Embroidery firms put their bet on new technology

When the executives and employees of the company Dietrich Wetzel in Plauen inaugurate their new building and commission the brand new embroidery machine Epoca-6 it houses, then 19-year-old Daniel Pilz from Plauen will be there, too. "I will work on the Epoca-6", he told us during an in-house trade fair on the premises of the Fördergesellschaft für berufliche Bildung (Society for the promotion of vocational education and training) on Dobenaustraße. The Epoca-6 is a shuttle embroidery machine manufactured by the company Saurer Embroidery. The young man from Vogtland learns his trade in the building below Friedensbrücke bridge. And he is rather good at it.

"Because of his good performance, he can conclude his apprenticeship half a year earlier", confirmed Frank Lammer, Head of the Berufliches Bildungszentrum (BBZ) Textil/Informatik (vocational college, division Textile Industry/Computer Sciences). "That will be at the end of February", said Daniel Pilz, looking ahead. "It is quite nice here", he said, regarding the apprenticeship conditions at the Fördergesellschaft. "Everything is covered, that is, small embroidery machines, multi-head machines, large-scale embroidery machines", the young man lists the equipment he needs to be able to master as a machine and systems operator in the textile industry. Daniel Pilz is in his second year of apprenticeship.

Some of the machines that are used for training apprentices like Daniel Pilz were manufactured by the company ZSK Stickmaschinen in Krefeld. This company organised the two-day in-house trade fair on Friday and Saturday. "We use the premises in Plauen, because we have been maintaining good contacts with the Fördergesellschaft for many decades and many textile industry companies are located here in this region", explained Harald Grube, representative of the Krefeld company, when asked about the choice of site. The guest list of the in-house trade fair was well filled; even companies from Poland and the Czech Republic had been invited.

Overnight accommodation for out-of-town students is available at the teaching hotel on Auenstraße. Lammer, Head of the Berufliches Bildungszentrum explained how contacts are mostly established: companies from more remote regions "become aware of us by way of publications in professional magazines". At present, 50 young men and women receive their vocational education and training in the textile industry department of the facility.

In addition to machine and systems operators in the textile industry, the Fördergesellschaft provides vocational education and training also for fashion sewers, fashion tailors, production mechanics and product designers. The two young women from Upper Franconia are apprenticed in the field of product designer. In addition to its division Textile Industry/Computer Sciences, the Fördergesellschaft provides training also in the fields of Retail/Catering, Metal Industry/Electrical Engineering and it operates the teaching hotel and the adult education centre.