Case studies: Maintenance engineer: John

John took the vocational route, successfully gaining an apprenticeship. He achieved an NVQ2, National Certificate and NVQ3, then undertook an HNC.

The majority of the work I do is electrical maintenance, however, I also cover some areas of mechanical maintenance. I maintain electrical equipment, for example, wiring and motors.

I routinely inspect and carry out repairs on the industrial equipment that is used for the utility company I work for. I occasionally cover installations as well, when I’m required to do so.

I have always liked practical work, it is hands-on. I could never see myself working in an office, I enjoyed finding out how things worked and was good at maths at school. My dad is an electrician, and this appealed to me but I wanted the opportunity to do something more advanced where I got the chance to use my brain a bit more.

I took the vocational route which has worked really well for me. I successfully gained an apprenticeship, which lasted three years. Having progressed through this, achieving my NVQ2, National Certificate and NVQ3, I then went on to undertake the HNC. This opens up further opportunities for me career wise.

It really helps to have any sort of work experience or practical knowledge that you can pick up along the way, even working voluntarily for a number of weeks is really beneficial. Look for work experience or summer placements in an engineering company.

I was fortunate as I gained work experience through family and friends; my brother is an electrician so I worked for him for a while. I also undertook a period of work experience for a plumbing company. My subjects at school were practical including design and technology and I also achieved a decent maths grade.

Currently, I have a number of good opportunities to progress on to. You can go on to be team leader or pursue further engineering qualifications. There are also chances to build up further skills by specialising in difference areas, for example installations.

Day to day, I work remotely and technology is an important aspect of my work. I manage my schedule with the use of a PDA and attend breakdowns, maintaining and fixing industrial lifting pumps, as well as re-wire panels and many more maintenance activities.

I have an average of three jobs on a day. There are always a number of jobs that require attending and it is possible to choose the ones you attend most of the time. In this way, I am my own boss, as long as the jobs are completed on time there is a certain amount of flexibility.

I never do the same thing twice; I cover a 40-mile radius for my job which ensures I am not usually office bound and there is plenty of variety. You also have the opportunity to work on your own or team up with other maintenance staff. The only negative side to my job is when there are technical challenges. This can take time and plenty of thought to solve, but this is also a positive as it is a challenge.