Fjellugla Kompetanse AS

Fjellugla Competanse Ltd (Fjellugla Kopotanse AS, further just FKA), was established in late August 2010, much as a protest against centralization of organizations working with building up competence to larger cities and more populated areas in the country.

At the beginning of the organization’s foundation and networking, 14 people signed up, today about 45 people have signed up to the organization (mostly tradesmen).

FKA is located in the small village of Tynset, about 6000 inhabitants, but still an active region center for 7 municipalities there. Tynset can be found about 360 km north of Oslo on a direct line to Trondheim, up in the high mountains.

To explain the name through a direct translation to English:

Fjell = Mountain; Ugle = Owl (the wisest bird here in Norway) Kompetanse = Competence; AS = Ltd

FKA is not traditional company. They are a relatively loose organization with no employees. They are considered a dynamic network of specialists and ctraftsmen coordinated from Tynset by Per Halvorsen and his wife Marit. Their main business idea was in the field of adult learning of all kinds of subjects and levels. They develop or carry through all kinds of courses and seminars from pure hobby courses up to university level. They often work integrated with a University College in Norway with local community development, innovation and creative processes and establishing of new jobs and opportunities in rural areas.

Apart from all mentioned above they are also heavily engaged in international projects projects through the EEA and Norway Grants.
They focus mainly on crafts and especially traditional crafts and techniques and new plans for master crafts certificates all over Europe. Nowadays there is a great demand for such projects in Europe!

FKA is engaged in educational jobs with all kinds of obligatory certificates for the building industry and courses qualifying for the theory exam to a number of craft certificates in Norway. They are also doing a lot of courses and educational programs on demand from private companies and public organizations, tailor made for their specific needs.

The last years they also have worked on language programs for work oriented Norwegian for migrants and programs for youth and ethnic groups with different problems facing the labor market.

Marit and Per like to say that they can take on every kind of task demanded, if the customer can guarantee at least 10 participants. If the task is quite new, they need time to develop it, but through their network they have a lot of skills and experiences and have never been forced to give up a job. In addition to all this, they have skills to teach and instruct in practical work in a lot of different crafts needed in restoration and revitalization of buildings and cultural monuments.