Whether you blame a lack of formal qualifications, a UK culture that many think undervalues engineering as a profession, or New Labour’s obsession with boosting numbers of non-vocational university degrees, we’re clearly reaching crisis point.
If you doubt that fact, then the facts and numbers detailed in the infographic below – put together by the FIA – might help to convince you.
It’s a problem the FIA is taking very seriously. What a qualification in fire detection and alarm systems might look like is set out by Martin Duggan in this article.
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I have been in the fire & security industry now for 42 years and this was my THIRD career, the first being in telecommunications. I did everything from engineer to main board director but the only training I ever received (after my GPO apprenticeship) was from manufacturers so I closely relate to this problem and would welcome both formal (recognised e.g C&G) qualifications and a drive into the education system to alert teenagers of the great potential our industry (and profession e.g WCoSP) can offer. I do train my staff in-house on both technology and contracts/finance relating to the design… Read more »