Engineers warn that built-environment Bill could undermine public safety

Consulting Engineers South Africa (CESA), which represents about 460 consulting engineering firms, has reaffirmed its concern about the consolidation of the existing professional councils into a new mega-council, dubbed the South African Council for Built Environment (SACBE).

The move is proposed in the Built Environment Professions Bill, but CESA argued that such a development could impact negatively on the health and safety of the public.

The Bill was approved by the National Assembly’s Portfolio Committee on Public Works, which concurred with the Department of Public Works that the SACBE would help to accelerate the transformation of professions such as engineering, architecture, and quantity surveying.

This council would incorporate all the existing professional councils, including the influential Engineering Council of South Africa (Ecsa), and transform them into subsidiary boards.

It was widely argued that the public was not adequately consulted about the new bill.

The Department of Public Works was, on Wednesday, scheduled to brief a select committee of the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) on the controversial Built Environment Professions Bill.

CESA CEO Graham Pirie said that using “a ‘tick box’ system of professional registration will eliminate the current system of peer evaluation with the possibility of the person carrying out the registrations not being a professional engineer”.

It was felt that this would lead to the lowering of standards, and threaten public health and safety.

South Africa’s professional engineers also feared they could lose their current international recognition, acquired through the international Engineers Mobility Forum, which was driven locally by Ecsa. This would adversely affect the export of South African engineering services into the international market and ultimately have an adverse impact on the local economy.

SACBE would also be responsible for the management and allocation of fees and these may not be used to ensure that the focus remains on registration of as many engineers as possible.

Pirie said that Ecsa had a responsibility to look after the health and safety of the South African population, preventing incidents such as roofs caving in during construction.

The new Bill was introduced as it was believed that the construction industry was not transforming and that the various associations were perceived as gate keepers, however Pirie contended that this was entirely untrue.

CESA carried out a twice-yearly Management Information Survey, which, it said, has shown that the industry is embracing transformation.

Industry players maintained that transformation took time, and that simply forming a ‘mega-council’, with new structures, would not change the number of black engineers.

CESA has been engaging with all affected parties including Minister of Public Works, as well as other industry bodies including the Ecsa; South African Institution of Civil Engineering (SAICE); the Association of South African Quantity Surveyors (ASAQS); the South African Institute of Architects (SAIA) as well as the Office of the Presidency.
ENGINEERING PROFESSION
Engineers warn that built-environment bill could undermine public safety

Consulting Engineers South Africa (CESA), which represents about 460 consulting engineering firms, has reaffirmed its concern about the consolidation of the existing professional councils into a new mega-council, dubbed the South African Council for Built Environment (SACBE).

The move is proposed in the Built Environment Professions Bill, but CESA argued that such a development could impact negatively on the health and safety of the public.

The Bill was approved by the National Assembly’s Portfolio Committee on Public Works, which concurred with the Department of Public Works that the SACBE would help to accelerate the transformation of professions such as engineering, architecture, and quantity surveying.

This council would incorporate all the existing professional councils, including the influential Engineering Council of South Africa (Ecsa), and transform them into subsidiary boards.

It was widely argued that the public was not adequately consulted about the new bill.

The Department of Public Works was, on Wednesday, scheduled to brief a select committee of the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) on the controversial Built Environment Professions Bill.

CESA CEO Graham Pirie said that using “a ‘tick box’ system of professional registration will eliminate the current system of peer evaluation with the possibility of the person carrying out the registrations not being a professional engineer”.

It was felt that this would lead to the lowering of standards, and threaten public health and safety.

South Africa’s professional engineers also feared they could lose their current international recognition, acquired through the international Engineers Mobility Forum, which was driven locally by Ecsa. This would adversely affect the export of South African engineering services into the international market and ultimately have an adverse impact on the local economy.

SACBE would also be responsible for the management and allocation of fees and these may not be used to ensure that the focus remains on registration of as many engineers as possible.

Pirie said that Ecsa had a responsibility to look after the health and safety of the South African population, preventing incidents such as roofs caving in during construction.

The new Bill was introduced as it was believed that the construction industry was not transforming and that the various associations were perceived as gate keepers, however Pirie contended that this was entirely untrue.

CESA carried out a twice-yearly Management Information Survey, which, it said, has shown that the industry is embracing transformation.

Industry players maintained that transformation took time, and that simply forming a ‘mega-council’, with new structures, would not change the number of black engineers.

CESA has been engaging with all affected parties including Minister of Public Works, as well as other industry bodies including the Ecsa; South African Institution of Civil Engineering (SAICE); the Association of South African Quantity Surveyors (ASAQS); the South African Institute of Architects (SAIA) as well as the Office of the Presidency.