What a start…Pektron Apprentice Sam Cotton shortlisted for Degree Apprentice of the Year 2022

We are delighted to announce that one of our apprentices, Sam Cotton, has been short-listed for Degree Apprentice of the Year 2022, one of 10 awards made by Enginuity to recognise the apprentices who have been champions of skills development, and innovators, tackling today’s challenges with new engineering and manufacturing solutions.

Sam has been short-listed as a result of the outstanding progress he has made in both his academic studies and his practical contribution to Pektron.  Having joined Pektron as 2013 as a Maintenance Apprentice, Sam has worked with Toyota’s Apprentice Development Centre, and Burton & South Derbyshire College, undertaken an HNC and is on track to graduate this year with a Level 6 Degree Apprenticeship with a Bachelor’s Degree in Maintenance Engineering from Sheffield University.

Sam has made significant contributions to the Pektron team, from identifying a potentially costly problem with the risk assessment process and working with the management team to change the process, to developing an optical barcode recognition system for high value electric vehicle fixtures.

Currently working in a fully-fledged Production Engineer role, Sam has integrated superbly and is more than holding his own as a well-respected and highly competent team member in an experienced, established team.   His positive attitude and commitment to hard-work, with a willingness to learn (both in his studies and from his experienced colleagues), he is a fantastic example of what can be achieved by choosing an apprenticeship ahead of the direct route into higher education.

Sam explained, “Having the opportunity to study and work at the same time has meant that I have a real understanding of the theory and how it can be applied in practice.  Pektron have been great in providing financial and practical support and I am really looking forward to graduating this year and continuing my career at Pektron”.

And Ian Harpham, our Manufacturing Director said, “Sam’s impact has been phenomenal and has changed the way that we look at succession planning and recruitment.  We’re good at retaining talent, however, we often struggle to find candidates with the necessary skills and experience we are looking for.  Having worked with Sam over many years and seeing how he has responded we have realised that ‘growing our own’, through the Apprentice system – from school-leaver entry, through to degree level, is the way forward to ensure that we have the skills in place to meet future challenges and guarantee our ongoing success.”

Sam is a valued team player, who gets on well with customers and colleagues alike and is an excellent ambassador for Pektron representing the company at 10 Downing Street, as part of Apprenticeship Week.

We’re keeping our fingers crossed for when the winners are announced in March – good luck Sam!