39 students of the University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria from the Master of Civil Engineering in Structural Engineeringand the international study program ElectricalEngineering made their way to Kollerschlag in the Mühlviertel on January 24th. The company LOXONE, a leading technology company in the field of smart homes and building automation, is located there.
The curriculum included a joint excursion as part of the seminar "Intercultural Communication". Students from 24 different countries traveling together all day and discussing tasks in culturally mixed small groups already during the bus ride - it hardly gets any more practical than that. In addition, such an excursion serves to improve networking between international and Austrian students. "This is not only about the successful integration of foreign students, but also about the opportunity for local students to broaden their horizons and strengthen their intercultural competence," knows Dipl.-Kulturw.Univ. Vanessa Prüller, Assistant Professor for Social Skills at the Wels Campus.
The excursion also offered new perspectives for civil engineers andelectrical engineers, with something for everyone: a company presentation on internationalization and product development at LOXONE, an interactive part in which the participants themselves programmed with the help of the sample case, a tour of the showhome with a short "test living", and a guided tour of the construction site of the new LOXONE Campus. In addition to new office and storage space, the hardware and software developer is currently building its own hotel with seminar and event rooms for training its globally active employees and company partners. The students were impressed by the rapid growth of this company, which many would not have expected in this rural area. An exciting insight into what Upper Austria has to offer!