ESAB took part in the final of the IX national championship "Young Professionals" WorldSkills, which was held from 25 to 29 August 2021 in Ufa. 105 competencies were presented at the championship, divided into seven blocks of professions. Contestants and experts from the countries of the Asia-Pacific region and the Commonwealth of Independent States also took part in the championship remotely.
ESAB became the platinum partner of the Championship in three competencies: "Production of metal structures", "Welding technologies" and "Sheet metal processing". For the competition, the company provided semi-automatic machines and devices for argon arc welding, which meet all WorldSkills standards and are best suited for use for educational purposes, as well as welding materials, accessories and personal protective equipment. This equipment is specially prepared by the company to work at the WorldSkills Russia championships.
This year, interactive platforms of Try-a-skill career guidance activity were implemented in the fields of WorldSkills in the format of master classes, games and competitions in various competencies: from mobile robotics to the operation of agricultural machines. In turn, ESAB gave the participants the opportunity to reveal their talents in the welder's profession by placing their demo truck at the Championship. The demo truck is a truck that contains all the necessary equipment: from powerful industrial devices with 500 amps to compact hobby class equipment.
In addition, ESAB specialists took part in the round table "Employment of participants of the Abilimpix championship movement "with the theme" Competitive task as a standard of employment". Among the key issues that were considered during the events were employment and internships for people with disabilities, the availability of jobs at enterprises and the involvement of employers in the Abilimpics movement.
According to Stanislav Konov, head of the department for interaction with educational organizations at ESAB, the WorldSkills Championships are an opportunity for Russian enterprises, equipment manufacturers and educational institutions to conduct a dialogue, as well as collect feedback to work out joint solutions aimed at improving the system of training young professionals, and consequently, improving the overall level of the industry.
"This year, the competition task for the competence "Production of metal structures" is designed in such a way as to bring the participants as close as possible to the real tasks that they may face in production. The essence of the task is to make a construction from a sheet of metal on the basis of the provided drawings. The contestants need to make a product completely independently from blanks in the form of sheet metal of various thicknesses and pipes, cutting the sheets, forming and welding them, maintaining the control dimensions of the products in the tolerances. This approach appeals to us very much, as we understand that it is necessary to look wider than just high-quality welding. The customer needs the final product, and high-quality welding seams are only a part of it."
The WorldSkills championships have been held in Russia since 2013 and traditionally attract many participants from various professional fields. The key mission of WorldSkills Russia is to popularize working professions. The last national final is considered one of the largest competitions of professional skills among students and schoolchildren in Russia.
