05 December 2023
A newly qualified diamond drilling and concrete sawing operator has urged others to look at making the move into the industry as ‘no two days are the same’.
Martin Williams joined D-Drill & Sawing’s Bridgend, Wales, office as an apprentice just over two years ago after he decided he wanted a career change.
He had previously worked in a window factory for ten years but when he found out about the opportunity to make the move to D-Drill he jumped at the chance.
Now, two years on, he has passed his NVQ Level 2 in diamond drilling and sawing and is already looking ahead to progressing his career even further.
Martin said: “I am delighted to qualify. I am grateful to all the support I’ve had from experienced colleagues here at D-Drill, who have passed on so much knowledge and expertise to me.
“I’ve been undertaking the course through the Diamond Drilling & Sawing Association and it has been great to get a mix of practical experience and also the understanding of the tools we use and how they operate.
“I’m already looking into what my next stage of development is going to be and I’m looking into training on some of the Brokk demolition equipment as that would be another skill I could offer to clients.”
He added: “I’d worked in a factory for ten years and I just fancied something different. I knew someone who worked at D-Drill and they recommended that I look into it.
“I love the fact that I get to go all over Wales – and the rest of the UK – carrying out jobs on all different projects. No two days are the same and that’s what I always say to people who are thinking about coming to D-Drill or getting into this industry.
“During my apprenticeship, I’ve been working on a massive job at the old Debenhams in Gloucester which has been a great experience for me.
“We’ve helped break concrete off a beam for the new steels to go in – 600 of them – and have created new openings in the floor that are up to 100 feet long. It has been a big piece of work and I’m looking forward to working on more jobs like this but, also, the jobs that just take a couple of days too because it means you are getting lots of variety.”
Julie White, the managing director of D-Drill & Sawing, said: “As a company, we are big believers in training and development and we are huge advocates of apprenticeships.
“I am very proud of Martin and all our apprentices nationwide and love knowing that they will be our next generation of operators across all of our technologies and services. They will be our supervisors and branch managers of the future too.
“We practise what we preach as more than 75 per cent of our employees have either been through the apprenticeship programme or are currently on it. They take further qualifications all the way up to NVQ Level 6 because we want to make sure there is always strong progress.
“I am absolutely thrilled for Martin. He’s a shining example of what a great industry this is and what can be achieved with dedication and hard work.”
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