West Yorkshire Apprenticeship Awards 2025: FDM Group announced as sponsors of this year's event

FDM is encouraging others to submit nominations for their star apprentices before the deadline of 8pm on Wednesday, March 19.

In 2024, FDM initiated a ground-breaking collaboration with E.ON, a key client partner working with Sheffield City Council to achieve ambitious sustainable energy and decarbonisation targets.

The project was an opportunity for three apprentices – Johnny Rodrigues, Vincent Boardman and Muhammad Mamoon – from FDM’s Digital Technology Solutions programme to contribute to innovative advancements in sustainable energy.

The apprentices were selected to collaborate with E.ON on their End Point Assessment (EPA) as part of the degree component at Sheffield Hallam University, which forms the academic component of their off-the-job training.

The project, aimed at enhancing workplace safety, is to develop an advanced enterprise system for E.ON that uses AI to detect personal protective equipment (PPE) violations in real-time at its Blackburn Meadows biomass power plant in Tinsley, north-east of the city.

Designed by the apprentices, a machine learning AI model will be trained to recognise PPE violations using a large dataset of images. When a violation is detected, the system will generate an alert to notify relevant personnel, helping to improve safety compliance.

Claire Whitmore, head of digital technology at E.ON UK, said: “At E.ON, we’re constantly exploring how technology can create smarter, safer and more efficient workplaces.

“This collaboration with FDM’s apprentices is a perfect example of how innovation and talent development go hand in hand.

“By using AI to enhance safety compliance, we’re not only supporting the next generation of digital specialists but also driving meaningful change in industrial safety standards.

“It’s an exciting step forward for both our teams and the future of workplace technology.”

Now in its fourth year, the West Yorkshire Apprenticeship Awards features 14 award categories designed to celebrate the outstanding apprenticeship network across the region.

The grand announcement of winners will take place at the live event on Thursday, May 1, held at the Cedar Court Hotel in Bradford.

For more information and the full list of award categories, visit www.wyapprenticeshipawards.co.uk