Thailand’s galvanic industry does not have enough qualified workers. This has been revealed by the collaboration between Fraunhofer IPA and the Metallurgy and Materials Science Research Institute (MMRI) at Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok. Project SCHOOLPLATE aims to alleviate this shortage.
Whether it be the chrome trim on a car, the galvanized screws in a basement d-i-y work room, the nickel-plated components of the hard drive in a laptop, galvanic technology is part and parcel of our everyday lives. Businesses in this industry often constitute an indispensable component of international supply chains. Fraunhofer IPA and the MMRI are together advancing research and development in the galvanic technology segment that will better reflect its global importance in the future.
To this end, the participating scientists, along with the newly founded industry association Thailand Electroplating Professional Network (TEPNET), carried out a survey and various workshops in order to sound out the problems within the industry. This involved discussing vocational education/training. In Thailand, it was found that there was a lack of technical knowledge in the workforce and that training facilities were too few and poorly equipped.
In Thailand, Technical and Vocational Colleges are a key part of the education system. In order to graduate from school, students may choose a purely academic path, dual training or various short training programs but, as Dominique-Navina Pantke from the galvanic technology department at Fraunhofer IPA explains: “Cooperations with businesses from the galvanic industry for dual training are not as established as in Germany, for example.” That would explain the lack of qualified workers, at least at first glance. Additionally, university degrees are generally held in higher esteem than vocational training in Thailand and as a result, many young people do not even consider this path.
In order to alleviate this lack of qualified workers, the scientists at Fraunhofer IPA have launched the Vocational Education and Qualification Measures for Galvanic Technology in Thailand SCHOOLPLATE project. Under the aegis of the Stuttgart-based research institute, the team, which consists of colleagues from the MMRI and the BIBB in Bonn, is working on a future-proof concept.
The SCHOOLPLATE project is split into several phases. The aim of the current exploratory phase is to first identify how many businesses are in need of how many workers, in which regions these businesses are located and what level of knowledge these employees must bring to the business or acquire when they start there. Because of the current travel restrictions, this must take place mainly through online questionnaires. The team is intending to confirm the results through in-person visits at a later date.In phase 2, the researchers then aim to develop and test concrete possibilities for a training structure.For more information on the SCHOOLPLATE project, please visit: www.ecoplate.fraunhofer.de/
Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation IPA