March 2003
Plumbing Matters!
The Institute of Plumbing has produced a newsletter aimed at plumbing students called Plumbing Matters. The first issue, which has been sponsored by The UK Copper Board, includes a special offer on tools and ten free IoP Trainee membership places, courtesy of The Select Group of Companies Ltd. It also contains various items of interest including: a student profile on Richard Broad, winner of the Young Plumber of the Year; the Women in Plumbing Group; information on the Institute of Plumbing and a feature from The UK Copper Board.The newsletter will go out, free of charge, to all plumbing departments in colleges. The editor of Plumbing Matters, Jenni Wood, lectures at Canterbury College. Jenni is very enthusiastic about the project and feels it will help to make plumbing students more aware of news and events in the industry. "The newsletter is colourful and eyecatching and I’m sure the students will enjoy reading it."
Dale Courtman, Technical Director of the Institute believes the newsletter will be welcomed by plumbing departments in colleges. He said, "It’s important to encourage students whilst they are on plumbing courses to fulfill their potential and to ensure the next generation of professional plumbers."
ENDS (200 WORDS)
MARCH 2003
A memorable year
Around 38 guests had dinner with the President of the Institute of Plumbing (IoP) on 5th March at the Café Royal, London.Alan Carlyle IEng LCGI FIOP RP, National President for 2002/2003 invited leading figures from the plumbing industry to join him for the evening. After the meal, Alan outlined the highlights of the Annual Report and focused on two main points:
- The remarkable, widespread and sustained media coverage on the skills shortage below degree level, which has helped to raise the profile of the industry.
- The formation of the Women in Plumbing Group, which has stimulated further media interest. The Group is promoting the role of women already in the industry and making others aware of the opportunities open to them.
Mr Carlyle continued with his theme of the skills shortage and drew attention to the fact that there is also a shortage of qualified plumbing lecturers. A subject close to his heart, as after 28 years he has just retired from New College, Nottingham. He went on to quote from an article published in the Times Educational Supplement on 21st February:"If the government is to meet its ambitious adult workforce training targets by 2010, the number of Further Education lecturers must rise by 18% from 200,000 to 236,000."
The President pointed out that by 2010, 100,000 lecturers - or half the present FE teaching workforce – will have either joined him in retirement or gone back into industry! There are no quick fix solutions to the skills shortage, he said, but new ideas are surfacing.
Another activity that Alan wanted to highlight was the Institute's participation in the Plumbing and Heating Industry Alliance (PHIA). He said he was particularly interested in the new PHIA Supply Chain Task Force, because he felt it had tremendous potential to bring about closer collaboration for all concerned – from manufacturer to consumer.
In closing, Alan Carlyle told everyone that he’d had a memorable year as President so far. He thanked his former New College colleagues Michael Lee, Robert Isbell, Philip Grocutt and Tony Adams for their help and support. He also thanked his wife Kay and presented her with a bouquet of flowers.
ENDS (360 WORDS)
MARCH 2003