George Hinkley from South Mimms service centre has been named Scania UK’s Apprentice of the Year 2022.
Battling it out against three candidates at Scania’s Technical Centre in Loughborough, Hinkley claimed first prize ahead of Ben Woodbine from Purfleet, Kevin Latta from Eurocentral and Andrew Maddison from Doncaster.
The four finalists were handpicked by training provider Remit Training from Scania UK’s graduate intake of 80 apprentices for 2021/22.
Aaron McGrath, head of people development at Scania UK, said: “George is something else – an absolute machine. When it came to the tasks, he was head and shoulders above anybody else.
“The fact he’s also representing Scania and Remit at the WorldSkills UK finals is fantastic. We want to be involved in that competition each year with one of our superstar apprentices leading the way.”
The final four faced several practical and theoretical challenges designed to test their capabilities, training and mettle.
The tasks included diagnosing fuelling and electrical faults to setting the valve clearance on an industrial engine and concluded with a 50 question theory test.
Hinkley will also represent Scania and Remit at the WorldSkills UK Heavy Vehicle Technology finals in November, as he gears up to compete against technicians and apprentices nationwide at Cardiff & Vale College.
Hinkley added: “I was so shocked to win – I wasn’t expecting it. I was confident I had done well throughout the day, but to be named Scania UK’s Apprentice of the Year is amazing.
“I love the company and I love my job and to prove that I’m one of the best apprentices at Scania is amazing, and it has earned me more respect in the workshop and given me more confidence, too.”
Alongside the Apprentice of the Year competition, Scania UK also recognised apprentices who’ve graduated from the programme over the last couple of years at a graduation ceremony followed by a gala dinner.
Each apprentice joining Scania’s programme will undergo a three-year technical programme which involves 15 weeks of training at the Loughborough Training Centre while also working at one of Scania UK’s 86 service centres to gain on the job training.
In June 2021, Scania revealed the next step on its electrification journey with new battery electric trucks and what it calls a solutions-focused sales approach.
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Jessica is event and digital content co-ordinator for all our events.
She was the web producer at Fleet News, Commercial Fleet and Smart Transport until April 2023.
She started her career as a content writer for a digital marketing agency that specialised in financial services, where she worked for more than two years.
Jessica was awarded the degree of Bachelor of Arts with Honours in Multimedia Journalism in 2017.
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