Institute of Quarrying partnership with US industry
Agreement reached on new training and development courses launching in October 2016
LINKS between the Institute of Quarrying (IQ) in the UK and the quarrying industry in the US are continuing to grow stronger following the latest meeting which saw agreement reached on new training and development courses launching in October 2016. A senior delegation from the Institute of Quarrying, led by chief executive Phil James, flew out to the US to meet industry leaders at the National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association (NSSGA) annual convention in Nashville.
Hot topics on discussion included: education; shared information and expertise; and the development of a comprehensive training and career-development programme in the US for quarrying and aggregates.
The latest in a series of meetings over the past two years, the relationship has borne fruit with the launch of two pilot schemes in the US, which were developed by the IQ in the UK. A junior management programme aims to improve the technical skills of potential high-achievers needing greater academic qualifications to progress, while a graduate conversion programme aims to attract degree-level recruits into the industry who currently lack the industry-specific qualifications needed.
Dozens of candidates have signed up for the pilot schemes and applications for new intakes are open now for an October start. As the international professional body for quarrying, construction materials and the related extractive and processing industries, the IQ is keen to push its message that improved skills development is a key tool in attracting and retaining recruits to the industry.
IQ chief executive Phil James (pictured) said: ‘There is a lot of expertise in training and development that has been developed by the IQ in the UK, and other countries around the world are very interested. As well as the US, we’re in discussion with the quarrying industry in South Africa, Australia and the Middle East, which I think is a real tribute to the high regard in which the UK industry is held.’
With more than 6,000 members in some 50 countries, the Institute of Quarrying’s long-term objective is to support improvements in all aspects of operational performance through better education and training.
