"he Maritime Sector is currently facing a paradox and difficult situation of a current shortage of young seafarers and also medium- to long-term redundancy threats due to the technical developments: whilst maritime businesses cannot find the desired workforce and young people are not attracted to the sector, the unmanned remote or autonomous ship is on the horizon and the roadmaps indicate that the first remote controlled commercial ship could soon hit the water (Rolls Royce white paper “Remote and Autonomous Ships”, 2016). Therefore, whilst currently there is still a high demand for seafarers and overall numbers in the EU are significant (around 254.000 active seafarers and 25,000 to 35,000 students in Maritime Education and Training), their future employment and career perspectives are very uncertain. The “Skills Beyond the Seas"" Project designed two tools that provide seafarers and MET students with a detailed list of their formal and informal skills and suggests onshore occupations where these skills are applicable and needed. The tools provide these users with options and ideas of new career opportunities and highlight transferable skills sets. They also turn this situation into an opportunity for disadvantaged youth to gain social inclusion by entering a sector in need of young workers and offering high level VET training. The partner consortium of the Skills Beyond the Seas project brought together five partners from four EU countries who are closely linked to the seafarers, MET target groups and youth and are experts in qualification and skills analysis. They jointly: a) analysed and identified transferable hard and job-specific skills that are held by five seafarer qualifications, using ECVET principles of knowledge, skill and competences and IMO Model course curricula, b) identified onshore jobs and careers that utilise these transferable skills (from the obvious university lecturer or shipping company office job to more obscure positions like land surveyor, manager, hotel director, etc.), c) developed the SkillsPath Tool that provides the target groups with options of career moves, d) developed the Informal Skills Scanner that identifies and assesses transversal informal skills held by the user in order to widen their personal skills portfolio and support their career opportunities. Through the Skillspath Tool and the Informal Skills Scanner the Skills Beyond the Seas project offers a pathway to employability and job mobility for existing seafarers and MET students throughout the EU28 and these tools facilitate their transition to on-shore careers by harnessing and validating their specific formal, transversal and informal skills in a comprehensive skills profile. At the same time the project tools offer mid- to long-term perspectives to disadvantaged youth and facilitate thereby their entry into the sector. In a wider perspective, the Skills Beyond the Seas Project has developed scalable and transferable Outputs. By incorporating components of several EU tools into its methodology (such as ECVET, Europass and ESCO), the project developed a model that can easily be transferred to other VET sectors in order to support the mobility of workforce across different sectors and create flexible pathways in line with learners' and employees needs and objectives. The project thereby delivers an important contribution to the “New Skills Agenda for Europe”, that aims at “making better use of the skills that are available” as well as fulfilling the requirements of the ET2020 strategic framework."

Project LOGIN proposed and produces the frame and the main tools for a brand new EQF 4 level qualification dedicated to the operators who develop activities of logistics related to manufacturing. For the training and examinations sessions, dedicated to the qualification, it was elaborated specific training and examination systems. The qualification to be obtained is the Logistics Technologist - LOT.LOGIN project reached the following specific objectives: 1. Defining the frame of the new proposed 4 qualification as LOT:a. designing and elaboration of a relevant and harmonized qualification standard (QSLOT), containing the definition of LOT, the required competences for the LOT personnel, conditions to access the qualification process, the system of training (curriculum, workload, learning outcomes), the examination conditions, the main coordinates of the certification process (condition to issue the certificate, data to be present in a certificate, validity)b. the training system based on the QSLOT specifications, meaning here the educational support – information and tools: E-book containing the entire volume of information for training, presentations for teaching, LMS E-Learning platform, c. the examination system based on the taught information, which is relevant to obtain the learning outcomes: database with 140 questions and answers, 10 electronic questionnairesd. finally, for the training providers, who will intend to organize future training sessions for LOT, it was elaborated a booklet containing the main guidelines for such organizing. In that manner it was assured a minimum tool to assure the sustainability of LOGIN: recommendations and conditions to be fulfilled for the future implementation of the qualification process 2. The implementation of the qualification process is able to promote the personal cognitive skills of the persons with low manufacturing skills, and to use them to offer new competences and, subsequently a new qualification to those persons. By this, it is expected to be recorded a lower frustration to the employees, and a lower social difference between the high and low manufacturing skills employees 3. Helping the training and examination processes by the development of modern kit of educational and examination materials which can be used in direct education or in online education (specific digital tools: LMS) 4. Creating of critical mass of expert in training-logistics-digital tools equilibrated positioned at the EU level (geographically and socially and economically - RO,A,ES,HR,P,PL) to put together own expertise in developing of new qualification system dedicated to the personnel who is working in manufacturing logistics. The following activities were implemented: 1. Organizing surveys to gathering relevant information from industry, information that is relevant for the trainees to develop the required competences for a job as LOT 2. Based on the acquired information it was designed and built the QSLOT, each partner participating in each section with own expertise 3. For the training session defined by the QSLOT, it was elaborated the necessary educational materials: information and tools to deliver the information 4. To assess the development of the desired competences, it was designed and built an evaluation system 5. It was organized 4 learning activities dedicated to the trainers (staff of partners) who will train in the future for the qualification as LOT: a. Basics of Logistics and Logistics for Fabrication – host: ARILOG; mode: face-to-face; 24 participantsb. Logistics equipment, expert software and simulators – host: FHOO; mode: virtual; 24 participantsc. Warehousing, stock management and LMS – host: ULISBOA; mode: virtual; 24 participantsd. Logistics for auxiliary processes – host: UNIRI; mode: virtual; 24 participants 6. Elaborate Guidelines with recommendations and conditions to fulfil for the organizing of training + qualification of EML 7. Organizing of workshops in all participating countries dedicated to dissemination 8. Activities related to the management of quality and management of implementation: elaboration of a guide to assure the best quality of the implementation and of the products, as well as to assure the best function of the consortium 9. Activities related to the dissemination: sharing promotional materials, round tables with stakeholders, posting the roll-ups and fliers in visible places of institutes or in the lobby of conferences, elaboration of articles for newsletters and journals, presentations delivered to students and stakeholders and trainers, etc. 10. Activities related to the management of the consortium. The structure of LOGIN Consortium was designed and built based on the required expertise in the fields of activities addressed by LOGIN: 1. 7 partners of 6 countries: UCV and ARILOG/RO, ULISBOA/P, FHOO/A, DC/PL, UNIRI/HR, CEL/ES 2. it was built based on the expertise of members in logistics activities and in management of the projects’ implementation. 3. All partners have expertise in complementary domains, all together being able to solve all the tasks of LOGIN: - UCV - Logistics+Management+Fabrication - ARILOG - Logistics - FHOO - Logistics and Management - DC - E-learning - ULISBOA - Logistics and Management - UNIRI - Logistics+Management+Fabrication - CEL - Logistics LOGIN proposed 2 types of ME activities: 7 workshops dedicated to stakeholders and 7 seminars dedicated to the end users. During the project of implementation, it was organized more than 14 activities: E1 – RO: Proposed: 2 workshops / 30 participants, done: 4 workshops / 88 participantsE2 – A: Proposed: 1 workshop / 15 participants, done: 1 workshop / 26 participantsE3 – HR: Proposed: 1 workshop / 15 participants, done: 1 workshop / 15 participantsE4 – PL: Proposed: 1 workshop / 15 participants, done: 1 workshop / 15 participantsE5 – P: Proposed: 1 workshop / 15 participants, done: 1 workshop / 11 participantsE6 – ES: Proposed: 1 workshop / 15 participants, done: 1 workshop / 16 participantsE7 – RO: Proposed: 4 seminars / 40 participants, done: 2 seminars / 56 participantsE8 – A: Proposed: 1 seminar / 15 participants, done: 1 seminar / 10 participantsE9 – HR: Proposed: 2 seminars / 20 participants, done: 2 seminar / 20 participantsE10 – P: Proposed: 1 seminar / 15 participants, done: 1 seminar / 38 participantsE11 – ES: Proposed: 1 seminar / 14 participants, done: 1 seminar / 16 participantsE12 – PL: Proposed: 2 seminars / 20 participants, done: 2 seminars / 24 participantsTotal number of participants in MEs activities per project: 335 persons participated vs 229 proposed to participate. Target group: - New enters on the labour market as entrepreneurs (leaving the public services or leaving the employee status in the private sectors) who start new industrial business and require minimum of knowledge and competences in organizing the logistics activities related to its own fabrication processes - Mono-profession people having expertise in low required professions and jobs on the labour market - People with low skills in technical manufacturing processes - People with low qualifications who require improvement of the access on the labour market by multiplying their qualifications - People who need improvement of their knowledge in logistics operations - People with no qualification and difficulties in performing of manufacturing processes due to medical and/or social background. Short term impact: a. by the ME activities (workshops) and by the future round tables and seminars the information on the QSLOT will be spread b. the 16 x 4 = 64 trained trainers will train other trainers of VET schools in RO,A,ES,HR,P,PL; result: increasing of the offers on the training as LOT c. international recognition of the qualification due to the approves LOT d. 300 persons will be informed by workshops+seminars.

Tourism is at the same time one of the largest employer across EU countries, supporting approx. 25 million jobs, and also, one of the economy sectors where the relevant industry cannot excel and safeguard a leading position worldwide, without continuously improving the quality of the staff involved in order to be able to provide high quality, personalised services to tourists. Tourism is changing at the demand side, and competitiveness relies more and more on skills of its human capital, which have to correspond to new modes of customer behaviour and expectations. (DG Growth – Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs,). In particular, in the field of touristic services, new trends are lately gaining considerable momentum, which are articulated within the so-called “experience economy”. These trends are referring to a heightened demand for the provision of memorable experiences to customers, which was always at the core of tourism, but now is becoming even more specialised. Adventure tourism, cultural tourism, maritime tourism are forms of tourism where these trends flourish in the ongoing evolution from mass tourism to niche tourism. The nature of the provided services to match the expectations of the tourists for experience-rich memories should eventually be ‘orchestrated’ by tourism businesses and professionals, turning memories into products for the supply side of tourism. (Mapping and performance check of the supply side of tourism education and training, February 2016 - EUROPEAN COMMISSION). In order for professionals in the tourism sector to respond to these new trends, there is a set of soft skills and abilities that should be developed or further enhanced, relating rather to personal and social competences, ranging beyond, and complementing job-specific skills in each case. Within this frame, which portrays the changing nature of tourism, the proposed project is targeting a specific segment of maritime tourism, and in particular the leisure yachting industry in the EU and the yacht skippers and crew, as employed by it. In the aforementioned reports and studies by the respective EU bodies (i.e. DG Growth – Tourism, Support to tourism business, Professional skills and Mapping and performance check of the supply side of tourism education and training, February 2016 - EC) it has been well-documented, that beyond the diversity and variations observed in EU Member-States in the required hard, job-specific skills of professional yacht skippers (e.g. navigation, marine engineering and electronics, meteorology, maritime traffic rules etc.), there are significant gaps and shortages relating to soft skills, which eventually account for both improving the image of the touristic profession of a skipper, as well as for guaranteeing the provision of high quality, integrated and personalised services to the tourists along the new trends in tourism. Sailing and yachting are recognised as having a high potential, especially vis-à-vis the growing interest in high added value, alternative forms of tourism. The proposed project will develop a modular set of educational material available in an online learning space (in EN, ES, EL, HR, BL) fostering in particular the acquisition and/or development of soft skills for professional yacht skippers and crew across the following indicative subjects: - Understanding of how the new trends in tourism on the demand side are shaping the scope and purpose of the touristic services on the supply side in leisure yachting tourism - Acquisition or development of certain sets of transversal skills and attitudes at the personal, interpersonal/societal level of the professional skippers to correspond to those new trends The primary target group of the project are the professional skippers and crew in: • skippered yacht charters (rented boat and services of a skipper by tourists); • crewed yacht charter (rented boat, services of a skipper and crew e.g. cook, deckhands by tourists); • flotilla yachting (company of boats managed by a skipper in a skippered yacht). Secondary target groups are indicatively as follows: • Yacht charting and touristic agencies; • Skipper and yacht training centres etc. (post-secondary, non-tertiary); • VET schools and organisations providing vocational training in maritime and touristic professions; • Institutional and regulatory bodies in tourism and maritime leisure in particular. The project objectives are thus to strengthen key soft skills of professional skippers towards: • New skills for new tourism demands (e.g. personalised services) for competitiveness; • Providing tools and methodologies for the tackling of key skills gap, especially regarding transversal skills, and compensating for low levels of training for professionals in the leisure yachting industry; • Enhancement of poor image of tourism careers; Facilitating mobility of professional skippers on the basis of new trends in tourism, and the required skills associated with these tre

"The International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea 1972 (COLREGs) are a set of rules to avoid collisions at sea. However, a study undertaken by Ziarati et al (2008) and later Acar et al (2011) showed that almost 50% of seafarers disregard or ignore the COLREGs at sea. This is supported by recent Mariners' Alerting and Reporting Scheme (MARS) and Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) case law, which indicates that many of the principles of collision avoidance are improperly applied, particularly relating to more complex rules or more complex real-life situations (Ziarati et al, 2015).Collisions remain a major source of accidents at sea resulting in serious injuries and loss of life and property. European Maritime Safety Agency’s (EMSA) 2014 Accident Review found that between 2011-2013 in the category of 'accidents with a ship', collisions were the second leading cause of accidents resulting in serious injuries. It was accepted that there will be no changes to the COLREGs in the short to medium future when the International Maritime Lecturers’ Association made its position supporting the COLREGs clear in its June 2014 Newsletter, where it stated that ""COLREG specific"" accidents can be attributed to ""the unsatisfactory results of maritime training"". Seeing the severity of this issue, along with the target of zero collisions in the European Union’s (EU) Research and Development (R&D) Framework (Horizon 2014), research was carried out during the ACTs project (2013-15) to identify training needs. This led to the ACTs+ project aims which were as follows:1.To develop learning materials to improve the ability of seafarers to apply the COLREGs in complex real-life scenarios.2.To develop a teacher training programme to improve the ability of teachers to teach the correct application of the COLREGs.3.To develop an e-learning delivery platform.4.To involve shipping companies in the development of these learning materials so that real-life situations are addressed.5.To submit a case study to the international policymaker and professional associations to raise the need for improved teacher and cadet/seafarer training on COLREGs.It is estimated that a little over 50,000 participants were involved in the project either directly or indirectly through dissemination. These participants fell into the following target markets:1.PrimaryoMaritime trainers / teachers oMaritime companiesoSeafarers (inactive and active)oCadets (still in training at their Maritime Education and Training Institutions (METs))2.SecondaryoMaritime education policymakers (national, European and international)oInternational awarding, accrediting and licensing bodiesThe primary target audiences were identified because they were to be the end users of the ACTs+ project outputs. The secondary target audiences were selected because they provide the environment that the primary audiences operate in. The policymakers set the training requirements, and the professional bodies accredit and licence training courses and learning materials giving the international 'stamp' of quality.The project contained a mix of intellectual outputs and multiplier events covering: •The development of the delivery system (an online learning platform)•The development of online learning scenarios and accompanying self-assessment quizzes•The development of a teacher training course for the teaching of the COLREGs in more complex situations•Validation workshops during the development of the learning scenarios, self-assessment quizzes and teacher training course•Piloting of all the learning materials•The Final Conference•The report to relevant international maritime associations and policymakers with recommendations for changes in teacher training and learning practices in relation to the COLREGsCOLREGs content is currently taught in bridge simulators that have limited capacity and are expensive. To address this multi-ship and/or multi-rule situations were transformed into a set of PC based scenarios, which Ziarati (2007) reported to be as good as bridge simulators in terms of acquiring navigational skills and competencies. The PC based scenario approach to developing such skills is based on a proven methodological approach developed in several recently completed Leonardo projects: M’aider (2009-11), SURPASS (2009-2012) and ACTs (2013-2015). The project was designed to produce a range of impacts from the long-term reduction of collision-related accidents and consequently safer seas, to the improved competencies of maritime lecturers in designing and delivering digital e-learning materials, and a more mobile and qualified EU maritime labour force able to compete on the global stage for higher skilled jobs. It was also intended to help build the e-learning infrastructure of the EU and the maritime industry and position the EU as a centre of high quality and innovative e-learning based maritime education."

"En la actualidad, no existe el reconocimiento mutuo entre los distintos Estados Miembro de la UE de sus respectivas titulaciones para Patrones Profesionales de Embarcaciones de Recreo (PPER).Por esta razón, a los PPERs sólo les está permitido trabajar en embarcaciones con la bandera del país en que obtuvieron su titulación. En zonas de gran actividad marítima, como el Mediterráneo occidental, esta falta de reconocimiento tiene graves consecuencias sobre la flexibilidad y movilidad, que quedan así restringidos a llevar sólo embarcaciones con bandera de su propio país, aunque se trate de embarcaciones idénticas. Esta situación afecta a unos 25.000 PPERs.El Proyecto TCC-SCV, (en inglés, ""TRECVET Core Curriculum for Skippers of Small Commercial Vessels"") ha conseguido reunir a diez socios del sector marítimo de recreo, a través de asociaciones nacionales, universidades y escuelas privadas. Los socios han llevado a cabo las siguientes actividades:1. Han desarrollado una metodología para el análisis de las titulaciones definiendo cómo desglosar éstas en sus partes más sencillas, denominadas FE (del inglés, Fundamental Elements) que se halla documentada en el Standard Analysis Procedure Handbook, SAPH.2.Han desarrollado y programado la Herramienta de Software multiFex para realizar la extracción de las FE y coleccionarlas en una base de datos, acompañada de su respectivo manual de uso.3.Han procedido a analizar, desglosar e introducir en la base de datos multiFex el contenido de siete temarios de titulaciones PPER de, Alemania, Croacia, Eslovenia, España, Francia, Reino Unido y República Checa.4.Han diseñado e implementado la Herramienta de Comparación que muestra el contenido de la base de datos FE permitiendo así la comparación objetiva y transparente del contenido de los distintos Temarios para titulaciones PPER, mediante una interface de uso sencillo, (http://www.tcc-scv.eu/tcc-scv-tools?tool=real)5.Con ello, han convertido la base de datos de FE en un Temario Básico para PPERs (TRECVET Core Curriculum, TCC) más los denominados Módulos Específicos Nacionales (National Specific Modules, NSMs),6.Han desarrollado una segunda interface para mostrar el TCC y los NSM de manera visual con el objetivo de promover la aceptación (léase, reconocimiento) del Temario Básico Europeo para PPERs (http://www.tcc-scv.eu/tcc-scv-tools?tool=core).7.Han desarrollado y presentado dos nuevas proposiciones de titulación profesional para PPERs, derivadas del Temario Básico Común, para las Autoridades Marítimas de la República Checa y de Rumanía para su consideración.8.Han convocado una conferencia pública de alto-nivel en Bruselas, para diseminar los resultados del proyecto y permitir iniciar el proceso de implementación del Temario Básico Común para PPERs tanto a nivel nacional como a nivel europeo.El Proyecto TCC-SCV ha logrado un amplio impacto y ha generado un elevado interés en los trabajos desarrollados desde las bases del sector, empezando por los propios patrones profesionales y alcanzado los niveles de representantes nacionales, la Comisión Europea (en particular en DG Mare y DG Grow) y hasta en Miembros del Parlamento Europeo. Todo ello se refleja en el gran número de subscriptores de las notas de prensa y boletines informativos del proyecto, seguidores de redes sociales y el alto nivel de los responsables que participaron en la conferencia final del proyecto y se refleja en las actividades de sostenibilidad:-El Temario Básico Común ha sido sujeto de un estudio de impacto económico encargado por la DG Mare en 2016 con la vista puesta en dar soporte a nuevas acciones.-La organización coordinadora Sea Teach ha sido una de los tres finalistas para el premio “Empresa del Año en la Economía Azul” (“Business of the year in the Blue Economy Award 2016”) por su trabajo en el Proyecto TCC-SCV.-Cláudia Monteiro de Aguiar, Miembro del Parlamento Europeo (MEP), ha propuesto un nuevo proyecto al Parlamento Europeo para la inclusión de todos los Estados Miembro en el modelo TCC-SCV.-La Representación Permanente de Malta ha incluido el tema de las titulaciones de PPERs en su programa para su próxima Presidencia de la UE en 2017.-Las Autoridades Marítimas de la República Checa y Rumanía han confirmado la recepción de los temarios sugeridos y en ambos se hallan en proceso de revisión de éstos.-Las Autoridades Nacionales están realizando consultas políticas con asociaciones nacionales para evaluar su posición y considerando la implementación del Temario Básico Común para PPERs.Por todo ello el proyecto TCC-SCV ha superado ampliamente sus objetivos iniciales y se halla muy próximo a la implementación de una Temario Básico Común a nivel Europeo, creando así más puestos y oportunidades de trabajo, amén de facilitar la movilidad de los PPERs. Los beneficios económicos para los PPERs y compañías chárter se estiman en torno a entre 100M€ y 170M€ por año."