Heidenheim. With a symbolic first cut of the spade, Voith has today marked the official start of the construction work of its new Training Center in Heidenheim. Together with the four best Voith apprentices who had also received awards from the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Dr. Hubert Lienhard, Chairman of the Management Board of Voith GmbH welcomed representatives from politics and business for a celebration at the Ploucquet Areal. Among the guests were Thomas Reinhardt, Chief Administrator of the District of Heidenheim, Bernhard Ilg, Mayor of the city of Heidenheim, Helmut Althammer, President of the East Württemberg's Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Eberhard Faecke, the architect of the new Training Center.

"Only when we build can we develop further, and only where we build are things moved on," said Dr. Lienhard in his speech. "The new building is yet another milestone in the 100-year tradition of apprenticeship schemes at Voith. Time and again has our company provided a fresh impetus to all issues of vocational training for young people." Job training and education are rated highly at Voith. At Heidenheim alone, the company currently trains about 180 young people in 13 different occupations. Worldwide, more than 1,200 apprentices and students are presently honing their career perspectives at Voith.

With a total investment of Euro 16 million for the new Training Center, Voith shows its commitment to the Heidenheim headquarters. The new building is to be opened in late 2013. The new Training Center, designed by the Leinfeld architect Eberhard Faecke, concentrates on transparency, functionality and inspiration. Due to the new location in the immediate vicinity of the company's head office, vocational training and further education are now also "optically" in focus. "With this groundbreaking ceremony, we are starting the construction work for a piece of the future of Voith right at our traditional headquarters. In doing so, we are laying the perfect foundation for the training of future apprentices," stated Dr. Lienhard.

Following the speech of the Voith CEO, Mayor Bernhard Ilg welcomed the guests and praised the concerted and decisive undertaking. "Heidenheim is currently in the public eye, because the town is developing at rapid speed. Never before have we seen so many investors in housing, trade and industry." Ilg expects that the Training Center will also have a positive impact on the town center, which is being further enhanced by projects such as the new library, a health center, a day nursery and a supermarket.

Voith sets standards in the markets energy, oil & gas, paper, raw materials and transport & automotive. Founded in 1867, Voith employs more than 40,000 people, generates €5.6 billion in sales, operates in over 50 countries around the world and is today one of the biggest family-owned companies in Europe.