As with many other industries, the composite manufacturing sector companies suffer from the lack of qualified personnel and the fluctuation of the workforce. To cope with that issue, many companies are providing in-house training for employees. They are investing sufficient resources in raising the qualification of their companies' managerial and production staff.

The CompoWIN project, funded by the European Union within the Erasmus+ program and uniting companies and training providers from five European countries, is addressing these challenges. It is aimed to help maintain and increase the competitiveness of EU manual labour by supporting the industry with training in countries where composite manufacturing is already well developed (Slovenia, Estonia and Germany) and introducing these results in countries where it is not (Bulgaria and Croatia), laying the foundation for future expansion.

Before CompoWIN and CompoHUB, entry and progress in the composite industry were difficult and took a long time. With CompoWIN, it will be faster, better structured and with better monitoring of the progress. The project delivers a holistic and ready-to-use training system for future composite fabricators. CompoWIN developed a Guidance System for Workers entering the composite industry, structuring and monitoring the progress of their skills development, and going along with already previously existing and hereby updated e-courses developed in the frame of the CompoHub project (www.compohub.eu). The vision of the project consortium is to integrate the CompoHUB one day as a module into the curricula of technical schools in regions which are aiming to specialise their local economies in the field of composite manufacutring.

The project produced several important outputs in support of companies and training providers in the composite field:

1. Composite Industry - Competence and Skills Framework Comparative Report - This comprehensive publication provides more detailed background information on the current state of development of the composite industry in participating countries and existing challenges that the sector is facing (i.e. lack of qualified personnel, limited R&D, lack of VET programmes, etc.).
2. Catalogue of opportunities and barriers for employment (COBE) provides an overview of the most common barriers to employment in the composite industry based on the feedback provided by SMEs. Furthermore, the Catalogue identifies the potential to modify training or educational process to minimise and overcome the barriers to employment in the composite industry.
3. Potential Technologies Focus Catalogue (PTFC) - the PTFC is primarily intended for educational institutions, which can offer theoretical and practical learning content in the field of the composite industry. The PTFC can support both formal and non-formal education offerings on the market. The PTFC is also intended for companies that are (re)focusing on composite production and also for companies with a long tradition of operating in the composite industry.
4. Training Programme and Content  - Guidance System for Workers entering the composite industry - It offers a structured approach for planning and monitoring the progress of composite workers' skills development. Thus the process is faster, better structured and with better monitoring of the progress. The system was designed and tested by AFormX, and it was designed to go along with already previously existing and updated e-courses developed in the frame of the CompoHub project (www.compohub.eu).
5. System for rapid adoption of a composite course - Step-by-Step Guide for Organising Training Sessions and Courses in Composites - The aim of the Guide is to enable companies, training providers and vocational schools to adopt the CompoWIN system for their own environment in order to skill or reskill workers for the composite industry. The Guide includes a list of resources needed to give the courses, organisational guidelines, trainer preparation materials and tests. The Step-by-Step Guide delivers the methodology, tools and guidance necessary for any organisation planning to rapidly adopt and start providing training for the composite industry. Its purpose is to be a plug-and-play package of processes and tools that the management of a training organisation or an industry entity needs to begin training composite manufacturing without any delay. In the three scenarios outlined in the Guide, the process is described for the three target groups (companies, training providers, and vocational schools).

All these items and content materials are available for free download on the website and training platform of the project: http://www.compohub.eu