Generational change among employees
The development of design technologies and generational change among employees are factors that have a major impact on the way a company operates, work efficiency and the quality of implemented projects. This is also the case at BIPROMET S.A., which has been designing and modernizing industrial plants in Poland and abroad for over 75 years.
One of the key challenges for a company with such extensive experience is the effective transfer of knowledge and the use of the experience of long-standing employees.
As Jakub Wiśniewski, senior designer at the Installation and Power Engineering Studio of BIPROMET S.A., emphasizes: In the past, many things were based on direct relationships between employees, and younger staff had to show a great deal of self-discipline in order to gain knowledge under the guidance of colleagues who were often much older.
I remember when I started working at BIPROMET S.A. 14 years ago. When I wanted to find information about a given project, I had to consult even several co-workers. I am not saying this was a bad thing, because it integrated the team, but it significantly extended the project completion time. My beginnings coincided with the largest project carried out by the company — the Pyrometallurgy Modernization Programme at HM Głogów. BIPROMET S.A. acted as General Designer of the Investment, being responsible for preparing documentation and implementing modern technological solutions. It was a very intensive period. During this project, we began implementing modern solutions, including 3D modelling, as well as organizing documentation and saving it on servers. It was a huge change, recalls Jakub Wiśniewski, adding that systems based on ICT solutions now make work much easier.
In the past, work was based mainly on simpler tools, often local files and limited cooperation between teams. There were no central documentation management systems, which made access to data more difficult and caused information chaos. Today, technologies have developed significantly — advanced software, 3D models, as well as work on shared servers or in the cloud are used. This enables better interdisciplinary coordination, faster error detection and greater project transparency. Automation and digitalization of processes have significantly increased work efficiency.
“The older generation of employees often have extensive practical experience gained over many years of work. Younger people, in turn, bring a fresh perspective, knowledge of new technologies and greater flexibility. Generational change can be a great opportunity for an organization, but only when it is accompanied by effective knowledge transfer. Lack of cooperation between generations may lead to the loss of competences or difficulties in adapting new solutions,” adds the senior designer.
And what does this cooperation look like today? We ask Andrzej Saganty, who has been working at the company since November 2025 as a senior assistant designer at the Installation and Power Engineering Studio.
“This is my fourth company, so I have some comparison with my previous workplaces. At BIPROMET S.A., knowledge transfer functions properly, and cooperation between different disciplines, such as electrical engineering and automation, runs smoothly. The atmosphere at work is positive and supports joint problem-solving. At first, it was difficult for me to get used to working on a shared server, but over time I noticed that this solution significantly facilitates access to documentation and improves the work of the entire team,” says Andrzej Saganty.
Today, in the design of large industrial facilities, the so-called point cloud is increasingly used, allowing existing infrastructure to be mapped with great precision. This makes it possible to better coordinate multiple installations and check their mutual positioning without the need for frequent visits to the construction site. This approach significantly improves the design process and represents a clear change compared with traditional working methods used in the past.