Outstanding Ely apprentice wins place

“We are absolutely delighted that Chris took fifth place in the competition to find the very best trainee heating and ventilation engineers in the UK – it is an immense achievement and he did an excellent job,” he said.

OUTSTANDING apprentice Christopher Lindsay has won fifth place in the national Skill PIPE 2011 competition, designed to find the best young talent in the country.

Christopher, who works for James Brown Mechanical Services of Ely and studies at Cambridge Regional College, spent three days being tested in the final. The 20-year-old apprentice from Littleport had to build a sophisticated heating system from scratch - with the added pressure of competing in front of hundreds of visitors to the event.

Christopher’s tutor, Martin Johnston, said he had performed superbly in the competition, which tested his skills in designing the system, building it, welding pipes and working on the valves.

“We are absolutely delighted that Chris took fifth place in the competition to find the very best trainee heating and ventilation engineers in the UK – it is an immense achievement and he did an excellent job,” he said.

Christopher’s efforts won him a medal, certificate, vouchers, new tools and a tool bag, all presented at the end of the three-day competition in Leeds.

The SkillPIPE final took place alongside the UK finals of a number of other building services sectors, with around 150 trainees competing in front of hundreds of visitors.

The competition, organised by SummitSkills, the Sector Skills Council for the building services engineering industry, celebrates the finest plumbers, electricians, pipe fitters and refrigeration and air conditioning engineers in the country and highlights their outstanding skills.