OKK Koksovny to Support a New Metallurgical Specialisation

OSTRAVA (May 6, 2010) – OKK Koksovny along with other North Moravian metallurgical plants will support the introduction of a new coke production specialisation within the scope of the school-leaving subject of metallurgy at the Secondary Technical School in Frýdek-Místek that offers this specialisation as the only one in the country. The company thus wants to train skilled personnel for specialised coke production professions in the future.

“In recent years it has been increasingly difficult to find young specialists for the coking plants, therefore the average age of our employees gradually increases. We must try to attract young people and to participate in their education already from their recruitment to high school and especially during their studies,“ said Petr Vaclavik, deputy director for personnel and payroll matters. The average age of company employees is 43 years.

In addition to OKK Koksovny, cooperation with the school at Frýdek-Místek was also signed by Arcelor Mittal Ostrava and the Třinecké železárny ironworks. The companies will provide tours of their plants, internships for students and professional internships for teachers, and they will arrange specialists to come and lecture at the school. Successful students of higher grades will be offered a financial contribution and will also receive support if they go to college. Similarly, guaranteed jobs for secondary school and college graduates are an important bonus.

“Our support also consists in the promotion of the specialisation in order to make sure that, in the second round of the school entrance procedure, there is a sufficient number of pupils,“ Mr. Václavík said.

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For further information please contact:

Vladislav Sobol, media representative of OKK Koksovny
725 595 417, vladislav.sobol@okd.cz

Secondary Technical School at Frýdek-Místek
558 406 111, www.spsfm.cz 
Principal: Mgr. Martin Tobiáš, 558 647 066

Notes for editors:

OKK Koksovny based in Ostrava is a wholly owned subsidiary of the New World Resources coal mining group. The coking plants of the OKK company are the largest European manufacturer of foundry coke and a leading manufacturer of blast furnace coke, heating coke and coke for technological purposes in particular for foundry and metallurgical production, special metallurgy, heating and other purposes. The company also produces other cokechemical products that are created during high-temperature carbonisation of coal. OKK actually operates a total of four coking batteries with a total number of 226 chambers in two coking plants – Svoboda Coking Plant and the Jan Šverma Coking Plant. The company has over 1000 employees.