Workpackages

WP1: Management

Ensuring the achievement of the project objectives within the time schedule and the budget, by planning, organizing, and controlling the integrated effort of the consortium. This will be a continuous task throughout the project, in close cooperation with the project monitoring and evaluation results (WP 8) and will terminate with the submission of the final report. Cooperation with other sectoral blueprint projects are also an important task.

 

WP2: Technological Development

Technological development is an ongoing process, which also affects the European steel industry. Technological innovations as new high-performed IT systems or huge amounts of collected data affect all areas of steelworks involving all the workers: from top management to technical personnel and plant operators.

Within the WP, the current state of the digital transformation of the Steel Industry will be assessed. Based on this, the upcoming techniques and developments will be analysed drawing on the main digital transformation levers and related projects and technological market trends.

In close cooperation with a steel company and its training provider, enhanced by feedback and inputs of all partners of the consortium a future scenario will be developed describing the industrial steel production in five to ten years (and beyond as far as possible), by identifying the main categories of technological developments and the related required skills and competencies. Economic developments linked to digital transformation will be also evaluated. In combination with affected processes of the production cycle and the affected personnel, skills adequacy as well as skills gaps will be identified.

This work package will provide the foundations for industry skills requirements (WP3) and VET system (WP4) and form also the ground for the Blueprint development (WP5). The broader industry and its stakeholders will be integrated via online survey. The results of WP2 will be supervised and improved by feedback of all the consortium partners.

 

WP3: Industry Requirements

Most steel companies are digitizing their processes, incorporating ICT and Industry 4.0 technologies to melting, casting, rolling and other sub-processes. However, the steel sector has always been considered a mature sector with a low level of technological development, and most of workers, although experienced in industrial and metallurgical issues, lack of new technologies’ skills leading to problems with increasingly automated, robotized and digitized processes.

In the light of the technological developments detected in WP2 a more highly skilled workforce is required and skill needs are emerging. WP 3 aims to identify and specifiying the new skills and training needs within the steel sector, considering a framework of growing digitalization, to be incorporated into VET and tertiary education training curricula. These identified needs will also be compared to finding from other related industrial sectors (i.e. other raw materials sectors or sectors along the steel value-chain.

Based on this, this WP will have the objective to ensure an adaption of the staff to the new needs of the sector as well as considering and including capabilities in talent management and the recruitment processes to gain technological skills.

The results of the WP will be shared with other WPs and also prepared for their integration into the European blueprint.

 

WP4: VET Systems Requirements

This work-package identifies how VET systems and frameworks at national and EU level currently deliver skills to the steel industry. It also identifies where informal company level VET attempts to close gaps in formal provision. Hence, it addresses questions related to skill needs (WP3) and technological development (WP2) within VET provision serving the industry. The overall activities of the WP will establish the reference points and main mechanisms for, and barriers to, skills/training delivery in the European steel sector and the WP thus provides a central aspect of the Blueprint delivery.

To meet the research interests, interviews an/or workshops will be conducted to understand training provision on the levels of steel plants (five case studies) and VET authorities/stakeholders and training providers (five member states as case studies). Wider frameworks (eg. EQAVET, EQF) and their fit with the sector will be a further focus of research. Desk research will establish requirements and regulatory frameworks for VET provision in each member state engaged in steel production as it applies to steel sector occupations – as a foundation for the wider Blueprint roll-out.

The results of the research will inform development of an occupation led skills-set framework/matrix for the sector. The framework will be utilised to: i) establish national VET benchmarks for current skills provision for occupations critical to the steel industry; ii) utilise data from WP2 and WP3 to strategize for meeting future skill needs through national VET provision and; iii) where appropriate correlate occupation skill-sets with cross-European programmes and standards frameworks. The aim is for a European sector skills-set framework/matrix to be implemented within existing national and European VET frameworks and rolled out on a Europe-wide scale.

In order to ensure sustainability and following the evolution and innovation of skills in steel beyond the project end, mechanisms for maintaining applicability and openness of sector skills within national (and European) VET frameworks will be established.

 

WP5: Blueprint

The main objective of the project is to develop a blueprint for a sustainable, steel industry driven and coordinated European Steel Skills Agenda and Strategy (ESSA) for an ongoing and short-termed implementation of new skills demands. This will be piloted by the development of related scenarios, strategies, framework training modules and tools, and new training methods and arrangements: Assessment, strategies and measure to anticipate and secure a skilled workforce needed for a global competitive industry, ready to anticipate new skills demands and to allow pro-active practical activities meet the future requirements of the industry.

Based on the results of WP2 on technological developments, WP3 on industry requirements and WP4 on VET requirements, WP5 will in detail:

  • identify in proactive ways the skills needs and demands of the industry, taking into account skills gaps and shortages, and forecasts of supply and demand
  • identify training and curricula requirements, including ways to implement new vocational education content in immediate and effective ways, within both companies and education and training institutions
  • update training more short-termed and with higher quality by new training programs, measures and arrangements (using new digital possibilities) as well as programs for train the trainer (as key elements for the new skills agenda)
  • identify and promote successful sectoral upskilling schemes (incl. exchange of existing tools, best/good practice exchange, knowledge) and efficient management of knowledge
  • to improve the image and attractiveness of the Steel Industry and careers for talented people (recruitment and retention), including the identification of strategies for overcoming recruitment difficulties and widening the talent pool for a more diverse workforce.

The results of these objectives are leading to a comprehensive Blueprint which will be developed first as a prototype, which will be tested and improved to a final Blueprint. This work package serves as an input and ground for the implementation and transfer of the Blueprint and the policy recommendations and dissemination activities (WP6 and WP7).

 

WP6: Implementation

The WP is devoted to the planning and implementation of suitable Implementation and Transfer actions at companies and training providers at both EU and Member State Level. Such actions will involve steel companies, associations and VET system institutions, which should cooperate in the preparation of company and national roll-outs. Collaboration will also be established with other blueprint developing sectors.

The activities of this WP will build out of the outcomes of WPs 2, 3, and 4, but mainly on the Blueprint strategies and training tool (WP5) as far as the development of implementation and dissemination plans for the Blueprint strategies including the definition of the contents of the implementation actions. Such contents will vary depending on the target audience and national contexts, by taking into account the differences in national VET systems.

Suitable Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) developed in WP8 will be used in order to monitor success and adjust needs continuously in respect of implementation of Blueprint goals and to adjust the agenda and strategy in time to upcoming new developments and environments.

 

WP7: Policy Recommendations and Dissemination

This WP is devoted to the definition of the policy recommendations and the best dissemination strategy for the ESSA results. On the base of the activities carried out in the previous WPs and according to the Blueprint framework, policy recommendations will be defined and structured basically in form of practical guidelines.

The approach will include the analysis and compliance of the recommendations with the different legislative frameworks at national and European level. This will also allow to exactly identify the policy makers and stakeholders (which are not already part of the ESSA consortium) and to address the defined guidelines in an optimal way.

A dissemination plan will be defined both for the project results and to make the defined policy recommendations more effective. Additionally it's an objective to improve the public image of the steel industry as a modern high-tech, sustainable and green industry.

To ensure continuous and sustainable dissemination a communication officer will be appointed, supported by a social media officer.

 

WP8: Monitoring and Evaluation

WP8 will continuosly monitor progress towards the main objectives of the project to report on achieved results and identify and identify and prevent risks. At the end of the project, WP8 will evaluate it and assess its expected impact.

The WP is supported by WP1 leader to identify and monitor indicators and evaluation questions. The WPs 2 - 7 will be subject for data collection, while there will be a cooperation with WP 6 and WP7 for the evaluation of exploitation respectively dissmeniation activities.

 

 

 

 
Co-funded by the Erasmus + Programme of the European Union
Agreement Number: 2018-3059/001-001
Project Number: 600886-EPP-1-2018-1-DE-EPPKA2-SSA-B
Last updated on: 30/04/2019 12:13pm