Automation and control specialist, Beckhoff UK, has expanded its national training capacity with the opening of a new, larger facility in Huntingdon. The new training centre is 50 per cent larger than the previous site and will be headed by Beckhoff UK’s training manager, Etienne Phillips, who has overseen the company’s growing training programme over the past five years.
The Huntingdon facility now accommodates twelve participants, up from eight previously, and is equipped with state-of-the-art AV systems and dedicated training rigs. Together with recent expansions at Beckhoff’s Glasgow office and the opening of a new office at Alderley Park, the company can now offer more training places than ever before. This will mean much shorter waiting times for in-demand courses and more flexibility for customers.
“The new Huntingdon centre allows us to scale up while also improving the training experience with modern facilities and hands-on equipment,” said Phillips. “It is a significant step forward in how we support our customers and demonstrates Beckhoff’s commitment to closing the skills gap in automation.”
As well as expanding in size, the new centre offers breakout areas, a canteen space and flexible meeting rooms that can host up to 50 people for presentations. This provides a more collaborative environment for both structured training and informal knowledge sharing.
The training programme itself is also evolving. Alongside Beckhoff’s established PLC programming courses, new streams are being designed to meet the needs of software developers entering the automation sector. The company also plans to introduce CPD-style courses covering topics such as machine vision fundamentals and object-oriented programming, offering knowledge that can be applied across multiple platforms.
“Our training is about much more than just teaching TwinCAT,” added Phillips. “By providing both introductory and advanced courses, and by planning manufacturer-agnostic CPD options, we aim to help engineers at every stage of their careers.”
Beckhoff would like to encourage anyone interested in attending its training sessions at Huntingdon or other UK locations to contact Etienne Phillips on training@beckhoff.com.