Stefan Ast studied industrial engineering at the HTW in Berlin, specializing in mechanical engineering, and is a trained toolmaker. He has been working at Fraunhofer IZM in Berlin in various areas since 1995 and has been organizing vocational training, volunteer services, and junior staff development at the institute for over 20 years. In 2008, he passed the vocational trainer qualification at the Bonn Chamber of Industry and Commerce and has ever since been active in various training networks, including as an examiner for the Berlin Chamber of Industry and Commerce, in addition to his duties at Fraunhofer IZM. To date, he has accompanied more than 50 trainees at the Institute on their way to a vocational qualification.
Most people can tell you what automotive mechatronics technicians – or more prosaically: car mechanics – or the service staff in a restaurant do. But many professions that play an essential role in research and even our everyday lives are…
