Efficient power training for sales staff
PROFITAGE Befestigungstechnik took place at E/D/E for the third time at the end of November. In an interview, E/D/E fastening technology team leader Rainer Tscharke explains what lies behind the tried-and-tested concept, what changes have been made this year and what advantages the event offers participants.
PVH Magazine: What exactly is behind the PROFITAGE fastening technology concept? Rainer Tscharke: With PROFITAGEN fastening technology, we offer our dealers the opportunity to train their sales staff in the wood and metal construction trades and thus further expand their knowledge advantage. After all, competent customer advisors are the linchpin of successful sales. For this reason, we invite E/D/E distributors’ office and field sales staff to Wuppertal for two days every two years. All members of the “Fastening and Assembly Technology” specialist group can take part.
What is special about the PROFI-DAYS format?
There is a very wide range of product training courses on offer, but these are often very specialized and often geared towards individual manufacturers. In contrast, we provide our participants with a very broad spectrum of neutral knowledge and expand their individual consulting skills even further. We are deliberately targeting the fastening solution here, rather than brands. In exciting and informative presentations, experts, surveyors and other industry specialists will present practical topics from applications in timber and metal construction as well as changes to standards, current legal requirements and process technologies and discuss these with the participants. The personal selection of seminar topics for each individual participant has a very special value. This ensures that everyone receives a seminar program tailored to their needs.
What exactly does personal selection of seminar topics mean? The first day of PROFITAGE always revolves around the topic of fastening technology in metal construction. On the following day, the focus will be on timber construction applications. The entire program includes various seminars, which participants can book individually in advance via the online calendar. Depending on the subject area, the presentations in small groups of a maximum of 20 people last between 60 and 120 minutes.
Which seminars were offered?
This year, we offered a total of 25 seminars. At the Metal Construction Day, the 90 participants were able to choose from a portfolio of seminar topics ranging from solutions for anchoring in masonry and effective securing of screw connections to the Construction Products Regulation and CE marking. At the Timber Construction Day, for example, the speakers provided basic knowledge about timber connectors, provided information about the manufacture of screws and explained new approvals for fasteners. The topic of C-parts management/e-procurement was also very popular again this time. This included training on the future topics of “MRO systems and concepts for the trade” and “From supplier to professional value-added partner”. Our expert Frank Düringer, Team Leader Industrial Services and Materials Management at E/D/E, illustrated the topics with live demonstrations during the visit to the eFabrik.
Was there any other new content?
Digitization was one of the main topics we dealt with this year. Although many employees are aware of the issue, it is often assigned to the company management. That’s why I thought it was particularly important to take up the “einfach.effizient” approach here and show in a workshop that each individual has many opportunities to make a difference. For example, how to achieve a digital workplace in five steps. In another exciting presentation, “einfach.effizient” showed what new working environments could look like. As the slightly provocative title suggests, it wasn’t about the table football and the beautiful offices, as some Silicon Valley companies like to show us. Above all, it is about personal motivation and what incentives companies can offer their employees. Another new feature was that we did not invite guests to the Wuppertaler Brauhaus on the first evening, as we had done at previous events, but to Roadstop Wuppertal. The evening event is always very important to us, as it allows us to round off the day in a pleasant atmosphere and take the opportunity to exchange ideas with industry colleagues and speakers.
What is your verdict on the PROFITAGEN fastening technology 2018?
During the event, we again attached great importance to ensuring that the participants received both theoretical and, in particular, practical content. The speakers spared no effort here. In some cases, models were set up, concrete blocks or even wooden beams were prepared to demonstrate the applications up close and let the participants try them out for themselves. Workshops on the topics of digitalization and new working environments also presented ways in which each individual can get to grips with the omnipresent issues of the future.
