MAN in pole position

MAN Truck & Bus

Racing cars drive on the race track, lined with an audience.

#Apprenticeship & Dual Studies

RACING YOUR OWN CAR AT THE HOCKENHEIMRING IS A DREAM THAT CAN COME TRUE AT THE FORMULA STUDENT (FSG). EVERY YEAR, MORE THAN 110 STUDENT TEAMS FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD COMPETE THERE WITH RACING CARS THEY HAVE DESIGNED THEMSELVES. WE AT MAN HAVE BEEN SPONSORING FOUR TEAMS IN GERMANY SINCE 2011. ALWAYS RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ACTION AND CLOSE TO THE STUDENTS: OUR MAN JUDGES AND EXPERTS ON SITE.

PART OF AN INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY

The basic idea of Formula Student is as fascinating as it is simple: students from a wide range of disciplines form a design & business team that sets itself a challenging task: Develop, build and market a single-seater racing vehicle. With the self-built prototype, the teams then go on tour and compete with the other teams' vehicles on the world's racetracks.

THE CHALLENGES

The construction of the vehicle is the most difficult challenge the student teams face, but by no means the only one. In the end, the podium is not necessarily occupied by the teams with the fastest car, but by those with the best overall package. The students finance and organize their project themselves, which means writing business plans, attracting sponsors and investing a lot of free time in developing and building the vehicle. To ensure competitive equality, there are certain technical specifications that apply to all design teams worldwide.

People sit together in groups on pallets on an MAN truck loading area and talk.

Five women laugh into the camera, one holding an MAN brochure in his hand.

MAN employee operates an ice machine and laughs at one person.

BEING SUCCESSFUL TOGETHER

Each team consists of 60 to 80 members. Even the organization, the distribution of roles and tasks, and the joint project plan are a real challenge. Just like in a company, there are project managers, development teams, buyers, controllers and communications staff who take care of the flow of information, the organization of team meetings, but also the acquisition of sponsors.

Everywhere is still screwed, last hand put on, helmets are straightened, tires squeak - pure adrenaline!

HIGHLIGHT IN HOCKENHEIM

The annual highlight of the FS series - for the student teams, but also for the numerous supporters and fans - takes place in Hockenheim. On a total of five exciting event days, the teams go through four disciplines in which different qualities of the racing cars are tested. Before the race gets underway, there is hectic activity and excitement in the pits. Can the lovingly crafted vehicle deliver the performance hoped for on the decisive day? Everywhere there are still screws being tightened, final touches being made, helmets being straightened, squealing tires, pure adrenaline. Every year, our social media reporters are live everywhere: the daily live reporting on Facebook and Instagram is met with a great response. Exciting videos show the participants from their very personal side and convey an impression of the atmosphere on site. And always right in the middle of it all: our MAN experts, who are on hand to support the young students and up-and-coming talent.

The key to MAN's transformation

Mixed production of conventional and electrically powered trucks at MAN requires a new painting concept. The first shift into the future started in Munich.

“My gut told me: you’ve come to the right place at MAN”

As a 14-year-old, Abozar Tabibi fled Afghanistan at the end of 2015 – on foot, alone and unable to speak another language. Today, he is 22 and works as a mechatronics technician at MAN’s service centre in Quickborn to the north of Hamburg, where he also completed his training. An interview with him and his training supervisor, Marco Reuer, about his difficult start in the foreign culture of Germany, Abozar’s route to the right apprenticeship at MAN and his wishes for the future.

MAN in India: As diverse as the country itself

Aishwarya Shinde and Nandakishor Zanan work at MAN’s location in Pune, India. While Aishwarya is an HR Business Partner, Nandakishor works as an engineer in the Hardware Development team. With 1.4 billion people, India is the most populated country in the world. It includes a multitude of languages, religions, cultural backgrounds and has a wide variety of traditions. This is an interview about diversity within Indian teams, some German differences and the close collaboration of MAN teams across continents and time zones.