Apprenticeships at Viessmann are driving the energy transition.

Aurelia could also have opted for “normal” working hours – the classic “9 to 5”. As a trainee, she was entitled not to work early shifts. It’s not easy to enter the shop floor at half past five every day and start concentrating immediately – especially when your working life has just begun. But that’s exactly what Aurelia wanted: to work under real conditions and learn everything that goes with them. This was her goal when she began her apprenticeship at Viessmann.

Viessmann was Aurelia’s first choice

Aurelia remembers how it all began: “My father, who runs a small heating company, suggested training as a mechatronics technician for refrigeration technology – a sector with a bright future.” It was immediately clear to both of them where she could best begin working towards this future: at Viessmann, whose headquarters are only a few kilometres away from where Aurelia’s family lives. But even if that hadn’t been the case, the company would still have been her first choice. She was determined to train with a company catalysing the energy transition with pioneering heating and cooling solutions.

As a trainee, Aurelia is working her way through various departments at Viessmann. At the moment, she’s in the production department. When the day begins, she’s briefed by her line manager on production figures and planning, prepares her workstation and gets started. “At the moment, I’m working in the wiring department,” she says, “where we take care of the electronic connections for the doors and all the components of the heat pump.” Aurelia confesses that, at the beginning, she got a little nervous entering the actual production process for the first time as an apprentice: “Everything has to be perfect for the actual products that go on sale.”

Viessmann prepares its young talents for this situation in the best possible way. For Aurelia, it began with several weeks of basic training, where she and the other apprentices were taught about the necessary hand tools and acquired fundamental knowledge – from metalworking to electrical engineering and refrigeration technology. This thorough introduction took place in a workshop set up like a small shop floor for the most effective learning experience.

Even so, the first assignment on the real production line made her feel nervous. But Aurelia immediately realized that you can always count on great team spirit at Viessmann. “I was given a great reception by the team,” she says. “They taught me well, so I was soon able to work independently.”

What does she enjoy most? Aurelia doesn’t have to think twice: “The independent work and the great colleagues! They’re really relaxed and we laugh a lot together. At the same time, everyone works with great concentration and assumes responsibility.” A lot comes to mind when she thinks of responsibility. On the one hand, Aurelia takes responsibility for her training, keeps her logbook up to date, is always punctual, and coordinates the next steps in her training with her supervisor in good time. On the other hand, she also has responsibility towards the other trainees. “If someone in the programme has a problem, we sit down and help each other. We want to walk this path together.”

Aurelia still has a few more positions to work through in her three-and-a-half-year apprenticeship. After production, she’ll move on to building maintenance, and later work in the office and in the field, among other things. She’s already noticed that all Viessmann employees strive to do their best. And Aurelia has an idea as to why: “It’s inspiring to be part of a company combating climate change with innovative technology.”

Environmental sustainability is something her peers feel strongly about, and it’s a subject that often sparks animated discussions in her social circles. “Then it’s a great feeling that I can say: Look, I’m really doing something here.”