Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
Robot engineer sparks pupils
Entrepreneur impressed by Airdrie Academy visit
One of the UK’s most successful young entrepreneurs visited Airdrie Academy yesterday to ignite the spark for engineering enthusiasts.
Josh Valman, managing director of global corporation RPD International, spent time with five S4 pupils – two of whom he met last month during filming for the BBC’s popular Robot Wars.
Ellie Suttie and Kayleigh Tart attended the show as part of the audience and approached Josh, who has worked as a robot designer for the programme, after recognising him.
The girls explained that they also build robots to compete in a game called Vex Starstruck, and became national champions in Birmingham with teammates Hannah Price, Madeleine Dick and Emma McGhie.
The girls invited 22-year-old Josh to their school to pass on his expertise and also take a look at their robot.
And an impressed Josh told the Advertiser: “It’s vital to visit schools as it really helps with future employment.
“Giving people the opportunity to flourish early means they are better prepared after school and further education.
“Schools are a huge source of talent and for me so, thinking 10 years ahead, it’s a nobrainer to come to Airdrie to see what the girls can do and pass on any advice I can.”
He added : “I’ve been really impressed by the girls and they are really well engaged.
“It’s important to realise that they aren’t doing this for school purposes; it’s in their own time and they are genuinely excited and passionate about building robots and engineering.
“Having practical experience is vital for their future if they are setting themselves up very well.”
When Josh was at a similar stage of his schooling he was already an engineering success.
He explained: “At RPD we provide product design, manufacturing and offer a supply chain to companies all over the world.
“When I was 15 I was coming in from school and taking conference calls from China as a freelance consultant.
“It was initially just for fun but the work kept coming and at one point I was earning £10,000 a week.
“I ended up remotely managing a $20m dollar company but I didn’t realise it was such a big deal; it was just numbers on a spreadsheet to me.
“They sacked me when they found out how young I was!”
Ellie, who was the driving force in bringing Josh to the school, smiled: “I really can’t believe he’s come to Airdrie.
“Getting advice and tips from Josh for our future is invaluable to us as we all want to go on and work in engineering.”
The dedicated girls often came into school at 7am and left at 9pm as they worked to perfect their robot before the Vex Starstruck tournament in March.
Team member Emma McGhie added: “We really want to keep up our interest over our remaining years at school.
“It’s a real passion and having Josh see our creation means a lot.”