THE Northern Irish engineering sector is fortunate to have a global reputation for craftsmanship and skill. I say fortunate because it is of great benefit to CDE Global when we are entering a new market, but it is important to remember that this positive perception isn’t something which has just grown overnight. It has come from many generations of successful design, build and export of machinery which has paved the way for an acceptance of local companies winning business all over the world.
Our company exports 100 per cent of our products from our headquarters in Cookstown. We have a regional office network in Kolkata (India), to serve the Asian market, and Sao Paulo (Brazil), to serve the Latin American market. We have just announced our most recent opening in Cary in North Carolina (USA) to expand our reach into the North American market.
While our company is always received well across these markets, one of the greatest challenges facing the local sector at the moment needs to be addressed closer to home.
We are well-versed on the skills shortage, a headline which has cropped up time and time again in recent years. When new graduates begin their job search, we are not only having to compete fiercely against other local companies, we are having to fight against a perception which has formed during the recession. This is the idea that a better career path will be available to them outside Northern Ireland.
Often one of the first places that a new graduate will look is across the water to the UK. Car manufacturers and well-known names are some of the first ports of call for jobs that promise a good salary, varied responsibilities and travel opportunities. Many graduates don’t realise that this is all available on their doorstep in several companies, not least our own. In fact, we have found that career progression can often be quicker for those that remain with a Northern Irish company.
As our market penetration grows so too does our ability to offer the chance to travel and take on new roles. Tiff McMullan, a business development executive with our company who joined after university, was deployed from Cookstown to work on setting up our North Carolina office. He has since been joined by three other Northern Irish people who wanted to live in America for a period of time. We have engineers all over the world who assemble our machinery as it arrives with customers.
There is certainly a shift in attitudes towards degrees now, with many people preferring to start to learn their trade from a younger age while earning. Our apprenticeship scheme, which takes in five people every year, is an option which works well for both the employer and the employee. For those that do embark on university degrees, their knowledge of maths means that they are now being targeted by the big accountancy firms, such as PwC, Deloitte and KPMG, and investment banks, which makes our recruitment task even more challenging.
In order to sustain the growth of our sector more will need to be done to make engineering jobs seem more attractive to students and graduates. This change must be driven by companies, universities and colleges working together. More than that, it will require local exporting companies to profile their achievements and for their employees to speak out about the opportunities which can be found within Northern Ireland.
Like many engineering companies, we are experiencing significant growth year on year and we will continue to work to ensure that the engineering sector has access to local talent when they need it most.
:: Brendan McGurgan is managing director of CDE Global.
