T Level engineering and manufacturing students from West Nottinghamshire College visited one of the area’s oldest manufacturers and suppliers of engineering components.

Boneham and Turner, which was established in Mansfield in 1918 by John Boneham, opened its doors at its Oddicroft Lane site in Sutton to three groups of students, just a few hundred metres from the college’s own Engineering Innovation Centre.

They saw the new and classic manufacturing techniques that the company uses to manufacture precision-engineered solutions to a global customer base, including clients in aerospace, defence, motorsport, and composites.

The tour was led by co-managing director Charles Boneham, who completed his own engineering apprenticeship with the college in 1989.

Following a tour of the facility, students met representatives from the University of Wolverhampton, who had taken their Formula One Renault racing car.

The car is part-sponsored by Boneham and Turner and was bought 10 years ago by the university. This saw the birth of UW Racing, which is a unique, real racing team giving undergraduates on the motorsport engineering degrees hands-on experience with competitive motorsport.

Students met the university’s principal engineering technician, Nick Skidmore, and were set a challenge to take off and replace one of the car’s wheels within 10 seconds.

Student Ryan Stoneley said: “I had a great time, and I enjoyed getting to see the different machines they use and the difference between the old and newer ones, but also how they manage and store goods when waiting to ship out a product.

“The University of Wolverhampton challenge was fun and we were able to get an insight into the opportunities and experiences that come with going to a university.”

One of the college’s work placement officers, Lucy Scott, added: “Our students had a brilliant time looking at a real-life engineering environment and getting competitive with the University of Wolverhampton racing team.

“This visit will really help the T Level students to understand what an engineering environment entails.”