E.ON uses Bob the Builder to promote green skills training
UK – E.ON is using Bob the Builder to highlight the need for green-skills training after commissioned research found that 31% of UK energy-sector professionals believe the workforce is not yet fully equipped to install technologies needed for the energy transition.
The campaign sees Bob enrol at E.ON’s Net Zero Training Academy in Kingswinford, West Midlands. The facility trains engineers in technologies including heat pumps, solar PV, battery storage, electric vehicle charging and smart metering.
Skills investment
The research, carried out by FocalData for E.ON among 250 members of the UK energy workforce between 28 August and 5 September, found that 89% believe greater investment and closer collaboration between government and industry are needed.
The same proportion said upskilling the existing workforce would be as important as attracting new talent.
The need and the demand for green skills in the UK energy sector are there. Now it’s up to energy companies and the government
Helen Bradbury, chief people officer at E.ON UK
Heat pump training
E.ON has used its Kingswinford site for training since 2017 and subsequently developed it into its Net Zero Training Academy.
The company has previously said its heat-pump training lasts for a minimum of six weeks, combining classroom sessions with practical, hands-on experience.
E.ON says the academy and its wider skills initiatives support around 800 people each year. It has also trained more than 1,200 apprentices since 2018 across 100 programmes.
Applications for E.ON’s degree apprenticeships have more than trebled in three years, rising from around 45 applicants per role in 2023 to 165 in 2026.
The Bob the Builder campaign was launched on 16 September, with the character returning in his original stop-motion form and Neil Morrissey reprising the voice role for the first time since 2011.
