The Engineering Construction Industry Training Board’s (ECITB) e-learning platform has hit 10,000 course completions in just one year.
The Covid pandemic led to a shift for more online learning and a need for the development of a blended-learning approach for engineering construction skills training.
After a successful pilot programme, the Learning Experience Platform (LXP) was launched in January 2023 to provide more than 20,000 free online courses to in-scope ECITB employers within the engineering construction industry.
In total, 10,089 courses were completed by 6,148 different users from 142 employers on the online learning platform in 2023. More than 50% of the ECITB’s in-scope organisations made use of the platform in its first year. And the value of courses completed during the year equates to more than £340,000.
The ECITB Learn Academy system
ECITB Chief Executive Andrew Hockey said: “The first year of the LXP has been really positive and was capped off in style by being highly commended at the Learning Pool Awards 2023, which celebrates successes across e-learning.
“To have been shortlisted in the Best Learning Project category for creating a digital offer for our employers was a recognition of the innovation and enabling learning to take place anytime and anywhere.
“At the ECITB, we are focused on delivering engineering skills training and providing solutions for industry to both meet current and future needs.
“Our online learning platform complements the 90 ECITB-approved courses available from our network of approved training providers across Britain. These range from short bootcamp level courses, courses focused on specific technical activities through to reskilling courses that are several weeks long.
“Online training can reduce time off-the-job, such as for travel, provides a larger selection of training to choose from and the impetus for more frequent learning.”
Smaller companies accessing online training for the first time
The top three courses completed in 2023 were manual handling, fire awareness and display screen equipment training, with much of the e-learning being health and safety related, such as the control of substances hazardous to health (COSHH) course which was requested more than 1,000 times.
The platform has helped provide better access to training for all parts of the industry, with small and micro companies, who have less capacity to manage their own online learning system, able to join the ECITB Learn Academy to access course content.
For employers who already have their own established learning management system, e-learning files are transferred, while companies with administrative resources can create their own online learning environment with a branded academy, of which 45 were built in the first year.
“One of the things we are most proud of is that 107 of the 142 employers that have used the LXP have never claimed e-learning grants before,” added Andrew.
“The introduction of ECITB Learn has been the catalyst for this activity, giving new employers access to online training for the first time.
“With 2,684 of the course completions coming on ECITB Learn, we are providing the opportunity for smaller companies to receive the same level of training as a large corporate organisation.”
Benefits of the LXP to the engineering construction industry
Other benefits of the platform include being able to create a personalised learning experience for each user, which takes into account skill level, learning preferences and interests.
The LXP, which is accessible from any device, provides access to a wide range of learning resources, such as e-learning packages, video courses, webinars, podcasts and e-books, and allows people to learn at their own pace.
It also provides analytics and reporting tools that enable learners to track progress and employers to measure the impact of the training being undertaken by its employees.
In-scope employer Applus+ UK started using the LXP in early 2023 and all employees are now enrolled onto a basic package of health and safety, equality and diversity, and personal wellbeing training covering around 50 courses.
Mandy Weir, Training Co-ordinator at Applus+ UK, said: “The LXP is a beneficial tool to our company for training and development of our site-based teams, who are able to undertake the courses independently online.
“The Applus LXP is now administered in-house with the excellent support of the ECITB.
“In 2024, we are looking to ensure that the training is utilised to our maximum benefit, including involving our site managers who are looking at the more technical courses to help develop site-based technicians and trainees.
“Our HR team is also championing further training in mental health, inclusion and personal development across the company.”