The workshop adjoining Board Production was transformed into our very own version of The Repair Shop, thanks to work experience student Luke Fitzpatrick.
Luke is studying Level 2 Mechanical Engineering at Hopwood Hall College in Middleton, and he's been using his impressive welding skills to fix a broken safety barrier from the wood store, among other projects, by re-purposing scrap metal!
The apprenticeship standard course is designed to equip students with all the knowledge and skills they need to secure a job in industry and hit the ground running, which is exactly what Luke, the son of our web developer Stuart Rose, is hoping to achieve.
He says: "The safety barrier in the wood store had been slammed shut and it had bent it, so I have been finding scrap from outside the workshop, measuring it, straightening it up and re-making it. I'd love to get a job in maintenance - it's all the stuff I enjoy doing.
"I've always loved doing this, being on my feet, doing manual labour and repairing things. I've found that I'm a really good fabricator and I've even done repairs on family members' cars."
A former pupil at Royton and Crompton Secondary School, Luke has already completed a Level 1 Mechanical Engineering course, in which he achieved a Distinction in the welding module, and a Level 2 Electronics and Engineering course.
His current studies are due to complete in the summer and until then he's hoping his tutors will allow him to continue adding to his maintenance skills here at HPP thanks to the warm welcome he's received.
