New Chairman for EAL

Posted on 4 Jun 2014 by The Manufacturer

The engineering awarding body EAL has appointed John Hillier as its new chairman.

John Hillier has extensive experience working on education and training qualification in the UK. He has been a member of EAL’s board since 1997 and is also a trustee of the commercial education trust which promotes a better relationship between education and the world of work.

Mr Hillier was previously CEO of the National Council for Vocational Education and was responsible for the development of the NVQ and GNVQ system.

He has a strong foundation of experience in the glass and steel industries where he worked in production and HR management.

Hillier replaces retired EAL chairman Alastair Imrie who stepped down from his post in May.

Commenting on the challenges and opportunities ahead of him at EAL Hillier expressed a determination to maintain quality in vocational qualifications.

“EAL is a high-quality organisation employing high quality people who provide our customers with a terrific service,” he said. “We have to maintain that quality – and cope with the changing environment surrounding skills and qualifications.”

The context for maintaining the quality is, however, in flux Hillier continued to say.

“Government support for qualifications is changing radically. Our job is to ensure continuous development of the organisation so our customers continue to get the support they need to provide fair and reliable assessment.”

EAL is the national awarding body for industry. It develops vocational qualifications for the EAL develops and awards qualifications for the engineering and manufacturing, building services, environmental technologies, gas services, logistics and business services sectors.

Nearly three-quarters of all engineering-related qualifications in the UK are awarded by EAL and more than 50,000 individuals have embarked on an EAL administered qualification in the past five years.

The Manufacturer of the Year Awards.

The Manufacturer of the Year Awards 2013 at the ICC in Birmingham.
The Manufacturer of the Year Awards 2013 at the ICC in Birmingham.

EAL is sponsor of the People and Skills Category of the Manufacturer of the Year Awards, TM’s annual awards scheme.

The scheme celebrates the achievements of manufacturing businesses and individuals across 14 categories and crowns an overall victor for the Manufacturer of the Year Award title.

The awards are free to enter and the prize giving ceremony takes place on November 27 in Birmingham. 1,000 guests are expected to attend this event in 2014.

The deadline for entries to the 2014 Manufacturer of the year awards is July 31.

Find out more.