When the job is a mission
There is always a solution.
You only need to identify it
Norbert Danninger is an exceptional engineer, team player, tinkerer, inventor, and apparently even a magician. It's people like him who make specialist machine engineering such a special discipline.
Norbert Danninger was born in the 1970s on a small farm in Andorf in the Innviertel region. And this was a world full of technical puzzles, adventures, and experiences. Because there were always machines, tools, and plenty of freedom for inquisitive children on a farm. As long as he appeared for meals on time with his hands washed, hadn't burned anything down, and hadn't impeded or obstructed his parents' work, Norbert could examine the workings of various agricultural machines relatively freely. So a desired profession of "agricultural machinery mechanic" was the logical consequence of his childhood.
However, there were no such apprenticeships in the vicinity, so he selected plan B: the technical college (HTL) in Vöcklabruck. In his first jobs at smaller companies in the region, Norbert soon discovered a love for designing machines. Especially large machines. And this brought him to Fill in 1995. The era of digital design was dawning and Norbert felt immediately at home with it. Because every project is a completely new challenge in specialist machine engineering. Ideas and suggestions for improvement are encouraged here – in contrast to many series production businesses. From as early as his first projects in the field of plastics, Norbert demonstrated an exceptional gift for finding real-world solutions to complex challenges with his pragmatism, ingenuity, powers of deduction, and technical knowledge.
"Norbert is one of our top engineers. He approaches things calmly, coolly, and in a structured manner – he is also a great listener. His imagination and problem-solving expertise repeatedly amaze the customers. Those looking for the best solution develop their machines and systems together with Norbert. And I can vouch for that after working with him for more than 20 years."
//Willi Rupertsberger, Head of the Plastics Competence Center
If you were to ask Norbert, he would never claim to have developed a solution himself, to be responsible for a success, or to have had an idea. For him, it has always been about the team. But it is quite remarkable that it's often Norbert's team that surprises with brilliant ideas. And these have given rise to countless new product developments and innovative concepts over the years. More than once, Fill has only won an especially challenging contract because the customer trusted in the tremendous problem-solving expertise of Fill and Norbert in particular. This was the case with the project for the BMW i3 electric vehicle, for example.
Since 2015, Norbert Danninger has been Head of Design in the Plastics Competence Center. His ambition to find technical solutions together with his team is still undaunted. In particular, projects for the automotive industry are really fascinating. Because these involve the production of components for completely new vehicle models, with everything subject to strictest secrecy.
"The best moment of all is when a real machine evolves from an idea, becomes operational, and produces parts – exactly as required by the customer. This gives us the motivation as a team for the next challenging project."
//Norbert Danninger,
Design Team Leader, Plastics Competence Center
Around one hundred employees at Fill work in design engineering for the industries of the future. Designing something can be compared with building a LEGO model. As a design engineer, you have a construction kit at your disposal. Within the scope of these possibilities and your own creativity, you can develop a blueprint. The prerequisite for design engineering positions at Fill is completion of either the relevant apprenticeship or a technical college (HTL) course in mechanical engineering. This is followed by four years of specific technical training at the in-house Fill Academy.
