The German team of Festo is European Champion in Mechatronics
EuroSkills Gdańsk 2023, held from September 5 to 9 in Poland, was the eighth edition of the biennial EuroSkills Competition. It is the biggest vocational education and skills excellence event in Europe. Here, school classes, families, stakeholders of education, industry, government, and NGOs met to learn, exchange ideas and develop education.
And the winner in Mechatronics is…
… the German team of Festo apprentices, Daniel Schmid and Timo Oßwald. Out of 17 teams in the skill 04 Mechatronics they resulted to be the best one. For this great performance they received the gold medal, closely followed by the team from Portugal who won the silver medal and the teams from Hungary and the Netherlands who share the bronze medal. Congratulations to all of them for their stunning results after three tough competition days.
About the winners
Daniel Schmid and Timo Oßwald are mechatronics apprentices at Festo and are currently in their forth year of training. They won second place at the German championships in mechatronics back in 2021. This is how they made their way to EuroSkills Gdańsk 2023. While Timo (second from left) is the programming specialist, Daniel (second from right) has his strengths in assembling the components and building up the system. Here, they stand in front of their competition result with their Festo trainers Sybille Bohland (left) and Felix Alt (right) as well as with Chief Expert Mechatronics Michael Linn.
The tasks in Mechatronics
The overall task was setting up a functioning automated production system. For the first time, tasks were provided via Festo LX Appliance, our solution for customers with limited internet or cloud access (pre-installed offline software version in a local IT-Network). All competitors used the Modular Production System (MPS) made by Festo Didactic. When an order was placed via the HMI touch display, the colour, number of pieces and number of content inside of the five containers was defined. Technical data was monitored such as the level of energy consumption. Pieces were released from the stack magazine, went through the quality control (color and height), were filled with tags, got a cover, and were packed into a small cardboard box. Then they were transferred to a pick-up position.
Flagship Mechatronics competition
Festo Didactic continually develops the Modular Production System (MPS) in line with current technology trends and integrates new applications. The MPS serves as the official competition equipment and complies with the prescribed quality standards of WorldSkills Europe. Like the WorldSkills championship, Festo has been involved in EuroSkills from the very beginning by providing the competition equipment. Through its participation in EuroSkills, Festo contributes to address the shortage of skilled workers.
Why international championships?
#WeAreUnitedBySkills was the Gdańsk event slogan. Together, we can change the world with the right skills. Industry and economy are only strong with a qualified and skilled workforce. It is important to understand that vocational education and training empowers young people. Education helps to fight the shortage of workforce. At the same time, it is an instrument to react on demographic and technological changes. Furthermore, skilled workers are needed for a sustainable future, e.g. fighting the climate change, fostering e-mobility, and help saving resources. Festo and WorldSkills keep on being committed to promote TVET.
About Festo
Festo is a global player and an independent family-owned company with headquarters in Esslingen am Neckar, Germany. Festo has set standards in industrial automation technology and technical education ever since its establishment, thereby making a contribution to sustainable development of the environment, the economy and society. The company supplies pneumatic and electrical automation technology to 300,000 customers of factory and process automation in over 35 industries. The LifeTech sector with medical technology and laboratory automation is becoming increasingly important. The products and services are available in 176 countries. With about 20,800 employees in over 250 branch offices in 61 countries worldwide, Festo achieved a turnover of around €3.81 billion in 2022. Each year around 7 % of this turnover is invested in research and development. In this learning company, 1.5 % of turnover is invested in basic and further training. Festo Didactic SE is a leading provider of technical education and training and offers its customers worldwide comprehensive digital and physical learning solutions in the industrial environment.
Learn more about EuroSkills https://www.festo.com/euroskills
Festo impressions on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJcuydCoNbI
Do you have any questions? We are happy to help.
Article Submitted by
Maren Gülck
Festo Didactic SE
Germany
