The T2-campus at Thor Park, Genk was built with the help of EU funding and offers educational opportunities to around 1 300 trainees every day. Constructed using the latest sustainable building techniques, the 24 400 m2 facility provides about 300 technical courses and workshops to people from across the Limburg region. The campus answers the need for well-trained technology talent demanded by local companies while providing a creative and cutting-edge learning environment.
- 29 May 2019
The T2-campus is all about talent and technology. Kids, students, job seekers, employers and entrepreneurs all benefit from this innovative educational space. Together with an ecosystem of companies, the T2-campus aims to shrink the technology skills gap in Limburg, Belgium.
Courses on offer at the T2-campus have been designed to deliver learning opportunities and qualifications in sectors such as sustainable building, energy, information technology, electrical engineering and new materials. Trainees learn in an open and shared environment in a building that contains 80 classrooms and 15 technology labs – or ‘Techlabs’ – each of which is packed with the latest equipment. A total of 350 staff work at the site, including full-time equivalent and freelance teachers.
An investment from European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) helped pay for the buildings and the Techlab utilities and equipment. The campus is equivalent in size to three soccer pitches and its open design allows students to see building techniques and energy supply infrastructure that they may themselves learn about in class. In addition, the building will eventually become part of the district heating network which will save energy and help cut emissions.
Encouraging innovation
The Techlabs provide a learning environment designed to inspire students. A smart-grid lab simulates all possible energy sources and their transport and storage. Thanks to the combination of this investment and a European Social Fund project, a new course for battery specialists has been developed with the collaboration of a Flemish institution called EnergyVille.
The T2-campus ‘smart factory’ aims to become a experimentation platform that will raise awareness and guide regional companies into industry 4.0, which embraces greater automation and computerisation in manufacturing technologies. In addition, the ‘Broeikas’ – or Greenhouse – lab is a creative area designed to stimulate entrepreneurship in students. Other labs provide up-to-date facilities for learning and include a sound studio, a photo studio and a 3-D printing suite.
Unlocking potential
T2-campus aims to unlock potential in science, technology, engineering and mathematics by inspiring and connecting students to the region’s TECHtalents programme. ERDF funding is being used to achieve this.
All infrastructure and equipment at T2-campus are shared between the project partners – VDAB, a public employment service; SYNTRA, an educational partner specialising in professional courses for employees, starters and entrepreneurs; and the city of Genk, representing schools in Limburg.
Total investment and EU funding
Total investment for the project “T2-campus” is EUR 42 988 354, with the EU’s European Regional Development Fund contributing EUR 12 475 220 through the “Flanders” Operational Programme for the 2014-2020 programming period. The investment falls under the priority “Research and Innovation”.