AW manager marks 40th anniversary

October 2019 marks a special anniversary for AW Repair Group’s compliancy and training manager, Ian Pearson, who chose vehicle body repair over mathematics 40-years ago this month.

He began his career as a multi-skilled apprentice at WASS (Wallace Arnold Sales & Service) on Lenton Lane, Nottingham.

Attending Peoples College to complete the five-year City & Guilds apprenticeship, Ian achieved two credits and one distinction in light vehicle body repair, trim and refinishing. After completing practical tests in various different fields, such as metal finish repair, welding, chassis pulling and painting a door skin with adjacent blends he also received his RTITB (Road Transport Industry Training Board) Craft Studies certificate.

Fast forward 10 years to 1989, Ian was working as a multi-skilled technician with five-years qualified experience under his belt at a Vauxhall dealer in Nottingham.

‘It was so rewarding, being able to carry out any repair from start to finish,’ said Ian, remembering his Vauxhall days.

Another 10 years later, Ian decided to take a slight career change and took on the combined role of estimator and workshop controller at Hooleys Ford in Nottingham.

Ian said, ‘I knew it was time for me to come off the shopfloor, I had built my knowledge over the years and wanted to further my career without getting my hands dirty. In those days it was quite dirty work – not like the high specification bodyshops we have today.

‘One of the most rewarding moments during my career within this industry was when I was at Sandicliffe Ford, I was given the task to introduce and maintain ISO9002. I was a naïve manager at the time, but I took it in my stride and funnily enough now I’m carrying out compliancy within AW Repair Group it’s things like ISO and BSI I have to be heavily involved in across the group.’

Ian joined AW Repair Group in 2007 as general manager of the Denaby, South Yorkshire site and was later instrumental in setting up the Markham Vale, Chesterfield site in 2014, which he was running until earlier this year when he was appointed to the group operations team as a compliancy and training manager.

Ian now ensures are all sites are compliant to BSI and other regulatory bodies and heads up AW’s Training & Apprenticeship academy, which to date has 19 students.

He said, ‘It’s great that apprentices are getting stuck in and getting really doing the job rather than making tea and cleaning the floor which I had to do more times than I want to recall.  I’m glad the industry has taken a huge leap forward. I love seeing the industry I’ve worked in for 40 years progress and I feel privileged and proud to have been part of AW’s growth over the last 12 years.’