Profile

In almost every corner of the globe Westcode products are hard at work keeping industry moving forward. For over a hundred years they have pioneered electronic technical development. Today, Westcode Semiconductors Ltd., employ about 250 people, and have evolved into one of the worlds leading manufacturers of high power semiconductors. They are now part of the INYS group, a major American multinational with sales in the order US$ 300M.

The Challenge

Semiconductors are tremendously important both technologically and economically. Acting as sophisticated switches managing the flow of power they are essential in modern electrical devices, from mobile phones to digital audio players. Westcode specialise in the semiconductors for high power applications and their main customers are in the industrial, induction heating, and high-speed train & light rail transportation markets.

The Solution

Employee development has always been central at Westcode. Avon Vale Training has been working with the company since 1997, helping staff to achieve their potential. Avon Vale assist Westcode with their own internal NVQ centre, which means they now have employees able to deliver and assess NVQs internally. Avon Vale also looks after the company’s apprenticeship programme.

The Results

Fran Porfirio (Westcode’s Training Manager) says; “Avon Vale saves us as lot of time and money. They help us find good candidates and carry out initial assessments, which makes interviewing so much easier. They manage the programme and visit the apprentices every 5 weeks keeping hassle to a minimum - it works really well.”

“What has always impressed me about Avon Vale’s assessors is their excellent commitment to the apprentice. Many times they have put themselves out going over and beyond what is expected to help the apprentice progress” says Fran.

“The great thing about apprenticeships is you mould the young person to exactly meet the business. We decide what skills we need and then train the apprentice accordingly. Sometimes recruitment can be pot luck, but with we know that our apprentices can do the job.”

“It is also a very cost effective way of bringing in quality personnel. The cost of training is met by government grants, and we just cover the wage costs. Its not long before the apprentice is able to do good work and make a real contribution to the company. Apprenticeships helps us to attract, develop and retain key members of staff, and are very important for our company’s future” says Fran.