A Successful Experience of International Training and Education in Manufacturing

The need from industry to have international qualifications was the starting point for creating the training and qualification system built by the European Welding Federation (EWF) for professionals in welding technology from level 2 up to 7. This paper describes this system, which started in 1992 and has successfully amplified mostly because it is supported by a robust and transparent quality system developed and implemented which is recognized by the complete chain of individuals and organizations involved, from training institutions, national certification bodies, companies, trainers and trainees. It is now implemented in 44 countries and recognized worldwide. A recent experience of collaboration between a national body and a university to award a master degree is also discussed. This is well in line with EU recommendations for the interchange between training and educational systems.