Building joiner

As a building carpenter you work with wood for construction. You manufacture and install windows, doors, stairs, floors and built-in furniture — often custom-tailored to the individual task. You become a craftsperson who can both stand at the machines in the workshop and install the finished piece on the construction site and understands how to get wood to fit precisely.

§What do you do in everyday life?

You work partly in a joinery workshop, partly at customers' homes. One day can be spent reading a drawing, sawing and planing wood to size, assembling a door or staircase and checking that the angles are correct. After that you drive out and install what you made. Precision is alpha and omega — in joinery, the millimetres count.

• 01You learn to read drawings and plan a task.
• 02You learn to operate planing, sawing, and milling machines safely.
• 03You learn to join wood with mortises, slots, and modern fittings.
• 04You learn to manufacture windows, doors, stairs, and furniture.
• 05You learn assembly out on the building site.
• 06You learn about types of wood, materials, and their properties.

§How do you get started?

You take a basic course at a vocational school and then find an apprenticeship at a carpentry company. You alternate between school stays and practice and get apprentice wages during the entire education. The trade suits you if you enjoy precise craftsmanship and seeing a piece of furniture or equipment become real from the beginning.

§The way forward

As fully trained you can work at carpentry companies window and door manufacturers or start for yourself. You can specialise in for example stairs or restoration become a workshop foreman or build further towards building technical education.

“Give a carpenter a piece of wood and a drawing — and something that fits to the millimeter gets made.”