Girls’ Day with the spray gun
Monday, 14 June 2010

To find out about the refinishing trade, Janine Barduna took a look behind the scenes at paint manufacturer Spies Hecker in Cologne.

A day for girls in a classical male domain has been the idea behind the Girls’ Day for the last ten years. Janine Barduna was one of 120,000 young people throughout Germany to gather experience in male-dominated trades. For a whole day, the 13-year-old slipped into refinisher’s overalls, put on a breathing mask and work gloves and reached for the spray gun at the Spies Hecker Center.

“I wanted to find out what it’s like to be a refinisher,” exclaimed the schoolgirl in the seventh grade at a Leverkusen comprehensive enthusiastically. No sooner said than done. After safety instruction, it was time for theory at the Spies Hecker Center in mid-May – the basics of vehicle refinishing, product characteristics and technical data. Janine Barduna then got off to a brisk start with the practical skills. From substrate preparation and sanding work through to mixing the colours – the schoolgirl showed talent and was highly motivated.

In the spray booth, she was fascinated by working with the spray gun. “Painting is just really good fun and truly creative. A great experience, especially when you can see the results straight off,” said the 13-year-old. The painting of a car shape with the Spies Hecker Fascination Color Fantasy Green was followed by the treatment of a car mudguard.

“By holding our Girls’ Day at Spies Hecker, we want to draw girls’ attention to the refinishing trade,” stressed Karsten Juers, in charge of international Marketing. “More and more young women are showing interest in the painting of vehicles, and we shall continue to support this trend.”

At the end of her Girls’ Day, Janine Barduna received a certificate and was very pleased with herself. “When choosing my career, creative and practical trades will definitely be top of my list,” was the schoolgirl’s positive verdict at the Cologne Spies Hecker Center.