Partners

Associated Partners

VSB - Technical University of Ostrava (VSB-TUO)

VSB-TUO is a public institution of higher education providing tertiary education in more than one hundred accredited educational programmes in engineering, IT, technology, economics and business-related branches. A wide range of high quality, Czech and English programmes are offered within 7 Faculties and 2 all-University Programmes. Currently, around 15,000 students are enrolled at the university. Each year the university welcomes around 1400 international students. Research and Development are integral to the activities at VSB-TUO. The focus on applied research and close cooperation with industry forms the teaching activities at the University, ensuring relevance in a dynamic international scientific environment. There are 6 areas of excellence where the University currently excels and have the potential to excel in the future:

  • Raw materials, energy and environmental science
  • Computational sciences and information technologies
  • New materials, structures and technologies
  • Modern engineering
  • Safety technologies
  • Modelling of economic and financial processes

VSB-TUO is beside the umbrella associations in the Automotive sector, such as ACEA, CLEPA, ETRMA, CECRA, one of the association’s members and is leading the working group focused on Skills Intelligence. VSB-TUO besides further projects mentioned work in automotive skills agenda, had or is coordinating ERASMUS+ KA2 projects focused to specific training courses, such as Automotive Quality Universities (AQU, http://www.automotive-quality-universities.eu/), which provides integration of Functional Safety, Automotive SPICE and Six Sigma knowledge (AQUA) into university courses; ECEPE project, which prepares training for e-powertrain engineers, or CYBERENG (https://www.project-cybereng.eu/), which prepares training course for cybersecurity engineers and managers in the Automotive Sector. VSB-TUO was a partner at numerous ERASMUS+ KA2 projects, however we would like to highlight ELIC project (http://elic.fh-joanneum.at/), which created MOOC course about automotive engineering for teachers at secondary schools to transfer the skills to pupils. The project ELIC received Erasmus+ Award 2020/Education in Austria.

More information at: https://www.vsb.cz/cs/

SCOVECO

SCOVECO was founded in 2011 and is an experienced innovative company that helps to transfer the knowledge and know-how directly to the people in industry and build innovative solutions. After 10 years of experiences, the company has established processes, elaborated many successful projects and established strong network. COVID-19 did not have major impact to SCOVECO, as the company is fully operational also on online basis and provides its customers online and innovate approaches for training and consultation services. SCOVECO’s main focus is on consultation, training and coaching of Automotive companies and also support that work with development of IT solutions and own tools. The collaboration with automotive companies comprises large enterprises, such as TIER 1, but also small and medium size companies included in automotive value-chain. SCOVECO is supporting sustainability approach in companies by offering assessment, consultation and implementation in the area of Product Lifecycle Management and Lifecycle Assessment. SCOVECO offers its services for all phases of the product lifecycle, starting with gathering Customer Requirement which lead to Hardware Requirement, collaboration with suppliers, measurement and visualisation of the whole lifecycle, maintaining and extending the PLM software and gathering all the necessary information along the way to achieve the most comprehensive LCA output. SCOVECO is actively developing its own tools for gathering needed inputs, measurement and visualization of LCA outputs and necessary PLM tools implementation and extensions to support product lifecycle and product innovation including environmental aspects, new materials, production and distribution improvements.

More information at: https://www.scoveco.cz/en/

Newton University (NU)

NU is a top-ranking private university, providing a modern higher education in Management, Psychology and Economics. With its pioneering approach to the study of management. Newton University is one step ahead of other universities and provides its students with an advantage over their entrepreneurial peers. Newton University offers an attractive study program of Bachelor´s Degree of Global Business and Management. This comprehensive study program in the Czech Republic focuses on preparation for managerial positions and mastering the skills and competences necessary for the start-up of one´s own business. Newton University not only provides its students with a valuable diploma, but also a Certificate of Completed Managerial Trainings to improve their curriculum vitae and employability. Newton University has about 50 internal staff and other 60 external experts that are working on different positions, mostly as lectures and trainers. Although the main field of the college is global business and management, university has also a good base in the field of marketing and digitalization. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, college was able to transform the education into digital form very quickly and in an effective way. Newton University has a very good technical equipment for streaming classes, recording lectures, and preparation of the digital materials. Newton University also has NEWTON TV video channel, tv shows are produced internally in own professional television studio.

More information at: https://www.newton.university/

Silesian University of Technology (SUT)

SUT established in 1945, is the oldest technical university in Upper Silesia, one of the largest in Poland and only one in Silesia to be included in the prestigious group of 10 Polish universities, winners of the “Excellence Initiative-Research University” competition organised by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education. The SUT has 3 218 employees. There are 1668 academic staff and 1550 non-academic staff (over 130 titular professors, over 470 doctors of science, over 870 PhDs). The SUT has 13 faculties and 2 institutes. It currently offers more than 50 study programmes and about 200 specialisations, including the whole spectrum of engineering studies. Aside from technical programmes, candidates may also study business analytics, interior design, applied linguistics, mathematics, pre-school and early childhood pedagogy, sociology, management and project management. Nine faculties, the Institute of Physics and the Institute of Education and Communication Research are located in Gliwice, two faculties operate in Katowice and two in Zabrze, thanks to which the Silesian University of Technology covers a significant area of the Silesian Voivodship with its scientific and didactic influence. Currently, SUT educates over 18,000 students. The University offers first-cycle studies (engineering and bachelor’s degree), second-cycle studies – master’s degree, education at doctoral school called “Joint Doctoral School” and postgraduate studies. Studies are conducted in full-time and part-time mode. Candidates have also the opportunity to access education in one of the nearly 30 study programmes in English. The SUT defined 6 Priority Research Areas among them future and smart mobility is included.

More information about Silesian University of Technology (SUT) at: https://www.polsl.pl/uczelnia/en/about-us/

Spin360, SRL

Spin 360 is an advanced and innovative consulting company founded in 2009. Its overall mission is to support innovation and development strategies for enterprises and whole industrial sectors in the fields of employment, training, sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility, EcoDesign of processes and products and supply chain management. 

The pillars of the business models we propose are Sustainability, Progress, Innovation and Network. We are focused on:

1) Promotion of Sustainable Business Models

The sustainability pillar of the company aims at supporting companies and institutions in the implementation of innovative business models, capable of producing profit and, at the same time, improving their environmental and social sustainability, as well as contributing to professional growth and improving people’s working conditions. Our main clients belong to raw materials suppliers, manufactures, brands and industrial associations of the fashion industry. Spin360 has also developed strong expertise in Life Cycle Assessment using innovative methodologies: we develop detailed analysis of individual supply chains and production processes, and represent results through an advanced Business Intelligence approach, supporting our customers in the formulation of improvement measures through “What If” analysis and simulation. 

2) Development of Skills Strategies and Social Dialogue 

Spin360 has also developed strong expertise in projects for the strategic improvement of people skills (in particular young people) and design of innovative employment models in response to new market demands, by working alongside industrial associations, trade unions, schools, universities, national public authorities and the European Commission. 

Spin360 has overseen and completed over 100 projects in a number of sectors (Automotive, Textile, Clothing, Leather, Footwear, Luxury, Wood and Furnishing, Retail) and has built strong collaboration across a number of EU projects dedicated to Environmental Sustainability, Life Cycle Assessment, Waste Management, Employment, Skills development, Corporate Social Responsibility.

More information can be found at: www.spin360.biz

University of Zilina (UNIZA)

UNIZA is one of the most significant educational institutions in the Central European region. It has a long tradition going back to 1953, with focus on technical and transport studies. At present, there are about 8,000 students being educated in 184 accredited fields of study in all forms and degrees – bachelor, master, doctoral. University is divided into 7 faculties (Faculty of Operation and Economics of Transport and Communication, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Electrical Engineering and IT, Faculty of Management Science and Informatics, Faculty of Humanities, Faculty of Security Engineering ) and 2 research centres (University Science Park and University Research Centre), mostly concerned with transportation research and information and communication systems and education. 

Tradition and long years’ experience are meeting here with modern infrastructure and equipment to provide appropriate conditions for the activities planned within the project. UNIZA facilities have a yearly scientific and research capacity of almost million hours. Within this capacity, over 100 APVV and VEGA (national) projects, 20 projects from EU Structural funds, around 25 applied research projects and 15 projects of international science and technology cooperation are implemented each year. UNIZA cooperates with foreign universities and research organizations not just from Europe but also from America (USA, Mexico) and Asia (Korea, Japan, China, Taiwan). The cooperation is based on bilateral agreements, memorandums, or on specific programs (ERASMUS+, CEEPUS, Action Austria-Slovakia, etc.). The University has signed bilateral cooperation agreements with more than 150 foreign partners and it belongs to the most successful universities within the Erasmus+ Program in Slovakia.

More information at: https://uniza.sk/

European Automobile Manufacturer’s Association (ACEA)

The project has support of an associated partner – the European Automobile Manufacturer’s Association (ACEA). ACEA represents the common interests of European vehicle manufacturers covering almost all OEMs across the European Union (circa 99% of the production in the EU). Furthermore, ACEA represents the interests of the automotive industry across European institutions and is the key stakeholder in all the areas related to the automotive industry – industrial policy, climate and energy policies and transport policy. ACEA coordinates inputs and perspectives of the automotive sector where, due to the subsidiarity principle, the key competences are in the hands of the member states – such as education, social policy etc. Furthermore, ACEA serves as one of the essential partners to the European Commission when preparing legislative and non-legislative initiatives in the areas relevant to the industrial policy and automotive sector at all. As partner of this project, ACEA aims to provide regular expert input regarding relevant developments across the automotive industry with regards to understanding potential environmental impacts, while strongly encouraging the embitterment and application of an overall sustainable approach. Moreover, ACEA shall actively involve the project in its relevant activities and promote its work among its members and through its networks. To this day, ACEA has been proudly chairing the Steering Board of the Development and Research on Innovative Vocational Educational Skills (DRIVES, www.project-drives.eu) project that focuses on the EU-wide identification and acknowledgement of skills deemed essential for the development of the automotive sector in the future. In addition to the DRIVES project, ACEA is also the Steering Board Leader and proud partner of the Alliance for Batteries Technology, Training and Skills (ALBATTS, www.project-albatts.eu), whose work is widely considered as major contribution to the green mobility in Europe. ACEA is also convinced of the immense potential this project may bring for the future of the automotive ecosystem and is, therefore, fully committed to be of as much support as possible in order to continue the successful streak of its previous contributions to Erasmus+ funded partnerships. 

More info at: https://www.acea.auto/

Automotive Skills Alliance (ASA)

The project also refers to needs defined by Automotive Skills Alliance (ASA, www.automotive-skills-alliance.eu). ASA is one of the three pilot partnership that were launched under the Pact for Skills action in November 2020. The Pact for Skills as the flagship action of the European Skills Agenda, supports overall EU industrial strategy as well as goals of the green deal and digital transformation. The mission of the ASA is to create an up-/re-skilling framework that would maximise automotive industry competitiveness, job retention and help create new job opportunities across the entire automotive ecosystem, paving the way to an EU-wide skills partnership. The ASA builds upon the work carried out by strategic projects in the skills agenda for the ecosystem, and based on the Blueprint partnership collaborations (DRIVES, ALBATTS). The aLIFEca project will be involving ASA partnership to order gather further inputs and needs to for designing the training course. Moreover, among public dissemination, the project results will be shared and mainstreamed to ASA multi-stakeholder partnership as Pact for Skills in Automotive ecosystem. The aLIFEca training course will be mapped to the EU-wide database of training courses that is being maintained by ASA, this will allow further dissemination and visibility of the course to its target group and will also support long-term sustainability of the aLIFEca project results.