Before taking the exam, most candidates have participated in either 120 or 60-day courses. One third of these courses comprises theoretical studies and the remaining two thirds consists of guided practical training at the workplace. GRAM was established especially to help small and medium sized companies. The project area is Helsinki and the surrounding province where about half of all graphical industry jobs are located. The Media Workers Union is one of five partners involved in the project.
Researchers form the fifth group.
Encouraged by GRAM's good results, the partners have founded similar projects in several other provinces. In the beginning the main challenge was to create a system which would enable small and medium sized companies to let their employees take longer periods of study. Pekka Lahtinen of the Media Workers Union says that thanks to these efforts the industry now has a proper system of vocational education. In the past, a skilled worker did not need extra studies, but now looking for additional learning opportunities is a sign of a really skilled worker. Leo Norvio, an employers federation leader, emphasises the significance of these developments on the international competitiveness of the Finnish graphical industry.