Christian Bloch-Nielsen is a carpenter at DS Elcobyg

At DS Gruppen, we believe that skilled people can continue to develop throughout their working lives – even when life takes an unexpected turn. Christian Bloch-Nielsen experienced this when an injury forced him to find a new direction in his working life.

Text: Cecilie Grønning Krieger

The 33-year-old carpenter is part of the carpentry team at DS Elcobyg, where he has worked for nearly eight years. But his route to the job began with an injury.

“I suffered an injury while playing handball, which took a large part of my thigh bone. The doctor said that if I continued working on roofs, I would risk ending up in a wheelchair before I turned 30,” Christian explains.

At the time, his mother was already working at DS Elcobyg and suggested that he apply for a position with the company.

For Christian, the move to DS Elcobyg was not just an opportunity to continue his working life. It also opened the door to a side of the carpentry trade he had not previously encountered.

A completely different kind of carpentry

Although Christian still works as a carpenter, the tasks at DS Elcobyg are quite different from those he knew from construction sites.

Together with five colleagues, he makes openings for the concrete elements. They ensure there is space for windows, doors and other openings when the elements are cast.

“It is something completely different from ordinary carpentry work. Here, you have to be able to see what you cannot see. You have to think about how things are built up inside the concrete before it is cast.”

That was exactly what surprised him most when he started.

“You come in from outside and think you can do everything because you are a trained carpenter. But you cannot. This requires experience, and you have to learn to think in a completely different way.”

Team spirit and flexibility matter most

It is not only the work, however, that has kept Christian at DS Elcobyg for nearly eight years.

“I am happy with my work, happy with the team spirit, and really happy with the flexibility.”

Today, he is the father of a daughter, and that makes flexibility in everyday life even more important.

“It is wonderful when you have a family. If there is a need for it, you can slip away and come back later. That means a great deal.”

For Christian, the flexibility is an expression of the trust he experiences in everyday life. There is an understanding that working life and family life need to fit together.

Still happy with the carpentry trade

Christian can still feel the effects of his old injury, especially when the working days become long and busy. But that does not change the fact that he sees himself at DS Elcobyg for many years to come.

In five years, he still believes he will be here. Not because he has never missed life on construction sites, but because he has found a place where both work and everyday life fit together.

“I do miss being up on a roof on a summer’s day. Not quite as much when it is raining and snowing,” he says with a smile.