Despite only being 34, Michael McAloon from Killesher has achieved a lot in his career as an electrician.

From starting out as a young apprentice at the age of 17, he has served his time well to study both the theory and practical elements of electricity, to master the skills of his craft and to push himself forward and learn from others along the way. As a result of his tenacious grafting, he won the Northern Ireland Electrical Apprentice of the Year when still a student and has being successfully running his own business, MSR Electrical, for the last five years. He currently employs seven men and has three company vans on the road.

His role as an electrician has changed considerably over the years as he went from being a trainee to a self-employed contractor.

Michael embarked upon a four year electrical apprenticeship course at the Training Centre in Enniskillen when he was 17. As part of that course he took up employment with George Wilson from Letterbreen.

"The first year", he explained, " involved six weeks in class studying the theory and six weeks out with your employer learning the practical skills. In second year, I was in class studying the books one day a week and was out for the other four days with George.

"In third year, I was out all the time but I did also did extra exams which they called Part C, that was your technician grade. Then in fourth year I completed my final exams known as AM 2. And, from there you were a qualified electrician."

Looking back, Michael believes he was fortunate to have gained a placement with a contractor who afforded him the opportunity to learn and develop as an electrician.

"At the start', he said, " I was more or else observing what other people were doing and learning from their experience. I learned the basics like how to wire a socket.

"Then when you proved yourself a bit with those you were working with, they allowed you to do more by yourself and then they checked it after you. Like life in general, it was very much a case of pushing yourself forward- if you weren't prepared to put in the work and to learn for yourself, people wouldn't be bothered. I was very lucky to start my apprenticeship with George because the lads he had working with him really gave me a chance."

Michael remained with George beyond the duration of his course and, then, after four and a half years moved on to Quinn Glass.

"I remember they were building the glass factory at the time", he recalled, " so I got a lot of experience there in control wiring which is different as motor work involves more of a maintenance environment, and I found that the exams I studied in the Part C helped me a lot."

Michael stayed with the Quinn Group for four years and, after a year with the Water Service he set up his own business.

Michael is registered with NICEIC, the electrical contracting industry's independent voluntary body for electrical installation matters. It monitors and offers industry-leading Certification services, Building Regulations Schemes, products and support to electrical contractors.

It provides a range of product certification activities, focusing on portable, transportable and fixed electrical equipment covering the design, installation, testing, commissioning and maintenance of electrical installations in commercial, industrial and domestic environments.

Michael now has his own apprentices and believes in training them the same way he was mentored.

"That means doing my best to help them", he stated. " I have had one employee from start to finish here and it is kind of rewarding to see him get his exams and staying on. The important aspect I learned from being an apprentice myself, is that when you are qualified you are not an electrician, you have to build up experience.

"People sometimes forget that they have to study on and I would advise any young lad to keep studying. Most employers are looking for the practical experience and if people push themselves on, they have a better understanding of how things work."

Michael describes the electrical profession as one with a series of challenges, ranging from domestic, industrial and the one he enjoys most, maintenance wiring.

"It involves motors or control gear", he explained, " working at quarries or in factory environments. I like it because of the way technology has changed so that everything is automated. In a glass factory for example, other than watching the lines, there are no manual people anymore. From the start to the finish of the process, everything is automated through a sequence of machines."

Michael's working day begins at seven in the morning.

"The boys arrive at 8 and I line them up for what jobs they have to go to that day. When they go out, I order materials for a couple of hours in the morning and follow up on things that have or haven't arrived. Then if I have to meet anyone or price jobs, I will do that or meet clients on the site. If I'm not doing that then I join the other lads working."

Michael suggests that while having your own business is satisfying, it is more demanding.

"You are continuously organising all the time for the next day, so I could be working up to 11 at night doing paperwork. You also find that when it comes to pricing jobs, evening time is the best time that suits customers. It can be hard to get switched off properly", he admitted.

As for the challenges, Michael says these involve getting a new project, a different job, or competing in what can be a 'cut-throat' business.

On the lighter side, he gets satisfaction from seeing a job completed within the time schedule, and being able to pay his wholesalers.

"The most important part of a business a wise man once told me is being able to get the paperwork in order and getting your bills paid."

As for encouraging budding electricians into the trade, Michael offers the following advice.

"When I take a young lad on, the first thing I ask is why do they want to be an electrician. I'm looking for someone who is loyal and is able to mix and work well with people who are already here.

"I ask what they want to achieve as an electrician, where they want to go or where they want to stop as an electrician. If someone came to me in the morning and said 'I want to do more exams', I would have no bother letting him off work to do that. They also need to be hardworking and use their own initiative.

"It is important that they treat the tools or materials as their own. They need to be willing to learn, willing to ask questions and to try things out themselves. A lot of being an electrician is a lot to do with attitude.

"It's hard work, but I wouldn't be anything else."