Last updated at 11:18, Thursday, 31 July 2008

React Engineering was celebrating the 10th anniversary of its Into Engineering Week recently.

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Year after year the fun-filled engineering taster week has gone from strength to strength and has seen students from across the county get a better understanding of the world of engineering.

This year the Into Engineering Week saw students from Cockermouth, Wyndham, Whitehaven and Workington schools take part in their own mini decommissioning project.

The students experienced hands-on solid modelling, computer-aided design (CAD) and REACT’s own innovative development, the NVisage system which effectively measures and identifies and pin-points radioactive material.

Staff also took the opportunity to explain the type of work REACT do including project management, design and analysis, presentation skills, environmental and risk assessments.

To coincide with the 300th anniversary the students visited Whitehaven Harbour and were given a talk on the engineering behind the construction of the lock gates by Terry Ponting who has been involved in the redevelopment of the new harbour and is vice-chairman of the Whitehaven Harbour Commissioners.

The final day saw students present their projects to panel of prestigious guests including Tony Gill of Setpoint Cumbria, Miranda Kirschel of CH2M Hill and Willy Slavin, chair of the West Cumbria Strategic Partnership.

Rowan Matthews, who has overseen the week’s activities and also a project manager for REACT, said: “The week is about a variety of things, firstly and importantly for the students it’s about giving them a worthwhile experience and letting them make an informed decision about whether engineering is for them.

“For most of them it’s a chance to get a good idea of what a professional engineering actually does.

“For REACT and the county it’s about attracting youngsters into engineering and hopefully encouraging them to return to Cumbria in five or six years time when they have graduated.

“By the end of the week the students have a better idea of what it means to make informed decisions to work through problems.

“The project they are given is very detailed and they must produce a plan to include everything from designing to costs.”

Miranda Kirschel, director of communications for CH2M Hill and who was on the panel of judges, explained: “Cumbria has so much potential right now; it’s so important that we do everything we can to encourage young people to take an interest in engineering and help develop the region’s future.

“Into Engineering has been another successful programme which has demonstrated to students how exciting engineering can be, the reality of the challenges and how they can make a difference.

“Pete Woolaghan from REACT should be applauded for his efforts and we would encourage others to support his work to make it sustainable in the long term.”

Matthew Harrison, who attended the Into Engineering Week whilst he was a student at Whitehaven Sixth Form is now a trainee project engineer at REACT.

Matthew, 22, who is currently in his third summer working for REACT whilst studying mechanical engineering at the University of Manchester, delivered an environmental considerations presentation to the students.

“Into Engineering was an extremely worthwhile experience for me. It helped me decide which degree course to apply for as well as giving me a foot in the door with REACT - something which has paid off in the form of employment and valuable industry experience since then,” he said.

“Originally I wanted to do civil engineering but since I’ve been at REACT my interests changed to mechanical engineering.

“Seeing and experiencing engineering for yourself gives you a much better understanding of what the job involves. From then you can make an informed decision on whether it’s the right career choice for you.

“I’m glad to have the opportunity to help deliver the seminar and pass on my experiences of it to this year’s students.”

Cockermouth sixth form student, Alyx Petre, said her love of hands-on work and natural eagerness to follow a project through to the end has been the anchor behind her interest in engineering.

“I got a taster of engineering when I got involved in the Cockermouth Engineering Education Scheme – I really enjoyed it,” said Alyx, 17, of Maryport.

“I realise the engineering industry is male dominated but my time spent at REACT has shown me there are plenty of female engineers just as capable of doing the job as men.”

First published at 16:01, Wednesday, 23 July 2008
Published by http://www.cumberlandnews.co.uk