A Day in a Life: Sören is construction mechanic for submarines

Even close friends or family often have no clue what we do at work. At thyssenkrupp Marine Systems, however, we have many exciting professions that are very well worth a closer look. Welcome to a day in the life of Sören, construction mechanic in submarine ship building.

A typical day at the ship building hall

Sören has been working as a construction mechanic at thyssenkrupp Marine Systems since several years. His field of expertise: welding technology in submarine ship building. A typical working day for Sören starts with the assignment to a specific job site where his welding skills are needed. “I then obtain the necessary welding consumables and my required tools”, explains Sören. “Afterwards, I get an overview of the welding seam records required for the welding and check whether they are complete and correct.”, he further describes his protocol.

Then it's time to start welding! Currently Sören is part of a project crew for the construction of a modern submarine. The biggest challenge for the construction mechanic so far has been to learn the so-called mirror welding for narrow or barely visible weld seams. "You have to rethink a lot and produce a good weld despite difficult conditions," says Sören.

After welding, Sören grinds his welds and performs a visual inspection. When this is complete, he fills out weld seam logs and tidies up his workplace. “These steps are important so that the next shift can continue working without any problems”, he stresses.

Becoming a construction mechanic

Sören has always enjoyed working with crafts and metal. Learning a wide variety of welding processes and moving to different construction sites in the production process of submarines make his job particularly exciting.

“To become a construction mechanic at thyssenkrupp Marine Systems, you must have a training qualification as a construction mechanic, industrial mechanic or in a similar profession from the metal sector”, explains Sören. But you will also have to be open to new technologies and processes – and above all to continue to learn.

The digital future of the welding profession

“In future, my job will be strongly influenced by artificial intelligence, as there are already robots that find weld seams and subsequently weld them themselves.”, Sören shares when asked about the influence of AI on his profession. In addition to these robots, there are other developments that cast the future of welding in a new light. Soon, the use of artificial intelligence will be tested at thyssenkrupp Marine Systems to detect and indicate possible welding defects inside the seam before the welds are inspected by elaborate processes.

Sören sees the rise of these new technologies calmly: “I think many processes that are currently welded by hand will be simplified and made more pleasant through the operation of welding robots.” The future of working in welding will change inevitably but the application of AI will above all open new possibilities to Sören and his colleagues – taking on different roles and focusing stronger on conceptual work.

Tips for young professionals

According to Sören, good hand-eye coordination and spatial awareness are particularly important for young people starting out in welding. In addition, according to his experience, a certain resilience is essential to perfect welding and not be discouraged by setbacks.

If you, too, are interested in a career at thyssenkrupp Marine Systems, take a look at our careers page, where you'll find all our current vacancies.