Young engineers explore historical Mansfield firm
Posted: 18 February 2025
T Level engineering and manufacturing students from West Nottinghamshire College have 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 to students at its Oddicroft Lane site in Sutton-in-Ashfield, just a few hundred metres from the college’s own Engineering Innovation Centre.
Three groups of students enjoyed a guided tour of its facilities, showcasing 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 the tour of the facility, students met with representatives from the University of Wolverhampton who had brought along 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 were able to meet the university’s principal engineering technician Nick Skidmore and colleagues and look at their racing car. They set students the challenge of taking off and replacing one of the car’s wheels within a ten second timeframe.
Seventeen-year-old T Level student Ryan Stoneley said: “I had a great time, and I enjoyed getting the 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 which come with going to a university.”
One of the college’s work placement officers Lucy Scott said: “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. We would definitely love to do this again with Boneham and Turner in the future.”