Area engineer’s marathon eff ort

Plugged in

Marathon eff ort

Congratulations to area engineer Ian McConville who successfully completed his first London Marathon in April, at the ripe young age of 59.

The achievement is even more spectacular because of the fact that he has suff ered with asthma all his life. Despite this, he has continued to lead an active life, enjoying camping, mountain climbing and generally anything to do with the outdoors.

The marathon is just the latest in a long line of fantastic feats completed by Ian and he even managed to raise an incredible £1,500 for Asthma UK in the process.

ELECTRICAL LECTURERS REQUIRED

NICEIC is seeking skilled and self-motivated individuals to join its training team as associate lecturers in electrical engineering.

We are looking for suitable candidates across the UK to help out at our training centres nationwide. The role is on a part-time, paid-for basis. This is not a full-time position.

The role will involve teaching level 3 of the Qualifications and Credit Framework (QCF) and a selection of bespoke electrical installation industry courses at levels 2 and 3. The successful candidate would ideally have: • A relevant electrical engineering degree, or level 4 in electrical engineering • Industrial, commercial and domestic experience in electrical installations • Experience in delivering level 3 within the QCF • A UK-recognised teaching qualification, such as a PGCE, DTLLS, Cert Ed or equivalent • A commitment to the electrical industry

If you are interested and would like to find out more information, please send your CV and a covering email to asad.majid@certsure.com and we will be in touch.

APPROVED CONTRACTOR LAUNCHES HIRING PLATFORM

NICEIC Approved Contractor Steve Bancroft (pictured) has developed a recruitment tool designed to link up electrical businesses with reliable sub-contractors.

Bancroft found himself sub-contracting via recruitment agencies when he was made redundant in the downturn, and has since had mixed experiences of using these as a source of labour since starting up SBE Electrical in 2012.

“I’ve had my ups and downs with recruitment agencies, especially in London, where they’d say they’d have someone on site on Monday morning and no one would turn up,” he said. “Our local region, the north-west, is more reliable, but the standard you can expect from agencies remains poor.”

His experiences prompted him to set up MandE Connect, which aims to match up contractors and sub-contractors, and allows contractors to post feedback on individuals.

“As the one looking for competent people to work on my projects, I can search for those with the right skillset,” said Bancroft.

“A couple of clicks on the website and an email is generated notifying someone I have identified the ones I want. The subbies are contacted about the work. Subbies post their competencies on the site and wait for the call.”

The system is free for both sub-contractors and contractors. See www.mandeconnect.co.uk

INDUSTRY // DIARY

September 10 Heating and Renewables Roadshow, Midlands

Ricoh Arena

15 Heating and Renewables Roadshow, South-West

Westpoint Arena, Exeter

17 Heating and Renewables Roadshow, South-East

FIVE, Farnborough

17/18 ELEX

Ricoh Arena, Coventry

22 Heating and Renewables Roadshow, Scotland

RHC, Edinburgh

24 Heating and Renewables Roadshow, North

Event City, Manchester

October 13 TechTalk

St Mary’s Stadium, Southampton

14 PHEX

Old Traff ord, Manchester

20 TechTalk

Alexandra Palace, London

22 TechTalk

Westpoint, Exeter

November 5 ELEX

Sandown Park, Surrey

11 TechTalk

Culloden Hotel, Belfast

26 NICEIC ELECSA Live

Aintree Racecourse, Liverpool