KA2 – Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Since its beginning, the 3D printing industry has experienced significant growth, evident in Wohlers Associates’ yearly reports (Wohlers Report 2019 ISBN 978-0-9913332-5-7). Behind this growth is a talented workforce. But, as with most disruptive technologies, the sector growth happens much quicker than the pace of learning, leading to a talented workforce. This lag has created what is commonly known as the ‘Additive Manufacturing (AM) Skills Gap’; the notion that there are simply not enough talented people to fill jobs and thus meet the needs and demand from the AM employers.

To help fill the skills gap 3D printing programs at all grade levels need to developed and widely offered. This will open up jobs for educators who can teach the technical and business aspects of 3D printing.

Regarding the skills that will be needed by workers in new age technology fields, there are three basic skill fields. First, there are cognitive skills, which include digital literacy, as well as advanced problem-solving and creative and critical thinking skills. Second, there are social and behavioural skills like conscientiousness, grit, and openness to experience. Third, there are job- or occupation-specific technical skills, in this case related to robotics systems and 3D printing.

Thus, skills and knowledge at the intersection of 3D printing and these areas will also be in future demand. In terms of education, jobs for educators who can teach such skills, both regarding 3D printing itself and interdisciplinary connection and intersections with other fields and subject areas, will become another emerging job opportunity. Such teachers will be needed in the Arts as well as the Sciences, and stay current with the latest trends and technologies that the various industries and fields will adopt.

To achieve the project’s aims and objectives we will develop and produce a ‘3D Printing Toolkit’. The Toolkit will have 3 elements:

INTRODUCING 3D PRINTING: The Partnership will produce a guide on how to introduce 3D printing in adult education e.g. type of equipment required, 3D printers  ‘best buys’, how to virtual 3D modelling in a PC and how to export the models to the  3D printer how to maintain the equipment, where to buy the materials, general ‘tips  on tricks’, links to support groups in Europe – this Phase of the project will include the  development of an on-line ‘Support Group for Adult Educators’ whereby they can  contact each other and support each other e.g. include best practice, good/bad  experiences etc.
TEACHING MATERIALS FOR TRAINERS: The Partnership will create a training programme on 3D printing for trainers, in order to provide them with the needed knowledge tools to develop a teaching programme on 3D printing in adult education.

PROGRAMME ON 3D PRINTING, PEDAGOGIC GUIDE FOR TRAINERS: The Partnership will develop a teaching pack to enable adult educators to learn more about 3D printing and provide course materials for their adult students e.g., assignments, quizzes, general learning materials.

The results of our THREE-D-Print project is to provide support for the educational and training challenges related to equipping the future workforce with relevant and needed skills to participate in the 3D printing revolution. The key focus of the project is on providing an entry-level, easily accessible courses that could motivate adults with fewer qualifications.

In THREE-D-Print we see the (introductory) knowledge and (basic) use of 3D printing as a tool that can motivate, enable and empower adult learners. In terms of motivation and inspiration, it allows the user/learner to experience a rapid and easy materialization of the envisioned objects, it enables the production of parts that can be used in robotics training and ultimately empowers the user to master the skills that will be relevant and needed in the field of New Age Technologies. Finally, it can be used to foster creativity, innovation, experimentation and a DIY maker mentality that can be usefully employed in an entrepreneurial as well as an industrial setting.

This is an important opportunity to give adult learners the expertise and competencies needed for societal development and individual development.

We anticipate that over 1,000 institutions and adults will benefit from the outcomes of the project.

Project Duration: 01/09/20 – 31/08/2022

Project Number: 2020-1-UK01-KA204-078911

Website: www.3dprint-training.com

The European Commission support for the production of this publication does not constitute an endorsement of the contents which reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.