Innovative Scalable High-Impact Excellence Learning that Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate and Evaluate
A Policy Experimentation Adult Education Project
Contractor: ELS
Contact person: Magrethe Lund - magrethe.lund@wemail.no
Background
The European Construction Product Regulative (CPR) outlines how metal and iron industry is navigating through a challenging landscape characterized by economic uncertainties, regulatory pressures, and global market dynamics. Adaptation to changing conditions and new regulations leading to new skills needed for the green and digital transition, along with strategic investments in innovative technologies and sustainability, are key priorities for stakeholders in this sector. CPR based production in Europe is responsible for approximately 10% of carbon emissions in the European Union. This number highlights the importance of adopting strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through the implementation of cleaner and more sustainable technologies. The adoption of green CPR based production offers opportunities to develop more sustainable solutions across a wide range of sectors, contributing to the reduction of carbon emissions and advancement towards a circular and low-carbon economy.
The durability and flexibility of metals makes it very well suited to the circular economy. This perspective includes reducing resource usage, and reducing the waste associated with that resource usage. Iron and metal scrap can be recycled back as specified by the CPR production processes, reducing the need for virgin iron ore and lowering carbon emissions associated with iron- and metal making. These durability and flexibility enable construction designs to modify and adapt existing buildings and reuse the metal after its initial use. Metals’ inherent ability to be dismantled, through simple product designs, makes the deconstruction and reuse of them in the construction industry a potentially extremely efficient process. With coordination on product standardization, consistent and fully adopted data protocols and construction techniques, iron and metal reuse could become a key driver for improved sustainable performance within the construction industry and cicrcular economies. Moreover, the use of renewable energy for production is an emerging trend aimed at reducing the carbon footprint of the CPR dependent industry.
New technologies require specialized knowledge and skills. Training programs can help CPR dependent industry workers understand the principles behind renewable energy integration. The transition to green CPR processes with the implementation of renewable energy technologies represents a significant shift for the CPR dependent industry. New blended learning training programs developing and testing new learning materials will help employees adapt to these changes by providing them with the knowledge, skills and competences needed to work with new CPR production processes. Indeed, education is vital for societal progress. Without it, advancement would be limited.
The project will develop and test new learning materials, create innovative teaching methods and adequate new work-based assessment tools that support the New European Bauhaus initiative's values consisting off: sustainability, inclusiveness, and aesthetics. These will help speed up the shift to eco-friendly practices within CPR dependent manufactured constructions and their inspection and quality control processes, aligning with the European Green Deal's goals. This effort will help driving the innovation and technology adoption for a more inclusive and sustainable European economy.
Summary
HighFive aims to bring together and unite skills and expertise of educators, trainers, and professionals from representative public organizations and companies that apply the Construction Product Regulative (CPR), to establish mutual learning and support evidence-based policy across Europe. These networks will focus on developing skills ecosystems that improve knowledge, skills and competences related to Quality Control (QC) and inspection of CPR products.
In response to the growing popularity of digital learning, particularly following the pandemic, the project focuses on developing, testing and implementing experimental digital training for teachers/lecturers and students at EQF levels 3-6. This initiative will establish an open, innovative and scalable platform fostering international cooperation and collaboration, supporting policy experimentation, to enhance excellence in adult training (AT) through a bottom-up driven excellence identifying and developing new, innovative training approaches that will become mainstreamed.
The project will develop innovative curricula, teaching guidelines, and e-learning resources to promote a shift towards greening and sustainability in the CPR industry. This will have noteworthy long-lasting effects on product quality and safety of new, innovative products and CPR manufacturing structures, while reducing QC and inspection costs.
Collaborative public-private partnerships will be formed to develop work-based training programs, standardize and advocate for a new European harmonized CPR AT ecosystem applying Competence Units (CUs), and exchange of knowledge and skills between educators, industry specialists and policy makers. Emphasis will be placed on involving industry in real-world settings to test and deploy new QC products, and technologies that will significantly save manufacturing costs.
Standardization of methods will be developed/tested/deployed, ensuring accessibility and quality of AT services on a pic and mix basis.
Workplan
- Establish well-structured regional CPR construction industry driven workshop forum events
- Develop Industrial business – education partnership
- Framework for successful governance and funding leading to sustainable adult training practices
- Providing new micro-courses applying Competence Units and Micro-Credentials for the green transition
- Impact through dissemination and exploitation