IN recent years, Chinese vocational education expanded internationally, contributing Chinese expertise to global skills training and economic development.
Tianjin has been at the forefront, pioneering the establishment of the renowned Luban Workshop – a flagship brand for international cultural and educational exchange.
Asia-Pacific journalists visited the Tianjin Light Industry Vocational Technical College and its affiliated Workshop Experience Museum and Precision Mold and Intelligent Manufacturing Industry Education Integration Base, which are a showcase of the growing confidence and firm commitment of Chinese vocational education in the global arena.
The Light Industry Vocational Technical College is a public higher vocational institution that spearheaded the establishment of China’s first national engineering technology research center within a vocational college.
This initiative has trained large numbers of technical and skilled professionals in partner countries, sharing advanced teaching models, professional standards and equipment resources, which thereby fostered a robust global vocational education community.
The vocational technical college is also the only institution in China to have received the first prize of the prestigious “Precision Mold Award” – the highest honor in the Chinese mold industry.
The Precision Mold and Intelligence Manufacturing Industry – Education Integration Base, established through school enterprise collaboration, serves the high-end equipment manufacturing industry chain in Tianjin.
The base consists of 12 key sections, including national and municipal skills master studios, an industrial robot virtual simulation training room and an open regional digital and intelligent manufacturing engineering practice center. It masters various functions such as professional training, Research and Development (R&D), technical services, product pilot testing and competition training.
The Luban Workshop, named after Lu Ban the legendary master craftsman of ancient China, is a globally-recognized vocational education brand pioneered by Tianjin.
As a key initiative supporting the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and encouraging internationalization of high-quality vocational education, the workshop has become a ‘golden brand’ for China’s vocational education going global.
In 2024, the Chinese Luban Workshop project won the World Vocational Education Award. To date, Tianjin has established 24 Luban Workshops in 23 countries across Asia, Africa and Europe.
The Experience Museum is a themed exhibition space covering nearly 600 square meters, which primarily showcases the development of Luban Workshops in various countries. It serves as a key platform for the global promotion and outreach of this initiative.
By DELI-SHARON OSO
In Beijing, China
