Occupational Profile

In their daily work, an employee in this occupation interacts with operators and maintenance teams.  They also interact with shift leaders, senior engineers, senior test engineers, design engineers, quality engineers. They may work with procedure writers, procurement managers and resource allocation colleagues. Externally they liaise with customers and suppliers at operational and senior levels. Depending on the industry, they may also interact with regulators.

An employee in this occupation is responsible for the quality, safety and delivery of service. They ensure that work is delivered to the customer on time at the agreed cost. They must ensure their own work and the work of others is completed to specification.  They must meet set deadlines. They must meet quality requirements and ensure that all relevant records are completed. They must work to health and safety and environmental regulations. They work alone and as part of a larger team on complex technical issues. These include supervisory duties and oversight of work completed. Depending on organisation size, they will support or lead a maintenance team.

The broad purpose of the occupation is to offer engineering support, technical leadership and expertise.  Examples can include support for installation, refit, overhaul, alteration, upgrading, design and maintenance. They can also provide support for testing of significant assets, systems or machinery. They assist in the delivery of complex and critical asset management programmes. These asset management programmes are often to unique specifications involving complex maintenance and planning. They analyse technical information, plan schedules, co-ordinate, lead and deliver work on time. They ensure work is completed to the required quality, following product and personnel safety processes. They provide customer liaison, leadership, support and expertise to maintenance teams on technical issues. They deal with problems that occur using a structured and controlled approach. They carry out inspections on systems, equipment and components. They may lead on the commissioning back into operation after maintenance and overhaul. They can work in office environments while conducting research or maintenance design and scheduling activities. They can be in a workshop environment or outdoors conducting maintenance and commissioning activities. Depending on the organisation, they might be expected to work flexibly, including shift work.  They may also be ‘on-call’, to meet customer requirements.

Entry Requirements 

Individual employers will set the selection criteria for their apprenticeships. In order to optimise success, candidates will typically have 5 GCSEs at Grade 4 minimum or equivalent, including mathematics, English and Science plus 3 A-Levels at Grade C minimum or equivalent or 90+ credits in an Engineering BTEC at level 3 or a Level 3 Engineering Apprenticeship.

Duration

42 months

Qualifications and Studies

 In addition to skills, behaviours and technical knowledge development, all apprentices will be required to achieve the following qualification:

  • Pearson BTEC Level 4 Higher National Certificate (HNC) in Engineering
End Point Assessment

When an Employer believes an apprentice is ready for this stage, the apprentice is put forward for the end point assessment. This includes:

End Point Assessment Elements

  • Project, comprising a 5000 word report, followed by a presentation and Q&A session.
  • Professional discussion supported by portfolio of evidence.

Overall End Point Assessment Grading

  • Fail
  • Pass
  • Merit
  • Distinction