As part of its strategy to raise the professional standards of the plumbing and heating engineering industry both in the UK and in a wider context, the Chartered Institute of Plumbing and Heating Engineering (CIPHE) is to ‘twin’ with Les Compagnons Du Devoir in France.
Les Compagnons Du Devoir is an international organisation, headquartered in France whose aim is to help young people gain the skills they need to secure or further their employment. Following an approach to Les Compagnons by the CIPHE, its chief executive, Blane Judd, was invited to address the annual congress held in Rennes recently.
He spoke in both English and French and outlined the role, vision and mission of the CIPHE placing particular emphasis on the environmental aspects of plumbing and heating engineering. He also told delegates about the World Plumbing Council and its plans to involve stakeholders on a global basis.
Blane Judd commented: “I welcomed the opportunity to speak to such a long established and well respected international organisation. Les Compagnons Du Devoir share many of our values, particularly those relating to the need to ensure young people receive appropriate levels of training required for meaningful employment, and then helping those newly qualified men and women secure jobs in their chosen profession. We’re looking forward to talking more about how our two organisations could benefit each other through twinning.
Said Brice Delhougne, the UK and Ireland representative for Les Compagnons Du Devoir: “We were delighted and honoured to have Mr Blane Judd at our congress in Rennes this year, which was attended by most of our plumber members, aged from 16 to 77. They all appreciated that Blane spoke in French and I think we have a lot more in common than the plumbing industry itself.
“The CIPHE and Les Compagnons both work hard to keep the level of training as high as possible and we also work a lot on personal development of individuals. “Blane’s idea to twin our institutions has been welcomed by Les Compagnons Du Devoir. We hope to develop our relationship in areas such as sharing best practice, comparing regulations in our respective countries, and arranging for young English plumbers to work in France for a short period of time and vice versa.”
Ends
Final Media contact at Spa Public Relations: Rachel Pictor email rachel@spapublicrelations.com or Lindsay Jones at Lindsay@spapublicrelations.com, alternatively telephone 01242 245789.
Media contact at Les Compagnons Du Devoir: Brice Delhougne, 0185 841 9677