NEW MOU BETWEEN FINCANTIERI, CETENA AND TAFE SA TO DEVELOP JOINT LEARNING AND SKILLS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

Adelaide/Canberra, 5 October 2017 – Fincantieri, one of the world’s largest shipbuilding groups and participant in the selection process for the Federal Government’s SEA 5000 Future Frigates program, has signed an MOU with TAFE SA during the Pacific 2017 International Maritime Exposition.

The agreement will also involve Cetena, a subsidiary company of Fincantieri, which undertakes research and consultancy programs in the naval and maritime fields.

According to the agreement, the three organisations will work together to develop a joint academic and educational co-operation program that identifies opportunities for future development.

The program to be developed from the MOU will include collaboration and sharing of technical and scientific learnings, joint projects such as seminars, lectures and study meetings to support TAFE students in particular, mapping of existing and future shipyard competency needs including qualifications and workforce development (particularly in relation to developing courses and programs aligned to the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) to support Continuous Naval Shipbuilding) and identifying skills gaps among current graduates to improvements to course design.

It will also assess existing training solutions with the perspective of developing new training courses to meet the evolving shipbuilding needs of Fincantieri Group.

The Chairman of Fincantieri Australia Dario Deste said that TAFE SA is a very well-known academic and skills training resource which can bring significant benefits to Fincantieri’s operations, both in Australia and to the company’s global operations.

“As a leading shipbuilder with 20 shipyards on four continents we have experience in adapting and developing training to meet local workforce requirements - partnerships with local institutions such as TAFE SA are critical to achieving this. Our requirement for the best trained and skilled people is growing. TAFE SA is a well-regarded educational institution with a history of supporting the Australian shipbuilding industry and our new agreement will bring benefits to both organisations,” Mr Deste said.

“As part of the agreement we will work together to develop a robust program to include academics, lecturers, researchers, students and technical and administrative personnel from TAFE SA with executives from Fincantieri and Cetena,” he said.

“This partnership will be important in generating advanced shipbuilding capability within TAFE SA’s educational and training framework, enhancing shipbuilding career streams for Australians, and meeting the expanding requirements of Fincantieri’s global operations.

“We very much look forward to starting work with TAFE SA and Cetena and seeing this important program progress,” Mr Deste said.

TAFE SA Chief Executive Robin Murt said that TAFE SA welcomes the opportunity to collaborate with Fincantieri and Cetena on shipbuilding skills development.

“The Future Frigates program and the broader National Shipbuilding Enterprise provides unprecedented opportunities for South Australians to embark on lifelong careers in shipbuilding and TAFE SA is committed to training for shipbuilding career progression and professional development long-term,” Mr Murt said.

“This collaboration agreement sets the firm foundation for us to work with Fincantieri and Cetena to plan for and respond to new skills needs and to set our students up for exciting and varied career opportunities.

“We look forward to working with our new educational partners.”