Seth Hargraves, Abraham Moon & Sons
I currently work in the Testing Lab at Abraham Moon & Sons, testing many aspects of the cloth’s quality including tensile strength, colour fastness, and pilling to name but a few. My other responsibilities include the quality maintenance of the yarns used in the production of the cloth. I test for strength and weight in our internally produced yarn, and also for colour continuity in the yarns used from external suppliers. My role branches over quality control and quality assurance, two different but interlinking areas of the business. The apprenticeship I have completed included plenty of technical and practical learning that relates directly to the job I am in. I have attended seminars at the Textiles Centre of Excellence for my tutoring of the technical aspects of fabric manufacture, however the apprentice has also included a great deal of work based learning, meaning I can translate what I have learnt at the college into working practices.
The difference for me in doing this apprenticeship has been the practical learning coupled with the technical seminars. Learning about manufacturing processes was very informative, however having the experience of working first hand to see the processes being done was invaluable.
The learning was full circle, solidifying my knowledge and experience and making me able to work competently in the workplace. I feel having this qualification and experience will help my career a lot because these are important skills that employers will be looking at when people apply for specialist industry jobs. My confidence has increased in the fields I have been learning in as I have had my skills affirmed by people who have been in manufacturing much longer than I.
I have been confirmed to continue in my job full time after my apprenticeship has been signed off. I have been receiving great feedback on my coursework and I also have received the Lord Barnby (the most promising young textiles worker employed in the west Yorkshire area) award for my work. I feel as though I am doing well and that my career prospects look good from here.
My long term goals are to progress further in the company I’m currently at. I will aim at working towards a managerial position and going from there. I am an ambitious person in terms of my career progression and I would like to learn more and be able to eventually lead teams, share knowledge of my own and maybe even tutor employees who are in the position I am currently. With the right training and time spent on bettering my skills at work I feel I would make a good leader.
I want to aim for a managerial course to broaden my skills working with people in the professional environment. I am more than happy to complete another apprenticeship at a higher level, and even pursue some of my out of work hobbies as smaller side qualifications for e.g garment construction or weaving. I love to learn and I think apprenticeships are a great way to progress professionally.
I am more than grateful for the expert guidance and tutoring from the people at the Huddersfield Textiles Centre. I have been learning with some very skilled and intelligent people who are extremely good at what they do. I think anybody thinking of pursuing a qualification with the Textiles Centre should not hesitate, it has been fun and enriching to me personally as well as in my career.
