Developers with ideas on how to revolutionise industries with new thermography apps can win up to $5,000 in cash, as well as Flir thermal cameras.

The global call is out for developers to create innovative Android apps using the Flir ACE SDK (Software Development Kit). Flir’s Hackathon App Challenge is an opportunity to harness thermal imaging for real-world impact, presenting coders, engineers, and creative thinkers with a chance to win big while overcoming genuine industry challenges. The idea is to build game-changing apps for sectors that include industrial condition monitoring, building diagnostics, or indeed any kind of ‘wildcard’ application the imagination conjures.

For industrial condition monitoring, innovative apps are required that facilitate the use of thermal imaging to keep power flowing and machines running – negating downtime that can cost thousands of dollars every minute. With a well-executed condition monitoring program, inspectors are able to locate and diagnose early failure signs in machines or electrical systems, prompting targeted and efficient rectification. An app idea here might include collecting and annotating the temperature of electrical components, and suggesting actions based on trends.

For building diagnostics and energy efficiency, apps can help maintain the health of a facility. Inspectors use thermal cameras to detect issues such as missing or defective insulation, moisture build-up, water infiltration, inefficient HVAC systems, and air leaks. Documenting and reporting issues is key for this industry as it deals with insurance companies and other stakeholders. How about developing an app that allows inspectors to collect data and easily report issues to building owners and insurance companies?

The 2025 Flir Hackathon App Challenge is about more than apps alone – it is about building directly into the Flir ACE platform that powers the new iXX-Series cameras (i34, i64, i35, and i65). The code runs directly on the camera, creating customized inspection workflows and tools. With built-in LTE and cloud connectivity, apps securely share thermal data and reports from the field, without Wi-Fi access.

By developing apps for Flir ACE, entrants to the Flir Hackathon App Challenge 2025 could be shaping how technicians around the world capture, analyse and act on thermal data in real time. It represents a chance to code the future of inspections by giving users a ‘sixth sense’.

Places are limited, so applicants are advised to register as soon as possible. The official deadline is 29 December 2025. Following idea submission, competition applicants can participate in the ‘Kick-off Webinar’ to learn more about the challenge and how to make their idea stand out. The opportunity also exists to team up with Flir experts and industry leaders to help develop the project.

Further details and registration are available at https://Flir.kreativdistrikt.com/

Flir is a Teledyne Technologies company, focusing on intelligent sensing solutions for industrial applications

“Each year, our Halloween competition highlights the ingenuity of the Element14 Community. It is an opportunity for makers and engineers to share ideas, learn from one another, and celebrate their passion for electronics in a unique and engaging way,” said ,” Andreea Teodorescu, Global Director of Product Marketing & Element14 community.

This year’s challenge encourages participants to design and build projects that capture the spirit of Halloween using electronic components. Example submissions could include electronic decorations, zombie defences, automatic spooking machines, or wearable electronic costumes and props.

The competition will award prizes across multiple categories, including one first-place winner, three second-place winners, and three runner-up winners. Each winning participant will be able to select from a set of prizes.

To qualify, participants must submit a project write-up detailing their design and build process by 9 November 2025. Submissions should be made directly on the official competition page.

The competition is open to both new and long-standing community members, with a focus on creativity, effort, and knowledge-sharing.

For full details and to enter the competition, visit: https://community.element14.com/challenges-projects/halloween/b/news/posts/join-the-element14-community-2025-halloween-competition.

“Each year, the Back to School Giveaway is a celebration of curiosity, creativity and the bright future ahead,” said Brooks Vigen, senior director of global strategic marketing at DigiKey. “DigiKey is proud to support students as they turn bold ideas into real-world innovations, and we’re excited to see how this generation will shape the technologies of tomorrow.”

Five entrants will be randomly selected to win a prize package that includes products such as an Aven Tools LED lamp, a Pokit Innovations all-in-one digital tool, a Weidmüller wire stripper, an Adafruit Ladyada’s electronics toolkit, DigiKey-branded merchandise and more. The grand prize is a Teledyne LeCroy Power Supply unit.

The sweepstakes is open to any student with a university or college email address, and entries may be made in students’ local language. To enter the Back to School Giveaway, visit DigiKey’s website here. Submissions are open from Aug. 26 – Oct. 24, 2025, and winners will be announced around Nov. 15, 2025.

To learn more about DigiKey’s free educational tools and academic resources for coursework and projects, go to DigiKey website.

Over half (54%) of project professionals working in the engineering industry expect to increase the number of projects they are working on over the next five years, highlighting a strong sense of optimism despite the wider economic uncertainty.

Alongside project growth, the survey also found 57% of project professionals in the engineering sector are confident the budget allocated to projects will increase over the same period, signalling an expectation of continued investment in the industry.

The findings were revealed in the latest survey of 1,000 project professionals, conducted by the Association for Project Management (APM), the chartered membership organisation for the project profession, in partnership with Censuswide.

The confidence in project growth shows 63% in automotive engineering, 61% in transport and 54% in engineering.

This optimism is underpinned by widespread recognition of the strategic value of upskilling and development in the project profession. An overwhelming 92% of respondents in the Engineering sector said their current employer places value on training, developing and upskilling employees.

When asked which skills are the most important for successful project delivery, team management, stakeholder engagement, supply chain management, and communication and interpersonal skills ranked highest amongst respondents at 16% each.

“It’s encouraging to see employers prioritising skills and professional development. People are the profession’s most valuable asset and ongoing investment in training and upskilling is vital to achieving long-term project success. The future of the profession depends on equipping individuals with the right skills and knowledge to thrive in increasingly demanding environments,” said Robin Carter-Evans, Education Outreach Manager at the Association for Project Management.

APM is working closely with schools across the country, speaking with children and providing toolboxes and resources to integrate into their STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) learning, as well as linking together the profession and students through facilitating work experience placements in the industry at secondary and university level.

“Many of these skills start to develop at primary school when children are working together. When does this need to be done by? Who needs to be involved? What do we do if something isn’t working? These are all the building blocks of project management. That’s why we’ve been engaging closely with schools across the country to help children explore these topics,” added Carter-Evans. “Whist positive progress has been made in tackling the skills shortage and making the apprenticeship system more accessible, there is still more to do. That’s why it’s so important to encourage more people to think about the opportunities in the project profession from an early age.”

]]> https://www.electronicsworld.co.uk/resistor-multiplier-performance-at-various-power-supply-voltages/36725/ Tue, 16 Jul 2024 12:09:04 +0000 https://www.electronicsworld.co.uk/?p=36725 Resistor multiplier circuits are widely used in circuit design, as they amplify the actual resistance through a negative-loop operational amplifier combination. Figure 1 shows one such simple circuit that can provide high resistance. It uses the LT1012 op-amp, which offers a broad voltage supply range.

To calculate the input resistance of such a circuit, there’s an equation, namely R_in = R1 * (1 + R3/R2). For the circuit in Figure 1, R_in is the input resistance seen by the power supply, V1. The values of resistors R1-R3 can be chosen based on the application needs.

Resistor multiplier circuits

Resistor multiplier circuits are primarily used to divide a voltage into a fraction of its original value. This is frequently used in power supplies and sensor circuits to establish a stable reference voltage.

They are also used in sensor circuits to scale or attenuate the sensor’s output voltage, which aligns with the input range of a microcontroller or an analogue-to-digital converter. Additionally, resistor multiplier circuits are useful in monitoring battery voltage levels in electronic systems that run on batteries. They trigger alerts or actions when the voltage falls below a certain threshold. In communication systems and audio circuits, resistor multipliers are used to attenuate signals to desired levels with minimal distortion.

In one of my projects, I considered using this particular circuit, but I had concerns about the equation’s accuracy when the power supply voltage decreases during circuit operation. I wondered about the equation’s accuracy and until what supply voltage. Additionally, I also wanted to determine the impact of a declining power supply voltage on the circuit’s performance. Would the circuit maintain the same resistance multiplication ratio at various power supply voltages? That’s why this experiment was set up.

Figure 1: A simple resistance multiplier circuit

The experiment

The circuit shown in Figure 1 was chosen for the experiment due to its simplicity. Although there are various other circuits available, they mainly revolve around the same design and concept.

During the experiment, various power supply voltages were applied, and at each step the circuit’s resistance was calculated using the input voltage and current. The applied voltage ranged from 1Vdc to 20Vdc, which is the operating range of the LT 1012 op-amp. All remaining components were kept unchanged.

The measured circuit input resistance was then plotted; see Figure 2. The curve reveals that the relationship between the power supply voltage and the circuit input resistance is not constant, which departs from the R_in = R1 * (1 + R3/R2) equation. This equation only holds true at a single point on the curve, when the supply voltage is at 13.4Vdc. When the voltage falls below or rises above this 13.4Vdc point, the circuit shows higher and lower resistances.

Also, another observation was made: The curve in Figure 2 shows a linear relationship between the power supply voltage and circuit resistance changes, at a linear ratio of about 82.3Ω/Vdc.

Figure 2: Circuit input resistance vs power supply voltage

This leads us to conclude that the resistance multiplier circuit in Figure 1 doesn’t provide a constant resistance multiplication ratio as per the commonly-used equation R_in = R1 * (1 + R3/R2).

From the above, a new equation arises, namely R_in = 82.3 * R1 * (1 + R3/R2), which describes the resistance multiplier performance more accurately. This experiment and its findings are significant for circuit designers, considering this circuit’s wide implementation. Understanding the impact of the power supply voltage impact on circuit performance is crucial, helping designers to create more accurate circuits.#

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In a positive sign for the UK economy, APM polled over 500 project professionals working for SMEs and 87% in the engineering sector said they are anticipating an increase in the total number of projects that they are working on between 2024 and 2027. In addition, three quarters (78%) also anticipate an increase in project budget size in the same period.

Currently over 15% of those engineering-based SME projects professionals polled said the average size project they are working on is between £100 – £299.99k, 46% are working on projects of over £300k, and 20% are working on projects over £1million.

Engineering is predicting the largest growth (87%) out of all 17 sectors polled followed by financial services (81%) and construction (70%).

“It’s very encouraging to see project professionals working across the UK’s engineering SME sector predict such a bumper rise in project growth over the coming years, despite the current challenging economic landscape. Project professionals play an important role in driving economic growth and our latest survey shows that the project management profession has a great deal of optimism within the built environment for the next few years. However, there are challenges that stand in the way of this expected growth becoming a reality,” said Professor Adam Boddison OBE, Chief Executive of APM. “Smaller companies are less likely to employ dedicated project managers, so in many SMEs, projects will often be managed by people for whom project management is not their main skill. It is therefore important that they are provided with project management approaches that are quick to learn and simple to use but provide effective management of projects. To ensure the growth and development of the project pipeline, employers must first ensure that they are investing in their workforce. The successful future of projects rests heavily on those delivering them.”

The survey further revealed that 80% of the same SME engineering respondents identified skills shortages in project management at their employer with soft skills and technical skills such as personal time management, team management and solutions development ranked as the most important attributes for project delivery.

The skills gap featured prominently when the survey asked about the biggest challenges facing future project growth. The top-ranked answers were ‘technology infrastructure inadequate to meet end user needs’ and ‘a lack of understanding among employers or team leaders of future skills needs for project professionals’ (both selected by 37% of respondents) followed by ‘accessing enough people with the right project related skills’ (35%).

A large majority (96%) said their employer has enough time and resources to dedicate to training and development for project professionals.

[Image: Jeswin Thomas for Unsplash]

Researchers at UC Irvine have recently developed a method to produce ultra-thin bismuth crystals using a process akin to a tortilla press. These crystals, which exhibit important quantum oscillations, hold the potential to revolutionize the manufacturing of affordable, flexible electronics and quantum devices, making cost-effective flexible electronics an everyday reality.

GlobalData’s proprietary technology innovation intelligence tool “Technology Foresights” indicates a consistent increase in the number of patents associated with flexible electronic circuits over the years, totaling 2,882 between 2015 and 2023. The addition of 13 new companies in 2022 and 11 in 2023 to the patent landscape, demonstrates a growing emphasis on innovation with patents distributed across leading themes such as climate change, emissions reduction, and renewable energy.

Rahul Kumar Singh, Senior Analyst of Disruptive Tech at GlobalData, comments: “Flexible circuits enable new features and functionalities in electronic devices by conforming to the unconventional shapes and integrating with different components. A significant rise in patents related to climate change and emissions reduction highlights how these circuits are being leveraged to create more sustainable technologies. Moreover, innovations in printed circuit manufacturing, which account for more than 40% of flexible electronic circuit patents, are enabling more efficient production processes that reduce waste and energy consumption.”

An analysis of GlobalData’s Disruptor Intelligence Center highlights the recent innovations, notable partnerships, and strategic funding driving the sustainable manufacturing of flexible electronic circuits. For example, in April 2024, US-based ENNOVI introduced a sustainable method for producing flexible circuits in EV battery cell contact systems, aligning with the industry’s sustainability focus.

UK-based Smartkem collaborated with FlexiIC in February 2024 to streamline flexible circuit design and production using open-source EDA tools, enhancing rapid and low-cost production for new applications in sensors and IoT.

In the same month, US-based NextFlex secured $6.49 million in funding for seven projects under Project Call 8.0 to advance sustainability in flexible hybrid electronics manufacturing.

UK-based Pragmatic Semiconductor raised $231 million in Series D funding in December 2023 to expand flexible IC production for smart packaging and wearables, reflecting growing investment in flexible electronic circuits.

Singh concludes: “While the progress in flexible electronic circuits is excellent, challenges associated with scalability persist. Ensuring that these circuits can be produced at scale without compromising quality or increasing costs is crucial. Moreover, integrating flexible circuits into the existing manufacturing processes and ensuring their durability under various conditions is key. However, the continuous rise in patent activity and strategic investments suggest a bright future for flexible electronics.”

FD-SOI is a planar CMOS technology that offers the best PPAC-E (Performance, Power, Area, Cost and Environmental impact) for mixed circuits (mixing digital, analogue and radio-frequency blocks). It offers tight electrostatic control at the transistor level and is well suited for power management.

The booming FD-SOI market is therefore anticipating the 10nm and 7nm next-generation nodes.
“By integrating and combining a set of cutting-edge technologies, the FAMES pilot line will open the door to disruptive system-on-chip architectures and provide smarter, greener and more efficient solutions for future chips. The FAMES project will indeed pay special attention to semiconductor sustainability challenges,”
said Jean-René Lèquepeys, CTO of CEA-Leti.

The line is also supported by the European semiconductor ecosystem, called Chips JU.

“The Chips Joint Undertaking (Chips JU) is proud to contribute to this strategic initiative and strengthen the EU’s sovereignty in a critical domain. This pilot line will advance essential semiconductor technologies, while maintaining a strong focus on sustainability, and foster the collaboration between several European actors. The Chips JU aims to act as a catalyst and a model for further public and private collaborations in key areas,” explained Jari Kinaret, the Chips JU executive director.

The FAMES Consortium brings together companies including Imec (Belgium), Fraunhofer Mikroelektronik (Germany), Tyndall (Ireland), VTT (Finland), CEZAMAT WUT (Poland), UCLouvain (Belgium), Silicon Austria Labs (Austria), SiNANO Institute (France), Grenoble INP-UGA (France) and the University of Granada (Spain).

The five new technologies will create market opportunities for low-power microcontrollers (MCU), multi-processor units (MPU), cutting-edge AI and machine learning devices, smart data-fusion processors, RF devices, chips for 5G/6G, chips for automotive markets, smart sensors and imagers, trusted chips and new space components.

The pilot line will be accessible to all EU stakeholders (universities, RTOs, SMEs and industrial companies)
and all like-minded countries through annual open calls and upon request, following a fair and non-discriminatory selection process.

The project will benefit from funding that will be provided in equal parts by participating member states and the Chips JU.

Consumer electronics is a dynamic and competitive industry, where consumer demand and expectations are constantly changing and evolving. Consumers want products that are smart, connected, convenient, and feature-rich but also affordable and energy efficient. So, how can designers of consumer electronics meet these expectations and deliver products that satisfy the market needs?

Their main focus is to meticulously balance the functionality of components and the performance of the system, ensuring that design goals are achieved and leaving room for future evolution. However, devices, particularly those powered by batteries, cannot incorporate excessively complicated components with unnecessary features if they want to operate effectively and be competitively priced.

Furthermore, the challenge is compounded by the dynamic nature of the consumer electronics market. Few markets experience as rapid evolution and iteration as the consumer device industry, with leading manufacturers frequently introducing new smartphones and smart home devices on an annual basis. Design engineers are faced with the need for components that are easy to integrate, supported by reliable manufacturing, and capable of adapting to evolving designs. Additionally, if component replacement is necessary, minimal redesign should be required, both in terms of electronics and coding.

With the constant evolution of the electronics industry, 8-bit microcontroller units (MCUs) have become an essential solution in this dynamic environment, offering unparalleled flexibility and versatility to meet the ever-increasing demands of the market. The hallmark of 8-bit MCUs is characterised by their simplicity, ease of integration, and ability to enable designers to quickly develop and incorporate new features into their designs. For example, whether a design upgrade involves enhancing a smart home device by adding new interfacing options or optimising the functionality of a fitness tracker, 8-bit MCUs provide the agility needed to stay ahead in a competitive market, offering reduced development cycles compared to their more powerful 16- and 32-bit counterparts.

Even if the system requirements remain unchanged, there are numerous advantages to adopting the 8-bit philosophy of ‘less is more,’ as long as the MCU adequately supports the desired applications. When it comes to the consumer market, one of the key aspects to consider is the portability of electronics. In this regard, battery life plays a critical role. It is essential to have extended usage without the need for frequent recharging—especially for applications like wearables and media devices—as it directly impacts user convenience and even the core functionality of these devices.

The exceptional low-power operation of 8-bit MCUs truly shines in this context, as it enables optimal battery efficiency while still delivering impressive performance. The energy-efficient nature of 8-bit MCUs, whether used in wearable gadgets or handheld devices, significantly improves the overall user experience by extending the lifespan of batteries and reducing downtime.

In today’s age, where consumer electronics adoption is driven by affordability and accessibility, the need for cost-effective solutions cannot be overstated. Eight-bit MCUs provide an attractive value proposition by offering impressive performance levels while being significantly more affordable and simpler to develop than their higher-bit counterparts. The affordability of 8-bit MCUs, especially at scale, enables manufacturers to produce innovative products without inflating price tags, democratising access to cutting-edge technology.

Microchip Technology, a leader in MCUs, provides an extensive selection of 8-bit PIC^® and AVR^® MCUs that are specifically designed to cater to the varied requirements of consumer devices. These solutions go beyond a basic 8-bit MCU and incorporate advanced features such as Core-Independent Peripherals (CIPs) and integrated analogue capabilities, giving designers the power to develop cutting-edge products that resonate with consumers.

The PIC16F171 MCU bolsters its core functionality by integrating several key features designed specifically for consumer electronics applications like white goods and smart IoT devices. These features include a low-noise operational amplifier (op-amp), a 12-bit differential analogue-to-digital converter with computation (ADCC), two 8-bit digital-to-analogue converters (DACs), and a 16-bit pulse-width modulation (PWM) module amongst other features typically deployed separately to the MCU in consumer electronics.

The PIC16F180XX family of MCUs is ideal for cost-effective sensor and real-time control applications, such as portable consumer electronics. These devices integrate a 10-bit ADCC, automated capacitive voltage divider (CVD) techniques for advanced capacitive touch sensing, as well as an 8-bit DAC and PWM module. To support the rapid rate of development needed in the consumer electronics market, Microchip also offers a comprehensive software ecosystem, which includes a variety of plug-ins and tools.

Whether it’s designing sleek wearable devices or revolutionising home automation systems, 8-bit MCUs can serve as the backbone of modern consumer electronics. Their simplicity, affordability, and power efficiency make them indispensable tools for engineers striving to deliver next-generation solutions in a rapidly evolving landscape.

Phlux Noiseless InGaAs avalanche photodiodes (APDs) are at the heart of the project. They are used as infrared sensors in FSOC receivers and are expected to deliver 6 dBm more sensitivity than traditional InGaAs APDs operating at 1550 nm. This means that they can detect much lower signal levels, enabling faster and higher bandwidth links with low latency to be developed. It also means that adequate performance can be maintained for longer periods because link integrity is maintained over a wider angle as the satellite passes overhead.

One of the key technical challenges with realising FSOC is that the infrared signals used to transmit data are diffracted as they pass through the troposphere, the atmospheric layer closest to Earth. Variations in our atmosphere’s air temperature, humidity and turbulence cause fluctuations in the intensity and angle of incidence of the infrared signal. This makes the beam wander over the signal detector area, limiting performance. This issue is being addressed by developing a large area, high sensitivity APD to produce a wider receptor.

A radiation-hard detector module being developed in this project has other potential applications including space debris monitoring, greenhouse gas detection, and space navigation.

Ben White, Phlux Technology CEO, said: “This project is an endorsement of the value of our patented APD technology developed at The University of Sheffield. With more than an order-of-magnitude improvement in sensitivity over traditional devices, we offer the enabling component that makes other technology breakthroughs possible. Higher performance FSOC links are a perfect example and it’s exciting to be working with such prestigious organisations as ESA and Airbus Defence and Space.”

Ludovic Blarre, leading Airbus Space Systems optical communication roadmap said, “The availability of APD products at 1550 nm for optical communication with sensitivities close to those of fibered low noise optical amplifiers could be a game changer for the development of cost-effective laser terminals and optical ground stations. This will be an enabler for the rapid development of optical communication in satellites for direct-to-earth applications and inter-satellite links with data rates below 10Gbps. Our team is delighted to work with Phlux Technology and the University of Sheffield towards this goal and to carry out irradiation tests on their patented APD technology.”

Professor Chee Hing Tan from the University of Sheffield commented, “This is a very challenging and exciting project that will provide opportunities for our team to extend our patented technology to an exciting new application in FSOC. Working with ESA we hope to provide a disruptive technology that will accelerate the adoption of satellite to ground FSOC.”

As demand for bandwidth grows beyond the capabilities of radio frequency systems, the FSOC market is expected to reach $4.8 billion by 2031 with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 31.3%, according to analyst, Allied Market Research.

The first phase of the project runs until the end of September 2025.

Spectrum’s Python package safely handles the automatic opening and closing of cards, groups of cards and Ethernet instruments, as well as the allocation of memory for transferring data to and from these devices. All the device specific functionality is capsulated in easy-to-use classes. This includes clock and trigger settings, hardware channel settings, card synchronization, direct memory access (DMA) and product features such as Block Averaging, DDS and Pulse Generator.

The package supports the use of real-world physical quantities and units (e.g. “10 MHz”) enabling the user to directly program driver settings in their preferred unit system. This removes the need for tedious manual conversions to cryptic API settings. Moreover, this package also includes support for calculations with NumPy and Matplotlib, allowing the user to handle data coming from, or going to, the products with the vast toolbox provided by those packages. Detailed examples can be found in the GitHub repository.Installing the package is easy, thanks to its availability in the pip repository. Simply install Python and then the package with a single command: $ pip install spcm

Users can include the Spectrum Instrumentation Python package in their own programs, or fork to the repository to add more functionality. The package is directly maintained by Spectrum engineers and updates are released regularly offering bug-fixes and new features.

The first ERIKS apprenticeship programme started in 2023 and 13 engineering apprentices were taken on at ERIKS service centres across the UK. These apprentices get hands-on experience in the service centres while also studying for their Level 3 engineering fitter qualifications at SMB College in Leicester in regular one-week blocks.

Commenting on the first year’s intake Lori Broadhurst, Talent Development Partner at ERIKS said, “Our first-year programme is going well. We have had some notable successes with several of the apprentices taking on activities or going out to customer sites and completing their safety passports – which is ahead of where we thought they would be at this point. It shows how quickly our more experienced team members’ knowledge in the service centres is being passed on.”

The apprentices are on the second of four rotations, focusing on the skills that manufacturers and engineering businesses in their region require, and they will complete all four by the end of August. “In year 2 the apprentices will start specialising in two areas” adds Lori “the areas they enjoyed the most and which most suits their skill sets”.

In 2023 ERIKS was pleased to get more than 500 applications for its programme but in 2024 the programme has been expanded to 21 places with 17 engineering places and 4 in sales and service. To manage this expanded programme for 2024 Lori and ERIKS teamed up with Carbon60, a specialist STEM talent solutions consultancy with experience of managing apprenticeship schemes for businesses such as Virgin and British Airways. Carbon60 has worked with ERIKS for many years and was the perfect partner to manage the application process using their specialist knowledge and experience to attract candidates via multiple platforms including UCAS, Indeed, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

By working with Carbon60 ERIKS has managed to attract 2500 applicants for their 2024 programme and they were committed to ensuring that all these applicants had, as Lori says, “A good candidate journey”. A Carbon60 team, familiar with the ERIKS business, filtered the CVs in the first instance before candidates used a specialist platform called I-Intro to answer some key competency questions and give a bit more information about themselves. According to Craig Lutman, from Carbon60, “We always try to combine tech and the human-touch. The platform we used for the first interview allowed the people at ERIKS to have a solid understanding of who the candidate is and how their mind works ahead of the assessment day.”

“We are trying to bring alive” says James Spurling, Operations Director – Engineering “the feeling of commitment to the process. This technology brings a level of engagement from the candidate, they are investing in a process. The applicants must go away, after Craig and his team have spoken with them, and think about the job and then submit something, answer questions, upload a 30-second video perhaps, what we get is high levels of engagement and retention. We are not just trying to fill an apprenticeship role, we want someone who will be with the business for many, many years and have a journey and a good career. The key component is the candidate commitment and engagement. If they don’t commit to the process they won’t go through the process.”

From the 2500 applications ERIKS will bring around 90 (roughly 4:1) to the next stage which is an assessment day at a service centre. Here, the candidates will meet with ERIKS team members for various meetings and interviews before places are offered.

Speaking to one of the 2023 apprentices, the assessment centre days are a positive experience. Katie, who works at the Northampton Service Centre says, “We had a presentation from the site manager and a tour of the facility and then we got to sit with various managers who asked us a range of questions and we were scored on those answers. I was contacted on the same afternoon and offered a place. The experience was genuinely interesting, something I had never done, and all the people I met were friendly.”

Looking to the future, ERIKS is to expand the programme further in future years as it seeks to provide its customers with the specialist knowledge they require. “We are looking already at 2025” says Lori, “looking at what we can do further whether that’s around apprentices or graduates – there’s a lot of planning to do.”

For more information ERIKS apprenticeship scheme visit: https://eriks.co.uk/en/about-eriks/careers-uk/?utm_source=website&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=press_apprentice_&utm_campaign1=UKI&utm_id=careers_PR_apprentice&utm_term=_&utm_content=organic_paid_PR_apprentice#apprentice