Cons.A.R. - Italian Shipowner's Research Consortium

FULL TITLE
UniMET

DURATION
24 months (2 years)
Start Date: 01/01/2011
End Date: 31/12/2012

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has developed the first standard for education and training (VET: Vocational Education and Training) for officers of Merchant Shipping (STCW) in 1978. A series of "models" for these programs was introduced in 1991 and have been amended to include specific requirements in 1995. The standard was revised in 2003 and in Manila in 2010 were considered for further changes. Despite these efforts there are no mechanisms of control over how those rules are applied.
The European Agency for Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) started to monitor compliance with STCW, many providers of vocational education and training were found not in order to follow many of the requirements. The SOS project (2005-7) has been very successful in developing a harmonized program for the training of merchant seamen and has been implemented in Turkey in the 4C TRAIN project (2006-7). Since then, the program has been strengthened with the addition of materials and Maritime English standards through projects Martel (2007-9), EGMDSS (2006-8) and EGMDSS-VET (2008-10).
The partnership, working in collaboration with leading licensors and accredited bodies, such as Edexcel, IMarEST and MCA, will cross and include local and international / national requirements into the UNIMET program (SOS, Martel, EGMDSS, EGMDSS-VET & TRAIN 4C) with aims to incorporate into the program, initially consisting of five partners maritime education and training (MET), systems throughout Europe (NL, FI, TR, ES and LT). UNIMET is in line with and supports the priorities and objectives of the Treaty of Lisbon and the Bologna Declaration in respect of the harmonization and standardization of programs in Europe.
UNIMET will ensure that professional education and training programs in the 5 MET comply with the STCW requirements and meet the local and international requirements of the sector for all grades and types of seafarers. Quality assurance and control practices will be established based on a good system for the delivery of UNIMET to ensure that VET providers continue to follow and comply with the requirements.

During the UniMET project, Cons.a.r. will be engaged in the following activities:

• Provide a report of current practices in the existing national education program;
• Participation in the survey, through a questionnaire to be distributed to students, to evaluate the UniMET educational program and its components;
• Collaboration in the evaluation and management of UniMET project quality;
• English translation of educational materials in order to make cross-references and discussion.

In particular, within the Work Packages, Cons.A.R. involvement and roles will be the following:

WP1: Support and Assistance to the Project Manager - Redaction of temporary and final reports. Keeps informed and invite the stakeholders within the UniMET Project.

WP2: Supports and supervises the implementation of UniMET within the five partner institutions.

WP3: Cons.A.R. will be responsible of the rise of the sensitization level about UniMET in Italy

WP4: Control of the UniMET programmes within the five institutions. Support and information for the redaction of the different reports that will be produced within the WP.

WP5: Dissemination activity in Italy and in the bordering countries. The activities include the redaction and the publication of articles, the participation to public events and so on.

WP6: Cons.A.R. will lead this WP, with the support of FNB and of all the other partners. Moreover, Cons.A.R. will be responsible of the organization of the whole project activities related to the explotaiton of the same project. Main objective will be the multiplication of the UniMET users throughout Europe.

WP7: Cons.A.R. will assist C4FF during the interlan evaluation for the UniMET programmes quality management. Cons.A.R. will moreover provide information for the elaboration of the reports.

Last 21st-22nd June, in Klaipeda, Lituania, was held the latest project meeting.

• Centre for Factories of the Future C4FF (UK);
• Institute of Maritime Studies TUDEV (Turkey);
• Satakunta University of Applied Sciences SUAS (Finland);
• Osrodek Prac Rozwojowych / Centre of Development Works OPR (Poland);
• Maritime Institute Willem Barentsz MIWB (Netherlands);
• Polytechnic University of Catalonia FNB (Spain);
• Lithuanian Maritime Academy LMA (Lithuania);
• Consorzio Armatori per la Ricerca CONS.A.R. (Italy);
• Spinaker SPIN (Slovenia).