The Smith Family is an organisation that may not come to mind when thinking about a manufacturing organisation, but then again in today’s business environment, collaboration can present unexpected synergies.
In the last week of May, LA Services had the pleasure of working with The Smith Family and Leonie Lam from My Focus to deliver a module from their Work Inspiration Program, where students from Wiley Park Girl High and Punchbowl Boys High got a glimpse into the career paths and jobs in the changing world of manufacturing.
The session kicked off with a presentation by LA Services General Manager David Fox reflecting on his own career pathway, sharing an insight into what industrial asset manufacturing, and its connection to the gas, water, chemicals and fuels that we all use every day. The group then experienced some of the technologies that are changing the industry such as VR Welding, Mixed Reality through devices like HoloLens and Augmented Reality. A workshop tour was also included to remind students about the importance of traditional trades such as fabrication and welding to make the ‘thing in the Internet of Thing’. The session ended with a series of interview rounds, where the students were able to ask staff questions about the roles they play in manufacturing
We would like to thank Janine Blake, the Beyond School Transition – Project Manager from The Smith Family for making the event easy to coordinate, and our staff who volunteered for the interviews and assisted in organising the morning: Debbie Hinchcliffe – Administration, Jamie Smith – QHSE, Hassan Syed – Projects, Grant Staunton – 3rd year Apprentice Fabricator, Raaid Allam – Design Engineer, Norman Chouaifaity – Operations. We would also like to thank Kirk Duncan from The Mobile Apps Man for providing and supporting the digital technologies, Lincoln Electric Australia for lending their VR welding machine, and Jessica Sarkis from The Animo Affect for her assistance with the student engagement and ongoing support for our youth programs.