Skills Light Up Life: The First "Schneider Electric Cup" Electrical Installation Application Technology Competition Successfully Held

Beijing, China – November 4, 2019: The "Schneider Electric Cup" Electrical Installation Application Technology Competition of the 2019 National Vocational Education Skills Contest for the Machinery Industry was successfully held at Nanjing Technician College on November 2–3. The event drew 52 student teams representing 32 vocational colleges from across the country. Among them, four teams from Nanjing Technician College and Kaifeng Technician College clinched first place in the secondary vocational group, while one team from Xinxiang Technician College claimed the top spot in the higher vocational category.

The inaugural "Schneider Electric Cup" Electrical Installation Application Technology Competition Successfully Held

In recent years, as the economy has shifted from high-speed growth to high-quality development, industries have continued to deepen their transformation and upgrading, while innovation-driven technological advancements have steadily intensified. Simultaneously, China is steadily transitioning from a manufacturing giant to a global manufacturing powerhouse. This evolution has created a growing and increasingly urgent demand for highly skilled engineers and other technical professionals—vital contributors to the manufacturing sector. On the other hand, the rapid advancement of emerging technologies like digitalization underscores the need for talent development that keeps pace with these changes. As industries strive to enhance their technical expertise, there’s also a strong push toward fostering green, sustainable practices. Meanwhile, domestic authorities at all levels have placed great emphasis on cultivating skilled talent, introducing a series of forward-thinking policies aimed at refining and strengthening long-term mechanisms for nurturing high-caliber technical professionals. These initiatives not only help cultivate top-notch skills but also empower skilled workers to unlock new opportunities for career growth and development.

As a global expert in digital transformation for energy management and automation, Schneider Electric deeply understands the critical role that talent development plays in driving sustainable growth—not just for industries, but for society as a whole. By fostering industry-academia collaboration and collaborative education, we are actively supporting the cultivation of application-oriented skill professionals. Since its launch in 2015, Schneider Electric’s “BiBo Vocational Education Program” has established deep partnerships with numerous vocational institutions, spanning everything from high-level institutional development and cutting-edge lab infrastructure to comprehensive initiatives like teacher training, hands-on skills workshops, and certification programs—covering both the "hard skills" essential for technical expertise and the "soft skills" that empower students with confidence and teamwork abilities. To date, the BiBo program has expanded into diverse fields such as electrical and energy management, smart lighting and building automation, industrial automation, and intelligent manufacturing. It now collaborates with 65 partner institutions, has set up 63 state-of-the-art laboratories, trained over 500 full-time faculty members from these institutions, and directly benefited more than 30,000 students.

Schneider Electric is also bringing its cutting-edge digital technologies, industry-leading talent-development strategies, and decades of robust vocational education expertise from around the globe to China. By supporting skills competitions, the company aims to empower China’s workforce development in applied technologies, inspiring more students to explore and master the latest industry innovations and principles. At the same time, Schneider Electric hopes that through this competition, even more people will get a chance to step into the "world of skills," reshaping their perceptions of skilled professionals, deepening their understanding of the true essence of craftsmanship, and connecting with the dynamic pulse of modern industrial progress—ultimately witnessing firsthand the limitless possibilities that come with "skills turning dreams into reality."

The National Vocational Skills Competition in the Domestic Machinery Industry is hosted by the Domestic Machinery Vocational Education Teaching Steering Committee under the Ministry of Education and the Mechanical Industry Education Development Center. This year’s “Schneider Electric Cup” Electrical Installation Application Technology Competition is co-organized by Nanjing Technician College, which happens to be one of the partner institutions collaborating with Schneider Electric’s “Blue Sky Education Initiative.” The competition in electrical installation application technology encompasses three key areas: electrical control and protection applications, smart lighting system applications, and comprehensive professional competence. It tests not only the participants’ technical skills but also their ability to think critically using an engineering mindset and a systematic, science-based approach—skills essential for tackling complex challenges in the field.

Schneider Electric Global Executive Vice President and China President Yin Zheng stated: "Against the backdrop of industrial upgrading and deepening digital transformation, the shortage of high-quality skilled talent remains a widespread challenge facing the industry. Meanwhile, vocational colleges have taken on the critical responsibility of cultivating a large pool of highly skilled professionals. Through this competition, we aim to collaborate closely with education authorities and vocational institutions, aligning with evolving market demands to jointly advance the development of technical talent. Looking ahead, Schneider Electric will continue to move forward, further contributing to China's vocational education reforms and driving the nation’s industrial transformation and upgrading—ultimately helping to build a stronger, technology-driven and manufacturing-focused country."