APPRENTICESHIP COOPERATION: HALFAR AND GERRY WEBER

Khalil talks about the training cooperation with Halfar and Gerry Weber

Halfar and Gerry Weber team up to train textile and fashion sewers

Halfar has been training prospective textile and fashion sewers since August 2017. This is a 2-year recognised apprenticeship in the industry. Textile and fashion sewers produce sample parts, prototypes and small series of textile products. Their tasks range from planning the production steps and cutting materials to finalising the product and finishing.

At Halfar's in-house pattern making and sewing departments, our trainees have the opportunity to learn many processes and techniques. Starting with pattern making, through cutting and finishing to the application of a finish. The two specialists Gerry Weber International AG and Halfar System GmbH have entered into a training co-operation to give trainees the opportunity to acquire skills in other textile products, such as clothing and bags. As part of their training, trainees from both companies are thus given the opportunity to gain an insight into the specific processes and learn the full spectrum of the job description.

What do aspiring textile and fashion sewers learn at Halfar?

In the following, our colleague Khalil reports on his training. At the beginning of his training, he has to familiarise himself intensively with the different materials and their properties. This knowledge is a prerequisite for later being able to correctly combine customer benefits, intended use and manufacturing processes and thus achieve a product that is as sustainable as possible. He also learns the various skills. From pattern making and the operation of plotters or punching machines to the individual sewing technologies used for HALFAR® products. They will also learn welding and gluing techniques, which they will then apply in practice, for example when creating a new bag model. The aim is to be able to select and apply materials and processes independently as well as properly and professionally. In addition to technical knowledge and skills, the safety regulations and textile and care labelling, for example, must also be learned.

Training with strong partners – Khalil at Halfar and Gerry Weber

State-of-the-art embroidery machine for custom finishing at Halfar

Another advantage that Halfar offers trainees as part of this apprenticeship is the opportunity to familiarise themselves with different finishing technologies and processes. As we now offer 13 finishing techniques, most of which we realise in-house in Bielefeld, the trainees can learn directly on site and in a very practical way. The ultra-modern embroidery machines and the in-house screen printing shop, for example, are a rarity in other companies and are therefore also very interesting for external trainees. It is exciting for the budding textile and fashion sewers like Khalil to experience how different finishing processes and materials correlate with each other. With this knowledge, they are able to give products their very own character through individualised finishing.

Training elements that are taught at Gerry Weber

Gerry Weber International AG, the well-known German fashion and lifestyle group based in Halle (Westphalia), also offers vocational training for textile and fashion sewers (m/f). The latest trends for the six brands (GERRY WEBER, TAIFUN, SAMOON, talkabout, HALLHUBER and GR[8]FUL) are designed, developed and produced here every day. In addition to knowledge of materials, cuts and production processes, the trainees learn technical clothing training elements such as "ironing and fusing techniques" and "finishing finished products".

Thanks to the cooperation between the two specialists, the trainees have the opportunity to familiarise themselves with such a broad spectrum of their professional field that it would hardly be possible for one company to teach them alone. From highly technical welding processes to a broad knowledge of materials, a wide range of customer requirements and finishing technologies, the young trainees are taught important expert knowledge.

Khalil benefits from the training cooperation with Halfar and Gerry Weber

Joint training with a future – Khalil at Halfar and Gerry Weber

Great benefits of the cooperation for the trainees

The cooperation with Gerry Weber offers our trainees a good opportunity to familiarise themselves with completely different textile products and the associated processing methods. Both our machinery and the various in-house finishing options (embroidery, screen printing, transfer printing) represent great added value for Gerry Weber's trainees. This is why, since 2018, trainees have been sent to the partner company for a few days or weeks at a time to learn the training content.

Our apprentice Khalil reports enthusiastically about the impressions he gained at Gerry Weber.

"Getting to know an international group with so many brands is very exciting! It's also very interesting and enriching to see how clothing is processed and finished. In the weeks I was able to spend at Gerry Weber, I was able to gather a wide range of impressions."

Parallel to Khalil's assignment, two apprentices from Gerry Weber were with us and were able to supplement their training content and learn additional specialist knowledge.

We look forward to continuing our excellent collaboration with Gerry Weber!

More about apprenticeships at Halfar