Glass Futures Welcomes Its First Ever Apprentices
Three students will be among those at the heart of the new £54million glass melting facility in St Helens after being enlisted as Glass Futures’ first ever apprentices.
The main building work has been completed for the 165,000ft2 Global Centre of Excellence for Glass which will spearhead research into decarbonising glass and other industries and be home to a 30tpd experimental furnace.
Glass Futures has now formally added three apprentices from Waterside Training to its workforce with the new recruits to spend four days a week on site from July 2023 and the remaining day at college.
Zane Brown, 24 and Liam Hannon, 19 (both from St Helens) and Josh Riley, 18 from Litherland, will be able to gain invaluable practical skills on site through a wide range of work at the Global Centre of Excellence for Glass.
The apprentices will be involved in the planned and preventative maintenance of the 30 tonne per day glass furnace and other machinery. Their responsibilities will include burner changes, refractory repair, and electrical/mechanical repair. The idea is they will gain a deep understanding into the glass making process and learn to fault find on all mechanical and electrical equipment with Glass Futures keen to support the apprentices in any areas they may wish to specialise in.
