{"id":3403,"date":"2024-08-19T09:04:08","date_gmt":"2024-08-19T07:04:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/?p=3403"},"modified":"2024-08-19T09:04:10","modified_gmt":"2024-08-19T07:04:10","slug":"half-a-century-with-uhlmann","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/half-a-century-with-uhlmann\/","title":{"rendered":"Half a century with Uhlmann"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

When Alfred Schuh\u00admacher and Franz Schaible first enter the training work\u00adshop at Uhlmann in 1974, little do they know that they would still be returning to work at the same place every day 50 years later. The two young men initially start their training together at Uhlmann, and after three and a half years in the training work\u00adshop and moving through various depart\u00adments, they emerge as qual\u00adi\u00adfied machine fitters. After their appren\u00adtice\u00adship, the two of them take up jobs in mechan\u00adical produc\u00adtion and tool\u00admaking. They work there for a year and then do 15 months\u2019 mili\u00adtary service in the German army. Two years after returning to Uhlmann, Alfred Schuh\u00admacher and Franz Schaible pass their part-time master craftsman training in mechan\u00adical engi\u00adneering with flying colors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They then go their sepa\u00adrate ways: While Alfred Schuh\u00admacher becomes immersed in the world of numbers and details in the cost accounting depart\u00adment, Franz Schaible packs his bags and travels from one assembly plant to the next as a service tech\u00adni\u00adcian \u2013 ready to propel Uhlmann\u2019s inno\u00adva\u00adtions out into the world and keep machines up and running around the globe. Today, 50 years on, we cele\u00adbrate not only their indi\u00advidual careers, but also the remark\u00adable loyalty to Uhlmann that has always united them on their different career paths.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not a man of many words<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

When we asked Franz Schaible why he trained as a machinist, he simply says: \u201cThat\u2019s what most people did back then, when there wasn\u2019t such a huge fuss about choosing a career.\u201d But it was the right deci\u00adsion for Franz Schaible, given that the 65-year-old has remained loyal to his profes\u00adsion and employer for over five decades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Franz Schaible gets every machine up and running again.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

As a newly qual\u00adi\u00adfied master craftsman, his path at Uhlmann led him to the then new cartooning machines. One of the first to commis\u00adsion the new machines, Franz Schaible knows them better than almost anyone else. He has now been part of the service team for 30 years, mostly trav\u00adeling abroad, and has worked with so many different compa\u00adnies that he has lost count. But that, for Franz Schaible, is what makes his work so appealing: \u201cWhat inter\u00adests me most is converting and repairing machinery, because each and every machine presents different chal\u00adlenges. It never gets boring.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Always on the move<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

For Franz Schaible, being tied down to one place is not an option. His trips to assembly sites mean he is constantly on the move \u2013 some\u00adtimes for one to two weeks, and occa\u00adsion\u00adally even for six. \u201cYou have to be pretty flex\u00adible because jobs change quickly,\u201d he says. But that doesn\u2019t bother him. Nor does the fact that he can\u2019t always pursue his leisure activ\u00adi\u00adties when\u00adever he wishes. He still has suffi\u00adcient time for the volun\u00adtary fire depart\u00adment, and he also gets to see his many siblings, nieces and nephews on a regular basis. \u201cI\u2019m virtu\u00adally always on the move.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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His niece Monika Sigg also works at Uhlmann.<\/p><\/div>\n

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2006 on an assembly trip in Cuba. Standing next to him: \u201cFidelito\u201d Castro, the eldest son of Fidel Castro (center).<\/p><\/div>\n

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Franz Schaible on one of his trips to Egypt.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

What he partic\u00adu\u00adlarly enjoys is the spon\u00adtaneity, novelty and excite\u00adment of his job. \u201cI often trav\u00adeled to Cuba on busi\u00adness,\u201d he recalls. \u201cThirty years ago, Fidel Castro bought three machine lines from Uhlmann. They then stood idle for ten years and my job was to get them up and running again. That was a fasci\u00adnating chal\u00adlenge!\u201d Due to an agree\u00adment between Venezuela and Cuba \u2013 Venezuela supplied oil and Cuba supplied tablets in return \u2013 the job had top priority and high-ranking Cuban govern\u00adment offi\u00adcials were involved. It was an exciting time for Franz Schaible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
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What inter\u00adests me most is converting and repairing machinery, because each and every machine presents different chal\u00adlenges.<\/p>\nFranz Schaible<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far Franz Schaible has not made any specific plans for his retire\u00adment next year. But he is already looking forward to being able to spend more time working with the volun\u00adteer fire depart\u00adment. And if he misses trav\u00adeling too much, no doubt he\u2019ll start packing his bags again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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From late bloomer to high-flyer<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Alfred Schuh\u00admacher remem\u00adbers his school days with a smile. \u201cI didn\u2019t really take school that seri\u00adously,\u201d admits the 65-year-old. \u201cYou were more likely to find me outside playing sports than studying so I was more of a late bloomer.\u201d Never\u00adthe\u00adless, Alfred Schuh\u00admacher soon real\u00adized that he wanted to do an appren\u00adtice\u00adship. \u201cWhen I was at secondary school back in the day, there were three compa\u00adnies that partic\u00adu\u00adlarly stood out as far as appren\u00adtice\u00adships were concerned,\u201d he recalls, and that was Lieb\u00adherr, Weishaupt and Uhlmann.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Alfred Schuh\u00admacher coached a soccer team for eight years.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

\u201cUhlmann was already offering an inter\u00adesting appren\u00adtice\u00adship 50 years ago,\u201d says Alfred Schuh\u00admacher. Today, he is certain that an appren\u00adtice\u00adship at Uhlmann was the right choice to make. \u201cBut it was quite the announce\u00adment back then!\u201d he adds with a laugh. After completing his master\u2019s degree in mechan\u00adical engi\u00adneering, Alfred Schuh\u00admacher took evening classes \u2013 for a whole eleven years. This is where he obtained his REFA technician\u2019s certifi\u00adcate and his advanced tech\u00adnical college entrance qual\u00adi\u00adfi\u00adca\u00adtion and completed a degree in busi\u00adness admin\u00adis\u00adtra\u00adtion. All this with two small chil\u00addren at home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Calcu\u00adlating instead of spec\u00adu\u00adlating!<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

After completing his studies, the next chal\u00adlenge awaited him. Alfred Schuh\u00admacher was given the oppor\u00adtu\u00adnity to join Uhlmann\u2019s cost accounting depart\u00adment, now called UCE. But he quickly real\u00adized that: \u201cWithout specific exper\u00adtise, your prices, cost reduc\u00adtion programs and calcu\u00adla\u00adtions were not accepted by the indi\u00advidual depart\u00adments we had to nego\u00adtiate with.\u201d It was clear to him that giving up was not an option. So he set about acquiring the neces\u00adsary know-how \u2013 and success\u00adfully so. He has now been working as a group leader in cost accounting for 35 years and is respon\u00adsible for the pricing of special machinery. This essen\u00adtially comes with a lot of respon\u00adsi\u00adbility and calls for assertive\u00adness. But he never tires of the discus\u00adsions he has with the purchasing, sales or assembly teams. He is satis\u00adfied when, at the end of the day, a good joint solu\u00adtion is on the table.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
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If there is a dream job, then I have it!<\/p>\nAlfred Schuh\u00admacher<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Alfred Schuh\u00admacher sits in his current office just a few meters from the building where his career at Uhlmann kicked off. \u201cWhen I first started working here, Uhlmann had 280 employees, today we have over 1,500,\u201d he says. If you ask him what he partic\u00adu\u00adlarly values about Uhlmann as an employer, two things imme\u00addi\u00adately spring to mind: a feeling of secu\u00adrity and appre\u00adci\u00ada\u00adtion. \u201cFor 50 years, I\u2019ve never been worried about not getting my salary,\u201d he clar\u00adi\u00adfies. \u201cAnd Christmas and vaca\u00adtion bonuses were never an issue either. They have always been paid, as though it were the most natural thing in the world. And the fact that Uhlmann is a family-owned busi\u00adness means that as a family man myself, I have always felt very much at home here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Family is the most impor\u00adtant thing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Alfred Schuh\u00admacher describes himself as open, reli\u00adable and loyal. And at home he knows all about girl power: his wife and three daugh\u00adters keep him on his toes and in August he will be a grand\u00adfa\u00adther for the first time. The family also has 22 chickens, and he enjoys supplying their freshly laid eggs to his colleagues at Uhlmann. He will retire in six months\u2019 time and is already looking forward to embarking on new gardening projects and outings with his wife. He also enjoys spending time in the moun\u00adtains: hiking in summer and skiing in winter.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Alfred Schuh\u00admacher enjoys going on hikes with his wife.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Working in his garden gives him plea\u00adsure and keeps him busy on week\u00adends.<\/p><\/div>\n

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In winter, Alfred Schuh\u00admacher goes skiing in the moun\u00adtains.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Never\u00adthe\u00adless, retire\u00adment is still a big step for him: \u201cI still enjoy going to work just as much today as I did 50 years ago,\u201d he explains. \u201cUhlmann has always been a powerful inno\u00advator and I was happy to be part of the journey.\u201d Alfred Schuh\u00admacher is grateful for the last five decades and is leaving the company at the end of the year with mixed feel\u00adings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Congrat\u00adu\u00adla\u00adtions to our long-serving employees! We hope you thor\u00adoughly enjoy your retire\u00adment and say thank you for the past 50 years!<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A double work anniver\u00adsary \u2013 exactly 50 years ago, two young men just starting out in their careers began an appren\u00adtice\u00adship together at Uhlmann. And this year, Alfred Schuh\u00admacher and Franz Schaible are also cele\u00adbrating their anniver\u00adsary together. They told us why they stayed with the same employer for so long and where they ended up within the company. [\u2026]<\/p>\n

Read More\u2026 from Half a century with Uhlmann<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":3415,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3403","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pactuell"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3403","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/21"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3403"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3403\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3422,"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3403\/revisions\/3422"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3415"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3403"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3403"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3403"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}