Apprentices Give New Lease of Life to 56 Year Old Dinghy

Sea cadets based in Oban will soon be taking to the water in a magnificent 56 year old dinghy which has been refurbished by apprentices from Carnegie College School of Engineering and Technology. The Apprentices are all employed by the Ministry of Defence and embarked on the refurbishment two years ago under the guidance of Carnegie’s Business Development Advisor, Gordon Scobie. Speaking about the project Gordon said ‘ I was aware that the Northern Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) Sea Cadet Corps based at Oban were having to deny their cadets the opportunity to get out on the water to build on their rowing and pulling work due to the derelict state of their fleet of 56 year old dinghies. When I heard about the condition of the dinghies I thought this would be a great opportunity for the apprentices to demonstrate and develop their planning, project and team working skills together with the practical elements of their engineering course. ‘The standard of workmanship by the group and their enthusiasm for the project has been admirable. I think they were spurred on by the knowledge that the dinghy would give the sea cadets their first chance to take to the water – something that is essential for their training! Something the Oban cadets have not been able to do since the group was founded two and a half years ago. The apprentices have also benefited from the experience of working together and putting into practice the skills they have learnt during their training.’ Lieutenant (SCC) Tommy Wallace BEM, Area Logistics Officer for Northern RNR Area Sea Cadet Corp, came down to Rosyth from Oban to meet and thank the group for their work. He said ‘The dinghy will be delivered to Oban on 9 June. We are so pleased to be receiving the refurbished dinghy and grateful to the apprentices for their hard work on the project. The sea cadets will benefit enormously from being able to practise their rowing skills in the open water.’