Exciting insights into the world of forklift truck production
Future Day 2025:
On 3 April, as part of the nationwide ‘Future Day’, the Hamburg-based intralogistics specialist STILL will open its factory gates to a particularly young target group and provide practical insights into its diverse fields of work and career opportunities: 160 Hamburg schoolchildren from grades 5 to 9 will have the rare opportunity to look behind the scenes of an international company and spend an exciting day at the STILL plant in Hamburg.
Hands-on activities to spark curiosity and have fun
A varied programme awaits the young guests. The focus of the day is on active participation and trying things out. Under the motto 'Experience instead of just listening, join in instead of just watching', the guests can get active themselves at 11 hands-on stations and gain their first insights into the fields of work and training opportunities in intralogistics. In the training workshop, they can make their own workpieces and even try their hand at welding with the help of innovative virtual reality technology - completely risk-free and yet realistic. The schoolchildren can experience how these modern technologies are already being used in industry today and gain a groundbreaking insight into the working world of tomorrow. Exciting factory tours and a corporate film about the plant's diverse activities provide additional information.
Trainees and students are actively involved in organising the Future Day
The 11- to 17-year-olds will be accompanied throughout the day by a dedicated team of around 50 trainees and dual students from the Hamburg site. They have prepared and organised the Future Day with the support of STILL's master craftsmen and instructors. The young guests benefit from authentic insights and personal experiences at eye level, directly from the field and at first hand. Trainees from the following apprenticeships and training courses will be present: mechatronics, industrial mechanics, construction mechanics, machining mechanics, industrial clerks, various dual study programmes and warehouse logistics specialists. "For many schoolchildren, Future Day is their first contact with the world of work, and we want to make this first impression as positive, exciting and practical as possible. And who better to talk about the day-to-day life, challenges and opportunities of an apprenticeship than those who are experiencing it themselves?" emphasises Jan Wehlen, Head of Training at STILL. "Many exciting paths are opening up in the industry at the moment - for girls and boys alike - and we want to show how varied and full of opportunities they can be".
Developing young talent as a key building block for the future
Promoting young talent is a high priority at STILL. The Future Day is an important pillar of this and has been an integral part of the young talent strategy for over 20 years. In this way, the company actively supports young people in their career choices and at the same time invests in the skilled workers of tomorrow. "At a time when competition for skilled workers is becoming increasingly fierce, it is all the more important to get young people interested in our industry at an early stage, to provide them with targeted support and to show them specific opportunities. We see the promotion of young talent as an investment in the future - both in our own competitiveness and in Germany as an industrial location," explains Jan Wehlen."STILL also has a history of more than 100 years that links it to the city of Hamburg. We see it as our responsibility to show children and young people in the city attractive future prospects for their education and careers".
Show career opportunities at an early stage
In addition to the Future Day, STILL is committed to recruiting young talent throughout the year with a wide range of measures, including an award-winning training and study programme, close cooperation with Hamburg schools and the SchuleWirtschaft network, nordbord - the STEM club for children and young people, and the German Engineering Federation (VDMA). "The high demand and interest from schoolchildren shows us how important these initiatives are," says Jan Wehlen. "The aim is not only to get young people interested in an apprenticeship, but also to offer them real development prospects right from the start." For this reason, STILL is actively involved in the VDMA's upcoming ‘Weeks of Technology’ and, with two workshops on the topics of ‘3D modelling’ and ‘Welding with the VR simulator’, is offering pupils the opportunity to gain practical experience in an industrial environment over and beyond Future Day. With this commitment, STILL is sending out a clear signal: The future is created where young people are encouraged, supported and inspired - today for the challenges of tomorrow.
