A new renewable energy centre was launched yesterday in North East England, which is expected to attract thousands of potential workers for the fast-growing wind sector.
Julian Brown, chairman of RenewableUK, officially opened the new centre in front of more than 70 business and education leaders from across the North East and from the UK wind industry.
The new £1million campus, which has been developed by AIS Training, will deliver all the specialist safety and technical skills training required for the global wind industry and is accredited by leading industry bodies including RenewableUK and the Global Wind Organisation.
Twelve new jobs will be created at AIS as a result of the project.
Julian Brown said: “The UK is a world-leader in offshore wind and I’m sure this cutting-edge facility will help to further strengthen our excellent reputation in the global arena.
“It’s fantastic to see AIS investing such a considerable amount in the ongoing development of skills and competencies for the wind sector. This centre will help ensure the wind industry continues to set high health and safety standards and has access to a much-needed pool of highly-skilled talent. It is a great example of industry working together with RUK to provide standards and accreditations through world-class training.”
The campus sits alongside AIS Training’s existing 150,000sqft offshore training complex so that delegates will be able to get all the mandatory skills required by the wind sector including sea survival, emergency evacuation and boat transfer all in one location. Delegates will also have access to AIS’s new hotel and restaurant.
Paul Stonebanks, managing director at AIS said: “ At AIS we are seeing massive customer demand for well-qualified wind industry professionals as a result of new offshore wind projects such as Dogger Bank and East Anglia One. Our new custom-made facility enables us to accommodate this increased demand and help plug industry skills shortages.”
AIS is expecting to train around 17,500 delegates annually from all over the world at its state-of-the-art training village.
Image: AIS