Focus on Energy & Renewables: Nuclear boom in Cumbria
Tue 30 Jun 2009
West Cumbria celebrated the opening of Energus last week, a new centre of excellence proffering support to the growth of the nuclear and renewable industries and future generations of niche workers.
Energus is the forefront of the Britain’s Energy Coast’s £2 billion scheme to place the coast of Cumbria at the heart of the renewable energy sector’s future. The nuclear industry in the North West is booming with over 50 per cent of the UK’s civil nuclear workforce situated locally. Projects like Energus look to enhance the already thriving region which is a chosen base for key UK renewable businesses such as the NDA and NNL. The £20 million Energus development in Workington, Cumbria is now the location of the North West flagship of the National Skills Academy for Nuclear (NSAN) and houses an educational hub for the University of Cumbria.
To augment the infrastructure already in place, Energus has been developed out of a want to support both sides of development; the local nuclear and green businesses and their future workforce. The North West is already world-renowned for its nuclear industry success and Energus is a beacon of the region’s investment in this field and the national commitment to environmental change through renewables.
Richard Acton, Head of Engineering at SRG comments: "The opening of Energus is positive news for the industry - especially for students, apprentices and graduates looking to start a career in the nuclear sector. However, the industry also needs to realise that there are many experienced UK engineers within related sectors such as oil, gas, food and automotive who are desperately keen to join the nuclear boom but are being frustrated because they do not have previous nuclear experience.”
The industry as a whole has been hesitant to employ workers without a nuclear background. This method of insular preference could hinder the industry’s growth in coming years. Richard Acton considers the current market: “Project planners, control and instrumentation engineers and mechanical design engineers do not need to have several years of experience within nuclear in order to deliver in their roles. A more open policy on accepting wider industry expertise could actually help the nuclear sector grow and develop more successfully - and it would not need any government funding either."
SRG works closely with the renewable energy sector. If you would like to get in touch with us about this exciting time in the market, in the North West or elsewhere in the UK, please call Matt Lawrence on 0161 868 2200 or email matt.lawrence@srg.co.uk