Pic: Philip Silver, managing director, Advanced Industrial EngineeringIf you asked a room full of UK secondary school students to describe engineering, you would likely get a mixed bag of "building bridges," "fixing cars," and "I’m not quite sure, but my dad says it pays well."
Despite massive efforts from STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) initiatives, there is still a significant gap between what an engineer actually does, and how the average 16-year-old perceives it.
Managing director of
Advanced Industrial Engineering Philip Silver was recently asked to go back to Ashby School, in Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Leicestershire to talk about the world of engineering and his own personal journey.
“It was a great privilege to be asked by Ashby School to come in to provide a talk to the current year twelve engineering students on my personal journey and what engineering is like in the real world,” he begins. “This is where I started my love of engineering and the school nurtured and provided encouragement and a great educational foundation.
“We are super proud to have four Ashby School alumni working within engineering roles at Advanced Industrial Engineering which has added emphasis on the need for me to inspire future generations.”
Those four school alumni, now fill key positions within the company, from managing director to operations director, to operations manager and workshop supervisor.
Industry milestonesIt was a rewarding afternoon for the students at Ashby School, where Mr Silver talked all things engineering and about his path from studying at the University of Huddersfield, starting employment at Cummins Turbo Technologies, through to working for household names such as Rolls-Royce and Jaguar Land Rover.
“In addition to my talk, we were pleased to donate a set of mechanical vehicle lifters to the school for use as a demonstration of high precision engineering in a real-world application,” he says. “The donation was fitting for several of the course modules, including linear motion, controls and power transmission. They encompass gear ratios, sprocket drives, linear motion with lead screws, nuts and linear rails, aiding the students to understand forces, stress, power transmission, motor specifications, controls, and aesthetic design principals,” Mr Silver explains.
Nurturing talentAt Advanced Industrial Engineering – a leading provider of mechanical and automation systems – developing future talent isn’t a side project, it’s part of the company’s identity.
Pic: The mechanical vehicle lifters donated to Ashby SchoolWhen Mr Silver returned to his old school earlier this year, he saw firsthand how powerful it is for young people to meet engineers who once sat in the same classrooms. That connection matters. In his presentation, he showed the students that engineering is not the stereotypical image of oily and dirty workshops they once imagined, it is a real, exciting career path that begins with curiosity and grows through opportunity.
Walk into workshop at Advanced Industrial Engineering and that is immediately apparent, the hum of machinery, the smell of cutting fluid, the rhythm of tools, and the vital conversations between experienced engineers and those just starting out.
This is where the company’s apprentices are building the foundations of their careers. They are not observing from the sidelines, they are working hands on, learning how real engineering problems are solved. The workshop is a living classroom, where every component, every fixture, and every machine tells a story about precision, safety, and craftsmanship.
For Advanced Industrial Engineering, reinvesting in young people is how the company will secure the skills, innovation, and leadership that will drive the business forward for decades. The company demonstrates this with its Level 3 and 6 apprenticeship programmes that it runs each year.
To find out more about Advanced Industrial Engineering, visit the website at
www.advanced-ie.co.uk or call the office directly on 0808 901 2005.