Engineering Technician Trades Apprenticeship

Engineering Technician Trades Apprenticeship

Ready to learn a skilled trade? On our 3.5-year Engineering Technician Trades Apprenticeship, you’ll develop specialist engineering trade skills and gain hands‑on experience maintaining the Royal Navy's fleet.

About the programme

This is no ordinary apprenticeship. Our engineering technicians are at the forefront of maintaining the Royal Navy’s fleet.

As an Engineering Technician, you'll contribute to the design, manufacture, installation, operation or maintenance of systems on ships, submarines and infrastructure.

This varied and exciting programme covers trades including Mechanical, Electrical, Fabrication, CNC Machining, Pipe fitting and Welding. You’ll be assigned one of these trade routes to specialise in, each explained below.

As part of the interview, you will be asked to select your first and second preferred trade choice and explain your reasons for choosing it. This helps us understand your interests, motivations, and how your strengths align with the role.

Mechanical Fitting

You’ll be trained to use a variety of hand and machine tools whilst learning how to identify faults and return equipment to working condition. You’ll be involved in the installation, commissioning, maintenance and repair of a wide range of equipment including engines, pumps, valves and hydraulic equipment. You could even work on complex weapon systems and nuclear reactor systems.

Electrical Fitting

You’ll learn how to use electrical engineering drawings and specifications to strip, rebuild, test and maintain a wide range of electrical equipment and machinery. You’ll gain knowledge and practical skills that will enable you to install, connect and assist in the commission of complex electrical circuits which could see you work on projects such as warships and nuclear submarines. You will also help to maintain the vast network of cables and machinery that is essential to the daily running of the site.

Fabricating

You will manufacture a wide range of components and construct minor and major ship structures such as the hull, shell, deck, bulkheads, seats, frames and girders using a range of metals. You’ll be trained in outfitting steelwork components, including the installation of doors, auxiliary seating, ladders, hatches and platforms. You will also learn to tack weld using different welding processes and will be trained to use thermal cutting equipment, power tools and metalworking machinery.

Welding

You'll be trained in various welding processes, including MIG, MMA, TIG, and MAG, progressing to Class 1 certification, which qualifies you to work on structural components of submarines and warships, including below the waterline. Your work will range from factory‑based manufacturing to major structural welding on Royal Navy vessels. One day, you might be in the factory, and the next, you could be welding structural packages beneath a submarine.

With such varied tasks, no two days will be the same, and you'll play a vital role in supporting the Royal Navy's operations.

CNC Machining

You will learn the various processes involved in producing precision components, from raw material state through to testing the integrity of the finished item. These components will be manufactured on CNC Turning and Milling Machines. You will learn how to manufacture basic and complex components from Engineering Drawings and learn how to work with CAD/CAM software and 3D models to produce complex components.

Using a range of materials, from plastic to high‑quality stainless steel used on submarine reactor systems, you’ll be involved in the manufacture and installation of low and high pressure pipe systems such as water, air, hydraulics, steam and fuel. You’ll learn a range of skills including how to interpret engineering drawings, how to fabricate pipes and pipe brazing. You can expect a varied workload working on ships, submarines as well as in the workshop and service systems within the dockyard.

Wherever you find yourself, you'll gain knowledge and skills in:

• Health and safety
• Planning and documentation
• Engineering mathematical and scientific principles
• Methods and techniques
• Structure, properties and…