Technology Impact
TWI has a strategic approach to the technology impact of work we carry out for Industrial Member companies, and the reach and effect of our worldwide training programmes.
We assist our Industrial Members to address the challenge of sustainability to meet demands while minimising environmental impact and the use of resources. These challenges differ across industry sectors, from the need of the oil and gas industry to extract hydrocarbons from increasingly difficult locations to the need of the transport industries to improve efficiency and lessen environmental impact through the use of technology that enables the manufacture of lightweight, fuel-efficient vehicles. Meanwhile, in power generation, there is a need for assets to be long-lasting as well as affordable and reliable. While occasional instances of engineering failure are unavoidable, TWI offers expertise to understand the causes and find solutions to minimise future risks.
Of course, none of this is possible without the personnel to meet these challenges, making our training school an integral part of the process by addressing the shortage of skilled engineers. In addition, TWI’s UK government-supported Structural Integrity Research Foundation seeks to train hundreds of postgraduates so they are ready to enter industry.
Quality, Safety and Environment
TWI’s focus on health and safety is a clear aim of the business as we seek to improve performance and respond to growing needs. This has seen our Health and Safety Management System certificated to ISO45001 since 2009, covering our sites across the UK.
As a partner in the BOHS Breathe Freely Campaign, TWI works with the HSE on its Help Great Britain Work Well Strategy. We also chair the AIRTO Health and Safety Interest Group, which helps benchmark health and safety performance with similar organisations. In addition, TWI plays an active role in the EEF Occupational Health and Safety, Health and Well-being (OHSHWB) leadership group.
All of our UK offices and many of our overseas facilities have achieved certifications for environmental responsibility, such as ISO 14001. This is overseen by TWI’s Quality and Safety Manager and Environmental Team who work to ensure continued conformance with standards and a Management Environment Review Committee meets bi-annually to ensure the effective adherence to the HSE Policy. Our environmental commitment has seen TWI’s carbon footprint reduced as we continue to strive to be conscious of our impact on the environment.
Community and Education
We have worked hard to increase our interaction with local communities through charity projects and partnerships with neighbouring schools, colleges and universities to support practical and creative initiatives while providing an awareness of the different routes into engineering along with careers information, advice and guidance. TWI’s educational outreach includes activities by our Science Technology Engineering and Maths (STEM) Ambassadors, The Welding Institute’s Younger Members’ Committee and staff volunteers to build on local associations with schools and colleges, find ways to link real industry challenges with science and engineering curriculum topics and support post-16 choices at careers events attended by our apprentices and graduates. Our work covers primary, secondary, further education, university and postgraduate levels through annual programmes of structured learning activities, which are delivered in schools, at local science fairs, through work experience, such as that provided by the Nuffield Foundation or the Arkwright Scholarships Trust and undergraduate summer placements. Elsewhere, The Welding Institute’s Younger Members’ Committee is responsible for a national education outreach programme focused on welding and joining, taking part in skills fairs and delivering fun engineering workshops including the ever-popular Welding with Chocolate exhibition.
In addition to all of this, our aforementioned National Structural Integrity Research Centre at TWI plans to train over 500 PhD students across a ten-year period. TWI is also represented on the steering committee of the educational enterprise Form the Future, and is regularly engaged with STEMNet and STEM Team East. Hosting educational industry tours of TWI’s headquarters and regional offices as well as outreach visits to schools also helps us reach over 9000 individuals each year.
TWI also contributes to projects and activities in our neighbouring communities, along with local and national charitable initiatives, to encourage community networking. Our staff are encouraged to get involved in community activities, such as a Diving for the Disabled event at our Kuala Lumpur base in South East Asia and engagement in the Bateman’s Trust school project in Chennai, India and in the UK.
TWI Staff Community
TWI is a community in itself and, as such, we actively promote learning and support initiatives within the company. This includes the Tipper Group, which has held a series of lectures and events to encourage and support diversity and inclusion in the scientific disciplines. We also frequently recruit apprentices in multiple disciplines across TWI, while also providing learning and development opportunities by delivering bespoke courses in management and leadership, business and commercial enterprises and new courses to offer a broad spectrum of soft skills.
For more information, please email contactus@twi.co.uk.
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