The Landbased Training and Education Committee (LE-TEC Ltd), the industry collaborative that aims to promote training and education for people working within agricultural, horticultural and forestry machinery dealerships, manufacturers, and associated businesses, has launched a newly redesigned website at www.landbasedengineering.com.

The new site brings together all the information for those looking for a career in land-based engineering or looking to upskill with further qualifications and industry acknowledged accreditations.

Made up by three main industry bodies: The Agricultural Engineers Association (AEA), British Agricultural and Garden Machinery Association (BAGMA) and the Institution of Agricultural Engineers (IAgrE), LE-TEC has a common goal of attracting the next generation of talent and helping to upskill the current workforce.

As an industry collaboration, LE-TEC say they are continually looking to tackle one of the biggest current issues the agricultural and outdoor power equipment sectors face today: that of skills. They believe the training and recruitment of youngsters and new people for the industry, particularly in respect of attracting young talent into the manufacturing and retail base, is ever more critical.

Ruth Bailey, CEO of AEA explains, “As an industry, we face a huge crisis in the skills gap if we do not start to look more pragmatically about enticing a new intake of recruits. We then must genuinely offer them a progressive career path which recognises skills and competence levels within the technicians’ and customer service related roles."

“This new website lays the foundations for this by increasing the accessibility of our industry and what it has to offer”, added Keith Christian, Director of BAGMA.

The land-based engineering website houses all the information regarding the Land-based Engineering Training Accreditation (LTA) scheme. The LTA scheme is unique to the Land-based Engineering industry offering technicians, parts advisors and after market professionals a career development pathway. LTA scheme information and registration forms can be easily accessed via the new website for new registrations or updating existing registration details.

Alongside this, LE-TEC say the site will be updated on a regular basis with new content and the latest industry news. The collaborative will also be working with technicians over the coming months to provide real-life success stories within the industry.