News

Kellan Pirie is Scotland’s new star apprentice, thanks to the EDA’s Apprenticeship Programme.

At the recent SELECT Awards (October 2017) in Glasgow, Inverurie’s Kellan was chosen as the first ever EDA (Scottish Section) Wholesaler Apprentice of the year, sponsored by EDA Apprenticeships Plus.

The SELECT Awards are the most high-profile celebration of excellence in the Scotland’s electro-technical sector, and this new award reflects the vital contribution made by wholesalers and distributors to the country’s electro-technical supply chain and the importance of apprenticeships in attracting new talent.

Electric Center team

Kellan, who works at Electric Center Inverurie, a trading brand of Edmundson Electrical Limited, said: “It is a great honour to be chosen in this category and it is particularly gratifying to be the first ever recipient of the new award.”

Newell McGuiness, SELECT Managing Director, said:

“Apprentices are the future of our sector and we want to do everything we can to nurture and encourage them. The new award is designed to recognise the tremendous contribution they make.”

The award was presented by Kristian Van Rensburg, Chair of the EDA Scottish Section, and Angela Devine of EDA Apprenticeships Plus at a gathering at the Radisson Blu Hotel in the centre of Glasgow.

The evening was hosted by Keith Aitken, one of Scotland’s most talented and versatile journalists, and was attended by a wide range of companies, from major electrical enterprises to local firms, illustrating the diversity and strength of Scotland’s electrical sector.

A strong field of finalists

Finalists for the Wholesaler Apprentice of the Year included:

• Craig Arundel, of Scott Coppola Electrical in Edinburgh, (also a trading brand of the Edmundson Electrical Limited) group
• Colin McCormack of Stearn, Glasgow, and
• Nicole Bell, of Rexel, Kirkcaldy,

Alan Wilson, head of Membership and Communications at SELECT, said:

“This new award recognises the increasing demand for apprentices among Scotland’s distributors.

“The EDA recognises that apprentices are the future of the sector and this new category is designed to recognise the tremendous contribution they make to the electrical industry as a whole. The judges had a tough decision.”

Photography credit: Mike Wilkinson Photography.