Engineering: issues, challenges and opportunities for development ...

ENGINEERING: ISSUES CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR DEVELOPMENTFigure 8: The project cycleOperations andmaintenanceEngineering andre-engineeringConstructionRetired wisdomHarnessing retired capacity is not unique to South Africa andshould be considered by all countries experiencing skills shortages.Researching the use of retired staff to bolster capacity, the Canadians*have identified that older people find it difficult to slow downand missed being able to contribute. Interviewing South Africanretirees, there was a great desire to plough back the knowledgeand expertise that they had accumulated in their many illustriouscareers, and to share this with young people. The photo below capturesthe involvement of ‘Retired wisdom’ at a site meeting.* Available at: www.volunteer.ca/volunteer/pdf/OlderAdults-Eng.pdf(Accessed: 27 May 2010).line with modern-day, bottom-line conscious training trends,most graduates are given only sufficient training to be able toperform a specific task and earn income for their company.This does not allow for graduates to understand the wholeproject cycle as shown in Figure 8 and become competentprofessionals able to lead development or work independently.Not only is this a problem in terms of developing a newcadre of engineering professionals for the future, but it resultsin graduates becoming frustrated with the apparent lack ofopportunities and a seemingly dead-end career. Consequently,DesignDrawingDetailingPlanningQuantiteesDraw uptenderReceive briefTenderDevelopnew briefAdjudicate &award tenderDecommissioning© A. LawlessUpgradeRefurbishRepairMaintenanceOperationHandoverOperatingdocumentation /as builtsCommissioningConstructionFabricationCase studyLearning the tricks of the tradeThe only way to become proficient in the workplace is to gain practicalexperience under the guidance of a seasoned professional.According to Skinner,* a learning theorist, the development ofprofessional skills cannot be left to chance but requires comprehensiveformal instruction, preferably on a one-on-one basis. Below,students and graduates paired with mentors hone their civil engineeringskills in the workplace.Students and graduates assist with rural waterschemesThe Zululand District Municipality is responsible for deliveringwater and sanitation services to just under one million people. Itwas found that technical staff were insufficiently experienced tocarry the load, and required dedicated training on all phases of theproject cycle. A widely experienced old-time engineer held weeklyclasses for thirteen junior civil engineering staff, setting each tasksfor the following week on which to practice their new found skills.After eighteen months of intensive workplace training they wereall au fait with survey, design, CAD, the call-for-tender process andwere able to cut their teeth on the construction of major projectsdelivering water to thousands of people. This model has formed thefoundation for the structured approach being developed for theindustry as a whole.* Skinner, B.F. 1953. Science and human behaviour. New York: Macmillan.early losses from the profession or excessive job-hopping withlittle professional progress are experienced. When challengingcompanies over this problem, they contend that today’sgraduates ‘are not what they used to be’ and take much longerto train.In response to this, structured workplace training guidelinesare being developed, complete with psychometric and abilitiestesting to give companies guidance on the most appropriatemanner in which to handle each graduate based on his or herprogress to date. This phase is being packaged as the ‘candidatephase’ against which tax incentives or skills levies will bepaid to employers who are prepared to commit to reintroducingthe solid workplace training, which was in place duringthe boom of the 1970s and early 1980s. The ‘Case study’ boxshows one of the first local government teams being exposedto structured workplace training.Foreign capacityBecause the commencement date of many engineeringprojects had not been set, it was determined that if all theabove initiatives were successful and projects were staggered,the country would have sufficient capacity to cope with itsdevelopment challenges. If projects were brought forward orthe number or size of projects increased substantially, it wouldbe necessary to harness foreign skills, either on a short-termbasis or through dedicated immigration programmes.324