Published to Our Community on May 31, 2010
2009 - 2010 has been a very successful year for Blue Dog Training with large increases in the number of carpentry apprentices and the introduction of engineering. Now with over 1300 apprentices to choose from the trainers and Directors of Blue Dog Training had a great deal of difficulty coming up with one nomination for the State Training Awards in the category of Apprentice of the Year. The simple solution was to nominate a number of apprentices who could represent the high quality standards that Blue Dog encourages in all of their apprentices.
The four apprentices below will complete their apprenticeships by 30 June 2010 and all have displayed a dedication to their trade which has seen them achieve a high level of skill and maturity. Gerrad, Luke, Ryan and Reece are great ambassadors for Blue Dog and its style of training but more importantly great assets for their employers and industry in general.
The Blue dog Team take great pride in wishing their four nominees every success in the upcoming Queensland Training Awards.
Gerrad Oliver from Yandina is employed by AJ Steel Pty Ltd of Nambour and has completed Certificate III in Engineering - Fabrication Trade with Blue Dog Training. Gerrad grew up on a farm and developed his interest in engineering from working with his uncles doing regular farm maintenance jobs. Gerrad commenced his apprentice at 15 and believes that during the four years it has taken to complete he has grown up in so many ways and gained many skills.
Gerrad enjoyed the Blue Dog style of training. It gave me great flexibility to work around what was happening on the job. "I always felt that my trainer was just a phone call away - he even gave me his mobile number for when he was not at the office."
The majority of Gerrad's work is conducted in the workshop. He is now qualified to work with steel, aluminium and stainless steel. He has produced many products including parts for all types of machinery, fence posts, gates, aluminium awnings. He is able to produce a wide variety and products and projects working through a process from original drawings and work sheets to planning, cutting welding and finishing in agreed timelines.
Gerrad found working shoulder to shoulder very day with other tradesmen who are committed to quality work is a great way to learn but without the underpinning knowledge you are unable to grow and discover new approaches and techniques. Gerrad said "I found it very useful to use computers in the training that I received from Blue Dog. It seems that I use them in my work and all facets of my life so it was just natural that they would be part of my training."
Gerrad wants to stay working in his current workshop to further improve his skills and expand my knowledge. Now that he is a fully qualified tradesman he is given more responsibility and it is an exciting time. Eventually Gerrad would like to go and work in a mining situation where the jobs are much bigger and the approach is totally different. His ultimate dream is to set up a mobile engineering business. This has come from his time on the farm where there is a great need in the rural and remote areas for engineering skills and a very rewarding lifestyle. "Of course as this business of mine expands I would employ my own apprentices to pass on my skills."
Luke Underwood of Ascot is employed by Contract Engineering of Eagle Farm and has completed Certificate III Engineering - Mechanical Trade with Blue Dog Training. Luke's father has a motor cycle shop and boat shop so Luke grew up with a love of machinery and the work needed to keep it running well. Luke worked for 5 years with his current employer before commencing his apprenticeship. Luke partially completed a Marine Mechanical Apprenticeship, worked on boats and successfully completed his Commercial Skipper's ILM license before starting in mechanical engineering.
Luke's qualification has made a world of difference for his employability and career prospects in the future. Without his qualification he would still have been able to gain employment in the industry as a trade assistant. The qualification combined with his previous experience means that he has reached a standard which is recognised throughout Australia and around the world. It has also convinced him to commence further studies in areas such as project management.
Luke's attitude to his training is well summed up in the following quote. "I worked in the industry for 5 years before I commenced my apprenticeship so I had a good level of technical skills. What I learnt during the apprenticeship was like the icing on the cake as it gave me the understanding of why I did what I did. This means that I am far more confident in my techniques and also in my decision making around different tasks. My attitude to the training throughout the apprenticeship was that I wanted to learn the finer details of the trade increase my understanding and become more confident."
Ryan Moss of South Townsville is employed by Colonial Restorations Pty Ltd of Townsville and has completed a Certificate III in Carpentry with Blue Dog Training. Ryan's grandfather was a carpenter and his father was a qualified mechanical engineer who earned his living with his building and cabinetry skills. Ryan said that they were lucky enough to have a very large shed when he was growing up with a big variety of machinery and tools. Ryan worked alongside his father and grandfather building the family home and learnt early that a job was not worth doing if it wasn't done well.
Ryan worked for many years in commercial cookery before commencing his apprenticeship as a mature worker. He also travelled extensively across the world and brought a broad skill set and high level of maturity and experience to his apprenticeship. Ryan made the decision to switch from cookery to carpentry because it was something that he always wanted to do from when he was very young. Ryan had always enjoyed thinking about and solving mathematical and spatial problems, of which Carpentry contains many.
Ryan believes that his qualification has given him a much better quality of life from the point of view of hours worked, wages, the opportunity to acquire a vehicle and tools. Ryan believes the most important benefit from switching to a career in carpentry is the satisfaction he gets from learning something new and seeing a job completed well.
Ryan has recently applied for and received a scholarship from Master Builders Association to do a Business Management course. This will give him the knowledge and skill to set up his own building business in the future and prepare him to apply for a sub contractor's license.
Reece Evans of Birkdale is employed by GJ and MJ Thomas of Cleveland and has completed a Certificate III in Carpentry with Blue Dog Training. The decision to become a carpenter was a big one for Reece because he was employed as a customer service manager in a successful company with an income to match. However, he had always wanted to do something with his hands, and his love of timber meant that carpentry was an obvious choice. It meant a huge drop in salary, but he has not regretted it for a minute.
The training Reece received during his apprenticeship has given him skills and knowledge, resulting in a qualification that is accepted not only in Australia but worldwide. The training has also helped him to develop skills that are useful in everyday life such as organisational skills, communication, motor skills and financial skills.
Another one of his interests in life is music. Now that he has further improved his timber skills, he has taken up a hobby that marries his two loves together - guitar making! Reece plays the guitar himself, and takes great pride in producing a quality instrument. Reece says that the skills required for this hobby are much more precise than carpentry, but he enjoys the challenge, and finds it all works toward making him a better "all-round" tradesman.
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