Green Collar PMET’s needed for Green Building within next 10 years

Posted on August 13, 2010 by derek

From CNA:

SINGAPORE: About 20,000 professionals, managers, executives and technicians (PMETs) will be needed in the building and construction industry over the next 10 years to develop green buildings here.

Ms Grace Fu, Senior Minister of State for National Development said this at the 2010 Building and Construction Authority (BCA)-Industry Built Environment Scholarship Awards on Friday.

She said the move towards green buildings was one of the key trends being observed in the industry with countries worldwide, including Singapore, exploring ways to reduce carbon emissions and to be more energy efficient.

She said under its Green Building Masterplan, the BCA was working towards transforming the building sector to be more energy efficient, with buildings accounting for almost one third of Singapore’s national electricity consumption.

She added that to support and implement the Masterplan, Singapore would need 18,000 to 20,000 PMET to be trained over the next decade.

Ms Fu said: “This green collar workforce will meet the industry’s needs in developing green buildings at all stages of their life cycle – from upstream design and construction, to downstream operation and maintenance.”

Another trend she noted was that Singapore’s building and construction works had become more challenging over time. Given the country’s constraints, it will need more complex engineering solutions to expand Singapore’s underground use both in depth and in scale.

Citing the Marina Bay Sands Integrated Resort with its cantilevered skypark, and the Helix Bridge as examples, she said Singapore would need to build advanced engineering design skills, capabilities and experience.

She said, last year, the building and construction industry grew by 16.2 per cent, and averaging 18 per cent annual growth over the past three years.

The total construction demand is expected to be sustained in the coming years.

This year, 34 scholarships were awarded, up from the 19 last year.