Abstract

The marine manufacturing sector is a diverse and multi-faceted industry with  a wide range of different skills sets that often overlap with other sectors. A few  specialist qualifications have been developed but a disjuncture exists between  industry and education who have difficulty in finding a common language to  talk about skills partnerships.  Four studies between 2016 and 2018 focused on marine manufacturing and skills  provision are reviewed and their key findings elucidated. The paper forefronts  different conceptual frameworks underpinning skills planning, it questions who is  responsible for the development of qualifications and curricula and lastly raises the  divergent views of industry and education with respect to skills responsiveness and  changing production contexts and innovations.  The paper concludes there is a need to narrow the gap between training provision  and industrial work contexts. It is proposed that this could be achieved through  strong leadership and well-resourced training provision that is responsive and  flexible. The need for a mutual understanding needs to underpin any interventions  such as group training models and relevant partnerships between industry  associations and training providers.