An assessment to tailor training to the needs of the industry of the future
Artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, cobotics… the development of new technologies is driving a profound transformation of industry toward Industry 5.0. To align training with the needs of businesses, the University conducted an assessment of the “production chain of the future” as part of the national France 2030 AMI call for projects on skills and professions of the future, for which it was selected as a winner.
“The goal of this assessment is to identify the needs of local businesses regarding the production chain of the future and to determine how we can improve our training programs, with a particular focus on enhancing our students’ employability,” explains Jean-François Dubé, project leader and Professor the University of Montpellier. The assessment, launched by the IUT de Béziers, the IUT de Nîmes, Polytech Montpellier, and the Montpellier National School of Chemistry as part of the national France 2030 AMI-skills and future professions call for projects, was guided by the Caisse des Dépôts and focused on the themes of artificial intelligence and cybersecurity, with promising developments for the future training of companies’ future employees.
The diverse needs of local manufacturers
Now connected, digitized, and automated, Industry 5.0 is transforming the key components of production lines. These transformations are giving rise to a renewed vision of how work is organized in the factory. The industry of the future is firmly committed to a human-centered approach (quality of life at work, inclusion) and integrates sustainability and eco-responsibility. All manufacturers surveyed as part of the assessment appear to have begun the digital transformation of their production lines but report that they still have a long way to go in this transformation. Manufacturers in the region express a greater need for cybersecurity experts (security architects, cryptologists, secure development specialists, etc.) than for artificial intelligence professionals (AI software designers and developers, data scientists, data analysts, etc.). Conversely, demand for hybrid profiles appears higher in artificial intelligence than in cybersecurity, particularly for engineering roles capable of driving the digital transformation of production lines (cobotics or automation engineers, etc.). “Industry stakeholders also highlight the need to build skills in traditional industrial trades. By 2025, we will need to train nearly 400 AI technicians and engineers at the regional level, and all students must receive cybersecurity training,” explains Jean-François Dubé.
Toward a Transformation of the Training Offer
The University of Montpellier offers nearly 25 programs preparing students for careers in industry and industrial computing, producing more than 900 graduates each year. In this way, it ensures a degree of continuity in training programs for industrial careers in the region. While the University already offers some specialized programs in cybersecurity and, to a lesser extent, in AI, the challenge now is to train more students in these fields. Starting in the 2023 academic year, a new three-year professional bachelor’s degree program at the IUT de Béziers will focus on “Robotics and Artificial Intelligence for Industry 4.0 and 5.0.” “Ultimately, this assessment should enable the University’s academic departments, schools, and institutes to better guide strategic decisions to transform our programs—both in terms of evolving existing curricula and in selecting future educational resources—to support the diversification of student profiles and the development of learners’ skills, thereby enhancing their employability,” concludes Jean-François Dubé.