Cooperation to promote young talent since 2013

"Chancellor Merz's visit shows how important the promotion of young talent is for Germany as an industrial location. The electrical and digital industry is the sector with the greatest growth potential. In order to secure this position, we must consistently promote young talent," said Wolfgang Weber, Chairman of the ZVEI Management Board. His words framed the presentation in an industrial policy context that is characterized by an increasing shortage of skilled workers and pressure to transform.

The ZVEI and the David Roentgen School have been working closely together since 2013. As part of the Industrie4.0@School project, the association has been continuously involved in promoting young talent ever since. The aim is not only to teach the production methods of Industry 4.0 in theory, but also to integrate them into the school curriculum in an interdisciplinary way and thus promote technological skills at an early stage.

Pupils showcase co robot and smart factory they developed themselves

The students demonstrated how this collaboration works in practice at the Hannover Messe. Among other things, they presented a co-robot they developed themselves that uses image recognition to identify different materials and thus make a contribution to the circular economy. In addition, a smart factory designed by the young people demonstrated the production of wireless chargers for trade fair visitors on site, allowing them to directly experience industrial processes in miniature form.

"The Hannover Messe is a highlight for our students every year. It is motivating for them to see how digitalization and AI are changing production - and what contribution they can make to this. Back in the classroom, the Hannover Messe gives us new enthusiasm for careers in the electrical and digital industry," says Thomas Hennig, vocational school teacher and coordinator at the David Roentgen School. Principal Dirk Oswald also emphasizes that this project "impressively demonstrates the efficiency of vocational education and the commitment of the teaching staff at David-Roentgen-Schule".

Even though apprenticeships in the electrical and digital industry are still in demand, securing skilled workers remains a key challenge for the sector. In 2024, the number of trainees rose by 3.9% to 31,937 compared to the previous year, but is still below the level before the coronavirus pandemic. In 2019, 33,524 trainees were registered, which corresponds to a decrease of 4.7% compared to 2024.

Against the backdrop of demographic change, the pressure to act is intensifying. According to industry estimates, more than 200,000 employees in the electrical and digital industry will need to be replaced over the next ten years. Industry and politics are therefore equally faced with the task of further strengthening technical training in order to ensure the long-term competitiveness of Germany as an industrial location.