Scottish Apprenticeship Week: the day-to-day work of a mechanical engineering apprentice

It’s Scottish Apprenticeship Week! Apprentices are an important part of our workforce - helping us to look after Scotland’s national forests and land.

Have you ever wondered what it's like to do an apprenticeship with us? We spoke to some of our mechanical engineering apprentices to find out. Here's a breakdown of what the job might look like day-to-day in four different departments.

Forest management (FM) and stewardship

FM and stewardship are responsible for preparing the ground, managing the forests with species selection, and protection measures such as wildlife prevention.

Mechanical engineering apprentices in this department are involved in fabrication work. This includes making things from scratch as well as repairing existing equipment. Most of the work focuses on maintaining and servicing machinery.

They also assist with breakdowns and the recovery of equipment across Scotland. Working in this department means working with the biggest range of equipment, including:

• cars, vans and 4x4s
• lorries and tractors
• wood chippers
• all-terrain vehicles
• chainsaws, strimmers and mowers
• trailers
• generators
• fire pumps

Wildlife

Mechanical engineering services (MES) apprentices assist this department with machinery related to wildlife management. This can include 4x4s, winches and quad bikes.

One of our apprentices recalls:

“I was recently tasked with travelling to the Isle of Mull to replace a winch. We had been informed it was not working. Once there I quickly diagnosed the problem as being a faulty earth and fixed the problem there and then, allowing the ranger to carry out his duties as normal.”

Harvesting

Harvesting the sustainable timber we produce is a vital part of our work. Did you know that for every tree harvested, we plant more?

In this department, mechanical engineering apprentices assist with harvesters, forwarders and grab tanks. These are essential machines for harvesting operations - allowing us to grow and maintain our forests.

Apprentices here provide support for on-site machinery - carrying out tasks such as changing tracks. There is a focus on high-priority repairs. They also provide breakdown and recovery support for stuck vehicles. 

Civils

Our civils department maintains infrastructure across the forests and land we manage. Mechanical engineering apprentices support by maintaining and servicing drill rigs. 

These are important pieces of equipment that drill holes for explosives. This helps us clear sites to make way for improved infrastructure such as new roads and bridges. Apprentices remain available for breakdown support whilst these are in use; and supply, make and refit burst boom hose pipes.

Want to know more about our apprenticeships? Take a look at the dedicated page on our website to learn about the different opportunities on offer.