Ricoh UK Products Ltd (RPL) celebrated victory as their engineering apprentices secured top honours at the WorldSkills UK ‘Manufacturing Team Challenge‘ national finals. This prestigious competition was held in Manchester from 15 to 17 November.
The teams of talented apprentices showcased their engineering prowess by designing, manufacturing, and programming tricycles. They followed a strict brief set by WorldSkills. RPL’s apprentices demonstrated exceptional skill and innovation, earning them a coveted gold and silver medal at the national finals.
The gold medallists were Eve Redden, Kian Beasley, and Harrison Felton; Kieran Rowley and Josh Wynne also picked up silver medals. The five of them had initially entered the competition in March 2023. Their journey involved months of dedicated work, including refining their tricycle designs and functionality through advanced manufacturing techniques like 3D printing.
The tricycles had to meet a set of challenging requirements, from variable speed electric motor drive to front and rear independent suspension, flashing lights, LCD screens, and the capacity to transport cargo. Teams also had to submit extensive documentation, including production schedules, CAD drawings, electrical schematics, and manuals, along with an animated CAD video showcasing the assembly process.
During the national finals, teams had two days to remanufacture their tricycles under the watchful eye of the judging panel. RPL’s teams excelled: they scored maximum points for lowest costing product, lowest weight product, lowest toolbox weight, highest storage capacity, lowest packaged volume, and fastest build.
Claire Shepherd, RPL’s learning and development officer, expressed immense pride in the apprentices’ achievements. She said, “Not only did our teams score maximum points in a number of categories, but both teams produced a very strong portfolio, which gained fantastic feedback from the judges.”
“Throughout their WorldSkills journey, our apprentices have displayed a number of RICOH’s core values including teamwork, winning spirit, passion and innovation – we are incredibly proud of our apprentices and all they have achieved through their participation in this competition. Well done!”
For more information about apprenticeships at Ricoh UK Products Ltd, visit their website.
Ricoh Telford stock photography November 2023. Picture by Shaun Fellows / Shine Pix Ltd
