On the 26^th March, Professor Joe Howe, welcomed delegates both online and in person to the CATCH Industrial Decarbonisation Network, sponsored by Equilibrion.

Phil Rogers introduced his company Equilibrion and gave an introduction to nuclear energy in the UK, including the context around nuclear ambition and the role of Great British Nuclear – which is there to drive development in the industry.

Phil presented further details about the Siting Study.  The aim is to support a large region, spanning West to East Midlands up to the Humber, in understanding the potential opportunities for the siting of new nuclear generation and what the benefits could provide.  They initially identified over 80 possible sites to be further refined to create a short list.  Phil discussed potential benefits including growth in skills, abundant supply of heat, and clustering around energy generators and opportunities for private wire networks. The report is due to be launched end of April, early May.

Phil then highlighted a new project that is looking at the possible use of nuclear power as a method of delivering the future increased demand in hydrogen production.  This project will also explore the opportunity for hydrogen production from nuclear to support a net zero transition across the gas network, in collaboration with northern gas networks (NGN and Wales and West Utilities).  Phil concluded his presentation by introducing Eq.flight – a proposal for low carbon aviation fuel from nuclear energy.

Next Joe introduced Matthew Collinson, Lead Officer – Economic Growth Projects at North Lincolnshire Council.  Matthew opened his talk by exploring Green Steel and the UK Steel Strategy.  He explained the traditional process of making steel (oxygen steelmaking) and the green steel process using Electric Arc Furnace.  Matthew advised that in February the government announced their steel strategy: the plan for steel consultation.

A British Steel planning application, that was submitted in Jan 24 has been approved to develop a single 130 tonne EAF facility using their existing site in Scunthorpe.  £1.25bn will be invested to transform British steel into a clean, green sustainable business.  North Lincolnshire Council, alongside three other Humber Local Authorities have, committed to the UK Steel Charter, which is a commitment to procurement practices to include more UK made steel to support the economy.

Matthew told the group that NLC are seeking to develop a green growth policy that will allow for the enhancement of existing investments into manufacturing green energy projects, alongside local and combined authorities, to support new inward investment opportunities. Whilst supporting the existing energy and decarbonisation initiatives.

Lastly Matthew gave an update on The Northern Lincolnshire Artificial Intelligence (AI) Growth Zone.  This project will bring forward extensive infrastructure capable of delivering more than 1.5 gigawatts of AI processing power.  The zone is planning for 4 campus sites in Northern Lincolnshire that are deliverable before 2030.

After the break, Katie Privett, Regional Insights Manager at Northern Powergrid presented New Distribution Future Energy Scenarios 24-2050.   Katie introduced Northern Power Grid, the organisation that moves energy through the North East, Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire areas.

The DFES outlines the expected demand, flexibility and distributed generation and battery storage update up to 2050, through modelling and using local plans.  From 2024 this includes more local engagement, planning, housing, employment land and large demand generation.  Northern Powergrid encourage stakeholders to participate in their forecasts to align with local and regional plans and help prioritise areas for investment.  Katie explained they use that data to ensure network capacity is available to support regional demand.

Katie highlighted that peak demand has been reducing since 1980’s, partly due to energy efficiency in modern household appliances and in part due to de-industrialisation.  More recently we can see an upturn in peak demand and expect this to continue to rise due to electrification technologies.

All speakers took questions and Joe thanked the speakers and delegates for their participation.

The date of the next meeting is Tuesday 3rd June, during Humber BizWeek, taking place at Aura Innovation Centre.  Registration details will be out soon. Please contact katie.hedges@catchuk.org for further information about exhibition space.

CATCH hosted the Major Hazards Group on Wednesday 19 March. The group is chaired by Dan Rawdin from SSE Thermal and was attended by over 25 delegates in person and online.

The first topic was Accident and Incident Investigation including Route Cause Analysis (RCA) led by Russell Page from Hayden Freeman Continuous Improvement (HFCI). Russell detailed how RCA can contribute to continuous improvement. How many RCAs are you doing? Each RCA presents opportunities to identify improvements and can chip away at performance improvement. More RCAs are better and so identifying resources/teams to carry these out is important. The group undertook the first exercise to identify pros vs cons of team-based vs individual based approach to RCAs. Russell reflected on management systems and how they drive improvement.

After a break the group undertook a second exercise to test the groups ‘system 2 thinking’ to explore how we resist engaging intuition and gut feelings in favour of finding data, finding evidence and avoiding bias. Russell outlined the 5 whys prime tool for RCA noting how critical it is to define the system/problem/standard first.

RCA as a tool can move from reactive towards being proactive, by identifying common themes, trends and common failure modes.

The next speaker was David Cook from Tyr Law speaking on Protestor Injunctions. David outlined the features of protest including reasons such as climate change, the act of protest such as placards, noise or other disruption and usually seeking publicity. How do businesses manage through these times of change in society. David described the tactics of the campaign group Just Stop Oil and the impact they had on COMAH sites.

Tyr were able to advise their clients on injunctions. These can be obtained fairly quickly in a matter of days. They can also be triggered by police intelligence of a future protest and can cover multiple sites under threat. The injunction needs to be served on persons unknown through clear signage at the site and allow easy access to the court materials to explain the injunction in detail. David explained the circumstances under which an injunction would be considered and what other measures would be taken, such as increased or improved security & CCTV. Injunctions are usually reviewed annually. The more recent tactics of JSO has been to target sporting events and art galleries, potentially because the oil sector has put effective deterrents in place.

CATCH facilitate a range of networks to support our members, the full programme can be viewed here https://catchuk.org/catch/events-and-networks/

If you are interested in attending our networks or need more information about membership please contact katie.hedges@catchuk.org

CATCH hosted their Cyber Security (OT) Network on 5^th March.  Adam Chapman from Tronox chairs the group and welcomed over 30 delegates to the meeting and introductions were made.

The agenda was reviewed and the group Terms of Reference was approved.

The first speaker was Mark ‘Magpie’ Graham from Dragos who gave a presentation on 2025 OT/ICS Cybersecurity Briefing.  Magpie highlighted that the current geopolitical climate is driving increased concern for cybersecurity in industrial environments.  Magpie explored the range and complexity of threats including tracking of 24 named threat groups and over 30 hacktivist groups claiming OT impacts.

Magpie detailed several recent attacks including malware multistage attacks such as FUXNET & FrostyGoop.  The convergence of hacktivism and state-sponsored threats was mapped and discussed.  New threat groups were reviewed including GRAPHITE.  The recommendation was shared to initiate proactive threat hunts to identify unauthorised SSH and PPTP communications.  Tactics, tools and procedures were discussed.  Magpie concluded with advice on the 5 ICS cybersecurity critical controls.  Magpie took questions.

After a break, Lambda and Tronox gave a joint presentation.  Adam, Tony and Sherol gave a detailed input with some content restricted on sharing afterwards.  Adam outlined the objectives and design targets to develop a high level design document.  Tony described how to map out the cybersecurity lifecycle of an OT site.  Sherol described how to secure senior stakeholder buy in to be clear about the project and what input was needed.  A workshop kicked off the programme to identify who would be included and developed a collaborative approach.  This required coordination across countries and time zones.  Tony & Sherol described some of the project challenges and solutions, for example procurement, transport and logistics and third-party vendors.  A Q&A session followed the presentation.

The group discussed the next 5 day training opportunity with ISA at CATCH in late April.  Places are still available to book.

The next meeting will be held on 11 June, for more information about this and other CATCH networks please contact katie.hedges@catchuk.org

CATCH hosted the Humber Human Factors Network on Wednesday 26th February 2025. The focus of the session was Fatigue Management, with guest speakers Professor Fiona Earle and Dr. Lea Freour from the Centre for Human Factors at the University of Hull. The event was chaired by Chris Marron from Yara, who welcomed over 20 delegates, both in person and online.

Fiona began by outlining how fatigue matters as it has implications for Health and Safety, as well as huge implications towards wellbeing. The first exercise the group partook in focused on Cause Vs Consequence of fatigue. Fiona showed how a Bowtie Model can help understand how to use control measures to prevent causes, and how mitigation measures limit consequences. Fiona went on to highlight the variety of causes of fatigue for different job roles, ranging from mental, physical, emotional and sleep related causes, as well as how hard it is to measure fatigue. She went on to state that effective management of fatigue requires requires exploration of causes and consequences just like any other health and safety risk.

The second exercise was a facilitated discussion around the factors that push us to work more hours and take greater risks with our work patterns and sleep schedules. In order to manage fatigue risks, organisations can access awareness training for managers and establish a risk management policy.

Training is available through the University of Hull, more information can be found here.

The key takeaway for delegates was that it is critical to foster a positive culture around fatigue and to improve recognition of the signs, causes and consequences.

The next Humber Human Factors Network will take place on Wednesday 18th June 2025, with a focus on Human Machine Interface.

For more details on this and other CATCH Networks, please contact katie.hedges@catchuk.org.

At CATCH Skills, we strive to provide quality and excellence across our Adult Skills Training Courses.

We offer both accredited and non-accredited courses across a variety of areas, including:

• Confined Spaces
• Electrical
• Health and Safety
• Mechanical
• Process

In addition to our extensive list of courses, we are also able to provide Bespoke Training Packages and Managed Service Contracts to ensure the best possible options for both individuals and companies.

However, as the world moves forward and the cost-of-living increases, we are in the difficult position whereby we will be changing the prices of our CATCH Skills Courses as of Tuesday 1^st April 2025.

The increase in price will allow us to continue to provide the highest level of training, competence and assessment possible, and continue to support our trainers and staff, all of whom have a vast wealth of industry knowledge and experience.

Our new prices are available to view on our website now, however, will not be enforced until 1^st April 2025.

Any courses booked before 1^st April 2025, irrespective of the course date, will be honoured with the current price of the course. 

For more information about our CATCH Skills Courses, and to book your place on any of our CATCH Skills Courses, contact the team at info@catchuk.org or call 01469 552840.

A Humber-based skills and apprenticeship centre is celebrating after winning the ECITB Training Organisation of the Year accolade at the 12^th annual ECI Training and Development Awards last night in London.

CATCH, which is based in Stallingborough, near Grimsby, on the south Humber bank, received the award at a prestigious ceremony to honour the very best of engineering construction talent in the UK.

The event, organised by the Engineering Construction Industry Training Board (ECITB), brought together industry leaders, as well as the rising stars of tomorrow, for a celebration of excellence in training and development. Held at One Marylebone, an iconic Grade I listed building in the heart of the capital, the event was hosted by Chair of the ECITB Innov8 Group Chinwe Odili, a STEM champion and award-winning structural engineer from Kent plc.

CATCH, which works with industry and stakeholders to develop in-demand regional industrial skills, scooped the award for showing excellence in the delivery of ECITB-approved training, products and services as part of its Welding and Pipefitting Hub.

Judges recognised the organisation for delivering industry-leading training through expert instructors, advanced facilities and industry-aligned curricula. The nomination also highlighted how CATCH is helping bridge skills gaps, enhancing safety and efficiency, driving industry growth and producing highly competent tradespeople.

Joel Broddle, Head of the Welding, Pipefitting and Fabrication Hub at CATCH, said: “It feels overwhelming to be recognised like this. Being given the autonomy to do what we do, for the good of the industry, has been a big thing for our team in the Hub.

“Being an apprentice 20 years ago myself through an ECITB programme, which is the same for a lot of the trainers that I’ve got with me now, we see the skills gap and it’s nice that local companies are supporting CATCH on that journey, as well as the ECITB.

“I know internally what we do really well and I can shout about it all I want, but to be recognised nationally will go a huge way to increase the number of apprentices that come through and close that skills gap. So it’s onwards and upwards for us at CATCH.”

Recognising success stories in engineering construction

The ceremony recognised standout individuals, companies and training providers as awards were presented to winners across nine categories at what is now an established highlight in the engineering construction industry’s (ECI) calendar. The judging panel for the awards was made up of Mark Fotheringham from Infinity Engineering, Tracey Shelley from BCECA and John Webster from Applus UK, who picked the overall winners based on the significant contributions they have made both to the ECI and their own organisations. The theme of the awards was change and, in opening the event, ECITB Chief Executive Andrew Hockey spoke of the new Government’s commitment to skills and how the industry is changing as it plays its part in realising the country’s net zero goals.

He said: “The ECITB, as the industry’s employer-led training board, stands at the heart of these changes to support the skills needs of the workforce.

“With our collective desire, endeavour and expertise, exemplified by the exceptional talent gathered at the awards, we can tackle the challenges ahead and seize the opportunities to ensure our industry is well-placed for the future.

“The standard of nominees this year was again incredibly high, showcasing the great things happening in training and development across the industry.

“I would like to thank our judges and congratulate all the winners and finalists who are great examples of excellence in our industry.”

Lynda Armstrong OBE, Chair of the ECITB Board, added: “I would like to congratulate everyone honoured and thank our generous sponsors who made the evening possible.

“The event is an opportunity to celebrate the best of the best within our industry. The individuals and organisations nominated exemplify the talent, innovation and endeavour that our industry needs.

“They remind us to continuously strive to raise the bar for excellence in training and development. And in this ever-evolving world, the importance of their contributions is clearer than ever.”

As well as each category being sponsored, the drinks and entertainment were sponsored by Bechtel and Kingsfield Academy respectively, while the dinner was sponsored by Hinkley Point C.

Philippa Burt, HR Director at Hinkley Point C, said: “Hinkley Point C is a catalyst for long-term growth in the engineering construction industry and will leave a legacy of a more skilled and productive workforce that gives the region, and the wider UK, a competitive edge as it delivers the UK’s ambitions for energy security and net zero.

“The huge team involved in building the power station understand the critical importance of training and development and we are delighted to play a small part in shining a spotlight on the outstanding work taking place in the sector by attendees at the awards.”

ECI Training & Development Awards 2024: Winners and finalists

Apprentice of the Year Award – sponsored by the National College for Nuclear

Winner: Lewis White (The Herne Group)

Finalists: Lucy Jarvis (Sellafield Ltd), Harvey Bennett (CATCH / TEI)

Graduate of the Year Award – sponsored by BCECA

Winner: Toby Highstead (Amentum, formerly Jacobs CMS)

Finalists: Harry Venn (WSP), Jasmine Sagoo (AtkinsRéalis)

The ECITB New Entrant Award – sponsored by Wright Brothers Industrial Services Limited  

Winner: Monika Czyz-Grzesik (Cavendish Nuclear, part of the MEH Alliance working at HPC)

Finalists: Paul Alp (Southampton Engineering Training Association (SETA) / Altrad), Luke Roberts (Pembrokeshire College / Haven Engineering)

Large Employer of the Year – sponsored by Nuvia

Winner: Wood

Finalists: Applus+ UK Ltd, EDF

Small/Medium Employer of the Year – sponsored by EqualEngineers 

Winner: Wright Brothers Industrial Services Limited

Finalists: A&L Mechanical Installations Ltd, Intelect

ED&I Initiative of the Year – sponsored by NDA

Winner: Fluor Limited

Finalists: Dyer & Butler ENABLE Network, Grief Awareness Community – Cadent Gas Ltd

Training Organisation of the Year – sponsored by GSS Training Limited

Winner: CATCH – Welding and Pipefitting Hub

Finalists: Enermech Ltd, Hydratight Ltd

Leading Industry Safety Award – sponsored by Sellafield Ltd  

Winner: Fluor Limited

Finalists: Hinkley Point C (Part of EDF Energy), Wright Brothers Industrial Services

International Training Organisation of the Year

Winner: Hydratight (Middle East and Caspian)

Finalists and regional winners: International Apprenticeship & Competency Academy Ltd (IACA) (East Africa and Rest of World), PT Petrotekno (Asia Pacific)

Find out more about the ECI Training and Development Awards 2024 at:

https://www.ecitb.org.uk/eci-training-development-awards-2024/