A recruitment drive to attract military personnel into the booming oil and gas industry arrived in Moray yesterday.
Newly-retired members of the Armed Forces are seen as ideal employees by the industry, which is seeking to address its critical need for skilled engineers and technicians.
Recruiters were at Kinloss Barracks yesterday to advise personnel on how to make the transition.
David Duffy heads the Career Transition Partnership (CTP), which works to raise awareness of the career opportunities on offer for those leaving the forces.
Mr Duffy, who has helped to arrange the national recruitment drive, said: “The Armed Forces equips its employees with a high degree of professionalism and a wide range of skills, including technical expertise, vocational qualifications, health and safety, leadership and management and team working.”
Military personnel are also highly sought after for offshore work as they are already used to working in challenging environments and being away from home.
Onshore positions also need to be filled, as do support roles in areas such as project management and logistics.
Topics covered at Kinloss yesterday included learning about the drilling process, the different types of rigs and platforms, transportation, pipeline management and the decommissioning process.
A spokesman from Kinloss Barracks said: “Our people are highly trained and motivated. They also possess skills which are easily transferable to a civilian environment.
“They also possess soft skills, such as man management and the ability to work as a team.”
Morven Spalding, who works for the oil and gas recruitment firm Opito whose representatives were at the barracks, said: “The oil and gas industry will be getting vastly experienced personnel who may only need a short conversion course to get them started.
“That will save companies both time and costs.”
Up to 15,000 personnel are leaving the Armed Forces each year – many after completing the 22 years of service which entitles them to a full pension.