Meet Charlotte who is embarking on a bright future at Nissan.
Why did you choose to take the apprenticeship route instead of college or sixth form?
I chose to do an apprenticeship straight from school because I liked the fact that it would give me the practical skills as well as qualifications at the end of my course.
Were there any surprises coming to work at Nissan?
Coming from school and having no manufacturing experience, into a business where there are 6,000 employees is crazy!
I think some of the training courses I’ve been on with Nissan have been a bit surprising too. I was expecting it all to centre around the equipment we work with, but I’ve been part of training days at Derwent Hill where we develop skills in things like communication and team leadership as well. I find those days have really helped with confidence within the team.
Is there any part of your role that you’re particularly excited about?
The 3D FaroArm scanning, for sure! It’s a piece of machinery that captures accurate 3D digital models of cars and can help with sharing data and improving efficiency across the plant.
I feel like a lot of people don’t get the opportunity to see how equipment like that works but being able to scan all the different parts of a car and seeing how it compares to the model is really interesting. You get to see how a car is built part by part, which is an opportunity I didn’t expect this early in my career!
Do you think being a woman in the manufacturing sector has held you back?
Definitely not! I feel comfortable talking to my peers and supervisors about how I can continue to develop in my role.
Why should someone from South Tyneside look at job opportunities in the automotive industry?
There’s so much opportunity, not just in the North East or the UK but across the world too!
From supplier visits that Nissan have encouraged me to attend, I can see that there are so many opportunities to progress in the sector.
And it’s not all just about cars. There are so many parts of manufacturing that people don’t often think about… roles in HR, IT, finance, or like me in quality. It’s really varied and it’s not all technical or production line-based roles that are available.
Charlotte is making it. You can too.
Click here for more information on advanced manufacturing careers, the support on offer and the careers events that are coming up!
