EUROPEN - PEN International means the World Wide Practice Enterprises Network and it’s the international network of all the pedagogical enterprises belonging to EUROPEN through their national Central Office.The main tasks of EUROPEN - PEN International are: the co-ordination of the international practice enterprises network, the monitoring activities, the co-ordination of the international telecommunications group, necessary for the communication standards between the different countries. The Italian Central Office situated at the vocational training centre Istituto Don Calabria in Ferrara started its activity in October 1994, supported by Emilia-Romagna Region, the first Italian Region which experimented with the simulation methodology.

SIMULIMPRESA is a training project oriented at the qualification in the administrating, tourism and industrial field using the simulation method.The program promotes the training through the experience acquired in a real environment (working hours, discipline, real working situations, tasks development).

Each practice firm focuses on a real office or an enterprise framework in a certain area.The participants work in a real productive atmosphere and learn and realize the requested tasks. At the end of the course the participant has a global concept about office work, with working experience and with adaptation skills for a job as e.g. flexibility and enterprise culture.

The Italian Central Office - the Simulimpresa network
The participants in practice firms are unemployed, graduates from high-schools or universities and young people with a low school attendance level, students of Technical Commercial and Vocational Institutes, young students of primary schools, workers integrated within business innovator processes who must up-date their own vocational skills.
In setting up new practice firms and co-ordinating existing practice firms , the Central Office offers the following services:
- advice, co-ordination and trainers training in setting up practice firms
- advice on training, business, economic and legal matters
- co-ordination of contacts between practice firms
- setting standards for practice firm operations

The co-operation with real companies, called also “mother” companies, can bring various benefits:
- it ensures a permanent relation with the local business world and with the problems of companies;
- there’s a possibility to integrate the students directly into the real companies;
- organizing running: enterprise and offices framework;
- it brings the companies closer to education/training world and vice-versa;
- technical assistance : products features, list of raw materials, prices.

International trading
The positive results of this experience initiated in 1994/95 caused a notable interest at regional and national level.Therefore the practice firms increased the international trading with the other over 4.500 international practice firms. As from March 1996 on, Italy became a full member of EUROPEN, through the qualifications obtained in a practice firm the trainees are more qualified and gain a bigger mobility and flexibility, which allows them to find work internationally.The countries involved in the network are:Germany, Austria, Denmark, Spain France, Great Britain, Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, Tzchech, Rep., Finland, Lithuania, Poland, Romania,  Belgium, Ireland, Slovenia, Norway, Greece, Portugal, Canada, United States of America, Australia, China etc.