Alstom is celebrating a double success after two Plymouth-based apprentices took top honours at the city’s annual Apprentice of the Year Awards.

Both Industrial Engineering Apprentices studying at Aston University, Kieren O’Donnell and Marcel Dybek, came home with hard-earned awards.

O’Donnell was named Final Year Manufacturing Apprentice of the Year, while fellow apprentice Dybek secured the Rising Star Manufacturing Apprentice title.

Over the past four years, Plymouth-born Kieren has played a key role in major projects, including the development of Alstom’s SmartIO signalling system, designed to make rail networks safer and more efficient.

Marcel, originally from Poland and raised in Southampton, is supporting new product implementation as part of his degree apprenticeship.

Both are based at Alstom’s Plymouth site, a global export hub for railway signalling technology. Their achievements highlight the impact of apprenticeships in developing the next generation of skilled rail professionals.

“I’m honoured to receive this apprenticeship award. It reflects not only the hard work I’ve put in, but also the outstanding support, guidance, and opportunities I’ve been given throughout my time at Alstom. I’m grateful to everyone who has helped me grow, and I’m excited to continue developing and contributing to the team.”

Marcel Dybek, Industrial Engineering Apprentice

“I’m over the moon for winning this award, I want to say thank you very much to PMG. It is really good to see how as apprentices our hard work and efforts are being noticed by external people outside of our companies which brings us a lot of confidence that we are on the right track, doing the right thing especially with our mentors and supporters.”

Kieren O’Donnell, Industrial Engineering Apprentice