A feat of Engineering? Or just another PR triumph? You have time to decide.

by Richard Spragg

Five or six years ago, a marketing consultancy I was working with put out a press release for April Fools Day. It announced that they had been selected to brand and promote the world’s first commercial spaceport. They included pictures of a futuristic looking spaceport in the desert and an impressive highbred of concord and space shuttle dreamed up by a young graphic designer. It was all very persuasive, but too far-fetched to be convincing. Good fun though, and good PR.

On Monday, it was for real.

Sir Richard Branson, the deliberately eccentric British entrepreneur, announced the opening of his New Mexico Space Port to much media interest and an equal amount of eye rolling scorn.

We have all the hallmarks of a PR exercise, complete with celebrities, promotion schedule and glitzy marketing. Press Releases include the usual Star-trek language and the obligatory gubernatorial plugging for New Mexico and its long tradition of pioneering innovation and yada yada yada.

Kate Winslet, no less, will be heading for orbit it seems, along with her boyfriend - Branson’s nephew – Ned Rocknroll  (his name changed from Smith by deed poll before he married in an open-air pagan ceremony led by a druid.) You couldn’t accuse him of not trying hard enough.

All of the hype creates skepticism. There is some speculation as to the authenticity of the claims of space travel. (There will be no orbiting and no weightlessness.) There is also the fact that we have been promised flights will begin 'next year' for a very long time. Of course, this time they mean it. 

But let’s give credit where it’s due. There is a substantial feat of engineering at the heart of this enterprise, and we mustn’t throw the baby out with the PR bathwater. Yes, the hype is annoying, and yes, we are not looking at a breakthrough in human achievement – it’s the first commercial space flight, not the first space flight. But take some time to flip through the basics of Burt Rutan's engineering and you will see something truly inspiring.

Also, at $200,000 a ticket, there is a significant achievement in making space travel accessible. After all this is rather less than the $20m that was paid by Dennis Tito in 2001 to be the world’s first Space Tourist. Branson believes he can get this down to $25,000 in ten years.

Branson with a model of 

Spaceship 1

What’s more, Branson has a plan and almost nobody else does. So let’s give him the respect he deserves. It’s highly likely that the future commercial space industry will look back upon him as a pioneering father figure; everyone knows the Wright Brothers suffered endless ridicule. Furthermore, with the US Space Shuttle program retired, you can bet that Branson’s technology will be an influence in the race to commercially deliver the next space program.

It’s also guaranteed that Branson will achieve his dream without throwing away his fortune on it, as so many before him have. Engineers salute. Look past the showbiz. When all the glitz has been swept away, the engineering will remain. Branson is a visionary and a man capable of making extraordinary things happen. It’s not long ago that commercial space travel was an April Fool’s joke. He is making it a reality.

Richard Spragg writes on various subjects including global engineering staffing and global engineering jobs.

LNG export faces obstacles to long term viability, but Engineers still win.

by Richard Spragg 

Sabine Pass, where an export terminal is planned for 2015

With a century’s supply, no predicted increase in domestic demand and higher prices in Europe and Asia, it’s easy to see why excitement is growing around gas exports. Morgan Stanley estimates that North American LNG export capacity can reach 10% of production by 2015. But there are inherent problems when it comes to LNG exports, and this optimism may be misplaced. Here are just a few  reasons why growing export markets will be challenging.

The US is remote from key markets

It’s hard to compete with Russia and Australia in the supply of the booming Asia market. With Nuclear power under threat, LNG is likely to pick up some of the slack in the region. In addition, China’s current usage (11% below global averages) is likely to increase. But the long voyage from the US makes it difficult for US exporters to capitalize on these markets.

Current US Infrastructure

The US has 12 LNG terminals in Maryland, Georgia, Louisiana, Texas and Massachusetts.  All are primarily designed for domestic supply and none have significant export capabilities. On the upside, projects are planned to increase export facilities - including the retrofit of a terminal for liquefaction at Sabine Pass, the USA’s largest LNG plant by Cheniere Energy. This will not be operational for three years.

Too many variables affect pricing

Successful exports depend on the domestic price of gas remaining low (Right now domestic prices have been stagnant at $4 mmbtu - currently $3) and international prices remaining high (UK - $9 / Asia - $13). And while the price remains tied to oil, crude prices would have to remain high too. All of this may well happen, but it may not.

Regardless of whether the US develops a significant LNG export business, the news is good for hiring companies engaged across the sector who will see varied and interesting project opportunities upgrading the infrastructure. What’s good news for them is good news for the engineering and construction job market, which will continue to expand as investment in LNG grows.

It's a case of 'Build it. They will come.' In the meantime, the work will continue to everyone's benefit.








Richard Spragg writes on various subjects including global engineering staffing and global engineering jobs.

Engineering Crisis in OG&C - A Classic Story of Supply and Demand

by Mike Moriarty


Look at the career opportunities pages of most major oil and gas jobs operators worldwide and you’ll see hundreds of positions for engineers at every career level. And that’s just the majors. EPCs, equipment suppliers, vessel builders and others are competing to garner the attention of the energy industry’s new and top engineering talent.

Project, chemical, and process engineers, geophysicists, seismologists and more are in high demand the world over. Add to that, the support industry positions like equipment designers, IT experts, fluid injection and biochemical engineers and you get the picture. Untraditional fields, sands, shale and new technology all mean engineering. There’s one small problem…the number of qualified engineers doesn’t necessarily meet the demand.

The Causes
A relatively flat historical price per barrel of oil adjusted for inflation from the 1980s to early 2000s saw a lull in the OG&C marketplace in terms of employment opportunities for young engineers.  Some major oil and gas programs at colleges and universities even shut down due to low demand.

Enter 2008.  “Peak” oil, environmental regulations, unrest in the Middle East and Africa, the Iranian nuclear threat, speculation and more all led to a record jump in oil prices. OG&C careers became desirable again – in short order and with a shortage of available talent to fill the positions.

“In countries like Nigeria, where oil is the main industry, everyone wants “in” so finding a number of interested candidates is not a problem. In the Western world, we are competing with lucrative IT careers for young talent. In the UK, it’s the financial sector. When the price per barrel rises, our number of applications for enrollment goes up, when the price goes down, enrollment drops off on a proportionately measurable level. There is a lag in supply and demand of engineering candidates.  When the price fluctuates in either direction the lag tends to be one year in Europe and two years in the United States.  We’ve mapped the data and the correlation is very strong,” states the Chairman of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) Talent Council and Professor at London’s Imperial College, Dr. Alain Gringarten.

Tar sands, shale gas and deep water well production become economically feasible as prices rise. Despite recent fluctuations, these new sources remain profitable because new technologies such as horizontal shale wells and fracking technology improvements, tar sands conversion processes and more have lowered the cost of non-traditional extraction. With these new technologies comes the demand for increasingly specialized education and experience.

“Although definite advancements have been made, we are still learning about extracting oil from these sources. Projects such as these demand a higher education and an experience level beyond an undergraduate petroleum engineering degree. If fact, we did away with our undergraduate degree [at Imperial College] because the new technologies involved with increasingly complicated extraction methods, such as  deep wells and exploration, require a sophisticated level of thinking and specialized knowledge of core subjects such as geophysics, electrical, structural and mechanical engineering.” adds Dr. Gringarten, “Candidates for our master’s and doctorate programmes must have a proven background in these core disciplines because the material covered requires it. Degrees are tailored to mastering highly specific areas of petroleum engineering which are based on their prior education and experience.”

The Competition is Fierce for Oil & Gas jobs
Even though some industry experts estimate that it takes a young engineer about 8-10 years of experience to evolve into a senior leader, a concept further supported by Dr. Gringarten’s comments , younger engineers in the energy industry are still sitting in the catbird seat. The attrition of the Baby Boomer professionals, the lure of IT disciplines for potential candidates, and other factors, still makes them, and existing senior level talent, the new “black gold” of the industry.

Since 2008, higher education is the U.S. has been scrambling to resurrect programs, and, graduates of energy concentrated engineering programs have nearly a 100-percent chance of getting hired upon graduation, sometimes even before they graduate.

“In this market,” states Damiene Humphrey, Account Executive for Troy, MI based technical staffing firm, Talascend.  “you have to wear a lot of hats and be ready to roll because the opportunity to fit the right candidate with the right company can pass you by if you’re not paying attention or making the right offer. In addition to managing accounts and developing relationships with new customers, even I find myself sourcing, pre-qualifying, recruiting and selling our customers to engineering professionals. It’s all worth it when you make that connection between fit and need.”


Help in the Fight
Project and hiring managers across the energy industry certainly have their work cut out for them. The engineering shortage is worldwide and has created a greater demand for corporate recruiters and human resources professionals as well. Some companies are turning to industry organizations and technical resourcing companies for help in enticing candidates through their doors.

“It’s a full time job for hiring managers and then some,” adds Humphrey. “I’ve been in the oil industry for quite some time and I’ve never seen anything like the spike in demand for specialized engineering talent that we’ve experienced over the past few years. The qualified candidate pool is small and global in nature. Many of my clients are shocked at the increase in baseline benefits and incentives required simply to get an experienced candidate’s consideration these days. Because of this phenomenon, hiring managers should look for a resourcing partner that digs deeper, beyond the resume and skills, to find out exactly the type of person they want to add to their organization. The wrong hire can be very costly.”

“The SPE Talent Council is engaged in helping to ensure degree programs meet today’s high level of standards in terms of education. What was taught in schools 20 years ago is not very applicable in today’s hi-tech industry,” says Dr. Gringarten. “In countries where new discoveries are being made like Ghana, Angola and Kazakhstan, while the desire is there, the educational resources are not. The SPE Talent Council and its members are also helping develop educational programs in these areas and connecting developing markets with experts in the industry to improve the quality and quantity of their engineering talent to help balance supply and demand,” says Dr. Gringarten.

The Future
The future of OG&C engineering jobs, much like the barrel price, is uncertain. There is certainty that the need for qualified engineers specializing in industry related disciplines will continue to increase as new technologies emerge. In addition to US colleges and universities, hiring managers and project managers may need to take a more global approach to finding their next all-star recruit. Malaysia, the Middle East and surrounding areas are current hotspots for finding young talent. Industry organizations and resourcing firms with a global reach can help in the effort to garner the attention of top industry talent as well.




Richard Spragg writes on various subjects including global engineering staffing and global engineering jobs and oil and gas jobs.

GM’s gamble has to be part of a longer term strategy, built on market understanding

by Richard Spragg

Whether you blame bad management, Union intransigence, Washington or anyone else for the auto industry’s woes, the fact remains that the Big 3 are now looking at a new market landscape. Behind the wrangling and politics is a simple business fact. You have to understand the products that your customers want to buy, both now and in the future, and you have to deliver those products at the right price. 

The 2011 Equinox. One of GM's best selling Crossovers

Today, GM took a step toward reclaiming some of its market share with the news that it will reopen its Spring Hill manufacturing plant in Tennessee to handle increasing demand for two of its biggest sellers: the Chevrolet Equinox and the GMC Terrain; both crossovers enjoying significantly increased sales.

[Equinox sales are up 48% this year with 130,000 sold through August. Terrain sales are up even further – 61% and 57,000 units for the same 8 months. ]

Local media report that the UAW expects Spring Hill to reopen in 2012 with 500 hourly workers. GM will invest $420 million on two programs creating about 1,700 jobs total.

On the face of things, this is a sensible, practical move that will create much needed jobs and stimulate a local economy. GM are directing investment towards supplying what customers want. What they want now at any rate. The success of GM’s future planning depends on understanding the next shift in thinking for American consumers. And the Big 3 must be first to understand this and first to address these needs through future models. If the US auto industry is really coming back, it’s going to need to lead the market charge toward fuel efficient vehicles, not simply follow the trends established by Nissan, Honda and Toyota.

Maybe they can wrangle the Unions and achieve competitive levels in employment costs. Maybe they can negotiate the political mine field of Washington, in financial and legislative terms. 

Maybe.

But if they don’t have the products that people want ready for them to buy before their competition do, none of these things will matter.

It’s the market, people. And a market that doesn’t exist, is not affected by any of these complex issues. 

10 years later, One World Trade Centre will meet almost impossible expectations

by Richard Spragg

The trouble began almost immediately after thoughts turned from tragedy to rebuilding. Disputes over design, location, ownership and decision making dogged every step of the first stages of rebuilding Ground Zero. It showed everyone in the worst possible light; they looked like children, squabbling while a grieving nation was looking for calm voices to come together and rebuild.

Ten years after the loss of the original World Trade Center, the story is very different. What has emerged in lower Manhattan is a simply astounding achievement in every sense. Building a complex that is both respectful of the need for a major commercial hub in one of the world’s busiest financial centers, and also respectful of the site’s status as hallowed ground was an impossible task. How can you build on the site of the towers? How can you not build on the site of the towers? What memorial could possibly offer sufficient comfort to the families of the victims or to the city of New York? What building could possibly stand tall enough or large enough to demonstrate the resilience and pride of America?

“How do you create a plan that doesn’t shift New York to sadness but has a kind of civic quality, a symbolic quality that is positive?” said Daniel Liebskind, who’s master designs for the whole complex have underpinned the final result.

The answers have come with simplicity, cooperation and creative brilliance.

Today the 9/11 memorial opens to the public. Two reflective pools carrying the names of every person killed sit in the footprints of the towers. Michael Arad’s designs create a feeling of emptiness and loss, without misery or dejection. Around them Peter Walker’s landscape design delivers a natural reflective area of water, trees and grass. In the north west corner of the site, removed from the original twin towers, One World Trade Center is quietly climbing upward. Its first five stories already complete; by 2013 it will stand exactly 1776 feet and will be the tallest building in the United States.

500,000 square feet of retail space and 69 floors of commercial offices, vital to the local economy, will coexist seamlessly with a garden of reflection and remembrance. An empty space where nothing could ever have been built will remain empty, next to the tallest tower in the Western Hemisphere.

The site is a monument to more than lost life; it is a tribute to Americas resilience, its flexibility and to the power of engineering, architecture and construction.

Against all the odds, they've managed to marry the practical and emotional needs of a local community, an economy and a nation.




Richard Spragg writes on various subjects including global engineering staffing and global engineering jobs.

BP's concerns come as no surprise

By Andrew Rowlands

I was unsurprised to read that BP is struggling to find home-grown engineers to redevelop two oilfields in the North Sea (Sunday Telegraph, August 15). Sadly, the problem is not restricted to BP or the oil and gas industry. It is set to get worse because the output from British engineering-related degrees is static at best and the current workforce is aging rapidly.

I was also not surprised to learn that BP's Trevor Garlick linked the shortage to a 'brain drain'. We will need more new engineers than we think to simply tread water because engineering is the ultimate 'have skills will travel' profession. Research among the 300,000 engineers on our global database shows that three quarters of 21 to 30 year old British engineers want to work overseas, where their skills are increasingly in demand.

On the current trajectory, with a declining pool of recruits and overseas competition for talent affecting the supply side, we will surely be in crisis if the Government's plans to rebalance the economy towards industry comes to fruition. That is why the intervention by Sir John Parker, the new President at the Royal Academy of Engineering who called recently for a 50% increase in university qualified engineers per year, is to be welcomed.

If the Government fails in its goals and Sir John succeeds we should not let the thought of legions of unemployed engineers put us off from pursuing his ambitious targets. There will be plenty to keep our engineers occupied overseas even if their departure signifies a successful export industry we would rather not have.

Australian Engineers Week – Who cares? (apart from us engineers.)

 by Richard Spragg


Anyone who owns a television knows that this week is one of the most important weeks in the annual calendar. From August 1^st – August 7^th the world comes together to honor the most advanced and powerful beings on earth. That’s right folks, it’s Shark Week. 

Every nature channel, newspaper and magazine is dominated by savage looking pictures of these four hundred million year old beasts leaping ten feet out of the water and ripping their prey to shreds. Everyone loves a good shark – not up close and personal maybe, but few things make a better photograph or news story than a Great White. 

It’s also Australian Engineers Week. This is not quite so high profile, but perhaps that’s understandable, after all engineers can’t smell a single drop of blood in the ocean from a mile away. (Although I met a project director or two who would have a bloody good try.)

The comparison got a few of us here to thinking about the real source of a lot of our problems in the global engineering community. In a world where we see skill shortages almost everywhere, where technical projects of all shapes and sizes are threatened by a lack of available resources, we have to ask ourselves – what are we doing to attract more people into our industry? How can we make a career in engineering appealing to the next generation of potential engineers? 

This week, Engineers Australia (www.engineersaustralia.org) published its statistical overview for 2011 and one of the major conclusions of the study is that the number of new graduates entering the field has grown much slower than demand. We simply aren’t bringing as many people into engineering at a ground floor level as we need to. 

The results of low entry to the industry are obvious. Above all it means an increased dependence on overseas workers (52% of the engineering labor market was born overseas, compared to an average of 36% in other industries.) Engineering is a global community – there will always be an important flow of skills across national borders, and Australia is no different from any other country in importing necessary skills as they’re needed. But ultimately, Australia must grow and develop a home grown resource pool for everyone’s benefit and evidence shows that its ability to do that has flat lined. 

The solution has to come from inside the industry. What are we doing, as engineers, as employers, as contractors and as agencies to encourage increased participation from the next generation of engineers?

If the answer is ‘nothing’, then we cannot complain when our projects run out of staff, the majority of our workforce comes from outside Australia and our ability to deliver projects suffers now and in the future.

You don’t have to be a shark to see the trouble coming a long way off.


Talascend Australia is currently working with major employers in Australia's engineering market to find original answers to skill shortage issues. To contact us, visit www.talascend.com/australia

Projected Decrease in U.S. Telecom Industry Employment May Present Hiring Opportunities for Telecom Firms

by Mike Moriarty

With the entire industry buzzing about upgrades from 3G to 4G and fiber optic installations, it’s hard to believe that a downturn in telecommunications employment is on the way.  However, the US Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) 2010-2011 industry report projects a 9% decrease in telecom industry employment for the period 2008 to 2018.

 

What does this mean to your company?  It certainly doesn’t mean that the industry is dead. Instead, it is in a state of flux. In fact, a recent article suggests industry spending on new technology will be up through 2012. ₍₂₎ Simply put, it means opportunity for hiring managers to connect with top industry talent as the changes play out.

Background 

The current BLS report suggests an 11% reduction in the number of those employed in the wired sector and a 1% decrease in the wireless sector of the industry. Demonstrated productivity increases as new, more robust technologies are deployed, as well as the consolidation of providers and industry support companies, are largely credited with these decreases.  The wireless sector is constantly upgrading networks as new technologies emerge, however, upgrades are far less labor intensive than new construction.  In the wired sector, competition with wireless providers and the reliability of fiber optic networks over copper are reducing the need for repair and installation technicians. The report suggests that the need customer service reps will actually increase as a result of increased consumer demand for services and support.

The Challenge for Hiring Professionals 

As the demand for workers decreases, the number of skilled, reliable candidates available increases. It’s great for your business with the exception that connecting with the talent you need, when you need it, is a real challenge.  The best candidates for your next big upgrade or detailed site study may be in the middle of Oregon and you may be in Texas. Your job requirements may match some, but not all of their skill set.  They may have forgotten to check the “willing to relocate” box on their job board. The whole time, they have all-star credentials, are ready to move at a moment’s notice and are perfect for your job.  Yet, you don’t connect.

The Opportunity

Resourcing firms specializing in technology and engineering solutions have already done the legwork.  Their job is to pre-qualify candidates for specialized positions and immediate mobilization. If they’re doing it right, they also get the whole story behind your hiring needs.  

Sergio Aguirre, an Account Executive at global technology resources company Talascend in Troy, MI says, “It’s very important that your resourcing partner asks the right questions. They should be asking questions like, ‘You gave me the job description and requirements but, who are you really looking to hire?  What’s not on the job description that you really want?’ Look for a firm that digs a little deeper and you’re more likely to get better results.”

VP of Sales at Talascend, Debra Timmerman, concurs, “Customers should expect their resourcing partner to pre-qualify proven, talented candidates before they are presented. There is a lot of diversity in the telecom marketplace.  While one engineer may specialize in fiber, another may be a cellular expert, or both. You might even find a line technician that is working toward a P.E. designation.  Those are the types of things that can get missed on a resume. Pre-qualification’s end result is that your positions are filled more quickly, with the best fit possible, even in highly-specialized areas of employment.”    

Are Resourced Technical Solutions Right for Your Telecom Enterprise?

Only you can make that decision. Technical resource firms often offer a range of contracts from temporary, project-by-project staffing to permanent, direct-hire services. With large teams of recruiters specializing in various technical fields, they often make your search and hiring processes exponentially faster. They offer services on an competitive or RPO basis.  Look for a firm with worldwide reach to increase your chances of finding the most qualified candidates. Also look for a resourcing partner that is a member of professional staffing organizations.  

In this day and age of marketplace uncertainty, it pays to have a partner ready to step-in and perform when you need it most. A technical resourcing firm may be the answer to helping you meet the challenge.