A group of year 10 engineering design students from All Saints Academy Plymouth (ASAP) have been on an inspirational trip to local business, Composite Integration Ltd in Saltash, this term.

Composite Integration Ltd is a company that helps businesses make really strong, lightweight materials into useful products. These materials are often used in things like cars, planes, boats, or wind turbines, where you need strength but don’t want too much weight. They create the tools and methods that make it possible to build tough, reliable products out of advanced materials.

One of the company’s recent projects was the design of a carbon fibre helicopter frame for Hill Helicopters and another the design of the production system to manufacture wind turbine blades that are over 100m long.

The ASAP students were able to see, and take part in, some very high tech engineering and manufacturing. They were given a tour of the manufacturing facility, research and development department and design studio. They were also given a superb workshop where they were taught to assemble a 100cc resin pump using a range of assembly tools, and a composite material workshop where they learnt about the properties and applications of these modern composite materials. 

It was eye opening for the students to see the company using the exact same AutoDesk Computer Aided Design software that they have been using at an impressive level since Year 9, helping them see the link between their classwork and future careers.

At ASAP, which is part of the Ted Wragg Trust, they aim to provide young people with access to the best opportunities, raise aspirations by showing students what they could become, help students feel confident in their next steps and get every student on track for a bright future in a career that they will find fulfilling.

Lacey Tombs, Acting Headteacher at All Saints Academy Plymouth said: “Visits like this are invaluable. Our students were able to see how the skills they’re developing in school connect directly to exciting careers in engineering and design. The chance to learn from experts at Composite Integration has really opened their eyes to what they could achieve in the future.”

 Moira Marder, CEO of the Ted Wragg Trust said: “Across our family of schools, we are passionate about raising aspirations and showing young people the wide range of opportunities open to them. Composite Integration is a world-class local business, and this experience has helped our students see that with hard work and determination, they too can be part of shaping the future of engineering.”