Engineering firm Zytek Automotive forced to recruit abroad
A MIDLAND firm with an overflowing order book is set to hire key new recruits from Germany and Romania because of a chronic shortage of home-grown engineering talent.
Staffordshire-based Zytek Automotive Ltd received around 400 UK applications for scores of staff vacancies needed to help meet demand for hi-tech engine equipment, but only “two or three” suitable candidates.
Now bosses at the Lichfield automotive and motorsport group are having to look to the continent to bridge the skills gap and fulfil customer needs from throughout Europe.
Zytek finance director Stephen Wallis said: “Over the past ten years, we have been developing electric drive-train technology to power motor vehicles – everybody is looking to build smaller cars and use power systems that do not rely on oil.
“We are getting inquiries from all over Europe – Daimler, VW, Peugeot, Ferrari, Tata and so on. With all our projects, we are desperately short of good quality engineering staff and we are struggling to keep up with the level of inquiries that we are getting.
“We have had to employ contract staff to help out. People want things tomorrow, and we are having to say we cannot do it tomorrow.
“We are looking for 20 plus engineers but it is very difficult to get the right calibre people. There is a genuine shortage because everybody has been going into careers in finance or the media – engineering is not considered sexy enough.
“We have had a massive amount of people send in CVs – around 300 to 400 – but we think that there are only two or three that we can offer jobs to.
“We have been successful in recruiting some assembly and admin staff for our manufacturing operations but the problem area is automotive development engineering.
“The motor industry in the Midlands has gone through a difficult time in the past ten years. We are losing our core of engineering resources because they are going abroad.”
Mr Wallis said Zytek, which is 50 per cent owned by German automotive group Continental, was now looking abroad for its own new recruits.
“Our partner in Germany thinks he could bring people in from the likes of Germany and Romania. We have an immediate vacancy for at least 20 but I think we would open the doors for others.”
The £15 million turnover Staffordshire company, at the cutting edge of electric smart car development, currently employs a total of 135 staff.
