Upskilling and Flourish in The Construction Industry

An apprenticeship scheme is a fantastic opportunity for an individual to get first-hand experience while also studying. Bouygues Energies & Services, have programmes and people in place to help individuals develop the skills and knowledge required for a rewarding career.

This year’s National Apprenticeship Week has been themed around “Skills for Life.” These are the type of skills you cannot get from a traditional educational system and are complemented by learning from industry experts/mentors and practising the theoretical aspects.

In the UK in 2022/23, there are over 500,000 participants in some form in the apprenticeship programme. Out of these, between August and October, 30,650 achieved a professional certification to acknowledge their achievement, up by 16.7% from 2021/22. Between August to October 2022/23, there were 122,290 people that started an apprenticeship with a large majority of them taking a higher apprenticeship (equivalent to the first year of an undergraduate degree) or level 6 and 7 (the equivalent of a master’s degree). 

Lauren Smith is a Quantity Surveyor at Bouygues Energies & Services who is currently in her 2nd year at Glasgow Caledonian University as a graduate apprentice, studying Quantity Surveying. She joined the company in 2017 as an intern, during the summer between her 3rd and 4th year studying Mechanical and Power Plant System’s Engineering. Despite receiving a degree qualification in Engineering, she decided to pursue a career in Quantity Surveying. Lauren explains why she fell in love with the construction industry:

“I was still studying and didn’t really think about what job I wanted when I left University. I was given the opportunity to work for Bouygues Energies & Services, during the summer of 2017, as an intern and I have not looked back. It is the people and the projects that keep me here. With construction, especially working with a Design and Build contractor, you get to see projects from start to finish, and it is quite satisfying being a part of that.”

Bouygues Energies & Services have over 50 years of experience in the industry, successfully delivering projects for life sciences and data centre clients. To ensure they deliver best-in-class service, they have a strong learning and development programme for employees from a junior to senior level. A programme to add value to the team, business and client. Laura Frames, Bouygues Energies & Services Senior Learning and Development Advisor, highlights the benefits of doing an apprenticeship:  

“They are a fantastic way to get direct experience, gain industry recognised qualifications and put what you learn into practice at work. Plus being paid for it at the same time, with the company covering the study costs.” 

Even though Lauren has a degree in Mechanical and Power Plant Engineering, she was motivated to pursue an upskilling apprenticeship: 

“I have a lot of practical experience, but something was missing: the theory. By learning the theory, I can apply it to practical tasks, and in return, it makes me a better Quantity Surveyor. I can advise the Project Managers better as I have a greater understanding of theory,” said Lauren. 

As an apprentice at Bouygues Energies & Services, you are exposed to a wide variety of greenfield design and build projects or fitout for process manufacturing plants, cleanrooms, laboratories and data centres. You are exposed to the different techniques and processes used to develop these sites and able to learn from your peers, as Lauren explains:

“Learning about construction in general. Being a Quantity Surveyor and working with all the disciplines, you can learn a lot about construction processes and see the whole picture”. 

Lauren recommends doing an apprenticeship as it allows you to learn from a wide variety of people. She states:  

“Do it! I cannot recommend it enough. Getting to work for a company but also learn from Quantity Surveyors from other companies seeing how they do things and the projects they are working on is refreshing.”

Laura added: ''Apprenticeships are not just for new starters, they are for everyone, of all ages and levels. With the quality and number of apprenticeships available, there has never been a better time to do one''.

If you are interested in joining a company that invest in their team then contact: mark.butterfield@bouygues-es.co.uk