Meet Christopher
Trainee Linesperson
For several years I was a self-employed roofing contractor and felt like I needed a change of career; and if I didn’t take the opportunity to try something different at 30, I never would. NIE Networks offered the opportunity of gaining a qualification in Electrical and Electronic Engineering along with gaining on site experience, which appealed to me as I was able to earn while I learn. I chose NIE Networks as it wasn’t just a job but also there was prospect of a career with opportunity for progression down the line.
I‘ve recently completed a three year overhead lines apprenticeship. The highlight was being awarded Apprentice of the year 2022 - to be nominated and acknowledged by my peers and mentors for the hard work and effort I put in throughout the apprenticeship. There is always help available, from tutors in the college to help with the technical side of gaining the qualification, the training schools where in-house training is provided by the training instructors, the mentor on site and working as part of different teams.
I don’t think there is a typical day or week, it varies from prepping jobs, carrying out heavy construction to carrying out live work, not to mention dealing with members of the public, other colleagues from different departments within the company and different contractors on site. The variety of work day to day is one of the things I enjoy about it. My team also have a wide variety of people from different backgrounds and age groups that work well together using our different skills to get our work done.
I want to continue to develop my skills and be a valuable member of my team and with more experience look to carry out additional skills training and take on more responsibilities.