Shaping the transport transition: XU and PEM Motion launch qualification program for e-mobility

 

• XU and PEM Motion, a spin-off of the Chair of Production Engineering of E-Mobility Components (PEM) at RWTH Aachen University, launch platform-based training program for electromobility
• XU School of E-Mobility supports companies in making employees fit for tomorrow’s job requirements
• 45 hours of knowledge prepared in interactive learning formats

Berlin/Aachen, 30.11.2022

The number of electrically powered cars on Germany’s roads continues to rise. In the course of 2021, it passed the million mark for the first time and currently stands at around 1.3 million. However, as the German government plans to have at least 15 million vehicles with electric motors on German roads by 2030, and in view of the EU Parliament’s recent decision to only allow the sale of zero-emission new vehicles in the EU from 2035, there is an enormous need to accelerate the mobility transition.

New, electric drive types also bring new requirements for operational processes and job profiles. Forecasts already show that there will be significant shifts in jobs and required job profiles in the German industries involved by 2030, for example, from qualifications in mechanical and automotive engineering to software and electrical engineering skills. As a result, almost 760,000 employees in the automotive industry will have to retrain. A good third of them have a high need for retraining and qualification.

 

Industry on the move: strategic partnership in response to training needs 

This is where the EdTech company XU and PEM Motion, a spin-off of the renowned Chair of Production Engineering of E-Mobility Components (PEM) at RWTH Aachen University, are now addressing this need with a jointly developed qualification program: the XU School of E-Mobility. The combination of XU’s established further education platform and didactic concept with PEM Motion’s wide-ranging expertise will lead to success. The aim of the XU School of E-Mobility is to meet the actual needs of the economy and impart industry-relevant skills and specialist knowledge in modern, interactive learning formats. Both partners draw on many years of dialogue with industry experts and bring the corresponding added value of their networks to the joint offering. This enables them to meet the urgent needs of players in the German mobility industry in order to effectively and practically drive forward the transformation from component production to the installation and maintenance of sustainable mobility technologies and electrified drive solutions.

 

Setting the pace for new mobility: Harnessing the transformative power of the employee base 

The mobility industry has always been characterized by a particularly high level of innovative dynamism – making it essential for companies of all sizes to always provide their employees with practical, up-to-date knowledge. XU and PEM Motion are therefore convinced that one thing above all is fundamental to the far-reaching transformation of mobility: motivating and equipping the employees who are responsible for the drive transformation in everyday working life with the appropriate know-how. Both partners therefore see knowledge building as an essential lever for change and progress: “In the future, companies in the automotive industry will require more and more expertise in disruptive technologies: for example, in connection with drive electrification and autonomous driving, but also with advancing digital networking and the changing mobility needs of our society,” says Dr. Christoph Deutskens, CEO PEM Motion. Thanks to the wide-ranging research conducted by the PEM Chair and the industrial projects with various players in the mobility industry in Germany and abroad, the experts at PEM Motion (which emerged as a spin-off from the RWTH institution in 2014) are very familiar with the needs of the industry. Together, XU and PEM Motion have created a didactic concept that meets the individual requirements of companies for new solutions and methods.

 

Those who enable their own employees to acquire new knowledge and skills for tomorrow’s everyday working life can establish a common understanding of the company’s strategies at an early stage that is consistently supported by all those involved. “For these topics to gain a foothold in the company and be developed further, the concentrated transformational power of the workforce is needed,” says Dr. Christopher Jahns, CEO and founder of XU. “I am convinced that real transformation is always made by the people themselves – a few isolated experts are not enough. Anyone who has the courage to tackle the issue consistently and embark on the journey with their employees now has the chance to go from being driven to setting the pace for new mobility. It also requires networking and exchange beyond the boundaries of companies – people who pursue a common goal and complement and support each other with their expertise. That’s why we want to anchor precisely these opportunities in our joint offering in the future.”

 

Shaping the future of mobility with the right knowledge

The coordinated programs of the XU School of E-Mobility impart needs-oriented knowledge, ranging from basic skills in new mobility and practical know-how to in-depth knowledge in the fields of battery technology and charging innovations. This approach has already paid off in a joint project between XU, PEM Motion and the consulting firm Berylls for the company ZF Friedrichshafen AG. In a qualification offensive lasting several months, the project partners supported ZF in providing the automotive supplier’s employees with new knowledge and skills relating to technological change in electromobility. The two partners will build on this success and further expand their strategic cooperation in the coming months. In the first phase, the XU School of E-Mobility will provide interactive formats and learning content of around 45 hours in eight fields of knowledge plus 20 hours of related content.

 

At a glance: Current fields of knowledge of the XU School of E-Mobility

•  Mobility

•  Electromobility

•  Market & Strategy

•  “xEV” technology

•  Battery

•  E-power train

•  Charging & power grid

•  Sustainability

A person-based evaluation approach ensures that all learners who use the XU School of E-Mobility qualification program can build up exactly the knowledge they need. The XU platform also offers the option of an “e-mobility readiness check” to test your own level of knowledge about electric mobility before starting the knowledge journey and thus tailor the learning experience even more closely to your own needs. Further platform-based qualification programs aimed at both beginners and mobility experts are already in development and will gradually become available in the coming months. These include areas of knowledge such as electric drives in the commercial vehicle sector, batteries, fuel cells, hairpin technology in electric motors and micromobility.

More information about the XU School of E-Mobility can be found here.

 

1 Number of registered passenger cars with purely electric drives and plug-in hybrids. (Source:https://de.statista.com/statistik/daten/studie/265995/umfrage/anzahl-der-elektroautos-in-deutschland)

² https://de.statista.com/statistik/daten/studie/265995/umfrage/anzahl-der-elektroautos-in-deutschland/

3 https://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/klima-nachhaltigkeit/eu-besiegelt-verbrenner-aus-von-2035-an-18419867.html

4 https://www.agora-verkehrswende.de/fileadmin/Projekte/2021/BCG-Jobstudie/64_Jobeffekte.pdf

Agency contact

Louis Sternberg

fischerAppelt

louis.sternberg@fischerappelt.de

Contact XU

Josephine Gallée

Corporate Communication

mediarelations@stage.xu-website.u2463.com

Contact PEM MOTION

Christoph Lienemann

Managing Director North America& Marketing

c.lienemann@pem-motion.com

About XU

Founded in 2016, XU Group GmbH develops innovative (further) education formats for companies and their employees as well as for individuals via its own online education and exchange platform. The EdTech company focuses on the three future-oriented fields of digitalization, e-mobility and sustainability.

In the B2B and B2B2C sectors, XU focuses on sustainable upskilling and reskilling programs (further education and professional requalification). XU’s clients include Bosch, Deutsche Bahn, Deutsche Post DHL, Grohe, HDI, Otto Group, Porsche, Schwarz-Lidl, Volkswagen and ZF Friedrichshafen as well as family-owned companies such as Baerlocher, Bitburger and Vorwerk. In the B2C sector, XU offers a wide range of courses to individuals at all career entry levels and age groups. XU itself as well as courses over 121 hours have been AZAV-certified by TÜV Nord since 2020. The courses are eligible for funding from the Federal Employment Agency. XU works with content and tech partners such as adesso, AWS, ClimatePartner, PEM Motion, Salesforce and LinkedIn to develop up-to-date learning content.

www.xu.de