The school received a large sphere from the Laupheim observatory. There were many ideas about what to do with it. The decision to make a globe was a natural choice – after all, the students come from far more than ten countries. The students can now draw all the countries of the world onto the sphere, especially their own homelands. School principal Angelika Kuppetz says, "We want to make the world tangible to the children."
Trainees help the sphere to rotate
But a sphere with no mechanical mounting system just rolls away. This is where the Magirus and Iveco Magirus trainees came into the game. The contact was arranged by a company employee. Second- and third-year trainees designed a mounting system with ball bearings so that the sphere could rotate without friction.
"The project had something for all of our trainees. They had a great deal of fun with the project," said Thomas Schweigart, Head Instructor for the industrial mechanics. The result is a 50-cm-high surface and mounting plate with ball bearings on which the earth can rotate around its own axis in its natural angle.
A highlight for the school and the trainees
The last challenge was mounting the sphere onto the new plate – which ended up becoming a spectacular show for both the school and the trainees. Thomas Schweigart and his apprentices came to the school with a new Magirus articulated turntable ladder. They used a rope to mount the sphere onto the holder with millimetre precision. Particularly courageous students could ride the turntable ladder afterwards.
Thomas Schweigart says: "The project was a complete success and a great activity! We'd like to do things like this more often." Angelika Kuppetz, the school principal, was also happy about the cooperation. "The project was very valuable, both for the trainees as well as the Wieland students. Due to the on-site set-up and the enthusiastic children, the trainees also had a successful learning experience and received great appreciation for their work." The globe has now been painted by the children. This spring, the children's individual countries of origin will be highlighted.
