The recipient of the Apprentice of the Year 2015 Award has been named as Daniel Catlow, of Swagelok.

Sponsored by Isle of Man Bank, the Apprentice of the Year award recognises the best Apprentice on the final year of the Engineering and Manufacturing Sector Apprenticeship Scheme. The Scheme is a joint programme between the Isle of Man College and Engineering and Manufacturing Sector companies initiated by students joining the 36 places available each September on the Foundation Apprenticeship in Engineering course run at the College’s Advanced Manufacturing Training Centre. (Places still available for this September course – go to www.iomcollege.ac.im and search the course to find application form).

Judging took place on 20th July 2015 where each of the participating companies selected the best Craft and Technician projects which were then put forward at the judging event. Each Apprentice gave a fifteen minute presentation on their project to the judges detailing the need, concept, development, merits and implementation where applicable.

The judging panel was formed of John Hunter Head of Corporate and Commercial Banking Isle of Man Bank, Dave Hester General Manager Swagelok (hosted event), Colin Bagshaw Human Resources Officer RLC Ronaldsway and Andrew Sherry Operations Manager Triumph Actuation Systems.

The judges’ scores confirmed the high standard of projects and in particular the breadth of entries and relevance to business improvement opportunities.

Daniel Catlow was awarded Apprentice of the Year for his project on the New K Series Regulator (regulators control fluid flow – for example oil flow on an oil rig where they are often used and Swagelok have a commanding market share). The project was to develop a new K-series regulator to fill a potential market gap in the range. The concept has been refined, peer reviewed, verified and a test batch manufactured with the design now proven to work up to the required 500 psig pressure.

The next stage of the process is to review the design for any improvements, then move ahead to validation by developing and following a full testing plan concluding with a final validation and finalising the manufacturing process, drawings, quality standards and other documentation. After successful completion of this, the new regulator will be added to the regulator catalogue and offered for sale across the world.

Daniel was educated at Castle Rushen High School and Isle of Man College and is currently completing his third year of his apprenticeship, in which he has completed a HNC in Manufacturing Engineering. He is looking to start the subsequent degree course in September at the College.

Daniel will now represent the Engineering and Manufacturing Sector at the North West Aerospace Alliance New Talent Awards competition later in the year.

Other projects/nominations presented were:

• Leadership development – Ozzy Madey (RLC Ronaldsway),
• K Series Rig Fixture - Chris Killey (Swagelok),
• Advantages of Electrical Discharge Machining setups opposed to conventional machine setups – Jake McElroy (Triumph Actuation Systems) and
• Advantages of alternative machining methods – Matthew Corlett (Triumph Actuation Systems).

John Hunter, Isle of Man Bank, commented:

“As a community bank we are pleased to have been able to support the Apprentice of the Year Award since 2008. I was so impressed by such a talented cohort of apprentices, all of whom are a credit to themselves, their companies and the educational work undertaken to bring the skills to the fore. The Engineering and Manufacturing Sector is of strategic importance to the Isle of Man and one which the Isle of Man Bank is proud to be associated with.”

David Hester, Swagelok, commented:

“Swagelok was delighted to host this event. It was great to see the very high standard that our apprentices have reached with both their project work and their presentation skills. This event will continue to grow as we see more and more young people choosing to join the new Foundation Apprenticeship in Engineering Course offered by the Isle of Man College in its impressive new training facility.”

Photo - left to right - Andrew Sherry, Operations Manager (Triumph Actuation Systems), Jake McElroy (Triumph Actuation Systems), Chris Killey (Swagelok), John Hunter, Head of Corporate and Commercial Banking (Isle of Man Bank), Daniel Catlow - winner (Swagelok), Ozzy Madey (RLC - Ronaldsway), Matthew Corlett (Triumph Actuation Systems), Colin Bagshaw, HR Officer (RLC-Ronaldsway) and David Hester, General Manager (Swagelok).