This week is National Apprenticeship Week, and one of our Engineering Apprentices, Joe Hartley, has been reflecting on his first year with OSRL.

Since joining, Joe has enjoyed being a part of the team and working with a group of friendly people who are both serious in their roles but are able to have fun in their work as well.

Having only been in his apprenticeship for a few months, he got the opportunity to go on his first trip away to Ireland. It was an incredible experience for him and an insight into what his future at the company might entail.

When asked what he liked about his job, he said: “I enjoy being an apprentice for the Equipment Hire Services (EHS) team. We all work very well together, and we have a lot of laughter and fun while we work. The first trip we went on as a team was an off-shore deployment, it was a fantastic way to get a good understanding of a spill environment and training experience. Working with EHS is great as we build packages together to a high standard, working efficiently and quickly to fulfil package that is required. The opportunity to do teambuilding exercises brought us closer together, working in a team and, most of all, enjoying it and having fun.”

Doing an apprenticeship is a great way to get started on a career path. Working and learning on the job whilst having the ability to enjoy the independence of travelling and managing to do things self-sufficiently with others in the team is a massive step from leaving school and entering the world of work.

As part of his training, Joe gets to travel to college in Nantwich, Manchester, which allows him to meet new people and learn even more about the engineering trade, which will help him gain the knowledge for future career opportunities.

Now entering his second year, Joe is keen to support the EHS team on future trips to help him gain knowledge and experience about the clients that the team works with and understand more about the regular maintenance support that is required.

On top of his apprenticeship, he has also completed other courses that have allowed him to gain additional qualifications that can be transferred to different roles and organisations, including hydraulic hose inspection, forklift license, health and safety, and many more.

Joe has been inspired by the people he works with, offering him help and advice along the way, to make his experience of work more enjoyable.

He said: “One of the outstanding things about OSRL is the brilliant people within the company, the enjoyable trips and experience that comes with it, and the many courses and qualifications I’ve completed whilst here. Sometimes it can feel like a race against the clock and can be a bit daunting, but as a team, we manage to work together and complete the job with accuracy and efficiency.”

In all, his first year has been a fantastic experience; not only has it allowed him to understand in greater depth about the industry, but he has also learned some valuable life lessons. There isn’t really much that Joe doesn’t enjoy about working at OSRL; working alongside such a kind and friendly group of people, he is looking forward to seeing what the future might bring for the company and for his career.