Young Talents in Maintenance – First Steps Matter for Mechanics in Rail Maintenance

Verneri is studying mechanical and production engineering at a vocational school. He originally came to FleetCare for a traineeship as a part of his studies, and because he found the work interesting, he was happy to stay for the summer.

Verneri worked at Pieksämäki machine workshop on the component side. He was mainly involved in repairing and manufacturing banks for Roundwood wagons, but he was also involved in the manufacture of train bogies. Welding, plasma cutting, and using an angle grinder are skills that Verneri needed daily. He was already familiar with these skills through his education, but his summer job gave him a chance to hone them. That’s important for the future, as these skills can be learned only by doing.

Verneri says he enjoyed his work. The working atmosphere was good, and it was nice to get to know colleagues and work together. If a more challenging task came up, there was always somebody who could help or show how things were done.

After the summer Verneri returned to his studies. There are still a couple of years to go, and during those, the possibility of doing another traineeship at FleetCare would be interesting.

Summer 2024 was the second time Tomi has worked at FleetCare. He has been interested in engines and vehicles from an early age and is currently studying automotive engineering at Tampere University of Applied Sciences. Tomi has become familiar with cars, so he decided to see what it would be like to work with trains.

Tomi worked as a mechanic at Tampere depot. He maintained traction equipment, mainly diesel locomotives, but there were also a few rail buses. When something that piqued Tomi’s interest came for maintenance, Tomi usually checked with his supervisor, if he could get to work with the newcomer. This way he got to do different things over the summer and influence the tasks he worked on.

The best thing about Tomi's job was that it was related to his studies. He says it's important to learn a wide range of things during school because it means more understanding and work experience, but also more job opportunities.

The atmosphere at work was helpful and supportive. Tomi is at an early stage in his career, so he found it nice that more experienced colleagues have been happy to help when needed. Tomi says that because he had no specific work partner, he worked with different people depending on the day. This helped him to become part of the team quickly.

The most important qualities of a mechanic are manual skills, common sense, and an open mind. According to Tomi, they can take you a long way!

Veeti applied for a summer job at the FleetCare Kouvola depot. His father had worked at the same place before and Veeti heard about the job opportunity through him.

Veeti is studying at a vocational school in the electrical field. He had no previous experience in traction equipment maintenance before he started as a mechanic at Kouvola's locomotive workshop at the beginning of the summer. However, he enjoyed his work and learned a lot about locomotives and how to maintain and repair them.

Workdays started at six in the morning. Veeti was pleased that as a summer worker, he was able to do the same work as the permanent mechanics. The work was usually maintenance and repair work on diesel locomotives, such as changing oils or oil filters. 

Veeti's supervisor, Mika, who works as a foreman in Kouvola, and the rest of the team were pleased with Veeti's performance. Veeti's punctual and motivated attitude was appreciated and there may be work available alongside school or at least during holidays.

The work done by mechanics is very meaningful. Mika says that the work the mechanics do is visible to the train passengers by the fact that the train is in good condition and on time. When locomotives and other rolling stock are maintained carefully and when they’re due, the risk of failure during the journey in minimized, and there are fewer delays caused by faults.

What kind of person would fit as a mechanic at FleetCare? Mika says that the right person for the job is someone who’s prepared to do physical work and is not afraid of challenges. The job involves heavy components and uncomfortable working positions. Cooperation skills and self-direction come in handy because the work is a team effort, and everyone gets to influence their job description. Also, interest in railways and understanding of rolling stock maintenance is a big plus – we’re talking about the railway industry, after all!