Are you dreaming of becoming one of the few Filipino mechatronics in Porsche?
Well, there are young students from Don Bosco who just got the blessing to be in the Porsche Training and Recruitment Center Asia 2.0.
“Mechatronics” is a term which means elite technical specialists for Porsche vehicles, is what these students are going to become in the future.
In the version 2 of PTRCA, the brands Audi and Volkswagen now become new cooperation partners in this initiative.
In the event few days ago held at Porsche Philippines showroom, hosted by ABS-CBN’s Anne Curtis, the program were honored by dignitaries from Porsche Middle East, the German Ambassador to the Philippines, Don Dosco Mondo of Germany and many more.
The PTRCA first began when Robert Coyiuto, Jr., Chairman and CEO of PGA Cars, Inc., observed that his local technicians were often being pirated internationally through the global Porsche network. “I discussed with a member of the Porsche AG board the possibility of setting up a training school in the Philippines, because our technicians were highly sought-after worldwide,” he recalled. Fortunately, Porsche AG was impressed by the practicality and potential of Coyiuto’s brainchild, and thus the PTRCA was born. “We are proud to be the very first training facility of Porsche outside of Germany, and remain fully committed to invest in the future of our underprivileged youth,” Coyiuto further emphasized.
The partnership between PGA Cars in the Philippines and Don Bosco Technical Institute has been running for six years already. Porsche has already produced more than 250 young adults as motor vehicle service mechatronic technicians.
They cover the sports car manufacturer’s growing demand for qualified specialists, especially in the Porsche centres in the Middle East and Asia Pacific growth markets.
“Good English language skills and the good work ethic the people of the Philippines are known for are beneficial here”, explains Michael Drolshagen, Head of After Sales at Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, the reason for setting up the PTRCA in Manila. Training there was and remains first and foremost a recruitment program. “But of course for us it means also practising social responsibility. Because a qualification from the PTRCA not only gives these young adults access to the international labour market, it also gives them a real opportunity to noticeably improve their own living conditions and to strengthen their family environment.”
The development of the PTRCA to PTRCA 2.0 with the new cooperation partners Audi Volkswagen Middle East means that in future even more space is needed. So it’s good that the Don Bosco Technical Institute is currently building a new 6,000 square metre training centre in Manila. On an area of about 1,500 square metres it will house seminar rooms and training workshops for the PTRCA 2.0 for the brands Porsche, Audi and Volkswagen. With the appropriate equipment the brands also ensure that the young people are instructed in accordance with state-of-the-art technology.
In addition, thanks to future cooperation agreed with the German-Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, after their final examination they will receive a certificate that can be even better compared with the European qualifications framework.
H. E. Thomas Ossoski, German Ambassador to the Philippines.
In closing, Coyiuto told the Don Bosco students:
“The road ahead will be demanding, but I urge all of you to face every challenge as an opportunity, and with perseverance and fortitude, to achieve victory at the end. The PTRCA has given you a once in a lifetime opportunity that is limited to a select group. Work hard, give it your best, and keep learning,” he concluded.
