Theory about the profession is not enough, TREVOS wants to involve students more in practice.
There is a lot of discussion in professional circles about the lack of collaboration between the commercial sector and academia. If earlier practice was a common part of studies in secondary vocational schools or specialized schools, today it is rather a rare supplement to the lessons.
For this reason, the production company TREVOS decided to establish collaboration with the Secondary Glass School of Applied Arts in Železný Brod and enable students to gain experience in the real environment of the company.
CONTINUOUS COLLABORATION IS ESSENTIAL
The dialogue between the company TREVOS and the Secondary Glass School of Applied Arts was started last year. When the school organized an exhibition of students’ author works in Prague's Karlín, TREVOS supported it by presenting the new product line of light fixtures - NANOTTICA. Subsequently, the company donated new LED lighting to one of their classrooms to help them optimize electricity costs. The original old tube lights were completely inadequate and consumed a lot of energy. And last but not least, the company involved students in the practice.
YOUR OWN EXPERIENCE IS IRREPLACEABLE
As a major manufacturer of dust-proof, waterproof industrial light fixtures and also lighting for interiors, it has its own development and production center. There, our staff constantly work on innovating company’s products, both in terms of design and technical solutions. It was therefore offered to involve students in the development of product design, as this field is studied at school.
TREVOS created a specific task assignment, which was organized by the head of the Technical Department, Roman Grund. "The goal was to design a plastic interior light fixture with certain parameters and functionality." He describes the task he has given to eight students. Over the course of 2.5 months, he also provided them with feedback in order to deepen and constantly advance their knowledge. "I was surprised at how interested the students were in engaging with the technical knowledge of light fixtures as a whole," he adds.
Jaroslava Pažoutová, head of the TREVOS Marketing Department, evaluated the finished work together with Roman Grund. Both the presentation of one's own proposal and the construction of the proposal in relation to the assignment were evaluated. Furthermore, the solution of the connection of the base and the optical cover without the requirement to cover the light fixture, as well as the shape and design of the light fixture with regard to the homogeneity of the brightness of the lighted optical cover of the sample.
Jaroslava Pažoutová adds: "The level of work was above standard and it was difficult to determine just one winner. Everyone did a great job in their graphical design. They presented the sample as a plaster cast and as a 3D print and personally defended their work in front of the committee." TREVOS rewarded all the involved students with prizes, but the biggest one will surely be that the company wants to continue its collaboration with the school.