NECA names top Queensland apprentices

NECA, the National Electrical and Communications Association, hosted the annual Queensland Apprentice of the Year Awards on Friday 14 September in Brisbane.

Three apprentices were awarded for demonstrated consistent levels of excellence throughout their training.

Steven Collins of East Ipswich won the Industrial category. The 38-year-old recently completed an electrical apprenticeship with Stowe Australia, working on projects such as the Dht-u2 project at the Caltex Refinery, construction of the Condamine Power Station, conveyor replacement during a shutdown at Kogan Creek Power Station, a ship unloader and conveyor system for Sunstate Cement and a coal wash plant at Cambey Downs.

Collins is known as an outstanding team player who takes direction well and needs minimal instruction to complete the task at hand. Even before he completed his apprenticeship, Collins ran sections of the job site in a supervised leading hand foreman role.

The Commercial/Domestic category was won by Elijah Taylor of Q Electrical in Brisbane. He has been the on-site safety representative for the company for the past 12 months and has been a keen team player.

“Throughout my apprenticeship I’m fortunate enough to have had exposure to a large range of commercial and industrial projects,” Taylor said. “I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the challenges of working alongside tradesmen on highly technical industrial projects but more than that I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the competitive nature of the commercial industry.”

Taylor is hoping to complete an Advanced Diploma in Electrical Engineering in the near future.

Another Stowe employee, Anthony Hilliar, was judged the best apprentice in the Communications category. He started as a trades assistant with the company in 2005 before starting an electrical apprenticeship in 2008.

According to Stowe, Hilliar excelled at TAFE and was a reliable and dedicated worker.

“The skills I have obtained have led to many opportunities which I now wish to further,” Hilliar said. “I plan to do computer studies like auto CAD to lead into the estimating and pricing of jobs and any other opportunity that is directly related to the electrical industry.”

NECA Queensland Executive Director Guy Houghton used his speech as an opportunity to highlight the important role employers play in training apprentices.

“Many businesses, like Stowe Australia and Q Electrical, engage apprentices and provide them with the support and opportunities they need to develop the practical component of their trade,” Houghton said.

“Without the assistance of the business community, apprentices would not get the on-the-job training that is so important for the future of our electrical and communications industry.”