Training institutions and companies will receive free access to the online platform until the summer vacations. This offer met with a huge response after just a short time, with the number of daily users increasing by 600% within a week.

Many companies have to adapt their processes and procedures to the dramatic developments resulting from the coronavirus crisis within a very short space of time. This also includes vocational training. "Despite this very challenging situation, we are looking for ways to provide our trainees with training content independent of the company as a learning location," explains Peter Bauer, Training Manager at Schenck Process Europe in Darmstadt.

This acute need has prompted the Nachwuchsstiftung Maschinenbau to make its online platform MLS available to all interested parties free of charge until the start of the summer vacation. "As the Young Talent Foundation for Mechanical Engineering, we see it as our responsibility to actively support our companies and their trainees in this difficult situation," says NWS-MB Site Manager Andre Wilms.

Digital learning for Industry 4.0

The main motivation for developing the MLS platform was to simplify and digitalize vocational training. With just a few clicks, trainers can create tasks that are individually tailored to the needs of their trainees. With learning objective checks, which include multiple choice tests, technical term queries and cloze texts, for example, it is possible to check and document learning progress. This simplifies the supervision of trainees and frees up valuable time resources in everyday training.

In this way, the MLS platform enables communication between teachers and learners to be modern and efficient. At the same time, it enables trainees to develop their skills with a view to independent and collaborative work - skills that are essential for Industry 4.0.

The MLS platform has already been in great demand. Since its market launch in 2018, more than 100 companies and vocational schools have already been using MLS. After NWS MB informed the industry about the offer to use the MLS platform free of charge in mid-March 2020, it triggered a veritable rush of inquiries.

The offer is available to all educational institutions and companies throughout Germany. They can use the MLS platform without restriction, free of charge and without automatic contractual obligations, initially until the start of the summer vacation. Interested parties can contact the Young Talent Foundation for Mechanical Engineering: [email protected]

"We hope that many people will take up our offer," explains Wilms. "In this way, we can not only help to ensure that vocational training continues in the current crisis, but also promote digitalization in training.