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| Record apprentice numbers for Claas |
 A record 26 students have joined this year’s Claas Agricultural Technician Apprenticeship intake, which is split between Reaseheath in Cheshire and Barony College near Dumfries. Also joining the scheme for the first time are students from both northern and southern Ireland. In addition to the course based at Reaseheath College in Cheshire, which is acknowledged as the UK’s leading college for agricultural engineering, Claas is the only land based engineering company to offer a manufacturer’s apprenticeship within Scotland. The Barony course was launched in 2008, in order to provide Claas dealers in Scotland, the north of England and now Ireland with the same opportunity as southern dealers have to train and develop the skilled technicians they need for the future. Modern agricultural tractors, combines and foragers are highly complex machines, incorporating advanced electrical, hydraulic and mechanical components. Aside from basic mechanical skills, the modern service engineer needs to be able to understand far more complex aspects such as modern engine management systems, CANBUS, ISOBUS, GPS, etc. These high skill levels are reflected in the course that the students undertake both at Reaseheath and Barony College, where they study for a National Diploma in Land Based Technology, which is seen as a practical hands-on alternative to Highers or ‘A’ Levels. During the four-year apprenticeship programme, students spend three years studying for the National Diploma, in which time they have the opportunity to train at Claas UK headquarters at Bury St Edmunds, and subsequently the Group headquarters at Harsewinkel in Germany. In their final year, the students gain additional qualifications relating to air conditioning, electronics and hydraulics, together with their telehandler and trailer test licenses. As a result, when they complete the course they are well prepared for full entry into the dealer environment and associated industry requirements. |