A Scottish company is forging a reputation as a global leader in training managers, engineers and technicians who work in industrial and hazardous environments.

The EPIT Group has formed a new company in Kazakhstan, called KAZEX, employing local staff to utilise their expertise which will enable competence training and consultancy services.

This facility will primarily benefit electrical and instrument technicians requiring training in Kazakhstan.

EPIT, which operates from a custom-built unit at Blackburn Business Park, near Aberdeen, is increasingly widening its scope in training and consultancy on a worldwide basis - including the Caspian Region, USA, the Middle East, Australia, Singapore and India, as well as the UK market.

The company provides services across a broad spectrum of industries including on and offshore petrochemical, energy, fuel storage, sewage/water treatment, defence, distillation and manufacturing plants. It has also established a close relationship with Falck Nutec - the world's largest provider of safety training for the offshore industry.

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The EPIT Group now provides a suite of 12 of its bespoke competency training package. These courses range from one to five days in length and are collectively delivered under the ComPlus Programme.

The company, which is endorsed by the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), clients include blue-chip companies such as AMEC, Shell, BP, Scottish Water, RBG, Wood Group, Halliburton, Schlumberger and Caterpillar (Holt), in the US.

The EPIT Group was launched in 2000, and its training facility, recently refurbished at a cost of £250,000, boasts new tuition rooms and hands-on practical areas which are fully equipped with a wide variety of demonstration modules for the inspection, installation and maintenance of electrical and instrumentation components. There are also demonstration units which highlight the effects of misuse and the need for training - including an explosion under controlled conditions. The training facility also has a new reception area with refreshment facilities.

EPIT director Alison Cox points out: "This new facility enables us to grow our business and increase our ability to provide a more comfortable and full-equipped environment for our clients.

"We can now model this facility worldwide and have the ability to expand into areas we have targeted such as Nigeria which needs to have competence-based training - thus insuring a safer working place for the hazardous area industry."

(GK/JM)