Development of an European Qualifications Framework in the field of timber construction Erasmus Project

Project Title

Development of an European Qualifications Framework in the field of timber construction

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 vocational education and training

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2019

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Overcoming skills mismatches (basic/transversal); Recognition, transparency, certification; International cooperation, international relations, development cooperation

Project Summary

The development of the vocational training situation in individual countries may be hampered by the lack of sector-specific competence scales across Europe, which also point to prospects for further development. The lack of orientation towards competences means that the expansion of occupation-specific knowledge, skills and abilities can only be tackled with great effort and does not take place in a targeted manner. This affects the entire timber construction sector, the basis of which essentially depends on well-trained personnel. What applies to the vocational training situation of an entire country also applies to individuals in this country who have turned to training as carpenters as a career perspective. Their prospects in terms of competence development depend to a large extent on the basic conditions of the education system and the competence profiles imparted in the respective country. An overview of these profiles should therefore be available both to the companies and to the personnel employed in them for the future entrepreneurial or personal development of competences and qualifications.

The aim of the project is to develop a structure in which the vocational qualifications encountered in European timber construction can be presented in a comprehensible manner. The competence framework to be developed for this purpose should link the degrees/certificates/diplomas with the underlying competences of a person with reference to the European Qualifications Framework EQF and make them visible and communicable irrespective of the country. To this end, the aim is to examine and compare existing degrees and certificates of knowledge and skills throughout Europe and to define them in validated form as competence levels.

The project management for the implementation of the project is carried out by Timber Construction Europe and is supported by a consortium of the following project partners: Gemeinnütiges Berufsförderungswerk GmbH (Biberach, DE), Centre de Compétences Parachèvement (LU), Association Ouvriere de Compagnons du Devoir du Tour de France (Paris, FR), Fachhochschule Salzburg GmbH (AT), Alppisalvos Oy (FI). These are further complemented by the associated partners Holzbau Schweiz and Berner Fachhochschule Architektur, Holz und Bau ((Biehl, CH) as well as numerous silent partners from the European vocational training network. The partners make a substantial contribution to the success of the project objective in a balanced relationship of economic policy and technical expertise as well as proven technical expertise in vocational education and training.

The project envisages the following development steps: Review of the EQF and various selected national qualification frameworks as reference frameworks and allocation instances for the competence framework to be drawn up, increasing understanding of the education systems available throughout Europe and their differences as a basis for the development of skills and qualifications, compilation of the learning objectives laid down in individual curricula for trainees and competences and qualifications attainable within the framework of regular further and continuing training.
The work will first be carried out on a country-by-country basis, then in mixed-country working groups and thus in transnational cooperation in order to get to know the facets of country-specific competences and qualifications in their diversity. In a series of editorial conferences of the participating project partners, the findings collected and validated throughout Europe will be transformed into a European Qualification Framework for Timber Construction (EQF-Timber), which will be set up in eight stages analogous to the EQF.

Vocational training centres are given a new basis for designing the range of vocational development programmes on offer. At the company level, the status and development potential of the qualifications of both the company’s own workforce and applicants can be assessed much better. Employees themselves have an instrument which, in conjunction with a correspondingly expanded range of training programmes, enables them to make even better use of their personal professional development potential. The EQF timer makes a fundamental contribution to reliably demonstrating individual competences, improving horizontal and vertical vocational development potential and contributing to reducing youth unemployment and the shortage of skilled labour in the overall economic context.

The results of the EQF Timber will be available for download on the Internet platform developed within the framework of the project. Further publications on European portals, including dissemination as open educational material (OER), are intended to provide a targeted stimulus for Europe-wide use.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 240210 Eur

Project Coordinator

Timber Construction Europe & Country: LU

Project Partners

• Alppisalvos Oy
• Association Ouvrière des Compagnons du Devoir du Tour de France
• Gemeinnuetziges Berufsfoerderungswerk GmbH
• Fachhochschule Salzburg GmbH
• Centre de Compétences Parachèvement
• Jokkmokks Log Ab