Renewable Energies (EERR) are a clear vector of future and occupation that gradually grows globally and also at the metropolitan level. The EERRs, in addition to saving medium-/long-term costs in an environment where uncertainty of energetic costs is increasing, receive institutional and regulatory push to advance in various objectives to achieve the objectives set by the European Climate Legislation, which establishes that EU countries will have to reduce their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by at least 55% by 2030, by 2050 by 2050 by the EU neutral On the other hand, trends such as decarbonization of industry, sustainable mobility and new circular production methodologies are growing vectors of demand linked to the installation and generation of EERR. 

This drive towards deployment in the EERR, which seems to put us on a path without return, requires but support in one of the main pillars of this transition towards green energy, which is the talent necessary to be able to promote, manage, maintain and materialize the different infrastructure necessary for the generation of EERR.

The BCN Vocational Training Foundation, through the research “The Emerging Sectors in the RMB: the case of Renewable Energies”, prepared in collaboration with the AMB and IREC, has detected that 82.5% of companies in the sector have difficulties in finding the talent necessary to be able to carry out their activity. The main reasons given to explain this situation are: lack of qualified professionals; a low degree of specialization and little experience in the sector.

Specifically, the most relevant training contents that companies lack when incorporating a new professional profile into their workforce, as well as their active workforce, are:

On the other hand, despite being a sector with prospects for the future and significant employment, certain incongruities are detected, such as that the classrooms of VET degrees linked to this sector often do not finish filling in students (they do not prioritize it in their enrolment options) and there is no diversified supply network in 6 of the 7 counties that make up the RMB; only in Barcelonès can a diversified range of trainings be found. On the other hand, companies point to a series of normative figures that greatly complicate the stay of students in practice or in dual VET modality in the sector, as diverse requirements such as, for example, the need to have the installer card to be able to locate in various activity environments, greatly limits the access of talent in training to real work environments. 

If we look at the most demanding professional profiles in the sector, the research of the BCN Vocational Training Foundation offers this “map” of current and future professional profiles structured according to the type of renewable energy:

*In red the most difficult coverage profiles

It can be seen how the case of technical talent associated with installation and maintenance is what is considered by companies to be the most difficult to cover, together with engineering profiles, a situation that not only occurs in this sector, and that generates a decompensation between the ability of the system to pour technicians into the labour market and the volume of technicians requested by a labour market that requires increasingly technical to develop its activity. To this increase in technical talent specializations is added an unprecedented process of demographic relay that currently has no vis-à-vis being sustainable in terms of labour replacement, especially in the industry sector and in technical areas. 

Once the situation has been analyzed, both supply and demand, the following recommendations within the aforementioned research are considered key: 

1. Guidance and information on the sector

• Improvement of educational and professional orientation for young people and other groups.
• Communication campaigns to publicize the training offer.

2. Update, adequacy and specialization of the training offer

• Actions focused on reducing the difficulties of contracting the photovoltaic plate installer profile.
• New specialization courses that respond to emerging profiles. 
• Working groups to improve the degree of adaptation of VET to the needs of the wind sector and the design of the Energy Efficiency and Solar Thermal Energy cycle. s Review of the curricula of the different cycles associated with the EERR. 

3. Vocational Training Centres and Teachers

• Improvement of the educational resources of the centers (material donation, new facilities, simulation learning projects, etc.)
• To provide continuity and reinforce the training offer aimed at teachers.

Complete study of the renewable energy sector of the BCN Vocational Training Foundation

Infographics

The renewable energy sector iis in need of solar panel installares and energy efficiency technician as the most relevant profiles in the sector. The sector considers that templates will have formative needs related to energy storage systems (accumulation, batteries, etc., photovoltaic installations, smart grids and improved flexibility and reliability of operations (automation, IoT, analytical data, Scada., etc.), self-consuming facilities and energy communities. The VET degree in Electrical and Automatic Installations has a much higher enrolment than the rest and the latest courses have seen a slight increase in enrolment. Registration of the Higher Degree of Renewable Energy follows a trend of growth in recent years. Most license plates are concentrated in private centers. Last Tuesday, 28 March, the BCN Training Professional Foundation presented the emerging economic sectors and vocational training in the Barcelona metropolitan region. This study analyzes the renewable energy sector from a PF key approach. The study focuses on learning and analysing the characteristics and dynamics of the labour market, the training and skills needs of companies and the different range of vocational training offers. In addition, the main innovative trends are described and the most sought-after, hard-covered and emerging profiles of the sector are identified.

The study was produced from a survey involving almost 100 companies in the sector and 28 interviews and discussion groups with different key players. It has been developed by the BCN Professional Training Foundation in collaboration with CaixaBank Dualitza and the support of Barcelona Activa and the Barcelona metropolitan area.

The welcome was given by Lieutenant Mayor of Badalona, Mr Alex Montornes, followed by Mr Fabian Mohedano, Executive Chairman of the Professional Qualification and Training Agency of Catalonia of the Government of Catalonia and closed the presentation ceremony by Mrs Monntserrat Ballarín, Vice-President of the AMB’s Social and Economic Development Area.

The renewable energy sector considers the profile of solar installation builder and maintainer a key profile in the sector. Followed by the energy efficiency and energy audit technician, manager-supervisor and launch of solar installations, promoter or salesperson of ESER and installer and maintainer of electric vehicle loading points, Àngel Tarri.o and Ana Vicente, coordinator and researcher responsible for the study of the Observatory of the Barcelona Training Professional Foundation.

Other emerging profiles that are considered important are that of an energy storage specialist, energy community manager or dynamitor and energy monitoring technician and data analyst.

With regard to the specific profile of mounter and/or maintainer/or solar installations, the results show that integral or hybrid profiles will be increasingly demanded in the coming years. The proliferation of domestic installations means that more and more professionals with integrated knowledge of photovoltaics, charging points, electric and/or aerothermic batteries (both from the part of installations and the maintenance of these facilities) are required.

The presentation brought together a round table with representatives from the sector: Mr Raúl Rodríguez, director general of FEGICAT, guild of Installers, Mrs Esther Morlanes, director ALTERNA Energia and member of the Territorial Council of UNEFCAT, Mr Víctor Cusí, president of EOLICCAT, Patronal eolics of Catalonia and Mr Javier Azorín, head of training and talent development of IBERDROLA Spain. The discussion, in relation to the training needs identified by the sector, considers that future templates have or will have training needs related to energy storage systems (accumulation, batteries, etc., photovoltaic installations, smart grids and improved flexibility and reliability of operations (automation, IoT, analytical data, Scada., etc.), self-consuming facilities and energy communities. Formative shortages related to green hydrogen and hydrogen value chain systems, electricity distribution networks and generation of renewable gases from waste and electric and hydrogen vehicles are also noted. Ultimately, these results show that most of the training needs are associated with the new trends in the sector.

The study also identifies the main trends in enrollment and employment insertion of training cycles with the most linking to the EERR sector in RMB.

The Median Degree in Electrical and Automatic Installations has a much higher enrolment than the rest and the latest courses have seen a slight increase in enrolment.
Registration of the Higher Degree of Renewable Energy follows a trend of growth in recent years. Most license plates are concentrated in private centers.
The Middle Degree of Calor Production Installations and the Upper Degree of Energy Efficiency and Solar Thermal Energy have suffered a decline in registration in recent years. The last course analyzed has a very low enrolment.
These cycles are strongly masculinized—especially middle grade cycles—and no significant reversal of this trend is observed over the years, with % of women still very little relevance.
The dual modality is not widespread in these degrees, especially in the case of upper grade degrees.
The Upper Degrees of the Energy and Water Family and the Middle Degrees of the Installation and Maintenance Family have higher employment levels than the respective average of the Upper and Middle Degree cycles, respectively.

We resumed the activity of the Sectoral Tables of Industrial VET and Construction 4.0 in an industrial environment such as the headquarters of Stage2 in the TMDC and later we went to the Rebuild 2023 congress with FP centers of construction and civil work learning how the sector is transformed, what are its new trends and its challenges.

Sectoral Table Industrial FP,Table FP and Construction 4.0

We resumed the activity of the industrial VET and construction 4.0 sector tables in an industrial environment such as the Stage2 headquarters at the TMDC.

25 people from industrial VET centers, economic, social and VET ecosystem agents participated, with the aim of generating synergies between centers and industrial fabric, startups, in a space of co-creation, entrepreneurship and training for students and teachers.

We met Stage 2, the first industrial startup accelerator in the country, created in 2022 by Oriol Pascual and a group of 10 entrepreneurs, with an investment fund of 15M€ and the challenge of accelerating 150 industrial projects until 2030.

Likewise, we invited the Industrialized Construction Cluster of Catalunya, a new and benchmark platform for the development of Construction 4.0 in Catalunya, which will work around four axes: Industrialization, Digitalization, Sustainability and Training.

And we closed the session visiting TMDC the first coworking for manufacturing artisans located in Poblenou, Barcelona. It is an industrial workshop of more than 2000m2 equipped with portable machinery, industrial machinery and CNC machinery to work on wood, iron and plastic, with very interesting projects.

Visit Rebuild 2023

On 29 and 30 March we visited in Madrid Rebuild 2023 the benchmark event in building innovation, with nine VET centers of Building and Civil Works in Barcelona, Hospitalet de Llobregat, Zaragoza, Palma, Madrid, Getafe, Segovia, Lleida and the National Reference Center of Paracuellos. 

We gathered the centers to work in a network and collaborate in projects, we also attended the National Congress of Advanced Architecture and Construction 4.0, a space to know the novelties, trends in the sector and understand the needs of companies. 

Construction is being transformed by industrialised construction, sustainability and digitalisation, and VET is key to training construction professionals 4.0.

From March 15 to 17, the International Simulated Business Fair took place with the aim of bringing Vocational Training students closer to the work environment of a fair where simulated companies meet in person to be able to present their products, establish synergies and carry out sales transactions. From the BCN Vocational Training Foundation, through our Simulated Business project, we are committed to this methodology and support VET centers

Last Tuesday, March 14, the BCN Vocational Training Foundation presented the Yearbook of VET with the support of the Barcelona City Council, Metropolitan Area of Barcelona (AMB). This edition gathers information on the demand for studies, characteristics of enrolment and the training offer of the VET system of Barcelona and metropolitan area. As a novelty, on the one hand, it includes a file with the training demand, profile of the students and place of study of each municipality and also a document that collects the opportunities, challenges and recommendations about the future of Vocational Training.

Maria Truño, Commissioner for Education of the Barcelona City Council, opened the event, thanking all the attendees for their presence and making a special mention of the BCN FP Foundation for the work carried out.

Next, Sara Berbel, President of the BCN Vocational Training Foundation explained how Vocational Training is at its best. Registration figures have gone from 35,000 in the 2004-2005 academic year to 63,000 today, a stable figure for three years and which means an 80% increase in enrolments over the last 17 years. This evolution has meant that 24% of the current population studying in the province of Barcelona, is studying a degree in VET.

Berbel also denoted that in addition to the current growing demand for VET professionals, the need for generational replacement of the workforce (jublations) must be added: around 80% of the employment opportunities until 2030 in the Spanish labour market will be generated by the so-called “replacement” opportunities and most of them will be technical. The volume of generational replacement in the province of Barcelona will be 500,000 jobs in 10 years[2]. Therefore, it is important to have documents with the Yearbook of VET as a reference and roadmap for Vocational Training.

Javier Gracia, technician at the Professional Training Observatory, exposed the increase in the VET system for 2021 where almost 180 000 people have been formed by VET compared to 2016 (matriculations year 2015-2016). In addition, there is a very sharp increase in registrations for 14 professional families, including computer science, marketing and health. On the contrary, there is also a very denoted decrease in 8 other professional families such as energy and water, food industry, building and civil work causing a significant handicap in covering the high demand for labour in these sectors. ​

There is a gender gap in the FPI (Initial Professional Training) prior to their choice, that is, women opt for higher rates of upper secondary education instead of a professional pathway after ESO with respect to men (2 out of 10 for women with respect to 3 out of 10 for men). There is also a gender gap in the choice of textile education. 75% of women in the IT sector. Finally, Gracia explained that VET is usually chosen vocationally and not by location, as a result of the analysis of the mobility of Vocational Training students.

On a territorial and political level, the increase in VET as a training option is also supported through a deployment of specific regulations, as Àngel Tarrinyo, coordinator of the observatory of the BCN F Foundation, pointed out. On the part of Spain we find Organic Law 03/2022, known as the VET Law, and by the Generalitat de Catalunya, Law 10/2015 on Vocational Training and Qualification. Without a doubt, this focus on VET on the part of the different administrations obeys the negative effects of having such a low percentage of VET qualified with respect to the needs of the labour market today and the future.  This percentage is very low compared to other European powers.

Despite the general increase in VET and its political support, “Spain is still the country with the highest rate of overqualification compared to other EU countries, where 36% of people with studies have jobs that do not correspond to their instructive level,” Tarri’o said, “this mismatch is partly due to a lack of knowledge or undervaluation of the potentialities of VET.” As a result, the productive sector has a very great difficulty in covering qualified technical labour positions: 41% of the vacancies of the pushed in Spain include graduates in VET and 8 out of 10 companies show that they have difficulties in occupying vacancies[3] coming from Vocational Training.

When youth unemployment is compared to levels of ESO or Baccalaureate vocational training, at which time there are great differences between unemployment rates, VET places people around the average unemployment rate and represents a great qualitative leap compared to lower instructive levels. Vocational training is better options in the labour market, since in Barcelona province the average unemployment rate of the working population (population of 16-67 years) is 9.4%, while that of graduates in vocational training is 8.4%, which means a reduction of almost 12%. This reduction is even more pronounced when we compare these rates registered at the level of ESO or baccalaureate. In a context of youth unemployment (16-24 years) which is very high, reaching 26.4%, VET manages to reduce it to 20%, a figure still high but mitigated in part by the effect of VET.

Unemployment rates per group of age and level of instruction. Province of Barcelona. IIIT 2022.

Total	ESO or less	14,90%
	Batx	12,40%
	FP	8,30%
	Universitari	4,40%
	Total	9,40%
16-24	ESO or less	37%
	Batx	25%
	FP	20%
	Universitari	18%
	Total	26,40%
24-34	ESO or less	22%
	Batx	24%
	FP	10%
	Universitari	4%
	Total	11,70%
35 i +	ESO or less	10%
	Batx	6%
	FP	6%
	Universitari	4%
	Total	6,30%

Source: Own elaboration from EPA data

At present, Tarri’o continued, all productive sectors go in the direction (or are already) of digitization and sustainability. This implies for the near present and future of jobs and professional profiles certain hybrid, transversal and flexible skills and skills. VET is a very good response to these immediate changes, being able to adapt more easily and more acutely to the needs of the new labour market: curricular adaptations by the education system, specialization courses and by the world of work of training for the best of employment. The VET also has a service of hours, called “free hours”, which implies the possibility at the discretion of each center, to adapt the composition of its degrees according to the needs detected in the work positions. 

The challenges of VET

Early school leaving in VET, in the first year of middle-level training cycles, reaches levels of 40% while in Baccalaureate it accounts for 24%[4]. The causes have been associated with a lack of academic orientation, the disinterest generated by second or third options in the process of assigning a place and specific situations of vulnerability[5].

Low participation of women in STEAM degrees

There is a low participation of women in STEAM degrees[6] compared to men. Overall, among the professional families considered STEAM, there is a participation of women of 32.2% in the context of the AMB and 33.2% in the context of Barcelona city.

Internally, among the different STEAM professional families, there is a heterogeneous evolution from the 2015/16 academic year to the present: while in the professional families Building and Civil Work and Security and Environment there is a certain increase in the percentage of women enrolled, in others such as Computer Science and Communications, Installation and maintenance and Transport and maintenance of Vehicles the presence of women is practically non-existent.

Different rhythms, different technologies, lack of teachers and updating

New technologies, speed and lowering knowledge transmission costs are generating unprecedented speed in technological innovation. This innovation generates a cascade of new training and competence needs and in parallel another cascade of skills and knowledge that are obsolete at a speed that increases almost exponentially. This fact, transferred to the VET system, translates into an impossibility of matching the pace of evolution of new technologies with technologies available to training centers and with the knowledge that can be reached by teachers at a rational rate. Also, the lack of professionals precisely in the technological fields places the VET system that seeks this type of teacher, in direct competition with companies in the same sector that also seeks this talent but that offer more advantageous salaries. Finally, the updating of teachers, a key piece of the system, is a line of work to be addressed and intensified for the same reason. 

What the BCN Vocational Training Foundation Yearbook recommends

Rethinking training facilities through integrated and sector-based reference centres, generating mechanisms to share costly training resources, Adaptability of training offered (Accompaniing the generation of new profiles and training offer with communication and guidance actions, Advanceing to the need for professional profiles, Re-skilling / Up-skilling of teachers and Shock plans for groups (against abandonment of STEAM training)

The presentation ended with Montserrat Ballarín: Vice-President Area of social and economic development. The vice-president has highlighted the quality of the Yearbook and the commitment to the quality of the VET system. “Professional training is key to improving economic competitiveness and achieving equality,” he said.

Last Tuesday, day 2, we started our new project: EU Water Challenge VET Labs. In addition, we also enjoyed the meeting with our EU partners of this new project. It will be a MetrópolisFPLab scaled up internationally with innovative pedagogy, ecological theme and VET at the center of everything. Thank you very much to our partners, let us do it!

On Friday, March 3, 2023, we resumed the activity of the Industrial VET and Construction 4.0 sector tables in an industrial environment such as the Stage2 headquarters at the TMDC.

25 people from industrial VET centers, economic, social and VET ecosystem agents participated, with the aim of generating synergies between centers and industrial fabric, startups, in a space of co-creation, entrepreneurship and training for students and teachers.

We met Stage 2, the first industrial startup accelerator in the country, created in 2022 by Oriol Pascual and a group of 10 entrepreneurs, with an investment fund of 15M€ and the challenge of accelerating 150 industrial projects until 2030.

Likewise, we invited the Industrialized Construction Cluster of Catalunya, a new and benchmark platform for the development of Construction 4.0 in Catalonia, which will work around four axes: Industrialization, Digitalization, Sustainability and Training.

And we closed the session visiting TMDC the first coworking for manufacturing artisans located in Poblenou, Barcelona. It is an industrial workshop of more than 2000m2 equipped with portable machinery, industrial machinery and CNC machinery to work on wood, iron and plastic, with very interesting projects.

As a result of this day we will launch actions to respond to two challenges:

To attract young people, and especially girls, to STEAM cycles

To strengthen the relationship between companies and centres to train the talent that companies need.

In recent weeks, several creativity workshops have been carried out, where more than 800 students participating in the MetropolisFPLab have passed! We have given work dynamics to be able to propose complete ideas that solve the challenges posed.

At the same time, we have continued to visit the participating entities to know how they operate and that the teams can make proposals that fit these companies 100%.

On February 2 we visited Campus 42 Barcelona located in the Parc Tecnologic of Barcelona Activa in the Nou Barris district. It is a non-profit programming school that was born in Paris in 2013. It has landed in Barcelona thanks to the promotion of Fundación Telefónica, and the collaboration of the Barcelona City Council and the Department of Research and Universities of the Generalitat de Catalunya.

Campus 42 Barcelona is an innovative and free programming campus, with a revolutionary, gamified methodology, of an average duration of three years, is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week so that students can learn at their own pace.

It has a network of 47 campuses spread over the 5 continents. On campus they learn programming, cybersecurity, design, blockchain, etc., as well as communication, leadership, tolerance to frustration, teamwork…

Campus 42 Barcelona is open to all VET centers, organize scheduled visits, programming workshops for non-programmers, Artificial Intelligence immersion workshop, etc.