Over the past months, the DHBW team has been actively advancing the project as leader of Work Package 2 (WP2), providing scientific coordination and methodological support across the consortium. At the core of this role lies the task of ensuring coherence between the project’s different activities while supporting partners in aligning their outputs with a shared conceptual and research-based framework.
This collaborative effort has been strengthened through key consortium meetings, including the technical meeting in Besançon and the transnational project meeting in Valencia. These gatherings have provided an important platform for exchanging perspectives, reviewing progress, and refining the project’s strategic direction. By bringing together partners from different educational and institutional contexts, the consortium continues to build a shared understanding of how Future Skills can be integrated into higher vocational education and training across Europe.
TRIComp: An Evidence-Based Framework for Future Skills
A central milestone of the project has been the completion of the first empirical study on Future Skills specifically focusing on mid-level technicians. Conducted across the partner network, the study explored which competencies are increasingly required for technicians operating in digitalised and innovation-driven industrial environments.
The findings of this research have led to the development of the TRIComp Future Skills Model, a competency framework that identifies the key capabilities mid-level technical professionals need in order to actively contribute to research, development, and innovation processes within companies.
The results of this research provide the scientific foundation for the project’s subsequent activities. The full report can be accessed here.
From Competence Model to Curriculum Innovation
Building on the TRIComp framework, the consortium is now moving towards the next strategic step: translating the identified competencies into a targeted curriculum for mid-level technicians. The goal is to develop training modules and learning pathways that embed Future Skills directly into higher vocational education programmes, enabling technicians to take on more active roles in innovation processes.
At the same time, the DHBW team continues to strengthen the project’s scientific visibility, preparing contributions to international conferences and academic platforms to position the project within the broader European debate on skills, innovation, and education.
n this way, the project is not only developing new educational tools, but also contributing to a shared European approach to equipping the next generation of technical professionals with the skills needed to drive innovation and transformation.