ContiTech Press Releases

Nyíregyháza, May 2010Further education and training for 150 employees at plant in Nyíregyháza, Hungary • 500,000 euros in EU funding for project

Further education is certainly a good substitute for a cutback in working hours: With funding from the Hungarian state and the European Union, ContiTech Air Spring Systems created a wide-ranging further education program for employees at the plant in Nyíregyháza, Hungary. Around 150 of the 180 employees at the plant have received or will receive professional training to prepare them for future assignments and safeguard their jobs. “The program imparts special know-how to our employees. That arms them with greater versatility and gives us greater latitude in deploying them in the manufacture of the increasingly sophisticated products needed to meet our customers’ new demands,” says Heinz-Gerhard Wente, CEO of ContiTech AG. “It is our way of supporting lifelong learning, which benefits employees and the company in equal measure.”

Personal reasons also play a bigger role in further education measures: “Our employees will be better trained in the future. This gives them greater job security,” says Dr. Thomas Johannsen, head of ContiTech Air Spring Systems business unit. “These qualifications will be very much in demand once the economy gets back to normal.”

The further education concept is part of the Hungarian economic stimulus program TÁMOP [Operative Program of Social Renovation]. The European Union has made 500,000 euros available for it. The curriculum includes topics like plastics production, communications, foreign languages and security. A total of 20 different further education and training opportunities are offered. The workforce stands to earn more than 400 certificates. In the last few months, various education initiatives have been launched at ContiTech locations in other countries as well.

The employees at the Phoenix Air Spring Technology Kft. plant – Phoenix is ContiTech’s quality brand for air springs – produce air spring systems for trucks, driver cabs, industrial applications and rail vehicles. The wide-ranging education program goes a long way to ensure the further employment of the location’s entire 200-strong workforce. The plant was established in 1962 as part of the Hungarian Taurus works. The further education and training program is run by Rosava Bt., a company with enormous experience in this sector.