It is always beneficial to provide off-site training where staff can be part of a learning environment.Danny Gough, Unison
Lines company Unison will train its staff in its own Centre of Excellence at the Eastern Institute of Technology (EIT) next year and may seek to train staff from other companies.
Expected to be completed before Christmas, the centre will include a workshop area, classrooms and an outside arena in an unused part of the new Trades and Technology Training Centre.
Unison will devise and deliver the courses.
Unison chief executive officer Ken Sutherland said Unison Contracting Services would be the main user.
"Unison is moving into new fields with our smart network roll-out, migration into the telecommunications sector with our superior fibre network, and the commitment to sell a range of services to third-party customers. This means that investment in our employees' development is critical. "Safety always comes first, and that will remain the primary focus of our training. But we now need to future-proof our business and our people, and that means we need to invest in other programmes," he said.
The centre would have wider community benefits, he said.
"We expect other businesses will sign up for some of our programmes in the future, cementing our decision to bring this expertise to the Bay, and to establish a centre whereby it is available."
EIT CEO Chris Collins said the institute had been open to the concept because it was aligned with EIT's vision to provide educational opportunities for local people and local businesses.
EIT business relationship manager Paul Hursthouse said Unison had agreed to make equipment available for EIT's electrical trades courses.
Unison customer relations manager Danny Gough said Unison wanted its staff to have the opportunity to receive their qualifications from a nationally recognised centre. "We believe the centre will seek attraction from other lines companies who require the same training, and we therefore needed a partner that enables us to deliver courses and qualifications in an environment of learning rather than just work.
"Unison already carries out on-the-job training, but it is always beneficial to provide off-site training where staff can be part of a learning environment, and focus on study outside of the day-to-day requirements of their job."
