Bridgnorth training centre to transform county's economy

The Marches Centre for Manufacturing Technology will occupy a redundant building which had been used for storage by castings firm Grainger & Worrall, delivering training for thousands of young people over the next few years.

In theory, this could be game-changing for the county. It will deliver ground-level engineering skills in volumes never seen before in Shropshire.

That in turn will allow small manufacturers to grow and develop. It will give the county the skills it needs to maintain a thriving manufacturing sector, and to give bigger engineering firms the confidence that they can safely set up shop here and employ the right people for their business.

But exactly how transformational can this building be?

"I think it could massively change the make-up of business in Shropshire," said Matthew Snelson, the MCMT's managing director.

"Engineering is one of the priority sectors for the council and the LEP. Shropshire has lower than the national income and skills levels.

"We are trying to make Shropshire a really great place to do business with skills and access to technology allowing small businesses to grow quickly. We are removing some of the blockers and barriers."

Mr Snelson also works for Grainger & Worrall, one of the private sector backers of the MCMT, and said the new offer of training could bring social benefits to Shropshire.

"It could help keep families local," he said. "When youngsters go off to university often we have lost them from the region, and they sometimes don't come back.

"What we have found at Grainger & Worrall is where we take on apprentices they stay with us, stay local, and grow within the business. We use the phrase 'grow your own, keep you own'."

The calibre of those involved in the centre is high. As well as Grainger & Worrall, which is renowned for providing engine castings for a number of Formula One teams, the centre is backed by Salop Design & Engineering in Shrewsbury and Classic Motor Cars which is a neighbour of the MCMT on the Stanmore Industrial Estate.

Training provider In-Comm, which is already working with Salop at its own apprentice academy in Shrewsbury, is also on board.

Machinery has been contributed by businesses including precision measurement company Hexagon MI, testing machines company Zwick, and robotics specialist Mechatronic.

Backed by the LEP via the Government's Growth Deal, the cavernous building is undergoing a £3 million transformation to make it suitable for the training facility.

The first 68 apprenticeships are already on offer from the manufacturing, engineering and automotive sectors – with about 25 already snapped up.

The ambitions are sky-high, though. By 2020, the MCMT is expected to provide training for 2,020 young people in Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin, Herefordshire and Mid Wales.

This week, the first machinery was delivered for the new training centre. On July 14 the main part of the building will be finished, and in the first week of September the first apprentices will be welcomed through the doors.

"We are going from nothing to big overnight," Mr Snelson said.

"It's not a gradual ramping up, we just go lie in September. The overall project from when we got the contract from the LEP to launching is nine months.

"It's like having a baby. You go from conception to the point where you have to go. We are getting ready now for operational launch."

He added: "The whole thing started in 2015, when we got together the larger manufacturers and said if we don't do something different all that will happen is that we will cannibalise each other – we will eat into each other's skills.

"That won't do anyone any good. We need to flood the base with skills.

"That's why the LEP got behind us and why we put in the bid for £2 million of Growth Deal money to get this off the ground.

"The challenge now is converting that goodwill into bums on seats.

"The businesses involved so far are local engineering businesses. It's growing, we are building a brand here from scratch, but we have a strong network across the executive level and we are drawing on those contacts."

The MCMT will work with apprentices at all levels, and with partners across the county will be providing levels of training which are beyond the capacity of its partner colleges.

Apprentices will be able to use engineering, measuring and manufacturing equipment including 15 lathes, 15 mills, seven CNC machines, metrology equipment including lasers, and robotics.

It will also have an auditorium for hire, and as well as training apprentices will work with local businesses on product development, allowing them to innovate in the local area.

New revenue streams are being explored to help keep it running in perpetuity, including an "engineering club", in which for a monthly fee businesses can access the facilities.