Energy – one of the GE ’ s HAliade-X offshore wind turbines ( below ) which will be manufactured at the Teesworks site at Redcar . that will build the blades . And whatever their background , all employees will get comprehensive training .
Mr Bellamy explained : “ That ’ s one of the big draws of the region . If you have an understanding of the kind of industrial work and engineering , in the broadest sense , that ’ s one of the big attractions of Teesside .
“ But there ’ s no pre-requirement for skills on those roles – all production operators will go through a full training package we provide .
“ Some will go to other LM factories in Europe to see how it ’ s done and learn on the job , but they will all go through our own internal training centre . The factory will have a training centre too .
“ So we expect nearly all of these roles to be filled by local people and the vast majority by people relatively unskilled in this work .”
The timeline for hiring should start next year , to allow time for training before productions begins . Local colleges and universities will also be engaged with .
And while the first blades made on Teesside will head to Dogger Bank – an LM factory in Cherbourg , France , will also produce blades for the same windfarm – other destinations will follow .
Mr Bellamy said : “ That ’ s the first project the factory will supply , but we aren ’ t building it on the basis of only supplying Dogger Bank . We expect to deliver a lot more projects from this factory as well . “ The market in the UK for offshore has grown and stabilised and we have a government commitment to make offshore wind a primary energy source . That drives the long-term investment you need to make a decision like we have .
“ You don ’ t build a factory like this to run for five years , you make a big investment like this for a much longer period than that .”
And if other LM factories are anything to go by , careers could be forged here – in the same way they were on the
Compelling option – LM Wind Power UK managing director Andrew Bellamy explains why the firm chose Teesworks .
steelworks that preceded it .
“ A lot of the senior members of our teams started with the company some years before and have worked their way up . Definitely , there are potential career paths .”
He ’ s not putting an investment figure on the new site – “ it ’ s a very large investment , put it that way ,” he smiles . But Mr Bellamy says LM Wind Power UK ’ s message to the Tees Valley is simple : we ’ re here for the long haul .
He said : “ The message from our side is that we are as excited as , it seems , local people are . We ’ re really pleased to be bringing this factory to Teesside .
“ We will be looking to embrace the manufacturing pedigree of the region and use it to deliver world-class products .
“ And we ’ re looking for people local to the factory to come and join us , so please bring your skills to help us build blades .”
Visit lmwindpower . com and teesworks . co . uk
The voice of business in the Tees region | 29