The Industrial Union of Metalworkers (IG Metall), the employers’ association Gesamtmetall, the German Engineering Federation (VDMA), and the German Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers’ Association (ZVEI) aim to specifically incorporate new qualification requirements of the digital workplace into continuing vocational education and training and set new standards. In doing so, they are responding to the challenges posed by structural change in the metal and electrical industries.
As early as 2018, as part of the modernization of vocational training in industrial metal and electrical trades, relevant competencies for seven key areas of digitalization and Industry 4.0 technologies were defined in the form of so-called supplementary qualifications. These were then incorporated into the federal training regulations as uniform national qualification standards. The relevant areas included, above all, system integration, digital networking, additive manufacturing, process integration, programming, and IT security.
These standards are now to be increasingly utilized for on-the-job training of employees. According to the social partners, this creates an attractive opportunity to promote and further develop the professional competence of skilled workers while linking vocational learning to current workplace requirements.
This opportunity is important and valuable for companies in the metal and electrical industries. The development of digital skills is also playing an increasingly significant role. Many companies are already intensively driving structural change in this regard—on the one hand, with new products, value chains, and business models, and on the other, through the targeted development and expansion of their employees’ necessary expertise.
With the new continuing education standards, companies at various stages of the digitalization process can build their employees’ skills for the digital transformation in a way that meets their specific needs.
The new continuing education standards cover the following areas:
· Digital networking
· Programming
· IT security
· Additive manufacturing
· Process integration
· System integration
· IT-Supported Plant Modification
IG Metall, Gesamtmetall, VDMA, and ZVEI provide extensive information and examples regarding the new continuing education standards. The current brochure is attached.
Press Contacts:
Gesamtmetall: Iris Grundmann, Phone 030 55 150 218; Email: grundmann@gesamtmetall.de
IG Metall: Alina Heisig, Phone 069 6693 2646, Email: alina.sophia.heisig@igmetall.de
VDMA: Dr. Jörg Friedrich, Phone 069 6603-1935, Email: joerg.friedrich@vdma.org
ZVEI: Sabrina Pfeifer, Phone: 069 6302 309, Email: sabrina.pfeifer@zvei.org
Brochure “Skills Training FOR DIGITALIZATION AND INDUSTRY 4.0”
