Climate Partnership:
Neumarkt i.d.Opf and Drakenstein

Link to the Gallery

We arrived for an interview at the Berufliches Schulzentrum (Vocational School Centre) in Neumarkt on the 13th of May. We were greeted by OStR Michael Maier, the head of the school and StR Rolf Rupp, an architect by trade now offering classes at the school. They took the time to give us a presentation about the school. There are three different schools operating under the name of this vocational school centre. One is the Wirtschaffsschule for the smaller kids. The other is the common vocational school making up the biggest part on these premises and the new vocational school called the StaatlicheTechnikerschule. This is where Mr. Rupp is working and this is the part of the school that we were focusing our attention on.

Under the Staatliche Technikerschule, there are two separate parts, one being the Fachschule Bautechnik (Energy Efficient Building) and the other is the Fachschule Elektro-und IT-Technik (ET and IT Smart Energy). The Fachschule Elektro-und IT-Technik division will come into operation later this year, so Mr. Rupp focused the presentation on the Fachschule Bautechnik. The training objectives of this division are to intensify the vocational training the learners have already had and to provide vocational retraining. Also to promote general education and to impart process knowledge that enables students to professionally meet complex challenges in job situations. They want to prepare their students for all kinds of jobs and situations they will face in the working world.

Mr. Rupp said that they want to impart some management skills, including employee management, working in a team andprovide orientation on customer needs. The students also get training on effective and cost conscious design of operational processes and environmentally conscious and energy saving construction and restructuring. The FachschuleBautechnik has a strong focus on sustainable buildings and construction.

The duration of their programme is two years of full time study of approximately 40 hours per week depending on the subjects that are chosen. The students can’t work at the same time when they are busy with this programme so they can apply for a grant at the District office of the state. This they can pay back when they are working.There are no school fees at the moment. Students only have to pay an annual fee for photocopies of around 15 Euro. The graduates have a wide spectrum of possible occupational opportunities. These include planning detailed design and the implementation of structural architecture tasks. They can work as site managers for building construction projects, on site or in the office. They can work in the construction management and in the planning department of the federal building authorities. They can become specialists in low energy construction, designers for energetic respiration. They can become energy efficiency experts which allows them to create their own independent businesses or they can work as consultants in the building materials industry.

The students can also gain some additional benefits and qualifications. After completion of the first year, they are granted with the Fachschulreife which is the entrance qualification for a technical college. After they have graduated as a State Certified Construction Engineer they receive several benefits. They are awarded the bauvorlagenberechtigungwhich is the authorization needed to present building documents to the authorities. The second one is the Fachhochschulreife (advanced technical college certificate) which means they are able to attend university. This requires additional tests in German, English, Economics, Social Studies and Mathematics. They can also get their instructors license when they pass the supplementary test at the EHK (Chamber of Commerce and Industry).If they like they could also specialize further and become a specialist subject trainer, although space is limited for this.

The minimum requirements for admittance include a successful degree at a vocational school, proof of completion of a job relevant training and a minimum of one year appropriate experience. If prospective students have no relevant vocational training, they may be admitted if they have 7 years of appropriate experience. Types of appropriate professional experience include working in architecture, as an architectural drafts, brick layer, building fitter, civil engineering worker, construction workers, drywall builder, floor layer etc. The curriculum includes German, English, Mathematics, Economics and Social Studies, Industrial Psychology, Data Processing, Building Physics, Building Material Technology, Building Construction, Computer Aided Design, Construction and Planning Laws, Descriptive Geometry, Structural Design, Land Design and Building Contract Law. In the second year, it becomes more specific, especially regarding energy efficiency.

We were then given a presentation on https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermography" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">thermography and how the students use the thermographic camera to determine how to improve the energy efficiency of existing buildings. Thermography is the visualization of the distribution of temperature on a material object. All material objects emit electromagnetic rays and a thermographic camera does not detect temperature, but infrared radiation. OStR Brigitte Kugler-Friedrich is offering this course to the students here. The thermographic camera can show the emissions of infrared radiation andwhen used on a building, the camera shows how much radiation is given off from different parts of the construction. At night, when details get lost to the naked eye, the thermal camera works perfectly well and detects areas emitting radiation. We were shown some buildings where radiation was being emitted from the doors and windows. When radiation is being emitted, it always means that some warmth is being lost. This information can be used to determine where insulation is good and where it needs to be improved.

Finally we were then given a presentation on CAD by StRin Margit Fischer who’s an architect by training. She demonstrated how the students can design different types of buildings with the programme. They can, for example, design the first floor of the building. If they are adding multiple stories on top, they don’t have to redesign each floor but they can copy the floor below and paste it on top which saves lot of time. Even if the floors are not completely identical, it is easy to modify by deleting or adding some walls. With this programme you can add the type of roof you like on top and then you can run a 3 dimensional walk through of the building you have designed. You can even view each room from any angle you like.