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Co-Learning Lab
Published on 18 May 2020
Germany
Oberfranken
This is the good practice's implementation level. It can be national, regional or local.
About this good practice
The need for employees, who have IT skills and are interested in technology and innovation is great in the Upper Franconia region. The CO-LEARNING LAB intendeds to give medium-sized companies in the region a jump-start for their digital transformation. By upskilling employees with regards to digital processes and digital solutions medium-sized companies can gain more efficiency and competitiveness. Through the Co-Learning Lab, companies can enter the world of digitalisation and the issues in the field of Industry 4.0 in a playful and researching manner. Thereby they can experience and understand technologies and transfer them into ideas and rapidly generated physical prototypes.
In preparation for the workshops a learning platform teaches the participants basic concepts with regards to the methods and tools of digitalisation.
In 2017 Hof University and IZK presented the idea to interested companies in the Kronach region since the funding was specifically aimed at that region.
To prepare the workshops, the organisers (Hof University of Applied Sciences & Kronach Innovation Centre) collected the questions posed by the companies in order to answer them in corresponding thematic blocks during the workshop.
Based on the principle of “blended learning” the following presence-workshop provided opportunities for further training, tinkering and developing concepts.
Methods used during workshop: Information visualization, prototyping, robotics, web technologies, 3D printing.
In preparation for the workshops a learning platform teaches the participants basic concepts with regards to the methods and tools of digitalisation.
In 2017 Hof University and IZK presented the idea to interested companies in the Kronach region since the funding was specifically aimed at that region.
To prepare the workshops, the organisers (Hof University of Applied Sciences & Kronach Innovation Centre) collected the questions posed by the companies in order to answer them in corresponding thematic blocks during the workshop.
Based on the principle of “blended learning” the following presence-workshop provided opportunities for further training, tinkering and developing concepts.
Methods used during workshop: Information visualization, prototyping, robotics, web technologies, 3D printing.
Expert opinion
The co-learning lab is an initiative to promote the adoption of industry 4.0 technologies for SMEs. It offers employees in the industrial sector the opportunity to learn about digital industrial technologies and thus for the industrial sector to gain in competitiveness. The co-learning lab first performs a diagnostic to assess the SMEs’ level of digital transformation, workshops are then devised to respond to digital bottlenecks in regional industrial companies. Workshops are using agile prototype design thinking and experiment with new digital tools and methodologies such as data visualisation, virtual reality, 3D printing, and robotics.
Some insights from the good practice:
-The good practice emphasises that workshops are a good medium to address digital bottlenecks in industrial companies. Moreover, the co-learning lab illustrates the importance to combine in workshops agile design thinking methodologies with access to advanced digital industrial technologies. As a result, soft and hard skills must be addressed at the same time to upskill employees.
Some insights from the good practice:
-The good practice emphasises that workshops are a good medium to address digital bottlenecks in industrial companies. Moreover, the co-learning lab illustrates the importance to combine in workshops agile design thinking methodologies with access to advanced digital industrial technologies. As a result, soft and hard skills must be addressed at the same time to upskill employees.
Works at
Interreg Europe Policy Learning Platform
Resources needed
Laboratory equipment: 3D-Printers, LittleBits Kits, Blockly Software App-Development, Lego-Sets, Computers, 3D/CAD Software.
The project was 50% funded by the research centre "Man Machine Interface" and 50% by the project partners from the industry.
The project was 50% funded by the research centre "Man Machine Interface" and 50% by the project partners from the industry.
Evidence of success
Four important Companies in the Kronach-Region in Upper Franconia took part in the practice: Hans Weber Maschinenfabrik, Dr. Schneider Unternehmensgruppe, WOCO Kronacher Kunststoffwerke, Paul Rauschert Steinbach am Wald.
The evaluation of the Co-Learning Lab by the participants showed, that they would recommend this practice to others. The motivation was so high, that participants would have liked to work even more on the different subjects.
The evaluation of the Co-Learning Lab by the participants showed, that they would recommend this practice to others. The motivation was so high, that participants would have liked to work even more on the different subjects.
Potential for learning or transfer
Testing and approaching the right access to Industry 4.0 is often time and cost intensive. Many companies therefore have the problem that it is often financially difficult to keep up with the rapid digitisation in their industry. The workshops are designed to help them to solve problems creatively in a very short amount of time. This should make it easier for small and medium-sized enterprises to recognise the opportunities and risks of digitisation projects at an early stage, even before the implementation goes into operation. For the success of such a practice it is very important, that results can be achieved in a short time and are visible and understandable to the participant.
The tools used are characterised by easy learnability and accessibility through Open Source.
The advantage of this project is that it is mobile. This means that learning events such as these can be arranged more flexibly in terms of space, location and subject matter.
The tools used are characterised by easy learnability and accessibility through Open Source.
The advantage of this project is that it is mobile. This means that learning events such as these can be arranged more flexibly in terms of space, location and subject matter.
Further information
Website
Good practice owner
You can contact the good practice owner below for more detailed information.
Organisation
Hof University
Germany
Oberfranken
Contact
Head of Research Marketing