My food & drink job: Leo Arkelaos, apprentice maintenance engineer, Müller

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Name: Leo Arkelaos

Age: 21

Job title: Apprentice maintenance engineer

Company & location: Müller UK & Ireland, Manchester

Education: A-levels in maths, physics and design technology

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up? Believe it or not, I always knew that I wanted to work in the field of engineering, but I just didn’t know where or what.

When I was younger, we moved quite close to Manchester Airport and I quickly become obsessed with aeroplanes, so naturally I hoped to design them one day. As I got older, I realised that classroom learning and being sat behind a desk wasn’t for me. I much prefer to work and learn with my hands.

“Once I complete my apprenticeship, I want to become an automation engineer and help design and upgrade control systems across our network”

Why did you decide to go for a career in food & drink? Having previously worked on building sites from the age of 16, I knew I wanted something different, but I didn’t know what that was. So I started looking for an apprenticeship and came across the world of food and drink – from then my interest was sparked. Once in the interview process, I knew this was the area for me.

Explain your job to us in a sentence (or two): Have you heard the one about the janitor who apparently told president John F. Kennedy that his role was to help put a man on the moon? It’s possibly a bit of a business cliché, but I think it’s a great way of looking at your work. So with my Müller hat on, I would say that my job is helping to build a better future for the British dairy sector. Fresh milk is in 97% of UK fridges, and having that constant availability is really crucial for our retail partners.

On a day-to-day basis, I maintain a wide range of machinery like rotary fillers and packers within our Manchester dairy, to ensure that we provide the highest standards of product quality and service for our retail partners.

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What does a typical day look like for you? As a third-year apprentice, I work two day shifts and two night shifts. The great thing about this is that I then get four days off! On the way to work I usually listen to EDM to wake me up for the early start. I usually come in for 7am, do a handover with the previous shift and then get straight into it. I’ll respond to any breakdowns, work on ongoing upgrades/projects and then afterwards I’ll spend some time on my college reports.

Tell us how you went about applying for your job: I always knew that university wasn’t for me, so when I was looking through the government apprenticeship website, the Müller one stood out because it’s a brand I know and love. The process was straightforward, and you could immediately tell that as a family-owned business, it was somewhere that I could feel at home. There were two stages: an assessment day and then a second stage where I was interviewed by a couple of the engineering leadership team and then taken on a site tour. I was shown the equipment I would work on and as a Man Utd fan, I quickly realised I could see the trusses of Old Trafford from the yard!

What’s the best part about working for a food & drink company? I honestly get a lot of satisfaction when I can apply my problem solving skills to ensure everything keeps running smoothly. The food and drink industry is also constantly evolving, so having the opportunity to work with new technologies and improvement projects is extremely rewarding and exciting.

And of course the people. I’m making friends for life at college and working alongside so many amazing people that are teaching me a wide variety of new skills.

And what’s the biggest misconception people have about working in food & drink? Many people just think we’re the yoghurt company, but they don’t actually realise the sheer size and volume of output from the Müller UK & Ireland production sites. I heard recently that in the UK, 29 Müller branded yoghurt and desserts are eaten every second! And that’s just the yoghurt side of the business. On fresh milk, we buy a fifth of all milk that is produced on Britain’s farms – it’s a huge operation, and the products we make are picked from shelves millions of times every day.

What advice would you give to other young people looking to get into the food & drink industry? Just apply!

From my experience I would say that Müller is a really fantastic option for early careers. From apprenticeship programmes to graduate placements, there is a lot of youthful energy throughout the business and we’re challenged, supported and well looked after.

What’s your ultimate career dream? Within Müller I’ve recently taken a keen interest in the world of automation. Many don’t realise that Müller has 18 production sites across Europe. Once I complete my apprenticeship, I want to become an automation engineer and help design and upgrade control systems across our network, ensuring that we maintain and grow our service and quality levels.