The Faculty of Textile and Clothing Technology at the Hochschule Niederrhein is celebrating a double anniversary this year: On the one hand, the Hochschule Niederrhein is 50 years old. On the other hand, the Prussian Higher School for the Textile Industry was founded 120 years ago. This later became the School of Textile Engineering, which was transferred to the Faculty of Textile and Clothing Technology at the Hochschule Niederrhein in 1971. This year's Master's Congress on April 23, 2021, takes up this double anniversary. It runs under the title: NOW AND THEN - MG CREATES CAREERS (Yesterday, today, tomorrow: Mönchengladbach makes careers).
"Textile apprenticeship in Mönchengladbach has a significant historical legacy of which we are very proud," says Professor Dr. Lutz Vossebein, Dean of the Faculty of Textile and Clothing Technology. With over 2000 students and more than 30 professors, the faculty is now one of the largest educational institutions in the field of textiles and apparel - and that throughout Europe.
"The Master's Congress is aimed at students and partners of the faculty and the research institute for textiles and apparel from business, research and teaching education as well as politics. As always, current topics are presented at a high level by the budding engineers," says Prof. Dr. Maike Rabe, who initiated the Master Congress five years ago. This year's keynote speaker is Dr. Uwe Mazura, General Manager of the German Textile and Fashion Industry Association (Gesamtverband der deutschen Textil- und Modeindustrie e. V.) in Berlin. One of his topics: corporate due diligence or, in short, supply chain law. "This is what the budding and seasoned professionals of the industry have to deal with," explains the planning team with Oliver Heß, Dr. Esther Rohleder and Iris Siebgens.
The starting signal for textile apprenticeship in Mönchengladbach was given on April 15, 1901. On this day, the technical college located on the Mönchengladbach / Rheydt city border began its teaching operations. This was preceded by the growth of the textile industry in the 19th century, which was accelerated by the development of industrial spinning, weaving and finishing machines, and which led to an increase in the demand for skilled workers and managers in Mönchengladbach and the surrounding area.
The special feature of the Mönchengladbach school was that it combined several departments under one roof. In addition to textile production, there was a ready-to-wear department from 1912, which was successively expanded. This was followed by ladies' outerwear, lingerie, workwear and sportswear as teaching subjects. Thus, the "Prussian Secondary School for the Textile Industry", at that time unique in Germany, bundled a wide range in the field of textile and Clothing Technology apprenticeship.
Due to the high number of students in the ready-to-wear departments, the school was renamed "Höhere Bekleidungsfachschule" in 1932. It was the first educational institution in Germany to be authorized to train apparel engineers. The school was thus upgraded to a school of engineering, and subjects such as cost accounting, company organization, performance and work planning were added.
The Faculty of Textile and Clothing Technology, which came into being with the founding of the University of Applied Sciences Niederrhein in 1971, combined the competencies of the former School of Textile Engineering in Mönchengladbach - but also those of the schools in Cologne, Bielefeld, Aachen, Wuppertal and, of course, Krefeld. Krefeld, also a textile location with a long tradition in the region, was compensated for the departure of textile apprenticeship to Mönchengladbach by the fact that the administration of the new university of applied sciences came to Krefeld.
One of the pioneers of the founding of the UAS was Prof. Dr. Rolf Klinke. Fifty years ago, he was chairman of the planning committee and then, as vice rector of the young university of applied sciences and in personal union as the first dean of the Faculty of Textile and Clothing Technology, a central figure in the founding years. On the occasion of the Digital Master Congress 2021, he will talk about this time as a guest of honor. The free Master Congress will take place on Friday, April 23, 2021, 9 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. The complete program and registration form:
