Twente can get to work training extra talent for the microchip sector

Industry, educational institutions and other regional partners have drawn up a plan for this in good cooperation and can now start implementing it. 'We are very happy with this. Because of the strength of our cooperation in Twente, there is an important basis for achieving results together and quickly implementing the plan,' Ank Bijleveld, chair of the Twente Board, states. 'But there is also a critical note to make. Namely, within this trajectory, the cabinet does not make any exceptions or specific agreements on the Internationalisation in Balance Act. Recruiting international students is a crucial point in our plan, for which we are already working intensively with the other regions. VNO-NCW also emphasised this recently in their letter to the Parliamentary Committee of OCW'.

The formalised allocation per region is on its way, but the educational institutions are already ready: 'We are in the starting blocks to educate more Twente talent for suppliers for the microchip sector,' said ROC van Twente Executive Board president Trudy Vos.

Sander Verschoor, managing director of VDL ETG Almelo, endorses the importance of talent: 'For Twente companies, I see many opportunities in the microchip industry. Twente is an innovative region that has a lot of potential, an attractive business climate, a strong industrial ecosystem and reliable suppliers. We are pleased that this award has been made for the Twente region, as (technical) talent is essential to make the most of the opportunities.'

As a strong technology region, Twente is thus making an important contribution to the microchip sector. Students educated in Twente not only find their place at companies in the region, but also fan out across the Netherlands, such as at ASML, for example.

Points of attention

The cabinet is positive about the plans and stressed some points of attention in its letter to parliament.

Part of the funds will be allocated now; for the remainder, the detailed plans will follow at a later stage. For instance, the Semicon Learning Centre and activities in the field of lifelong learning for 2025 and 2026 still require further elaboration. For Lifelong Learning, the cabinet sees opportunities to collaborate with other regions and learn from each other. 'This is something that we will address,' says Bijleveld. 'We have a picture of the areas of concern, and we are working on them.' The requested 3.8 million for lifelong development is expected to be allocated unconditionally in mid-2025.

The government further notes that there is tension between the National Microchip Talent Reinforcement Plan and the budget cuts in higher education. This could potentially impact the effectiveness and efficiency of the plans. 'We keep mentioning it, we should encourage the choice of technical studies and fund its growth instead of cutting higher education,' Bijleveld said.

Importance of the microchip sector

Investing in the microchip sector is of great importance to the Netherlands from both an economic and societal perspective. The sector will be an important carrier of the economy in the future. ASML is among the absolute world leaders in chip technology and has substantial growth ambitions. To achieve this, the entire chain, of which Twente is an essential part, must grow. Companies like VDL ETG, Demcon, NTS Hengelo, Benchmark Electronics and Tecnotion are strategically important suppliers and, together with many SMEs in the region, fulfil a crucial role for the sector. In short, ASML can only grow if companies in Twente grow, too.

Investing in technically skilled talent

For that growth, it is necessary to invest in technically skilled talent: educating Dutch talent, attracting and retaining international talent, focusing on lateral entrants and retraining existing employees. In the Netherlands, too few students still opt for a technical study programme. As a result, there is a growing shortage of technically skilled personnel in the labour market. The number of vacancies continues to rise. The shortage of technical talent is holding back the development of the chip sector in the Netherlands. Although we are a global leader in this technology, this puts that position under pressure.

Twente plans

Together, the educational institutions, the Twente business community and the government united within the Twente Board and developed a plan for the sustainable strengthening of the sector. This plan describes measures that will lead to an outflow of extra technically educated students at MBO, HBO and WO levels and includes various measures to retain talent.

In the period up to and including 2030, 1,640 extra students should enrol in a technical study programmes. This should lead to a structural increase of some 480 graduates in the following years. A key ambition is to connect the potential of students being educated to microchip companies and increase the 'stay rate' of (international) students in the region and in the Netherlands.

There are also measures that, in the short term, will educate additional potential from lateral entry and target groups that are currently less represented in the microchip sector through a Lifelong Learning offer. Over the next five years, this should help almost 800 additional people find their way into the microchip sector and around 2,200 existing workers in the sector to be trained in the latest technology.

Unique in the approach is the Semicon Learning Centre, an important showcase for the microchip sector in Twente and the Netherlands. In the centre, industry, students and researchers work together on, for example, practical and research assignments. People also come into contact with the opportunities offered by the sector and the equipment used in and around ASML's machines. In the set-up of the Semicon Learning Centre, companies' challenges are central, and business vocational schools play an important role.

About Project Beethoven

Within Project Beethoven, extra investments are made in talent development to strengthen the Dutch microchip sector: 450 million euros until 2030 and, after that, structurally 80 million euros per year. The aim is to educate more technicians quickly for this sector, for instance, by recruiting and enrolling more students and retraining more people. As this is a national task, the government has asked MBOs, HBOs and universities in four regions across the country (Groningen, Enschede, Delft and Eindhoven) to come up with a detailed plan together with the microchip sector.