Global challenges, which include poverty, inequality and climate change, besides others, need to be tackled at local, national and international levels and this will require the use of engineering skills.

The engineering sector has a key role to play in achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA) president Refilwe Buthelezi said during industry body Consulting Engineers South Africa’s (Cesa’s) Infrastructure Indaba, which was held late last month.

She noted, however, that the engineering sector also had to contend with its own set of internal challenges and that these had to be dealt with first.

The internal challenges, she pointed out, included complex decision-making situations which not only required engineering skills, but also business acumen and political savvy.

Buthelezi emphasised that these skills must be attained without compromising the ECSA Code of Conduct for registered persons, which requires engineers to recognise and address the impact of engineering activities in the social, cultural and environmental spheres.

Therefore, she said, engineers needed to have the ability to serve customers and resolve society’s challenges locally and internationally.

Moreover, she said engineers needed to use technology and innovative solutions to demonstrate how to attract investment and help grow the economy.

Buthelezi pointed out that there was also a concerning trend of students losing interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects, which prevented further growth in the engineering sector.

She noted that there was a need to address this at each level of the value chain, starting with basic education, adding that it was especially important to encourage young girls to pursue STEM subjects.

She added that the quality of education must be of a high standard and aligned with industry standards.

This, Buthelezi averred, would result in a well-rounded engineering professional.

Further, Buthelezi said globalisation drove opportunities for engineers to promote change through sharing experience and good practice.

She emphasised that the leadership and influencing role of engineers in achieving sustainability should not be underestimated.

To achieve sustainable development, Buthelezi said, the industry would play an important role by planning and building projects that preserved natural resources, were cost efficient and supported human environments.

Most importantly, she emphasised that engineers must pivot from being tools in a toolbox, to conscious experts that enable and deliver sustainable solutions for humanity. “We must be activists for change”.

Buthelezi also mentioned the need for collaboration, with partnerships for the future entailing academia, industry, regulatory and government objectives aligning and working together.

Furthering Transformation

Another facet of the engineering sector that required attention was that of transformation.

Also speaking was Cesa CEO Chris Campbell, who emphasised the need for diversity, equity and inclusivity in the sector.

Campbell said statistics had shown that women were still not well represented in the engineering profession, with girls especially being discouraged from taking STEM subjects at school.

He noted that more work needed to be done at community level to encourage more buy-in in the sector, with the racial mix in the engineering sector also not reflecting the population statistics and the sector remaining untransformed.

Campbell said research showed that diverse organisations were more effective, successful and profitable.

Moreover, he said that evidence showed that companies with diverse senior leadership teams tended to be more financially successfully.

Campbell noted that diversity and inclusion not only provide a competitive edge in public procurement, but also facilitated developing solutions to suit demographics and preferences of end-users.

However, he cautioned that diversity did not automatically engender these benefits and it could not just be a box-ticking exercise.

Rather, he emphasised that it took work, buy-in from all stakeholders, consistency and entrenching it as a company culture.