AN apprentice from Amazon in Peterborough is taking part in the WorldSkills UK Finals at Birmingham’s NEC with the hope of being named the UK’s Best Robotics Engineer.

Mantas Budratis is part of a two-man team at Amazon that successfully secured a place in the WorldSkills UK Finals after excelling in the national qualifiers, which took place in the summer. At the qualifiers, they created a robot that could perform a series of tasks such as drawing a pentagon independently and accurately.

Mantas lives in Peterborough and has worked at Amazon for three years. He’s been part of the Amazon Apprenticeship programme for 18 months studying engineering. He said: “I started at Amazon in Peterborough as an associate and I’ve worked my way up to my dream job. When I had the opportunity to apply for an engineering apprenticeship, I was really excited because when I was a child, I had two passions: cooking and building things. I love what I do at Amazon as I work on electrical maintenance, problem-solving and robotics. My family and friends are all really happy for me and I appreciate the team at Amazon in Peterborough for giving me this opportunity.”

Mantas will compete alongside Luke Vials (30) who is currently participating in the Amazon Apprenticeship programme at the fulfilment centre in Coalville. They will join over 500 of the UK’s top apprentices at the national final with the aim of winning Gold, Silver or Bronze in their chosen skill. The event takes place from 21 – 23 November at the NEC, Birmingham.  

Mantas says that teamwork is the key to achieving great results. He adds: “During my time at Amazon, I’ve learned the importance of teamwork and communication. You can learn the skills of engineering in many places but support from your team is what makes the difference to having success in the future. Luke and I worked very well as part of a team as he’s really good at programming and testing, whereas I am stronger at building. We supported each other and I learned a lot from him about programming.”

Amazon Peterborough’s Site Leader, Victor Pulido, praised Mantas for his achievement. He said: “The Apprenticeship programme at Amazon is all about achieving great things and having fun. On behalf of the Amazon Peterborough team, I want to say congratulations to Mantas and Luke for this fantastic achievement and wish them the best of luck ahead of the final.”

Dr Neil Bentley-Gockmann OBE, Chief Executive, WorldSkills UK said: “I wish Luke and Mantas the best of luck as they compete at WorldSkills UK LIVE. 

“At WorldSkills UK we work to accelerate the development of young people’s skills from national to world-class standards. We’re creating a new generation of high-flyers that give UK employers a competitive edge.”

Amazon’s Apprenticeship schemes are designed to suit candidates with a range of experience, from those with life skills to school leavers who are 18+ with GCSEs or A-levels. *

Anyone interested in finding out more information about the Amazon apprenticeship programme can visit  www.amazon.jobs/apprentices