Training for Energy Efficient Operations Erasmus Project

Project Title

Training for Energy Efficient Operations

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for higher education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2015

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses; Enterprise, industry and SMEs (incl. entrepreneurship); Energy and resources

Project Summary

Enabling sustainability and energy efficient operations (EEO) is a target priority for policy-makers as 23% of CO2 emissions globally is attributed to business operations. However, SMEs and their employees lack the knowledge to implement such practices and achieve EEO due to lack of proper market oriented curricula offered by higher education institutions (HEI) that will enable the emergence of graduates suitable to tackle EEO concepts. Still, scientific/academic knowledge by HEI can provide solutions for this matter. Alternatively, the industry provides the realistic setting where scientific knowledge can be applied. However, to be effective, Industry-Academia collaborations should be based on mutual trust, commitment and knowledge exchange/sharing. One way of achieving this ‘open communication’ between academics and the industry, is through co-creation which is the cornerstone of open innovation practices in today’s industry. For example, through co-creation, academia can gain useful input from industry, that will eventually lead to more market oriented curriculum and better prepared graduates capable to implement EEO. Hence, open innovation and co-creation between academia and industry/SMEs will highly increase HEI’s capacity of producing graduates capable of being next generation leaders in EEO.

To this end, the proposed project: Training for Energy Efficient Operations (TrainERGY) responded to the identified need by aiming to develop an innovative, evidence-based transnational teaching framework that would markedly improve the knowledge and skills of HEIs to produce more marked oriented EEO curricula, reducing the barriers in this field.

The specific objectives of TrainERGY were to:
1. Establish transnational open collaboration between HEIs and SMEs across EU in order to address existing training needs in EEO.
2. Co-create EEO curricula with input from the industry/SMEs.
3. Develop, implement and validate an innovative, evidence-based virtual learning environment (VLE) based on an already developed energy efficiency training tool where feedback from multiple stakeholders (academics, students, industry) will be evaluated and incorporated into the EEO curriculum in an open innovation and co-creation manner.
4. Define an open-innovation and co-creation framework that will enable a proper development of EEO curricula.

The project started within a consortium of 8 partners, however after withdrawal of one of the organisations, it comprised 7 partners (3 universities, 1 academic research centre, 2 SMEs and 1 SME association) from different sectors and countries (Poland, UK, Greece and Italy).

There were 4 intellectual outputs realised within the project:
1. IO1 “Energy Efficient Operations Training Needs Specialization”
2. IO2 “Energy Efficient Operations Curriculum Development”
3. IO3 “Energy Efficient Operations Virtual Learning Environment through Open Innovation and Co-creation”
4. IO4 “Transnational Knowledge Transfer Partnerships for Energy Efficient Operations Curriculum Co-Creation and Peer-Training”

The results and impact of the project on the participants and participating organisations included:
1. Development of questionnaire and conducting a survey among enterprises, resulting in the training needs analysis and its specialization.
2. Preparation of Skill matrix development methodology.
3. Development of Skill matrix, including initial version of national skill matrixes; feedback on piloted skill matrixes and updated national skill matrixes.
4. Elaboration of energy efficient operations curriculum development framework
5. Development of 3 master level EEO curriculum (including course descriptions following the ECTS requirements) with additional materials, such as:
a. 3 sets of lecture and exercises materials, self-study references, test questions and answers,
b. 14 case studies,
c. 19 good practices,
d. templates to be used during the courses.
6. Elaboration of energy efficient operations curriculum development framework
7. Development of 3 master level EEO curriculum (including course descriptions following the ECTS requirements) with additional materials, such as:
a. 3 sets of lecture and exercises materials, self-study references, test questions and answers,
b. 14 case studies,
c. 19 good practices,
d. templates to be used during the courses.
8. Development of the VLE comprising the analysis tool and didactical material developed within IO2 and making it accessible for the users under: https://www.trainergy-project.eu/language/en/virtual-learning-environment
9. Development of open innovation & co-creation framework.
10. Development of the training scheme – an exemplification of the open innovation & co-creation framework implementation

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 367661 Eur

Project Coordinator

UNIWERSYTET LODZKI & Country: PL

Project Partners

• KENTRO EREVNON NOTIOANATOLIKIS EVROPIS ASTIKI MI KERDOSKOPIKI ETAIREIA
• Doncaster Chamber of Commerce and Enterprise
• N. LAKASAS – P.ARVANITIDIS SA
• THE UNIVERSITY OF SHEFFIELD
• UNIVERSITA DEGLI STUDI DI NAPOLI FEDERICO II
• FALP S.R.L.
• FUNDACJA ROZWOJU PRZEDSIEBIORCZOSCI