Jürgen Granditz introducing the BFI vocational training institution which offers hands-on training courses for builders, plumbers, welders, electricians,... which are needed in the solar energy industry - presentation held at Heliopolis University for Sustainable Development

1. A WAY TO FURTHER DEVELOPMENT
Austria
Hungary
Croatia
Österreich

2. WHO WE ARE
The bfi vocational training institute is the largest educational institution for workers in Austria.
Owned by the Chambers of Labour and the Austrian Trade Union Federation, its activities focus on vocational
education and (continuing) training for workers as well as educational and occupational schemes for unemployed
persons and workers threatened with unemployment.
Our objective is to promote the personal and occupational development of the persons enrolled in our courses,
by providing high-quality education and training at a reasonable cost.
The courses are targeted at the actual demands of the labour market and also provide orientation in a world of
change.
The high level of our courses is maintained by means of an internal quality management system, continual
further training for bfi employees and an international transfer of know-how.
Most of our education and training courses are based on modular systems, so individually tailored and thus
highly efficient forms of learning are possible.
The bfi is certified according to the international standard EN ISO 9001:2000.
Our priorities:
 Specific education and training schemes for individual industries
 Individually tailored company courses
 Preparation for school-leaving exams
 Apprentice education and training
 Labour market courses
 Projects
A WAY TO NEW OPPORTUNITIES

3. FACTS AND FIGURES
In addition to the umbrella organisation bfi Österreich and the
bfis of the Austrian provinces there are a number of other
institutions also affiliated to, or co-operating with, the bfi:
BBRZ:
The BBRZ in Linz (Upper Austria), with branches in Vienna,
Styria and Carinthia, provides opportunities for occupational
reintegration after an accident or severe illness. The BBRZ
offers vocational orientation and counselling as well as
individually tailored education and training schemes,
complemented by socio-educational, medical and
psychological services. It is Austria’s largest service provider in
the field of occupational rehabilitation.
bfi Cert/SystemCERT:
The bfis established certification institutions for welding
personnel and quality management training as well as for
quality management systems. Authorisation of bfi Cert and
SystemCERT by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and
Labour guarantees that the certificates are recognised
throughout Europe.
BC:
The education centre of the Chamber of Labour of Vorarlberg
is the bfi’s partner organisation in this province.
BFI means
 more than 160 locations
 around 16 000 teaching programmes
 aproximately 2 million lessons held
 and attended by over 180 000 persons yearly.
BFI employees
 roughly 1 500 regular staff members and
 more than 5 000 freelancers.

4. INNOVATIVE COURSES
Persons in employment are offered a large variety of evening and weekend classes covering both
vocational and personal subjects, e. g. personality development, management, technology, EDP,
business management, foreign languages, social and health care occupations, etc. Highly
committed trainers, innovative adult teaching methods and topical subjects guarantee that
participants derive a personal benefit from attending bfi courses.
New occupations – new educational programmes
We live in a world of continually changing technologies, vocational profiles and qualification
requirements. Therefore the bfi has to adapt ist programmes accordingly to include new job
clusters. Observation of the labour market, co-operations with the business and science sectors,
international exchange of experience and internal quality management are the central prerequisites
that enable us to quickly respond to changes in occupational life and to keep our offers up to date.
A WAY TO ACHIEVE UNDERSTANDING

5. COMPANIES & APPRENTICES
Company courses
Continuing training provides the opportunity to successfully master economic and organisational challenges.
We offer individually tailored programmes for every company:
 Consulting services
 Information on grants and subsidies
 Demand analysis
 Planning services
 Flexible implementation
 Trainers who are especially qualified with regard to subject matter and didactics
 Modern seminar technology
 Individual and group coaching
  Performance evaluation
Apprentice education and training
The Austrian system of apprentice education and training (training on the job and in vocational schools)
combines two important objectives: well-trained skilled workers and the education and occupation of young
people. In the last few years, however, it has become more and more difficult for young people to find work as
apprentices. In order to provide qualified education and training for as many youths as possible, in spite of the
problematic job situation, the Austrian Federal Government adopted a specific support programme. The bfi
designed and organised relevant qualification courses, and by now numerous youths have received their
vocational education in bfi courses.
A WAY TO BE IN CONTROL

6. EDUCATIONAL QUALIFICATIONS
The relevant statistics show that opportunities in the labour market are markedly improved for persons who have completed
their education or vocational training.
Therefore the bfi organises preparatory courses for a number of officially recognised final examinations, such as lower
secondary school leaving exams, commercial secondary school exams, end-of-apprenticeship exams, commercial upper
secondary school leaving exams, Matura exams (to obtain upper secondary school leaving certificates) as well as college
courses, both as regular and as second-chance education schemes.
The introduction of Matura equivalent university access examinations marks an important development in the field of
the educational policy of the last few years: now skilled workers may obtain a Matura-equivalent certificate, for which
knowledge obtained in vocational schools during apprenticeship is taken into account. The bfis, in some cases in co-
operation with schools, are offering – highly successful – preparatory courses.
The Fachhochschule college of bfi Wien provides opportunities also for full-time workers to enrol in various study
courses.
bfi Oberösterreich, in cooperation with the Hamburg Distance University of Applied Sciences, organises study courses
compatible with full-time work schedules.
A WAY TO ARRIVE AT NEW INSIGHT

7. LABOUR MARKET COURSES
Continuing education and/or retraining improves the chance of finding a new job. Thus the educational
activities of the bfis especially focus on training schemes aimed at the (re-)integration of unemployed
persons or persons disadvantaged in the labour market. The pertinent educational and occupational
schemes are designed and organised in close co-operation with the Public Employment Service
(AMS).
Vocational counselling
Career planning, job application training and psychological counselling form integral parts of our
vocational orientation courses. Special measures have been designed for persons facing
disadvantages in the labour market, such as unemployed mothers, long-term unemployed and older
persons.
Intensive courses for skilled workers
Compact modular education courses are held as a preparation for end-of-apprenticeship
examinations. In this way semi-skilled persons or persons who have not completed apprenticeship
may obtain the relevant qualifications.
Labour foundations
Established for regions and industries affected by structural change, these foundations are aimed at
improving the qualifications of the workers and thus maintaining local resources and creating new jobs.
Labour foundations offer specially targeted vocational orientation and educational schemes. A large
part of these schemes are carried out by the bfi and they are financed by the Public Employment
Service, often in cooperation with companies and workers.
A WAY TO ANSWER QUESTIONS

8. PROJECTS IN EUROPE
Project examples:
• bfi Burgenland: Tourist Counsellor – a health tourism training course in co-operation with Hungary (INTERREG)
• bfi Oberösterreich: FELLOWS – facilitating and enhancing access to ICT in education and training by e-learning (5th
FRAMEWORK PROGRAMME)
• bfi Salzburg: Tourism Quality – further qualification and specialisation of skilled staff in the hotel and restaurant
industries (LEONARDO)
• bfi Steiermark: ProBiQ – EDP education for visually impaired and blind persons (LEONARDO)
• bfi Wien: Fit for E-Commerce – New Business training programme for educationally disadvantaged people
(LEONARDO)
• bfi Österreich: E-Qualification in Vocational Training – a modular course for the promotion of equal opportunities in
(continuing) vocational training (LEONARDO)
The EU supports innovative projects, exchange programmes and educational visits throughout Europe.
Participation in the relevant programmes, such as Leonardo, Socrates or ESF Community Initiatives, also involves
international co-operation, which in turn provides new impulses.
Therefore the bfi takes part in the development and implementation of transnational EU projects, either as the contractor
or as a partner.
A WAY TO CREATE BRIDGES

9. OUR INSTITUTES
Berufsförderungsinstitut Österreich
A-1060 Wien, Kaunitzgasse 2
Tel.: 01/586 37 03
Fax: 01/586 33 06
E-Mail: info@bfi.at
www.bfi.at
Berufsförderungsinstitut Kärnten
A-9020 Klagenfurt, Bahnhofstraße 44
Tel.: 05 78 78
Fax: 05 78 78-2099
E-Mail: info@bfi-kaernten.or.at
www.bfi-kaernten.or.at
Berufsförderungsinstitut Niederösterreich
A-2700 Wiener Neustadt,
Babenbergerring 9b
Tel.: 02622/853 00
Fax: 02622/853 00-451
E-Mail: bfinoe@bfi-noe.at
www.bfi-noe.at
bfi Ungarn
Burgenlandi Felnöttképzési Intézet
Szent Márton u. 38
H-9700 Szombathely
Tel.: +36/(0)94/501-820
Fax: +36/(0)94/501-821
E-Mail: info@bfi.hu
www.bfi.hu
Berufsförderungsinstitut Tirol
6010 Innsbruck, Ing.-Etzel-Straße 7
Tel.: 0 512/59 6 60-0
Fax: 0 512/59 6 60-27
E-Mail: info@bfi-tirol.at
www.bfi-tirol.at
Berufsförderungsinstitut Wien
A-1034 Wien, Alfred Dallinger-Platz 1/7
Tel.: 01/811 78-10100
Fax: 01/ 811 78-10111
E-Mail: anmeldung.bat@bfi-wien.or.at
www.bfi-wien.or.at
bfi Kroatien
Berufsförderung Zagreb d.o.o.
Ilica 242
HR - 10 000 Zagreb
Tel.: +385/(0)1/ 455 30 21
Fax: +385/(0)1/ 455 30 29
E-Mail: l.maric@bfi.hr
www.bfi.hr
Berufsförderungsinstitut Salzburg
A-5020 Salzburg, Schillerstraße 30
Tel: 0662/88 30 81-0
Fax: 0662/88 32 32
E-Mail: info@bfi-sbg.at
www.bfi-sbg.at
Berufsförderungsinstitut Steiermark
A-8020 Graz, Mariengasse 24
Tel.: 0800 230 230
Fax: 0316/72 70-710
E-Mail: info@bfi-stmk.at
www.bfi-stmk.at
Berufsförderungsinstitut Burgenland
A-7400 Oberwart, Grazer Straße 86
Tel.: 03352/389 80
Fax: 03352/389 80-2204
E-Mail: info@bfi-burgenland.at
www.bfi-burgenland.at
Berufsförderungsinstitut Oberösterreich
und BBRZ Linz
A-4020 Linz, Raimundstraße 3
Tel.: 0810 004 005
Fax: 0732/69 22-5215
E-Mail: service@bfi-ooe.at
www.bfi-ooe.at
bfi CERT
Verein Zertifizierungsstelle bfi
A-8700 Leoben, Parkstraße 11
Tel.: 03842/484 88
Fax: 03842/484 88-4
E-Mail: office@bficert.at
www.bficert.at