Our Veteran Club is forever growing !

🎉 Celebrating 25 Years of Service at AF Switchgear 🎉

This week, we’re incredibly proud to welcome three more valued team members into our Veteran Club — marking 25 years of dedication and service to the company. An outstanding achievement that reflects their hard work, loyalty, and growth over the years.

Please join us in congratulating:

🔧 Mark Stone

•10 July 2000: Joined as an Electrical Apprentice

•6 August 2002: Promoted to Approved Electrical Fitter

•1 September 2005: Completed apprenticeship and became Electrical Fitter

•8 March 2018: Promoted to Team Leader

•22 June 2021: Moved to Intermediate Applications Engineer (Engineering Dept.)

•1 January 2024: Promoted to Contracts Engineer

🔌 Karl Waltho

•10 July 2000: Joined as an Apprentice Electrical Fitter/Wireman

•17 January 2005: Completed apprenticeship and became Electrical Fitter

•2008–2010: Worked in Engineering & on the shop floor

•1 January 2011: Appointed Applications Engineer

•1 December 2017: Moved to Site Services as Site Services Engineer

•1 October 2020: Promoted to Technician

•9 August 2021: Transferred to VAR Services as Technical Engineer

⚙️ Paul Hodgkinson

•10 July 2000: Joined as an Electrical Apprentice

•1 September 2005: Completed apprenticeship and became Electrical Fitter

•15 December 2017: Promoted to Approved Electrical Fitter

•6 February 2023: Promoted to Team Leader

👏 A huge well done to Mark, Karl and Paul — your commitment and contributions over the past 25 years have helped shape the success and culture of AF Switchgear.

Internal NewsJuly 8, 2025July 8, 2025

Congratulations to our Tough Mudders !

🫸 Pushing Limits, Making a Difference: Congratulations to Our Tough Mudders! 👏

This past weekend, a team of our incredible operatives went above and beyond — not just in their work, but in mud, sweat, and sheer determination.

They took on the legendary Tough Mudder 15k challenge to raise funds in the memory of Luke Wistow and we couldn’t be prouder! ❤️

From scaling walls to crawling through mud pits, our team showed what grit, teamwork, and resilience truly look like. It wasn’t easy — and that’s the point. 🧗‍♂️

They chose discomfort. They chose the hard route. And they did it for a cause that matters deeply to all of us. ❤️

Please donate via the link below ⤵️

JUST GIVING

⭐ To everyone who ran, you’ve reminded us that together, we’re capable of so much more than we think. ⭐

Internal NewsJuly 8, 2025July 8, 2025

West Notts College ~ Gene Haas Centre for Advanced Manufacturing

AF Switchgear were proud to attend the official opening of the UK’s first Gene Haas Centre for Advanced Manufacturing at Vision West Nottinghamshire College last week.

This impressive facility has been two years in the making, and it’s fantastic to see the vision now fully realised. As a longstanding partner of the college, we’re especially excited about the new dedicated switchgear training area, which gives students valuable insight into our industry.

Through our apprenticeship programmes and experienced worker route qualifications, we’re committed to supporting skills development and encouraging more students to pursue a future in electrical engineering and manufacturing.

Our close collaboration with West Notts College continues to play a key role in shaping that next generation, keep an eye on our posts for the new AF Switchgear academy that will commence September 2025.

Thanks to everybody involved including TLA Distribution Ltd for your continued support.

Internal NewsJune 23, 2025June 23, 2025

Employee Achievements

The 2025 Adidas Stockholm Marathon took place on Saturday 31st May, drawing over 24,000 runners from around the globe to the Swedish capital. 🇸🇪

Our very own Harry Whetton (pictured above) participated and his overall stats were :

📍 Distance – 45.25Km (28.1 miles)

⏱️ Elapsed Time – 4:34:29 (42.195KM (marathon) time 4:14:46)

🏃 Average Pace – 6:04 /km

Well done Harry Whetton we are all very proud of you 👏🏽

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Thomas Myslinski (pictured below) Completes Ironman 70.3

We’re thrilled to celebrate Thomas Myslinski, who completed the Ironman 70.3 in Bolton on Sunday, 8th June—a race that includes a 1.9 km open-water swim, 90 km cycle, and 21.1 km run, all within an 8.5-hour time limit.

Thomas achieved this in 7hours 4minutes 35 seconds.

Thomas dedicated nine months to swim training and trained six times a week for the cycling and running segments. His athletic background includes nearly 20 years of competitive volleyball in Poland and the UK National League.

This incredible achievement brings him one step closer to his ultimate goal: to finish a triathlon on the distance of full Ironman which is 3.8km swim, 180km cycle and 42.2km run.

Well done, Thomas—we’re proud of your dedication and determination!

Internal NewsMay 9, 2025July 8, 2025

Adam joins our Veterans Club

This week, we proudly welcomed another member into our Veterans Club at AF Switchgear—congratulations to Adam Pearse on reaching an incredible milestone: 25 years of dedicated service.

When I asked Adam to share how his journey with us began, he recounted:

“I found AF’s number in the Yellow Pages, gave them a call, and after dropping off my CV, I was interviewed that same afternoon and offered a job. After working a week’s notice at my previous company, I joined AF Switchgear as a Fitter and was soon promoted to Approved Fitter.

One of the supervisors learned I had experience with PLC testing and quickly involved me in a contract that required those skills. From that point on, testing became my main focus, eventually leading to my current role as Quality Assurance Technician, which I’ve held since 2018.

Twenty-five years? It certainly feels like it—but they’ve been twenty-five great ones.”

Thank you, Adam, for your commitment, expertise, and the vital role you’ve played in our continued success. Here’s to many more milestones ahead!

Internal NewsMay 2, 2025May 2, 2025

AF Group HSE Committee

Members at the recent meeting of the AF Group HSE committee celebrated receiving the ISO 45001 OH&S certification following successful stage 1 and 2 assessments by the BSI.

The recognition demonstrates the company’s ongoing development in structured management systems adding to our existing accreditations with ISO standards 9001 and 14001.

The working group which represents all areas of the business meets to discuss matters relating to Environmental and OH&S in order to protect, maintain and improve the Groups management system performance.

Well done to all the team at AF Switchgear

Internal NewsApril 15, 2025April 15, 2025

Apprentice Evening 2025

Annual Apprentice Evening – Inspiring the Next Generation

We recently hosted our annual Apprentice Evening, welcoming students who are interested in pursuing an apprenticeship with us. This event continues to grow in popularity year after year—a reflection of the strong reputation our apprenticeship program has built since its inception in 1981. In fact, we are proud to say that our very first apprentice is still a valued member of our team today!

Our Apprentice Evening offers an excellent opportunity for students, along with their parents or guardians, to gain insight into what we do. Attendees were able to speak with current apprentices, engage with managers from various departments, explore the products we manufacture, and connect with representatives from West Nottinghamshire College, our long-standing training partner.

Apprenticeship Opportunities for This Year:

•Electrical Panel Builder – 10 positions

•Welder / Fabricator – 3 positions

•Finance Assistant – 1 position

•Central Services – 1 position

All applications must be submitted via the West Nottinghamshire College website:

https://www.wnc.ac.uk/Apprenticeships/

We look forward to welcoming a new group of talented apprentices into our business and continuing to support the development of future industry professionals.

Internal NewsApril 2, 2025April 2, 2025

New machinery investment 2025

Investment 2025

We have recently made a substantial investment in our fabrication department, enhancing our capabilities with two state-of-the-art machines from TRUMPF:

✅ TruPunch 3000 (Large Format) – A highly efficient punching machine that improves precision, reduces material waste, and increases productivity.

✅ TruMatic 3000 (Large Format) (Laser & Punch) – A versatile combination machine that integrates laser cutting and punching, offering exceptional flexibility and efficiency in sheet metal processing. This machine will see an increase in machine availability by 50% and will increase daily production hours over two shifts.

These additions reinforce our commitment to innovation, quality, and staying at the forefront of manufacturing technology.

Internal NewsMarch 18, 2025March 18, 2025

New members to our Veterans Club

Last week, we had the privilege of welcoming two more employees into our esteemed Veterans Club, celebrating their remarkable 25-year anniversaries with AF Switchgear.

Pictured are Steve Burrows and Mike Ratcliffe.

Steve Burrows joined us on March 13, 2000, as a Technician. Over the years, he has progressed through various roles, becoming an Approved Electrical Fitter on January 4, 2022, and, most recently, taking on the role of Team Leader in February 2023. His leadership and expertise continue to be invaluable to our team.

We also celebrate Paul Simpson, who joined AF Switchgear on March 13, 2000, as an Approved Electrical Fitter. His dedication and hard work have been instrumental in our success over the past 25 years.

We extend our heartfelt congratulations and gratitude to both Steve and Paul for their incredible contributions to the company. Here’s to many more years of success!

Internal NewsMarch 13, 2025March 13, 2025

Edward Richardson Apprenticeship

A huge congratulations to Edward Richardson on successfully completing his General Welder (Arc Processes) Level 2 Apprenticeship! 👏👏

Edward has shown incredible dedication, skill, and perseverance throughout his apprenticeship, and we’re thrilled to see him achieve this well-earned milestone. His hard work is a testament to both his personal commitment and the strength of our apprenticeship program in developing top talent.

Well done, Edward! We’re excited to see what the future holds for you in your welding career. 🔥⚙️