.

08 May 2011 By Nicola Cooke, Sunday Business Post

Money can be raised on the international markets to fund the building of Metro North, according to a member of one of the consortiums bidding to build the rail line.

Mike Flynn, one of the lead consultants on Metro Express, said he was ‘‘confident the money is there’’ to build the €3 billion rail line, provided the Irish government remains committed to it.

Last week, transport minister Leo Varadkar signalled that only one of the two large-scale rail projects – Metro North and the Dart Interconnector - may go ahead. ‘‘This is not about MacQuarie [bank] writing a cheque; we have been speaking to between 30 and 40 banks about this project, who are on a panel and have not gone away," said Flynn, who is employed by Transdev.

The Metro Express consortium includes the MacQuarie Group, the Sisk construction firm and transport operators Transdev. They and rival bidders Celtic Express met the Railway Procurement Agency (RPA) last week to hear details about a review process for the project, which will be completed by next September.

‘‘It is a case of who the final contractor would be before due diligence begins, but the funding can be drawn down. If you were to borrow the money this minute, the interest would be higher than we would like, but as things stand, we would not need to draw that down for 18 months to two years yet."

He described Metro North as ‘‘a no-brainer’’ compared to a rail spur from the Dart line from Clongriffin to the airport.

The latter idea was first mooted 20 years ago and is now being reconsidered. ‘‘Metro North is about connecting Swords and north county Dublin to the city, and servicing large facilities like the Mater Hospital and DCU (Dublin City University) - not just one destination, with only 8,000 passengers a day."

Meanwhile, CIE has hired Goodbody consultants to draw up a business case for the spur line, estimated to cost €300 million, which will be finished by the end of next month.

Sir James Dyson believes that Britain needs to look to its heritage and begin to make quality products rather than rely on 'digital fads'.

Dyson, talking to TechRadar as part of Brit week, believes that we must avoid becoming a service industry nation, but also believes that focusing too heavily on internet innovation may be short-sighted.

"Britain has a great heritage of invention and a thirst to adopt good technology." he said "Digital fads are fine, but don't stand alone."

Make stuff

"We need to focus on creating products - tangible exports - which will contribute to long-term economic growth," he added.

Dyson believes that converting bright ideas into great products is the way forward, and is urging the government to help.

"We have great universities but we don't make the most of technology from them," he said.

"It is the government's job to bring business and universities closer, so that their ideas can be commercialised."


Read more: http://www.techradar.com/news/world-of-tech/uk-needs-to-get-back-to-manufacturing-dyson-949266#ixzz1LOJr0C00

Deputy minister for housing and regeneration Jocelyn Davies has laid the first sleeper to mark the start of a major project to extend the Llangollen Railway in Wales west from Glandyfrdwy to Corwen.

Davies visited Corwen station to see the plans for the railway after travelling from Llangollen to Glandyfrdwy on board the steam train with members of the Llangollen Railway Trust and the leader of Denbighshire County Council Hugh Evans.

The extension has been made possible by £500,000 of Welsh Assembly Government funding that was announced by the Deputy Minister earlier this year. £370,000 has been made available for this year which has allowed the work to begin sooner than expected.

The work will be undertaken by the Llangollen Railway Trust which has been working closely with Denbighshire County Council and the local community to prepare the town for the railway’s arrival.