Hydrogen is particularly important in Duisburg, the largest steel location in Europe. The skilled workers of tomorrow must be trained so that they can also work with it. This is why 16 trainees started the newly developed additional qualification in hydrogen, the only one of its kind in Germany. To kick off the course, the trainees and their trainers visited the Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Center (ZBT). Among other things, they learnt about occupational safety, risk assessment, environmental protection and a number of technical topics. The participants were also able to watch a live fuel cell test, visit the hydrogen test field and were instructed in the OpenFuelCell by Burghard Lutter. This additional qualification was jointly developed by the Duisburg-Wesel-Kleve Chamber of Industry and Commerce for the Lower Rhine region, thyssenkrupp Steel Europe, Hüttenwerke Krupp Mannesmann GmbH (HKM), ZBT and the  Robert-Bosch Vocational College. Among other things, we trained the instructors and developed the training materials. For the trainees, knowing how to handle hydrogen correctly is a unique selling point on the labour market. A total of 16 trainees from thyssenkrupp and HKM started the first round of the programme and completed seven modules. On 23 training days, everything revolves around hydrogen: producing, transporting and using it safely. The course concludes with an IHK examination. In the coming years, the additional qualification will be open to all companies with industrial-technical trainees in the IHK district.