Since the 1960s, the training tools provided by SAME have enabled people to their spirit of initiative and ambition for personal growth. The photographic heritage preserved by the SDF Historical Archive includes dozens of shots of people taking part in vocational training courses.
These photos are mainly of mechanics, farmers and students who periodically visited the company to attend technical refresher courses, learn about new machines, and get to know more about a prestigious industrial reality in the field of mechanised farming. These images are an open window on a distant world that speaks to us of work, aspirations, skills, customs and traditions of an era.
Women from all over Italy have also been involved in these activities; as can be seen in photos of them at the helm of tractors as they learn to drive these machines, and then proudly holding up their driving licences at the end of the course. “a group of women taking part at the first course for women farmers” (Source: SAME company newspaper, 1966).
Building on that legacy, SDF today invests continuously in the professional and technical training of the mechanical technicians of its network, with courses involving hundreds of mechanics every year. In 2023, over than 14,000 hours of courses (with both physical attendance at Treviglio and online courses) were delivered to over 1,000 employees from all over the world.
A special mention also goes to the SAME Schools project, the 8th edition of which is being held over the 2024/2025 school year. The Project is aimed at Agricultural, Mechanical and Mechatronic Technical Institutes from all over Italy, and this year, offers participants the choice of either physical attendance at Treviglio or online courses for the first time.
SDF offers its experience to contribute to the training of future professionals in this sector by helping to reduce the gap that inevitably exists between textbooks and the realities of work, creating specifically tailored teaching packages to more effectively meet training needs. The lectures cover the main topics related to mechanised farming from its origins to today’s developments, with an eye to the future. The physical attendance day offers students, in addition to the lecture, an opportunity to see today’s machines in person and, accompanied by company lecturers, understand all of their unique technical and technological attributes. No less importantly, during their day at SDF, schools will visit the production lines, the SAME Museum with its historical tractors and the Historical Archive.
In conclusion, the activities of the SDF Historical Archive and the SAME Museum is also contributing to expanding the concept of the “corporate culture” of SAME to be ever more inclusive; as nurturing a “corporate culture” also means being open to topics not directly related to the business alone. This is why SDF wanted to devote more and more attention to factory visits, the Historical Archives and the SAME Museum, activities involving schools, workshops, exhibitions, conferences and meetings: as they offer invaluable opportunities for discourse and growth.
