Innovation in engineering education: a French sample of design and continuous updating of an engineering school to industrial needs

The ENSGSI (National School of Industrial Engineering) was founded in 1993 and drives this new approach to training engineers. Cooperation with the economic environment is organised around three actions: accompanying industrial change within regional SMEs proposing actions to accompany the sparking of innovation in major industries as well as in service sectors such as health structuring the management of complex local government projects. This paper will present how the evolution in industrial and economic demand regarding the question of innovation, as well as the consideration of this in the orientation of a French laboratory's research projects, contributed to reducing the gap between corporate requirements for a new type of engineer and the capacity of engineering schools to meet this demand. We will present the methods used both to design the school and to build our teaching referential which ensures a process of permanent adjustment to market needs.