A mobility campus is being built in Vienna

A mobility campus is being built in Vienna

"Technological development is rapid. We need training and further education for adults more than ever in order to keep up with it," says Georg Ringseis. For this reason, the Vienna state guild master of vehicle technicians has gone on the offensive and is working on creating a new campus for further training.

This will be called “Mobility Campus”. Of course, the function of the new institution is much more important than the name: it will be possible to rent training facilities here in order to train and further train specialists from the industry.

The background: Unlike in other federal states, there are no WiFi-operated training workshops in Vienna. This was already discontinued in 2003. This makes the one operated by the Austrian business publishing house all the more important Automotive Academy to. This organizes, among other things, the prescribed periodic §57a basic and further training courses, but also special training courses in the area of ​​new technologies such as the high-voltage sector.

Automotive Academy moves with

The Automotive Academy has been part of the Vienna State Guild's initiative from the beginning and will move from its current location in the south of Vienna to the new campus in the fall. This will be based in the 22nd district of Vienna, the specific address is Am Freihof 23.

The guild has rented a former warehouse from a construction company, which is now being structurally adapted to meet the new requirements. The campus is scheduled to go into operation in the fall and will even have a paint booth in the final expansion stage. “The campus should not only be suitable for automotive technicians, but also for body builders and painters,” promises Georg Ringseis when asked by the automotive industry.

Optimal conditions

A modern training workshop is being built on an area of ​​400 m2, with around 200 m2 of seminar rooms above it. “I am pleased that we can join forces and enable our customers to have a seamless transition to the new location without having to interrupt the operations of the Automotive Academy,” says Wirtschaftsverlag managing director Thomas Letz. There would be optimal conditions at the new location.

Ringseis reveals that a project like this has been an issue in advocacy groups for a long time because the need for further training is great. “We can use this to counteract the shortage of skilled workers,” he says, but also emphasizes that the guild itself will only act as an organizer and mediator and will not hold any courses itself. They want to leave this to the professionals who specialize in it.

Looking for sponsors

He sees a great need for further training, especially among independent workshops that are not brand-specific. “The various assistance systems have now moved into the middle class, and they will soon also be available in the compact class,” explains Ringseis, who runs a workshop in the center of Vienna. Alternative drives will also be an increasingly important topic that will also be taken into account on campus.

Of course, all of this has its price: according to the state guild master, a “six-figure sum” of investment in equipment is required to set up a high-quality training workshop. Ringseis reveals that they are currently looking for sponsors. They could in turn use the facility for further training. But there is one motto: “We want to remain independent,” emphasizes the Vienna State Guild Master.