Saskia Lobeck and Florian Ruch work as a service technician team at Prokon. They travel across Germany for installations with their dog Zeus and caravan.
Have you packed everything? Are the windows closed? And is the caravan already hooked up?" What other couples clarify before going on holiday is part of the everyday life for Saskia Lobeck and Florian Ruch. The two work as a technical team at the Prokon Service Unit "Pros" - and go on installation jobs together. Always with them: Their small home on wheels and their dog Zeus.
"The idea with the caravan came to us when hotels had to close during the pandemic," says Florian Ruch. "Without overnight accommodation, we couldn't make big trips to more distant wind turbines." What started out of necessity has now become a permanent solution. Even without a lockdown, they take the caravan, originally purchased for camping holidays, on installation jobs - after all, home is where the heart is. The three of them travel up to 60,000 kilometers a year across Germany.
To work together with the family: an unusual solution for a challenging job. 'In the past, my relationships failed because I was hardly ever at home,' the 39-year-old man tells. As a service technician, he is on the road around three quarters of the month to maintain, repair, and commission wind turbines. 'When I met Saskia four and a half years ago, I actually wanted to leave the wind industry,' says the trained system electronics technician. He then arranged with his boss for his girlfriend to accompany him on installation trips. 'There are already too few women in the wind power sector. He liked the idea. So he hired Saskia.' That was in March 2019 at StiegeWind. Since the beginning of 2021, the company has been part of Prokon.
For Florian, the trained horse groom is retrained – and climbs dizzying heights with him. 'In my first week, I had to climb 85 meters directly inside a wind turbine. I almost wanted to quit then,' she says laughing. 'But I had such great colleagues who helped me to adjust to the new situation.' The 36-year-old is still not completely free of a fear of heights. But in the meantime, she has learned to rely on the safety harnesses. 'You can attach yourself anywhere with the equipment. That creates great confidence.' Regular safety training also gives her a good feeling.
On the platform there is a clear division of roles: Saskia handles the manual work, Florian takes care of the technical aspects. 'I've been away from horses for a long time. I used to mill aircraft parts at Airbus. The knowledge I gained there I can apply well here. Otherwise, the job is a lot of 'learning by doing'," explains Saskia.
The story of the service technician couple from Elsfleth has already spread within the company. Could their concept also work for other couples? "That's hard to say. So far, there are hardly any mixed assembly teams. And not every couple can be together 24/7. For us, it's just right: We are partners, family, and service technician team all at once," says Saskia.
Mon & Tue: 8:00 – 12:00 and 13:00 – 16:00
Wed: 8:00 – 12:00 (afternoon only written service)
Thu: 13:00 – 18:00 (morning only written service)
Fri: 8:00 – 12:00
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