YEAR 3 and 4 pupils from Greenfylde School took a tour of one of Ilminster’s biggest employers.

Around 20 students from the Church of England first school visited Daido Industrial Bearings Europe as part of their Engineering Week activities.

The company, based in Winterhay Lane, Ilminster, is one of the largest manufacturers of plain bearings in Europe and is a significant employer in the area.

The children together with their class teacher, Simon Ashdown, were first given a presentation on how the company’s parts fit into different engines before being given a tour of the factory and shown a range of different processes from the roll-bonding of raw material, through to machining and plating, and finishing with packing and despatch.

Nicola Green, managing director at Daido’s factory said: “It was very encouraging to see the pupils so interested in engineering and being excited to look around our plant. Our teams did a great job in arranging such a constructive event for Greenfylde school and it was positive to see that the pupils gained a better understanding of what we do here.”

Mark Hopkins, factory manager, added: “We were delighted to support the Engineering Week at Greenfyldes School.

“The children showed a great deal of interest and our team enjoyed explaining how the factory works.