At the recent Worcestershire Apprentice of the Year Awards, Beth Addis — a production apprentice at machine tool manufacturer Yamazaki Mazak — won the award for Advanced Level Apprentice of the Year.

One of three regional apprentices shortlisted, Beth joined the company in September 2016, and has just completed her three-year Advanced Level Apprenticeship in CNC machining. She was selected for a number of reasons, including her role as team leader, her excellent academic performance and her mentoring of younger apprentices.

She has also implemented a number of improvement projects at Mazak, including one that saved the company over 45hr of CNC grinding time per month.

Beth also won the Final Year Apprentice Award at Mazak and the 2019 Best Senior Craft Apprentice award at Worcestershire Group Training Association.

In addition, she has been shortlisted for the GTA England Apprentice of the Year Awards, which will take place in February.

Yamazaki Mazak European Group’s managing director, Richard Smith, said: “Beth is without doubt one of our stand-out apprentices and has very quickly become a key member of the team.

"She is respected by her colleagues for her knowledge, skill and determination to improve how her section functions.

"As such, the resounding success she has experienced this year is thoroughly deserved.

"Apprentices are the beating heart of our business and an incredibly important part of future-proofing our operations here in Worcester for years to come. Our industry really is in safe hands.”

Applications for Mazak’s 2020 Apprenticeship Scheme are now open, and the details of how to apply can be found on the Web site (www.mazakeu.co.uk/careers).