Reviewed by Lexie CornerMay 10 2024
MIDDLESBROUGH College Group has been handed the keys to the brand new £12m centre for its TTE Technical workforce training provider arm.
Handing over – the new £12m TTE Technical training centre has been handed over to Middlesbrough College Group. From left are Dave Payne, Associate Director of Engineering at TTE; Phil Blewitt, Assistant Principal of Construction Engineering and TTE; Zoe Lewis, Principal and Chief executive of Middlesbrough College Group; TTE student Tianna Moloney; Alex Isted, Area Director from Morgan Sindall Construction; TTE student Cole McMahon; John Cooke, Associate Director of TTE and Brad Langstone, Project Manager at Morgan Sindall Construction. Image Credit: TTE Technical
Morgan Sindall Construction officially handed over the building at the College’s Middlehaven campus in central Middlesbrough less than a year after starting construction on site.
Work has now begun on fitting out the 3,000 sq m two-storey building, moving equipment from TTE’s current site in South Bank and installing brand new facilities in time for the new academic year in September. The College’s engineering employer advisory board, which provides ongoing advice on latest developments and trends in the industry, has helped to shape the fit-out of the centre to ensure it matches the most up to date requirements of industry.
The new state-of-the-art centre will train over 300 full-time students, 300 apprentices and 500 adults each year, alongside a thriving international cohort of students.
Its facilities will include:
- Seven large multifunction/multidiscipline workshops to provide for Instrumentation, Electrical & Electronic Engineering, Mechanical, Hydraulics, Pneumatics, Process Engineering and Net Zero Low Carbon Technology Workspaces
- Seven breakout classrooms and study spaces
- Large Conference Room and staff workspaces
- Student social and welfare areas
In line with Morgan Sindall’s Intelligent Solutions approach, the new centre was built to sustainable design principles with features including a full photovoltaic solar roof. It also offers easy access to wider campus facilities and transport links.
Zoe Lewis, principal and chief executive of Middlesbrough College Group, said: “This is a big moment for the College.
“This fantastic new facility makes us the biggest provider of engineering training for school leavers in the country, which is one of the things we are most proud of.
“TTE’s reputation within the industry is second to none in the way in which they prepare young people for the workplace.
“With this new centre and with our STEM Centre on campus, we will be able to train young people on state of the art, ‘real scale’ industrial equipment and with industrial specialist staff, which will support the region’s existing and emerging businesses.
“We’re particularly pleased that the new centre will also allow us to expand into sectors such as clean, green and renewable energy, retrofit, zero carbon and offshore high voltage, securing technical skills that are in demand and valued by local employers and giving young people greater access to the careers which will shape all our futures.”
The official handover was attended by staff and students from TTE Technical and Middlesbrough College as well as representatives from Morgan Sindall Construction.
Alex Isted, area director from Morgan Sindall Construction, who was present at the handover, said: “Middlesborough College Group and TTE’s ambition for world-class new facilities has been at the heart of the delivery of this project and we’ve enjoyed the opportunity to work collaboratively with all parties to bring this unique vision to life.
“We’re pleased to be handing over the new building on schedule, which will provide a stunning new facility to help develop the engineers of tomorrow.
“The training that will be delivered here will help create a skilled workforce for the sectors that will be instrumental in net-zero targets being reached – ensuring the North East region is well placed to be at the forefront of vital new developments in green technology.”
Courses which will be hosted at the new centre will include a range of programmes for school leavers, adults, employers and international students.
Subject specialisms at the site will include Mechanical Engineering, Electrical, Instrumentation, Process and Wind Turbines.
The centre will help TTE continue to provide high quality TTE apprenticeship programmes to a wide range of employers across the North East.
Short courses it will host will include Electrical Safety, Hydraulic Systems, Virtual Process Control Room Operations, Safety Passport, Leadership and Management and many more.
Two current TTE students – Tianna Maloney and Cole McMahon – were given a guided tour of the building at the official handover.
Tianna, 18, from Middlesbrough, is currently a second year Level 3 Electrical and Instrumentation apprentice employed by CPI and will be returning next year to study an HNC.
She said: “The centre looks really good. Having access to high quality equipment in a place like this makes a big difference when you go on site into actual workplaces – it prepares you so well for what to expect.”
Cole, 17, also from Middlesbrough, is in the first year of a two-year Level 3 course in Instrumentation and Control and is looking to a career in the oil and gas or nuclear sectors.
He said: “I’m really looking forward to the new centre opening in September – I think it will help a lot with all of our work.”