Jacob Graduates his Apprenticeship

We are so proud of Jacob Upton who has graduated his apprenticeship this month and achieved an overall Merit for his HNC.

You may recognize Jacob as he is featured in many of our blog posts. Jacob joined the Variohm team in 2016 as our Engineering Apprentice. He works within our engineering department as part of a growing team.

Jacobs Time at Variohm so far…

Jacob started his apprenticeship with some time in our production department. Working on manufacturing and modifying the sensors themselves gave him a deep understanding of how the parts go together and how sensors are made. He also spent time working in other departments at Variohm including; accounts, repairs and returns, to give him the understanding of how the business works as a whole.

Jacob then moved into the Engineering department where he was able to spend time designing products, one of the most memorable moments of his journey so far was when his first designed product reached the production department and he was able to see it come to life.

During his time at Variohm Jacob has been nominated for various apprentice awards and won the AMI Manufacturing Apprentice of the month in 2018. Jacob also got involved in various events including the Employability day at Silverstone UTC where he spoke to year 11 students and answered questions, they had on his experience of working whilst completing an apprenticeship.

Studying During Lockdown

The last few months of Jacobs qualification have taken place during the lockdown in the UK. For this, his classes all moved online and his assessments had to be submitted online rather than in person as the college was shut.

Despite the challenges faced with lockdown study, Jacob was still able to continue his study and pass his qualification!

Moving Forward

Jacob already has plans to continue his studying by starting a HND in September. When asked what he was looking forward to now that he is no longer an apprentice Jacob answered: “Continuing my journey with Variohm and developing as a person whilst broadening my knowledge of the evolving world of engineering”

Richard Kelley our Engineering Manager says “This was a 4-year journey, and in that time, Jacob has ensured to become a key player in our Engineering Team.  This isn’t the end of the road by any means and he is continuing his development and education for the next 2 years, with a commitment to an HND qualification.

I think it goes without saying that his input and commitment to Variohm have been well received and his dedication to continual improvement across the business are exactly the traits we need and benefit from.”

Graham Pattison, our Group Managing Director says “A huge congratulations to Jacob,

He truly is a valuable member of our team and like many others he has gone the extra mile.”

We are very proud of Jacob and wish him luck for his future studies and in his new role at Variohm.