Advanced Rework Technology Ltd (A.R.T.), the leading independent provider of IPC-certified & bespoke training services for the electronics assembly industry, was proud to work recently with industry partners to promote career opportunities in electronics manufacturing. The April 2025 industry open day for local engineering students, titled ‘Insight into Electronics Manufacturing’, was delivered in conjunction with the IPC, the global trade association that helps OEMs, EMS providers, PCB manufacturers & suppliers build electronics better, alongside leading AS9100- & ISO 13485-accredited contract electronics manufacturer, Jaltek Systems (which hosted the day at its facility in Luton, Bedfordshire) and independent electronics manufacturing agency, Nano Electronic Services (NanoES).
The open day included a range of short seminar sessions from industry figures to illustrate the breadth of opportunities in electronics, a 30-minute hands-on soldering workshop delivered by A.R.T., where students learned how to solder a small working LED circuit board that they could take home with them, a guided tour of Jaltek’s electronics manufacturing operations, and an expo area, where students could meet and interact with a range of electronics industry supply chain partners.
“A.R.T. was delighted to work with industry partners to put together and deliver this open day to promote careers opportunities in electronics,”said Debbie McDade, Managing Director at A.R.T. “Electronics makes everything we use in everyday life today work – from smartphones to TVs, gaming consoles and laptops. But despite how critical electronics is, a massive skills gap persists across many sectors – particularly in manufacturing. This open day was designed to deliver valuable insights into the breadth and depth of career opportunities in electronics for engineering students. The successful event was the first of its kind that we’ve run with IPC and industry partners – and we hope to be involved in similar events at other locations throughout the UK in the future.”
Sanjay Huprikar, President, Europe & South Asia Operations at IPC continued: “Finding skilled workers in key areas like soldering and rework or repair remains a daunting challenge facing the EMS (electronics manufacturing services) companies tasked with building highly reliable products. So, it’s crucial that the IPC and motivated industry partners like A.R.T., Jaltek and NanoES team up to highlight the vitality of electronics in our daily lives and champion the attractiveness and fulfilment of working in the industry. We were thrilled to see the great turnout and enthusiasm at Jaltek in April – and we look forward to helping deliver more open days in future months.”
“The growing skills gap in electronics manufacturing led to the creation of this open day,” explained Steve Drew, Director at NanoES. “Despite all the talk about the need for design engineers, someone still needs to construct the products these engineers create – and technicians, machine operators, and other skilled manual labourers will continue to be needed. After attending an IPC EMS event together, NanoES and A.R.T. decided to team up and try to address this issue in some small way with an open day series designed to help students and job seekers learn more about the electronics sector – which, as we all know, is essential to how the modern world functions and communicates.”
Reflecting on the successful event, Stephen Blythe, Business Manager at Jaltek said: “The open day brought together industry leaders and engineering students from a local college to highlight the career opportunities available in this truly fascinating and wonderfully diverse sector. Manufacturing in the UK offers a range of highly skilled jobs and amazing opportunities for career development. It was great to see all the students so animated and engaged – especially as they had a go at hand soldering. Thanks to A.R.T., who organised the event, and all of those that helped make it the insightful, enjoyable and valuable day it was.”
In conclusion, Nouman Shahid, Engineering T Level Tutor & Lead Verifier at Central Bedfordshire College explained why he wanted his students to attend and what he hoped they would learn: “I wanted to get the students excited about what a real engineering workplace and jobs in the industry might look like – helping link theory to real life applications and demonstrating the wide range of jobs available in the industry.
“I had a very positive response from my students, who really enjoyed the event,” Shahid continued. “And probably the best thing about the day was the soldering workshop. The students really liked the hands-on experience and got a real sense of accomplishment from being able to create a working product from electronic components.”
A.R.T. offers a range of IPC-certified and bespoke electronics manufacturing courses, held at its own state-of-the-art training facilities in Witham, Essex, or on-site at customers’ own premises. Find out more at: rework.co.uk
