Report urges engineers to grasp opportunities

Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Dec 18, 2000

A hard-hitting report has been presented to Lord Sainsbury, the Minister for Science, on the future role of the Engineering Council - the lead registration and regulatory body for the profession

A hard-hitting report presented today to Lord Sainsbury, the Minister for Science, on the future role of the Engineering Council - the lead registration and regulatory body for the profession - pulls no punches.

The main findings of the report (called "Making the Best of Valuable Talent") produced by the "Hawley Group" - an independent review team - are unequivocal.

- There is a real opportunity for a new style Engineering Council to make a considerable contribution to wealth creation.

- Requirements for engineering and technological skills are changing fast.

- It is vital the Council and the profession keep pace so as to serve economic needs adequately.

- This requires major changes to be implemented.

Such changes will have the support of business and industry.

The report responds to a request from Lord Sainsbury for a strategic paper whose recommendations should be implemented quickly in the New Year.

The Hawley Group, set up 15 months ago, conducted research and survey work across a wide spectrum of companies, and from company chairmen to young graduates.

The Report's objective is to set the course that the Engineering Council, the profession and the Government should now follow in order to maximise the value of engineering and technology skills to the economy.

It offers a snapshot into current thinking about engineering skills across the business community and society at large.

The document recognises that UK engineers are among the best in the world, but it warns that this is a profession in need of an overhaul.

It recommends a sea change.

Even the term "engineer" does not adequately embrace the wider technology and engineering community.

The Engineering Council itself may need to be renamed.

The "Hawley Group" canvassed opinion widely and found that neither engineers nor their employees are satisfied with the current skills mix.

They want to learn other disciplines and in particular to acquire business skills so that they can contribute better to wealth creation.

The profession is keen to reposition itself and become part of the "science, engineering and technology community." Dr Robert Hawley, who is also the current Chairman of the Engineering Council said: "The Hawley Group has heard that many engineers and business leaders want the Council to become more relevant and credible.

It should offer the expertise and know-how which make it a natural place for industry to turn for help and guidance on pan-professional matters.

These issues are not found in British engineering alone.

They are world-wide and we believe the UK's efforts to tackle it lead the field." A key aspect of the "Hawley Group" research is that it explored the needs of innovative high-tech companies as well as more traditional forms of engineering.

The Group has found that the wider engineering community wants an organisation which will: - Help give engineers entrepreneurial and business skills.

- Exploit the web for keeping knowledge up to date.

- Support business in matching skills to jobs.

"The development of the future careers of scientists and technologists, of which we employ many, will be seriously enhanced if many of these proposals are taken up", commented Crispin Simon, chief executive of Biocompatibles plc, who was one of the senior industrialists consulted.

The report has identified several key areas where the Engineering Council working with the engineering Institutions can add greater value to the UK economy.

One is in the promotion of engineering.

The "Hawley Group" recognises that although each of the 34 professional engineering Institutions in the UK has something important to say, "too many voices are currently giving confused messages." This is especially true when encouraging young people into engineering.

Above all the report says: "Too little attention is being paid to the real needs of specific customer groups and audiences." The report itself is based on extensive research and is "customer led" in developing proposals for the future.

Quite simply, a new Engineering Council now has the opportunity to become the profession's standard bearer.

In the challenging and changing times ahead it should have two immediate goals: to bridge "old" and "new" economy skills and to help people cope with quickly changing knowledge and the resulting information overload.