Development of a Learning Portal for Construction Specialists

Summary

A British vocational qualification assessment provider for the construction industry saw an underserved market for vocational training and apprenticeship programs and wanted an online learning portal to meet the demand. INNERLUXES built an integrated learning and knowledge management system that serves employers, colleges and training providers, and individual learners through one intuitive interface — handling course management, individualized training plans, bookings and invoicing, competence tracking, and progress reporting.

About the Client

The Client is a British vocational qualification assessment provider for the construction industry, offering an alternative approach to training and competence management.

An Underserved Market for Vocational Training

The Client identified an underexploited niche in vocational training and apprenticeship programs and decided to meet the growing demand for programs in Construction Craft, Supervisory and Management, General Business Leadership and Management, and Occupational Health and Safety through an online learning portal.

One Portal Serving Employers, Providers, and Learners

INNERLUXES developed the Learning Portal, an integrated online knowledge and learning management system that gives comprehensive administration and management capabilities through an intuitive interface, letting members of vocational and higher educational establishments, private training providers, enterprise training managers, and individual learners interact seamlessly. The portal was tailored to the needs of each group:

• For employers — flag when competencies are due to expire and where training can be obtained to renew them, connect with training providers and select specialized courses on a rolling basis, allocate individualized training plans and monitor progress, and track attendance and attainment records across all employees.
• For colleges and training providers — manage the workload of multiple centers, trainers, assessors, verifiers, administrators, and managers; manage existing clients and attract new ones through online bookings, course scheduling, and invoicing; administer trainings and deliver learning materials efficiently; and access customizable management, progress, and assessment reports for learners and their employers.
• For learners — securely store and access training and competence records (courses, exams, assignments, tests, assessments, and qualifications), follow a clearly organized learning path with materials, revision exercises, assignments, and assessments, avoid double learning through a program tailored to prior knowledge, and gain new qualifications from home.

The system helps companies implement in-work staff training and build competence, meeting legislative and contractual obligations as well as organizational objectives, and lets Training, HR, and Production Managers take a strategic approach to managing competence and providing learning opportunities.

A Practical Tool for Tracking In-Work Training

• INNERLUXES successfully met the project's turnkey development and testing challenges.
• The learning portal became a convenient tool for governmental and private educational organizations and training centers to track and administer learning programs for in-work students from the construction industry.

Technologies and Tools

ASP.NET, C#, VB.NET, MySQL, Visual SourceSafe, Adapdev.