In developing countries, the construction sector and, concordantly, the lift industry grow through a great acceleration with the impact of urbanization. Based on data from the Ministry of Science, Industry and Technology, there are 16,138 technical personnel employed in more than 2,000 lift installation companies. Given the number of companies and employees, the lift industry has a strategical position due to its contribution to employment.
Due to this dynamic structure in the lift industry, there has been an increase in occupational accidents and a corresponding increase in material and moral losses. It poses occupational safety risks, especially in its field. According to European Lift Association data, two thirds of deadly lift installation accidents in Europe occur in our country. According to the International Labor Organization data, lift installation workers have three to six times more risk of getting in an occupational accident. Developed countries in Europe have managed to zero out such risks through occupational safety discipline and training.
Our school, which holds a competent position in the discipline and education of occupational safety in our country, prioritizes instilling occupational safety as a key focus for sector stakeholders and students in all its activities.
Our school, one of the two institutions in Ankara offering education in the field of lift systems in Türkiye, also stands out as the educational institution that has supplied the highest number of qualified personnel for this sector. The teachers of this branch in our school have developed the curriculum for the Ministry of National Education’s Lift Discipline, prepared the mastership and apprenticeship program, contributed to the formation of the national occupational standard and most importantly, they have worked in the preparation of the books of the lift systems discipline. As of 2023, 140 students in the lift field receive theoretical training on lift installation and maintenance at the school, as well as practical training under restricted conditions. Practical training is conducted exclusively on a prototype elevator, outside of real working conditions.
With the efforts of our teachers in our school, a total of 26 students in 2021 and 2022 participated in internships in Europe’s leading countries in the field through the Erasmus+ program. Within this framework, 15 teachers have also received courses and on-the-job training in Europe in various years.
Students can perform their main area practices in the 12th grade during their internship trainings at the enterprises. The majority of the masters at the enterprises that our students undergo internship are not graduates of any formal training on the lifts. According to the workplace surveys conducted by our teachers visiting the enterprises for supervision, it was determined that they entered the sector by chance or through their personal efforts. At the same time, the companies’ ambition to make more profit leads to cheaper labor wages, downgraded equipment and deferred safety measures. Consequently, occupational safety violations increase in terms of time, cost and labor.
Hands-on training, which constitutes the backbone of lift training for our students, is carried out in a random system, so to say. This causes a considerable amount of our students to pull away from the occupation with a thought that it provides no security of life. An education at EU standards for our students, who are the masters of tomorrow, will help to create the modern working conditions in line with the occupational safety techniques by overcoming this structure of the industry.
As the principal of the “School Leading the Lift Education,” it is challenging for our schools to follow new technologies in the field, as it is difficult to equip the schools solely with the resources of the Ministry of National Education. It is also impossible to renovate them. I call on the leading organizations of the industry, associations or other industrialists serving in this field, as well as lift and escalator service providers, to support our school and other educational institutions by sharing their equipment or professional experience.
It is obvious that students receiving education in the field of lifts will prefer the brand they are familiar with when they enter business life. With the support of the sector, the workshop equipment can be more beneficial to this sector.
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