Derby Museums has formed a new partnership with Vaillant, bringing new investment to develop future engineering skills in the region.
Vaillant is the largest employer in Belper with additional sites across Derbyshire and is a manufacturer of heat pumps, boilers and complimenting heating system products. Having invested more than £50m into the region, it is now partnering with Derby Museums on a new suite of educational programmes designed to inspire the apprentices, engineers and makers of the future.
This partnership will also see Vaillant as the exclusive sponsor of the Assemble: Derby’s Making Festival which will be hosted on Saturday 26 October. For the next three years, Vaillant will collaborate on special workshops for visitors to get involved and understand low carbon alternatives in heating and new initiatives in education and skills development for the region.
Visitors to the Museum of Making will be able to learn more about a low carbon future through its new Power Pod display. The display showcases the innovations from both Vaillant and its sister brand Glow-worm, looking at heritage boilers from the past and heat pump technology for the future, alongside other industrial artefacts from Derby Museums’ collections.
The partnership will also see the creation of a ‘Launch into Engineering’ project – where secondary school pupils will be invited to spend time in the Museum of Making’s Workshop, visit the Vaillant manufacturing plant and get a taste of life in the heating industry.
Henrik Hansen, Managing Director of Vaillant in the UK & Ireland, said: “Our partnership with Derby Museums is a great way for us to celebrate our local manufacturing heritage. We’ve been in Derby for 90 years with Glow-worm and this year we are proud to celebrate 150 years with Vaillant.
“We are a major employer in the area and are looking to promote engineering and manufacturing in the region and to continue investing in Derby, making the city attractive for current and future generations.
“We value the opportunity to support Derby Museums through educating the public on manufacturing engineering skills. We are especially excited to link the partnership to our Apprenticeship programme with Derby College, as a major manufacturer in the region it is our responsibility to support and invest in our young people to secure the future of low carbon home heating.”
Cathy Putz, Director of Programmes at Derby Museums, said: “We are delighted to have secured the support of Vaillant through this multi-year partnership to support Derby Museums’ ambitions to grow, develop and inspire a community of makers and engineers in the area.
“The Museum of Making is committed to exploring Derbyshire’s making past, present and future and we are excited to be partnering with Vaillant to build on successful existing industry partnerships.
“In a world where sustainability and climate consciousness is paramount, through this partnership Vaillant is continuing this legacy of innovation and invention and aligns well with Derby Museums’ goals to empower makers and engineers of the future and facilitate discussions on how we might live in a more environmentally conscious way considering lower carbon alternatives.”
