A group of international engineering students have been welcomed to Renfrewshire at a civic reception hosted by Provost Celia Lawson.

Fifty engineers from all over the world have been enrolled in the Howden Academy, the new training school set up by Renfrew-based international engineering firm Howden.

The academy has been developed in partnership with Glasgow Caledonian University.

It will provide three weeks of job-specific engineering training in Glasgow to 50 young engineering graduates from the company's business units across the world, including China, Russia, India, South Africa, Denmark, France, Germany, Netherlands, Australia, Brazil, USA and UK.


It will provide training centrally to all new engineers on the company, its history, markets and products.

Provost Lawson welcomed the new trainees at a reception held at Paisley Town Hall on Thursday 17 July.

Provost Lawson said: "I am delighted to welcome these students from all over the world to Renfrewshire. Engineering continues to provide young men and women with exciting career opportunities and it is encouraging that this new academy will bring them to train in Scotland. I wish the students every success in the future."

Bob Cleland, Howden's Chief Executive, said: "Scotland has a proud engineering tradition, and Howden is a global engineering company, headquartered in Renfrew, and committed to Scotland as a centre for engineering excellence."

"This course has been designed by Howden engineers for Howden engineers, and so marries the knowledge, skills and experience our people have gathered over the years with the teaching expertise and world-class learning facilities at Glasgow Caledonian University.

"We hope that by making this level of investment in our people, we will attract and retain the best engineers from around the world, strengthening our position as a global force in engineering innovation."

(GK/JM)