Getting things rolling

"The technical and manual activities such as drilling and milling were easy for me right from the start." So the career path was clear. Antonia came to KUKA in Augsburg for the dual study program. She chose robotics because she recognized the growing importance of robots in industrial production. Antonia is fascinated by robotics: "Robots have something aesthetic about them. They can move very fluidly. If they are programmed well, it almost looks like a play," enthuses Antonia, who completed her Bachelor of Science in Mechatronics at KUKA.

"The special thing for me is always the set-up phase. If you haven't experienced it before, you can't even imagine that the empty exhibition hall is filled with all kinds of innovative showcases within a very short space of time. There are construction crews out and about, setting up stands in just a few days, some of which are as big as detached houses." While the engineer sits at her computer and concentrates on her application, a trade fair stand is being set up behind her, which will later take visitors into the world of the most innovative robotics solutions. "This is amazing."

Collaboration at a trade fair is driven by a very special spirit. Everyone is important. "All team members are allowed to be creative. And if anyone has a problem, everyone helps to solve it." Antonia works for KUKA at trade fairs all over the world. She met her Korean colleagues in person for the first time at SIMTOS in Seoul. The chemistry was right straight away. It didn't matter who came from what country, what role or what job description they had. "It's simply about putting all the individual pieces of the puzzle together in the shortest possible time so that we can clearly present the latest innovations from the world of robotics to trade fair visitors. Although we had relatively little time to set up in South Korea, we had a great start to the trade fair. The secret to a successful set-up is simply not to get stressed and to work together in a focused manner, then it will work."

The teams in Augsburg, Hungary and China develop various software and hardware modules that arrive here in Augsburg, where we put them together." The mixture of expertise, time, creativity and motivation ultimately brings success. Antonia is proud to be part of this process. She has been closely involved in the development of KMR iisy over the past two years. "I went out for various tests, for example a clean room test – to prepare our vehicle for the market. When you help develop new products, you have the opportunity to visit the first buyers and support them as well as demonstrate the vehicle at trade fairs. I like that because I really enjoy being on the road. Especially in other cities or at trade fairs. It also gives me the opportunity to look around a bit privately, talk to people a lot and get to know lots of colleagues, customers and integrators who work with us. That's simply fun."

When Antonia is not working on robotics development, she can often be found in the mountains. The young technology enthusiast likes to spend her free time hiking and biking. She also loves visiting new places. And this brings her back full circle to her professional work: "KUKA takes me to all kinds of different places around the world and brings me together with people who share my passion for robotics." There is still a lot for Antonia Ritter to discover – both inside and outside the world of robotics.