The first apprentices to join the Glass & Glazing Federation Skilled Pathways Scheme have now completed a five-day induction course at the Milton Keynes site of scheme partner Total Support Training.
The course itself includes both practical and written elements, focusing on:
What the GGF is and what it does, History of Glass, Float Glass Process, Surface Coatings, Value Added Glass, including Heat treatment, Laminating and IGUS, When and Why should certain glass be used, Pre-Processing, Polishing, Beveling, Drilling, Brilliant Cutting, CNC, Building Regulations, CPR and Standards.
On top of the technical knowledge introduced to the trainees there are a number of practical tasks which provide a foundation knowledge of health and safety and basic glazing and glass processing skills. One of which is the delivery of the new manual handling course specific to our industry.
The Government estimates that 500,000 additional skilled workers will be needed by 2050 to help meet its Net Zero targets.
The GGF Scheme plans to cover Glazing, Glass Processing, Fenestration, Fire Resistant Glazing, Window Film Application and Technical Administration, but as the scheme builds in momentum, more specialisms are expected to be added.
“We are immensely proud to have brought this scheme, which is unlike any other available in the industry, to reality,” said GGF Group managing director John Agnew. “We are funding training up to £4000 per GGF Member Company and the completion of this first stage will encourage other companies to commit, after so many have shown interest.”
