Our experience with the Castel Mella professional school
Working in a foundry, undertaking a professional path in this sector, discovering the many varieties of professions necessary to make the products of casting (“melting”) – the oldest metal working process – technological, competitive and sustainable.
“Melting” is a term that indicates the phase transition that transforms a solid into a liquid, but it also means “unite”, “put together”, form a single “whole”. And it is from this important concept that the third-year students of the professional school of Castel Mella (Brescia), which has an agreement with AIB-Confindustria, set out to get to know Fonderie Ariotti in depth in their student internship program.
Twenty students, divided into small groups, followed an experiential program, during which they personally carried out small laboratory, mechanical workshop and foundry activities, alongside experienced operators and under the watchful eye of the prevention and protection service. Their experience culminated in the casting of our company blog “Fusioni – Storie di fonderia”, which tells the stories of some workers who are symbols of union, exchange and integration between different cultures.
One of the objectives of our project with the school, in fact, was precisely to convey to the students the value of the union of skills, teamwork, collaboration and mutual respect in the work environment, which are the basis of healthy growth and evolution of a company, from both a production and a human point of view.
A project to unite school and business in the foundry
“I am very satisfied and enthusiastic about this project, and about how you guys have interpreted the spirit with which we started the company blog”, said Giorgio Ariotti during the closing day of the project. “In our company there are people who come from over a dozen different countries: open-mindedness, openness to dialogue and collaboration are essential to be able to work peacefully and make the company a welcoming place, where people feel at home”.
During the final day of the school-work alternation program, the students identified some key words to describe their experience, including: “molds”, “teamwork”, “sand”, “competence”, “traction tests “,” Eco-sustainability “,” casting “,” happiness “. Technical terms alternated to moods and ambitions. Because the foundry is exactly that: it is the place where the necessary competences “melt” with the expectation and the dream of growing professionally and affirming one’s identity in the company and in the work group.
The importance of safety
Union and integration are also given by the common sense of compliance with safety standards, which must be known and followed by all, so that they can be effective for the protection of themselves and others. In this regard, Paola Schena – Healthy and Safety officer and person in charge of the development and growth of the Fonderie Ariotti’s workers – stressed the importance of training and the correct use of PPE, to work safely in any working environment.
“I am happy to have met you in this internship – said Paola Schena to the students – and I hope that some of you decide to come and work here one day. Your school and the teachings you are following prepare you to be people ready to enter the world of work . . . with the right “melting” spirit!
Some account written by the students to remember the experience with Fonderie Ariotti
At the end of the school-work alternation project, some students of the professional school of Castel Mella (Brescia) wrote and openly shared their experiences. We report some passages:
“The visit to Fonderie Ariotti was a wonderful experience. I enjoyed seeing the cast iron being poured in the foundry, which fascinated me, and watching the machine tools at work.” – Marcello
“Before starting this project, I thought working in a foundry was dangerous and dirty, but at the end of this journey, I changed my mind.” – Cristian
“During my time at Fonderie Ariotti, I was able to visit the mechanical workshop, the laboratory where I saw the tensile test, and the foundry where I admired the casting.” – Felice
“A very funny moment in our experience was when the tensile test broke and everyone jumped.” – Cristian
“I overcame my preconceptions of confusion, dirt, and disorder at the foundry, finding it to be a clean and tidy environment.” – Matteo
“It’s definitely a job where you don’t work alone, but as part of a team, and everyone has their own responsibilities.” – Jacopo
“I saw the casting process, which was one of the things that intrigued me most. I visited the foundry, where it’s a bit noisy, but from what I saw, it’s full of people who help each other when needed and work as a team. – Simone
“What I liked most about the Ariotti foundry was the tensile test because it wasn’t too tiring, and the casting process.” – Sukhchain