Anticipating skills needs and promoting cooperation between industry and vocational education and training are two major objectives of the recent Skills Agenda for Europe (New Skills Agenda for Europe: http://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?catId=1223).

 

In Portugal, Spain and Romania, education and vocational training systems offer qualifications in the area of clothing that are insufficient or disproportionate to the current needs of companies: rapid responsiveness, quality in its products, environmentally friendly solutions, digital skills, research, development and innovation, and work-based learning methodologies for employees. In order to meet these challenges, textile and clothing companies need human resources with new qualifications and skills (technical and transversal).

 

The CosTUmE Project – Clothing Technician Profile Update via Education, is the result of the needs to address the challenges described above and to act on the urgent need of the textile and clothing sectors regarding its lack of qualifications in the skills required in the market in which it operates.

 

In line with the new Skills Agenda for Europe, the project aims to: 

• Identify needs, trends and patterns of skills and jobs for the textile and clothing sectors;
• Improve the attractiveness, quality and relevance of training in the area of clothing;
• Create and update the profile and technical skills of Garment Technicians in order to make it more visible and comparable, facilitating mobility within the EU for people with this qualification;
• Increase the attractiveness and acquisition of talent in the textile and clothing sectors, while contributing to increasing the employability of young people;
• Produce information in order to facilitate better career decisions in the EU and help people find better and more qualified jobs, thus increasing their chance of having better opportunities in life;
• Strengthen networking and partnerships and ensure coherence in vocational education and training policies between the different actors of the respective sectors both at European and at regional and national levels, during and after the implementation of the project.

 

 

Starting on 1 October 2018, the project will have a total duration of 24 months and, during this period, it aims to directly involve 156 companies in the sector (entrepreneurs, managers, specialists, technicians, in-house trainers), 141 vocational education and training centres (managers, trainers, tutors, consultants), 15 associations from the sector (managers, trainers, technicians) and 6 national regulatory authorities for vocational education and training (managers, technicians, working groups in this sector).

 

Through a series of initiatives such as, a roadmap of qualification needs and work-based good practices for the textile and clothing sector, the creation or updating of the Manufacturing Technician Profile/Qualification, the ECVET Matrix, a tutorial guide for mobility, the Training Pack for trainers on the Manufacturing Technician Profile/Qualification, the CosTUmE project aims to contribute to: 

• Reducing the skills mismatch between skill supply and labour market needs in the clothing and textile sector;
• Increasing young people's interest in technical qualifications and promoting a positive context for the clothing and textile sector;
• Increasing the interest of workers in the clothing and textile sector in updating/expanding their qualifications;
• Intensifying awareness in companies of the need to promote internal mechanisms that support/motivate workers to update/expand their qualifications;
• Promoting European exchanges as a way for young people and the unemployed to increase their employability opportunities;
• Validating and recognising the Vocational Qualification and Manufacturing Technician Profile by at least one national regulatory authority for vocational education and training. 

The ERASMUS+ CosTUmE Project is represented by Portuguese, Spanish and Romanian partners, and the Portuguese entities involved are ATP, MODATEX and INOVA+. This project is coordinated by CITEVE.

 

CosTUmE is a European project funded by the ERASMUS+ Programme, with a duration of 24 meses, from October 2018 to November 2020. The results of the project can be found at http://clothingtechnician.eu/ / Facebook / LinkedIn .

 For further information please contact us by email international.mx@modatex.pt.