At the request of the Swiss Canton of Obwalden, 11 children between the ages of 6 and 12 visited the Sika Sarnen premises on July 14, 2023, together with their two caregivers at the Sika Sarnen site.
Great Experience of Introducing School Children into Science and Chemistry
The day care center "KITS Sarnen", Switzerland, offers comprehensive care services for kindergarten and school children up to the 6th grade of elementary school. The children enjoyed the day spent on the Sika premises with plenty of opportunities to try things out and explore. The aim of the visit was to give the children an exciting and eventful morning at Sika during their summer vacations and to familiarize them with science and chemistry in a playful manner, as well as to draw their attention to the apprenticeships Sika offers.
The children and their chaperones were warmly welcomed by the Sika team. Sika as a company was briefly introduced, after which they enjoyed a safety briefing. The children all received a child-friendly yellow safety vest and safety goggles and were made aware of the various danger symbols that exist in the company in the form of a memory game.
Each child was allowed to maneuver the two forks with the joystick under appropriate safety precautions and in the presence of experts. Furthermore, insights were given into all areas of application of roof membranes and their superstructures. Another station was at the small extruder in the technical center, where a Sika apprentice illustrated the manufacturing process of the extrusion of a membrane by melting polymers. The children and their supervisors were all thrilled, as they were finally able to hold their specially made and cooled test specimens in the form of a small membrane roll in their hands. After a short break, the course continued into the material testing laboratory and other.
At the end, all children met again for a question and answer session and to say goodbye. Children are technically enthusiastic even at this young age and asked many meaningful questions. For all participants, this was an all-around exciting event with a need for repetition.
