Rezekne Academy of Technologies, Latvia, in cooperation with partner institutions from Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary and Germany, launched a new project of the European programme ERASMUS + Action Strategic Partnerships on the topic: WEB-BASED LASER SAFETY MODULES FOR VOCATIONAL EDUCATION/TRAINING,  Nr.  2018-1-LV01-KA202-056957.

In recent years, laser sources and systems have become increasingly widespread in all areas of industry. Working with laser sources, however, requires that European requirements for work safety be respected. The biological effect of laser radiation on laser system operators depends on the class of the laser source and in many instances, it is far from being safe.

The objectives of the project are to study and analyze the needs of professional training in laser safety. The partner team will analyze the laser safety curricula offered by traditional vocational education / training in partner countries as well as the needs of the  laser systems operators to acquire new skills and knowledge  in laser safety. Based on the identified needs, a web-based laser safety training program for vocational education / training, consisting of three web-based modules, will be developed.
The project is open until 31 August 2020.

The project partners are the following institutions:

• Rezekne Academy of Technologies, Latvia
• Veda Consult Ltd, Bulgaria
• Eutropean Center for Education, Science and Innovation, Bulgaria
• iTStudy Hungary Számítástechnikai
• Oktató- és Kutatóközpont Kft., Hungary
• University of Ruse „Аngel Kanchev”, Bulgaria
• SWA Bildungsakademie GmbH, Germany
• Universitatea Din Pitesti, Romania.

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From 28 February till 1 March 2019, the first workshop on the project was held at the Rezekne Academy of Technologies. Representatives of the partner institutions took part in it.
The planned activities under the project have been discussed. After the discussion, a number of proposals presented by the coordinator, Prof. L. Lazov, were adopted: a Project Management Plan, a Communication Plan, a Plan for Evaluation of Activities and a Plan for Dissemination of project results.
The development of questionnaires, conducting and analyzing the survey and the development of the training modules is forthcoming.

Following the European requirements, the planned training modules will contribute to both the improvement of the vocational training and the safety of the workplaces.