“We have a social responsibility” is the first thing Finn Buch, Recruitment & Education Manager at Ib Andresen Industri, answers to the question about why Ib Andresen Industri offers apprenticeships, before he continues:
“We must set the foundation for people in training to soak up important experience in the best possible way before they enter the labour market. At the same time, it allows us to influence the educations and likewise to obtain the newest knowledge in the company through the apprentices”.
In that way, both apprentices and the company are winners. And the time as an apprentice at Ib Andresen Industri pays off, Camilla C. Hartmann, who just completed her apprenticeship as an electrician, confirms:
“It has been incredibly instructive and important for my education. The working environment, I was in, took care of me, and as I gradually became more self-reliant, I was entrusted with more and more responsibility. There is no doubt that an apprenticeship adds value to the education”.
More than just minimum
According to The Agency for Governmental Administration, a company such as Ib Andresen Industry should earn minimum 7.44 elevpoint (“student points”). A point system that states whether companies meet their responsibility for apprenticeships.
The supplier of steel-based solutions surpasses the responsibility. In 2018, Ib Andresen Industri earned 18.71 student points – this is more than twice as much as the expected.
“Through many years, we have prioritised having apprentices in the company. Both young and adult apprentices. I believe that we on average have 16-20 apprentices employed, so the high student point number does not surprise us. It is the result of a dedicated effort”, Finn Buch explains.
Risen to the occasion
“Over time, we have risen to the occasion, which has strengthened the joint sense of responsibility of our apprentices”, says Michael Hedam, Recruitment & Education Coordinator at Ib Andresen Industri, and continues:
“We have put together a competent apprenticeship committee, who, together with the apprentices and their mentors, raise the standards of the educations. Everybody concerned with the apprentices both feels and takes responsibility, and that is apparent in the positive level of involvement”.
In order to ensure a high quality for the educations of apprentices, all apprentices are assigned a permanent manager as well as a mentor during the entire education. In addition, all apprentices, managers, and mentors meet twice a year to keep each other up to date and to exchange information.
“During the entire education, we are in close contact with the educational institutions, ensuring that we – the school, the company, and the apprentice – jointly meet all the educational requirements, just like we also serve on committees and as inspecting masters at some educations”, explains the Chairman of the Apprentice Committee and Plant Manager Hans Jørgensen, and adds:
“We believe that it contributes to raise the standard and that we, in that way, contribute to the education of competent skilled workers”.
Great generational change
It is no secret that Ib Andresen Industri is facing a great generational change, and the effort with reference to the apprentices is therefore also a way of exercising due care.
“We increase the labour supply of skilled workers to the future industry, which also benefits us. In that way, we will not be short of operators at our machines in three, five, or 10 years”, Michael Hedam explains.
Ib Andresen Industri finds that 10 percent of its production staff are in a position for retiring within the next three years.
Most recently, Ib Andresen Industri has welcomed four new apprentices (an electrician and three industrial operators). At the time of writing, the total number of apprentices, whom Ib Andresen Industri has employed, is thereby brought up to 17.
Image / From left to right: Michael Hedam, Camilla C. Hansen, and Finn Buch.