‘Learning about life sciences in a realistic environment’

ViTalent was established to address the training needs of both businesses and (potential) employees in the life sciences. ‘The sectoral competence centre ACTA has existed for the chemical industry for 37 years, and for the plastics industry there is PlastIQ’, says Veerle Van der Linden, director of ViTalent. ‘In Wallonia, aptaskil is the centre focused on specific training for biopharma. In Flanders, there was no specific centre offering vocationally-oriented training for the life sciences sector, yet there was a clear need for one.’

Didactic cleanroom

Over the past two years, ViTalent has already provided training courses and short programmes at companies’ own premises. Now that the new facility is complete, the majority of courses will be organised there. ViTalent has classrooms and laboratories, but it is the technical hall in particular that makes the centre unique for practical training in Flanders. Van der Linden: ‘The technical hall houses all the key processes found at life sciences companies. These include physical processes and reactors, but also warehouses, a didactic cleanroom, and packaging installations. Reality has been replicated as closely as possible to enhance the learning experience. It truly feels as though you are standing in a business environment. The same safety, health, and environmental regulations apply here as in actual companies.’

‘It truly feels as though you are standing in a business environment’

It is the perfect environment in which to simulate processes and replicate high-risk situations, without any genuine physical danger. ‘You can, for example, drive the temperature and pressure in a reaction vessel dangerously high — you see this on the computer screen, but not in the actual installation in the technical hall. In this way, trainees learn to deal with problems, but within a safe environment. You learn a great deal by resolving faults in a process. That is something you simply cannot do in active production.’

ViTalent targets three groups: employees, job seekers, and new entrants to the labour market. Both entry-level and experienced employees from life sciences companies are welcome. ‘At some point in their career, everyone needs continuing professional development. Here we offer courses on new legislation and codes of conduct, for instance, as well as on new technical developments.’ The competence centre is also continuously developing new training programmes. ‘We work closely with companies in doing so, enabling us to respond to the sector’s broader needs. We can also offer tailor-made training specific to an individual company. This ensures that employees’ knowledge remains consistently up to date.’

A larger talent pool

ViTalent also has a remit to act as a bridge between job seekers and companies. ‘We have developed a five-day training programme for the Flemish Public Employment Service (VDAB). Following a three-day screening process, interested job seekers can undertake training to become a basic operator in the life sciences. Those who pass the training receive a certificate and are given the opportunity to take part in a speed-dating event with potential employers. A great number of matches between candidates and companies have already been made in this way.’ Van der Linden is therefore keen to expand this collaboration further.

‘At some point in their career, everyone needs continuing professional development’

And then there are those who are new to the labour market. ‘The labour market is currently extremely tight. Companies are adjusting the competency requirements for new staff in order to cast their net more widely. However, that does mean those competencies must subsequently be supplemented with specific training’, says Van der Linden. ViTalent offers training programmes designed to equip young talent with the right qualifications for a career in this sector. ‘We run these courses very frequently, because companies recruit staff throughout the year.’

A mark of quality

That ViTalent has chosen to establish itself in Niel, on the Science Park of the University of Antwerp, is entirely logical according to Van der Linden. ‘A number of significant start-ups and scale-ups in the health sector are based here. We have a substantive connection with the companies on site and with the university. The wider Antwerp region is, moreover, one of Belgium’s life sciences hubs. There is also an excellent working relationship with the Provincial Development Agency of Antwerp.’

In 2021, ViTalent welcomed nearly 650 people onto one of its training programmes. Yet for Van der Linden, the future of the competence centre cannot be reduced to a single figure. ‘We can accommodate several thousand students per year here. But the numbers are not my primary concern. I would like to see the certificate that successful participants receive here regarded as a mark of quality. It would also be wonderful if, in a few years’ time, the name ViTalent came up in every conversation about a training need in the life sciences.’