Transcript Thales UK Presentation
www.thalesgroup.com
Engineering UK Education & Skills Panel Thales UK: Employer perspectives on Education developments and their needs
Angela Reich, Director, Education and Engineering Development 21 February 2013
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Thales UK: who are we ?
What do we need ?
Implications for Education
Contents
Thales UK Engineering Education Feb 2013
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Thales UK: Who are we ?
World leaders in mission-critical information systems
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Thales in the UK
Circa 8,000 employees
13 key locations
Circa 4,000 engineers & technicians
90% qualified to degree level or above
Invested more than £3bn in UK over last 10 years
Annual sales: £1.5bn
a substantial proportion of UK sales are exports
MoD ranks Thales UK as its highest performing key supplier
Over 120 years history in Thales UK
Thales UK
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Basingstoke
Belfast
Bristol
Cambridge
Cheadle Heath (Manchester)
Crawley
Doncaster
Glasgow
Leicester
London
Reading
Templecombe
Weybridge
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Key UK sites
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How technology from Thales is used in the UK Aerospace
Flight simulators
Air navigation
Avionics
Air traffic management
Collision avoidance
Passenger terminal security
Airport crisis management
In-flight entertainment
Satellite comms
Cabin connectivity
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How technology from Thales is used in the UK Defence
Surveillance
Force protection
Complex weapons systems
Air command
Mission management
Air navigation
Information management
Military avionics
Radar
Unmanned air systems
Electronic warfare
Optronic systems
Naval communications
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How technology from Thales is used in the UK Security
Transport safety Cyber security Counter terrorism systems Monitoring & control systems Chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) Power stations Network security Infrastructure protection Revenue management systems Secure transactions Telecommunications
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How technology from Thales is used in the UK Transport
Urban and mainline signalling
Train control, axle counters, interlockings, train protection and warning systems Services, supervision and control Integrated communications Security and information management
Transport information and telecommunications systems
Technological solutions for roads
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Supporting graduates & apprentices
130 graduates in 2011/12
Two year Graduate Development Programme
50 apprentices in rail business and aerospace Advanced Modern Apprenticeship, inc Level 2+3 NVQ Educational links
Participate in National and Regional Big Bang
UK sites support National Science & Engineering Week activities with local schools each year
Sponsorship of Scottish Technology Prize (Laser Applications )
Thales UK
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We operate in multiple technology areas
Key disciplines: Systems, Electronic & Software engineering
We are geographically distributed
We perform specialised manufacture
E.g. periscopes, simulators, radar Outsource non-core e.g. pcbs, power supplies, chassis
Summary
Thales UK Engineering Education Feb 2013
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Thales UK: what do we need ?
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Needs
Skills replacement for maturing population
High-calibre engineers
Graduate trainees Experienced hire
Strategic target intake of 90 engineering graduates per year
Difficulty recruiting the number and calibre of engineering graduate engineers required, particularly in software Internships used to ensure student pipeline: better conversion rate than sponsorship
Small numbers of apprentices focussed on shortages & skills replacement
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Engineering Priority Skill Needs
Systems Engineering Managers
Systems engineers
Degrees in computer science & electronic engineering
Software engineers
Degrees in computer science & software engineering
Emerging technologies e.g. cyber-security
Safety & Airworthiness
SCADA (Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition)
Nuclear control resilience : Coral
Synthetic Engineering/Simulation
Rail test and commissioning
Potential to use apprenticeships here Thales UK Engineering Education Feb 2013
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Thales UK: implications for education
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ENVIRONMENT Government Policy Population Demographics Economic context Public perception of Engineering Numbers studying STEM at school Quality of STEM teaching in school Engineering careers advice Internship programme
School Uni Other Cos Job
Security issues Ensure graduate numbers
STEM Pipeline
Maximise impact of Thales effort Low influence from STEM Outreach because of numbers reached.
Influence weaker in earlier years STEM Outreach Thales UK STEM Pipeline: Analysis Job, Salary, Career progression, Development Satisfaction, Work interest Graduate programme, Student internships
Spheres of Influence
INFLUENCE Image Attractiveness of Thales UK
Leave Other Cos
Opportunity to Increase STEM Outreach & School quality
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Universities
We focus on universities considered high standard
E.g. Russell Group
Need more good students taking key degree subjects
E.g. electronic engineering
Need to keep standards high
We are concerned that “employability skills” may be at the expense of technical skills - our graduate development programme develops soft skills
It is difficult, at this stage, to predict the long term effect of the £9k tuition fees
There has been a drop in applications to university There are currently too many universities, too many students, and too many courses which should not be degree level If the impact of the rise in fees ensures that students are going to be more rigorous in their choice of degree and institution, this is a good thing Thales UK Engineering Education Feb 2013 … Still worth pushing for need for top academic achievers …
Thales UK Head of Engineering
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School Qualifications 1/2
A rigorous education system
Equip children for the world of work by high standards of literacy and numeracy Re Michael Gove educational reforms - it is difficult to comment further until we are clear on what the reforms will look like going forward.
Focus on high standard in the core subjects such as English and Maths
… as a graduate recruiter I am sometimes horrified by the poor quality of applications we receive – particularly in English spelling and grammar.
Thales UK Head of Graduate Resourcing & Development
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School Qualifications 2/2
Neutral regarding modular approach vs final exams
Forgetting vs cramming Need consistency between schools and universities
Neutral re engineering diploma
No noticeable impact so far
DO NEED Software engineering/programming experience in schools
Where are the good quality teachers coming from ?
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Careers Advice
Schools: KEY AREA FOR IMPROVEMENT
Careers advice in schools is either extremely poor or nonexistent No perceptible improvement in last 30 years The push of pupils to University ignores accurate or appropriate guidance Not all sciences are equal In the minefield of HE/FE the lack of good careers advice in schools needs to be addressed
This cannot be the responsibility of industry alone
Need coverage of all pupils, not just in industrial centres Professional institutions/bodies should work together to ensure common, consistent message
Careers advice in Universities is adequate
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Key Points
We need delivery from University – do the job
Raise UCAS tariffs, challenge schools etc. as needed to create the graduates needed
We should not need to understand the school system
Stability & Consistency Simplicity Thales UK Engineering Education Feb 2013