WACKER has always given a high priority to vocational courses, offering training in specific disciplines at our German sites in Burghausen, Nünchritz, Freiberg and Munich.
Burghausen’s vocational training center (BBiW) is the mainstay of WACKER’s training program. Established by WACKER in 1969, the BBiW is a public foundation under private law. It offers not only initial/advanced training and retraining to young people, but also courses for experienced staff. Additionally, as part of its overall mission to educate, it trains the employees of some 30 partner companies.
BBiW courses cover 15 vocations. The main focus is on the scientific and technical jobs typically encountered in the chemical, electrical and metalworking sectors. In 2008, 193 young people started training at WACKER or the BBiW – in 2007, there had been 195. Overall, trainee numbers rose from 616 in 2007 to 643 in 2008 – with 559 in scientific and technical disciplines and 84 in business administration. After graduating, they have a good chance of being hired. In the period under review, WACKER offered jobs to all suitable trainees who wished to remain at the company. Following their traineeships, 173 young people joined the Domestic Group in 2007 and 154 in 2008.
Award-Winning Welding
Who is Germany’s most skillful welder? The German Association of Welding and Related Techniques provided the answer at its national Young Welders competition. Over 1,000 young people took part in the 2007 contest. Johann Stamberger – a WACKER industrial-mechanic trainee at the time – won the final, where 47 district and regional champions competed. The event was held in a technology center at Stade (near Hamburg), where the 20-year-old got 97 out of a possible 100 points, making him the highest-scoring finalist. “The competition set really tough standards,” explained the victor afterward. Stamberger’s success stemmed from the welding skills he had acquired at Burghausen’s vocational training center – the perfect place to prepare for this kind of contest.
The high-quality of training at the BBiW is evidenced by all the awards won in competitions. The BBiW is also noted for its state-of-the-art equipment. For example, an innovative simulation system was introduced in 2008. It enables trainees to learn about controlling and improving plant processes under realistic conditions. The system precisely models the stages of an actual distillation process at WACKER. As a commercial system was not available, the BBiW and WACKER simulation specialists teamed up to start their own project.
| download table |
|
Trainees | ||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
2008 |
2007 |
2006 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Number of new trainees |
|
193 |
195 |
184 |
|
Total number of trainees |
|
643 |
615 |
610 |
|
Thereof hired by WACKER on completion of training |
|
154 |
173 |
168 |
|
Total number of employees in retraining |
|
3 |
6 |
6 |
|
Trainees/retrainees as a percentage of total Domestic Group employees |
5.0 |
5.0 |
5.1 | |