Dürr honored for promoting junior staff

10/13/2008

Stuttgart, October 13, 2008 – For Dürr’s innovative training programs, the German Federal Employment Agency has awarded the Group its Certificate for Outstanding Achievement in Developing Junior Staff today in Stuttgart. In the current training year 2008/2009, the mechanical and plant engineering firm has widened its offering for entry-level jobseekers. For the first time, young people can train with Dürr for a career in mechatronics. Together with the Stuttgart Berufsakademie (BA), Dürr has also offered places for students in industrial engineering since last summer and has increased the contingent of places in other disciplines at the same time. The company is investing in a new training center at its Bietigheim-Bissingen site.

“We want to optimally prepare dedicated young people for the working world of tomorrow and at the same time cover our future need for qualified employees,” explains the group´s human resources vice president Klaus Achtelik. Training at Dürr means working close to products early on, for example, in the design and assembly of painting robots. Dürr also emphasizes internationality and practical experience: trainees are often involved when painting and assembly systems are installed at automobile manufacturing plants around the world. For the 32 students now at BA who are going through their practical phases with Dürr, a stay of at least 12 weeks at one of the 38 Dürr sites abroad is a required part of the popular program.

Altogether, 112 young persons are now preparing themselves for professional life with Dürr at 9 locations in Germany. About one-third of them are females. The company normally hires all the young people who complete the training program. The spectrum extends from electrical, mechatronic, and mechanical engineers to business administration and industrial engineering graduates to industrial mechanics, mechatronic technicians, and industrial management assistants. In assigning the training places, students from all types of secondary schools get a chance, provided their grades are good. “It is not just a matter of which schools applicants have attended, but also their personalities and how they fit at Dürr,” emphasizes training department head Hans-Uwe Klaiber. At the beginning of each training year, all the “newbies” meet at a three-day workshop to get to know each other. The goals also include strengthening communication skills and a feeling of belonging.

New experimental lab for BA students

The new training center in Bietigheim-Bissingen will open in the middle of next year. Dürr is setting up an experimental lab and CAD workstations for prospective electrical and mechanical engineers on 200 square meters there, directly next to the training workshop. The creation of additional training possibilities is part of the “campus” project, in which Dürr is investing € 50 million and converting the Bietigheim-Bissingen site into a modern technology and office complex. In mid-2009, Dürr will move its Stuttgart activities to Bietigheim-Bissingen and then have 1,500 employees there.

Dürr is a plant and mechanical engineering group that occupies leading positions on the world market in its areas of activity. Business with the automotive industry accounts for about 85% of its sales. Dürr also supplies innovative manufacturing and environmental technologies to the aircraft, mechanical engineering, chemical, and pharmaceutical industries. The Group operates in the market through two divisions. The Paint and Assembly Systems division supplies production and painting technologies, mainly for automobile bodies and frames. The machinery and systems supplied by the Measuring and Process Systems division are used, among other things, for engine and transmission production and for final vehicle assembly. Dürr achieved sales of almost € 1.5 billion with about 6,000 employees in 2007. Dürr is present at 47 locations in 21 countries around the world.

Contact:

Dürr Aktiengesellschaft                              

Günter Dielmann / Mathias Christen

Corporate Communications & Investor Relations

Phone: +49 (0)711 136-1785 / -1381

Fax: +49 (0)711 136-1716                        

E-mail: corpcom(at)durr.com