The 47th edition of the WorldSkills competition, held in Lyon from September 10 to 15, 2024, brought together young talents from around the globe to showcase their skills in a wide range of professional disciplines. This prestigious event featured 1,500 competitors from nearly 70 countries, competing across 62 different professional categories in six sectors: construction and building technology, creative arts and fashion, information and communication technology, manufacturing and engineering technology, social and personal services, and transportation and logistics.

Matteo De Marchi, assistant professor for production systems at the Faculty of Engineering, leads the Smart Mini Factory lab in the areas of Industry 4.0 and intelligent production. He integrated his practical experiences from the lab into his teaching, delivering courses on digital production management and AI applications in industry. In his role as a nominated Expert and neutral judge for the Industry 4.0 skill, De Marchi participated in this international competition in France, alongside a delegation of experts and participants from WorldSkills Italy. “My role as an Independent Expert was aimed at enhancing the quality of the organization and performance of the competition, representing an impartial voice among the Expert Teams, each representing its national Competitors Team, and supporting the Chief Expert and the Technical Team in discussions, decisions, and evaluations,” explained the researcher.

Following the opening ceremony officiated by French President Emmanuel Macron, De Marchi joined the Experts Team as an Independent Expert to contribute to the organization of the competition. After four days of competition, the winners were announced at the official closing ceremony, held in a sold-out arena with 60,000 seats. 

"During the competition, I had the opportunity to engage in a meaningful conversation with the CEO of FESTO AG & Co. KG which sponsored the Industry 4.0 skill competition. We discussed the potential and challenges of such a prestigious contest from the perspectives of educators, teachers, competitors, and participants. The conversation left me inspired and further fueled my desire to attend the next WorldSkills competition with a team competing in this skill," said De Marchi.