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An investigation of the implications of major change in the future world ofAn investigation of the implications of major change in the future world ofwork for engineers and the consequences for educational practiceswork for engineers and the consequences for educational practices

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I wish to thank Professor Ken Eason for his professional supervision, guidance and

patience for making sure that I accomplish the final outcome of this research.

I wish to convey my appreciation and thank to my wife and three sons for their

support and patience throughout this work.

I also wish to thank the academic and supporting staff of the Department of

Human Sciences, Loughborough University for their valuable support throughout

this study.

Finally, I would like to thank every participant who cooperated with the study in ,

Malaysia and the United Kingdom (UK).

AN INVESTIGATION OF THE IMPLICATIONS OF MAJOR CHANGE IN

THE FUTURE WORLD OF WORK FOR ENGINEERS AND THE

CONSEQUENCES FOR EDUCATIONAL PRACTICES

By

Abdul Rahim Ahmad

A Doctoral Thesis

SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE

REQUIREMENTS OF THE AWARD OF

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

OF LOUGHBOROUGH UNIVERSITY

December 2002

• © by A.R.Ahmod 2002 .

CJ~ss

ABSTRACT

In an age of rapid global change the roles that engineers fulfill are also

changing rapidly. This research programme seeks to establish the views of

practising engineers about the future demands that will be placed upon

them and then examines the views of engineering educators on the

approaches that can be taken to prepare engineers for these future roles.

The research focused upon related developments in engineering in two

countries, Malaysia and the United Kingdom (UK), and in two engineering

disciplines, civil and manufacturing engineering.

The methodology employed in the first phase of the research was a

scenario-based approach in which engineers were asked to assess the

Implications for engineers of two major change developments, triggered by

information and communication technology (IT); 'processes improvement'

and 'globalisatlon'. One hundred and thirteen engineers in Malaysia and

the UK reported their views on the roles of engineers in the two engineering

disciplines based on the two scenarios. The results show concordance

across countries, disciplines and scenarios. They show that the traditional

core functions and roles of engineers, such as specialised problem-solver

and competent in sCience and technology, remain the same and their

technical capability needs to be updated continuously including IT skills,

techniques enabled by IT (TQM, CAD/CAM, JIT, etc.). Furthermore, the

range of knowledge and skills required needs to be increased to include

management, communication, human-relations, teamwork, continuous or

lifelong leaming and leadership.

In the second phase of the study, the results of the first phase were

discussed with thirty engineering educators in Malaysia and the UK, The

results identified the following major components and provisions of

improvement process for engineenng educahon; objectives formulation,

foundation, development of individual, curriculum model and delivery

through 'IT-mediated learning', 'integrated curnculum-mediated learning'

and 'partnership-mediated learning'.

The final discussion presents a conceptual framework for continuing

Improvement process in engineenng education to meet the demands of

the future. The framework is mapped against major developments in

engineering education In UK (Master of Engineering in Systems Engineering

undergraduate course at Loughborough University. and Dearing Report.

1997 together with SARTOR 1997) and in three Malaysian universities. in order

to explore Its applicability and deficiencies.

11

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABSTRACT ............................................................................... . CONTENTS........................... .••••.•..•••••.•••..•..•..••.•...••.••••••.••.•••••• iiI LIST OF FIGURES ..••.••••••••••••••••...••.•.•••.••••••.••.••••••••••••.•••••••••.• 11... viii LIST OF TABLES...... .•.•.•.•....•••••.•.•.••.•••.•..•....•.•..••.•..•••••...•.••.•.•••.. X

LIST OF PLATES...... .•.•.••.•••••••••.•....•••••.••..•••.•••••••.••.•••••••••..••••••••• xiii LIST OF APPENDICES.................................................................. xlv

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION...... ..•.•• •....•...•..••••.••.•..•••.••.•••..•.••••. 1

1.1

1 2

1 3

14

15

1 6

-Research Background ....... . ..... ... . .... .

Objectives of the Study ............... .

Methodology of the Research ........ .

Research Setting .... ... .... . .. ... ... .... .. ... .... . ................. .

Significant of the Study. ................ ..... ..... . ...... ... . ...... .

Organisation of the Thesis.... .. .......... . ......... . .............. .

2

5

6

9

10

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW - PART 1- CHANGES IN THE WORLD OF WORK. 12

2 1 Introduction . ... ... ... ....... ..•.. ... ..... ....... .. ..... . . ... .. ... ... ... 12 22 Background - Global or General Perspective of Change... ...... 14

2.2 1 The Industrial Age (Including Service Economy Age). ................ .......... ............ . . . ........... . ..... 16

22.2 The Information/Knowledge Age (1990s and the 21sf Century) ...... ... . .. ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... .. ... ... ... ....... 20

2 2.3 Summary of Widely Agreed Developments and Their Implications .... ...•.... . ...... . .. ....... .... ... ..... 26

23 The Countrywide Research Context....... .... ....... .. ........... . 32 23 1 Manifestation of Change Malaysia's General Future

Developments .... .. .... ..... .... . ... ... ...... . ........ '" 32 2 3 1.1 Change scenanas in Asia - Nalsbitt

(1995). . ....... . ......... 33 2 3 1 2 The actual change scenanos In

Malaysia: general perspective ... ........ 35 231.3 The Malaysia's National Vision Into the

21 sf century - 'VIsion 2020' ... . . ... ..... 37 23 1.4 The overall perspechve of future

planning in Malaysia ... .... . ......... 38 23 1.5 Methodology of the future planning In

Malaysia ................................ '" 44 2 3 1 6 The 'times of change' IS continuing:

The economic crisIs commencing September, 1997 . . . . ..... ... ......... 45

2.32 Manifestation of Change UK's General Future Developments .... . ......... . .......... .... ........... 48 232.1 The 'UK Foresight Programme': general

perspeclive . .............. 48 2 3 2 2 Foresight panels and phases. 50 2323 Further developments.. ...... .. 51

lit

232.4 Methodology of the 'UK Foresight Progromme' ......... .............. ......... 52

2.325 Other 'UK's future' endeovours ....... 53 24 Changes In the World of Work. Ideas (Shapers) and Tools... ..... 53

25

2 4 1 Ideas (Shapers) - The Drivers and/or Enablers (Information/Knowledge. IT and Market (Customers))

53 2 4.1.1 The mformalion/knowledge ... ... ... ..... 54 24.1.2 Information Technology (IT) ............. 56 24 1.3 The Market - Customer ... ... ... ... ... .... 60

242 V,s,ons Two Malor Change Developments.. 61 242 I Work Processes Improvement.. ....... 62 2 4 2.2 Globahsation. ... ...... .. ... ..... . ..... 64

243 The Tools Methods. Concepts. Techniques and Frameworks ... ... .... .. .. ... .... ... .... .. . .. ... .... . 66

Summary 69

CHAPTER 3: LITERATURE REVIEW - PART 2:

31

32

33

34

35

36

THE NEW WORLD OF WORK FOR ENGINEERS IN MANUFACTURING AND CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRIES .... 79

Introduction ... ..... ... .... . ... ... ..... ... ..... . ............................ .

General Historical Developments in Engineering Praclices and Work Processes - (Highlighting Functional Images. Roles and Responslblhtles of Engineers) .. ...... ..... .......... .... ... ..... . ....... . The Development of Engineers - Historical and Present Leading mto the Future .. ... ... ... ... ... .... .... ... ... ... .... . ................. .. Changes of Work Process and Engineering Practices - (Some general highhg hts as wake-up calls) ... ... ... . .......................... . ManufactUring Industry .. , . ... ........ . ..... ... ... ... ... ...... . ...... . 35.1 Malaysla's ManufactUring in 'T,mes of Change'

- 1 990s leading Into 2 P' century............ .... ........... . 352 UK's ManufactUring in 'Times of Change'

353

-1990sleadlngint02l"century ................... .

Ideas and Techniques) 353.1

3532

3532

Tools (Methods or Concepts or

Work Process In Manufacturing ....... . 3 5.3 1.1 Important issues derived from

experience In two countries .. The Stakeholders in ManufactUring Work Process (Leading to the Engineers) ..... . . ....... .. .. . ............. . The Engineers in Manufacturing ....... .

Construction Industry ... ....... .. ... ...... .. ... ..... . .. 36 1 Malaysla's Construction Industry In 'Times of Change'

- 1 990s leading Into 21" century... . ............... . 362 United Kingdom's Construclton Industry In 'TImes of

Change' - I 990s leading Into the 21" Century ....... . 363 Ideas and Tools. Methods. Concepts and Techniques

3631 Work process In the construction

79

80

84

88 91

92

98

102 104

103

105 107 108

110

114

118

industry .... .. ... .... . .. ...... .. ... ....... 118 3 6 3 1.1 Important issues denved from

experiences in two countnes 119 3632 The stakeholders in construction work

IV

process (Leading to or focussing on the civil engineers) . . ... ... ... . ... ... .•. ... 120

3 6.3.3 The civil engineers In construction industry ...... . .............. ............. 121

3 7 Summary. .. ... ... ... ... .. ...... .... ... ... .... .. ... ... ..... .... ... ... ... 124

CHAPTER 4: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 127

4 1 Introduclion. . ... ...... . .. ... .... . ... ... ... .... . .... . ... ..... 127 4.2 Alternative Research Methods - Inventing the Future Systems. 128

4.3

44

4.5

46

47

Methodology Used In the Research ................................ . 43 1 Introduction of the 81g PlClure of Scenano-Based

Design Method ....... ..... .. ............................. . The Research Methodology In Operation ... ........ . ....... .. 4.4.1 The Structure of the Methodology. . ................ . 4 4 2 Samples ........... . .................................. . 4 4 3 Research Model. ...... .. ................................ . 4 4 4 Inventing the Future Work Systems. .. ................. .

444.1 Thinking Process in 'Scenario' Development In this Research. . ...... ..

Phase 1 of the Research ... ..... ..... .. .......................... .. 4 5.1 Prellmlna ry Invesligation. .. ............................. .. 452 Scenario-Based Design Method with Structured

Questioning. .......... ...... ........... .. ............. .. 4 5 2 1 Preparation of Requirements

Modelling and AnalYSIS (Eng Ineering) .. 4 5.3 Important Characteristics of the Scenario-Based

Design Method for this Research. .. ........ ....... . 454 Pilot Study. ....... .......... .. ......................... .. Phase 2 of the Research. ............. ... ... ........ .. ........... . 4 6.1 Feasibility Study of Possible Intervention or Mitigation

Measures/Processes Modeling and Analysis. .. .......... Summary.

137

139 143 143 145 147 148

150 151 151

153

153

159 160 161

163 166

CHAPTER 5: THE IMPLlCATtONS OF MAJOR CHANGE ON THE FUTURE WORK OF ENGINEERS (PHASE 1) 167

5 1 Introduction .. ....... ....... ................ .. 167 52 Responses Denved from Findings of the Phase 1 of the Research. 168

52 1 The Scenario-Based Design With Postal Questionnaire Survey. ..... ............. ..... . ................. ........ ... 168

5.22 The Methods of Data Analyses. .................... .. 184 5.2 3 The Findings . ............................... .............. 186

5.2 3.1 The AnalYSIS of the Perceplion of the Possible Future and Requirements of Engineers from Findings of Scenario-Based Deslg n Method. . .... ...... ... 188

52.32 Profile of Key Elements of Change. ..... 193 5233 Profile of Responsibilities of Engineers 195 5 2.3.4 Profile of Functional Images of

Engineers. ...... ......... ... . ........... 195 5.235 Profile of Attnbutes of Engineers. ....... 197 5236 Profile of Technical Knowledge and

Skills Requirements. .... ........ ........ 199

v

523.7 Profile of Non-Technical Knowledge and Skills Requirements. ....... ....... 199

5.2 3 8 Profile of Methods of Delivery Technical Knowledge and Skills. ...... 201

524 Significant Differences In the Findings. .................. 202 5.3 Supporting findings from Other Methods. .............. . ......... 218

53 1 ReqUIrements of Engineers at 0 Manufactunng Organisation In UK - Findings from Interview and Case Study (before) . ............ ............ . .......... 218

532 ReqUIrements of UK's Engineers in Future - findings from Focus Conference DIscussion about two reports, Standarad And Routes Toward Registration 1997 (SARTOR 3 (3td Edition) or 1997 and Deanng Report 1997. (before) . ..... ...... ....... . ........ ....... .......... 220

5 3 3 Observation from Seminar Between Institutes of Higher Education and Industry in MalaYSia on 6-7 August 2002 In Bangi, Maloysia. (after) ...... .............. 222

534 Findings from Focus DIscussion with Three German's Consultants Working In MalaYSia on 22nd August 2002 in Kuala Lumpur. (after) ................ ........... .. ...... 224

54 The Importance of the Differences ................ ........... ..... .. 225 55 Summary. ............ .......... . .. ............. ............ ........... ... 227

CHAPTER 6: THE CONSEQUENCES FOR ENGINEERING EDUCATIONAL PRACTICES 229

6 1 Introduction... ...... ........ .. ....... ........ ......... ... .... ................ 229 6.2 Responses Denved from Findings of the Phose 2 of the Research.. 231

6.2.1 The Scenario-Based Design with Semi-Structured Interview. ........... .......... ..... . ............. ........ 231

62.2 Responses from Scenano-Based Design with Semi-Structured Interview of Engineering Educators ......... 234

6 2 3 Informahon AcquisItion from the Scenarios (and researcher's bneflng) os the 'Anhcipatory' Approach. 234

624 The General Findings. .......... .......... ....... ........ 235 6.2 4 1 Feasibility............ ...... ...... ...... ..... 236 6 2 4 2 Maturity..... ............ .. 240 6243 Enabling and Inhibiting Forces. .. .... 244

62.4.4

6245

Accreditation. ...... ............ ...... ....... 249

Suggestion for Moving Forward. ........ 250

63 Supporting Findings from Other Methods ............. ........ 252

6.3.1 Response through the System Engineering Undergraduate Programme at Loughborough University, UK - Findings from Interview and Case Study. (before) .. ...... ....... ...... ............. .. ...... .. 253

632 Response of Englneenng Council UK through revised Standards And Routes Towards Registration that is SARTOR 3 (3td Edition) or 1997 - Findings from Focus Conference Discussion ........... ..... .................... 257

6.33 Observation from 0 Seminar Between Institutes of Higher Education and Industry in Malaysia on 6-7 August 2002 In Bangi. MalaYSia. .. ...... ................ 264

VI

6.3.4 Findings from Focus Discussion with Three German's Consultants Working In Malaysia on 22 August 2002 in Kuala Lumpur. ..... ........ ...... .. ........ ..... .............. 265

64 Examples of Olher Major Scenarios in Engineering Education. ..... 266 65 Summary.. ....... ...... ........... .. ... .. .. ............. ...... 269

CHAPTER 7 .. CONCLUSIONS. RECOMMENDATIONS AND FURTHER RESEARCH. 272

7 1 Introduction... ....... . ......... ...... ...... . .. ...... ... ........ 272 72 The Study. ..... ... .... . ... ...... . .......... ............ 273 7.3 Summary of Findings .. ..... . . . ..... ...... ...... . .. .. ........... . 275 7 4 limitation of the Research. .. ........ .......... ........... ....... 279 7 5 ConclusIons.. ........ .............................. ...... 280

7.5.1 General Overall Conclusions ...... ...... .......... ... 280 7.6 Recammendallons.. ......... .............. . . ......... 290

7 6.1 The Framework for Improvement Process. ...... ......... 291 7 7 Applicability of the Framework. .... .. .... ......... . 307 7 8 Further Research .. .... ... ...... ....... ......... ...... ... ...... 310

LIST OF REFERENCES. ................................................................. 312

VII

LIST OF FIGURES

NO. FIGURES CHAPTER 1 Figure 1.1: The Structure of the Research.

CHAPTER 2 Figure 21

CHAPTER 3 Figure 3.1

Figure 3 2

CHAPTER 4

Historical Conlexl of Changes in Work Process and System.

Malaysia's 'Manufacturing ++ Strategy'.

Generic Manufacturing Work Process.

PAGE NO.

5

70

95

103

Figure 4 1. Aclivltles in Ihe ORDIT methodology. 136

Figure 4 2' Research Model. 147

Figure 4 3: The Thinking Process In Scenario Development. 150

Figure 4 4: Simplified Concept of Future Work System 151

Figure 4 5: Socio-Technlcal System of Engineenng Education 164 System.

Figure 4 6 Conceptual Model of Improvement In Delivery 165 Process

CHAPTER 5 (none)

CHAPTER 6 Figure 61:

Figure 6 2

CHAPTER 7 Figure 7.1:

Figure 7 2

Figure 73

Figure 7 4

Matunty Model of Improvement Inltlahves.

AnalysIs Techniques for Enabling and Inhibiting Forces

Traditional Work Processes System to New Integrated System

Holistic Profile of Engineer.

Integraled Work System Changes in Work Process. Roles and Responsibilities of Engineers Generic Concept for Individual (Human Resource) Development of Engineers.

VIlI

241

245

281

284

285

294

Figure 7.5. 'Model of Formotion of an Engineer'. 296

Figure 7.6 Knowledge and Skills Model 299

Figure 7.7. Provisions Process Diagram Adopted 304

Figure 7 8' The Conceptual Framework for Engineering 305 Educallon Improvement Process Planning.

Figure 7 9: Holisllc System Model to Institutionalise Improvement 306 Process.

IX

NO. CHAPTER 1 (none)

CHAPTER 2 Table 2.1:

Table 2 2.

Table 23'

CHAPTER 3 (none)

CHAPTER 4 Table 41:

Table 4 2

CHAPTER 5 Table 5.1.

Table 52'

LIST OF TABLES

Widely Agreed Developments and Initiatives of Changes in Work Process and Implications.

Prominent Mechanisms. Frameworks and Processes to Respond to Change.

The Key Elements of Change in Work Process

Functional Components of the Research Methodology.

Preliminary/Pilot Study and Findings

Perception on Possible Future by United Kingdom Engineers.

Perception on Possible Future by Malayslan Engineers

PAGE NO.

26

66

73

143

160

192

192

Table 5 3: Profile of Key Elements of Change. 194

Table 5 4' Profile of Responsibilities of Engineers. 195

Table 5 5 Profile of Functional Imag es of Engineers. 197

Table 5 6 Profile of Attributes of Engineers. 198

Table 5 7: The Technical Knowledge and Skills. 199

Table 5.8: The Non-Technical Knowledge and Skills. 200

Table 5 9: Methods of Delivery of Knowledge and Skills. 201

Table 5.1 0 Significant Differences in the Profile of Key Elements 204 of Change

Table 511 Significant Differences In the Profile of Responsibilities 205 of Engineers

Table 5 12 Significant Differences In the Profile of Functional 206 Images of Engineers.

x

Table 5 13· Significant Differences in the Profile of Attnbutes of 207 Engineers.

Table 5.14: Significant Differences ,n the Technical Knowledge 209 and Skills

Table 5.15 Significant Differences in the Non-Technical 210 Knowledge and Skills

Table 516 Highly Significant Differences - Scenario-Onented. 216

Table 5 17 Changes In Work Processes and Engineers' 219 Requirements

Table 5 18 Change In Work Processes and Engineers' 221 Requirements.

Table 519: Changes in Work Processes and Engineers' 223 Requirements.

Table 5 20: Changes In Work Processes and Engineers' Requirements.

CHAPTER 6 Table61·

Table 6.2.

Table 6 3:

Table 6 4·

Table 6 5.

Table 6 6:

Table 6 7:

Table 6 8.

CHAPTER 7

Matunty of Improvement In Initiatives - Spread of Responses.

Examples of Quotes on Matunty Aspects of the Inlt latlves

Enabling a nd Inhibiting Farces.

Accreditation Issues.

Charactenstlcs of Sodo-Technlcal System for Englneenng Education.

The Main Changes of SARTOR 1997 from SARTOR 1990 for CEng

The Main Changes of SARTOR 1997 from SARTOR 1990 for IEng

Major Change Scenanos In Engineenng Education

224

242

242

246

249

251

260

261

266

Table 7 1· Challenges to Engineenng Educalion In "Times of 275 Change"

Table 7.2 Mapping the Proposed Conceptual Framework for 308 Englneenng Education Improvement Process Planning for Three Malaysian Universities

XI

Table 7.3. Mapping the Proposed Conceptual Framework for Engineering Education Improvement Process Planning for Two Developments In the UK.

XII

309

NO. CHAPTER 1 (none)

CHAPTER 2 Plote 2.1'

Plote 2 2'

CHAPTER 3 (none)

CHAPTER 4 (none)

CHAPTER 5

LIST OF PLATES

PAGE NO.

'Chonge' - Work Processes 63

'Chonge' - Globalisatlon 65

Plate 5 1: Scenanos Presented to Engineers in Manufactunng 169 Industry

Plate 5 2: Scenarios Presented to Engineers In Construction 178 Industry

CHAPTER 6 Plate 6 1: Sce no no-Based Design for Three (3) Improvement 232

Process Initiatives In Engineering Education.

CHAPTER 7 (none)

Xlii

NQ.

CHAPTER 4 Appendix I'

Appendix 2

CHAPTER 5 Appendix 3

LIST OF APPENDICES

APPENDICES

Scenano-Based Design Method PacKage for Phase I Data Collection.

Scenano-Based Design Package for Phase 2 for Data Collection.

Data Analyses for Phose I.

XIV

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

1.1 RESEARCH BACKGROUND

Today's 'information age' has launched unprecedented economic. technical

and social change. Changes in the nature, operating environment and

development of economic and industrial activities are having significant

impacts on the world of work. These are manifested in future development

plans in Malaysia and the United Kingdom (UK). Superimposed on these

changes is the ail-pervading influence of information and

telecommunication technology (IT). Furthermore, these changes and

developments are occurring nationally and globally with a seemingly

overwhelming speed and complexity.

These 'times of change' imply that the requirements for industry will change

accordingly. A high-productivity economy puts a premium on talent and

rewards knowledge, skills and education. Accumulation of information and

knowledge, and the distribution of ideas and tools, concepts, methods or

techniques to improve work processes are reshaping the world of work. The

world of work and its participants (or 'stakeholders') are participating more

and more and at rapid pace in a system in which work IS characterised by

continuous processes improvements and globalisation, including networking,

teleworking, virtual teams, automation, outsourcing, etc. These changes

transform work processes, organisations and the way humans undertake

them. Hence, continuous anticipation and evaluation of the likely impacts is

required by all concerned.

One of the greatest challenges encountered in the process of human

resource planning and development is the pace of change in the world of

work. People must have the appropriate attnbutes, knowledge and skills in

order to cope with the challenges and opportunities. Accordingly, the

knowledge and skills needed must be developed and updated regularly in

1

order for the people to be adequately equipped to fulfill their roles and

responsibilities.

The chain-reactions of the change scenarios above have implications for

all types and roles of human resources. The focus of this research is

specifically concerned with one type of human resource called 'engineers'

and the impacts on the ways engineers work, on the knowledge and skills

they require and the way they are educated. Hence, this research

investigates the need for change particularly in improvement measures in the

engineering education system. Also, continuous transformation of industry,

the technological revolution and globalisation in the 'information age' are

the major driving forces that are changing the landscape of higher

education and particularly engineering education.

The discussions above have expressed the need to focus now on the

challenges of tomorrow in order to have a positive influence on our future.

There are many possible futures, emerging trends and requirements. Thus, at

its core, this research is concerned with planning for the future and will

contribute towards that process particularly in engineenng education. This

aspect of planning for the future will be clanfied further In the next section.

1.2 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The main thrust of this research is on planning for the future. The planning

concept adopted in this research is described by Kerzner (1989) as the

function of selecting the 'project' (analogy suitable to represent the whole

research programme in this research) objectives and establishing the

policies, procedures and programmes necessary for achieving these

objectives. Also, planning in a project environment can be descnbed as

establishing a predetermined course of action within an anticipated or

forecasted environment.

2

In any planning efforts. the definition of project success is essential. In order

to guide the planning effort in this research. a successful project is defined as

having achieved project objectives within the allocated time period; within

budget; at the proper specification. or performance level and also

accepted by the customer; whilst utilising the assigned resources effectively

and efficiently (Kerzner. 1989).

The synthesis of the above concepts leads to the identification of the major

components of a plan namely the 'project' anticipatory orientation.

requirements. objectives. specification. resources. enablers/drivers and

obstacles. policies or principles. procedures and actiVities. The variety of the

components needs a holistic approach in the planning. thus a systems

concept.

The consequent 'project' objective that is to look for opportunities to further

improve the existing engineering education systems. for example. the

content and process. In order to remain relevant and compelitive in any

engineering education system. the deSigners. planners and managers of

engineering education must adopt a philosophy of continuous development

and improvement. We must be constantly aware that our systems are

operating in the context of an ever-changing environment. which will

become increasingly challenging in the future. This is in line With the

approach of trying to move away from intervention or mitigation measures

that are in response to some form of criSIS and to instead. be pro-active in

making fundamental changes. improving an already operational and

possibly adequate state of affairs.

It is also the view of this research that the process of exchanging ideas and

learning from others is one of the best means of evaluating the feasibility.

effectiveness and maybe the success of a system being planned. Against

this background it is essential to study experiences in the United Kingdom (UK)

so that comparison can be made with the Malaysian situation. Hence.

highlights of similarities and differences can be compiled which will bring

richness and improvements to the system being planned.

3

Changing demands on engineers in the future will create changing needs

for education practices. This research takes the opportunity to study in UK,

characterised by long tradition of engineering education and Malaysia

where the systems are slightly less and stili developing.

Initially, this research will provide a base for mechanisms which

systematically look toward the future. It will analyse requirements to assist

interested parties to make better informed decisions for the planning and

development of human resources in engineering disciplines.

While addressing these issues and exploring existing similar stUdies, the

primary objectives of this study are:

1) to explore the scenario-based design method as a means of providing a

base in terms of mechanisms for systematically looking toward the future

and projecting current trends into the future

2) to apply the scenario-based design method together with structured

questioning by postal questionnaire in generating, determining, extracting

and analysing requirements for the development of the engineers of the

future

3) to develop a clear philosophy, basis or objectives for engineering

education and continuing education systems focusslng on the

development of the human resources or individuals which are

appropriate for whatever view of the future one holds

4) to propose a conceptual framework for improvement in an engineering

education system

4

1.3 METHODOLOGY OF THE RESEARCH

A natural progression from the discussion in Section 1.2 above is a decision on

the methodology of the research. This is presented structurally in Figure 1.1.

Phose 1 and phase 2 of the research involved input from practising engineers

and engineering educators respectively.

/ ,"-Preliminary InvestigaHons

(Uterature Review. Case Study and Seminar Discussion)

-

Anticipatory Approach/Orientation and Methodology

(Developing Possible Future Scenarios)

Implications and Requirements lor Engineering (Generation. Determination and Analysis using

Scenario-Based Design with Struclured-Questionnaire)

I Phas 1 I '\ / / "-

Formulating Intervention or MitlgaHon Measures & Objectives lor Engineering Education Practices

(Scenario-Based Design Method)

Anticipatory Orientation and Methodology in Investigating the Feasibility 01 the Proposed

Programmes (using Scenario-Based Design Method with Semi-Structured Interview)

Formulating Conceptual Framework lor the Intervention or Mitigation Measures - The Improvement Process.

(Covers the main features of the Intervention or Mitigation Measures Including policies or principles. procedures.

specHication. resources. drivers/enablers and obstacles) I Phase l I '\ /

FIgure 1 l' The Structure of the Research

5

1.4 RESEARCH SETTING

The context of this research IS based on Malaysia and the United Kingdom

(UK) scenarios. These are the overall future planning developments for

economics, and the manufacturing industry and construction industries.

Although based on the Malaysian and UK scenes, most of the issues are

decidedly not unique and probably apply worldwide. This research looks at

some of the trends with particular reference to views expressed by practising

engineers, and then attempts to paint a picture of changes in the work

process involving engineers and also engineering education in the future.

The following discussion is synthesised and edited by the researcher, from

information and knowledge in Chapters 2 and 3 of this theSIS. This provides an

overall perspective of the setting for this research which consists of a number

of technological, organisational, environmental and socio-pohtical changes

that are impacting the engineering profession and consequently engineering

education. Some of the scenes are presented below:

• It is noted that in future planning rapid changes in technology involve

increasing competition and industries becoming more information­

intensive. Also, not only do organisations commit themselves to

continuously reducing costs through tools or programmes hke 'lean

production', 'concurrent engineering', etc, but they also commit

themselves to aggressive goals to reduce the time to market for new and

improved products.

• At its core, the new economy in which the future developments in the

plans Will take place, is all about gathering and accumulating more and

more Information and knowledge which can be available to more

people, more quickly and with less effort. The expansion of information

and knowledge is extensive and there is far more of them than anyone

person can grasp, manage and make sense of.

• Expanding information and knowledge brings more complexity to work

processes, including that which involves engineers, for example new

advanced materials and technologies greatly increase englneenng

design options. Engineers are able to Incorporate more vanables, to

6

manipulate more complex systems and to explore multiple designs in an

economically and environmentally sound manner by using computer

models and simulations.

• The future developments in the plans indicate that engineers will be

dealing with complex design issues. For example, they must consider a

host of other factors (besides the right mix of materials, costs, etc.) such as

whether the production process will create enVIronmentally harmful

byproducts or whether a new highway or building construction will prove

acceptable to neighbourhood residents. Thus, in place of limited design

parameters set primarily by material constraints, engineers now grapple

with increasingly complex and numerous design constraints involving

material, environmental and socio-political factors.

• In order to compete nationally and also globally in the future

developments, organisations need to increase their engineering activities.

Fueling these activities are technological advances, information and

knowledge expansion and innovations by engineers. Organisations use

more engineering and technical resources today than ever before, due in

part to the IT and its connections and networks. Also, IT provides new tools

that make engineering resources available that were unavailable before,

and this is continuing with no sign of letting up. Development such as the

Multi-Media Super Corridor (MSC) in Malaysia pays testimony to this scene.

It is also important to consider the possible downsides of IT developments,

for example, there may be a tendency to rely too much on computer­

OIded design (CAD) and virtual reality (VR) and not enough on physical

testing.

• The future developments will lead to engineers participating in a wider

range of economic activities not just in their own specialised areas. They

may use their skills to analyse complex information and systems in a variety

of industries not traditionally associated with the profession such as

mediCine and finance.

• The future developments involving globalisation will also create new

opportunities for International collaboration. The developments will see

more and more multi-national companies (MNCs) performing the whole

business or work processes (research and development. design and

7

production) In Malaysia and UK. There will even be organisations that

perform 24-hour engineering in which work moves from time zone to time

zone, following the sun. For example, after a team of UK-based engineers

finishes the workday, they might pass on their project electronically to

engineers based in Malaysia for the next eight hours.

The characteristics of the above trends or events are to be represented in

the form of two future scenarios using the scenario-based design method.

The two future scenanos developed are called 'Scenario 1: Processes

Improvement' and 'Scenario 2: Globailsatlon' (see Appendix 1). These two

scenarios are the common settings for the manufacturing and construction

industries in Malaysia and the United Kingdom (UK) and Will be used during

the undertakings of the other research activities in phase 1 namely the

requirements generation, determination and analysis.

The other important scope of this research is engineering education. All the

above scenes have impacts on and implications for engineering education.

Some of the prominent issues include:

• shifts in the knowledge and skills required by engineers which affect the

curriculum;

• the IT effects namely as tools that can open new ways in teaching and

learning and also as essential skills needed in the workplace;

• the emphasis on continuing or lifelong learning which is essential for

engineers;

• the emphasis on more industry-related activities which need some forms

of partnership between university and industry.

The changes In future engineering education above will be represented by

three future scenarios using the scenario-based design method. The

scenarios are 'Scenano 1 : IT-Mediated Learning', 'Scenario 2: Integrated

Curriculum-Mediated Learning' and 'Scenario 3: Partnership-Mediated

Learning'. These scenarios are the common settings for the research activities

in phase 2 of this research (see Appendix 2). These activities involve

investigations into the consequences for engineenng education practices

8

due to the future developments in phase 1 and the feasibility of improving

the system.

1.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The significant involvement of engineers in the development of new

technologies, techniques and philosophies; and in turn, the impact of these

on the world of work and world economy suggests that programmes for

englneenng education and continuing education of engineering

professionals, must be modernised to reflect the needs and requirements of

the future. Also, programmes for engineering education and continuing

education of engineering professionals must accommodate the changing

technological and industrial environments and continue to provide a forum

for intellectual growth in the future.

In addition, discussions in research settings have shown that the engineering

profession and engineering education will continue to undergo changes in

the 21st century. Furthermore, individually or collectively, engineering and

engineering education will drive many transformations in the 21st Century.

Therefore, engineering education must undergo continuous improvement

and innovation in order to prepare graduating engineers for future

challenges and opportunities.

Measures have been taken by relevant parties in the United States (The

Green Report, 1994), Australia (Simmons and Radchffe, 1996), UK (Part of

Deanng Report, 1997 and SARTOR 1997) and Malaysia (initiatives of

Committee of Deans of Engineering and Institution of Engineers Malaysia

(IEM), 1998-2000) which include reviewing emerging trends in engineering

education (including both undergraduate and graduate levels), studying

trends in research and interactions With industry and society, reviewing the

past and present curricula, and then proposing curricula for the future, future

search conferences, benchmarklng With certain successful systems, model

formation, etc. Most of the reports produced provide guidelines on the

9

procedures and processes of achieving accreditation for engineering

programmes. Institutions and departments are expected to produce

workable plans for the improvement process of their engineering

programmes which will be scrutinised by the respective accrediting

professional bodies for accreditation purposes. This research hopes to

provide a conceptual framework which can be used by engineering

education planners. engineering departments or institutions in their planning

process for improving engineering education.

1.6 ORGANISATION OF THE THESIS

Chapter 1 provides an overview of the research. It spells out the background

to the research. the main areas of investigation. the achievement of the

research objectives and identifies current areas of weakness. It contains the

overall aim and specific objectives of the research. It discusses the

methodology used. the setting and significance of the study. Finally. it

provides a pathway through the thesis.

Chapter 2 is the first part of literature review which describes the preliminary

research. This chapter gives an appropriate framing for matters related to

general change scenarios paving into the future change scenanos of the 21 si

century discussed in this thesis. It sets out to examine major changes in the

world generally and then moving to specific experiences of two countnes.

Malaysia and the United Kingdom (UK). These are shown to have led to

changes in the world of work principally in the forms of work processes

improvement and globallsation. Emphasis IS placed on engineering professions.

as it is within these professional areas that the need for. and attempts to

achieve. this new focus have been particularly noticeable. After a

comprehensive review of the literature with over 100 references. the most

representative Ideas and methods are identified. An examination of each of

these enabled the identification of a list of key implications for the world of

work.

10

Chapter 3 reviews the literature related to change scenarios and future

change scenarios in engineering and engineering professions in times of

unprecedented change. These are in terms of implications for manufacturing

and construction industries' developments and transformations (Malaysia and

UK), the changing work of engineers; and then, the consequences for

engineering education practices.

Chapter 4 discusses the research model, descriptions of the research

propositions to be tested and outlines the research method used in collecting

data for analysis, scenario-based design, questionnaire for postal survey in

phase 1 and semi-structured interview in phase 2 of the research.

Chapter 5 presents the findings and discussions from phase 1 of the research.

Chapter 6 presents the findings and discussions from phase 2 of the research.

( Chapters 5 and 6 report on the descriptive statistics related to the sample,

offer an in-depth discussion on the analysis and measurement of data, and

present results for the formulation of the conceptual framework of the

improvement process.)

Chapter 7 summarises the research through conclusions, recommendations

and further research.

11

CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW - PART 1:

CHANGES IN THE WORLD OF WORK

2.1 INTRODUCTION

The phenomena of change have been discussed. predicted and projected by

many writers and thinkers. The arrival of the 21 sI century makes it difficult to

avoid anticipating and thinking what things will be like a few years further

down the road as information technology (IT) and global activities are

profoundly transforming world of work. As pointed-out by Handy (1989). the

world of work is changing because organisations of work are changing their

ways; at the same time. however. the organisations are having to adapt to a

changing world of work; and both public and private sectors face a tougher

world. one in which they are judged more harshly than ever before on their

effectiveness. Consequently. understanding. managing. coping and creating

change are amongst the most interesting areas of discussion and also.

essential for anyone in any profession who aims to make a difference.

(Drucker. 1969. 1989. 1992. 1993. 1999; Handy. 1989. 1996. 1997)

In this research. the focus is on phenomena of 'change' leading and

continuing into the 21 s1 century in the world of work and are referred to as the

changes in work process. Thus. Chapter 2. part 1 of literature review. aims to

provide the global or general. and countrywide settings and foundation from

which the research is developed. This is achieved through:

• scene-setting of the research by presenting global or general. and

countrywide experiences (or perspectives) or the what of the 'change

scenarios' in operation. leading into the 21 s1 century and expected to

continue in the 21 st century. focussing on the world of work;

12

• identifying the why and how of 'changes' in the world of work. in forms of

emerging ideas and tools. with emphasis on changes in work process

together with implicalions for organisation support and human resources;

• represenling the importance for having 'future planning' process orientation

or anticipatory approach that is taking strategic perspective as opposed to

just tactical short-term manoeuvnng;

• representing the rationale for choosing the two speCific 'future change

scenarios' in the world of work namely 'processes improvement' and

'globalisation';

• presenling the reasons for concentrating the study on the 'engineers',

The structural approach of this chapter is to divide the review into two parts.

Initially. global or general change is the setting which will establish a general

scope for which a greater depth of research can be undertaken. Then. more

focus investigalions are carried out through the relevant experiences of two

countries. Malaysia and the United Kingdom (UK) which provide specific

settings for this research. These will lead to the identification of ideas (including

drivers and/or enablers) and tools (concepts or methods or techniques)

related to the aspect of changes in work process.

The methodological approaches of the materials in the literature will be

highlighted throughout the discussions of this chapter (and Chapter 3) for

examples whether their projections, predictions and visions are derived

through research or documentation (e.g. World Bank Reports) study or other

methods.

In order to grasp the full significance the changes, it is important to gain an

insight into the generating forces or dnvers (enablers) namely information

technology (IT), knowledge and markets (customers). Then. the major

implications for organisations and human resources are identified,

concentrating on knowledge and skills requirements and organisation

structural supports. Preliminanly. some of the cntlcal issues are emerging and

13

are being explored. This IS earned-out by scrutinising some examples of the

initiatives or responses of organisations and deducing important ideas and

tools (concepts. methods and techniques) that are developed and applied.

Ultimately. the purpose of this chapter is to create awareness. Some of the

'future change scenarios' herein will take years to emerge. whilst some of the

examples of new work practices and technologies will be approaching 'old­

hat' status by the time readers come to read this thesis. Technologies. new

forms of organisations. new work practices and the writers who write them. will

inevitably come and go. Fortunately. neither of these facts actually matters

very much. As will be demonstrated by this chapter. the ideas and tools

(concepts or methods or techniques) related to the 'change scenarios' tend

to remain remarkably concrete. as they propagate toward their realisation In

some forms of reality. What is most important in the researcher's view is that. in

order for indiViduals or organisations to plan ahead. they need to embrace

Visions of probable futures derived from cutting-edge practices and

researches of the present. in forms of ideas and tools (concepts or methods or

techniques) rather than any specific bodies of knowledge.

2.2 BACKGROUND· GLOBAL OR GENERAL PERSPECTIVE OF CHANGE

It seemed appropriate at the commencement of understanding change to

present a consolidated overview of some relevant trends and processes about

future developments and their impacts as projected by prominent writers.

commentators and thinkers. In order to faCIlitate the discussion. the future

developments will be referred to as a background consisting of the following

stages of development activities of society namely the Agricultural Age

(before 1716). the Industrial Age. including the Service Economy Age (started

in mid-18th century) and the Information/Knowledge Age (1990s and the 21 st

century)(Wllson. 1996). Each age causes different Impacts and shapes

people's views. Thus. by paying close attention to the different mode of

production in each stage and the subsequent changes in work process. this

14

chapter can develop a context in which to ascertain the likely rise of certain

issues. Detailed account of events and developments in the stages of

development for Agriculture Age and Industrial Age are not presented in this

section because they are not the focus of this research and can be found in

other literature such as Toftler (1970. 1980). But close attention is given to some

relevant trends and processes of the developments in the world of work during

the Industrial Age and also in the Information/Knowledge Age which are

paving the way into the twenty-first century (21 st century) and expected to

become more and more prominent well into the 21 st century. These form the

general setting and base for this research.

The mainstream futurists of the early 1970s prediction of 'the leisure age'

where people would work less and play more does not materialise (Crainer.

1998). What is occurring is the change which is uncertain. rapid and turbulent.

and furthermore. it is not only upon us but is accelerating (Toftler. 1980; Handy.

1989. 1996. 1997; Bridges. 1995; Mabey et al. (eds.). 1996; Leigh and Waiters.

1998). The accelerating and uncertain future which is driven by technology.

especially information technology (IT). and knowledge. induces change in the

society and world of work. In the world of work. subsequent changes include

restructuring of all human resources roles. responsibilities and relationships

(Toftler. 1980; Handy. 1996. 1997; Bridges. 1995. 1997; Zuboff. 1988). Thus. in

order to cope with it. whether as an engineer. a manager or any roles of

human resources it is necessary to understand the visions of the future or

scenarios competently before mitigation efforts are undertaken. Also. with a

clearer picture of feasible and possible futures. preparation for the future can

be approached strategically and effectively.

The new world of work involves evolving corporate strategies. trends and

themes (maybe fads). with their founding ideas that come and go very

qUickly. Examples include the 'Super-Industrial Revolution' (Toffler. 1970). the

'Third Wave' (Toftler. 1980), the 'Jobshift' (Bridges, 1995) and 'Inflection Points

Concept' (Grove, 1997). The environment is often confusing and complex due

15

to the fact that people have one foot firmly placed in the Industrial Age while

at the same time they are putting out the other foot tentatively and testing the

waters of the Information/Knowledge Age. Some of the trends and themes left

significant impacts while others just fell Into oblivion. The settings will provide

some of the prominent ideas and tools that lead to the identification of some

'key elements of change' that characterise the change scenarios in

workplace. They will not be glamourised. The discussions are guided by the

ideals that good and relevant information. knowledge and values may come

from anywhere. However. there is some literature that become the spokesman

for that decade or on certain issues due to their accuracy in capturing the

essence of its time and subject matter.

This section commences by presenting the historical context of change

developments in world of work that are taking place and still steaming ahead

into the 21't century.

2.2,1 The Industrial Age (Including Service Economy Age)

As a prelude. the Agricultural Age in the change developments framework

involved the world of work concentrating on agricultural activities for the

development of society. The agricultural age of the pre-1800 period was also

referred to by Toftler as the 'First Wave' (Toffler. 1980). In this period the

concept of a job as a 'package' containing job descnption. working hours and

salary. did not exist yet. People simply did what they had to do to live. The

main economic activities were agricultural-based where people lived on and

from the land. Thus. land was the critical factor of economic success (Geus.

1997). Work practices involved uSing hand tools and farm animals. and an

understanding of farming crops and animals (Drucker. 1999).

The Industrial Age began with the onset of the Industrial Revolution (also

referred to by Toffler as the 'Second Wave' (Toftler. 1980)). It began around the

mid-18th century with the transformation of agricultural society to industrial

16

society. Drucker (1999) states that for most people the advent of the Industrial

Revolution was signified by the invention of steam engine by James Watt

(1736-1819). People in industries created production technology, chiefly using

steam-powered machines, supported by organisation knowhow and

technology, and created market demand. The work practice which is

inherently related to the Industrial Age involved setting up large-scale

factones, with great specialisation, producing vastly more equipment and

goods. This was supported by, at the top rung of the wealth-creating ladder, a

system for attracting capital from the merchants or financial institutions. There

was a shift from land to capital as the critical factor of economic success; and

the capital was used to acquire machines and raw materials to produce the

product (Geus, 1997). Last on the wealth-creating ladder came the hinng of

blue-collar workforce, as cheap as possible, to operate the machines,

produce the product. package the finished product and deliver it to the

customer. Clearly, the characteristic of this period was that wealth reigned

supreme with financial might rendering ultimate power. Subsequent events

were the sudden, spectacular growth of cities and the migration there from

farms and villages with ensuing problems that needed attention.

Competitive edge was considered as an ability to dominate and absorb the

competition. The focus was upon economic amalgamation and industrial

concentration which was manifested clearly by the 'economy of scale'

decades of the 1960s and 1970s. (Stoner, 1983)

This period was driven by new scientific knowledge such as the development

of mass production at the start of 20th century. The application of technology

and organisational as well as managerial techniques made it possible to

progressively reduce production costs of a unit product with attention

focussed on achieving a highly efficient process (Geus, 1997). Then, the

'production process focus' was enhanced by the 'marketing focus' which

started in the United States of America (US) from the 1930s into the 1950s. The

'marketing focus' was highlighted by more differentiated products with a clear

17

example of the divergence in marketing approach between 'offenng a

standard product' and 'offering a customised product'. This led to the

emergence of the concept of the 'whole of business process' which

combined market. production and other business operations. and this prevails

in most prominent organisations up to the present day. (Hammer. 1993)

In addition, the emergence of a 'quality movement' enhanced further the

concept of 'whole business processes'. The conceptual bedrock of the 'quality

movement' was made up of the focus on the customer (the power of

customers), the ability to respond effectively to change (flexibility) and an

emphasis on continuous improvement. It was generally accepted that the

quality movement began in earnest in Japan during the 1950s. spearheaded

by an American statistician. Dr. W. E. Demlng and taken on board

enthusiastically by senior Japanese industrialists. Significant results began to

emerge dunng the latter portion of the 1960s. The United States and Europe

caught up with the quality movement in the late 1970s and it was keenly

applied across a spectrum of produchon and service industries during 1980s

(Thomas. 1992).

The work process system during this period is referred to as the 'traditional

work process system' in this thesis. The main tenet of the 'traditional work

process system' is the concept of 'division of labour' and the assumption that

each task is independent and separable. The tasks are carried out in a

sequential manner. thus the 'sequential' or 'serial' process. Once each task is

completed. it will be passed over the 'Imaginary wall' to another functional

department for the next sequence of work activity. This is sometimes known as

the 'over the wall' system (Savage. 1990). Each stage of the work process is

independently performed by a specialist human resource representing a

functionally known department (e.g. design or engineenng. manufacturing.

sales. marketing. customer services. etc.). The work process system continues

and follows through each phase in a linear or sequential manner throughout

the life cycle of the work (or product). If there is any error and feedback for

18

modification required, the task will be passed backward (e.g. manufacturing

or construction department will have to pass back the design work to the

design or engineenng department for rework based on manufacturing or

construction requirements). A new phase can only start after the preceding

phase is completed and signed off. (Stoner, 1982; Savage, 1990)

The 'traditional work process system' is also based on the assumption that

control of information flow is one of the key factors to success. This assumption

leads to the formation of rigid and hierarchical types of organisation structure

to command and control both people and processes. Communication

between each functional department is very limited and normally through

proper channels. Thus initially, the above developments were supported by an

organisational form dominated by large and vertically integrated

organisations producing mass volume of standard product with the famous

example of the Ford Corporation. Related to this, job as an entity Gob

package) with job description, working hours and salary emerged early in 19th

century, to package the work to be done in factories and bureaucracies. This

distinct penod was considered prominent from 1900 to 1970 and was

characterised by 'job packages' with pre-determined roles and pOSitions;

concise assignment of responsibility, authority and accountability; grouping of

knowledge and skills; and clear reporting in formal hierarchical organisational

structure and relationships. This system still prevails in many organisations up to

the present day. This is the situation of 'one foot still in the Industrial Age . (Stone,

1982; Savage, 1990)

All the above developments ('mass production', 'marketing focus', 'whole

bUSiness processes orientation', 'quality movement', 'traditional work process

system') have implications for many aspects of work process namely the way

we work, the workplace environment, the structure of relationships at

workplace, the way management manages and the attributes, knowledge

and skills required at workplace. Since the 1970s, increasing evidence has

been accumulating where organisations are changing in character.

19

Organisation is characterised more and more as a picture of individual

capabilities and informal networks and relationships (e.g. teamwork). rather

than a series of pre-determined roles and positions and formal hierarchical

relationships (Bridges. 1995). Also. it was envisaged in 1970s that

departmentalisation with sharp lines of demarcation between purchasing.

manufacturing. engineering and sales would be fading (Simon. 1965). But

these developments were scattered and ad-hoc in nature; meant as playing

along and not rocking the boat and also. to return the autonomy and controls

to workers involved in automated production (Slmon. 1965; Stoner. 1982). This is

different from the concept of working as a team (teamwork) in the

Information/Knowledge Age which will be discussed later.

2.2.2 The InformatIon/Knowledge Age (19905 and the 21" Century)

The 'change scenarios' in the world of work continue. and organisations and

human resources are faced with new challenges as well as the escalation of

the above developments:-

• Toftler provided an early and prominent viSion of the

Information/Knowledge Age in 'Future Shock' (Toffler 1970). This explored

the 'shattenng stress and disorientation' that is induced in individuals when

they are subjected to too much change in a short space of time. Toffler

proposes the visions of the future and provides us with valuable intellectual

tools for a future in which we will continue to experience unprecedented

change and suffer the shocks of the high-energy discharge of an era

called the 'Super-Industrial Revolution'. Going from there. Toffler produced

an early and influential reference to the development of the concept

Information/Knowledge Age which is called the 'Third Wave' (Toftler. 1980).

This reference describes the 'Third Wave'. 'a powerful tide sweeping across the

world. bewildering people as they encounter unprecedented technological and

economic change and developments With technology and knowledge as the

drivers'. He stresses that technology and knowledge will restructure the way

of people work. their tasks and roles (jobs), responsibilities and relationships

(forms of organisation) at the workplace.

20

---- -

Drucker (1989, 1992, 1993, 1999) describes changes in work and its content

with the increase in prominence of information and knowledge-based

industries which produce products and services like computers,

telecommunications and pharmaceuticals. These predictions were based on

scanning and analysis of his experiences, observations and some case

studies. The work process changes involve a shift from labour-intensive to

knowledge-intensive, automation or robotisation with a subsequent

acceleration of the substitution of knowledge and capital for manual skills.

These are supported by new types of organisations and human resources.

The organisation that supports the changes Is based on responsibility and

information, compared to traditional base of command authority, with each

unit and individual accepting responsibility for their goals, priorities,

relationships and communications. The organisation's structure is flat with far

fewer levels of management and is based on the principle of 'span of

communication' rather than on 'span of control'.

The new type of human resource required is called the 'knowledge worker'

and the required knowledge and skill Includes 'technological literacy'

(understanding of technology and its dynamics, the opportunities it

offers, and impacts on product, process, market, organisational

structure and people); and 'automation' (able to work without

supeNision; understanding and competence in contrOlling the process;

competence in programming; information and continuous training;

inter-personal skills; material scheduling; and able to coordinate with

other parts of the process). Also, he stresses that the most successful

planning for the future will start with trends and development (planning,

training and management) in human resources rather than with financial

goals or market projections.

• Handy (1989) through observations, experiences and some case studies

predicts the Information/Knowledge Age as the 'Age of Unreason' with a

21

"

future of 'discontinuous change' enabled and/or driven by information

technology (IT). The main message consists of:

• 'a time of what we used to take for granted may no longer hold true;

• when the future (in so many areas) is there to be shaped by us for us:

• a time when the only prediclion that will hold true is that no predictions will hold;

• a time for bold 'imaginings' In private as well as public, for thinking the unlikely and

doing the unreasonable;

• and the path through time, with society slowly, naturally and radically Improving on

a steady course, is a thing of the past' .

Handy (1989, 1990, 1993, 1997) projects a new work concept called 'the

portfolios' which split time between fee work (paid work), gift work (for

communities, charilies), study work (keeping up-te-date with your work),

homework and leisure. This is complemented by teleworking or the

'electronic shamrock' which will become prominent with an estimated

figure by the Confederation of British Industry of more than 4 million

teleworkers after 1995, increasing towards the 21 st century.

Handy (1989, 1990) believes that certain forms of organisation will emerge

to support the Information Age namely 'the shamrock organisation', 'the

federal organisation' and 'the Triple I organisation'. 'The shamrock

organisation' is a form of organisation based around a core of essential

executives (including engineers, accountants and managers) and workers

supported by outside contractors; 'the federal organisation' is where a

central function is coordinating, influencing, advising, suggesting and

making long-term strategy (not short-term decisions); and 'the Triple I

organisation' is where 'information', 'intelligence' and 'ideas' (the three

'Is') are the essentials for work processes, people and learning, so as to

keep up with the pace of change.

Handy (1990) identifies the SUitable type of human resource for this period

which he calls the 'portfolio workers'. It is essential for them to acquire the

22

skills of 'organisational behaviour' (understanding why people and

organisation behave the way they do), 'teamwork', leadership and

communication. He stresses the importance of continuous or lifelong

learning in order to keep pace with change.

• NalsblH (1984), (,The Mega-Trends") predicts in detail America's shift from

industrial to information society in the 1980s, with parallels for other nations,

through expert opinions and views of experiences at the highest levels of

the America's businesses and government; studies of the American society;

observing carefully events in well-known states; and content analysis of

newspapers of the country. He stresses in the world of work, that the

reconceptuahsatlon of bUSiness and work processes, organisalion and

human resources must be a constant process. The overwhelming majority

of workers are actually engaged in creation, processing and distribution of

information. Knowledge is the critical resource and driving force of the

economy. IT at first was applied to old industrial tasks, then, gradually, gave

birth to new business activities, products and processes - 'information

economy' . Also, this led to the creation of brain-intensive industry, rather

than capital-intensive such as INTEL Corporation.

The organisalion must provide an environment where input from people

actually doing the roles/tasks is important in decision-making, ('bottom-up'

rather than 'top-down'). It must be alert to changes, to anticipate impacts

on business activities, work processes, organisation and people; and then

to respond for example through strategic visioning. Further examples

include envisaging the development of information society and global

economy (together with transformation of earth into 'global village'), and

the Increase viability of home as workplace (telecommuting).

The prominent human resources are the 'information workers', for

example, engineers, architects, accountants, lecturers, teachers and

lawyers. They were required to expand brain power through lifelong

23

education and learning. They were moving from 'specialists' to 'generalists'

who could adapt and be adept (flexible). Amongst the knowledge and

skills required is a strong base in reading and writing (in English) toward

computer literacy, facilitating people involve in decision-making processes

as part of leadership skills and teamwork. He re-emphasises the findings of

Robert Lund's study in 1981 on the impact of microprocessors or IT on Bntish

workplace. In this study production jobs tended to become 'deskilled' while

'engineering jobs' tend to become more demanding.

• Grove (1997) describes the 'change scenarios' in world of work through a

case study of his expenences in INTEL Corporation as a one of the founders,

as the President (1979) and chief executive (1987). He introduces the

concept of 'strategic inflection point'. It is a time in the life of a business

when its fundamentals are about to change which can mean there is an

opportunity to rise to new heights or it may signal the beginning of the end.

It is also when the balance of forces shifts from the old ways of doing

business (work), from the old structure, and the old ways of competing, to

the new. The case study shows that this is the period of 1985 -1986 when

INTEL was shifting from being a computer memory chips (store) to

microprocessors (brain) manufacturer, which in essence was driven by

technology, market (customers) and competition. The change affected

work process in the areas of new awareness of markets' (customers')

demands, new customer-relationships, a new product development

concept (individual customer's specifications leads to customised

products), adoption of new computer industry concept (from vertical to

horizontal models and from proprietary to compatibility), mass­

customisation and an entrepreneurship orientation (moving resources from

areas of lower productivity and yield to areas of higher productivity and

yield).

The organisational support shown must include environment and

mechanisms to facilitate 'anticipatory initiatives' or strategic planning and

24

strategic actions including the means to obtain information and input

concerning the future trends from all the human resources especially

people in the field (example information system - e-mail); no walls between

those who possess knowledge power (engineer, salesperson, computer

architect, etc.) and those who possess organisation power (budget

manager, human resources manager, etc.), thus promoting constant

collaborative exchanges to create best solutions in the interest of both;

forum for discussions to form a clearly articulated end result for any

strategy; continuously improving through a series of Incremental changes

that are consistent with the clearly articulated end result; rewarding those

who take risks when pursuing their work; and forming networks or alliances

with customers, suppliers and complementors (other businesses from whom

customers buy complementary products). He offers out a valuable

reminder that when dealing with the future and emerging trends, one may

very well have to go against extrapolation of data and rely instead on

anecdotal observations and instincts.

Knowledge and skills required during the change include future planning,

teamwork, problem solving, producing tangible results, interpersonal and

customer relations, IT, networking or partnering, communication and

presentation.

• Hemel (1997) reiterates the Information/Knowledge Age as the time where

one is living in a discontinuous world with digitisation, deregulation and

globahsation. These forces are profoundly reshaping the industrial

landscape; and new products are entering a market which is emerging

and changing. He stresses the importance of future and strategic planning,

as there is no inevitability and no proprietary data about the future. Thus

the goal is to 'imagine' what one can make happen.

25

2.2.3 Summary of Widely Agreed Developments and Their Implications

There are many detailed predictions of the developments which will be seen in

the Information/Knowledge Age. Table 2.1 summarises seven widely agreed

developments and their implications for the knowledge and skills they require.

Table 2.1: Widely Agreed Developments and Initiatives of Changes in Work Process and Implications

Developments or Initiatives and Their Characteristics

Implications· Knowledge and Skills Reaulred

1. Prolect and Teamwork: • In a wori<place, a person is hired and assigned •

to a project. The project changes over time, and the person's roles, responsibilities and tasks change with it. Then the person is assigned to another project (usually before the first project is completed), and then possibly to stili another. These additional projects (which also keep evolving) require working under several team leaders, keeping different schedules, being in various places and performing a number of • different tasks.

In this situahon, people cannot afford to depend on guides from a job description or from a supervisor's instructions. The signals come from the changing demands of the project itself.

People have to learn to concentrate their individual efforts and collective team efforts as well as resources on the work needs accomplishing, and changing as that changes. The roles or jobs will become more cross­functional, cross-business and sometimes, cross­country that usually bndge traditional • functional. organisational and budgeting boundaries.

In thiS workplace, inter-departmental meetings, cross-functional and multi-disciplinary teams and Integrated systems are common. This Will involve amongst others the collaboration of engineers, salespersons, industrial designers and human factors experts in a system.

The project and teamwori< in these environments, while maintaining the traditional forms, are also undergoing transformation in certain entities driven or enabled by IT. IT Will improve the work processes by linking cross-functional processes and enabling the human resources such as being supported and mediated by team support tools such as Lotus Notes, Microsoft Project etc. IT enables the formation of 'virtual •

26

The project work needs human resources who are good team players and who can communicate effechvely with other people, both technical and non-technical. Thus, the needs for teamwork and communication skills.

A team is a collection of individuals With collective responsibility for creating the end result through performing the whole work process unlll getting the outcome to the customer. This necessitates leadership skills to plan and motivate human resources that one may not have direct authonty.

The effectiveness and success of this type of teamwork will be faCilitated by members of the team being given power to make decisions affecting the project work progress, called 'empowerment' in order to create result. A leader in a team is someone whose role is to advise, to support and to faCIlitate In order to enable team members to perform. The leader is more as a coach with capability in leveraglng and enhancing the work of the team.

Work orocesses In oroiect work

teams' (or networks) where members are from different locations globally with different time zones.

IT also faCilitates the effechve utilisation and conlnbuhons of customers and suppliers through some forms of partnerships or as a member of the project team.

• In addition. programmes and initiatives to cultivate quality rely on teams of stakeholders. partners and associates throughout the entire workforce. Also. team and teamwork is one of the main mechanisms for bringing about change in organisation.

that were pioneered by traditional military and construdon industry are now well defined Within the body of knowledge and skills called Projed Management. As more and more organisations from other types of industries are adopting this concept into their business processes and actIVIties. the body of knowledge and skills In Project Management discipline need upgrading and adaptation.

• A ngidly functional organisation structure • hinders the kind of teamwork that can produce rapid and innovative responses to competition. •

IT knowledge and skills ore important. Customer-relations skills are needed.

References: Geus (1997): Hammer (1996): Peters and Waterman (1982): Peters (1997. 1992): Belbin (1996. 1993. 1984): Gilgeous (1997): Bennis (1997): Wllson (1996).

Note: Teamwork in the Information Age is characterised by working as a team to generate the best possible results (differs from in Industrial Age as previously shown). (Bridges. 1995. 1997; Peters. 1997)

2. Customer Orientation/Focus:

• Knowledge and skills on quality are important.

• Organisational Practices skills are essential

• Accomplishing works through teamwork. organise around essential processes that cut across vertical and functional boundaries and involving virtual (wired-up) organisations. needs to have a great system for efficiency and effedve performance - systems engineering concept (Peters. 1992. 1997)

• An emerging work scenario. enabled by IT. is where a sales • engineer SitS in a custome(s or his/her office and fills out a product order form on his/her laptop. The engineer asks the customer what features he/she likes on the product and • pricing the order accordingly. When the engineer sends in the order over his/her built-in modem. it is not only goes into the accounting Units of the organisation but straight into the •

Customer-relations skills.

Communication & human-relations skills.

Teamwork skills. manufacturing process. In manufacturing process. the specified features are converted into product's speCifications • and into instructions to the automated system. which has been deSigned to customise products on order. •

27

Marketing skills.

IT skills

• Also. Peters (1997) presents findings from Forum Corporation. • TQM Massachusetts quantitative research that the causes of customers defection are 15% due to technical quality reasons. 15% due to price and 70% due to the look/feel/smell/taste of doing business with an organisation.

3. IT -enabled Operation Tools - Concepts or Techniques: • Continuous improvement This concept is descnbed by Masaaki Imai as Kalzen (Imai.

1986). Kalzen means gradual progress of improvement processes which translate into incremental innovation. It is based on a group of values rooted in Japanese culture. such as self-realisation. recognition of diverse abilities and trust. These are values that lead to a strong belief that individual workers know better than anyone else how to interpret and improve their work because there are the experts.

Consequently. workers are encourage to propose suggestions for improvements (no matter how small) that management will consider senously and implement whenever possible.

It is also a powerful analytical tool for identitying inefficiency as shown by experiences in Toyota. the five 'whys' of kaizen. When a problem anses. the first 'why' is asked and a cause established. This follows by a second 'why' that questions the reason behind the first cause. and the steps go on down through five deeper levels of 'why'. Ultimately these steps lead to the determination of source of difficulty.

The identification and minimising (or eliminating) 'Muda' or 'waste' is another Japanese inSight applicable to work processes improvements. There are seven types of 'waste' namely over production. waiting time at the machine. waste in transport. processing waste. waste from excess inventory. waste in motion and rejects.

• 'Just-In-nme' (JIT) - Philosophy that originated from Kawasaki Production System. Kawasaki Heavy Industries Group. This method introduces the maximum amount of fleXibility and the elimination of wastes through testing manufactured components for defects Immediately after they are completed in smaller batches production. Thus. untested parts are no longer stored until final assembly which delay is incurred when defected part are discovered.

• Concurrent/simultaneous englneenng; empowerment; total quality management (TQM); reenglneenng (create effective and efficient bUSiness or work processes); 'lean

28

• Technology improves and enhances the efficiency of production and work performances. Though technology eliminates many work roles {jobs}. in fairness new work roles (Jobs) are also being created. But many of the new jobs tend to require advanced training and brain skills. and found in the value-added areas for examples engineering. design. research. etc

• Much of the new technology uses durable capital equipment that is programmable and therefore adoptable to multiple tasks. As products change. the same hardware can be used for new products with a Simple change of software. It is therefore software that must be developed for various applications rather than hardware.

• Due to the technology's multiple applications and underlying common physical pnnciples. and also the better communications among innovators. the technology is spreading at a faster pace than did the previous generation of Innovation. The

engineering'; partnership. strategic alliance (rearranging the relationships with suppliers. competitors and customers and continuous leaming.

• Numerically-controlled machine tools and robOTICS and the linking of these to computer-aided design and manufacturing (CAD/CAM). have made pOSSible the automation of a host of manufactUring operations and the development of flexible manufacturing system (FMS).

comblnahon of the growth of high technology production and its application to other products imply a changing structure for skills.

• The needs for knowledge and skills In new techniques enabled by IT -Kaizen. JIT. concurrent engineenng. CAD. CAD/CAM. FMS. etc.

• New work process based on teams and IT was the cause of successful Soeing's 777 which went into service in 1995. The project was carried out by 235 'design/build' teams which included not only design and manufacturing engineers. but the customers. maintenance mechanics. pilots and suppliers. including many Japanese. The bluepnnts came to life not on paper but digitally on a three-dimensional computer graphics system which allowed team-members to work together on drawings even if they were physically separated. These showed them Instantly not only their own changes but others' changes too. (Gates. 1999; pp. 264-269)

(Other reference: Industrial Engineering (May 81). pp. 29-46 and 50-59 and IEEE Spectrum (September. 1993). Special Issue/Manufacturing. US: IEEE. pp. 24-85)

(Other references; Industrial Engineering (May 81 ). pp. 29-46 and 50-59 and IEEE Spectrum (September. 1993). SpeCial Issue/Manufacturing. US: IEEE. PP. 24-85)

4. Design Orientation: In 1980s organlsahons competed on pnce. 1990s on quality and it is predicted in 21st century. on design. No longer compeTItive advantage be sustained through lower costs or higher technologies. thus design (tunctionality and aesthehcs of products) is the future real differentiation. Design which has been under appreciated as strategic opportUnity in manufacturing. construction and service organisations must be intimately folded into every element of organlsatlon's core business processes and corporate strategy in the future. (Peters. 1992. 1997)

5. Professional and Ethical Standards Orientation: The need to recognise the actual role of personal relationships between businesspeople. in contrast with emphasis on contractual correctness of an agreement. In addiTIOn. the question of ethical behaviour must be addressed in an open and collaborative forum. Each country subscribes to its own ethical standards as set out In values and laws. Difficulties anse when one country tries to Impose its ethical standards on other. Sut. Increasingly organisaTIons are choosing to walk away from businesses that compromise their ethical standards.

The 21 st century will see that business and organisations are being driven to behave better as they are being held to higher standards of behaviour and responsibility (ethlcs)(Peters. 1997). Also. studies by

29

• The Importance of the design process

• High professional and ethical standards

• Intemational Professional and Technical Standards

SEI Centre for Advanced Studies in Management. Whorton School of the University of Pennsylvania. find that standards and ethics are even more important in globalisatlon because internalional transactions can fall through gaps between different nalional legal. standard and moral systems (Wind and Main. 1998).

5. Working In Time-Compressed Environment: • It IS a concept that has been related to 'times of change'. The

21st century will see. as Alvin Toftler (1980) descnbes. "de­massified production". short runs of highly customised products through new cutting edge of manufacturing. IT. consumer electronics and everything else is moving at an accelerated pace. Tom Peters (1994) writes about International Business Machines's (IBM) personal computer operation at Ausbn. Texas; from 1992 to 1994 cut its average manufactunng cycle time from 7.5 to 1.5 days and new product development hme from 24 to 8 months. increased ItS product portfolio from 19 to 85 and simultaneously shrunk the payroll from 1.100 to 423. Also. since inventing the Walkman in 1979 to 1992. Sony Corporation has developed 227 different models. about one every three weeks.

Further enhancement of the concept. in 1995. Nathan Myhrvold of Microsoft stated "no matter how good your product. you are only 18 months from failure." His statement is immediately nullified by the case of the battle for software control over the Internet between Microsoft and Netscape. Microsoft introducing in very short time its own browser. the Internet Explorer 3.0 which was developed in just one year. But by the end of 1996. an enhanced Explorer 4.0 was on the market. this time developed over just six months. So the span has been reduced to SIX months for Explorer 4 0 and the fnghtening thing is that the span is expected to shrink even further" (Gates. 1995).

Time compression. from a different perspechve. occurs when an organisation effectively has to achieve a 24-hour workday for example in IT Industry. software projects routinely follow the sun. As a hypothetical example a situation unfolding where an organisation's programmers working in Bangalore. Pans. Dallas. or Honolulu ship code back and forth to keep the development process moving whne they are sleeping. The facility in Bangalore. India is one of the centres of excellence for networking and communications. so Bangalore develops the communicahons code for new products. Of course. that code has to be tested. and that work IS done In Dallas. It also has to be integrated into the organisation's overall systems code. and that work is often done in London. where many of the firm's systems engineers are based. Here. because the 'virtual nature' of the organisation where people are distributed around the world. everything works in parallel compared to a conventional company. where all the engineers are Sitting in the same place. you'd have a tremendous amount of serial processing (First you write the code. then you test it. then you Integrate It).

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• concurrent engineering

• IT skills

• Teamwork

• Organisational Practices

6. 'Information Work'· managemenf of vasf guantilv of information: • It is a concept projected by MIT's Mlchael Dertouzos, 1997

describing the work that is prominent which involved enhancement of human effechveness through 'information work'. This 'information work' involves the transformation of informahon (data. findings. etc.) by human brains or computer programs in producing a product or a service. Thus. the 'Information work' is a thinking work for examples deSigning and developing a product or a building; negotiating a contract: marketing. sales and distributing; scheduling or planning; financing; servicing a customer; collaborating With suppliers and customer; etc (similar to Toffle(s 'knowledge work'). When IT went from row number-crunching to modeling construction problem or manufacturing problem. IT is partlcipahng in 'information work'. The advancement in IT has enabled and also. in many cases. drove the 'information work' by means of advanced IT or digital processes that 'knowledge workers' use to make better decisions. ThiS resulting in workplace called 'Informahon marketplace' where the working system consists of a great deal of customised software and combinations of human and machine procedures. 'Information work' will Involve the management of vast quantity of information and also. movement away from machines that replace human work to machines that enhance human work.

7. Organisafional Support· Flexible and Responsive: • There is no one right way to create flexibility in organisational

structure to adapt to change especially to work process changes and environment in workplace. It is clear that the organisational support must be designed not implicitly to maintain the status quo but rather than to respond to the changing demands of work process changes.

• Also, globallsation has a serious impact for the conduct of organisational life. in the public and private sectors. Globalisation creates an environment characterised by massive uncertainty which requires organisations to be agile. flexible and responsive to change in order to survive and prosper. There is also a need for cooperation both nationally and internationally.

• Concurrently. the complexity in the relationships between the organisations with suppliers. customers and competitors is increasing. Organisations attempt to change their culture. redesign their structure and equip themselves with a more appropriate set of knowledge and skills.

• Companson of 21 si and 20lh Cenlurles Organlsohons (Wind and Main. 1998):

20'. cenfurv • Goal-directed • Priced-focussed • Product quality mind-set • Product-dnven

21" cenfurv Vision-directed Value-focussed Total quality mind-set Process. customer-driven

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• IT skills (including Information Management)

• The fundamental challenge for any organisational support for the change environment IS that organisations must seek out appropnate and effective inter­dependencies that were simply not technologically. geographically and politically pOSSible In the past. Many organisations are responding With various of experimentation in the new types of networking and non hierarchical relationships and structures such as matnx cluster. network. moiect-

• Shareholder-focussed • Finance-oriented • Efficient. stable • Hierarchical • Machine-based • Functional • Rigid, committed • local, regional, national • Vertically integrated

Stakeholder-focussed Speed-oriented Innovative, entrepreneurial Flat, empowered Information-based Cross-functional FleXible, learning Global Networked, interdependent

• Also, some organisations are experimenting with transient ad hoc organisation that can interact, perform the required work processes and then break off,

based & project­team, flat, shamrock, spider­web, virtual and learning (& experimenting).

The next section will discuss country specific experiences relating to the 'times

of change' scenarios (visions) in the countries which are the subject of the

research, Malaysia and the United Kingdom (UK),

2.3 THE COUNTRYWIDE RESEARCH CONTEXT

The countrywide 'change' experiences are reported for Malaysia and then for

the United Kingdom (UK).

2.3.1 Manifestation of Change: Malaysia's General Future Developments

The Malaysian experiences to be reported here are in the context of major

'times of change' in the country. The focus will be on scenarios of turbulent

economy and accelerated technological change in the ever-changing and

globahsing environment.

ThiS research Involves planning for the future. Discussions will therefore

concentrate only on the change scenarios of the 19905 which are the

gateways into the 21't century and some visions (scenarios) of the 21 st century

Itself.

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2.3.1.1 Change scenarios In Asia - Nalsblff (1995)

A major contributor IS Naisbitt in 'Megatrends' 1995. 'Megatrends Asia' 1997

and 'Megatrends 2000'. He analyses trend analysis. regional and cultural

patterns for Malaysia. Singapore. Indonesia. Thailand. Philippines. South Korea.

China (includes Hong Kong). Taiwan. India and Vietnam. The trends projected

are treated as parallel developments in the countries considered. The methods

used to produce this work include dialogues and interviews with key

government. business. academic and community leaders in individual

countries; extensive first-hand observations; and content analysis of the Asia's

region leading newspapers and periodicals.

The consolidated vision is that the region is in the middle of development

toward 'Information SOCiety' with more and more actiVities (economics. social.

political. etc.) involving global environment. The developments are driven by

the advancement in technologies especially information and

telecommunication technologies. The 'times of change' projected are

characterised by eight (8) 'Megatrends':

(1) Change from nation-states to networks; (2) Change from export-led to

consumer-driven; (3) Change from Western influence to the Asian way; (4)

Change from government-controlled to market-driven; (5) Change from

Villages to supercitles; (6) Change from labour-intensive to hIgh technology; (7)

Change from male dominance to the emergence of women; (8) Change from

West to East.

The envisaged future is that in the new global economy which would be

customer-driven. nation-states are expected to become less relevant while

networks (for example inter-company trade. person-te-person

communications. universities' networks. business sector alliances

manufacturers networks. construction or architecture networks) will dominate

and become the core of global economy.

33

Organisationally, these developments lean toward decentralisation. The

networks that emerge would be complex, sophisticated and flexible In order to

react to the needs of the markets. The alliances are formed and designed to

take advantages of each other's strength for their mutual benefit and

competitive edge.

Naisbitt observes that the shift in Asia from labour-intensive to high

technology is well underway and progressing along three (3) prominent paths:-

1. make current manufactunng operations more efficient through technological

advanced production techniques

2. create an information technology (IT) and telecommunications Infrastructure

capable of supporting an information economy and Integrating into the global

information network

3. develop and support "home-grown" and high-tech industries

Malaysia, like other countries in the region, is concentrating on the strategic

industries namely telecommunications, information and information

technology, consumer electronics, semiconductors, precision machinery and

automation, advanced materials, aerospace, pharmaceuticals, healthcare

and software engineering. Also, advances in IT meant knowledge-based

operations can be located in Malaysia, for example 'software consultants'

based in Malaysia can serve end-users in America, Germany and United

Kingdom. In addition, local competencies can be tapped to develop

products for the firm's global customers. Multinational corporations (MNCs) are

increasingly doing the critical research and development and 'design-and­

engineering tasks' processes In MalaYSia, In addition to production and

assembly (changes in work processes incorporating the whole work system of

manufacturing) .

The factors that will drive the changes are education and IT (including

telecommunications) capabilities. Educational needs are identified and so

also are changes in the educational infra-structure. It is not either/or, it is both.

34

More engineers will be needed as the country shifts from labour-intensive to

high technology. In term of quantity. Naisblt! reports that Malaysian universities

graduate fewer than 6.000 engineers each year while the annual demand is

10.000. Also. the demand for skilled. talented and well-educated human

resources far exceeds the supply in Malaysia and also in the Asian region.

Therefore. efforts to increase the 'home-grown' engineering graduates have to

be supplemented by 'repatriation' of engineers and sCientists from abroad

(Naisbit!. 1995).

The required expertise is in the following strategic industnes;

telecommunications. information and information technology. consumer

electronics. semiconductors. precision machinery and automation. advanced

materials. aerospace. pharmaceuticals. healthcare and software

engineering. In addition expertise in research and development. in managing

entire projects (project management). high quality testing and quality

assurance and infrastructure development are essential to ensure the changes

and developments run smoothly. There is also. a tremendous demand for

executive managers with foreign languages skills and cultural awareness as

the activities in the global economy gather momentum.

Malaysia and countries in the Asia region are leapfrogging into the

Information Age with little expenences in the Industrial Age. Thus. Asia is in

urgent need of developments and improvements in higher education

especially in science and technology. For productivity to increase. the quality

of human resources matters more than quantity.

2.3.1.2 The actual change scenarios in Malaysia: general perspective

The visionary book by Naisbit! (1995) above has had some influence on future

planning in Asia generally and Malaysia in particular. There are some parallels

In terms of the events. pnnclples. developments. ideas and tools (concepts or

methods or techniques) as Will be shown by the discussion in thiS section. In

35

addition, the materials in this section are obtained from the analysis and

synthesis of various reports and publications Information of Central Bank of

Malaysia (Homepage: http://www.bnm.gov.my/pub/lnfo/lndex.htm) .

The future planning in Malaysia consists of 'visionary level' and subsequent

'detailed strategic five-yearly plan' level which would be implemented and

monitored. The visionary level involves the formation of foundation principles

and national objectives which will guide the subsequent strategic planning

and implementation processes. The five-year strategic planning involves

virtually every aspects the country's activities (economy, education, health,

defense, welfare, finance, etc.) and is based on input from every related

organisation and department (public and private). The Secretariat, the

Economic Planning Unit (EPU), in the Prime Minister Department of Malaysia

produces the official document detailing the five-year plan which includes

amongst others the projects to be implemented, the budget, the schedule of

implementation and the authorities responsible. This document becomes the

'reference manual' for virtually all development activities during that five-year

period. This five-year future plan is called 'The Malaysia Plan'.

The earliest structured form of future planning commenced in 1965 which

resulted in the 'First Malaysia Plan, 1966 to 1970'. This was followed by

consecutive Malaysia's Plans namely the 'Second Malaysia Plan, 1971 to 1975';

the 'Third MalaYSia Plan, 1976 to 1980'; the 'Fourth Malaysia Plan, 1981 to 1985';

the 'Fifth Malaysia Plan, 1986 to 1990'; the 'Sixth Malaysia Plan, 1991 to 1995';

and the 'Seventh Malaysia Plan, 1996 to 2000'.

Holistically, the visionary level for these 'Malaysia Plans' could be divided into

two phases of development in Malaysia. The first phase involved the 'First

Malaysia Plan' up to the 'Fifth MalaYSia Plan' (1966 to 1990) where the

founding pnncipal vision (or philosophy) was to create and ensure stability and

harmony for the multi-racial society in Malaysia. The multi-racial society of

MalaYSia IS made up of the Malays, Chinese, Indians and other minonty races.

36

The affirmative action programme formulated was called the "New Economic

Policy (NEP)" consisted of properly planned measures of addressing the

existing unequal distribuhon of wealth among the races by restructuring the

degree of participahon, involvement and welfare of the country's various

races in the economic and wealth creating activities. The second phase which

involves the 'Sixth Malaysia Plan', the 'Seventh Malaysia Plan' and the 21'1

century is founded on the "Vision 2020" and will be discussed in the following

section.

2.3.1.3 The Malaysia's National Vision Into the 21" century - 'Vision 2020'

The focus of this research corresponds to the second phase of the philosophy

of future planning in Malaysia (1991 to 2000 and beyond) which consists of the

'Sixth Malaysia Plan, 1991 to 1995'; the 'Seventh Malaysia Plan, 1996 to 2000';

and the next Malaysia Plans (probably the 'Eighth Malaysia Plan, 2001 to 2005';

the 'Ninth MalaYSia Plan, 2006 to 2010'; and so on).

The second phase of the future planning is guided by what IS called 'Vision

2020'. Malaysia has a vision to become a fully-developed country by the year

2020 which is called Malaysia's 'Vision 2020' which plans to move the nation

and to unite the peoples behind a common destiny and to solidify their

efforts behind a shared purpose. 'Vision 2020' originated from the Pnme

Minister's office and was officially launched in 1991. The initiation of this Vision is

the 'Second Outline Perspective Plan (OPP2) of Malaysia 1991-2000'.

The 'Vision 2020' therefore sets out not only an economic agenda; not

only a SOCial agenda; not only a political agenda; not only a psychological

agenda; and not only a science and technology agenda. It sets out a

comprehensive, and rounded agenda for the nation.

37

2.3.1.4 The overall perspective of future planning In Malaysia

Starting from the early eighties, Malaysia re-invented her economy. Not so

long ago Malaysia depended on rubber and tin, and then on rubber and

palm oil. In 1996, rubber and tin or rubber and palm oil or natural resources

including petroleum together made up only 16.9% of the country's total

export earnings. Malaysia was high on the rungs of the world's industrialised

economies. Industry accounted for 44% of Malaysia's total Gross Domestic

Product (GDP). Manufactured products accounted for more than 80% of the

total exports. More than 34% of the workforce were employed in the

industrial sector. While these were happening, the country was looking seriously

at other sectors especially the services sector.

The performance above is the consequence over the last fifteen years of

the reforming and re-making of Malaysia's economy in the most fundamental

of ways. Some of the 'key initiatives' that have been undertaken and will

continue to be used are:-

• Introducing 'Look East', privatisation, product/ve deregulation

• mode the pnvate sector, not the public sector, the pnmary engine of growth

• accelerating the industrialisation drive

• expanding medium and small scale Industries

• tumed forcefully to export-led growth, thus relying on the whole world os the

marketplace

• opened and liberalised the economy

• pushed hard for foreign investment, whilst pushing even harder for domestic

investment

• emphasised human resources development

• pressed the need for Malaysia Incorporated, of cooperation between the

Government and the private sector, and later on the unions os well, In the task

of developing the notion for the people

• developed and fortified infrastructure

• enriched and strengthened entrepreneurship

38

The view here is that these are 'key initiatives' which despite all the

difficulties, faults and failures. have helped to bring some measures of success

to Malaysia. Many new strategies and Ideas have yet to be discovered.

developed and pursued. It is clear that a nation that does not constantly

reform itself and is willing to try new ideas and strategies; an economy that is

unable to quickly re-invent itself and then to quickly re-invent Itself again. will

soon be left behind in the Information Age. a world buffeted by new ideas

such as globalisatlon. borderless economies. as well as unlimited information

and knowledge.

In order to continue growing Malaysia must be constantly vigilant and

alert to the changes taking place around the world such as the continued

expansion of the manufacturing capability by improving productivity and

performance. This can be done through automation, use of robots. new

techniques and concepts in manufacturing. As with the rest of the world.

MalaYSia is moving into the Information Age. Hence. the following measures

are part of the country's preparations:

I) National Information Infrastructure Proiect for Malaysia Malaysia is developing an integrated and effective information network. The

programme to be implemented will include not only physical infrastructure. but

also with a cultural and educational programme. as well as the creation of on­

line content and services. and the effective use of network resources.

The Government of Malaysia has allocated a sum of RM400 million under the

'Seventh Malaysia Plan (1996 - 2000)' for the National Information Infrastructure

Project - a comprehensive programme to create an integrated national

information superhlghway.

This includes installing a national networking infrastructure called 'JARING'

node in each district in the country. Widening the existing information highway

so that It can fulfill the need for multi-media applications and increasing the

39

number of international lines, or direct lines to more countnes. This is essenlial

to future developments in Malaysia as Alvln Toftler (1990) predicts that 'No

nation can operate a 21st-century economy Without a 21 st-century electronic

infrastructure, embracmg computers, data communications and other new media'.

The infrastructure will cater for the increased use of IT in all areas of work and

daily aclivities. 11 will also facilitate the enrichment of local information

resources and the subsequent marketing of such local materials for the global

market.

The private sector has responded magnificenlly with commitments in terms of

RM50 billion investment to lay 57,OOOkm of fibre optiC cables throughout the

country over a period of 9 years from 1995. The network will comprise main

and branch fibre optic cables for land and coastal line cables stretching from

Langkawi, and covering the shoreline of the peninsula. The project is to be

completed by the year 2005.

11) Information technology (In the enabling tool Information Technology (IT) is an important agenda in Malaysia's development

programmes. Under the 'Seventh Malaysia Plan (1996 - 2000)', the government

has allocated a total sum of RM2.3 billion for development projects under IT to

be undertaken by various government's departments and agencies.

The importance of IT is recognised by the government as indicated by the

Prime Minister's statement - "MalaYSia should move into an area of sophisticated

Information Technology as It gives them new parameters for economic advancement

and social progress". (Business Times Section of New StrO/ts Time Newspaper,

November, 1995)

Other prominent figures have made statements to the same effect, such as

Director General of Malaysia Information Management Operating System

(MIMOS) - " Information Technology deseNes the national attention and promlnance

40

because It has a more far reachIng and signIfIcant role to play in the national drive to

achIeve a developed country status". (New Straits Times, October, 1995)

Underline this commitment, the Malaysian Government has formulated

policy's statements to guide and facilitate the development of IT from 1996 to

2000 as follows:

a) Ensuring widespread dlstTlbution and application of IT between sectors to

sImulate productivity and competitiveness as well as improving the quality of life;

b) CreatIng a national acfton plan to ensure a more systematic approach to

managing IT development in the country. SpecifIcally, this involve development

of an IT culture; implementatIon of national IT applicatIon such as the MultImedIa

Super Corridor (MSC) and intelligent CIty; and provision of telecommunication

Infrastructure;

c) Expansion of IT educatIon and training, in line wIth the projected Increase In

demand for IT-related skJlls, knowledge and expert,se;

d) ReVIew of laws and regulatIons that impede the development of IT;

e) EncouragIng the development of indigeneous IT Industry In terms of products

design and manufacturing as well as creatIve systems and servIces to create

new growth opportunItIes, expertIse and Job opportunItIes In high technology

areas;

f) Developing Malaysia into a regIonal IT hub with internatIonal compantes

operating from MalaYSIa;

g) Increasing IT awareness among the populatIon

111) Development of MultImedia Super Corridor (MSC) Malaysia's most ambitious project yet is the Multimedia Super Corridor

(MSC). PhYSically, this is a 15km wide stretch of land extending from the

Kuala Lumpur City Centre 50km south to the new International Airport

in Sepang. Within this area and next to the new so-called paperless

electronic Government Administrative City will be a Cybercity, a haven for

the 'information age' industry involving multimedia.

International multimedia companies are being welcomed to participate in

this exciting new venture, which is to be a test bed for real life experiment in

41

electronic government. multimedia universities. borderless manufacturing. a

single intelligent card to replace the numerous cards that individuals have

to carry today. R&D laboratories. media content producers and a host of

other activities which have become possible because of modern real-time.

borderless infbrmation distribution world-wide.

Malaysia is developing the vision city of tomorrow (Naisbitl's supercity). Putra

Jaya Administration Centre is going to adopt the MSC concept. MSC Will link

the city with Kuala Lumpur and the new Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

Sepang with the latest and most up to date news. information and services.

The development was launched by the Prime Minister in October 1995. The

development is expected to give a direct boost to the future of education.

communication and also human resources development in the country.

The MSC embraces an open communication architecture based on the

"borderless world" concept. The MSC can communicate and access

information with any part of the world through the capability of the information

highway of the Internet. The idea was mooted by the Malaysian Prime Minister

to see that Malaysia does not lag other industrialising countries in the

information age. Naturally future development will be the extension of the

corridor to the rest of the country.

In relation to human resources. this development will require a population as

familiar with this informational infrastructure as it is with for example. the

telephone. Another point to consider is that all citizens. poor and rich alike.

must be guaranteed access to the widest possible range of media included in

the MSC.

iv) The development of human resources The successful achievement of 'Vision 2020' will depend on the availability of

competent human resources and 'Vision 2020' states unequivocally: "nothIng ;s

more Important than the development of human resources ... Our people are our

42

ultimate resource': The country must have a fair deal of the know-how

(knowledge), the skills and the expertise in order to be able, firstly, to

produce all those sophisticated products which developed countries

produce and sell to the world, and then secondly, be able to invent and

Innovate and patent her products.

Also. Malaysia as the rest of the world is in the midst of a technological

revolution which has profound implications on production processes and

human resources. In Malaysia. movement towards manufacturing and also

service-based economy demands increased high technology.

communication and interpersonal skills. Management restructuring from a

'top-down' to a 'participatory' style requires teamwork with emphasis on

employees cooperation. commitment, flexibility. and shared responsibility.

The Second Outline Perspective Plan (OPP2) of Malaysia 1991-2000 (Page 25,

paragraph 1.86) states that with the increasing globalisation and

internationalisation of world economy, the country will face more competition

in trade and investment. The OPP2 also states that present trends in the

demand for industrial human resources indicate the need for human resources

with broad-based education emphasising mathematics. science and

communication abilities. These attributes will provide the foundation for

trainable human resources which can adapt swiftly to the changing

technological needs of the country.

Malaysia like other countries is undertaking the important and complex task

of restructuring and expanding human resources development systems which

includes changing the education system. to meet her development

requirements. Several reforms were undertaken and will be undertaken in the

future to make education and training systems more responsive to social and

economic development needs. There are debates on how thiS can best be

done and these include policies, systems, modes of training and financing.

43

2.3.1.5 Methodology of the future planning In Malaysia

The method of future planning in Malaysia is in the mould of 'top-down'

orientation (Government Policy) with participation and contributions from all

relevant subordinates (stakeholders). The steps in Malaysia's future planning

are a variation of the approach of the formal long-range planning (five to

seven-year plans) method mentioned in Quinan (1980) which include:

a) Situation analysIs of the country's own internal situations such as knowledge. skills

and capabilities (competencies). strengths. weaknesses. faults. problems and

challenges.

b) Projective analysis which involves projecting current situations into the future.

c) Environmental analYSIS which consists of forecashng technological. sociological and

economic opportunities and threats; establishing broad goals as targets for

subordinate groups' (public. semi-government and private sectors) plans; and

identifying the gaps between expected and desired results.

d) Communicating to the stakeholders the planning assumptions. foundation. goals

and policies.

e) Initial proposals from subordinate groups (for example ministries. departments.

divisions. etc.). consisting speCific target goals. resources needs (finanCial. human

etc.) and supporting achon plans. are compiled.

f) Reviewing and approving divisional plans and summing these for the nation's

corporate needs.

g) Developing programme-term budgets related to plans which consist of expected

accomplishments. financial. human resources ~:md commitments.

h) ASSigning implementation plans such as in the form of programmes' official

documents which consist of policy statements. goals and objectives. activities.

financial allocations. schedules of implementation (progress or bar charts. etc ) and

other related documentation.

i) Monitoring and evaluahng performance against plans (but espeCially against

budgets) together With an opportUnlfy for reviews of the plans at the mid-term

penod.

The researcher personal experiences at subordinate level planning

(Department of Technical Education. Ministry of Education MalaYSia) of

44

Malaysia's Plans namely the 'Sixth and Seventh Malaysia Plans' Indicated that

all these steps were in operation with some complementary modifications to

adapt to local environments and changing situations encountered during the

planning process.

2.3.1.6 The 'times of change'ls continuing: The economic crisis commencing September 1997

Prior to this crisis. Malaysia was riding high through a boom period with the

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growing at an average rate of 9 per cent per

annum dUring the period of 1988 to 1996. Then the continuous and uncertainty

characteristic of the Information Age unfolded again when suddenly since

September 1997. Malaysia together with other East Asian countries (Thailand.

Indonesia and South Korea) faced unprecedented economic challenges in

un chartered waters. Malaysia is stili grappling with a financial crisis triggered

by foreign exchange volatility brought about by the depreciation of Malaysia's

currency and other countries in the region.

Previously. Malaysia experienced recessionary pressures in 1985 when the

economy registered a negative growth. During that period the concept of

'Malaysia Incorporated' created the strategic partnership between the public

sector and the private sector. The public sector is responsible for determining

poliCies for a conducive business framework while the private sector is directly

involved in the production and commercialising (including marketing) of

output. The concept forges closer cooperation and collaboration between

the two sectors in harnessing the country's competitive advantage of

abundant resources and cheap labour to revitalise the economy. The

testimony of this successful partnership is not only in being able to turn around

the economy from the onslaught of the last recession but also in sustaining a

phenomenal growth averaging 9 per cent per annum during the period of

1988 and 1996.

45

The preceding discussion has shown that planned industrialisation has

transformed the Malaysia's economic structure from an agriculture-dominated

economy into one in which the manufacturing sector is the engine of growth.

Malaysia's low cost but relatively high quality manufactured products had

catapulted Malaysia into being heralded as the 19th largest exporter in the

world at one stage in the 1988 to 1996 period.

These developments, manifested by the economic crisis, show that MalaYSia

IS involved in the 'globalisation process' and consequently is participating in

the 'global economy'. In the 'global economy', no nation is an island and

can stand in isolation. The management of the global economy is not solely

determined by macroeconomic fundamentals, but is also influenced by

external forces which limits the powers of the nation's own monetary and fiscal

pOlicies. The global economy is characterised by among others the

interdependency as national economies are being denationalised and the

sovereignty of national governments over economic activities has been limited

substantially.

'Globahsation' not only provides risks but also opens-up opportunities.

'Globalisation' entails risks in the form of greater foreign competition as well as

increased cost of coordination and cultural differences. Success defends on

anticipation of market trends and quick response to changing customer

needs. On the other hand, 'globalisation' of production and market provides

opportunities to source optimum cost factors of production, opening up of

new markets, achieving the economies of scale and the development of

global sourcing of components and expertise.

Another important development is the fast rate of depletion of natural

resources due to Industrial and economic activities, and also the increase in

population. This is occurring globally and leads to the increasing concern

among the International community and the aspiration towards 'sustainable

development'. 'Sustainable development' is trying to achieve a balance

46

between development and preservation of the environment which requires

the knowledge and skills related to environmental aspects such as

environmental engineering and also the 'integrated project development and

management' concept. In order to achieve the balance, development can

only be undertaken after a proper 'Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)'

has been done and will be managed through the 'integrated project

development' concept from inception to completion (the systems engineering

concept.

'Globalisation' demands a corporate culture that gives the human resources

the values, knowledge and skills to respond and innovate to global challenges.

Malaysia's quest for long term sustainabillty of market share or industry's

leadership can only be achieved through reinventing industry and processes

improvement. The world of work and business in a 'global environment'

encompass the management of greenfield and strategic alliance investment

in different countries; cultural and languages differences; political and

sovereign risks; and international business, finance, standards and professional

practices.

The aspiration towards 'sustainable development' requires equipping the

relevant human resources with the knowledge and skills related to

environmental aspects such as environmental engineering, the 'integrated

project development and management' concept and systems engineering

concept.

In summary, thiS economic crisis is a testimony that change is continuing and

full of uncertainties, and the pace is accelerating. In order to survive and

prosper Malaysia must be flexible and responsive even though she has in place

a ngorous and structured future planning mechanism. The economic crisis has

shown that there are more than one pOSSible futures occurring. Thus, the

existing future planning mechanism needs to take into consideration that there

47

----------------

is more than one possible future and measures must be proposed to cater for

these events.

2.3.2 Manifestation of Change: UK's General Future Developments

Similar 10 Ihe Malaysia's experiences. comparable events in UK will be

discussed here so as to form the context for the prominent issues of the

'information age' in the country. Also. the focus Will be on scenarios of

turbulent economy and accelerated technological change in the ever­

changing and globalising environment. The concentration is only on the

change scenarios of the 1990s which are the gateways into the 21 sf century

and some visions of the 21 sf century itself. This section tries to identify planning

programmes in the UK that are comparable in rigour. concept and scope with

the MalaYSia's experiences which leads to the 'UK Foresight Programme'. The

discussion in this section IS based on the unique electronic resource of visions.

information and views known as Department of Trade and Industry. UK

'Foresight knowledge pool' (homepage: http://www.foresight.gov.uk).

2.3.2.1 The 'UK Foresight Programme': general perspective

The 'UK ForeSight Programme' was launched in 1994 following a major review

of the Government science. engineering and technology policy. It is

managed centrally by the Office of Science and Technology (OST).

Department of Trade and Industry but is spearheaded by independent panels.

each representing an important sector of UK economy and comprising

representatives from business. the science base (academic and research

institutions) and government.

Foresight simply defined is an early warning system. a way for people and

businesses to visualise 10 or 20 years in the future. The aim of the programme is

to prepare for the future through focussing on improving the competitiveness

of UK's economy and enhancing the quality of hfe; by bringing together

48

business, the science base and government to identify and respond to

emerging opportunities in markets, engineering and technologies. It is about

deploying resources in the best way possible for competitive advantage, for

enhanced quality of life and for sustainable development. This aim is

transferred into detailed and specific purposes namely to:

• develop visions of the future (10 or 20 years ahead) -looking at possible

needs, opportunities and threats and deCiding what should be done now to

make sure that these challenges con be met;

• bUild bndges between business, science (include engineering) and

government across 011 areas and activities;

• bring together the knowledge and expertise of many people, working in

partnership to increase notional wealth and well-being.

The results of the programme are in the form of foresight process and

methodology, and reports of findings which are available as resources to be

used:

• by companies, large and small, to re-shope their business strategies and

build sustained competitive advantage;

• in breaking down barriers to collaboration across business sectors and

academic disCiplines, and between business and the sCience base;

• in focusslng business and sCience base on key issues for quality of life in the

21 st Century;

• in informing policy and spending decision across government.

General comments when comparing the 'UK Foresight Programme' with

Malaysia future planning include:

• Issues are the same

• Not central planning but enabling

• Not just competitiveness but also touched on 'quality of life',

sustalnabihty, etc.

49

2.3.2.2 Foresight panels and phases

Foresight panels are at the core of the programme. The programme IS a

continuous process. The first phase began in 1994 and ended in May 1995 and

was undertaken by sixteen panels which considered the future for their

respective sectors and make recommendations for action. The panels

consulted very widely within their respective communities and were guided by

a Technology Foresight Steering Group similarly composed and chaired by the

Government's Chief Scientific Advisor. The first phase panels were:

• Agnculture, Horticulture and Forestry; Chemicals; Construclion, Defence

and Aerospace; Energy; Financial Services; Food Chain Group and Food &

Drink; Health and Life Sciences; IT, Electronics and Communications; Leisure

and Learning; Manufacturing; Marine; Materials; Natural Resources and

Environment; Retail and Distribution; and Transport.

The first phase panels published their respective reports in 1995 which

identified the likely social, economic and market trends that will affect UK in

the medium to long term, and the developments required In science,

engineering and technology in order to best address these future needs. The

vast amount of reports and related literature are available for further reading

from Foresight Directorate, OST and Her Majesty Stalionary Office (HMSO) for

example 'Progress through Partnership's, Volume 1 to 15, OST 1995 (available

from HMSO), 'Progress through Partnerships' - the Report of the Steering Group,

OST 1995 (available from HMSO) and many more.

The important conclusions derived are relevant to this research and also led

to the implementation of the second phase the 'UK Foresight Programme'

which include:

• to extend and embed future planning process and methodology In UK's

organisations, obViously In this programme emphasis IS on the 'foresight

process and methodology';

50

• to use Science, Engineering and Technology developments to increase UK

competitiveness in the future;

• to improve the supporting infrastructure for innovation and research and

development (R&D) investment in UK;

• to develop global collaboration and networks.

In relation to this research, the first thrust is on the importance of future

planning process and methodology, the second and third thrusts are on the

importance of on-going process improvement. and the fourth thrust is on the

importance of globalisation. (This is similar to Malaysian priorities)

Furthermore, the 'UK Foresight Programme' prionties underpin a wide range

of activities including:

• a portfolio of collaborative research worth almost £200 million (under the

Govemment's LINK scheme);

• the £90 million Foresight Challenge initiatives which provide support for

partnerships between business and the science base to address Foresight

priorities;

• the £20 million Foresight LINK Awards which provide support for innovative

research partnerships between bUSiness and the science base. A further £10

million of Government funding for a second round of Foresight LINK Awards

was announced In December, 1998.

2.3.2.3 Further developments

The 'UK Foresight Programme' is continuing with the commencement of the

second phase in April 1999. It continues to:

• build on the achievements of Foresight to date, developing new vIsions and

a fresh agenda for action;

• have many avenues for partiCipation - In particular to encourage the

Involvement of young people and small and medium entreprises (SMEs);

• Include Associate Programmes run by professional institutions and others to

embed ForeSight process and methodology in the community;

51

• create a knowledge pool to support the development of new and

expanded networks of Foresight participants;

• encourage wide debate on emerging results and conclusions.

Every panel in the second phase is to consider two underpinning themes in its

proposals and reports, namely 'education, skills and training' and 'sustainable

development'. These panel are of two kinds:

a) Thermatic panels are addressing broad social and/or economiC issues which

might affect quality of life In the future - Aging Population, Crime Prevention

and Manufacturing 2020;

b) Sectoral panels are focussing on bUSiness sectors or broader areas of activity

and carry forward the work of eXisting panels as well as tackling new Issues­

BUilt EnVironment & Transport; Chemicals; Defense, Aerospace & Systems;

Energy & Natural EnVironment; Financial Services; Food ChOln & Crops for

Industry; Healthcare; Information, Communication & Media; Materials; and

Retail & Consumer Services.

2.3.2.4 Methodology of the 'UK Foresight Programme'

The method of the 'UK Foresight Programme' is based on a "ground-up"

principle. The 'stakeholders' compiled the information towards formation of

the future visions mainly through 'DELPHI' methods complemented by

consultalions with the communities of respective sectors and 'focus groups'

activities. The findings are presented in terms of reports which become

available as resources for any stakeholder (Individuals, business organisations,

academic institutions, research and development (R&D) Institutions and

government departments or agencies) to use in planning for the future. The

stakeholders are not required by law or other forms of enforcement to use the

resources. The future visions are not being imposed on the stake holders from

the top but some of the findings become priorities in the policy directions

especially in financial allocations for some of the inslitutlons, departments and

agencies.

52

2.3.2.5 Other 'UK's future' endeavour

Another 'UK's future' endeavour being pointed out by Jones (et. al.), 1999 are

'Key UK's Government Reports' such as 'Our Information Age (Central Office of

Information 1998) which identify major societal changes dnven by

technologies. These are generally in line with the above analysIs:

# A new age of information and global competition

# Rapid technological change

# A need for continuous education and development

Sections 2.1 to 2.3 have presented the 'change scenarios' in general (global)

and for countrywide experiences which will form the context for this research.

The next section will compile the ideas or 'shapers' (including the drivers

and/or enablers) and tools (methods, concepts or techniques) that will

determine the scope and methods of this study.

2.4 CHANGES IN THE WORLD OF WORK: IDEAS (SHAPERS) AND TOOLS

This review can be used to set the context for the research. There are some

dnvers and enablers (the ideas (shapers)) that are dominant in shaping the

future. There are also some tools (concepts, methods, 'visions', etc.) which the

outcomes that are common goals. This section summarises these ideas

(shapers) and tools by putting forward a positive perspective of what could be

achieved. It does not cover the difficulties or controversies.

2.4.1 Ideas (Shapers) - The Drivers and/or Enablers (Information/Knowledge, IT and Market (Customers))

The first group of the ideas consists of the information/knowledge, information

technology (IT) and market, which are the most Important drivers and/or

enablers of changes in work process for all the settings.

53

2.4.1.1 The Information/Knowledge

The twenty-first century will involve economic. political and social processes

which are increasingly information and knowledge based. rather than capltal­

based as in the Industrial Age. More and more today's work involves the

processing of information and knowledge rather than the manipulation of

things. even in industries at the heart of the Industrial Age such as

manufacturing and construction. Work processes that are dominated by

information and knowledge processing include research and development

(R&D). design. engineenng. marketing. finance, personnel. management.

information services. procurement and distribution. (Malaysia's and UK's

reports; Drucker. 1986, 1992. 1993; Bridges, 1995, 1997; Dertouzos. 1997; Stewart.

1997; Geus, 1997).

It is important to recognise that information/knowledge is now the primary

resource and critical ingredient in economic development. John Naisbltt In

"Megatrends" (1982) contemplates the possibilities of information/knowledge

creation and distribution as a key factor in the economy In his statement, we

have for the first time an economy based on a key resource that is not only

renewable. but self-generating. Peter Drucker (1993) observes that in the

United States, productivity in manufacturing and agriculture had increased 50-

fold and was growing as fast as ever but in 1993 both sectors together

employed fewer than one-sixth of the labour force. Also. as knowledge has

become the central resource and by the end of the twentieth century. 90

percent of total workforce would be knowledge and service workers;

productivity of knowledge work is one of the two great priorities; the other

being dignity of service work. Hamel and Prahalad (1994) reinforce knowledge

as the critical factor by introducing the concept of 'core competencies' as

the collective learning in the organisation. especially how to coordinate

diverse production skills and integrated multiple types of technologies. Further,

Ghoshal and Bartlett (1997) wnte that knowledge. initiative and creativity are

the key resources in times of change. Yapp (2000) reinforces this idea. 'we

54

already live in a world where 80% of the valuation of organisations is

'intangibles' .

Stewart (1997) defines the 'Intellectual capitol' as the sum of everything

everybody knows or the knowledge, information, intellectual property and

experience of human resources that gives on organisation a competitive

edge. In this scenario, 'intellectual capitol' is the chief ingredient of economic

or business activities, and has become the one indispensable asset of

organisations. Stewart stresses that the most value added resource in most

businesses today is knowledge not materials. 'Intellectual capitol' is on

intangible competitive weapon and consists of the talent of the human

resources; brand's value, copyrights, patents and other intellectual property;

collective knowledge embodied in organisation's cultures, systems,

management techniques and history; and strategic partnership/alliance with

customers. In relation to this Gorshal and Bartlett (1989) mention that the way

forward is through purpose of the organisation; process (organisation as a set

of roles and relationships) and people (human resources). They cite some

examples of 'intellectual capital' Including:

• knowledge, training. innovation and intuition of a team of researchers who. for

example discover a billion-pounds drug:

• know-how of engineers who come up wilh vanous ways 10 solve problems or 10

improve produclivify and efficiency of production process:

• electronic network that transports information at warp speed through an

organisation which enabled the organisation to react to the market faster than ItS

competitor:

• the strategic partnership/alliance (collaboration and shared learning) between an

organisation and its customers. which forges a bond between them that brings the

customer back and back again.

Information/knowledge resources are far more difficult to package into

distinct job descriptions than the traditional factory and office resources. Also.

these resources are much more likely to be done by teams With members

from multi-disciplinary functions (cross-functional teams). Also.

55

information/knowledge industries are major sources of jobs or employment,

economic growth and new business opportunities. Other industries across the

economy are also being transformed as the information/knowledge industries

and new IT help those industries to improve their competitiveness.

Developments that pay testimony to this idea in industry are that it is no

longer sufficient to do 'nuts and bolts' assembly even if it is done by industrial

robots. The need is to give originality and added-value to the products and

processes. Also, IT has created opportunities and means to find new and

better ways to do things, not just cutting costs. The testimony of this idea is the

success of organisations/companies hke Microsoft, Netscape, Intet Sony. Nlke,

Toyota and Nokia which is not due to their physical or financial assets but due

to their 'intellectual capital' (Stewart, 1997J.

It is essential to know what you know and are capable of and also, to know

what you do not know. While one leverages fully existing knoW-how. it is also

essential to analyse the gap. One can be technically competent, but may not

have the communication skills to get the message and the work done. This is

one feature of the new economy and world of work. Continuous learning by

individuals as well as organisations may become the only sustainable

competitive advantage, especially in information/knowledge-intensive

economy and industries (Senge 1990; Gilgeous. 1997J.

2.4.1.2 Information Technology (10

It is important to note that information/knowledge work (see 2.4.1.1 J would not

be possible without IT (computers, modems, fax machines, pagers, cellular

phones and softwares that convert everything into data that can be stored,

sorted, retrieved and formattedJ. IT advances will influence all countries'

economic growth and workplaces. The rapid diffusion of IT throughout the

world Will change the conditions of industnal development and eventually, the

56

nature of the way the new technology itself is produced. Furthermore, IT will

accelerate the integration of every country into the global economy.

In the past, reinventing whole industnes or changing the business practices to

be more competitive were accomplished without waiting to make major IT

investments. But now, work redesign and the IT revolution have combined to

meet the competition and the point is reached where the two need to go

together. IT provides the fuel that powers and shapes the change and

transformation of work process and organisation.

Work process and organisation have always been embedded in their

information flow. Increased speed and reduced cost of management

information could allow work process and organisation to extract that

information and manipulate it to their advantage. As an example, simply

faxing the design schedules or production schedules back and forth between

engineering and manufacturing or manufacturers and suppliers may not be

enough. People in every part of the production system need to be able to

communicate with each other to share information and make decisions in real

time.

Information represents the discrete elements of an organisation's work

processes. IT could enables the organisation to relate each element in new

ways, creating a seamless flow of activity resulting in significant improvement

In the work processes toward meeting customer needs. Restructuring the work

processes and organisation around information system has become the critical

organisational tool to speed business activities (e g. product development,

manufacturing, reengineering, concurrent englneenng, networking, etc.) and

relate the outcome to customers' needs. The o~ganisation of information,

specifically computerised information, could redefine their structure os well os

job descriptions, relationships with stakeholders (employees, customers,

partners and suppliers), reward systems, and also the distribution of power,

authority and responsibility.

57

/

The competitive advantages achieved by those who use information and IT

well can be formidable. The development of some of the prominent

innovative initiatives and techniques such as Total Quality Management

(TQM), Business Process Reengineering (BPR), Just-in-Time Production (JITP),

computer-aided design (CAD), computer-aided manufacturing (CAM), flexible

manufacturing (FM), concurrent engineering (CE), computer integrated

manufacturing (CIM) and fast cycle time/time-compression engineering;

depends on computerised information and IT (Hammer, 1996, 1993; Gilgeous,

1997). Furthermore, many believe that the next global trading route will be the

Electronic-Commerce (E-commerce) with its central strategy built around the

Internet and World Wide Web (WWW) (Gates, 199B, 1995; Barnatt, 1995).

The impact of IT applications on the world of work could change the

structure of the demand for knowledge and skills. Many work activities can be

carried out anywhere in the world which is referred to as 'the death of

distance' (or the 'global village' or 'global mall' or 'global block') (Gates, 1995;

Cairncross, 1997, Peters, 1997). New jobs can be created by establishing for

example "telecommuting technology parks" in new towns and in rural Villages

for workers who will not have to migrate into the urban centers. In E­

commerce, the '1nformation super highway" is providing worldwide access to

global markets and also human resources such as highly skilled engineers

located in 'specialised human resources suppliers' somewhere in the world.

Any country can export products and services via the 'highway'. It is a

possibility due to further IT development (mainly related to reducing the cost of

IT) that remote Villages can have access to knowledge and information from

the best sources available.

The discussion above indicates clearly that IT is changing the way business is

conducted and Its work processes. The new way of organising production by

sharply redUCing the cost of processing information and the speed and

accuracy with which it can be transmitted enabled by innovahons In IT

58

(including telecommunication) is one of the major forces shaping the world of

work. One does not need to be located in central business district of any cities

to conduct international business. Also, the 'right-sizing' of corporations, 'down­

sizing' of governmental enflties, and the rapid advances In communication

technology that have facilitated the development of home-based businesses

and telecommuting, may result in many office buildings in city centres

becoming vacant, which affects the planning of cities. Furthermore, home­

based businesses and telecommuting will be one of the transportafion

strategies to reduce traffic congestion, air pollution, fossil fuel consumption and

physical stress. IT enable a situation where work is what you produce, not when

and where you work. Thus, an organisation that insists rigidly on a chain of

command cannot take advantage of IT (Gilgeous, 1997).

IT could also contnbute towards the alleviation of poverty in society and

prevent the diviSion between the rich and the poor. As poverty is largely due

to ignorance, there is an opportunity to it by providing access to electronic

information and knowledge. As an example, countries could build sustainable

electronic new towns and villages connected to the best hospitals, universities,

and research laboratories, as well as open the world market to promote the

development of local entrepreneurs.

IT (including communications), and access to them, will be Vital for national.

organisational and individual futures. It is essential to determine the

implications and needs of IT and knowledge/information revolution so that a

country will not be left behind. Everyone must be prepared for the challenges

and opportunities in the Information/Knowledge Age. This will require

increased emphasis on 'information literacy and competency', development

of the information industries and greater information intensity In the acfivlties of

all industries, governments and the wider community. (Bamatt, 1995; Gates,

1995 and Grove, 1997)

59

2.4.1.3 The Market· Customer

Another important factor that is radically changing the world of work and work

processes is the customer. In the globalisatlon of the economy and with

improving technology, most industries are in a situation of oversupply as well as

over capacity. With easily available information for decision-making a

customer now has many options and is better informed. Thus, success will

depend on the ability to do things the way that the customer wants, whether

that is tailoring a particular product and service. or doing business in the way

that suits him/her best. This leads to:

• The individualisation of products and services to fit specific needs

(customisation), shorter life-cycle of products, products and services delivery

at the convenience of customer rather than the producer, products and

services with added-value and the increasingly complementary goods and

services. The paramount need is for instantaneous adaptation of production

volumes and services, thus changes of work process. (Grove, 1997; Krajewski

and Ritzman, 1996; Toftler, 1980)

• The demand for immediacy, value-added and complementary intensifies

the work process as every undertaking is in competition with others.

Innovative ideas and tools are required to change the work process as the

'traditional work system' and practices of standard work processes and

procedure, will be less effective in an environment that needs fleXibility and

responsiveness to individual customer demands. (Grove 1997; Hammer.

1993,1996; Gates. 1995, 1999; Bndges, 1995)

• The integration of the customer into the design of the product and the

development of a systematic procedure for interaction that will create

substance in that relationship. This is manifested through customers working

with the project team of the manufacturer or contractors together with

design engineers, manufacturing engineers, researchers and marketers to

help In producing new products that will benefit the customer and the

producer. Some examples Include Xerox Corporation's Express Project

60 ,

(Bridges (1995). pp. 90). and an element in Siemen's 'Time Optimisation

Processes (TOP)'. (Hammer. 1996)

• The demand of today's market for a more systematic. long-range approach

to the customer as effective works or projects are about effective customer

involvement. The emphasis must change from engineering improvements to

satisfy the customer to whole customer experience and involvement in

dealing with the organisation. (Grove. 1997; Hammer. 1993. 1996; Gates.

1995. 1999; Bridges. 1995)

We are witnessing here the reinvention of customer relationships. All the

traditional rules and ways of doing business and working have changed. The

customer is determining the new rules and mass customisation or

personalisation is what businesses need to deliver. This necessitates the

acquiring of knowledge and skills that facilitate understanding of customer

requirements. working closely with them (strategic alliance. networking) and

intelligent and large-scale use of IT. involving communication and human­

relations. negotiation. teamwork. marketing. IT and new inillatives or

techniques such as concurrent engineering. FMS. elM. JITM. TQM.

reengineering.

2.4.2 Visions: Two Major Change Developments

After the drivers. the next important conclusions to draw from the contexts are

the prominent visions related to changes of work process. The visions presented

here are the two most significant change developments that recur in the

literature. 'processes improvement' and 'globalisation'. They are derived from

analysis and synthesis of many developments and initiatives in the literature;

and also from content analysis of Malaysian and UK plans for the future. It is

envisaged that these visions Will retain their importance and significance in the

workplace well into the 21,1 century. They are also considered as 'umbrellas'

under which some other developments can be placed. Gilgeous (1997) states

that those who first recogmse processes improvement and globalisatlon and

learn to exploit the change to these visions will have the competitive edge.

61

2.4.2.1 Work processes improvement

The hterature (Gates, 1995; Hammer. 1996) indicates that the major

competitive advantages that will ensure the success of any organisation

against compehtors are product (or service) development excellence. work

process excellence. organisational excellence and human resource

excellence. The critical measures of performance are cost, quality, speed and

service (Hammer, 1993. 1996; Gilgeous, 1997).

In regard to product development, new products have only a short life span

before they are imitated or surpassed by the competition (Barnevik, 1998).

The other three competihve advantages, work process excellence.

organisational excellence and human resource excellence tend to give

organisations a more lasting competitiveness (Barnevik, 1998). The focus of this

research is the improvement in work process because any endeavours to

improve work process will automatically require improvements in

organisational excellence and human resource excellence. Also. the work

process improvement measures that have dramatic improvements in the

cnhcal measures of performance are cost, quality. speed and service

(Gilgeous. 1997). A summary of some changes that are occurring In work

processes is provided in Plate 2.1.

62

Plate 2.1: 'Change' - Work Processes

ThInkIng back at the tum of 20 th century, Fredenck Taylor revolutionIsed the workplace wIth hIS Ideas of work organisation, task decomposItIon and job measurement. In the 1990s, however, two prominent tools are transformIng organisations to the degree that Taylonsm once dId. These are InformatIon technology (IT), the capabIlItIes offered by computers, software applIcations and telecommUnicatIons; and work processes Improvement. The Important change that occurred was that IT has become Inextncably IntertwIned wIth the bUSIness actIvItIes and work processes or operational actIvItIes.

TradItionally, work processes deSIgn started with the assumptIon that human resources are lImIted and SImple ThIs means we had to deSIgn very, very SImple tasks and job (roles) for them. ThIs In tum has led to complex workplace systems and work processes because when all the work that is beIng done IS fragmented, then to tIe It all together WIll reqUIre a lot of efforts and overhead (example the assembly line as part of the system). Complex work processes are usually ngld, infleXIble, low qualIty and hIgh cost.

HIgh-performIng work processes have to be SImple but reqUIre complex roles (jobs). This means IndIviduals must do larger components of the work rather than just Isolated fragments (breakdown of Taylonsltc work organisatIon). PromInent wnters (e g Tom Peters, Hammer, Handy, etc.)and also promInent organIsatIons lIke Hong Kong and ShanghaI Bonktng Corporation Group, HSBC, Taylor Woodrow Management Ltd and Asea Brown Boven ltd, ABB have used the term 'project work and team' to represent these changes in work process.

PractIces, methods and procedures for managIng SIngle large projects were pioneered by tradItIonal mIlItary and construction Industry As d,scussed above, In the 'times of change', fast changIng and competltNe world leading Into the 21" century, many organisatIons from other industnes (such as a WIde range of customer oriented servIce - banking & fInance, conSUltancy, englneenng & technology), are implementIng and also seektng to review their bUSInesses and work processes as a series of 'projects' each competIng for lImIted resources.

The testImonIes to thIs Include orgonlsatlons such as Hong Kong and ShanghaI BankIng Corporation Group, HSBC (http.//www.hsbcgroup.com). Taylor Woodrow Ltd (http://www tw.co uk ),and ABB Asea Brown Boven Ltd, ABB (http·l/www.abb.com). HSBC emphasIses on teamwork to ensure customers' satIsfactIon through globally slgnlflCanf project works. WhIle when a person starts work at Taylor Woodrow Management Ltd, he/she does not start In any partIcular department as work processes there commence wIth formatIon of teams structured around projects. Together wIth pioneenng practIces such as the 'centres of excellence' and 'Internal (wIthIn organisatIon) benchmarktng', ABB brIngs Its global strength to bear on Its customers everywhere and delNers greater value through each of Its local, flexIble and entrepreneurial, globally onented 'profIt centres' whIch are In effect "hIgh performance project teams".

(Peters, 1992; Hammer, 1993, 1996, ABB Asea Brown Boven lld, ABB (http I/www abb com), Hong Kong and ShanghaI BankIng CorporatIon Group, HSBC (http I/www hsbcgroup.com), Taylor Woodrow ltd (http://www tw co uk).

63

2.4.2.2 Globallsation

The idea on 'globalisation' is prominent In 'times of change'. There are many

activities. events or phenomena that are referred to or associated with

'globalisation'. The followings can be considered amongst the ingredients or

elements of 'globalisation' derived from various references (Naisbitt. 1984;

Ohmae. 1985. 1990. 1995a.b; Ghoshal and Bartlett. 1989. 1997; Crainer. 1998

and Yapp. 2000):

• The growing economic interdependence of countries worldwide through increasing

volume and variety of cross-border transactions in products. services and

international capital flows enabled by the more rapid and Widespread

development and diffUSion of technologies (IT. communications. transportation and

industrial).

• The Interconnectedness of human actiVity on a global scale. to the unprecedented

flow of capital and human resources. technology and skills. and ideas and values.

across nallonal boundaries. but in ways which no nation can adequately control.

• The organisation of production on an international scale. enabling

organisations/firms to established a presence in major foreign markets. gain

efficiencies and customise products for local markets.

• The acquisition of inputs and supporting services from around the world. enabling

organisations/firms to exploit the specialisation of many countries and minimise

costs.

• The formation of cross-border alliances and joint ventures with other organisations.

enabling firms to combine assets. share costs and enter new markets.

• An ever accelerating pace of intemational economic integration. expansion of

world trade. combined with population growth and improved education levels in

developing countries.

• The lightning speed of technological transmission and diffusion: and deregulation of

telecommunications. air transport and energy utilities.

• The global dominance of such power brands as Toyota. Coca-Cola and Nescafe

and other multi-national corporations (MNCs).

• The increasing rate of innovations in informallon technology (IT). communication

technologies. industnal technologies and transportation networks that compress

64

time and space (The shrinking world which refers to the concept of time-space

contnbuted by technologies).

• The emerging authority of institutions and communities above nations (examples

European Community (EC). ASEAN. IMF. NAFTA. United Nations (UN). and NATO) with

resulting reduction of the control of nations in policy-making. legislation. law and

control.

A summary of some changes that are occurring in work processes is provided

in Plate 2.2.

Plate 2.2: 'Change' - Globahsotlon

"In the 1990s. the intenslflcaflon of global bUSiness actIVities and the acceleration of technological Innovation continUing With a further esca/aflon of sltuafton. for example. the emergence of Japan as a global power. the economic development of ASia and the pacifiC baSin countries. the economic development of China and the emergence of a United Europe. This was enhanced by the continUing rapid growth In new technologies dunng 1990s together With the diffUSion of technological innovations around the world. IncreaSingly. what happens In other countnes around the world will affect one's country economically. politically and SOCially. These change scenanos are expected to continue into the 21" centUlY."

"Throughout most of the 20th century and enVisaged well Into the 21" century. Increased worldWide bUSiness activifles and compefltlons (globallsatlon). and the consequent need to do more with less Will force organ/saflons to become more productIVe. more deCISIVe and more responsIVe to ·ftmes of change' and opportunities.

Also dunng the 1 980s and 1990s there has been an extensive process of restructunng and rationalisation (Including takeove15 and merge(5) as organlsaftons. for examples. In Europe. and the United States have responded to the growing Intematlonal compeftfton due to Intensifying globallsaflon in bUSiness and the acceleration of technological innovaflon. ThiS results In a redlstnbuflon of assets and deCISion-making power over production and dlstnbufton across Europe and the world (e.g Asea- Brown Soveri Ltd. ASS). ThiS trend Will continue Into the 21" century With companies keep merging and acquinng unt" a few huge companies are left In any given indusfly. Custome15 Will choose between just a few banks. a few car manufacture15 or a few restaurant chains"

(References: Nalsblll. 1984; Ohmae. 1985. 1990. 1995a.b; ASS Asea Brown Boven Ltd. ASS (http·/Iwww.abbcom};GhoshalandBartlell. 1989. 1997; eralner. 1998 and Yapp. 2000)}

65

2.4.3 The Tools: Methods, Concepts, Techniques or Frameworks

Tools, here represent concepts, methods, mechanisms/frameworks or

techniques that are applicable to cope with the major change developments

of 'processes improvement' and 'globalisation' above. They are compiled

from initiatives and innovations which attempt to build more flexibility, rapid

response, customer focus/orientation, and high performance Into work

processes and organisation. These examples of initiatives and innovations are

expected to continue and expand into the 21 st century while at the same time

provide ingredients toward the formulation of significant key elements of

change for the future.

A systematic and institutional capacity for change is essential because

responding to change requires the nght mechanisms or framework and

processes. Table 2.2 presents some of the prominent mechanisms, frameworks

and processes:

T bl 22 P a e .. romlnen tM h ec F anlsms, ramewor ks d P an t R rocesses 0 espon dt Ch 0 ange No. Contributors Mechanisms, frameworks or Processes

a. Drucker (1999) • policies to make the future; • systemailc methods to look for and to anticipate

change; • right way to introduce change (e.g. 'plloting); • policies to balance change and continuity (e.g.

'partnerships', 'effecllve communications', 'Innovations' and education I.

b. Kanter (1989) • restructunng to find synergy (lean & efficient) • form strategic alliances or networks • encourage Innovation and entrepreneurs hips

c. Peters (1992) • restructure to be more flexible and responsive • gelling close to customers (existing and new) • reorganising and networking • paying attention to future fashions • using the brain rather than the brawn of people • able to customise products and services

d. Peters and • fosters more people involvement Waterman (1982) • better organisation (flexible and responsive)

• more emphasis on customer needs e. Waterman (1994) • practise continuous improvement

• emphasis on customer sallsfaction

66

• focus on costs • focus on profits

I. Pascale (1998). The ingredient of successful transformation ot the Royal through In-depth Dutch/Shell performance worldwide since 1997 (in the interview with the rapidly changing world of Information Age). IS work Managing Director process involving cross-functional teams supported by of Royal leaderships that focus on coaching. teaching and Dutch/Shell. facilltatlna.

g. Klrsner (1998) and 'Team working' IS effective In working environments Dahle (1999) with parallel tight product cycles and invention of new through case technology; and with quick reactton time. Innovative studies and customer-focussed. respectlvelv.

h. Blanchard and The 'Managing By Values' concept being proposed by O'Connor (1997). involves processes clarifying vision. mission. purposes.

objectives and values; communicating them and aligning daily practices with them. This is enhanced by Temporal and Alder (1998) and Geus (1997) In their 'Corporate Chansma' and 'living Company' concepts respectively.

I. Rles (1996). The 'Focus' concept or 'specialisation' involves concentrating on what one knows best and return to the basics is envisaged to be essential element of business organisation of the future with increasing competitions and alobalisatlon.

j. Roberts (ApnI1998). - describes the success of a software company due to through a case its focus on human-centred role of technology. study

k. De Bono (1996) - stresses on the Importance of thinking concept that has 'constructive creativity' and design process (How one does put things together to achieve objective and move forward?)

1. Gllgeous (1997) • Claritylng the needs (market. competition. performance. key activities)

• People involvement (approach. barriers. communication. feedback and rewards)

• EqUIp With knowledge and skllls In operations and change Initiatives - TQM. MRP. MRP2. JIT. reenglneenng. learning organisation. teams. empowerment. etc.

• Making it happen through key management ideas and approaches; personal and management development; continuous improvement.

• Assessment of focus and prepare action plan. m Blanchard and • Improving the present:

Wag horn (1997) envision (purposes & objectives); prepare; deliver. • Designing the future:

enviSion (purposes & objectives); prepare; deliver.

n. Goodlad (1975) • Dialogue about Issues and problems. • Decisions to concentrate on specifiC problems and

what might be done about them • Actions to address the selected eroblems.

67

• Evaluation of the effectiveness of action. o. Robson (1993) Summonsed the classical model of research,

development, dissemination and adoption· • Initial research iden!lfies, conceptualises and tests

ideas. • Development translates research findings into an

approach which can be used in 'field' setting. • Dissemination follows when the approach or

programme is mode available to wider audience. • Adoption completes the change process when new

approach becomes on accepted port of practice. p. Paul and lipham Presents problem-solving approach:

(1976) • Developing a need for change, including on awareness of problems and desire for help.

• Establishing relations with change agents (e.g. consultants, etc.) and develop collaborative arrangement.

• Diagnosis of problem. • Examination of altematlve goals and formulation of

plans of action. • Development of innovations based on plans for

action. • Generalising and stabilising the change. • learn from the expenence for future action.

q. Fullan (1991) Change process involving events which worK in (focussing on continuous interactive manner: education settings • Initiation but provides a • Implementation useful general • Continuation framework for • Outcome understanding and affectinQ chanQe)

r. Hopklns (1985) and Action research model (Hopkins (1985): complemented by • Data collection and generation of hypotheses. Winter (1989) • Validation of hypotheses through the use of

analytical techniques. • Interpretation by reference to theory, establish

practice and practitioner judgement. • Action for improvement that is also mOnitored by

the same research techniques.

Complementary guides by Winter (1989) Include: • data gathering cannot begin WIthout perceived

problem to give relevance and direction • validation of hypotheses and the adequacy of

interpretations will be further tested by the action phase

• action will inevitably generate further issues for further research

• cyclical process; data gathenng and Interpretation can only be one tentative step forward, not a final answer.

68

s. Common strands in • Anticipatory approach (Malaysia's traditional Malaysia's and UK's strategic planning and UK's foresight) planning activities • Determine requirements from stakeholders

• Adopting more flexible organisational structures and work processes.

• Adopting the holistic approach namely the 'socio-technical systems' design which proposed that any organisation exists as both a technical and a social subsystem, and both these subsystems need to be taken into consideration - technical design and social design.

• Essential to consider the human element because change, whether involving design, process, technology or systems will require people/stake holders participation for success.

• Essential to be equipped with technological support for the a new Information/Knowledge Age with rapid technological change and globallsation of acllvihes together with competition (e.g. IT infrastructure, policy, etc )

• Create a culture or environment that foster continuous learning, continuous improvement, and understanding and reinforce desired behaviour.

2.5 SUMMARY

The prominent developments deduced from the discussions in this chapter are

'strategy orientalion' for the 1970s, 'quality orientation' for 1980s and 'changes

in work process' for the 1990s. The 2000s will be about the continuation and

integration of these changes at an increasing pace enabled and/or driven by

IT. While IT tools are used to automate old processes (e.g. monitor basic

operations, run production systems, generate customer inVOices, handle

accounting) the significant and effective developments will be in using them

for new processes that radically improve how the organisation functions or to

reinvent the way of working (including the ability to perceive and react to the

environment, to get full benefit of all employees' capabilities, to sense

compelitor challenges and customer needs, and to organise timely

responses). These will cover the three major elements of any business and

69

workplace; customer/partner relationships, employees and processes which

are embodied in work processes and business operations.

Funchon

'A' Funcnon

'B' function

'C' FWlCtlon

'0'

,L,T .... Worlo I Improvement

IQoah~ I Focus Learning I ConClD'TCOt

Globahsallon I En..,,,,,,,. . [!l1IerconrJeCtIVlIy

Customer and Nctworb I Focus

Etc .... L Trad1ll0nal Work Processes System to New Integrated System

1920s - Time and motion studies; 1930s to 1950s - Statishcal Tools In Work Processes (sampling techniques. process and control); 1960s - Japanese quality movement; 1980s - Quality onentatlon In the West (TQM. JIT. Planning. etc.); Early 1990s Reenglneenng

(( Carr & Johansson. 1995))

Late 1990s to 2000 and beyond.

Figure 2.1: Historical Context at Changes in Work Process and System

Some of the prominent issues are summarised below:

1. The major comparative planning issues deduced from the general or

global perspective. and from Malaysian and the United Kingdom

experiences include:

a) All the developments in the future scenarios above, in relation to this

research, require new perceptions, and knowledge and skills Thus, the

acquiSition of relevant attributes, knowledge and skills for the changing

processes and activities, is the overriding concern. The matching of the

knowledge and skills to role or job is desirable for any organisations or

nations and for the career prospects of the individual.

b) Generally. Malaysian and United Kingdom future scenanos have

idenhfled the need to improve productivity and efficiency in order to

survive and excel in the future of the 21't century. In order to achieve

70

these, in any meaningful way, the appropriate knowledge and skills for

human resources in industries is of a paramount important.

c) Malaysian future plans and the 'UK Foresight Programme', in looking at

the challenges facing Malaysia and UK respectively, emphasise the

importance of the acquisition of relevant knowledge and skills for the

future through appropriate education and training.

d) The future planning programmes which are comparable in scope, rigour

and concept for the two countries are Malaysia's 'Malaysia Plans' and

UK's 'UK Foresight Programme'. Both types of programmes are centrally

managed, by Economic Planning Unit, Prime Minister Department and

the Office of Science and Technology, Department of Trade and

Industry for Malaysia and UK respectively. Both programmes are

continuous processes and play essential roles in planning for the 21"

century for both countries. Both programmes are nationwide in scope

with involvement of all relevant stakeholders.

e) The important differences between the two programmes are:

• the 'Malaysia Plans' are the Government's visions transferred down to

stakeholders which must be planned in detail and implemented

accordingly while the 'UK ForeSight Programme' is from ground to the

top With stakeholders input as the basis for future planning and

Implementation;

• the 'Malaysia Plans' documents are Government's policy that must

be implemented while the ForeSight's reports are resources available

to be used voluntarily by the stakeholders.

f) The general perspective and the two countrywide programmes provide

us with a variety of methods that can be applied in trying to anticipate

and prepare for the future. In the Malaysian case, it is the traditionally

structured formal long-range planning (five to seven-year plans) method

while UK's 'Foresight' use a more flexible and semi-structured 'foresight'

process and methodology which involves extensive consultation within

the relevant stakeholders communities through DELPHI surveys and

'focus groups'.

71

g) The general perspective discussions furnish us with a variety of methods

used by the future writers, thinkers and commentators including case

studies, observations, scanning and analysis of events, environment and

experiences, expert opinions and views of experiences at highest levels

of businesses and government; studies of societies; observing events in

well-known countries, states and organisations; dialogues and interviews

with key government, business, academic and community leaders In

individual countries; extensive first-hand observations; and content

analysis of regional or countries' leading newspapers and penodicals.

h) The essential point for this research is the derived conclusions from

global perspective and countrywide contexts, which are in consensus,

on stressing the importance of the following in planning for the 21 st

century:

• application of future planning process and methodology

(anticipatory initiative)

• continuous or on-going processes Improvement in organisational

activities and industries - work processes and workplaces

• a new Information/Knowledge Age with rapid technological change

and globalisation of activities together with competition

• application of holistic approach in the planning process for example

the 'systems engineering' or 'socia-technical systems' concepts

• a need for education and continuous or lifelong education and

development.

72

2. The discussions in this chapter identify the following 'key elements of

change' (see Table 2.3) in work processes which will be investigated further

by this research:

Tbl23ThKEI tfCh 'WkP a e : e ey· emen so ange In or rocess

No Key Elements 01 Change References (representatives only)

a New emphaSis on design lenglneenngl and Global- Peters. 1990. 1997. Malaysla's and constructlon/monufoctunng e effiCient. responsive and UK's reports effective

b New techniques enabled by Intormatlon technology Global- Hammer. 1993: MalaYSia's and e 9 TQM. KOlzen. reeenglneenng. concurrent UK's reports. enOlneenno ete

c Integrative aspects of deSign (englneenngl. practice Global- Peters. 1997. MalaYSia's and UK's and management In systems (draWing on techniques and knowledoe from many diSCiPlines)

reports.

d Incorporate humOnltles (human factors) and SOCial Global -Eoson ond Kleln, 1991: Roberts sCiences mto the understanding of problems and (Apn119981, MalaYSia's and UK's reports. solutions

e Increased Interaction and relationshIps beyond Global- Peters. 1994, MalaYSia's and UK's workstohon • teamworklnQ and chent-onentahon reports

t Management of vast quantity of Information Global- Dertouzos. 1997, MalaYSia's and UK'sreports

g Tlme-compressed working environment Global- Gates, 1995, Peters. 1994. loftier. 1980. MalaySlO's and UK's reports

h HIgh degree of empowerment In deClslon-maKlng Global- Bndges. 1997: MalaYSia's and UK's reports

I Dynamic/mobility of human resources such as Global- Grove. 1997: MalaYSia's and UK's engineers' roles· deSign to manufactunngleonstruehon reports to manaaer to team leader to sales enOlneer, ete

J The needs of continuous or lifelong learning Global- Gates. 1995. Handy, 1989.1990. Peters. 1997: MalaYSia's and UK's reports

3. This research will concentrate on work process changes as the discussions in

this chapter indicate that its level of importance and prominence will

continue to rise well into the 21st century. The previous discussions also lead

to the conclusion adopted by this research that the world of work of the

foreseeable future is "the project and teamwork" with processes and an

organisational support built around a changing mix of proJects. In addition,

work processes need to be improved continuously due to globalisation,

and also driven and/or enabled by information technology (IT). Once this

has been accepted, the way ahead involves:

# anticipating the possible future Important scenarios through

anticipatory Initiatives

73

# determining what knowledge and skills are required in order to

move into the future with more confidence

# designing or planning mitigation or intervention measures (e.g.

education. 'learning project'. etc.) to fulfill the requirements

The issue is not how to stop change but how to provide the necessary

knowledge and skills to equip people to operate successfully in the world of

work. This direction for the research is stressed by Michael Beer and his

Harvard colleagues because one of the three qualities as the source of

competitive advantage is competence or knowledge and skills. while the

other two are coordination (the organisation) and commitment (values and

culture) (Bridges. 1995; pp. 146-147).

The advancement of IT and communication technologies presents a

challenge and opportunity for Malaysia. UK and the rest of the world which

is as great as the Industrial Age. The literature reinforces the need to adapt

to change if organisations or individuals are going to be successful. Thus,

many people (or 'stakeholdes') will need help in order to face the new

demands. The danger lies where measures are imposed with little

consideration for 'stakeholders' who are affected by it. This can create

conflicts which hinder or even prevent the intervention or mitigation efforts.

4. The approach to be taken by this research in responding to the changes

will be spearheaded by the following strategic thrusts:

• The work process changes. focussing on the ideas of process

improvement and globalisation enabled and/or driven by IT.

• The focus on human resources (the 'engineer' IS chosen). the

requirements and planning for intervention or mitigation measures of

providing for the requirements.

• The focus on holistic approaches such the 'systems concept' in

considenng the manufacturing system. construction system and

engineering education system.

74

5. If anyone area of national policy Is more important than the rest In preparing

the country for the times of change, it is the field of education. In the

absence of concerted policy, a gap will appear between those who are

literate in the work processes of the new technology and those who are not.

As a result the country as a whole will fall behind those competitors who are

pursuing a purposeful strategy on this front. Gates (1995) enhances this point

by stressing that in a changing world, education and continuous/lifelong

education, are the essential means to acquire new knowledge, skills and

interests throughout one's life and also the best preparation for being able to

adapt; as people and societies who are appropriately educated will tend to

do best.

6. When the strategic thrusts are scrutinised, the human resource envisaged

and expected to make a significant contribution is the 'engineer'. 'Engineer' is

clearly one of the most important professionals in an information or technical

society (Salvendy, 1987). With no intention of marginalising the contributions

of other human resources, this research will focus on the engineers. The other

professions such as architect accountant lawyer, medical doctor and

economist could be the focus of further researches. Engineers are found In

many Important roles such as project managers, design engineers, planning

managers, human resource managers, quality control managers, technical

directors and financial directors. These roles are amongst the prominent

players in the 'times of change' and their contributions to survival and

success are essential.

7. The world of work IS moving rapidly towards work processes which are

characterised by the integration and continuation of continuous

improvements, globallsatlon, automation, outsourcing, teleworking,

networking, project work and teamworking, virtual teams, mergers,

concurrent/simultaneous engineering, reengineering, etc (see Figure 2.1).

These changes in work processes have many implications for organisation

75

and human resources. These changes transform the roles and

responsibilities of human resources. the tasks they undertake and the way

they undertake them. As a result there are changes in the way human

resources work and the knowledge and skills required. In this changing

environment knowledge and skills are rapidly depreciating assets.

Continuous or lifelong learning acts as talent renewal. Some general issues

on knowledge and skills required by human resources (including the

engineers) in the future developments include:

i) Holistically. the above changes in organisational characteristics and

relationships will require human resources to have multiple knowledge and skills.

to cooperate and share knowledge. to have lifelong learning skills or

competencies In addition to traditional professional skills. Some of the key

demands for multi-skilled human resources are a posItive attitude to change.

communication skills. teamwork skills. problem solving skills. quality control and

cntical thinking skills. Lifelong or continuous learning which will support the

above demands through the accumulation of attributes. knowledge. skills and

experiences could be one possible of new form of work if correctly focussed.

Another Impact will be decreasing need for Iow-skilled human resources which

affects education and continuing education.

il) IT knowledge and skills have become the province not only information systems

professionals. but many other human resources. Working together these tools

have created a new way of working. changing the way work IS practised and

the knowledge and skills necessary to practise it.

iil) Obviously. larger roles Gobs). maybe entire work processes. require more

competent individuals who are knowledge workers. These human resources

will focus. not on their task. not on their isolated activity. but on the end result

through a process. A process here is not an individual task. but a collection of

tasks.

iv) In globalisation. changes In organisational operation and processes are directly

reflected in human resources affairs. Talent pools for certain highly skilled

people are required globally. together with an increase in the global

movement of human resources. Thus. human resources must be developed on

global basis. The availability of skilled human resources becomes a strategic

question for an organisation as competition has increased in the human

76

resources market. Furthermore, organisations which are involved In cross­

cultural context will require human resources with new knowledge and skills,

such as cross-cultural understanding and foreign languages skills. Therefore,

organisations must pay particular attention to employee selection, knowledge

and skills improvement, value-adding activities, rewards system (example

performance-based rewards) and leamlng opportunities.

v) The formal relationships between employees and employers are changing from

expectations of loyalty and security of employment into mutually beneficial

relationships. A greater variety of working relationships and organisational

structures are continually emerging and developing but do not replace entirely

organisational structures that are based on individual contacts.

vi) The shifts in demographic charactenstics of population affect the organisations,

the wortd of work and work pracesses in terms of the nature of the customers

and the human resources. Fulfilling individual requirements will contribute to

greater customer satisfaction and also greater motivation of human resources.

Understanding basic theories of human needs and human factors (Ergonomics)

is becoming important to the productivity and performance of workplace and

organisation. Consequently, strategies need to be altered in order to attract or

cater for these groups of Individuals. Failure to address this trend Will cause

defiCiencies in understanding of many charactenstlcs of populations, markets

and of human resources.

VII) Knowledge and skills in mass production is less of an advantage when new

technology and organisation supports, leadership and practices (such as

'empowerment', 'decentralisation' and 'strategiC alliances') which allow you to

meet the market by changing the product frequently and quickly, and by 'mass

customisation'.

So far we have established that there is at least general prima-facie eVidence

of changes in work processes and also changes in work enVIronment. This

chapter has presented prominent 'change scenarios', generally and also

specifically, for Malaysia and the United Kingdom, as well as some examples of

their Implications.

77

The success In the new world of work will depend, In large part, on

information and knowledge. While capital remains a necessary ingredient,

access to specialised talent (especially knowledge-based human resources)

has become much more important factors in an organisation's ability to

compete in increasingly sophisticated and global markets. The next stage of

this study is to explore the engineers in 'times of change' concentrating on

manufacturing industry and construction industry; and the implications for the

manufacturing's engineers and civil engineers respectively (e.g. on the work

processes, roles and responsibilities). In tandem to the countrywide context of

this research, this exploration will study two countries, Malaysia and the United

Kingdom (UK).

The outcome of the above investigation is the identification and

determination of the requirements of engineers in the future and the

consequences for educational practices which will pave the way to possible

and viable intervention or mitigation measures specifically through

engineering education practices. The future requirements of Malaysian Civil

and Manufacturing engineers will be quite different from UK. Even though

there are differences, some common issues will emerge. These are the

undertakings of Chapter 3.

78

CHAPTER 3

LITERATURE REVIEW· PART 2:

THE NEW WORLD OF WORK FOR ENGINEERS IN MANUFACTURING AND CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRIES

3.1 INTRODUCTION

The obvious progression for this research in relation to the aim of Chapter 2, is

that strategically minded education planners and managers, especially those

who are responsible for engineering education, must anticipate the new world

of work for engineers in the Information/Knowledge Age and understand their

implications for engineers and education practices. This is essential in order to

plan intervention or mitigation measures that will ensure continuous

improvement of engineering education systems.

As in Chapter 2, there are many relevant possible future developments such

as government policies and initiatives, changes in workplace and business or

work processes, market/customer demands and business trends, and

technological advancements. These developments have implications for all

'stakeholders' in engineenng education namely the industnes (main

employers), engineers (main customers), lecturers, planners and managers,

government and the public. The consequent intervention or mitigation

measures may include improving existing policies and practices and/or

implementing new policies or practices in the engineering education systems.

This research will not cover all possibilities and scopes, so this Chapter

concentrates on future developments related to changes in the workplace,

especially business or work process changes, in two industries, manufacturing

and construction, and the implications for engineers involved in those

industries. This literature study will also focus on activities occurring, emerging

and being planned in two countries, Malaysia and the United Kingdom (UK).

79

The following objectives will pave the way towards achieving the above aim:

i) to investigate the general historical developments in engineering

practices and work processes leading into the Information Age;

ii) to study specifiC developments in the manufacturing industry and the

implications for engineers in Malaysia and the United Kingdom (UK);

iii) to study specific developments in the construc!ion industry and the

implications for civil engineers in Malaysia and UK;

iv) to explore the possible 'future change scenarios' in engineering

education systems in relation to developments in objectives (ii) and

(Ill) in Malaysia and UK.

3.2 GENERAL HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENTS IN ENGINEERING PRACTICES AND WORK PROCESSES - (Highlighting Functional Images, Roles and Responsibilities of Engineers)

The role or job of engineers is one of the most misunderstood in society. The

word engineer can be traced to the Latin word ingemare, which means 'to

devise'. Related to this are the words science and technology which are

derived from the Latin words scienta and techni respectively. Scienta means

'knowledge' while techni is the 'art and science of making anything from, a

computer to a house or an engine to a sculpture'. Several other words are

related to engineer, including 'ingenuity', 'machine' (devices that carry out

functions) and 'engine' (any product of the mind or Innate mental power).

These words reveal the scope of an engineer's functional images, roles or jobs

and responsibilities. This section will explore simultaneously functional Images,

roles or jobs and responsibilities of engineers as there is no distinct demarcation

between them and they are also interrelated. Seggern and Jourdian (1996)

point-out that engineers may engage in many diverse activities including

problem definition and solving; information seeking; generation of new Ideas;

experimentation. calculations; management of resources; management of

personnel and teams; and production of reports.

80

The first career destination of most engineering students is industry. for

example. the manufacturing industry for graduates in manufacturing.

mechanical. electrical/electronics and chemical engineering; and the

construction industry for civil engineering graduates. The majority of

engineering graduates start their industrial career in the technical function.

working on some facets of a technological project including solving problems

and innovation. Thus. traditionally. engineers are recognised as problem­

solvers in specialised technical areas and sometimes even the problem

definers. When engineers speak of motivation and rewards. normally what

they convey is the existential pleasure and satisfaction which arises from

problem solving. (Ferguson 1992; Jones. 1995; Peralta. and Kupferman. 1995;

Holt and Solomon. 1996; Brisk. 1997; Leinonen. Jutila and Tenhunen. 1997;

Peschges. and Reindel. 1998; Detert. 1999)

Engineers are also directly involved in the application of knowledge.

sCientific and technological. to define and solve problems in meeting human

or society needs; thus the 'competency in science and technology' image.

Projects and products are developed by combining the functions of science.

technology and Invention. Engineers and their products. serve society. for

example. by providing infrastructure which supports the economic. and

administrative functions and organisations of industry and society. The

engineers plan. design and direct the construction or manufacture of nearly

every element of the world. from microchips to buildings to aeroplanes. They

connect people. places and things around the globe; make it possible to

travel by land. sea and air; make available communications via telephone.

television and Internet; and make it possible to look inside the human body

and distant galaxies. Also. the elements of infrastructure such as transportation

and communications links. and products are solutions to economic problems.

The above work processes which also include the development of tools and

techniques are to allow human activities to be camed out more efficiently in

an economic sense. (Ferguson 1992; Jones. 1995; Peralta. and Kupferman.

81

1995; Holt and Solomon. 1996; Brisk. 1997; Leinonen. Jutila and Tenhunen. 1997;

Peschges. and Reindel. 1998; Detert. 1999)

It has been a tradition for engineers to design things when providing solutions

to human needs and problems. for example. the products and systems that

are making the world cleaner. safer. healthier and more comfortable. Also. at

the height of the Industrial Revolution in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

engineers were at the forefront of many endeavours. These included Thomas

Edison. the Wnght brothers and Brunei. to name a few. who not only invented

new products. but also developed methods and processes to produce them.

Further. a person earns the title 'engineer' when the goal of his or her work is

the actual creative design process. when knowledge of technology is

combined with science to achieve invention or generalion of new products

and also ideas. So engineers are also recognised as designers. Inventors and

producers.{ Ferguson 1992; Roy. 1992; Jones. 1995; Peralta. and Kupferman.

1995; Holt and Solomon. 1996; Brisk. 1997; Leinonen. Jutila and Tenhunen. 1997;

Peschges. and Relndel. 1998; Detert. 1999)

Furthermore. in carrying-out their technical functions and responsibilities.

engineers Will be involved in some kinds of scientifiC and technological

experimentation. innovation and advancement. This will require research and

development activities. thus engineers are considered to be competent in

research and development and valuable in engineering laboratories.

(Ferguson 1992; Roy. 1992; Jones. 1995; Peralta. and Kupferman. 1995; Holt and

Solomon. 1996; Brisk. 1997; Leinonen. Jutila and Tenhunen. 1997; Peschges. and

Reindei. 1998; Detert. 1999)

Engineers. as they mature. tend to have expanding roles and responsibilities

in the economic functioning of Industry. At some stage in their career. many

engineers must decide whether to progress along technical tracks or to move

into management. Thus. engineers' actiVities have become more integrated

into the economic and business functioning of the organisation and society.

82

and inextricably bound up with commercial considerations. Increasingly.

Industry is using engineers as one of their resources can be applied to the

business of creating wealth. This leads to the image of an engineer as a

technical managerial leader who is responsible for leading the applications of

sciences and technologies to wealth creation by providing cost-effective

solutions to human needs and problems (Adham. 1992; Jones. 1995; Peralta.

and Kupferman. 1995; Holt and Solomon. 1996; Brisk. 1997; Leinonen. Jutila and

Tenhunen. 1997; Peschges. and Reindel. 1998; Detert. 1999) Unfortunately. this

development in responsibility as decision maker is still rare at the top-level of

executives in industry and politics.

This section has identified four (4) tradilional and one (1) relatively new

'functional Images' which are important in any planning measure for the

engineering professions:

and

ospeclalised technical problem-solvers.

ocompetent In science and technology.

odeslgner. Inventor and producer.

ocompetent In research and development.

otechnlcal managerial leader.

Also. by referring to these 'functional images'. some of the roles and

responsibilities of the engineers are discussed. The images can be used as the

basis for identifying attributes and knowledge and skills required by engineers.

There is a need to investigate whether these 'functional images' Will change

in the future change scenarios of the work processes and working

environments of engineers. The level of importance and any additions to the

'function images' will be one of the aspects to be Invesligated in Chapter 4.

Also. the implications for the responsibilities of engineers Will be explored.

83

3.3 THE DEVELOPMENT Of ENGINEERS· HISTORICAL AND PRESENT LEADING INTO THE fUTURE

Traditionally, engineers and the engineering profession are no strangers to

change. They have evolved and changed over the years. The first aspect of

development is related to the basis on which engineering ac!ivities ore

founded. Initially, engineers were the inventors and entrepreneurs whose work

paid relatively little attention to the scienliflc and technological underpinnings

of their activities. Hence, the engineering profession was more of an art than a

science. Until the 19th and early 20th centuries engineers depended to a large

extent on an extensive pool of professional know-how gained from praclical

experience and available through the "codes of good practice". (Ferguson,

1992; SARTOR 1997)

The 18th century in France saw the beginnings of the growth in Importance of

the scientific, mathematical and technological basis for the engineers'

competency. Ferguson (1992) relates that by 1720 artillery schools had been

opened in several French garnson towns, where cadets were given grounding

in algebra, geometry, trigonometry and engineering mechanics.

Subsequently, towards the end of that century (about 1794), the Ecole

Poly technique, France was established to provide a two-year mathematical

programme to prepare students for engineering schools for application to

bridges, roads and mines, as well as in the military. (Ferguson, 1992)

Similar developments emerged in the United States in the early 20th century,

and it was during and after World War 11 that sciences developed to a stage

where their understandings could be reliably incorporated Into the bulk of

engineering computations. The testimony to this was the formation of new

engineering disciplines, chemical and electrical during the 18th, 19th and 20th

centuries which were based in part on scientific understanding of chemistry

and electricity. Since then the scientific content in engineering has expanded

enormously and has a central place in contemporary engineering; and many

84

of the newer specialities are heavily science based. (Ferguson. 1992; Morgan

et al.. 1998)

The second aspect of development concerns the diversity of specialisations

that involved engineers. The first specialisation of engineering works traced by

Ferguson (1992) in Renaissance Italy and 17th century France involved fortress

engineering. which soon became subdivided into artillery and siege craft. In

public utility areas. there arose specialists In bridges. roads. waterworks and

canals. The development continued to the next phase in the 18th and 19th

centuries. both within recognisable older branches of engineering. civil and

mechanical. and through the formation of whole new industries such as the

chemical and electncal ones (Morgan et al.. 1998).

In the late 20th century. the engineers specialised activities have expanded

tremendously to include amongst others bndges. highways. automobiles.

airplanes. communication systems and information technology (IT).

The third aspect of development is related to the way engineers work or the

work process. As a profession it is characterised by very complex and

intellectual work. The engineering professions start with high-level intellectual

knowledge and skills internalised through prolonged education. training.

practice and certifications imposed by the various rule-setting bodies of the

professions. Engineers train for years in their specialist knowledge and skills. and

nurture them through practice. Thus. the traditional engineering course always

begins with the fundamentals and builds up from there.

Traditionally. knowledge and skills may be adapted or customised for each

customer but are composed of many more or less standardised components.

requiring repeated use of highly developed indiVidual skills on relatively Similar

problems. Also. most of the work in the engineering profession is conSidered to

be less creative as It applies carefully learned and disciplined knowledge and

skills to a specific problem. which to an experienced engineer looks much like

85

many others they have seen before. In essence, engineers diagnose a

customer's problem and apply a relatively standard set of knowledge and

tools for Its solution. They rarely create totally new solutions. Therefore,

engineers rely for coordination on the standardisation of knowledge and skills

achieved primarily through much formal education, training and practice,

which are continuously and carefully updated. (Ferguson, 1992; Holt and

Solomon, 1996; SARTOR 1997; Morgan et aI., 1998)

Engineers are highly competent specialists and have considerable control

over their own work. They work relatively Independently of their colleagues,

but closely with the customers they serve. The stereotypical image of an

engineer who spends his or her days working alone on design or research IS

well-known. The more expert they become, the more they have to function

alone and take full responsibility for what their units do. The best people in

engineering professions tend to be driven by problems challenging to

themselves. Also, leading engineers look more toward outside peers (peer

review or professional regulatory groups) than to internal colleagues for

reputations and stimulation. (Ferguson, 1992; Holt and Solomon, 1996; SARTOR

1997; Morgan et aI., 1998)

An engineer's knowledge and skills are developed in such depth that the

produchvity and value of an organisation depend mainly on their

performance. Virtually all the value-added aspects of their work come from

deep professional knowledge, skills, attributes, reliability and precision.

(Ferguson, 1992; Holt and Solomon, 1996; SARTOR 1997; Morgan et aI., 1998)

Another aspect involving the way engineers work is that engineers may

hesitate to share knowledge and skills with colleagues because in the

professional environment. knowledge and skills means power, independence

and higher incomes. Subsequently, one of the most complex problems In

managing engineers is to get them to share and thus leverage their

knowledge capabilities across the entire organisation. Many techniques have

86

been used to achieve this aim such as purposely forcing cross-functional

projects, aligning research and development around specific end-products

missions and so on. (Ferguson, 1992; SARTOR 1997; Morgan et aI., 1998)

A high degree of individual discretion works well when engineers are

competent, conscientious and disciplined. It can be disastrous when they are

not. Therefore, the confirmation of their knowledge, skills and reputations to

their professions, outside their organisations and among their peers is essential.

If they break the rules of their profession, the profession will often discipline

them. If they fail the customer, the customer is entitled to seek direct

retribution. (Ferguson, 1992; Holt and Solomon, 1996; SARTOR 1997; Morgan et

aI., 1998)

As this research IS concerned with the future of engineers, the above

discussions on some prominent aspects of development concerning engineers

should provide a clear understanding of the developmental nature, character,

roles, responsibilities and practices of engineers. But the overall image of

engineer as just technically Inclined and socially introvert is Increasingly

outdated. Engineering profession is Increasingly receptive to the idea that

engineer is a key player in a socio-technical system which involves bringing

together, work with, coordinate, collaborate and bUild upon various elements

of a system which include not only technical part, but also social part

(Ferguson, 1992; Holt and Solomon, 1996; SARTOR 1997; Beder. 1998; Morgan et

aI., 1998). This will provide the stepping stone for the following discussions

concerning the work process changes in engineering practices and the way

engineers work and their implications.

87

3.4 CHANGES OF WORK PROCESS AND ENGINEERING PRACTICES -(Some general highlights as wake-up calls)

The background of future workplace environment and changes of work

process have been discussed in detail in Chapter 2 but here some highlights

Will be made which involve work process changes for engineers in general. The

discussion through out this section is mainly based on the references which

Include Ferguson. 1992; Holt and Solomon. 1996; SARTOR 1997; Beder. 1998;

Morgan et al.. 1998):

• Engineering practice itself has changed dramatically and the other

changes that are affecting engineering are accelerating at a rapid pace.

These changes are forced by factors such as the explosion of information

technology (IT). the growing competition and subsequent restructuring of

industry and the shift from government work to private enterprise as the

major source of engineering employment. IT will dominate all facets (from

increasing prominence of Information Systems (IS). to Increased use of IT in

manufacturing and construction. to utilisation of teleconferencing. etc.) and

continue to be the dominant influence on almost every aspect of future

workplaces and work processes (refer to Section 2.4.1.2; Aouad et al.. 1997).

• Implications: What are the impacts on the way engineers work.

and the knowledge and skills reqUired?

• When a promising engineer is promoted into management. he or she is

involved in the management and business activities of the organisation. The

net effect is often the loss of a good engineer and the gain of a poor

manager. One of the reason for this is that dealing with technical problems

and technology is dealing with facts. and most technical problems have

right answers. Business and management problems are not like this; hard

facts are normally rare and obscured. Usually there are no right answers

and solving time must take precedence over solution quality. Management

88

is normally about choosing which problem to have, since solving one

creates another.

• Implications: Engineers in business and management need a number

of other knowledge and skills, as well as sCience and technology. The

engineers need to manage the applications of sciences and

technologies to wealth creation by providing cost-effective solutions

to human needs and problems. Examples of the knowledge and skills

include 'Technical or Engineering Management' with appropriate

contents depending on the Industries such as Technical or

Engineering Management in Manufacturing Processes or in

Construction Processes. and Human Factors Engineering (Wickens et

aI., 1998)

• Engineering and technology skills are becoming as valuable in the

boardroom. medical laboratories, courtroom etc. as in the engineering

laboratories. This shows the broadening of career vistas for engineering

students. Examples of roles that are not traditional in engineering

professions include sales engineers with responsibilities include explaining

how to use the high-tech equipment that customers' have purchased but

no involvement in the design of the equipment. listening to customers'

concerns and walking them through any technical difficulties they may

have with it. Other careers can be in business, public policy makers (there is

a large technical component to many societal issues. including information

technology (IT). telecommunications. nuclear energy, global warming),

modern medicine (laser surgery, MRls, CAT scans are using technological

innovations that involved engineering). the entertainment industry

(engineers designing high-technology theater sets. or in the movie Industry.

etc.), economics. technical sales. technical wnling, project management.

Industrial management. information systems management and

environmental management.

• Implication: Should the engineering CUrriculum be changed?

89

• An engineer working for example, in a financial company must be ready to

learn the financial jargon and theories on the organisational practices and

may eventually need to return to school for a degree in Business

Administration (M.B.A.). Also, many graduates who do start in technical

positions eventually move Into management positions or become

technological entrepreneurs. In addition, when organisations are

outsourcing most of their activities, then the engineers become technical

managers of engineering rather than the practitioners. This is because

outsourcing will leave the technical and technological management

related activities for the engineenng not practising side. (As an example a

few years back the top employer hiring the engineering graduates of the

University of South Carolina, United States was Arthur Andersen, a world­

renowned financial consulilng firm that hires engineers to manage its

complex computer systems (Bridges, 1993, 1995).

• Implication: Should the engineering curriculum be modified?

• Engineers now work more in teams and a scenario is unfolding where

engineers in industry work in interdisciplinary teams with a lot of

communications and interactions between members in order to successfully

complete a project (Peters, 1997; Mendelsohn, Jan./Feb. 1998).

• Implications: The need for teamwork Skills, communication skills,

human-relations skills and leadership skills.

• Advances in technology have significant influences and Impacts in

propelling change, stretching the range, volume and speed of

communications, and altering our perceptions of space with events

anywhere on the globe now haVing immediate repercussions everywhere.

This technological change constantly creates new demands on engineers.

Therefore, in a complex, interdependent and sometimes chaotic world,

engineers must continue to excel in their traditional and also new roles.

Professional responsibilities are those that require acquisition of the

specialised knowledge that characterise a particular profession and

90

application of that knowledge to achieve certain ends. In the case of

engineers, the ends or results to be achieved include organisations'

productivity and profitability, clients/customers' needs, and workers' or the

public's comfort and safety. The engineers must figure out in each case

what acts will achieve the desired ends, and this requires complex problem­

solving skills.

• Implication: The necessity for problem-solving skills and lifelong

or continuous learning skills?

• Other related developments include moving away from public sector

employers to private sector and business organisations and the fact that

industry is conducting less and less long-term fundamental research.

The following sections (3.5 and 3.6) provide evidence and examples of

business or work process changes that will affect engineers in the future with

specific and in-depth studies of manufacturing and construction industries in

Malaysia and the United Kingdom (UK).

3.5 MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY

Manufacturing Industry is one the key contributors and is an Integral part of the

economics and development of, a country, including Malaysia and the UK.

Manufacturing usually involves making products from raw materials by either

controlled material manipulation and/or material removal processes.

Frequently, these involve changing material properties to enhance

component or product performance and durability. In a situation of depleting

resources and minerals, a country establishes an industrially based economy in

order to survive and prosper, specifically the manufacturing Industry which

involves a wealth creating economy.

91

Manufacturing industry is extremely diverse. for example ranging from simple

pencil manufacturers to producers of the latest space shuttle. The common

principle is that whatever the end product. it has to be made through work

processes and there must be a customer base. while the differences are in the

complexity of the technology and manufacturing processes. It is essential that

any product fully conforms to specification. in performance. appearance and

reliability. Thus quality assurance impinges on all areas of manufacturing.

The following issues are now discussed:

work process changes In the manufacturing industry - Malaysia and UK

experiences

short comparison of developments in Malaysia and UK - similarities and

differences in issues and approaches.

3.5.1 Malaysia's Manufacturing In 'Times of Change' • J 990s leading into 2 1" century

(Together with the specific references provided. the discussion throughout this

section IS also based on various reports of the Central Bank of Malaysia at:

(http://www.bnm.gov.my/pub/info/index.htm).

MIDA, "The Second Industrial Plan (J 996·2005); Facts and Figures; April 1997

The future planning developments for Malaysia's manufactunng industry are

manifested by two 'Industrial Master Plans (IMPs)', namely the 'First Industrial

Master Plan' (IMP) and the 'Second Industrial Master Plan' (IMP21. The IMP was

launched in 1986 for the period 1986 to 1995 and the IMP2 was launched in

1996 for the period 1996 to 2005.

Pre the IMPs. Malaysia's industrialisation challenges were based on a

commodity and export-led industrialisation strategy. Then the IMP (1986·1995)

was introduced which transformed Malaysia's economy to a manufacturing

orientation but with a strong emphasIs on continuation of the export-led

industrialisation strategy, with the added enhancement of focussing on further

diversification and a deepening of resource-based and non resource-based

92

industries. The IMP tried to ensure a continued expansion of the economy

through the growth of manufacturing industry to meet the objectives of the

national economic policy. the New Economic Policy/New Development Policy

(NDP). The endeavours included:

• promoting optimum and efficient utilisation of the nation's natural

resources through value-added manufactunng activities; and

• laying the foundation for the development of indigenous

technological capabilities including physical infrastructure. financing.

technology and human resources with technical and industrial skills in

product design and manufacturing/production technologies.

The results of IMP (1986-1995) included significantly expanding output (28.6%

expansion in export of manufactured goods). growth in value-added (13.5%

per annum) and increased employment in the manufacturing sector (2.1

million workers at end of 1995).

The lMP2 (1996-2005) was formulated to guide the path of the long term

industrialisation for Malaysia up to the year 2005. IMP2 (1996-2005) was building

upon the success of the IMP (1986-1995) and enhancing the growth

momentum of the manufacturing industry. In overall perspective of future

planning in Malaysia. IMP2 in tandem with the New Development Policy (NDP).

the Second Outline Perspective Plan (OPP2) and the Seventh Malaysia Plan

(7MP. 1996-2000). was aimed to boost the future contribution of the

manufacturing Industry toward propelling Malaysia to achieve 'Vision 2020' (to

become a fully developed nation by 2020).

The discussions here will concentrate mainly on IMP2 (1996-2005) to be in line

with the context of this research. and the developments during the

'information age' from the 1990s leading into 21 st century. As a whole

Malaysia's Industrialisation push in the 21 st century will continue to be

spearheaded by the private sector and the market with the government

93

providing leadership, policy direction and guidance; and thus, IMP2

encompasses inter alia:

• to improve the economic foundation which Include continuous

improvement in terms of quantity and quality of human resources,

development of indigenous research and development (R&D) capability

and technology;

• to accelerate, deepen and diversify the manufacturing sub-sectors and

enhance greater linkages between and within industnal sub-sectors -

networking in the form of a 'cluster approach';

• to accelerate the development of indigenous technology and capability,

and intemahonal marketing and distnbution capacity (globalisation);

• to strengthen economic linkages, both inter and intra-sectoral, through

further development and expansion of intermediate and supporting

industries as well as to address the issue of high imports of intermediate and

capital goods.

The IMP2 involves change in business or work processes through what is

codenamed the 'Manufacturing ++ Strategy' concept which emphasises the

full integration of manufacturing business or work processes through the 'value­

chain' in order to enhance industrial linkages (networks). and to Increase

productivity and competitiveness.

business or work processes in

conceptual/development stage

The 'value chain' is the whole range of

the manufacturing industry. i.e. the

(Including R&D), design stage,

manufacturing stage and commissioning stage (Including distribution, delivery

and marketing). All these business or work processes (the 'value chain') are

emphasised. not just the manufacturing stage (assembly and production) as in

the IMP (1986-1995), thus the importance of the systems engineering concept.

The method involves two routes. The first IS moving along the 'value chain'

where the key to efficient production is the value added by each stage of the

business or work processes which means the more effectively that the value of

a component is increased at each stage of the bUSiness or work processes, the

94

more productive and profitable the 'value chain' (manufacturing system) will

be. Also. more efforts are being undertaken to increase the participation of

Malaysia's manufacturing throughout the whole range of business or work

processes in the manufacturing system. not just the manufacturing stage.

There must be significanly increased activities related to R&D. product

conceptual/development. product designs. manufacturing (assembly.

production. etc) and commissioning (delivery/distribution. logistics. and

marketing & sales). moving along the 'value chain'.

The second route of the 'Manufacturing ++ Strategy' focuses on productivity­

driven growth such as the value added by human resources (value-added per

employee) which improves every stage of the business or work processes.

hence moving to a higher plane at all levels of the 'value chain. from plane

(a) to plane (b) in Figure 3.1.

The essential factor in this approach is quality. where the sustainablllty of

Malaysia manufacturing drive is very much dependent on the ability to

continuously improve the quality of her products and services.

Value-Added per Employee

High

Low

R&D Product Design

Manufacturing DIstribution (Assembly & Production)

Busmess or Work Processes or 'Value Cham'

arketing

Figure 3.1: MalaYSIa's 'Manufacturing ++ Strategy' (Adopted from MIDA. "The Second Industnal Plan (1996-200S): Facts and FIgures; Apn11997)

95

The Star Malaysia's National Newspaper Publications (1996). "The Second Industrial Master Plan (1996-2005)". Kuaia lumpur: Star Publications CM) Bhd. The other aspect of IMP2 (1996 - 2005) that would change the business or work

processes in Malaysia manufacturing is the change of emphasis from an

'Industry-based strategy' to a 'cluster-based strategy'. 'Cluster'. in the IMP2

context. is partnerships and networks of inter-linked or related activities

involving industries. suppliers (parts and components, manufacturing materials,

equipment and machinery, etc.) and even competitors. Sometimes customers,

supporting business services (government's departments. logistic services,

technical services in electronic commerce (E-commerce), research and

development (R&D), packaging, etc.), requisite economic foundation (human

resources and education and training institutions, technology. business

environment, physical infrastructure) are also involved. The defining

characteristic of a cluster is high connectivity such as when a cluster of

manufacturing organisations form partnerships with suppliers and even

competitors. to gain mutual benefits through collaborative (teamworking) and

value-added activities.

Another important aspect is that the business or work processes in future

manufacturing Industries will depend on information and knowledge as they

become more and more information-intensive and knowledge-driven.

In addHion, Naqvi. et. al (1996) states that Malaysia's manufacturing is

becoming more and more aware that it is essential to incorporate the needs

and concerns of every part of an organisation, as well as the customer's

requirements into a product's development. design and manufacturing as

easily and quickly as possible. This is testified by time-te-market as a key to

successful product introduction in the contemporary fast-paced bUSiness

world. One of the practices being encouraged is implementation of

'concurrent engineering' concept in the utilisation of technologies such

'Computer-Alded-Industrial-Design (CAID)', CAD/CAM packages and 'Rapld­

Prototyping (RP),. (Naqvi, et. AI (1996))

96

A further related event that is enhancing the business or work process

changes in Malaysia's manufacturing IS the development of the 'Virtual Design

Office (VDO)' by Malaysia's prominent R&D institution. 'Standard and Industrial

Research Institute of Malaysia (SI RIM) Berhad'. This involves the integration of

Computer-Aided-Design (CAD) and Computer-Aided-Manufacturing (CAM) in

producing 'virtual prototypes' in manufacturing industry business or work

processes. Previously. these two systems were utilised and developed

separately. The VDO is situated at the National CAD/CAM Centre at SIRIM and

the initial aim is to produce a first 'virtual prototype' for the automotive

manufacturing industry by the end of 1999. The concept of this development is

based on the projection that after the year 1999. Malaysia's manufacturing

organisations will collaborate not only with other local organisations but also

with global organisations in component and product developments. (Berita

Harian (Malaysia National Newspaper). May 7. 1998}.

Further related developments include the progress toward the availability of

ideas. services and techniques such as Manufacturing Resource Planning

(MRPII). Flexible Manufacturing (cell design/implementation). Human Factor

aspects in manufacturing (Ergonomics design and manufacturing analysis)

and 'Virtual Manufacturing'. (Standards and Industnal Research InstJtute of MalaYSia

(SIRIM) (1998): "Information Documents: National CAD/CAM Centre}

Summary of the progress of the integrated plan. The long term objectives are

to be pursued but under the current economic conditions (Impacts of the crisis

described in Chapter 2). some urgent measures are required. Thus. in the

Agenda for Action recommended by the National Economic Action Council

(NEAC) in the Star Online archives (27 January. 2000). the industrialisation

thrusts are reviewed to promote industries which can give maximum retums to

the country. generate growth. exports and employment. A three-pronged

action plan for the manufacturing sector IS recommended:

97

• Upgrading technology. further enhancing automation and deepening local

linkages (networks) in the electronics and electrical products industry;

• Actively promoling information technology (IT) related industry and business

in line with the development of the Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) and the

National IT agenda (see Section 2.3 1.4);

• Actively promoting industrial diversification into resource-based and other

export-oriented industries with high local content and other spin-ofts where

Malaysia can derive maximum retums.

In line with the above reorientation of the manufacturing industry. the NEAC

recommends that human resources' development be further enhanced to

upgrade the workforce in various sub-sectors in manufactUring. The

knowledge and skills concerned are related to IT. computers. automation and

computer integrated manufacturing.

The potential of export-oriented industries should be explored and studied

carefully and should include an analysis of demand pattern for manufactured

goods in developing countries. not only In Asia but also In South America and

Africa. With which Malaysia has a comparative advantage.

3.5.2 UK's Manufacturing in 'Times of Change' • J 990$ leading Into 2 J sf century

There are many Important issues that are related to the future of the

manufacturing industry in the United Kingdom highlighted in the literature

(compare Malaysia's experience - Section 3.5.1). These include national

infrastructure for improved competitiveness; improved communications and

support networks; technology priorities for competitive manufacturing and

production; extended viSion for manufactUring and production businesses;

increased emphasis on business processes in the manufacturing industry; and

improvements through education and training. These have led to a variety of

undertakings and approaches towards addressing the respective Issues

projected including adopting new manufactUring strategies and methods.

more effective business or work processes. improved knowledge and skills of

98

human resources. improved organisational effectiveness. Innovations and

improved technology for product development and processes. (Waters. 1996;

'UK Foresight Programme'. August 1995; Storey (Eds.). 1994)

In line with the focus of this research. the emphasis of the discussions in this

section will concentrate on business or work process changes in the UK's

manufacturing industry. Some of the relevant points include:

a) In UK about 50% of all design office time is spent on design modifications.

but in Japan it is nearer to 10%. The main reason being suggested for

Japan's greater efficiency is the high percentage of manufacturability In

the product design from the design stage. This means manufacturing stage

requirements and their implications for design are resolved long before

production starts. This is due to the work processes at the development

stage and the initial design being undertaken concurrently (concurrent

engineering). (Gould. 1992).

b) In the 'New Wave of Manufacturing Strategies' (Storey (Eds.). 1994) there is a

variety of new manufactUring methods and approaches being

implemented in UK's manufacturing in order to improve productivity and

efficiency. all of them resulting in business and/or work process changes.

The main methods and approaches Investigated here include 'Just-in-Time'

manufacturing. 'Total Quality Management' (TQM). 'Lean Production' (LP).

'Computer-Integrated-Manufacturing' (CIM). 'Materials Requirement

Planning' (MRP) and 'Manufacturing Resource Planning' (MRPII). Despite

the variety of different labels for these methods and approaches. there are

many common elements namely they are driven and/or enabled by IT. a

different set of arrangements for social organisation of the 'socio-technical'

production system and also contrast with the traditional sequential business

and/or work processes Including continual improvement and adaptation,

teamworking (collaboration). fleXibility, concurrent engineering and

integration.

99

c) Despite significant improvements in recent years, the UK's manufacturing

has had lower productivity and lower growth than in other industrialised

nations. The Manufacturing panel of 'UK Foresight Programme' envisaged

that to be successful in the future (1996 Into the 21 51 century), manufacturing

must increase productivity and export through, among others, business or

work process improvements. The developments of business or work process

change in the UK were studied as a positive factor in competitiveness. The

major methods and practices were looked at such as how business or work

process change in improvement initiatives involve 'horizontal' processes, in

contrast to 'vertical' or functional processes (concurrent engineering),

'lean' or 'agile' processes, 'Just-in-Time' (JIT) Manufacturing process,

'Computer-Integrated-Manufacturing' (CIM) process and a 'Total Quality

Management' (TQM) process. The priorities recommended for action which

are related to business or work process changes include ('UK Foresight

Programme'at homepage: http://wwwJoresight.gov.uk):

• improving knowledge and awareness of best business or work process

practices;

• diffusing best practices throughout UK's manufacturing Industry;

developing integrated design processes with product life-cycle support;

• performing international competitive benchmarking; improving

innovation, market knowledge, vision (future planning) and networks of

alliances/partnerships;

• increasing multi-diSCiplinary projects with manufacturing objectives;

improving processes system (plant. equipment, people) productivity,

quality. repeatability and effectiveness;

• developing processes system (plant, equipment, people) which meet

future environmental needs;

• imprOVing processes to effectively use new materials; developing

modelling, simulation and visualisation for manufactUring use;

• developing integrated IT systems supporting effective business or work

processes; improving training, organisation and management for business

or work processes effectiveness (I.e. understanding of business or work

100

processes in manufacturing, increase teamwork, communications,

leaderships and other related skills).

d) Waters (1996) states that in the manufacturing industry in UK (as anywhere

else in the world), success means Improving productivity and growth. This

presents those working in the industry with ever greater technical difficulties,

particularly with the increasing added value needed and globahsatlon of

business; and thus competition and expanding markets.

In the past, design engineers have tended to consider little, if at all, the

imphcations of their designs on manufacturing costs and manufacturabihty.

This is possibly due to their lack of knowledge of the manufactunng process

stage in the work processes system. Specifications that contain more

complicated parts and also closer component dimensional tolerances than

are normally acceptable are put forward which result in higher costs in the

manufacturing processes. While the technical responsibilities for producing

the product's detailed specifications lies with the design engineers, input

from sales and marketing people and also manufacturing engineers IS

becoming more and more essential to produce easily manufacturable and

cost-effective products that will satisfy the customer.

Experience from the traditional sequential manufacturing work process

testified that enormous numbers of modifications, redesigns, revisions and

up-dates are usually generated, mainly due to problems encountered at

the manufacturing stage and the 'over-the-wall' concept of working. The

added value concept, which means that the more the value of an item is

increased at each stage of work process, the more efficient (more

productive and profitable) the system, is not achieved.

All the above scenarios Indicate the need for effective approaches to

efficient manufacturing. The main approaches projected here are the

101

concurrent engineering work process. 'Just-in-Time' (JIT) manufacturing and

'Computer-Integrated-Manufacturing' (CIM).

3.5.3 Ideas and Tools (Methods or Concepts or Techniques)

In the manufacturing and construction industries. whether the activity is

planning. designing. manufacturing. constructing. maintaining or servicing and

commissioning (handing over). there IS a work process involved. Improving the

effectiveness and efficiency of such work processes IS a key cnterion of the

initiatives and efforts projected. The discussions above have indicated some

prominent business or work process changes in respect of the industries in both

countries. in line with 'processes improvements' and 'globalisation' ideas

chosen in Chapter 2. Moving on from there. ideas and tools. methods or

concepts or techniques will be identified and compiled. Subsequently. the

implications for engineers in manufacturing are investigated. This section will

concentrate on two components of any manufacturing industry in Malaysia.

UK or anywhere in the world. namely work process and stake holders.

3.5.3.1 Work Process In Manufacturing

The generic work process. in which a product is produced from conception to

completion. follows a logical sequence namely conceptual/development

stage. design stage. manufacture stage (including production planning.

manufacture and assembly. quality assurance. etc.) and commissioning stage

(customer receiving the product). The work in the preceding stage will be the

input for the next stage of this work process system. The work process system is

similar in the construction industry.

The work process system during 'industrial age' which is referred to as the

'traditional work process system' in this thesis (see Section 2.2. I) with ItS

concept of 'division of labour' and the assumption that each task IS

independent and separable. leading to the 'sequenhal' or 'serial' process.

This was and is shll Widely practiced In the manufacturing industry and has led

to the creation of different funchonal departments in manufacturing

102

organisations with 'vertical' work processes. for example sales and marketing.

design. manufacturing and delivery departments with responsibilities for

conceptual/development. design. manufacturing and commissioning stages

respectively (see Figure 3.2). Other support departments include management

and administration. information system. finance. human resources and building

and maintenance.

ConceptuaV Development Stage

Design Stage - Commissioning

Stage Manufacturing Stage

t I I I

De­commi­sioning Stage

I I I I I I I I I I I I I L _______________ L ___ ~_----------JL------~--------l-----_~-------J

sequential route of the stages

mformatlOn flow and mterchange

Figure 3.2: Generic Manufacturing Work Process

3.5.3.1.1 Important issues derived from experience in two countries

Some of the important issues derived are:

,. The changing nature of technology and market taking place In Malaysia and

UK has led to the situation whereby the individual product life cycles have

been rapidly shortened. These have resulted in a growing demand for

frequent design changes and faster product development. This situation has

exerted pressure on manufacturing organisations in Malaysia and UK (also

other countries) to review their conventional sequential approach in product

developments. Traditional sequential work process systems with low

interdependence between design and manufacture. requires long periods

of redesign and production. Also, the traditional sequential work process

103

system has proved too slow and non-adaptive as market opportunities

shifted from standardised items to what has recently been termed 'mass

customisation' .

2. The situations in both countries indicate that there is a greater need for

cooperation between all the work processes (product development and

design. manufacturing. marketing. sales and services) within the current and

future operation than in the past. The current changes in technology have

made work process changes or improvements possible and necessary.

while the lower cost of IT and communication technology has encouraged

a more cross-functional!multi-disciplinary cooperalion and collaboration.

3. In both countries. most work process changes are with the following goals in

mind:

• shortening development lead time or reducing time to market

• better customer orientation

• improving product quality (reliability/design)

• lowenng development/production costs (minimising waste)

• excelling in the globalisation environment

4. The main emphasis on work process changes is related to how to realign the

traditional sequential work process system into a new paradigm of

integrated manufacturing process (development and production). This

integration is driven and/or enabled by IT tools (CAD. CAM. expert systems.

communication networks. 'virtual design office. virtual prototype. virtual

manufacturing') and coupled with the Integration of human expertise and

knowledge through the organisational support of collaborative teamwork.

The establishment and ulilisation of the teamwork concept is a very

important feature of process improvement. Innovalive ideas and tools are

also supporting process Improvement in manufacturing as shown by these

countries' experiences which include concurrent/simultaneous/parallel

engineering; JIT; 'lean or agile manufactUring'; MRP; MRPII; CIM; 'virtual

104

reality'; 'partnerships or strategic alliances or networking or cluster-based

strategy'; system engineering or 'value-chain'; 'rapid prototyping'; flexible

manufacturing; CAID and TQM.

5. Further important aspects of work process changes is concerned with the

problem of the effectiveness of using the various enabling IT tools such as

CAD. CAM. expert system. 'virtual design office. virtual prototype. virtual

manufacturing' and communication networks to support process

improvement. Based on these countries' experiences. the IT tools

developed need to give adequate consideration to the human aspects in

uSing the enabling tools in the process improvement environment. human

factor or ergonomic aspects. In addition. the human factor or ergonomic

aspects are gaining importance in the manufacturing industry.

6. Another aspect which is not less in importance is the attributes. knowledge

and skills. and development of human resources. In Malaysia. the emphasis

is on knowledge and skills are related to IT. computer. automation and

computer integrated manufacturing (CIM). In UK part of the process

improvement measure is through education and training. that is to improve

the knowledge and skills of the human resources. Both countries stress the

concepts of quality. teamwork. project and system engineering (or 'value­

chain' in MalaYSia}.

3.5.3.2 The Stakeholders in Manufacturing Work Process (Leading to the Engineers)

The stakeholders that are involved in any manufacturing work process include:

a) Corporate Managers who are responsible for maintaining a global view of the

organisation's needs at all lime; primarily responsible for the profit and loss of the

organisation. They organise. coordinate and oversee the financial aspects of all the

products lines. and are responsible for making major decisions on product

development and sales. They may include Vice President of Englneenng and Vice

PreSident of Manufactunng. prominent technical managerial leaders roles/jobs for

105

engineers which require strong leadership qualities and human relations skills

(people skills) as they will interact with engineers. managers and other human

resources in their quest for continuous improvements in the whole of the

manufacturing work process.

b) Projec:t Managers are responsible for all phases of manufactUring of products

(project) Including justification. scope. design. equipment specification. installation.

new manufacturing facilities or upgrading of existing facilities. budgets. schedules.

management of all human resources involved (internal or contract). They oversee

the entire life of the manufacturing processes and ensure that the output of each

stage is completed satisfactorily. They may be engineers (called Project Engineers)

or other members of the organisation from various departments. such as sales or

management. with seniority and experience.

c) Customers who will buy and use the products and whose needs must be satisfied.

They can provide Input for the identification of customer needs. test prototypes and

give criticism in the design review.

d) Engineers (see the next section on Engineers in Manufactunng)

e) Resource Managers are responsible for all the resources and materials involved in

the design and manufacturing of the product. They locate. investigate and

coordinate the suppliers and are responsible for purchasing and cost estimation. It is

also the responsibility of resource managers to document past design costs and

research future design costs for accurate estimation and nsk analysis. In some

orgaOlsatlons this role is called Procurement Managers or Procurement Engineers.

f) Financial Managers have the responsibility for considering the financial interests of

the product and setting product prices.

g) Research Professionals (including engineers) have responsibilities for providing input

in the manufacturing work processes and also to explore new techniques for solVing

problems established by functional needs in new product development that have

not yet been investigated.

I) Suppliers are linked to resource management and can prOVide useful Input to the

designers about their product lines.

J) Field Service Personnel are responsible for documenting the problems associated

with the product as it interacts with its environment. They are an invaluable source

of Information on the use and misuse of a product and what features and functions

work well. which are reliable and which are prone to failure. This Information is

particularly useful when an evolutionary redeSign of a product is being carried out.

106

3.5.3.3 The Engineers In Manufacturing

Engineers are essential elements in the manufacturing industry of a wealth­

generating economy. The level of success and wealth generating depend on

the innovations of the engineers' design and the efficiency of the engineered

manufacturing processes. The types of roles and responsibilities of engineers in

manufacturing include design engineers and manufacturing engineers.

a) Design Engineers: The technical responsibility for producing the detailed

specifications required to make products lies with the design engineers.

They draw knowledge and skills from a variety of diSCiplines as required by

the product and thus many organisations divide the roles into separate

departments such as mechanical, electrical and electronics. software,

industrial, chemical, etc.. thus design engineers consist of mechanical,

electrical and chemical engineers.

b) Manufacturing Engineers who will use specifications from the design

engineers to undertake the physical processes of producing the product.

They are responsible for all production concerns from production planning,

system scheduling, computer numerically-controlled (CNN) programming,

machining. assembly and quality assurance (including control and

inspection). They are also responsible for giving input and feedback on the

manufacturability of the product design. The job or role is distributed

amongst the following:

• Production Planning Engineers or Industrial Engineers who are

responsible for planning in detail how a part can be most effiCiently

made (production routings), taking into account the quantity

required, the materials involved, equipment available and plant

layout. They also specify and/or design any special fixtures and

tOOling that may be required as well as writing any computer­

numerical-controlled (CNC) machine, CAM and tool programs. In

addition, they are involved in method and process improvements.

• Manufacturing and Assembly Engineers are responsible for ensuring

the actual production of the product through an efficient

107

manufacturing process system and manufacturing process

improvements. They include specialists like Welding Engineers.

Gearing Engineers and Hydraulic Engineers.

• Quality Engineers are responsible for undertaking quality assurance

activllles for the product which include quality control. inspection.

etc. They are considered as the liaison persons between designers.

manufacturers and suppliers.

• System Operations Engineers or Plant Engineers are responsible for

the manufacturing system operations and maintenance to ensure

efficiency and productivity. These responsibilities Include plant

layout. power distribution. equipment justification and installalion.

preventive maintenance. industrial utilities. boilers. technical wrlling.

mainte,nance manuals. quality. capital and expansion projects.

building and grounds.

The discussions above show that engineers are key stakeholders in the

manufacturing industry and will play prominent roles in any work process

change. Thus. their requirements (attributes. knowledge and skills) and

formation as well as development need due consideralion with respect to any

work process change.

3.6 CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY

The construction industry. as the manufacturing industry. is one of the key

contributors and an integral part of the economic strength and development

of a country. The construction industry's business activities and work processes

involve many complexities. much time. capital and utilisation of related

resources (e.g. finance. materials. human resources. plants. technologies). As

mentioned in Section 2.2.3. the construction industry is one of the pioneers of

organising its business activities around projects or project works. Therefore.

the overall success of the Industry is largely determined by the collective

performance of projects and the essential roles and contributions of all

\08

stakeholders to project activity. A similar format of presentation to that for the

manufacturing Industry will be used here (Malaysia's and UK's construction

experiences; work processes in the construchon industry; stakeholders).

The tYPical characteristics of construction business activities are deduced

from a variety of literature (Weame, 1973; Levy, 1987; Bennett, 1991; Latham;

1994; Gray, 1996; ManagemenlToday, February 1996) which include:

• a variety of organisations and stakeholders are often needed to work together

to create new construction products;

• generally, each product is custom-made to individual speCification;

• often Involve impressive capital investment;

• normally require a relatively long time from conception to completion;

• the long life utilisation span will affect the deciSion procedures regarding

durability, maintenance and other relevant issues;

• the construction phase of work processes is often conducted on a site remote

from the head office;

• it is affected by many external factors such as the ground conditions, weather

and uncertainty In predicting the performance of human resources and plants;

• it is slow in adopting technological advances but with increased

mechanisation;

• although all other industnes' business activities have associated riSks, the

construction industry seems to have more than its fair share,

• it is among those industries with the highest aCCident rates;

• it is fragmented in nature.

As each construction business product is unique, no two projects or products

ore ever quite alike. Consequently the construction industry is organised

around individual projects or project works. Thus, the success of any

construction project will depend on the application of work process methods,

practices and techniques that are SUitable to the project's characteristiCS and

requirements. Furthermore, the characteristics above show that there are

many variables involved in any construction proJect. namely the

environmental variables (social. economic, technological, pOlitical. natural

109

etc.), organisational variables (structure, size, system, human resources,

relationships, knowledge and skills, information system, rewards etc.) and

project vanables (function, quality, complexities, size, urgency, funding,

resources, etc.).

3.6.1 Malaysia's Construction Industry In 'Times of Change' • J 990s leading Inlo 2 J sf cenlury

(Together with the specific references provided, the discussion throughout this

section IS also based on various reports of the Central Bank of Malaysia at:

(http://www.bnm.gov.my/pub/info/index.htmJ.

The activities, developments and future plans in Malaysia's construction

industry which will be highlighted here are in line with the concept of work

process changes involving 'process improvement' and globalisation. These

Include:

i. The Report on Colloquium on Industrialised Construction System (ICS), Apnl9,

1998, Kuala Lumpur: CIDB provides some of the important work process

changes being planned in Malaysia's construction industry. The prominent

event was organised by The Malaysian Construction Industry Development

Board (CIDB) on April 9, 1998. The colloquium was aimed to provide a forum

for players and stakeholders in the Malaysian construction industry to

present and discuss their ideas and experiences in the industry in general

and In ICS in particular. This should pave the way for further developments

and applications of industnalised construction matenals and components in

order to increase productivity, quality as well as lime and material cost

savings. The operations of this event consisted of the presentations of

discussion papers prepared by the Industry, followed by detailed discussion

sessions to identify ideas, problems, opportunities and actions to be taken.

The followings are some of the issues relevant to this research derived from

the report:

• Hamdan and Shamed (1998) examined the current situation in the

construction industry in Malaysia with analysis of players involved both

local and foreign, namely consultants, contractors and builders,

110

manufacturers and suppliers (build & design); and market perceptions

(Hamdan and Shamed. 1998). This was done through cases studies.

observations and information gathered by the Association of

Consulting Engineers Malaysia (ACEM). The findings indicated that the

problems of the current construction system were attributed to low

productivity. high waste. high labour content. Iow quality. long delivery

period and low incomes. The suggestion to overcome problems of the

current construction system includes having less site work; a better

dimension coordination of parts; standard parts dimension; better

design system; better project management; more mechanisation of

domestic design and production; more research on new materials and

construction technologies (include philosophy and techniques); more

training programmes and better communication systems and skills.

Some of the proposals for change involve better utilisation of steel as a

construction material. plastic and composite materials for construction.

computer aided design and manufactunng (CAD/CAM). system

formwork fabrication. spraying technology. and bigger consultancy

and contracting providers by mergers or franchlsing systems .

• Although MalaYSia's construction industry is one that is highly

regulated. there is very little attention paid on the construction system

itself. Up to 1997. the Malaysian Uniform 8ullding By-laws (UBBL) were

Silent on the method of construction and appeared to assume that

construction was undertaken uSing conventional methodology. The

revision of UBBL is expected to introduce aspects like modular

coordination and thus. Will set the framework for a more industrialised

construction system.

• The view of a construction system which should be used by the industry

is that of a continuum beginning from utilising craftsmen for every

aspect of construction work processes. to a system that is fully

automated or produced in the factory. The ultimate aim of the system

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IS to be able to generate maximum value for the customers and

contain a minimum amount of waste.

• One of the concepts being proposed which will contribute towards the

improvement of the construction industry in Malaysia is called the

'Industrialised Construction System (ICS)'. ICS is not totally new to the

building industry in Malaysia. The first panellised timber house was

shipped from England in 1642 to provide temporary housing for a crew

of a fishing fleet. From then on many systems were introduced with

variable rates of success. In lay terms an 'industnalised construction

system' refers to systems which use industrial production techniques

either in the production of components or assembly of the building. or

both.

The future objectives of new forms of an 'industrialised construction

system' are to achieve efficiency, in terms of cost and lime. and

provide value for customers in terms of performance of product and

with zero-defecl. This is attained by integration and concurrency of

the whole range of work processes and business activities from

product development (conceptual and deSign phases). marketing.

manufacturing/construction; sales and delivery. and customer services

including maintenance (commissioning). Therefore. the concept

should be perceived as changes in focus in the focus of work process.

that involves a transformation from a system that concentrates on

selling craftmanship to one that emphasises productivity and quality.

and hence will provide value to customers and minimise waste.

The system is supported by the following enabling technologies and

philosophy; information technology (IT). manufacturing technology.

modular product technology. total delivery process engineering.

concurrent engineering. process re-engineering and systems

engineenng.

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Overall. this event has projected the importance of certain aspects of work

process changes in the Malaysian construction industry namely the need to

develop innovative and creative technology to face the challenge of

global competition. The knowledge and skills which will be required by

design engineers. manufacturing and construction engineers need to be

given due emphasis. They relate to the method of ICS including systems

engineering/concept. information technology (IT). manufacturing

technology. modular product technology. total delivery process

engineering. concurrent engineering. process re-engineering. quality

assurance and CAD/CAM"

ii. Abdul Aziz (1995) investigated comprehensively the 'International Expansion

of Malaysia Contractors' through analysing data from a postal questionnaire

survey to 450 Malaysian builders categorised as 'Class A' either by

Malayslan Institute of Architect (PAM) or the government's Central

Contractors Services (PKK),; and complemented by secondary data. The

findings from 12 positive responses show that Malaysian companies are

already involved in the construction of highways. hotels. power plants,

housing. factories and new township developments in various parts of the

world. These have involved work process changes in a globahsed

environment. This trend will continue to be given strong emphasis. despite

the economic crisis, as stressed by the Minister of Special Functions. in his

address to the Institution of Engineers Malaysia (IEM) 5th Public Lecture on

April 18. 1998.

In all these undertakings. engineers are playing a critical role In ensuring

success. The overall requirements include forming 'cross-border

partnerships'; competency in advanced construction technologies. such as

fast-track techniques using prefabricated construction systems); research

and development in construction; cultural. values and preferences

understanding; marketing skills; management and operational techniques;

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and foreign languages (especially English). These will also prepare Malaysia I

with the environment of foreign contractors operating in the country, which

IS another aspect of globalisatlon (Ghazali and Tapsir, 1996).

iii. The document 'Blueprint For Infrastructure Development - The Next Decade

(1998-2007) by IEM, March 1998 highlights prominent issues that will pave the

way forward for infrastructure development in Malaysia. The Blueprint has

identified the following core problems that need to be addressed:

• Productivity; Quality; Competitiveness; Waste Management;

Safety and Transport Congestion.

The overall concept of the Blueprint is to adopt a strategy for improving the

construction processes in facing the challenge of sustainable development

and globalisation; and also trying to export the country's construction

expertise. These will involve developing new technologies (including

processes) with new tools, concepts, techniques and materials.

3.6.2 Un1ted Kingdom's Construction Industry In 'Times of Change' - 1990$ leading Into the 21" Century

The United Kingdom's construction industry consists of over 200,000 enterprises

and eight (8) percent of GNP (Latham, July 1994). It is generally recognised

that the United Kingdom's construction organisations are looking more and

more to overseas markets to support dwindling workloads. Contractors and

construction professionals alike face competition from such countries as the

United States of America, Germany, Finland and Italy (Management Today,

February 1996). Hence as international competition intenSifies, leading

construction organisations throughout the world are striving to be more

effective and to enhance their competitive POSition by improving their

processes and performance.

Some of the problems that besiege the construction industry are related to

delivery of completed projects, the quality of service and high cost. The key

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drivers of change in the United Kingdom such as the Latham Report (July 1994)

the Technology Foresight (1995), and Egan Report (1998) (previously the

Construction Task Force (1997)), have paved the way towards addressing

these problems and improving the construction industry's work processes and

performance.

1. The Latham Report (July. 1994)

The Latham Report was commiSSioned jointly by the Government and the

industry, with valuable participation of clients. The crucial change compared

to previous reports is the emergence of clients as major participants in the

discussions. They have become the core of the work process in the

construction industry and hence their needs must be met by the industry. The

focusses in the report were on continuous improvements in work processes and

business activities such as client-driven, teamwork, empowerment and

partnering towards Improving performance as well as increasing productivity.

These involved looking in detail at new methods, techniques and approaches

so that recommendations could be made for Implementation in procurement

and site performance.

The traditional sequential construction work process is the most familiar route

in the industry but many problems were reported especially through lack of

coordination between design and construction phases. Some of the

suggestions to minimise these problems include effective pre-plannlng of the

design phase, efficient administration of a project, using a combination of

work processes through design and management approaches, and using a

construction management approach. These led to the prominency of Project

Management knowledge and skills in the industry.

Advances in Information technology (IT) have enabled work process

improvements through the availability of 'Knowledge Based Engineering' (KBE)

and effective information systems such as 'Coordinated Project Information'

(CPI). KBE was envisaged by the industry's experts to be the technology of the

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21 sf Century. It was developed in the manufacturing industry, both for

aeroplanes and cars. KBE is being modified and made available for the

construction industry to assist In decision-making as well as all aspects of the

design, manufacture, assembly and use of the product. It can be presented as

one entity through advanced computer-aided-design (CAD) or 'Virtual Reality'

(VI). The availability of information to all stakeholders for example in the form

of CPI is essential to the success of a project.

Other performance and productivity issues have been addressed through

the work process improvements above including greater standardisation of

components and design details and more off-site prefabrication. (Similar to

Malaysia's experiences - see discussions in Section 3.6.1).

All the above work process changes and improvements required effective

teamwork and partnering by design engineers, contractors, subcontractors,

manufacturers/builders, specialist engineering contractors, suppliers, client and

other stakeholders involved in the project. Teamwork, partnenng and strong

leadership were essential throughout the project.

n. The 'UK Foresight Programme' (1995)

In addition to the Latham Report, Technology Foresight (1995a & b) has

expressed its dissatisfaction over the construction industry's lack of innovations

and developments, that are widespread in other industries namely

manufacturing and services. It advised the construction industry to 're­

engineer' construction work processes to become - 'lean', 'Just-in-Time' (JIT),

rapid, responsive and effective performance.

1iI. The Ego" Report (1998)

This report began with the setting-up of a Task Force formed in 1997 headed by

Sir John Egan, to look into the clients' perspective on opportunities to improve

the efficiency and quality of delivery of United Kingdom construction, to

reinforce the impetus for change, to make the industry more responsive to

\16

customer needs. to introduce further innovation in products and processes

and applying best practices - the 'partnering' between customer and builders.

These initiatives accumulating Into the Egan Report (1998). The scope of work

of the Task Force (1997) includes:

• quantifying the scope for improving construction efficiency and deriving relevant

quality and efficient targets and performance measures which might be adopted

by the UK construction industry

• examining current practice and the scope for Improving it by innovation in products

and processes (philosophies and techniques)

• identifying specific actions and good praclice which would help achieve more

efficient construction in terms of quality and customer satisfaction. timeliness in

delivery and value for money

• identifying projects to help demonstrate the improvements that can be achieved

through the application of best practice

The Task Force emphasised the need for more customer-focussed and

stronger leadership In the industry. The first report set specific targets to

Improve quality. cost. delivery. profits and safety. The report also stressed that

performance was being constrained by conventional work processes through

which projects were designed and procured rather than delivering what the

customer wanted (e.g. processes improvement through responsive

construction). The industry has to take a long hard look at what is happening in

other industries to develop a new model for the 21 st century. (The Daily

Telegraph. June 4.1998).

Furthermore. the need for construction organisations to rethink and redeSign

their work processes is becoming more and more critical due to:

• globalisation of the economy and industry

• greater performance expectations from clients

• advances in information technologies (IT) and telecommunication

• advances in construction technologies

• conllnued restructuring of work practice

• greater competition amongst domestic organisations

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3.6.3 Ideas and Tools, Methods, Concepts and Techniques

Construction is a complex work process. combining components to form a

finished product. Individual components are developed in a variety of ways.

from the manufacture of standard components through to specially

customised components.

As a whole. construction business activities and work processes operate in

conditions affected by government policy; the structure and organisation of

industry; methods of organising and finanCing the activities; plant and

equipment availability consistent with levels of technology appropriate to

national circumstances; material supplies (local productions and imports); and

the level of knowledge and skills possessed by the human resources in the

industry.

3.6.3.1 Work processes In the construction industry

Generally and in a simple form. a construction project involves four phases

namely the conceptual, design. construction and commissioning (handing­

over) phases (similar to the manufacturing industry. see Figure 3.2). The

conceptual phase consists of defining the work which is basically the

responsibility of the customer/owner/client. although professional assistance

will be provided on request. The main purpose is to identify the

customer/owner/client's needs and requirements clearly and explicitly.

The design phase involves architectural and engineering designs for the

entire project. It often overlaps with the construction phase. The specifications

and drawings are prepared by architects and design engineers and will form

the basis of tender documents for the project. Many Issues are considered

during this phase. but the major one is the construct ability of the design. Then.

the construction phase is the process of phYSically bringing the project into

reality which involves providing the required resources such as human

resources. materials. equipment and supervision to accomplish the work.

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The project work is completed during the commissioning (handing-over)

phase as the completed product IS handed over to the owner. Many crucial

issues must be tackled and considerable efforts are made by all parties to

secure a smooth hand-over procedure.

Traditionally (similar to the manufacturing industry). the conventional work

process method being practised is the development of the project through the

sequential progress of individual phases commencing with the conceptual

phase. then design phase. followed by the construction phase and terminated

by the commissioning phase.

3.6.3.1.1 Important Issues derived from experiences in two countries

Some of the important issues derived are:

1. The changing environment within the construction industry in Malaysia and

UK and also the climate of globalisation demanding more value from the

construction product. Hence:-

• the need to focus on customer/owner/client. quality. cost and delivery of

projects;

• the need to integrate all key players in the construction project and

integrate the activities of the various functional disciplines involved;

• the need to concurrently develop the design of the project along with the

fabrication. construction/manufacture and erection processes (example

ICS In Malaysia;)

• the need to establish strategic relationships or 'partnershlps' with materials

and component suppliers. sub-contractors and international partners;

• the need to use new technologies and materials;

• the need to use effectively IT tools (CAD and other design tools. hardware

and software)and modern project management techniques and other

management principles such as concurrent engineering. lean construction.

JIT. CIM. TQM. Kaizen and many others;

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• the need to use effectively knowledge, data and information about the

project throughout the organisation.

2. The mOln emphasis on work process changes is related to how to realign the

traditional sequential work process system into a new paradigm of

development and production integrated with the construction work

process. This integration is driven and/or enabled by IT tools (CAD, CAM,

expert systems, communication networks, 'virtual reality') and new or

modem management tools (concurrent engineering, 'lean construction,

'partnering', JIT, TQM, Kaizen, CIM, etc.); and also coupled with the

Integration of human expertise and knowledge through the organisational

support of collaborative teamwork. The establishment and utilisation of a

cross-functional teamwork concept is a very important feature of process

improvement.

3. Another aspect which is no less important is the attributes, knowledge and

skills, and development of human resources. In both countries, the emphasis

is on knowledge and skills are related to IT. computer, automation, TQM,

concurrent engineering, system engineering, teamwork, project

management, new construction technologies or new materials

technologies, foreign languages, cultural understanding, customer or

human-relationships, JIT. 'lean construction' and many others.

3.6.3.2 The stakeholders In construction work process (Leading to or focusslng on the civil engineers)

In any construclion project the stake holders that are involved include

customer/client/owner, users, contractors and sub-contractors (builders),

conSUltants (architects, structural engineers, mechanical engineers, electrical

engineers, quanlity surveyor, land surveyor), suppliers, finanCiers/investors,

public authonlies and operators/maintenance organisations. Each of the

stakeholders will have a different set of roles/jobs, responSibilities, needs and

requirements In order to ensure the successful implementation of the project.

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A customer/client/owner may consider success in terms of optimum costs, a

contractor in terms of profitability, a public authority in terms of satisfying

environmental regulations and so on. An architect may focus on aesthetic

appearance, but a civil engineer must satisfy technical specifications, an

accountant will focus on the budget. but a project manager on optimum

utilisation of resources and so on.

The success of the project is achieved essentially through bringing together a

disparate pool of knowledge and skills from architects, civil engineers, builders,

quantity surveyors, land surveyors, suppliers and so on.

3.6.3.3 The civil engineers In construction Industry

The above discussion shows that there are a number of professionals involved

in the construction Industry. Hence, there are a number of different degree

courses relating to the study of the construction industry. The courses which

deal with the management and methods of construction can be grouped

under the generic headings of 'Civil Engineering' and 'Building (Building

Construchon and Management, BUilding Engineering, BUilding Management,

Construction Management etc.)'. Presently, there is a clear difference in the

content of civil engineering and building degrees. Civil engineering courses

are essentially design biased; and concentrate on the analytical nature of

construction, whilst building degree courses develop a knowledge of building

production and management.

A civil engineer, generally will work in one of the following areas:

a) In private practice, the civil engineer plans, designs, constructs and

operates physical works and facilities used by the public.

b) In public practice, the ciVil engineer IS involved in city and/or regional

planning, layout and construction of highways, pipelines, sewerage

systems etc.

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c) In academia. the civil engineer teaches students the fundamentals of

civil engineering. He/she may also be involved in research in order to

advance the state-of-the-art.

d) In combination with other disciplines. the civil engineer may work as an

engineering geologist. engineering economist etc.

The general types of civil engineers include roles as Structural Engineer.

Construclion Management Engineer. Transportation and Highway Engineer.

Water Resources Engineer and Geotechnical Engineer.

The role of structural engineer involves the planning and designing of

buildings of all types. bridges and specialised structures (power plants. nuclear

reactors. transmission tawers and radar facilities). Wherever concrete. steel.

timber/wood or aluminium are required to carry loads. structural engineers do

the planning and design. Structural engineers usually work closely with the

architect.

The role of construction management engineer involves taking charge of

actual construction. The major responsibility is to ensure that the project is

being built properly. to speCification and according to schedule.

The role of the transportation and highway engineer is concerned With the

deSign of highway systems (layout. routing). pavement material. airport

runaways and rapid transit projects. The role can also involve computer

control of traffic signals and other advanced traffic management and

information systems.

As a water resources engineer. the civil engineer works with water. ItS control

and the development of water supplies. This role consists of further sub-roles of

CIVil engineers namely hydrauliC engineer or hydrologist. sanitary engineer and

water related structural engineer. As a hydraulic engineer/hydrologist. the civil

engineer analyses and studies rainfall data. characteristics of flow in open

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channel and pipes. design reservoirs. pollution migration and techniques of

coastal and shoreline protection. Sanitary engineers plan and design

municipal water facilities such as treatment plants and sewerage treatment

plants. He/she also may operate and maintain these facilities. The role of

water related structural engineer involves designing projects such as

hydroelectric plants. canals. docks and piers.

The role of geotechnical engineer. sees the civil engineer work In the field of

soil and rock mechanics. This involves analysing subsurface conditions.

determining and then designing the type of foundation to be used for a

particular structure. A Geotechnical Engineer also designs dams. tunnels and

mining facilities.

Since a civil engineer takes a lot of different types of engineering courses.

he/she can work on a variety of different types of jobs. for example. a

shopping centre one month. an earth dam another and a highway project the

next. However. the general work contents of a civil engineer are:

i) Accumulation and Analysis of Basic Data such as runoff information of a

river and/or rainfall data. subsurface information for the foundation

design of a structure. population growth statistics. earthquake data.

laboratories analysis of soil. cement & water.

iil Preliminary design of foundation type and design. structural frame and

material. earth or rock filled dam. highway. sewerage treatment plant

etc.

iii} Cost Eshmates - to determine quantity of material needed for the project.

estimate the total cost of the structure and from the Information reduce

the scope of work to fall within the budget.

iv} Design. Drawings and Specifications - prepare contract plans and

specifications for the bidding contractors; and to answer any questions

they may have regarding the project.

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v) Supervision of Construction - responsibility for inspection during

construction and to certify that the facility is built according to the

plans/specifications.

vi) Operation and Maintenance - monitor the maintenance of the facility

and suggest improvements to enhance the operation.

Civil engineers will almost certainly conduct field work regularly and a lot of

civil engineering involves work outside the office. Since they are involved in

the construction of a project. so they must go where the work is being done.

3.7 SUMMARY

Some of the important points to be considered as deduced from all the

discussions above include:

i. Effective strategic decisions that determine or plan the future direction of

any intervention or mitigation measures which cannot be made without

quality information. for example analysing future developments trends in

work process changes and identifying knowledge and skills required to meet

the future business objectives. Therefore. there is a need for a simple and

flexible framework with effective procedures and techniques to elicit and

establish changes of work process and stake holders requirements (such as

the scenario-based design method to be used in this research).

ii. It is important to understand the new prinCiples of working in both the

manufacturing and construction industries. especially the concept of an

integrated manufacturing life-cycle process using multidisciplinary/cross­

functional teamwork and sharing of information throughout the

organisation.

Hi. Work process changes require a radical change in organisation support or

culture. This has been stressed in Chapter 2 and IS reinforced in this chapter.

It is a departure from the 'traditional work process system' practice to a new

way of working (as pointed out in (ii)). The changes require considerable

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commitment from top management down to the bottom of the

organisation structure.

iv. The appropriate responsibilities of engineers in the future, adopted by this

research, are the content of descriptions of the Chartered Engineer (CEng)

and Incorporated Engineer (IEng) in SARTOR 1997. They are presented in

questions 2 and 3, Section C of the questionnaire (see Appendix '1 '):

and

"Chartered Engineers are concemed primarily with the progress of technology

through innovation. creativity and change. They develop and apply new

technologies; promote advanced deSigns and design methods; introduce new

and more effiCient produclion techniques and marketing and construction

concepts; and pioneer new engineering services and management methods.

They may be involved With the management and dJ(ectlon of high-risk and

resource Intensive projects. ProfeSSional judgement IS a key feature of their role,

alfled to the assumption of responsibility for the dJ(ectlon of Important tasks,

including the profitable management of industrial and commercial enterprises".

(Executive Summary: SARTOR 1997; pp. 3)

"Incorporated Engineers act as exponents of today's technology and, to this

end. they maintain and manage applications of current and developing

technology at highest effiCiency. Incorporated Engineers require a detailed

understanding of a recognised field of technology. so they can exercise

independent technical Judgement and management In that field. They provide,

Independently and as leaders. a Significant influence on the overall effectiveness

of the organisation In which they work, often in key operational management

roles". (Executive Summary: SARTOR 1997; pp. 5)

v. Work process changes require competent human resources equipped with

relevant attributes, knowledge and skills to implement the changes and

ensure their success. The relevant attnbutes, knowledge and skills elicit from

the literature review (Chapters 2 and 3) are presented in the questions 5 and

6, Section C of the questionnaire (see Appendix '1').

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In conclusion, at the outset of this chapter it was stressed that proper planning

of any intervention or mitigation efforts in improving an engineering education

system in 'times of change' must incorporate the understanding of relevant

'future change scenarios' and their implications for stake holders especially the

engineers. The possible characteristics have been established, called the 'key

elements of change' in the changes of business or work processes involving

engineers, also some of their implications. The following Important

components that will be affected by the work process changes have been

compiled, namely the 'functional images' and some wake-up calls.

Requirement engineering is needed in order to determine the requirements of

engineers in terms of roles, responsibilities, attributes. knowledge and skills and

education. All these become components in the scope of the further work of

this research which will be taken up by Chapter 4 onwards. In-depth

Investigations in the two speCific settings chosen: 'Scenario 1 - Processes

Improvement' and 'Scenano 2 - Globalisation' will furnish the data and

information to plan and develop intervention or mitigation measures in

engineering education practices.

Now we are in a strong position to take forward the work so far and to

provide the guiding force by which the planning of Intervention or mitigation

measures can be undertaken. The tasks commence in Chapter 4.

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CHAPTER 4

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

4.1 INTRODUCTION

This chapter describes the overall research methodology. data collection

strategy and administration for the research. The selection of methods to be

used in this study is dependent on the aim of the study. The principal aim of this

research is to investigate the implications of major change in the future world

of work for engineers and the consequences for educational practices.

Specifically. thiS consists of the determination of the attributes. knowledge and

skills required by engineers in the future and the exploration of the attnbutes of

engineering education programmes to respond to these requirements.

The research involves investigahng and planning for the possible futures

characterised by an Increased rate of change on business and workplace.

government and society reflecting the transition from the Industrial Age to the

Information/Knowledge Age. Hence. it is in the category of 'anticipatory

Initiative' or future research. ThiS approach of research is an effort to develop

a mindset that looks beyond the comfort zones of present situation or success.

and mitigate to improve an organisation's or one's preparedness for future

challenges and opportunities. It has nothing to do with utopias. prophecies.

predlchons or crystal balls. It is a set of methods designed to generate ideas

and stimulate discussion among those concerned in the areas being stUdied.

Different methodologies were employed to generate quantitative and

qualitative data Including the literature review (Chapters 2 and 3). preliminary

Investigation (interview and seminar). a scenario-based design approach with

structured questioning in a postal question nOire survey and a scenario-based

design approach With semi-structured questioning in an interview survey. The

objective of each method used. the type of data generated and the rationale

for adoption are discussed here. In addition. the study drew together the

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different methods to explore the data in depth and to 'triangulate' (comparing

and contrasting different sources of gathered data, also making use of both

quantitative and qualitative data) In order to strengthen the interpretations

(Fraenkel and Wallen, 1993; Cohen, L. and Manlon, L., 1994). All the data

were collected from two countries, Malaysia and the United Kingdom (UK), for

relevant comparison purposes. The detailed analysis and discussion of the

findings will be made in Chapter 5 and Chapter 6.

4.2 ALTERNATIVE RESEARCH METHODS - INVENTING THE FUTURE SYSTEMS

One of the purposes of this research IS to develop and test a method for

systematically looking toward the future and determining the requirements to

be met by future systems. This will require the compilalion of Information on

Informed perceptions (ideas or opinions or views), possible future alternatives,

choices about the future, probable developments and their impacts (e.g.

requirements of the future systems). The method must be able to do the

above and then support the understanding, articulation and work towards

preparing for the possible or desired future(s). Thus, some of the features that

futures research methodologies should have include the development of

alternative future scenarios; structured/semi-structured/unstructured

questioning; Iteralion processes; controlled feedback mechanisms; anonymity

of responses (In certain situations); and observation, gathering and analysis of

external and Internal enVIronmental factors.

There IS a whole genre of research methodologies which can assist us to plan

or Invent the future, the 'anticipatory initiatives/approaches'. Sooty and Soone

(1990) suggest certain defensible forms of anticipatory initiatives/approaches

such as by consensus; by extrapolating and analysis of trends, historical data

and analogy; and by systematic generation of alternative paths to the future.

Some of the methods available relate to the setting of this research, e.g. formal

long-range planning techniques; Delphi techniques; Socio-Technical Systems

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Design approaches including Future Search Conference techniques,

Participative/Participatory Design, Joint Design Application (JDA), ETHICS

methodology (Effeclive Technical and Human Implementation of Computer

Systems), ORDIT modelling concepts and process (Organisational

Requirements Definition for Information Technology), Scenario-Based Design

method (with structured or semi-structured or unstructured questioning); and

questionnaire survey method (on its own) and interview survey method (on its

own). In our opinion, these anticipatory initiatives/approaches are suitable for

documenting, sustaining and enhancing people's ability to deal with ever­

changing situation. Some of the methods will be discussed in more detail for

comparison purposes:

a) The formal long-range (5-7 years) planning technique (Quinan, 1980), is

the method used in Malaysia's future planning activity as described in detail in

Section 2.3.1.5 of this thesis. The formal technique requires information and

data of the past (historical data) and present (data on extemal and internal

environmental factors including stakeholders), trends and analogy. There is an

assumption that the future will be a continuation of the past and present (BiJker

and Law, 1992). These Will support quantitative forecasting through

extrapolation and analysis of trends, informallon and data, and analogy.

b) Delphi technique (Linstone and Turoff, 1975; Kerr and Hiltz. 1982) is a set

of procedures for eliciting and refining the opinions of a panel of experts

whereby a consensus or informed collecllve judgement of the group on a

defined Issue is reached. Delphi technique is one of the best known qualitative

methods and also, the most prominent of the consensus methodologies. It is

best used when there is little or no data available to extrapolate from, when

there is no formal theory about the future and in areas that are difficult to

quanlify. Delphi technique IS the main method employed in the 'UK Foresight

Programme' (see Seclion 2.3.2.4.). Delphi technique has four basic features;

structured questioning (through the use of questionnaire), iteration, controlled

129

feedback and anonymity of responses. The broad procedural outline of

Delphi technique consists of:

I) The subject of study is circulated to participants in an unstructured manner to

enable them to comment on the Issues in question. This material is then

syntheSised by the researcher (or a monitonng/research team) and distributed

back to the parhcipants in a questionnaire format.

11) A questionnaire IS drawn up to ascertain the opinions of the experts and to try

and begin to elicit pOints of convergence and divergence.

ili) The questionnaires are distributed repeatedly. each time with the information

from prevIous questionnaires that has been Interpreted and reformulated by the

research team. The feedback often provides textual and statistical matenal to

participants with the group response as well as their own (controlled feedback)

and asks them to reconsider their response or if their response is radically different

from the group to )ushfy It. The aim of this iteration process is finally to reach a

certain level of consensus or stability (e g. 75% or 80%. etc.). Anonymity of

responses is maintained at all time.

iv) A final report. pulling the responses together. IS then prepared by the research

team.

The pooling of expert oPinions can lead to the participants learning and

benefiting from the process. as well as contributing to it. Holden et al. (1990)

argue that Delphi approach relies on obtaining consensus of expert opinion. In

this research consensus is not the utmost cnterla. Also. the assembling of the

experts will Incur high cost and there is a possibility of low rate of active

participation for the second round of the process.

(Other references: Linstone and T uroff. 1975; Kerr and Hl1tz. 1982; Holden

et al. (1990))

c) Modern thinking about organisational redesign in large part originated

With work conducted by two social scientists. Fred Emery and Eric Trist. Their

fieldwork in the English coal mines in 1949 formed the baSIS for the

development of 'sodo-technlcal systems' design approaches. Stated simply.

In a socio-technlcal systems approach any organisation can be viewed as an

130

open system consisting of work processes, tools and techniques (the technical

system) with which human resources interact and are organised for a common

purpose (the social system). The effectiveness of any organisation and also

future planning is related to the choices made in the design of these two

systems. These choices are dictated by the forces of technology (e.g.

Information technology (IT)), economy (Information/knowledge economy),

political and also social influences externally and human values internally. Thus,

this method of design consists of two parts technical and social:

The technical portion includes an analysIs of current state of work processes, key

vanances and a process cycle-time analysis. Flow charts are constructed which

reflect each step in the work process and are highly effective in highlighting

redundancies, waste, delays and non-value adding work.

Ii. The social portion consists of an examination of structure, responsibilities, decision­

making, knowledge and skills required, the human resources management

system (e g. hiring, training, recognition, etc.), values and style. Effeclively

designed social systems typically provide teamwork. conneclion to customers,

knowledge of performance, control over work processes and quality of one's

work, and opportunity for growth and learning. (This is in sharp contrast to the

approach of Frederick Taylor, whose concepts of specialisation, simple tasks and

highly-engineered works, reduced human resources to mere extensions of the

technology.)

One of the main features of the socio-technical systems approach is the

establishment of a small group from within the organisation, to fill an expert role

as the design team. Some of the pitfalls With this are that internal design teams

are small and function as experts, and they often cause as much resistance as

any outside experts typically generate; design teams normally learn an expert

driven method only at superficial level; and a small select or elite internal team

Will not eaSily generate ownership of the 'project' by other stakeholders. Thus,

It is essential to integrate the Involvement and participation of stakeholders in

the socio-technlcal systems approach; and some of the techniques or

methods for participation include:

131

1) Future Search Conference Methodology (Weisbord. 1987. 1992; Simmons

and Radcliffe. 1996) IS a form of multi-day conference (or large meeting

format) which provides a forum to move from a 'present' to a 'future' focus.

This conference is an event for getting stakeholders (50 to more than 100

participants) from all parts of the organisation and also. from outside. who

are interested in its future success. They will work together with a focus on

developing a plan for future success of the organisation or project. This

approach is deSigned to clanfy the problems/issues and to develop

common ground upon which to act. At the end of the conference there

may still be many differences. but there will also be much agreement which

Will pave the way forward. The main activities are small group discussions so

that everyone's voice is heard and participants develop databases

founded on the individual expenences and expertise. Specific outcomes

are not described in advance but by focussing on a general theme.

question or topic. the search for common ground is carried out through

these steps:

I First. participants review and examine their past 10 or 20 or so years. from a

personal. organisational and environmental perspective.

11 Second. participants focus on the present with a closer look at the external trends

or significant forces facing the organisation. They Will also examine the present

from a personal perspective.

lil Third. participants In the small groups visualise new futures for the organisallon

based on the past and present Information that has been generated and then.

develop action plans to bring about planned changes.

ThiS technique was pioneered by Emery and Trist in 1960. has been applied

In many different ways since and popularised by Marvin Weisbord in his

books ProductIVe Workp/aces (1987) and Discovering Common Ground

(1992). This technique Involves a large group of people in planning their

future rather than using a few managers. conSUltants or even small-group

deSign team and Will 'buy-in' commitment and ownership from the

stakeholders. This was the principal technique used to set the visionary

132

scene In the Austrahan national review on engineering education in the

context of society's needs in the year 2010 (Simmons and Radchffe, 1996).

2) Participative/Participatory Design method (Kyng and Greenbaum, 1991)

IS a process for moving from a bureaucratic structure to a self-managing,

democratic structure of organisations (self-managed groups). In this

technique stakeholders make their own choices in restructuring their own

workplace and no designs are ever imposed; responsibility for coordinating

and controlling work moves from supervisors/managers to the people who

ore actually doing the work; and there IS no transition period as

Implementaflon is Immediate (following redesign). The stakeholders are

provided with knowledge, skills and experience to respond and redesign

their work systems to meet future changing workplace and also

marketplace. The particlpative/participatory design process involves:

i. Upfront commitments and planning as a lot of time is spent on the front end

before any workshops (learning and design processes) are done. This includes

prework With senior management (commitments, partiCipation and supports)

and clarifying the challenges which confront the organisation (e.g. changing

customer requirements. compefltive threats, sustaining or increaSing marlcet share

and recreating product interests in mature markets).

Ii. Particlpatlve/Porflclpatory design workshop where people leam how to use new

tools to analyse their current work structure/system and then redeSign It. The

workshop consists of the following phases where firstly, participants analyse how

their Job IS now done and then assess how far thiS falls short of meeltng the

targeted (future) requirements; secondly, they redesign for better way of doing

the work; and thirdly. they work out how the new design could be Implemented.

Self-managed groups ore the building block of partlcipatlve/partlcipatory

design method While one of its great strengths is that It IS inherently simple

and built around group task-oriented discussions. When the stakeholders

understand the design pnnciples (through the workshop), they can make

systems changes while avoiding inconsistencies and incompatible practices

in their redesign process.

133

3) Joint Application Design (JAD) method is made up of a series of

workshops that take end users (customers) and other stakeholders through a

development process (e.g. systems development) which documents

requirements parameters and specifications for the design. This method is

being used in many applications and system development efforts (including

work systems) to develop and maintain users/stakeholders involvement in

the development process. The success of JAD is greatly influenced by how

well the facilltator prepares for the JAD and the ability of the facilitator to

react to the dynamics of the JAD sessions. The facllitator who will lead the

JAD sessions requires knowledge and skills in planning. conducting and

documenting a JAD session. techniques for promoting creativity. group

decIsion procedures and facilitation skills. Some of the benefits of JAD

include accelerated design. an accelerated construction/implementation

phase. achievement of user ownership. improved system quality. the

alignment of projects with corporate goals. the' establishment of realistic

project objedlves. a shortened development life-cycle and working systems

delivered on time and Within budget. Some examples of the types of JAD

sessions include Joint Requirements Planning (JRP). Business Systems Planning

(BSP). Information System Planning (ISP). System Modelling. JAD for Software

Package (FDP) and JAD for Expert System (JAKE). (Wpod and Silver (1989);

Schwarz (ApnI1994)).

4) ETHICS methodology (Mumford. 1983. Checkland and Scholes. 1990 and

Eason. 1997) was developed by Mumford. The method is humanistic­

oriented and treats the system deSign process as consisting of sodal and

technical phenomena. Stakeholders or users take responsibility for the

identification and development of a future sodo-technical system which

involves a multi-stage process:

I . Stake holders analyse their current social systems and technical systems.

2 Stakeholders explore alternalive social systems and technical systems.

134

3. Input from steps {iJ and (ilJ are used to identify a compatible and

integrated sodo-technical system which can meet the stakeholders'

future needs

d) ORDIT methodology (Olphert and Harker, 1994; Easan, 1996; Eason,

Harker and Olphert, 1996; Eason, Harker and Olphert, 1997 and Harker and

Eason, 1999) IS a set of methods for gathering organisational requirements by

modelling future socio-technical systems and exploring the implications of the

different possibilities. The main aim of ORDIT is to help people in the socio­

technical systems to generate their requirements so that they can participate

and operate effectively in the design and implementation of the future

systems. The methodology adopts the following principles; a socio-technical

systems approach; a user-centred approach (or stakeholders partiCipation);

an iterative approach to the generation of requirements; providing choices

and creating new opportunities; modularity (flexibility in taking accounts of the

different needs and starting points of the users) and enhancement of

communication between 'problem owners' and 'problem solvers'. (The

references above provide many case stUdies of the applications of ORDIT

methodology.)

The methodology includes an enterprise modelling approach which uses

responsibility as a concept to integrate business functions, the work roles (jobs)

of human agents (people In the soclo-technical system) and the technical

tools (including IS) to achieve the organisation's future business goals. The

ORDIT approach stresses the nature of the structural relationships between the

social and technical sUb-systems and places emphasis on the work roles and

responsibilities of the human agents. This is particularly valuable in describing

what people will be doing in real work process in the future which is being

foreSighted. The ORDIT process involves the following Iterative activities as

presented in Figure 4.1:

135

SCOPING 141,-------tI • I' , MODELLING

,..

REQUIREMENTS , OPTION DEFINITION 14,-----tI ~ GENERATION and

EVALUATION

Figure 4.1: Activities in the ORDIT methodology (Adapted from the ORDIT Process Manual. 1993)

e) Questionnaire survey method (on its own) and Interview survey method

(on its own) have been used by planners and futurists as opinion and

information/data capturing techniques (Robson. 1993). They can capture

quantitative and qualitative information and data. They are essential

components (e.g. structured questioning) of more systematic methods such as

the formal long-range planning technique. the Delphi technique and

Scenario-based Design method. They can also be variants of the more

systematic methods. When used on their own. there will be difficulties in

determining the common basis of the information/data/opinion obtained from

the responses.

In addition. the general perspective discussions In Chapter 2 showed a variety

of other methods that have been used by the future writers. thinkers and

commentators in developing models about the pOSSible future including case

studies; observations. scanning and analysis of events. environment and

experiences. expert opinions and views of experiences at highest levels of

businesses and government. studies of societies; observing carefully events in

well-known countries. states and organisations; dialogues and interviews With

key government. business. academic and community leaders in individual

136

countries; extensive first-hand observations; and content analysis of regional or

countries' leading newspapers and periodicals.

A major distinction to be made in the methods for futures planning is

between those methods which seeks to get consensus prediction of the future

(e.g. Delphi) and those which seek to encourage stakeholder debate about

alternative futures and to select desirable futures (e.g. the participatlve

methods). This research Will adopt the view that there are alternatives to be

debated by informed stakeholders e.g. engineers. engineer managers.

engineer lecturers etc.

A common feature of this approach to planning the future is that methods of

depicting future options have to be employed. A popular approach has been

scenano-based design which has been used in the methods descnbed above

but is also a separate approach. It is descnbed below.

4.3 METHODOLOGY USED IN THE RESEARCH

The one point being stressed in Chapters 2 and 3 is that change is continuing

and accelerating. This is also true in the world of work involving the engineers

as the cycle of technology development and implementation is enabling

changes of work process. Therefore. it is important this research employs a

method that provides.

• a cheap way of developing. representing and evaluating visions of the

future;

• a way to generate a number of alternative viSions of the future which take

account of different options available;

• representations which are loosely-structured but are sufficiently realistiC to

give stakeholders the opportunity to evaluate the implications of each

situation with confidence and can be used as the means of surfacing and

Integrating the concerns and requirements of the stakeholders;

137

• representations which can be used early in the development process and

at the beginning of any improvement process;

• means to represent technological developments which are not yet

available;

• representation in a form of a broader vision (not just a technical prototype).

encompassing not only the future technical system but also the network of

human resources roles that uses the technical tools (methods or concepts or

techniques or technologies) within a business or work process.

In order to fulflll the needs above. this research adopts the concept of futures

research which involves the 'systematic generation of alternative paths to the

future'. Thus, the cornerstone of the study IS the development of alternative

future scenarios which will specify the roles, responsibilities. activities and

relationships of the particular stakeholder that is the engineer, in a changing

'socio-technical system' enabled (or driven) by information technology (IT).

So, It is essential that the method used supports the construction of possible

social and technical solutions through the process of generating candidates of

'soclo-technlcal future' scenarios. Then, these 'scenarios' are to be

'experienced' (engagement of people in scrutinising the scenarios

(demonstrating mode). role play exercises (active mode). etc.), explored, and

evaluated by the stakeholders. Therefore. the most suitable method is the

scenario-based design (espeCially due to cost constraint) and will

subsequently, be employed In this research.

The scenario-based design in this research will use the knowledge. skills.

experiences and insights of the engineers (phase 1) and lecturers (phase 2) to

surface the concerns and implications of each future scenario. The hope is to

develop a rounded picture of the likely human resources and organisational

implications as different engineers and lecturers will adopt different attitudes to

the strengths and weaknesses of each scenario as It affects their own interests.

138

Scenario-based design method (Eason. 1997; Harker and Eason. 1999) is a

process by which to achieve a fuller understanding of the key elements of

change that are shaping the long term future and which should be taken into

account In planning. decision making. strategy formulation and policy

formulation. The important charactenstlc of the method is that It does not

predict a specific future. Rather. it acknowledges the existence of a range of

possible futures and seeks to depict the major alternatives in order to get

people's reactions to them. It is a 'systematic generation of alternative paths

to the future' type of futures research methodology. This will help to furnish

better Information toward shaping the future and choosing between

alternatives. In addition. the method Will provide a valuable opportUnity for

stakeholders. in this case the engineers and lecturers. to think seriously about

significant soclo-technlcal trends. and relationships between these trends. and

their requirements.

4.3.1 Introduction of the Big Picture of Scenario-Based Design Method

This approach is part of a general movement towards proViding another

means of achieving future planning including human-centred planning and

design in organisational development (Eason. 1997). This approach involves

methods such as 'Scenario Planning/Study'. 'Foresight Planning' and

'Scenario-Based Design'. Caroll (1995) shows that most of the prominent

examples of this approach are in the design and development of computer

systems and It is increasingly popular in human-computer interactions (HCI)

design. Usually. the 'scenario' IS a technical prototype and the evaluation IS an

assessment of usability or individual task performance (see Caroll. 1995). Thus.

scenanos are accepted as an effective way to capture, analyse and

communicate stakeholders' (users') requirements.

Further. Neale and Kles (1995) mention that there are claims that scenario­

based design has the ability to play a role throughout the development cycle;

feasibility study. requirements generation and specification. design.

construction/implementation. maintenance/evaluation. etc .. In their work. With

139

system designers, Neale and Kies conclude that while the approach excelled

in developing initial sets of requirements, but as the system development

matures, scenano-based design method will not replace completely the more

traditional system-based functional technique.

There are three (3) categones or levels of applications of the 'Scenario-Based

Design or Writing Technique' approach:

As a forecasting methods at visionary or foresight level high level (e.g.

'Scenano Planning' for long-term strategy in Royal Dutch/Shell Company

(Kolb, 1984; Schwartz, 1991; Geus, 1997)

2. Intermediate level - this research tries to show its contribution at this level

of applications.

3. Detailed level - main applications as technical prototypes are in

technical areas especially computer technology, software

projects/systems (Caroll, 1995; Leite et aI., 2000; Zhu & Jin, 2000).

The 'future scenario' in this approach is defined as a description of a possible

or desirable situation in the future, as well as the description of the events,

activities and driving forces (drivers or enablers) that can lead to that future.

The approach acknowledges a range of possible futures. The central idea is

that there is no such thing as a predictable or predetermined future. It is

therefore necessary to consider the possibility of several alternative

development options in SCience, technology and society. Thus, the 'scenario'

developed does not rely on the definition of a desirable future as a starting

point. It can propose a variety of futures, some of which may not be preferred

options The approach provides qualitative and contextual depiction of

alternative, plaUSible or perceivable futures. The use of multiple 'scenarios'

prOVides a range of probabilities and helps to avoid the many difficulties of

attempting to forecast the future.

The purpose of 'scenarios' are to sensitise the organisation and stakeholders

so that they Will recognise signals of possible changes in the world of work. This

140

-':"11 \ -

will enable quick and appropriate responses especially in identifying

requirements. Also. 'scenanos' provide a means to assess the value of

alternatives from 'stake holder' perspectives. to select the most desirable

alternative and then consider the planning of change necessary to achieve

the desirable future.

Other developments provide testimonies that scenario-based design method

IS being applied in other areas such as human resources planning. and

education and training planning. Jan Drucker (1996) interestingly points out

that In the human resources field. 'scenario' studies have been considered as

a less precise but a more flexible variant of human resources planning. Chin

and Rosson (1998) show in detail how a scenario-based design method was

used systematically in designing a 'Collaborative Science Learning

EnVIronment' .

The Fast Company study on the future called 'FC-Roper Starch Survey on the

Future' (Fast Company Magazine. September. 1999) used 'scenario-based

design' to present future events in order to elicit feedback or opinions from

respondents. These 'scenarios' were in the form of simple short stories

subsequently followed by questions related to the projected ideas/concepts

such as:

"Scenano: The new century IS 011 about globallsatlon. Increasingly. what happens In Singapore or Belgium. or Honduras. will affect us in Amenca economically. politically and socially;

Question (15): How accurately do you think this 'scenano' describes the future in the United States? Do you think this 'scenario' IS - Very accurate; Somewhat accurate; Somewhat Inaccurate; Very inaccurate".

Jones et. al. (1999) describe the use of scenario-based design in training

needs analysIs (TNA) of a group of human resources. library staff. In this study.

each member of a group being studied was asked to write a 'scenario' based

on their library work processes and experiences. outlining the Information and

commUnication technologies (ICT) and related skills library staff would require

to perform a par!icular task Eight 'scenarios' were produced at a range of

141

levels that provided valuable materials with potential to be developed as

awareness and training tools (new applications of the method). Analysis of the

eight 'scenarios' in 'Appendix IX' of the reference, shows that all the

'scenarios' were written in the form of simple short stories which would require

no speCialised skills In writing or presentation. The report emphasises that these

'scenarios' offer one way to bring the use of ICT skills in libraries into reality

based on services available now rather than waiting for future context to be in

place. This use is similar to the employment of scenario-based design in this

research and is one of the advantages of this method.

142

4.4 THE RESEARCH METHODOLOGY IN OPERATION

4.4.1 The Structure of the Methodology

The overall structure of the methodology in operation used in this research

methodology includes the following functional components:

Table 4. I: Functional Components of the Research Methodology

1) Phase 1

No. Function Component

a Requirements I. Case Study Method Engineering Ii. One-day Seminar/Conference of Experts and

Practitioners Method IH. Scenanos-Based Desiqn Method

b Data Capture i. For Case Study, on-site semi-structured Interview survey H. For Seminar/Conference focus discussions Hi. For Scenario-Based Design, structured questioning uSing

postal Queshonnaire survey. c. Data AnalysIs i. For Case Study, analysing the contents of the responses

from interview H. For Seminar/Conference, analysing the contents of

focus discussions lil. For Scenario-Based Design, uSing the Statistical Package

for Social Sciences (SPSS) for questionnaire data and also, analysing the contents of responses for open-ended questions

2) Phase 2

a. Feasibility of I Case Study Method Intervention or Ii. One-day Seminar/Conference of Experts and Mitigation Prachtioners Method Measures ill. Scenanos-Based Design Method

b Data Capture I. For Case Study, on-site semi-structured Interview survey and documents study

11. For Seminar/Conference, focus discussions lIi. For Scenano-Based Design, semi-structured questioning

usina semi-structured interview survey. c. Data AnalysIs i. For Case Study, analysing the contents of the responses

from interview and documents 11. For Seminar/Conference, analysing the contents of

focus discussions Ill. For Scenario-Based Design, analysing the contents of

the responses from semi-structured interview. d. Future Plan Conceptual Framework to Plan for Improvement Process

and Mapping with Mapping process.

143

The research will be divided into two phases (as shown in Table 4.1). Phase 1

will investigate the change scenarios and determine the implications for the

engineers (requirements) while phase 2 will investigate intervention measures

for englneenng education. Specifically. phase 1 will present change scenarios

related to business or work process changes affecting engineers which are to

be 'experienced'. explored and evaluated by the stakeholders. Then. the

stakeholders will determine the impacts and identify their requirements in the

scenarios.

The phase 2 will carry forward the findings from phase 1 by trying to explore

the approaches or processes to mitigate solutions. Change scenarios in

englneenng education processes will be presented to higher institutions

educators to be explored and evaluated so as to solicit input for prospective

intervention measures.

The scenario-based design method used in this research has the following

basic features; the development/construction/creation of realistic and

concrete future socio-technical systems scenarios; engagement of

stakeholders to review implications and extract requirements through

structured and/or semi-structured questioning (questionnaire and/or interview);

data analysis and future planning activity framework.

The alms of systematically applYing the scenario-based design method in

thiS research include:-

• To use the knowledge and inslghts of a particular stakeholder that is the

engineers in phase 1 and educators in phase 2. to predict the implications

of each scenario on his/her roles. responsibilities. activities and relationships.

• The scenarios provide opportunities for the engineers and educators to

evaluate future developments from their own perspectives and thereby to

articulate his/her requirements from the future work systems/environments.

144

• Different engineers and educators will adopt different attitudes to the

strengths and weaknesses of each scenario as It affect their own interests.

This facilitates. at the macro level. the development of a rounded picture of

the likely human and organisational implications while at the micro level. it

permits the development of a profile of likely knowledge and skills

requirements

4.4.2 Samples

Samples of respondents for both phases of the research will be from two

countnes. Malaysia and the United Kingdom (UK).

In phase 1. the respondents are made up of civil engineers from the

construction industry (Including related organisations such as training or

education institution. etc.) and engineers from the manufacturing Industry

(including related organisations such as training or education institution. etc.).

The total number of questionnaires sent was about 150 for each engineering

diSCipline In Malaysia and UK respectively. The aim was sufficient responses to

make comparisons such as whether changes in engineers' knowledge and

skills are same or different In different countries and engineering disciplines.

Phase 2 Involves the engineenng educators from Civil Engineering

Departments and Manufacturing Englneenng Departments (5 people from

each diSCipline) of higher institutions In both countnes. In addition. educators

contnbutlng to engineenng education programmes were sought (5 people

from Malaysia and UK). This will facilitate useful comparisons between

Malaysia and UK.

In both phases. purposlve sampling approach (where sampling is done With

a purpose In mind or where respondents are deliberately selected based on a

set of cntena) (Patton. 1990) was used because the researcher's primary

interest was getting broad spectrum of Ideas or data. not Identifying the

145

--- -------- ---- -

"average" ones. The researcher wanted to include all opinions or views.

Although, frequencies and percentages were used to interpret the responses,

the researcher was not particularly concerned about representing these views

proportionately.

In effect. what this research would like to sample were not people, but ideas

or opinions or views. Thus, imagine that there was a universe of all possible

Ideas or opinions or views relevant to the research's topic and we wanted to

sample thiS popUlation, not the population of people who have the ideas or

opinions or views.

The respondents were not randomly chosen, but the scenario-based design

method with purposive sampling is well suited to the study of

needs/requirements, perceptions and expectatiOns, as it overcomes the

limitations of pre-determlned or pre-concelved ideas. While the results are not

statistically representative (that is, they mayor may not reflect the attitudes of

all engineers and educators) they provide useful information for planning and

evaluation. Also, the data are able to provide a 'macro-picture' of the

changes in work processes under study and can thus help synthesise the

researcher's observations.

146

4.4.3 Research Model

a} Manufacturing Engineering

FUTURE SCENARIOS MANUFACTURING

INDUSTRY

rganlsallon

KNOWLEDGE

c::=='~ AND SKILLS ./ REQUIRED BY

FUTURE

C=~ SCENARIOS IN MANUFACTURING ENGINEERING Implications ENGINEERS I pllcallons

Processes

b} Civil Engineering

feChnOlogyl Frganlsallon I

FUTURE SCENARIOS IN CONSTRUCTION

INDUSTRY

Customer

KNOWLEDGE

C==~' AND SKillS REQUIRED BY

Impllcalio';; ENGINEERS

EDUCATION

FUTURE SCENARIOS IN CIVIL ENGINEERING EDUCATION

1~4 ----FPhase I ---------I.~14---I'iPhase 2

FIGURE 4 2· RESEARCH MODEL (In Malaysia and the United Kingdom)

147

The following sections will discuss in detail the undertaking of each of the

phases during this research. The Research Model, Figure 4.2 in Section 4.4.3

gives a representation of the processes and phases involved in this research.

4.4.4 Inventing the Future Work Systems

The particular method of the 'Scenario Writing Technique' used in this research

IS 'Scenario-Based Design' which is not simply concerned with prediction but is

a mixture of scientific efforts and creative thinking. In this method, the

'scenario' is a broad VISion, encompassing not only the future technical system

but also the social system that IS the network of human roles that uses it within a

bUSiness or work process, thus a 'socio-technical system'. The idea of providing

multiple forecasts has become the mainstay of the 'scenano-based design'

method. Thus, the view adopted here is that where many things are possible,

we have a chance to shape what actually occurs.

Furthermore, in dealing with problems such as planning for the future, the real

concern IS to get as many perspectives of the nature of the scenarios or

problems as pOSSible. Problems which involve the future cannot be formulated

and solved uSing a single, well-structured approach. Thus, successful strategies

In planning processes Will anticipate a wide range of perceivable futures.

The construction of several 'future scenarios', based on a number of

plaUSible assumptions as deduced through literature search, should make

policy makers, managers, engineers and other professionals aware of the

senSitivity of the field to future developments. Some examples of what can be

done are by showing what might happen if business or work activities go as

usual, or what the future would be If a policy is changed, or an unexpected

event occurs such as the discovery of new technology or the emergence of

new techniques

148

The overall process of requirements modelling and analysis in this research is

guided by two assumptions:-

• Knowledge and skills are the key factors in order to succeed in the times of

change for developing and improving competitiveness nationally and

internationally:

• Important decisions will need to be made about the curricula and teaching

and learning approaches of engineering education or engineering

education practices and systems ~ so that appropriately competent

engineers will be aVOllable to meet the future needs.

The scenario-based design method has been widely used to try to project

future trends but here. the attempt IS to systematically use the method to

determine the possibility. importance and viability of specific events from the

stakeholders' point of view. and then determine their (stakeholders)

requirements. The stakeholders being chosen are the "engineers" from two

different types of industries namely the manufacturing industry and the

construction industry. and the educators.

The 'requirements modelling' component and 'intervention or mitigation

measures modelling' components of the 'scenario-based design' method will

be required in phase 1 and phase 2 of the research. Both of these components

involve 'scenario' development/construction. Two scenarios representing

bUSiness or work process changes affecting the engineers and three scenarios

In engineering education process changes will be developed/constructed for

phase 1 and phase 2 respectively. The systematic applications of the

scenario-based deSign method In thiS research will be deSCribed in Section

45.1 and SectJon 4.5.2.

149

4.4.4.1 Thinking Process In 'Scenarlo' Development In this Research

In the development of the 'scenarios', this research has adopted a thinking

process described by Ohmae (1982). This is based on the understanding that

phenomena and events in the real world do not always fit a linear model.

Hence, a reliable means of solving any difficult or unprecedented problem is a

combination of rational analysis. based on the real nature of things, and

imaginative reintegration of the different items into a new pattern. This requires

an intellectual flexibility that enables realistic responses to changing situations.

Thus. the process of thinking that guides the development of the 'future

scenarios will be as the following:

Problem or Issue

Prototype

Analysis of Essence

Issue Definition Process of Thought Transformation or Changed

Configuration

Figure 4 3' The Thinking Process in Scenario Development (Adopted from Ohmae (1982) - Strategic Thinking)

150

The following simplified concept of future work systems is obtained when the

above thinking process is applied to this research (see Figure 4.4):

Function Function 'A' 'B'

Functlon 'C'

Functlon '0'

Traditional Work Processes System

Simplified Concept of Fufure Work System Pro

Impr

--.:::::::~----=>

J Teamwork I Improvement

·1?Ual~ I Focus Ilearnlng

Concurrent Globahsatlon -Iengmeenng

Customer Focus

l:ntertOllnectM1'( and Networks

Etc IJ

Rgure 4.4: Simplified Concept of Future Work System

I

A clear understanding of the prominent items or trends in the business or work

process change phenomena IS essential. Then human brainpower and

intellectual effort can be utilised to restructure the items or trends in the most

advantageous way. This differs from the step-by-step thinking process in

methodologies such as the conventional mechanical systems design

approach The prominent aspect of thiS thinking process is its fleXibility which is

Important In dealing With 'times of change'.

4.5 PHASE 1 OF THE RESEARCH

4.5.1 Preliminary Investigations:

a) On-Site Semi-Structured Interview Survey for Case Study of a Manufacturing Organisation

A prominent manufacturing company in the North of England provided an

opportunity for preliminary discussions on the work processes change

151

happening and expected to continue In the industry. The interview was

conducted at the organisation's site for two hours and involved the Head of

Design, a Senior Avionic Engineer and a Senior Design Engineer.

The objectives of the interview were to discuss the organisation's experiences

and views on the work process changes including the general strategy of

Implementation, examples of the changes and the implications.

The interview was conducted in a semi-structured manner with some

prominent themes or issues being prompted by the researcher to guide the

flow of the diSCUSSion. As suggested by the host, the interview session was

divided into two parts, the first part was a meeting with personnel directly

Involved In one important work process change in the organisation called the

'Integrated Product Development Team'. The second part was allocated to

further discussions of the Ideas, principles and other related issues to the work

process changes in the organisation and in the industry generally.

The discussions were geared toward a general perspective of work process

changes happening and envisaged to happen in the future. However the

findings from the Interview session do provide the 'triangulation check' for the

main questionnaire survey method in phase 1. Also, related documents were

obtained which can be used as secondary data for triangulation with the

Interview survey with the educators In phase 2 on this research.

b) One-day Conference Focus Discussions

The researcher attended a one-day conference related on the changes in

engineering professions and engineering education due to the

unprecedented changes that are happening. The conference IIIled 'Dearing

Reports and Standard And Routes To Registration 1997 ISATOR 1997): The Facts

and The Implications' and was held on the 15th October, 1997 in

Loughborough, England

152

The conference modus operandi was mainly interactive discussions between

participants and panel of experts, and also between the participants, on the

facts and implications of Dearing Report and SARTOR 1997 for their respective

organisations. The participants were from organisations such as engineering

employers, university engineering faculties, Further Education Institutions and

the Professional Institutions.

The Information compiled from the conference enhanced and

complemented the preparations for 'scenario' developments and the

questionnaire survey method In the phase 1 and the semi-structured Interview

survey In the phase 2 of the research. Also, they will provide supporting data

for triangulation check for findings from both phases of the research.

4.5.2 Scenario-Based Design Method with Structured Questioning

4.5.2.1 Preparation of Requirements Modelling and Analysis

Preliminary investigations were needed In order to develop sUitable 'scenarios'

(models) of the work process change for this research. The preliminary work

consisted of literature review, an interview survey of manufacturing

organisation and discussion at a seminar. These are discussed below:

(i) Representing Prominent Developments of Work Process Change In "Times of Change" as Scenarios - Input from Literature Review

The literature review in Chapter 2 and 3 concluded there is a broad consensus

on the Important scenarios of the business or work process change that affect

engineers in manufacturing and civil engineers in construction. In broad terms

these scenarios are called 'Scenario 1 - Processes Improvement' and 'Scenario

2 - Globallsation'. They will become more and more prominent leading into

the 21 si century and also In the 21 s1 century itself. The ongoing improvements in

work process and the globalisation situation will be the key success factors for

productivity and growth of any manufactUring and construction organisation.

153

The other vital conclusion from the literature search was the need to focus on

the whole range of work processes. that is from conception to completion

(conceptual development. design. manufacturing & construction and

commissioning (sales. marketing. delivery. services)) of any project (producing

a product or constructing a building) and not just concentrating on a

particular process. Also. both the social component (organisational.

stakeholders (human resources. customers. suppliers. etc.)) and technical

component (technology. techniques etc.) are essential to any project in

manufacturing or construction. So the scenarios to be developed must adopt

the system approach and thus. pOSSible scenanos representing actiVities of

'processes improvement' and 'globalisation' will be represented as 'Socia­

Technical Systems' .

The Simplest form of representation of scenario-based design method used in

thiS research is 'text descriptions/stories' or 'word pictures'. The scenarios are

represented as descriptions of the changes in business or work process

following a Simple format (refer to Appendices 1 and 2 for the actual

scenarios). The scenarios-based design covers the 'why'. "how' and what' of

the work processes and environment in which the engineers will work and

develop their career:

WHY? - Describing the causes of the changes in business or work process.

HOW? - Describing the drivers or enablers of the changes in business or work

process.

WHAT? - Describing the actiVities of the changes in business or work process.

The scenarios try to manifest the activities that will happen in certain work

system in the future. The textual stones or 'word pictures' representation IS

considered in this research as the simplest and cheapest method. and is used

In both phases of the research. Textual stories from scenario-based design

provide virtual metaphors of the real world to help respondents (engineers and

154

educators) interact with workplace enVIronment and organisations. Within

these scenarios. they are invited to step back and imagine looking into the

future work systems. Individual engineers and educators. therefore come to be

analysed as sUb-components of a wider system.

(11) structured Questioning - Postal Questionnaire Survey

The systematic use of the 'scenarios' developed in phase I is by structured

questioning using postal questionnaire survey:

1. Through desk study and literature search. the trends and possible futures are

grouped Into two 'scenarios' which try to show the roles. responsibilities.

actlvllies and relationships of the engineers in the future construction system

or manufacturing system. This is not an attempt to make specific predictions

or to cover all the possibilities. The research has tried to depict the major

alternatives in order to get people's reactions to them.

2. Then. the 'scenarios' are presented to the civil engineers in construction

industry and the engineers in manufactUring industry in order to get their

reactions in terms of - the likelihood. importance and desirability of the

vanous pOSSibilities; and also the requirements of the respective engineers to

carry-out their roles and fulfJII their responsibilities successfully in the

'scenarios'. The method used to obtain these responses is through

"Questionnaire Survey" method of research.

3 The Questionnaire is designed systematically to obtain the required

responses. The questionnaire is divided In three parts:

Section A asks for the background Information of the respondents and

their organisalions in order to understand the perspective from which

they are coming.

Section B asks for an estimate of the events in the scenarios that are

most likely to become common and their importance and desirability.

155

Section C focusses on the implications of the scenarios for the

englneenng professional. Respondents are asked to give their expert

opinion after 'experiencing', exploring and evaluating the scenarios, on

the implications of the scenarios for the roles. responsibilities. activities

and relationship; and the knowledge and skills requirements of the

engineers in the future. 'Experiencing' here means the engineers

putting the scenarios into the perspectives of their own work and

workplace experiences.

Prior to the determination of the reqUIrements. the level of significance

of the so called 'key elements of change' In business or work process on

the roles and responsibilities of the engineers. are investigated. Although

the literature showed that many elements of change will impact the

work processes. these 'key elements of change' are important for any

planning efforts because any resulting plans 'are not for total war on all

fronts but for a limited war on the fronts defined by the 'key elements of

change" In other words. It is thiS focus on 'key elements of change'

that gives the major direction or orientation to the planning of

education programmes for the engineers. The 'key elements of

change' to be emphasised in this research are as follow and their are

derived from the relevant diSCUSSions In Chapter 2 and 3. (See Appendix

1. Question 4)

The structure of Section C of the Questionnaire which is related to

requirements determination consists of.-

The 'functional Images' of the engineers in the future

These are examined in order to formulate a philosophical basis for any

human resources planning strategy and engineering education. The

research Will concentrate on the 'functional images' of engineers

Identified in Sections 3.1 and 3.2 of Chapter 3. (See Appendix 1.

Question 1)

156

The responsibilities of the different types of engineering professionals

The future responsibilities of Chartered Engineers (CEng.) and

Incorporated Engineers (IEng.) are examined. The discussions in Sections

3 1 and 3.2 show that there IS variety in the responsibilities of engineers

which depends on the roles or Jobs as well as the organisation and work

environment. Thus, the responsibilities being used in this study are

adopted from the responsibilities of two types of professional engineers,

the Chartered Engineers (CEng) and the Incorporated Engineers (IEng),

specified by the Engineering Council of United Kingdom. The

responsibilities considered for Chartered Engineers and Incorporated

Engineers are in Appendix 1. Questions 2 and 3.

Required Attributes

Chapters 2 and 3 provide the basis for the attributes used. The essential

attributes of the engineers in order to carry-out the roles and

responsibilities in the future to be investigated are presented in

Appendix 1, Question 5.

The Knowledge and Skills

The knowledge and skills that are required in order to provide the

essential attributes are Identified based on the discussions in Chapters 2

and 3. These knowledge and skills are divided into groups, the

'Technical Knowledge and Skills' and 'Non-Technical Knowledge and

Skills'. (See Appendix 1. Question 6)

New Roles

New roles or jobs in the engineering professions unfolding In the future

work scenarios are solicited here through an open-ended question.

(Appendix 1, Question 7)

157

Educational (Knowledge and Skills) Deliverv

The types of delivery methods of any human resources measures and

engineering education that are viable for the engineers in the future are

to be investigated. Four (4) methods of delivery are focussed here

based on the discussions in Chapters 2 and 3. (See Appendix 1, Question

8)

Respondents are given opportunities to contribute any additional

information, point of views and/or any additional elements to the lists provided.

The structure of the questionnaire is such that the questions are put in context

through a process that is sometimes known as 'funnelling', that is, drilling down

from relatively wide-ranging questions to issues of specific details. To take a

simple example, the survey begins with general questions which will indicate

the level of acceptance of the scenarios (desirability, importance, tming). The

next questions In Section C, lead to prioritlsing of the foundation aspects of the

engineering professions, specifically, the 'functional images', the 'roles and

responsibilities' in relation to the 'key elements of change' which will also be

priorltised.

Once the context has been established, the survey funnels down into

determination of the requirements of the engineers specifically the 'attributes',

knowledge and skills and changing roles; and also their methods of delivery.

Subsequent analysis of the responses Will prioritise the requirements and

methods of delivery. This will indicate priority areas to be concentrated on in

the planning process With the various constraints encountered (budget,

human resources. physical. time). In this way the survey can be used

effectively to plan intervention or millgation measures which will meet the

perceived requirements of the engineers.

158

4.5.3 Important Characteristics of the Scenario-Based Design Method for this Research

studies that deal with the future are not dealing with the concrete realities of

human existence, but with the hopes, plans and aspirations of human beings.

Different men/women rarely share the same aspirations, so it would seem that

the best way to understand the future is to examine as many different

alternate scenarios as possible. Therefore, reaching consensus for the

scenarios and assessing the validity of scenarios in terms of 'degree of

consensus' are not the criteria of the method to be used. This makes the

scenarios-based design method more sUitable than the Delphi method.

Another relevant aspect of this method IS that presenting 'scenarios' to

stakeholders will help them understand the objectives of the study as well as

forming a common baSIS for formulating their responses to the accompanied

queshonnaires and follow-up interviews. This IS a distinct difference between

the method used in this study and direct ordinary questionnaires or interviews

(without presenting 'scenarios'). The latter would involve much guesswork and

assumption as to the basis of the responses of the stakeholders.

159

4.5.4 Pilot Study

The scenarios and questionnaire were tested in a preliminary pilot study with 10

respondents in two stages as presented in Table 4.2.

Table 4.2: Preliminary/Pilot st::::J:"'::::'~';:":::'::::..:.l~-. ______ ., Res ondents

Serles of Pilot Tests Civil Engineers in Engineers In 1--,-..,...,..,......,.-=-..,..-_____ --1 __ ....!C=onsfrucllon Manufaclurin

1. First PllotTest 2 2 - 5 Specific Scenarios

2. Second Pilot Test - 3 Scenanos:-

2 Generolised Scenarios and 1 Specific Scenario

Findings:

3 3

I. The first Pilot Test showed clearly that five (5) scenarios were too taxing

for the respondents. The respondents pointed out that the number of

scenarios must be reduced by using certain common titles or themes to

present the key points that are to be projected.

2. The first Pilot Test led to further analysis of the scenarios and the

'questionnaire' that was enclosed. Common titles are obtained for the

scenarios namely 'Processes improvement' • 'Responsive

Construction/Manufacturing' and "Globalisation". So for the Second

Pilot Test. three (3) scenarios were presented together with

'questionnaire' which has been re-structured.

3. Findings from the second Pilot Test indicated that three (3) scenarios

were still too taxing but the restructured 'questionnaire' was

manageable.

4. A decision was made to reduce the number of scenarios to two (2). This

did not compromise the objectives of the research because the

'Responsive Construction/Manufacturing' scenario is a speCific part of

160

'Processes Improvement' scenario. Therefore, the Main Survey was

composed of:

• Presentation of two (2) future scenarios namely 'Processes

Improvement' and 'Globalisation' for Construction and Manufacturing

Industries respectively for two countries, Malaysia and UK.

• Data capture by a 'Questionnaire' for each of the scenarios.

4.6 PHASE 2 OF THE RESEARCH

The first phase of the research focussed on 'the input and experiences of

engineers', based on 'future scenarios' developed through scenario-based

design and data capture method of postal questionnaire survey. The second

phase is intended:

• to use the findings from phase 1 of this research to carry-out a feasibility

study of possible intervention or mitigation measures in the forms of 'future

scenarios' for the improvement process of engineering education;

• to plan intervention or mitigation measures for the improvement process in

engineering education system;

• to identify the characteristics of a feasible concept of improvement process

in 'teaching and learning' in the engineering education system;

• to indicate which factors stimulate (drivers or enablers) and those which

inhibit (obstacles) the improvement process;

• to explore the higher education institutional climates/frameworks that

support or inhibit the improvement process in teaching and learning

(Including sub-structures that are intended to affect, or that impinge upon,

institutional or individual efforts to improve teaching and learning process

such as educational development units or their equivalent. staff

development units, teaching and learning committees, and the work of

senior management responsible for teaching and learning);

161

• to explore the projected possible 'future scenarios in teaching and learning'

improvement measures/processes for further understanding in the context

of institutional climates/frameworks.

The activities involved in the second phase of the research include:

• to investigate the feasibility of the proposed socio-technical

system of engineering education

and

a conceptual model of improvement or innovation process

focusing on

• the maturity of experiences

• the drivers (enablers)

• the obstacles

The study will be based on semi-structured interviews of universities' lecturers

involving in engineering education and also documentation. The semi­

structured interviews are audiotaped and transcribed. The interviews are

constructed to explore issues that the literature and on-going observations

suggest are important.

The result will be an analysis of the perceptions of education practitioners on

the projected improvements in engineering education process; how (and how

well) processes for promoting and embedding improvements operate;

perceptions of the value of such measures and of the importance of internal

and external sources of encouragement and support. This is also related to

institutional cultures and structures, thus the need to look at relevant university

mechanisms and procedures at individual, departmental, faculty and

institutional levels.

162

4.6.1 Feasibility study of Possible Intervention or Mitigation Measures/Processes Modellng and Analysis

Prominent developments in engineering educational practices in "times of

change" were represented by three (3) scenarios using scenario-based design

approach called 'IT-mediated learning'. 'integrated curriculum-mediated

learning' and 'partnership-mediated learning'. Input from the literature review

are consolidated into the socio-technical systems design of the three

scenarios. The socio-technical system used and the conceptual model of the

improvement initiatives projected by these scenarios are as shown by Figures

4.5 and 4.6 respectively. These scenarios were presented to engineering

educators from Malaysia and UK as basis for interview survey that followed. The

package of the scenarios and semi-structured interview survey is presented in

Appendix 2. The data obtained are analysed and would be presented in

Chapter 6.

163

SOCIO-TECHNICAL SYSTEM OF ENGINEERING EDUCATION: - HUMAN RESOURCE (Human Potential Development) and

TECHNICAL COMPONENTS (Contents and Methods & Technologies of Delivery, Management Information System, Communication System, etc.)

DELIVERY

Components: Human Potential Development, Contents and Methods and Technologies of Delivery (Conceptual Scenarios)

KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS REOUIRED

a) Technical Knowledge and Skills Profile b) Non-Technical Knowledge and Skills Profile

ATnllBUTESENGllmERREOUIRED

Attributes' Profile

FOUNDATION (PIDLOSOPHICAL)

1. Engineer as specialised problem solver 2. Engineer as competent in sciences and technology 3. Engineer as designer, inventor and producer 4. Engineer as competent in research and development 5. Engineer as technical business managerial leader ... ., ., , I I

. Figure 4.5: Soclo-TechnlcaJ System of Englneenng Education System •

164

CONCEPTUAL MODEL OF IMPROVEMENT OF DELIVERY PROCESS IN ENGINEERING EDUCATION SYSTEM

IT·MEDIA TED LEARNING;

• Hardware .. computer network (access to Internet), dialIne service, conferencing facilities eto.

• Software. WlDdowsbased softwares (providing .. mall, cooperative working, electronics bulletin board, file transfer facilities etc.)

• Resources facilities· digitised lIbrary

• Decision Support Technology· MIS, Accreditation System eto

--/1 HUMAN RESOURCE or POTENTIAL INTEGRA TED-CURRlCULUM DEVELOPMENT: MEDIATED I,EARNING;

IMPROVEMENT

" • Fi"ndadon or INNOVATION

I~ .......... PROCESS • "Core-curriculum" Bulldine • Integrated Components of • Requirements Identdication & Curriculum

Analysis • Lifelong or Continuous (RequirementJ Learning EnClDeering) • Teamworking or Collaboratiol

-jj

fARTNERSHIP.MEDIA TED LEARNING;

• Partnersbip with Industry

• Industry.based Problem Solving

• Partnership Learning Approach, Programmes and Teams

Figure 4.6. Conceptual Model of Improvement ID Delivery Process

165

4.7 SUMMARY

This chapter has presented a rationale for approaching future changes in the

engineering profession by an approach which has the following components:-

1. A scenario design method with structured questionning. The research will

offer informed respondents future scenarios drawn from the literature.

Respondents will be asked to use their own professional experience to assess

the scenarios, e.g. are they likely to occur, and their consequences for

engineers, e.g. skills and expertise they will require etc.

2. The research will be in two phases:

2.1 Phase 1 - Practicing engineers will be asked to assess two broad

scenarios of the future 'Processes Improvement' and 'Globalisation'

which will lead to statements of the future requirements of engineers.

2.2 Phase 2 - Educators in engineering will be asked to assess scenarios

for the future delivery of engineering education to meet the

requirements identified in phase 1.

3. The research will seek the degree of consensus from the broad spectrum of _

ideas in the engineering profession about future demands on engineers by

working with a sample of engineering work with the following diversity:

• two different countries (Malaysia and UK)

• two different engineering disciplines (Manufacturing and Civil)

• two different work process scenarios and three different educational

delivery scenarios.

The degree of consensus and difference that emerges from the sample will

indicate the degree of variety required in educational practice.

The methods for phase 1 (scenarios and questionnaire) have been tested in

a pilot study and amended to create practical data collection instruments.

The main survey in phase 1 is reported in Chapter 5.

166

CHAPTER FIVE

THE IMPLICATIONS OF MAJOR CHANGE ON THE FUTURE WORK OF ENGINEERS (PHASE 1)

5.1 INTRODUCTION

In the review of literature (Chapters 2 and 3). several key issues related to the

major change and the implications for the future work of engineers have been

preliminarily explored. Based on the above information. the research proceeds

further With the aims to:

i. elicit the perception of the civil and manufacturing engineers from

UK and Malaysia on the future change scenarios being chosen;

ii. compile further information on the implications for the future work of

engineers. in forms of the key elements of change; the roles and

responsibilities; the functional images of engineers; the attributes

required; the knowledge and skills required and the methods of

delivery of the knowledge and skills for engineers. from the UK and

Malaysia civil and manufacturing engineers.

The major focus of phase 1 of this research is gathering data and information

specified in the aims above through a 'Scenario-based design' method

together with structured questioning of postal questionnaire survey. The

package of scenarios with questionnaire survey was administered to UK and

Malaysian engineers from the manufacturing and construction industries in

1998. Thus. the main data would be gathered by this method.

In addition. relevant data and information were also obtained through other

methods at the beginning and also at recent events (after the research) which

would be used to triangulate the results. The other methods involved were:

a) A case study through an on-site semi-structured interview survey

administered to three senior engineers from one manufacturing

organisation in UK With the objective of extracting their views on the

167

anticipated changes in work process occurring in the organisation in

future and the requirements of engineers to operate effectively in

such situations. (before the main method)

b) A focus discussion between practising engineers and engineering

educators and a panel of experts on the important issues arising from

two prominent documents Dearing Report (1997) and SARTOR (1997).

and their implications for the future work of engineers in UK. (before

the main method)

c) Researcher participation in a 'Seminar between Institutes of Higher

Education and Industry' in Malaysia on the 6-7 August 2002 in

Malaysia. (after the main method)

d) A focus discussion between the researcher and three consultants

from Germany in Malaysia on the 22 August 2002. (after the main

method)

5.2 RESPONSES DERIVED FROM FINDINGS OF THE PHASE 1 OF THE RESEARCH

The findings of the Scenario-based design method with questionnaire are

presented and discussed below:-

5.2.1 The Scenario-Based Design with Postal Questionnaire Survey

The scenario-based design method presented two different sets of scenarios

projecting possible futures in the engineering workplace and practices (work

processes) namely scenario 1 - 'Processes Improvement' and scenario 2 -

'Globalisation'. to engineers in manufacturing and construction industries in

United Kingdom (UK) and Malaysia (MY). These scenarios are presented in

Plates 5.1 and 5.2. The scenarios were in the forms of textual passages and the

titles have been chosen to be representative and catchy. It was hoped that

these would facilitate the easy engagement of respondents with the scenarios.

A pilot survey had been carried out as described in Chapter 4. which provided

feedback from respondents to further improve the scenario-based design (in

168

terms of the number of suitable scenarios) and the questionnaire (Oppenheim.

1994).

Plate 5.1: ScenarIos Presented to EngIneers In Manufacturing Industry

1) MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY

Scenario 1 •• Processes Improvement"

Whys?

01 The manufacturing Industry. as a result of increasing competition notionally and intemationally. is driving to produce merchandises that are not just compefifively priced. well-designed and well-manufactured. but also in time.

bl The manufacturing industry is governed by customer-focussed market which leads to business success to rely on coming to market faster with new products. increase In quality and lower manufacturing cost. The continuing trend is to produce smaller batch sizes. increase In complexities of products and shorter development lead times. Essentially. producfs are custom made with the extreme case of a product that is manufactured only once.

, , The manufacturing system ~ust cater for the 'fn~rease in product's variety while' ,;

at the same time allowing for steadily decreasing product life-cycle. Also tailoring , the product to the custome~s needs as an element important to qualify . improvement is an essential part of the system. "

cl The customers are on the move too. They expect products and services are , tailored to their particular needs and desires. not off-the-shelf solutions. They do

their homework and know what the competition is doing. Therefore. they are much more apt to shop around for the best deal. Instead of avoiding the customer· speCifiC. unique solutions; the production systems need to respond and have control over all aspects of the uniqueness of a product. The customer's wishes and requirements are the starting point of all the manufacturing activities.

Therefore. the philosophy being used as the foundation here. is'that to thrive In the' future manufacturing industrY is no longer enough just through product qualify and . manufacturing excellence. Success in the future for manufacturing organisations require them to excel across the entire range of their operations related fa product design. engineering. manufacture. marketing. sales. logistics. services and maintenance. human resources management and general management. that is called here as the manufacturing business processes.

, ;

169

Processes improvement enabled by advances in technology, which can come In incremental or/and radicol forms is the trend. The essential characteristics being focussed include fuller utilisation of work time, flexibility of work, flexibility of human resources, teamwork, continuous improvement and innovation, radical improvement (example reengineering), continuous minimisation and elimination of wastes and non-value-added activities, workers' empowerment and performances, and satisfying the customers and responsiveness.

Hows?

Today's manufacturing concepts and techniques (such as Flexible Manufacturing Systems (FMS), Computer-Integrated Manufacturing (CIM). Manufacturing Resources Planning (MRPII). Just-ln-TIme Manufacturing (JITM), Cellular Manufacturing. Concurrent Engineering, Total Quality Management (TQM) etc.), and information technology (IT) (computers, virtual reality (VR), performance support technology, Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), etc.), are, the enabler manufacturing business processes improvement.

The enabling possibilities offered are facilitating manufacturing organisations' transformation from acting as a collection of local operations and suppliers to globally distributed network of closely collaborating companies. -' " , , •

Bridging the gap of connection between manufacturing concepts and techniques, and informalion technology (IT); and the activities at ", real manufacturing organisation in practice is essential in manufacturing business processes improvement.

Whots?

I) One of the pictures unfolding in this scenario is the manufacturing organisation addresses the critical path betWeen product design and production, by using computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) tools together with a variety of computer-aided design (CAD) tools (such as finite element analysis, simulation and rapid prototyping). creating a virtual manufacturing environment. The concept Is based on virtual reality IVR) where manufacturing production processes can be evaluated as if it were working in the real world.

Although product design incurs only a small fracllon of the tolal .' product cost, deCisions made during Ihe design phase determine Q

significant portion of product cost. and can be crucial to the success or failure of the product. As the cost of making essential design changes escalates steeply with time, the ability to make crucial changes during the design phase translates into significant saving over making changes during produclion run. This reduces and

170

finally will eliminate the time-consuming built-test-redesign Iterations. , ,

, ,

Three major environments of the virtual manufacturing that enable processes improvement are:-

a) Design-centred virtual manufacturing environment With results include items such as the product model and cost estimate. ' Therefore. potential problems with the design can be identified and its merit can be estimated.

b) Production-centred virtual manufacturing environment provides environment for generating process plans and production plans. for planning resource requirements (example purchasing new equipment). and for evaluating these plans. This provides more accurate cost ' Information and schedules for product delivery which enables the maintaining of manufacturing proficiency. without actually building products.

c) Control-centred virtual manufacturing environment provides the capability to simulate actual production. thus enabling the engineers to evaluate new or revised product designs with respect to shopfloor:related activities. Information for optimising manufacturing processes and also improving manufacturing systems are also provided here. ,. ..

, , The Engineers with roles whether as design engineer. manufacturing engineer and manufactunng/production manager are able to deSign, analyse and optimise products. manufacturing systems. processes and quality before costly investments are made in capital equipment and production operations. In this environment. the engineers will' ' . address various product life-cycle considerations at the design phase and thus faCilitating more and more downstream activities associated with various manufacturing aspects to be considered at the design phase. As the engineers must seek out all the facts surrounding a situation in order to malee well-informed decision, the virtual manufacturing environment enables the enhancement of deciSion maleing and control.

2) Flexible Computer Integrated Manufacturing (CIM) system is based on close connection between development, design and production line which leads to the integration of design. manufacture and production management. This provides a powerful business process to sell. manufacture and deliver the product.

The picture that is unfolding, at the product development and design phase. an interactive tool called 'a reference model browser ond design tool' is available which allows the engineers to work' , directly with the customers to design unique product's configuration for the customer's needs. Together with its order fulfdlment capability. this tool supports marketing strategy to permit custom design.

171

At a kiosk. customer and product design engineer and manufacturing engineer Sit together to begin the design process. The engineers can construct on screen a graphical representation of the customer's requirements or specifications. From a list of options. the customer can select configurations with which to experiment. The engineers can select those options. place them In the appropriate environment. and then ~Iet the customer see immediately what this configuration of the product would look like. This process will continue until the customer is satisfied and finalises his or her choice. Then order placement automatically proceeds.

The tools can also generates a part list or bill of materials (SOM) list with prices. based upon the choices made on the screen. It will compare that price with ones from the configurations. As the engineers change dimensions and draw units to customer specification. the system automatically adjusts the price. The tool's Interaclive design capability provides 011 the necessary dimensions to place an order as well. The system is able to produce accurate estimate with graphics to illustrate the many combinalions of products available.' >

The engineers are the key personnel in their roles as design , engineer and manufacturing engineer with responsibflities to provide technical specifications on what products to produce and how to produce those products. respectively. In this scenario. the design engineers and manufacturing engineers must perceive the customers as an important source of information. who can contribute to the actual design and production of the product. Together they must work closely with customers. They communicate interactively. putting forward questions at Issues relevant to their roles and tasks. and decisions that need to be made at specific stage of the design and production processes. It is important that customer requirements are articulated and then trcinsformed into engineering characteristics.

Essentially. engineers working on process of product development are ' no longer exclusively confined to the design activity but must understand marketing. production. customer relalions and everything else associated with the process. They must know both the ' businesses they are trying to help and the customers as well as their own disciplines. They need to communicate effectively with other engineers. marketing experts. financial people and others.

The manufacturing phase is supported by a tool which provides the facilities for stonng. manipulating and accessing expert knowledge operating on the existing and past best practices of manufacturing systems design and operation. This tool will assist the manufacturing engineer in producing the specification of how to ' produce the product, Togetherwlth that. the flexible manufacturing system also provides tools which facilitate the operation and control ot manufactunng equipment. pre-production planning and production planning and control.

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The widespread of streamlining of manufacturing process begin under the principle of Just-ln-TIme (JIT) management practices and using the Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) technologies. EDI technologies revolutionise the delivery system of the products and services. EDI technologies allow manufacturing companies and mdustries to link up automatically their business transactions in a way that give both large and small businesses the ability to lower inventory costs and increase customer service. Existing machines being upgraded to process capability. and then move Into cells that make and feed parts forward Just in time for the next machine to use them.

" " Also, Computer Assisted Design (CAD) and Computer Assisted Manufacturing (CAM) are augmenting the manufacturing business processes improvement. Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) systems provide considerable support to individual engineers to improve the quality of their wOrk.

The decreasing lot sizes and Increasing customer Intervention lead to the power of production systems to shift from technical integration to human cooperatIon. Due to the uniqueness and complexity of the products, the production planning, production resources and human resources need to be highly flexible. The one-task!one-employee principle in Adam Smith's doctrine which is based on standardisation and specialisation, is not adequate In this situation. .

Also this Situation requires capabilities that are so complex and ",' fleXible that a Single employee could normally not cope with. This leads to the essential requirement of teamwork. The culture of working responsive and customer-oriented manufacturing Is " partnership, teamworking, shared values and goals. This is clearly shown by the strong voice of manufacturing engineers in development and design phase while the design engineers always visit the production line and folk things over with their counterparts on the shopfloor. This reduces the serious gap between developmenf and production as the design work has input in term of productian perspective.

Further development sees the engineers leading the organisation in upgrading the manufacturing system where the customers (individual or companies) involvement In manufacturing business processes will reach a stage whereby they con input their specification directly into the organisation's (manufacturer's) computers which will in turn control the production line .. The computer will not only design the product the customer wants, but also select the manufacturing process to be used - assign machines, sequence the necessary steps. wnte the necessary programs for numerical control devices (NCD). feed adaptive control that optimise various processes for economic and environmental purposes. Also the machines can continuously reset themselves so that the units of output - each one different

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from the next - stream from the production line in an unbroken flow which lead to machine customisation on a round-the-clock continuous basis, (Toffler, 1980).

In summary, the engineers must cope with an environment of an explosion in the amount of information available which facDltates their decision-making and activilies. They are be expected to act as a leader individually and in a team with empowerment given for example the engineers are assigned to the production line and are given an important say in business operation.

In terms of human resources, the processes improvement In this case is facilitated prominently by using smaller self-goveming units which is assigned certain process. This decentralisation into autonomous units is a prominent and critical feature of the organisation. This has resulted in shift from command-and-control to the intormation-bosed structure that is organisation of knowledge specialists. So engineers must be able to manage Information and knowledge.

" The working environment Is where networking of people from the following functional departments of engineering. manufacturing, finance. sales and mar1<eting. service and human resources; Is the norms. Multi-disciplinary teams are formed to accomplish a specific project and members are jointly responsible for the project from its. Inception until completion., , '

Also. the method of working is that everything proceed In parallel' following the concept of concurrent engineering. All the disciplines (such as engineering. manufacturing. finance. marketing etc.) come on-stream in unison from the beginning. Interacting and contnbuting. They participate together as the product develops. At the planning stage, input and ideas from participants are collected and incorporated in the work processes as when appropriate; and this is made known to the participants. They seek to develop new products in a manner that ensures not only that all aspects of the new product work but they work in as a team.

When undertaking their traditional roles as design engineers and manufactunng engineers under the processes improvement using new concepts and techniques. and IT. the engineers must have the skill to Isolate the crucial factors which are perceived as making the real difference between success and failure. They are also required to identity the core, irreducible elements that constitute the real cutting edge whether they are human factors. continuous development, flexibility and team working. production control elements, interaction between technology and social organisation etc.

These are among the key skills required by engineers to enable them Improving enterprise performance and productivity more effectively. This will also lead to more and more engineers

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requiring to know the principles of best practice in the management of organisations. '

3) Another picture of processes Improvement arises from the massive diffusion of IT throughout the workplaces which leads to the development performance supports technologies. Together with new information systems. the entire workflow for any processes is, ' presented to the employees and also supporting services team will provide support for the completion any of the manufacturing business processes. Therefore. these will provide 011 the necessary supports in order for on employee to complete any process at any lime.

Also. as the many engineering disciplines related to manufacturing. developments are so rapid that it is impossible for a single person to assess the practical implications for production system design and redesign. Furthermore. the forces of change ore altering the fundamental of manufacturing business processes and their underlying knowledge and skills bases. Therefore it is necessary to make knowledge and experience from many sources accessible to other designers or relevant member of the team which requires on information system to embed the knowledge. This " enhances the deCision of the organisation to put in-place performance support technologies enabled by IT. ,

As an example: at a manufactUring company. engineering personnel have to repair certain equipment which is one of the products of the" company. The engineers work With notebook computers. to which they download diagnostic information from testing run of the equipment. Based on this information. the prototype performance system advises " the engineers about the most likely reason for the equipment fauit., ' helps the engineers isolate the problem. locates the necessary parts. and coaches the engineers through the repair. '

In addition to that. during the times when the engineers would previously have been idle. the system can conduct multimedia training sessions. allowing the engineers to practice repairs by actually manipulating graphical representations of various equipments and products manufactured by the company. at the computer workstation. '

Note:

The definition of the process being used here is 0 related and coordinated group ot tasks (unit of work) that together create a result of value to a customer for example product design. product production. customer services etc. '

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Scenario 2 • "Globallsaflon"

Whys? -

Global electronic commerce conceptualises the promise of a borderless global economy. especially trade on the Intemet or Web which is doubling or tnpling every single year and generating hundreds of billions pounds sterling in goods and services. The picture of global economic environment and compelilion see the resurgence and the rise of powerful competitors around the globe.

British Telecommunications Plc. Enviranmental Report 1997 mentions that already 5 per cent of total United Kingdom trade Is done electronicolly and this will continue to rise. The report also gives indication from a recent survey. about 20 per cent of sales between companies will be attributable to Ihe Inlemet by Ihe year 2001.

Hows?

The information lechnologies (IT) have rewritten the rules of Ih~ global economy. IT provides the ability to complete transactions quickly without any paperwork. the convenience of sending and retrieving messages and faxes from almost everywhere and the opportunity 10 create a 'virtual business',

\ , '!_ : '~r)~:,

The unlocking of multimedia technology potential proaucing'the following applications:

a) Wortd-wide manufacturing Webs including Web-based design b) Borderless marketing centres c) Global Research and Development clusters '

The Internet has become the people's communicati~~s sYstem carrying pictures. voice and dala messages cheaply all over the world. Also infomnation flows freely and inexpensively to computers and television sets. which increasingly are becoming a single appliance. Furthermore. Internet has become a Iruly "global" system, allowing people next door or continents away to communicate with ' ease.

Also available are the "groupwork" and "telework" modules. which enable several people in different locations to work on a task simulfaneously or to build upon one another's work by giving input at different times. They Will provide a new and valuable function -linking people together effectively regardless where they happen to ' be and when they can be reached. that is bndglng space and time.

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All the above lead to the establishing of a global multimedia network and the synergistic Impact is the revolutionisation of how the world does business. Also such bridging of space and time will become more important as people increasingly work with distant partners on ever-shrinking planet.

Whats?

The manufacturing trend that unfolds is that the components manufacturing can be done in 'country A', on machines programmed from 'country B', with software written In 'country C' and financing coming from financing centre in 'country D'. Then the product may be assembled in 'country E' and shipped to global customers directly from her internatIonal airport.

A situation that will become common, a design engineer, working In London with a few engineers In a Japanese factory to create an Illustrated technical specification of a new product: The . "groupwork" and "telework" module that serves him/her knows how 10 handle delayed messages, because the time-zone differences make Is very difficult for all participants to work at the same time. The module shows and lime-stamps each person's ediling of the specification's text arid redrawing of diagram and delivers audio sound-bites of the engineer explaining the rationale for his/her changes. it also keeps orderly records of intermediate and discarde~d text, pictures, veribal instructions and diagrams/drawings .. So work advances near1y around the clock without a live . conversation. '. ','

Similarly, the Web-based design tool will pull many engineers with nalTow specialities into the less-structured world of '1ntegrated teams" locally or globally. Both the "groupworl:" and "telework" module and Web-based design tool. require the engineers to be equipped with interpersonal and communication skills . to work effectively in a team. In the team environment. the engineers need to explain their ideas during impromptu working sessions with the entire team looking over their shoulder. The Important thing is, they will do thiS everyday.

In summary. IT also dramaticailly impacts on the shape and design of organisations. Many organisations are changing their organisational structure to flat hierarchies and teamwork decision making. Team working, and sharing data. concepts and ideas through the medium of IT. becomes a powerful way for operations. •

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Plate 5.2: Scenarios Presented to Engineers In Construction IndustrY

Scenario 1 • "Processes Improvemenf'

Whys?

Some of the reasons that necessitate processes improvement in construction industry are:-

a) The consfrucfion industry must make a concerted effort to undertake sUbstantial improvements in productivity (e.g. reduction in project delivery times) and cost performance without compromising standards of quality despite increased uncertainties and complexities that surround today's projects, This is essential to the survival and competitive edge of the organisation related to the industry.

b) In the climate of intense competition, an effective and efficient Information system (EIS) is 0 life-saving importance. Communication and interaction of all parties involved In construction project and project information's transparency are important to the smooth progress of the project.' .

c) Not less important is that one of the criteria for success is to satlsty clients' needs as client orientation is becoming on . , important competitive factor in the construction and building Industry. Rapid and quality delivery of buildings or other construction products tailored to the individual needs of clients Is selling new challenges to the systematic methods applied In deSign. Also the conformity of technical solutions to the requirements that are specified must be managed throughout the construction process by all participants in a complex and rapidly changing environment.

Hows?

The capability of information technology (IT) together wilh engineering knowledge and cost data, to develop a number of tools can aid practically In improving the construction projecf processes. This is by allowing simultaneous consideration of main stages of construction project namely design. costing and construction. Also, complex construction operations are analysed and designed using computer simulation and modelling.

In addition, simultaneous interaction of all parties involved In a construction project is made possible by IT such as video-conferencing, Intemet and concurrent file exchange between sites. founded on effiCient information system (EIS). These enabled the applications of collaborative and distributive design aspecfs of Construchon Project Management.

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Whets?

I) The environment in this construction organisation is "Integrated" in terms of working strategies and enabling technologies. The process improvement involves that all project activities, from the conceptualisation state through to the handover of the facility are integrated and all aspects of design, construction and operation are concurrently planned. The ~ implementation of advanced Information technologies and management where personal computer (PC) based hardware together with industry standard software are integrated through an intelligent object oriented knowledge-based system. In this environment. the project Informalion IS shared and transferred automatically and transparently as and when required by the software/construction packages and also by project participants. The engineers are provided with facilities that automatically generate virtual reality (VR) models, specifications, construction plans, cost estimates, site layout planning - directly from computer assisted design (CAD) drawings, ," These enabled the civil engineers, at "design stage, to appraise the likely consequences of various design options and can achieve a better overall economic solution. '

Furthermore, the company galvanises the civil engineers (design, site and may be project manager), suppliers, contractors and clients to work together in a multi-disciplines working group. The group adopts a cohesive strategy for continuous processes (design & construction) improvement and change, and its strength lies In the multi-disciplinary approach to the issues. The civil engineers will. work in on environment 'of multi-disciplinary working groups from the initial stage of the project till completion.

As the success of the endeavour reqUIres working environment of less-structured 'integrated teams', civil engineers must be "',. ' equipped with interpersonal communication skills to work ' effecl1vely in a team. In the team environment, the engineers need to explain their ideas during impromtu working sessions with the entire team looking over the shoulders. The important thing Is, they will do this virtually everyday.

2) Early capturing of critical client requirements Is the key to success in responsive construction: The availability of interactive Information technology system provides systematic methods and tools for understanding the client's needs, and managing the conformity of the technical solution to the requirements throughout the construcl1on process. The company will work with client to design unique looks and then will construct to order.

At a kiosk, a client. for example building or remodelling a home, , can work with civil engineers and contractors to begin the design process in real time. The engineers can construct on screen a ' graphical representation of the client's speCifications. From a,

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list of options, the chent can select configurations with which to experiment. The engineers can select those options, place them in the appropriate environment, and then let the client see immediately what this configuration of the product would look like. This process Will continue until the client is satisfied and finalises his or her choice. Then order placement automatically proceeds accompanied by Bill of Quantities (BQ).

The civil engineers working for the organisation are also responsible to market the company's range of products to cHent based upon anticipated needs. The information extracted from clients will contribute to the actual technical specifications 01 ' product (design) and construction. So it Is important that client's requirements are articulated and then transtormed into engineering characteristics. Engineers must perceive the clients as an important source of informallon, who can contribute to the actual design and construction of a product.

, ,

3) There is a belief in the company that. in the near future. ", innovative consiNction technologies will be Implemented on most construction sites and those companies that do not Invest in such technologies will be left behind. So the company Is also involved in the development of innovative construction technology where civil engineers are part of teams that work concurrently on different . aspects of the project - developing an automated or robotised construction technique where the building basically builds itself. . This is to cut-down on the overall time needed to tum around a finished product. Commencing after the foundallon Is laid. a model known as superconstruction floor is put into place. consisting of . vats of concrete. steel girders, prefabricated floors and walls. and vanous robotics cranes. welders and concrete sprayers. Once the ground floor is completed, the superconstructlon floor moves upward, climbing its own steel frame as it is constructed into place component-by-component.

4) In its continuing search for competitive and strategic advantages through processes Improvement, the company is participating in research and development with local university involving further advancements in information technology (IT) which have paved ways for very much wider range of applications to become suitable for CAD. First. the development of Object Technology (OT) leads to easier importing and exporting files from other CAD systems and Civil Engineering applications. and also manipulating and viewing data. Object databases allow greater Interoperability. Also the nature of deSign process changes with OT os parts or objects can have relationships with other objects and their surroundings.

Secondly, the technology that enables the use of Information trom virtual world, for example electronic CAD data. in increasing productivity and directing and controlling work in construction

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sites, instead of just during the design stage. This will see the ease at which information of various types can be put onfo a laptop/notebook and taken to the Job sites to be viewed and manipulated electronically. The much wider range of applications suitable for CAD will see an engineer In using CAD technology interactively can carry out sequence of calculations where the computer dOing the mundane arithmetic and design, civil engineer providing the control and making the decisions.

The picture will unfold that sife engineer using a portable computer moves about a site and install objects such as footings. This is done by selecting the footing from the 3-dimensional CAD data file and then watching the measurement wand moves interactively wifhin the CAD display as he/she moves around the sife. When the site engineer is at the correct location, the object can be installed on the drawing and marked in real space simultaneously. This eliminates the drag stakes, botter boards. plumb bobs. levels and other tools usually required to install each object. The key here is that the engineer can select the Information himself/herself , and then go about the business of dOing the work without the help of costly surveyors or data manipulation wizards.

In summary, civil engineers must be able to adapt to changes In the construction industry related to processes improvement enabled by advancement in technologies especially IT, innovative construction ' technologies and new concepts ond philosophies working processes. Also. as the mantra of the future in construction industry is efficiencY in satisfying clients' needs that Is to be responsive -do It faster. do it cheaper. do it now. and therefore time is the true competitive fronller. So civil engineers must be able to adapt in shorter and snorter cycle times.

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Scenario 2 - "Giobalisation"

Whys?

The globalisation of commercial environment resulting in a construction companies undertaking overseas develapment projects In partnership with a local contractor. Therefore civil engineers will increasingly find themselves involve in the intemational arena as they practise their protession. '

Another aspect to be considered. with the advent of this new era ' of globalisation. 11 has become obvious that for any countries (especially developing countries) govemment protection and leadership cannot withstand the large competitive forces at work in the world. New rules of competition are emerging and quickly replacing the old ones.

Hows?

This scenario is driven by implementation of market mechanism and free compehtion and the Geneva Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GAIT) together with the development of telecommunication. the pervasiveness of information technology (IT) and the massive improvement in international logistic. especially transportation.

" '

Whats?

The project is constructing infrastructure facility which involves' crossing an international border. The proJectcould not be undertaken on the basis of technical and cost factors alone. The success of the project depends on the effective considerations of the interests of vanous groups. This means from the civil enginee~s point of view. building a single edifice that is partly in one country and partly in another. Moving around the construction site means crossing an international boundary'· perhaps', many times per day.

The civil engineer IS finding this major project supervision very challenging and demanding. Certainly. the work is quite different from the design office tasks he/she was performing before this assignment. The engineer and his/her local counterparts are " spending more time dealing with people issues. project deadfines and budgets than with technical matters. They have to deal with construction work force drawn from two countries with very different standards of living. wage rates and SKill levels. and employed 'under two sets of labour laws.

The engineers has as a client an International agency. the funding body of the proJect. but they are operating in the

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jurisdiction ofIwo other countries who are the real end users. These real end users hod to be satisfied not only with the final result, but also with the manner in which the all parties, carried out their obligations un~er the contract.

There is a technicol side of the engineer's responsibilities that is new. The subcontractor is using a number of new materials that are composite in nature which the most important one is called "polymer-reinforced concrete" With properties the engineer has not met before.

The engineer is relieved to remember that his/her undergraduate course included a significant emphasis on project management and economics, although he/she needs to brush-up on the detail. Also, fortunately there are good communication links to the construction sites, so the engineer with a notebook computer get access via Internet to a ''virtual resource centre - a prominent university" specialising on composite materials. Together with that, the engineer spends 0 couple of hours on certoin evening on-line to a graduate course in compOSite materials offered by the same prominent university. The engineer is also polishing-up his/her knowledge of economics and construction project management through on-lIne Internet, which will lead to the accumulation of enough credit to be awarded 0 Master degree. "

The engineer reahses that decision-making is essential in"this: .,' project. Multimedia provides the civil engineer with on effective means of bringing ideas, presentations, reports etc., before the interested audience for example the clients, especially international clients or the public. The engineer uses multimedia technology which leads to faster decision-making and the decisions' , are fortified with greater understanding and communication through the use of this technology.

The local civil engineer has one distinct perspective due to the pressure of global competition. In adapting to changes, it Is ' necessary to have improvement which is deeply embedded in the downstream business of his/her company, that is at the project level for thiS particular project and also for future undertakings. The engineer must be competently equipped with Project Management knowledge and skills. and Management in the areas of deSign, construction, marketing and service. It is hoped from this project he/she will able to undergo prompt transfer and acquisition of refined or updated technical knowledge, management and skills from the partner.

In summary. civil engineers must be well-equipped to be able to adapt to many changes as consequences of the globalisation of the' commercial environment of the construction industry.

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5.2.2 The Methods of Data AnalYses

In the 'Scenario-based design' method with questionnaire, the respondents

(engineers in Construction and Manufacturing industries from Malaysia and UK)

were asked to complete questionnaire in Appendix 1. Initially, the engineers

were given the opportunities to indicate their perceptions on the feasibility of

the future scenarios. Then, for example, the method through literature search,

has projected ten (10) key elements of change that were expected to be

prominent in times of change. These elements were presented in the forms

relevant to engineering environment in question 4. Section C of the

questionnaire. The engineers were asked to give their views on the expected

level of significance (using Likert Scale I (lowest) to 5 (highest)) of these key

elements to their future professional activities represented by scenarios

'processes improvement' and 'globalisation'. Similarly, the engineers were to

repeat the same procedure to other elements in groups consisting 'the

responsibilities', 'the functional images', 'the attributes', 'the knowledge and

skills' and 'the methods of delivery'. The data are presented in Appendix 3-

Tables Appendix 3.1 a &b to Appendix 3.12).

Firstly, all the responses were treated to a frequency analysis where the

percentages of responses were calculated. The percentages calculated were

for indiVidual elements in the profile with respect to level of significance or

importance given by the respondents. For example, the "percentage for the

'project management skills' considered as considerable to very importance".

The percentages total would not equal 100% due to multiple elements. The

data were analysed separately for UK and Malaysia.

The findings were then reinforced by the ranking analysis of each element in

the various groups namely the group consisting 'the key elements of change',

'the responsibilities', 'the functional image's, 'the attributes', 'the knowledge

and skills' and 'the methods of delivery'. that are characterising as well as

Impacting the engineering professional activities.

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The aim of data analysis, for example, Is to establish the prominent elements In

the new work processes of engineering practices using the 'key elements of

change'. Through ranking analysis, the ranking of Individual elements was

determined by computing the relative Index (R.I.) of the respondents' responses

using the formula below, where In this work R.I. values ranged between 0.2 and

1.0. The R.I. of 0.2 was the least valued while 1.0 was the most highly valued for

this study because the ordinal or Llkert Scales used throughout the questionnaire

were with 1 the least to 5 the highest In rate/level of Importance or significance.

(Adham, 1992; Oppenhelm, 1994; The Financial Times, 1997)

Relative Index (R.I.) = Un,) + 2(n) + 3(n) + 4(n.) + S(n§) (1)

5(n, + n. + n. + n.+ n,)

where:

R.1. Is a numerical Indicator to help In placing the relative position

(Important or significant) of an observation In relation to the other

observations.

n, • number of respondents for Llkert Scale 1

n. = number of respondents for Llkert Scale 2

n. = number of respondents for Llkert Scale 3

n. = number of respondents for Ukert Scale 4

n, = number of respondents for Llkert Scale 5

Appropriate statistical tests were carried out to reaffirm and support the

findings by comparing the data from two different groups of engineers namely

civil engineers from construction and engineers from manufacturing (two­

independent samples; discipline-oriented), each group of engineers for the two

different scenarios (two-related samples; scenarlo-orlented) and two groups of

engineers from both countries for each scenario (four-independent samples;

country-oriented). As the level/rate of Importance or Significance was measured

on ordinal (rank) scale, the non-parametric comparison tests called Mann­

Whitney Ranklngs Test, Wilcoxon Ranklngs Test and Kruskal-Wallis

Rankings Test were used respectively. In the Kruskal-Wallls Rankings Test, only

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engineers with 10 years or more experience in their disciplines were compared

because the respondents from UK and Malaysia in this group were about the

same in number. These tests were being accomplished using the Statistical

Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Level of significance. p-values were

obtained and would be used in interpreting the data.

Similar procedures were used throughout and led to the establishing of the

characteristics of changes in work processes involving engineering practices

and also the various requirements of engineers in the future based on the two

scenarios. The characteristics of change are in the forms of 'key elements of

change', 'roles and responsibilities' and 'functional images' of the engineers.

While the requirements were in the forms of 'attributes'; 'knowledge and skills'

and 'methods of delivery for engineering knowledge and skills'.

In summary, the findings of this method of the research were reported as

percentages (%). Relative Indices (R.I.s) values and level of slgnfficance. p­

values. The comprehensive analysis of the data compiled are shown in

Appendix 3 - Tables Apendix 3.1 a & b. Appendix 3.12). This next section

presents and discusses the important selected findings that will form the basis

for studying the implications on engineering educational practices to be

undertaken in Chapter 6.

5.2.3 The Findings

This research is not solely for finding concordance or consensus from the

responses (see Chapter 4). It is equally important to identify the significant

differences in the findings. The main thesis of using 'Scenario-based design'

method based on 'Socio-technical systems' concept is to elicit variety of

information by engaging in the scenarios presented. Concordances and

differences are both equally important and will furnish information that:

(i) engineering work systems do not exist in a vacuum. but are

integrally related to and interact with their environment/context.

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for example the scenarios. different engineering groups or

disciplines and at different places or countries;

(ii) it is essential when attempting to analyse a system to take into

account the relationships and interactions between the system.

its components and its environment/context;

The 'Scenario-based design' method based on 'Socio-technical systems'

concept was used to contribute towards gathering data and information in

order to take into account the relationships and interactions mentioned

above.

There were some general concordances based on the frequency analysis

and ranking analysis; and conclusions os well as recommendations are made

on how to use the findings in future undertakings. The data as a whole could

be compared for both countries. UK and Malaysia due to the general

concordance of the UK's and Malaysia's findings. The results were presented in

the forms of various 'future profiles' namely the 'Profile of Key Elements of

Change'; 'Profile of Responsibilities of Engineers'; 'Profile of Functional Images

of Engineers'; 'Profile of Attributes of Engineers'; 'Profile of Technical

Knowledge and Skills Requirements'; 'Profile of Non-Technical Skills

Requirements' and 'Profile of Method of Delivery of Engineering Knowledge

and Skills'. These are 'profiles' together with 'prionty ranking lists' and will be

presented in Sections 5.2.3.1 to 5.2.3.8 and Tables 5.3 to 5.9.

The concept of 'profile' was used in presenting the findings in order to

facilitate application of the information in future work. The data analysis (see

Appendix 3) indicated that generally. majority of the elements in respective

profiles were rated important or significant (Likert Scale 3.4 and 5) by the

respondents from UK and Malaysia. Thus. by using the average values of

Relative Index (R.L) the research presented priority ranking list of elements in all

the profiles. Elements with higher R.I. value are situated higher in the list and

should be given priority in any actions or planning for example to be included

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in a 'curriculum model', in formulating objectives of the programme and in

developing a testing and assessment system.

Significant differences were also identified through p-values from Mann­

Whitney Rankings Test, Wilcoxon Rankings Test and Kruskal-Wallis Ranks Test.

They are presented, in Section 5.2.4, with respect to individual profile (e.g. 'Key

elements of change', 'Responsibilities', 'Functional images', etc) so that they

will be taken into consideration when using the respective profiles.

5.2.3.1 The Analysis of the Perception of the Possible Future and Reaulrements of Engineers from Findings of Scenario-Based Design Method

The majority of the respondents were engineers from construction and

manufacturing industries in UK and Malaysia. They were in various roles working

in the industries and with variable experiences in their respective disciplines.

(see Appendix 3 - Tables Appendix 3.10 & b). The majority of them concurred

with the importance and significance of changes in the workplaces involving

the engineering practices. They could see that these changes would continue

in the future. Their perceptions of the future scenarios were presented in detail

in Tables 5.1 and 5.2.

The perceptions concerning the future scenarios were manifested by the

level of acceptance of the respondents of the predicted time-period in which

the scenarios would become most common and the degree of importance

and desirability placed on the scenarios. The respondents were also given the

opportunities to voice their opinions about the scenarios.

Scenario 1: Processes Improvement The findings for 'processes improvement' scenario by civil engineers and

engineers in manufacturing were presented in Tables 5.1 and 5.2., and UK &

MY are symbols representing United Kingdom and Malaysia respectively.

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Acceptance, Prediction and Level of Importance and Desirability

In construction Industry (refer to Sections 1.2 and 3 of Tables 5.1 and 5.2). future

scenario unfolding through 'processes improvement' driven by technological

advances was accepted by 86.7% (UK); 93.2% (MY). The respondents took this

scenario seriously as 93.3% (UK); 79.6% (MY) and 80% (UK); 79.6% (MY) indicated

high to very high degree of both in importance and desirability respectively.

Only about 6.7% (UK); 2,3% (MY) of the respondents viewed 'processes

improvement' as less to least both in importance and desirability

There were 52.2% of the respondents envisaged that 'processes

improvement' will become most common in Malaysia beyond the year 2000

while 43.2% expected it to become widespread worldwide during the same

penod. Also. about 25% and 27.3% expected the same occurrence between

the year 1996 to 2000. For UK the percentages were 60%. 73.4%. 33.3% and 20%

respectively.

The respondents that did not accept the 'processes improvement' scenario

in future construction industry presented views or scenarios that were similar to

that being projected by the study including 'continuous improvement

process'. 'reengineenng' and 'innovation'.

In manufacturing Industry (Refer to Sections 1.2 and 3 of Tables 5.2 and 5.2),

the responding engineers' level of acceptance of 'processes improvement'

scenano was higher than the construction industry With a value of 92.3% (UK);

97.6% (MY). The responding engineers from manufacturing also placed high

regards to this scenario with 84.6% (UK); 87.8% (MY) and 77% (UK); 82.9% (MY)

gave high to very high in degree of importance and desirability (rate >3)

respectively. None (0%) of them indicated the degree of importance and

desirability of this scenario as less to least (rate <3).

About 42.5% and 25.0% respondents expected the 'processes improvement'

will become most common in Malaysia and worldwide beyond the year 2000

189

respectively while 27.5% and 22.5% expected the same happening between

the year 1996 and 2000. The figures for UK were 38.5%, 46.2%, 30.8% and 23.1 %

respectively.

Similar to the construction industry, the respondents that did not accept the

processes improvement scenario in future manufacturing industry, also

presented views or scenarios that were in the same spirit with that being

projected including 'reengineering', 'quality assurance', 'quality control' and

'lean manufacturing'.

Scenario 2' Globalisation

(refer to Tables 5.1 and 5.2) The future scenario unfolding through 'globalisation' driven by technological

advances was accepted by 100% (UK & MY) of the responding civil engineers

from both countries. The respondents took this scenario seriously as 72.7% and

65.9% indicated high to very high degree of both in importance and

desirability (rate >3) respectively. Also, only 2.3% and 4.5% of them thought this

scenario as less to least in importance and desirability (rate <3) respectively.

Similarly for UK as only 6.7% and 0% thought 'globalisation' as not important.

About 66.7% and 70.4% of the respondents predicted that globalisation will

become most common in UK and Malaysia beyond the year 2000 while 73.3%

(UK); 386% (MY) expected it to become widespread worldwide beyond the

same year. Also, about 26.7% (UK); 18.2% (MY) and 18.2% (UK); 34.1% (MY) of

them envisaged the same occurrence between the year 1996 to 2000 for UK,

Malaysia and worldwide respectively.

In manufacturing Industry, responding engineers' level of acceptance of

'globalisation' scenario were 92.3% (UK); 95.1% (MY). The responding engineers

from Malaysia's manufacturing placed higher regards to this scenario

compared to construction with 78.1 % and 75.6% gave high to very high in

degree of importance and desirability (rate >3) respectively. None of the

190

respondents, UK and Malaysia regarded this scenario as less to least in

importance and desirability (rate <3). The responding engineers that have

any doubts about this scenario put forward suggestions which were not much

difference from the concept of the scenario.

About 46.2% (UK); 55.0% (MY) and 61.6% (UK); 35.0% (MY) respondents

expected the 'globalisation' will become most common in UK, Malaysia and

worldwide beyond the year 2000 respectively. Quite considerable number of

respondents also expected the same event to happen between the year 1996

and 2000 with 38.5% (UK); 32.5% (MY) and 23.1 % (UK); 30.0% (MY) respectively.

191

u ·t d K· dE· Table 5.1 : Perceotion on Possible Future bv nI e InQ( om nQlneers No. Characteristics I I

Construction Industry Manufacturing Industry_ Scenario 1 Scenario 2 Scenario Scenario

1 2 1. Level of Acceptance (%): 86.7 1000 923 923

2. Time-frame Scenario becomes most common (% of acceptance): 0) Unlled Kingdom:

1996-2000 333 267 308 38.5 Bevond 2000 600 66.7 38.5 46.2

b) Worldwide: 1996-2000 20.0 200 23.1 231 Beyond 2000 73.4 733 46.2 61.6

3. The Importance and Desirability of the future Scenarios to UnHed KIngdom Conshuctlon and Manufacturing Industles (rate>3): 0) Hlah la very hloh importance 93.3 '{671 467'1671 84.6 '{Ol 69.3 '(01 b) High to very high desirablllly BOO '(67) 46.7 '(0) 77.0 '(0) 61.6 '(D) '( ) percentages for rate <3 less to least Importance or desirability ...

Table 5.2: Perception on Possible Future by Malaysian Engineers No. Characteristics I I

Construction Industrv Manufacturlna Industrv Scenario 1 Scenario 2 Scenario Scenario

1 2 1. Level at Acceplance (%): 93.2 1000 97.6 95.1

2. Time-frame Scenario becomes most common (% of acceptance): -0) Malaysia·

1996-2000 250 182 275 325 Beyond 2000 52.2 70.4 42.5 550

b) Worldwide: 1996-2000 27.3 34.1 22.5 30.0 Beyond 2000 43.2 386 25.0 35.0

3. The Importance and Desirability of the future Scenarios to Malayslan Conshucllon and Manutacturlng Indushles: 01 High 10 very high importance 79.6 '(23) 72.7 '(2.31 87.8 '(D) 78.1 '(01 b) Hloh 10 very hloh deslrabllltv 796 '{231 65.9 '/4 51 829'(01 756'(01 '( ) percentages for rate <3 less to least Importance or deslrObi/itv .•

192

5.2.3.2 Profile of Key Elements of Change

This research has considered the meanings of, and developed parts of

indicators for graduate requirements in the context of engineering work

environment changes. The characteristics and components of engineering

work environment changes are presented in the 'Profile of Key Elements of

Change' in Table 5.3. (Also refer to Appendix 3- Tables Appendix 3.3a 8. b).

The 'Profile of Key Elements of Change' indicated that the environment

for engineering graduates has and will continue to change substantially

due to 'processes improvement' and 'globalisation'. All the elements in the

profile were considered important (as the lowest R.I. was 0.698) and should

be considered in any improvement initiative for engineering educational

practices. Some of the common strands of reasoned arguments and data

that could be presented to document changes in work environment

included:

• Increasing growth of information and knowledge.

• Increasing emphasis on interdisciplinary and concurrent

engineering activities.

• Increasing emphasis on interdisciplinary teams.

• Increasing emphasis on client-orientation.

• Increasing importance of continuous learning.

• Increasing emphasis on human factors and social sciences in the

understanding and solution of problems.

193

Table 5.3: Profile of Key Elements of c hance Average

The Key Elements of Change R.I. I The needs of continuous or lifelong leaming 0.846 2. New techniques enabled by information technology e.g. TQM. 0.828

Kaizen. re-enaineerlna. concurrent enqineerinc etc. 3. New emphasis on engineering design and 0.817

construction/manufacturing - efficient. responsive and effective 4. Increased interaction and relationships beyond workstation - 0.813

teamworkina and client-orientation. 5. Integrative aspects of engineering deSign. practice and 0.791

management in systems (drawing on techniques and knowledge from marw disciplines)

6. High dearee of emoowerment in deCision-making 0.774 7. Management of vast quantity of information 0.759 8. Dynamic/mobility of civil/manufactunng engineers roles - design to 0.747

site to project (or manufacturing) manager to team leader to sales engineer vice-versa

9. Incorporate humanities (human factors) and social sciences into 0.714 the understandino of problems and solutions.

10. Time-comoressed working environment 0.698

194

5.2.3.3 Prof11e of Responsibilities of Engineers

This profile could be used to provide information and knowledge in

characterising the work processes change and also as input to curriculum

review process using the model proposed in Chapter 7. (refer to Table 5.4

and Appendix 3 - Tables Appendix 3.5a & b)

Table 5.4: Profile of Responsibilities of Engineers

Average R.I. The Responsibilities

A. Chortered Engineer (CEng) 1. Introduce new and efficient construction/manufacturing 0.852

techniques 2. Develop and apply new technologies at highest efficien~ 0.826 3 GiVing crofessional iudgment 0.824 4. Promote and aooly advanced designs and design methods 0.807 5. Ensure the prQgress of technology (current and deYeloping) 0.786 6. Profitable management of industrial/commercial enterprises 0.760 7. Manage and direct high-risK and resource intensive projects 0.751 8 Pioneer new engineering services 0.713 9. Pioneer new management methods 0.699 10. Introduce new and efficient marKeting techniques 0.664

B. Incorporated Engineer (IEng) 1.

2 3.

4

5.

Maintain and manage applications of current and developing 0.813 technology at highest efficiencY Exponent of today's technology (current and developing) 0.773 Provide independently and as a leader. a significant Influence 0.760 on the overall effectiveness of the organisation Exercise independent technical judgement and management 0.756 In a recognized field of technoloQY Key personnel in operational management functions 0.712

5.2.3.4 Prof11e of Functlonallmaaes of Engineers

Literature search showed that traditionally and symbiotically. in terms of

function. engineers consider themselves as problem solvers in the

specialised areas that they are trained. The specialised areas that are

related to engineers are sciences and technology. This transpires clearly

195

when engineers speak of their motivation and rewards as what they convey

is an existential pleasure and satisfaction which arises from problem solving.

The engineers make a reality of the potential value of science and

technology by translating scientific and technological knowledge and skills

into processes, tools, resources, energy and labour, to bring them into the

service of human beings. This led to the well-accepted 'functional images'

of engineers as:

a) "specialised problem solvers"

b) "competent" in sciences and technology

These 'functional images', in the past and still presently, have been the

foundation elements of engineering education programmes. In times of

change engineering practices have undergone unprecedented changes

and there is a need to investigate whether the above elements are still

applicable and also whether other new elements should be added.

Therefore, this part of the study tries to investigate whether these well­

accepted images will still be important in the future and also whether it is

necessary to expand these images. Therefore, three more images are

being explored, the engineers as:

c) "technical business managerial leaders"

d) "designer, Inventor and producer"

e) "competent in research and development"

The engineers as "technical business managerial leaders' was seen as an

emergent image due to the expanding role and function of engineers into

management and business activities of organisations. While engineers as

'designer, inventor and producer' and as ' competent in research and

development' which were part and parcel of engineering practices but in

the researcher view, may have been neglected. These would contribute

towards ensuring the consideration of the important elements of

engineering practice in constructing the 'foundation' of engineering

education programmes in the future.

196

I.

2.

3.

4.

5.

The findings showed the versatility and relevancy of the five (5) 'functional

images' as representing the range of elements in engineering practice and

were further strengthened by ranking analysis (R.I. values). The rankings

analysis indicated that all five (5) images were considered as relevant in

contnbuting to the range of elements in engineering practice for the

conception and construction of the foundation of engineering education

programmes in the future. The responses showed the enduring nature of the

traditional Images namely "engineer as specialised problem solver" and

"engineer as competent in sciences and technology" and also the

emergent one "engineer as technical business managerial leader". The

findings also emphasised that the images "engineer as designer. inventor

and producer" and "engineer as competent in research and

development" must be given due considerations. (Refer Table 5.5 and

Appendix 3 - Tables Appendix 3.6a & b).

Table 5.5: Profile of Functional Images of Engineers

Average R.I. The 'Functlonallmaaes'

Engineer as competent in sciences and technology. 0.782

Engineer as speCialised problem solver. 0.774

Engineer as competent In research and development. 0.763

Engineer as designer, inventor and producer. 0.758

Engineer as technical business managerial leader 0.736

5.2.3.5 Profile of Attributes of Engineers

This profile of attributes would be useful when reviewing the mission and

objectives of the programmes and also curriculum. The information

would provide basis for determining the outcomes of the programme.

for example 'to produce engineers capable in using computer and IT

197

1.

2.

3.

4 5.

6.

7.

8

9.

10.

11. 12.

13.

14.

15.

16

for communications. analysis and design'. They would also contribute to

the contents of the curriculum. teaching and learning processes. and

testing and assessment systems. (Refer to Table 5.6 and Appendix 3 -

Tables Appendix 3.70 & b).

Table 5.6: Profile of Attributes of Engineers

Average R.L AHrlbutes of Engineers

Capable In uSing computers and Information technology (IT) for 0881 communications. analySIS and design. An obJllty to Identify and define a problem ond evaluate 0878 alternative solutions. and apply one or more designs to solve the problem. An effectiveness In communlcahng Ideas (Interpersonal and Intro- 0871 personal! and chent relation. HIQh professional and ethical standard 0.855 Capabihty of working across dlsclphnes In a team and exerCising 0852 Interdlscipfinary skills

A breadth and depth of technical and technological 0.812 backQround. A capability to continue the leamlng experience - conhnuous or 0.807 hfelonQ leaming. Recognise and appreciate the eXistence of new techniques e.g. 0.794 concurrent enQineerinQ etc. Knowledgeable of emerging innovahve construchon technologies 0.781 (for construction)

or Knowledgeable of emerging advanced materials technology and englneenna (for manufactunng). Knowledgeable of business strategies and management 0.759 practices.

Knowledgeable in human factors and humanities. 0.747 Knowledgeable In Quality Management Systems and Prachces - 0.745 TQM. Continuous Improvement etc An understanding of wo~d affairs. cultures development and 0.740 languages.

Knowledgeable In research and development methods and 0.727 practices An appreciation and understanding of Systems Englneenng 0.721 Perspective/Approach- social & environment KnowledQeable In the ManaQement of Human Resources 0697

198

5.2.3.6 Profile of Technical Knowledge and Skills Requirements

This profile would contribute to the development of curriculum using the

model proposed in Chapter 7. The information was not exhaustive but

the process of compiling them was important. Additional data could be

collected by going through the same process but with different

prominent scenarios. (Refer to Table 5.7 and Appendix 3 - Tables

Appendix 3.8a & b).

Table 5.7: The Technical Knowledge and Skills

The Technical Knowled e and Skills Avera eR. .. I. Information Technology (IT) for Englneenng Professlonals_ 0.826

2 3.

4 5. 6. 7.

8. 9 10.

Pro ect Mono ement Management Practices In Construction/Production Project Process Com uter-Alded Desl n CAD and Drafhn or CAD/CAM, CAE New Technl ues - Concurrent En ineenn ,fMS. CIM, JITM etc. Qual! S stems and Mono ement includin TQM Innovative Construction Technologies

or Advanced Matenals Technology and Engineering

0819 0.766

0.759 0.750 0.746 0.744

0.724 0.708 0687

5.2.3.7 Profile of Non·Technlcal Knowledge and Skills Requirements

Similar to section 5.2.3.6, this profile would contribute to the curriculum

review and development. Some of the knowledge and skills in this profile

could be considered technical but the most important thing was that

they were identified through this process. They are available to guide us

in engineering educational improvement approaches. (see Table 5.8

and refer to Appendix 3 - Tables 3.9a & b).

199

Table 5.8: The Non-Technical Knowledge and Skills

The Non· Technical Knowledae and Skills Averaae R.I. I Teamwork skills 0.856 2 Problem·solvlng skills 0852 3. Communication and Human Relations skills 0828 4 Leadership skills 0.804

5. InnovatIVe and Creative skills 0.799

6 Conllnuous or lifelong Leamlng skills 0.796

7. Negotiation skills 0.747

8. Analytical With Atlenllon to Details skills 0.741

9 Organisational and Working Practice skills 0.732

10 Management of Human Resources 0724 11 BUSIness skills (Include. International Businessl 0.720 11. Internallonal ProfeSSional and Technical Standards 0.720 13. Economics and Finance 0.714 14. Foreign Languages skills 0.681 15. Cultural Understandlno and Develooment 0.680 16. Human Factors 0.662 17. Marketing skills 0660 18 Social Sciences 0.634

200

5.2.3.8 Profile of Methods of Delivery of Engineering Knowledge and Skills

This profile provided us with initial information on the engineering

educational practices. It showed that university education would

continue to be the prominent and main provider of engineering

knowledge and skills (see Table 5.9 and Refer to Appendix 3 - Tables

Appendix 3.10a & b). Training at workplaces are gaining prominence

and were placed higher than 'online' courses. The future of 'IT­

mediated learning' were realised with high value of 'relative index. R.I

more than 0.6.

Table 5.9: Methods of Delivery of Knowledge and Skills

Methods of Dellverv 01 Knowledge and Skllls 1. Full-time or part-time at universities cooperation With Industry -

accumulation towards achieving formal certification ego post­graduate or professional.

2. Accredited human resources development courses at worl:places.

3. Short courses at unlversllies/industry /professlonal bodies etc. Without formal certlficalion.

4. "Onhne" courses through Intemet by unlversltles/industry/professional bodies/consortium etc. which can be accumulated towards achieving formal certification ego post-graduate or professional.

201

Average R.I. 0.755

0.725

0.698

0643

5.2.4 Significant Differences In the Findings:

This section will highlight the significant differences. The statistically significant

differences were grouped into three (3) categories namely:

(i) 'scenario-oriented significant differences';

(H) 'discipline-oriented significant differences';

(Ill) 'country-oriented significant differences'.

The summary of the differences are presented with respect to individual

'profile'. These were the results of the non-parametric comparison tests called

Mann-Whitney Rankings Test ('Discipline-oriented differences'), Wilcoxon

Rankings Test ('Scenario-oriented differences') and Kruskal-Wallis Ranks Test

('Country-oriented differences'). Level of significance, p-values were obtained

and used in interpreting the data.

A p-value is the probability associated with the testing of each statistical

hypothesis. The researcher interprets such a finding as evidence supporting

the rejection of the null hypothesis and the acceptance of the alternative

hypothesis. In this work, these null hypotheses were based on the acceptance

that the ranking of level/rate of importance or significance of each element in

the various groups namely the key elements of change; the responsibilities; the

functional images; the attributes; the knowledge and skills and the methods of

delivery. appears to exhibit no significant difference from responses of the

different groups of engineers (civil and manufacturing) and also for the

different future scenarios (Scenario 1 - Processes Improvement and Scenario 2 -

Globalisation). As a guide to the level of significance, in this work extremely

Significant is considered to be a p value < 0.0001. highly Significant is

considered to be p < 0.001 and significant is considered to be a p value < 0.05.

(Brawner et.aJ. December 2001)

Tables 5.10 to 5.1S.presented the significant differences for references. The

blank cells are where null hypotheses were supported by p-values more than

202

0.05 - no significant difference from responses of the different groups of

engineers (civil and manufacturing) from both countries (UK & MY) and also for

the different future scenarios (Scenario 1 - Processes Improvement and Scenario

2 - Globalisatlon). The results were derived from Appendix 3, Tables Appendix

3.11 a & b, Appendix 3.12.

Some examples of the differences were studied In details and the possible

reasons were explored. The results are presented In discussions that follow and

also In Table 5.16. The main reasons for the differences are one group of

respondents giving lower rating compared to the other group, with respects to

the different scenarios, engineering disciplines and countries. For the profile of

'methods of delivery of knowledge and skills' there is no significant difference in

any of the categories.

Generic Hypothesis used to Interpret Tables 5.10-5.15:

a. Cells with p-value less than 0.05 showing there Is a significant

difference In the acceptance that the ranking of level/rate of

Importance or significance of the element.

b. Blank cells Indicating p-value more than 0.05 showing there Is no

significant difference In the acceptance that the ranking of level/rate

of Importance or significance of the element.

203

Th" K"v ; ol(

1. The needs of or lifelong leaming

2. New techniques by information technology e.g. TQM. Kaizen. re-englneenng. ----•• _-_. I I etc.

3. New emp"U>I> on engineering design and construction/manufactunng - efficient. responsive and

4. and

5.

relationships beyond :~:sta!lon -teamworldng

; of en~~~eering design. practice ond management in systems (drawing on techniques and knowledge from many

6. High er".

, of nem In declslon-

7. Mar .... ' nt of vast .-':':.. of Information

8. uynamlc;/ 10"""Y of civd/manufactunng engineers roles - design to site to project (or manufactunng) manager to team leader to sales

I 9 Inc;orpo,u,,, humanities (human factors) and SOCial sciences into the

I ~~~e~~.a2~~g of problems

10. Time-compressed workIng environment

: in the Profile of Kev -

civil engineers; P=0026.

monufac­tUrlng

manufac­turing

engineers

'=0.019. manufac­

tunng

204

,IMY\ Unlt"d

III

manufac­turing

P=0035. manufac­

turing engineers

P=0.023. manufac­

tunng

,CUIO

1'=0041. scenano 1

Country-

'=0.043. scenario 1

P=0.04O. Scenario

1

Table 5.11: Significant Differences in the Profile of Responsibilities of Engineers

Slgnfficant Difference.

Malavsla (MY) United Kin domlUKl Scenario- Discipline- Scenario- Discipline- Country-

The ResDonslbllltles oriented oriented oriented oriented oriented

A Chartered Engineer (CEn!!1 I. Introduce new and efficient P=O.OOl. P=O.OOS.

construclion/manufactunng manufac- manufac-techniques tUrlng tunng

engineers enaineers 2. Develop and apply new P=0.043.

technologies at highest Scenario 1 efficiency

3. GIving profeSSional Judgment

4. Promote and apply P=O.013. P-0.02S. P=0.024. advanced designs and manufac- Scenario 2 Scenano design methods turing 2

enaineers 5 Ensure the progress of

technology (current and developinol'

6. Profilable management of industnal/commercial enterorises

7. Manage and direct high-riSK and resource intensive prolects

8. Pioneer new englneenng P=0.014. P=0046. services manufac- Scenario I

tunng engineers

9. Pioneer new management methods

10. Introduce new and efficient P=0.OO7. P=O.OO8. marketing techniques civil manufac-

engineers turing engineers

B. Incorporated Engineer (IEng)

I. Maintain and manage applications of current and developing technology at highest effiCiency

2. Exponent of today's technology (current and developing)

205

3. Provide Independently and as P=0.033. a leader. a significant manufac-Influence on the overall tunng effectiveness of the engineers organization

4. exercise Independent P=0.OO3. technical judgement and manufac-management In a recognized tunng field of technology engineers

S. Key personnel In operational P=O.OOS. management functions ciVil

enoineers

Table 5.12: Significant Differences In the Profile of Functional Images of Engineers

Significant Differences Malaysia (MY) United Kingdom (UK)

Scenario- Discipline- Scenario- Discipline- Country-The 'functional oriented oriented oriented oriented oriented

Imaces' 1. Engineer as P=O.027. P=O.022, P=O.OOl.

competent in Civil Scenario Scenario sciences and Engineers. 1; P=O.033. 1. technology. Scenario

2. 2. Engineer as P=O.OI6. P=O.031. P=O.OO4. P=O.049.

specialised Civil Scenario Scenario Scenario problem solver. Engineers; 2. I; P=O.OO3. 1; P=O.022.

P=O.OOl. Scenario Scenario Manufac- 2. 2.

ring Engineers.

3. Engineer as P=O.OO8. competent In Manufac-research and turing development. Engineers.

4. Engineer as P=O.OO9. designer. inventor Civil and producer. Engineers;

P=O.OOl. Manufac-

ring Enaineers.

5. Engineer as P=O.027. technical Civil business Engineers. managenal leader.

206

Table 5.13: Significant Differences in the Profile of Attributes of Engineers

Skinlficant Differences Malovsla (MY} United Kin dam CUKl

Scenario- Discipline- Scenario- Discipline- Country-Attributes of Engineers Oriented oriented oriented oriented oriented

I. Copoble In uSIng P=O.021. computers and Manufac Informotion -ring technology (IT) for Engineers communications. analysIs and design.

2. An ability to identify P=O.047. and define a problem Civil and evaluate Engineers; oltemative solutions. P=O.OOI. and opply one or Manufac-more designs to solve Engineers. the problem.

3. An effectIVeness In P-O.032. communicating ideas Civil (Interpersonal and Engineers. intra-personal) and client relation.

4. High professional and ethical standard

5. Capability of worklng across disciplines in a team and exercising Interdisciplinary skills

6. A breadth and depth P=O.OOI. of technical and Manufac-technological ring background. Engineers.

7. A capability to continue the leaming experience· conllnuous or lifelong leaming.

8. Recognise and appreciate the eXistence of new techniques e.g. concurrent engineering etc.

207

9. Knowledgeable of P-0004, P=O.021. emerging innovative Manufac- Scenario construction nng 2. technologies (for Engineers. construction)

or Knowledgeable of emerging advanced mafena/s technology and engineering (for manufacfunna/:

10. Knowledgeable 01 business strategies and management practices.

11. Knowledgeable In human factors and humanities.

12. Knowledgeable In Quality Management Systems and Practices - TQM, Continuous Improvement etc

13. An understanding 01 P=O.OO1. P-0.OO7, P=0.027, world affairs, cultures Civil Civil Scenano 1 development and Engineers; engineers; languages. P=OOO3, P=0.OO6,

Manulac- Manulac-ring ring

Enaineers Enalneers. 14. Knowledgeable In P=O.OO7,

research and Scenario development 1 ; methods and P=0.041 , pracllces Scenario 2

15. An appreCiation and understanding 01 P=O.028, Systems Engineering Scenario 1 Perspective/Approach - social & enVIronment

16. Knowledgeable In the Management of Human Resources

208

Table 5.14: Significant Differences in the Technical Knowledge and Skills

Significant Differences Malaysia (MY) United Kln~ dom (UKt

The Technical Knowledge Scenario· Discipline· Scenario· Discipline Country· and Skills oriented oriented oriented ·orlented oriented

I. Information P=O.OO8, Technology (IT) for Manufac-Engineering nng Professionals _ Engineers.

2. Project Management P=0.047, P=O.OO3, P=0.015, P=O.OO8, Manufac- Scenano2 Scenano Scenario

nng 1 1; Engineers. P=O.004,

Scenario 2

3. Monagement P=O.OOl, P=0.003, P=0.025, P=0.025, P=O.006, Practices In Manufac- Scenano2 Manufac- Scenano Scenario Construction/ nng nng 2 2 Production Project Engineers. Engineers. Process

4. Computer-Aided Design (CAD) and Drafting or CAD/CAM. CAE

5 New Techniques· Concurrent Englneenng. fMS. CIM, JITM etc.

6. Quality Systems ond Management Includlno TQM

7. Innovative Construction Technologies

or Advanced Matenals Technology and Englneenng

8. Research and P-0004. P=0.003. Development in Scenano Scenario Constructlon/Manufac 1; I; tunng P=O.ool, P=O.009,

Scenano Scenano 2 2

9. Systems Englneenng

10. Quanfltatlve AnalysIs P=0.012, P=0.034. (Include. Statistics) Scenano I Manufac-

nng Engineers

209

Table 5.15: Significant Differences In the Non-Technical Knowledge and Skills

Slanmcance Differences Malav la {UKl UnHed Kin dom {UKl

The Non-Technical Scenario- Dlsclpllne- Scenario- Dlsclpllne- Country· Knowledge and Skills oriented oriented oriented oriented oriented

1. Teamwork skills P=0.027, Manufac-

ring Engineers.

2. Problem-solving P=O.004, P=O.OIO, skills Manufac- Scenana2.

nng Enalneers.

3. Communication and Humon Relations skills

4 Leadership skills P=0.015, Manufoc-

nng Engineers.

5. Innovative and Creotlve skills

6. Contrnuous or Lifelong Leaming skills

7. Negotlatron skills P=O.033, Civil

Engineers; P=0.014,

Manufac-nng

Engineers. 8. Analytical with P=0.032,

Attention to Details Manufac-skills ring

Enaineers 9. Orgonlsahonal

and Working Practice skills

10. Management of 1'--0028, Humon Resources Scenario 2.

11. Business skills P=O.OOI, P=O.OO1. (Include Civil Manufac-Intematlonal Engineers; nng Business) P=OOO2, Engineers ••

Manufoc-nng

Engineers.

210

11. Intematlanal P=OOOO1. P=0.010, P-0.003, Professional and CIVil Civil Scenario 1. Technical Engineers; Engineers; Standards P=0.026, P=0.007,

Manufac- Manufac-ong ring

EnQlneers .. Enolneers .. 13. Economics and P=0018,

Finance Civil Enolneers

14. Foreign P=O.OO1. P=O.oo2. Languages skills Civil Civil

Engineers; Engineers; P=OOO1. P=0.002,

Manufac- Manufac-nng nng

EnClneers .. Ennineers .. 15. Cultural P-OOOO1. P=O.oo2.

Understanding Civil Civil and Development Engineers; Engineers;

P=0003, P=0.003, Manufac- Manufac-

nng ring Enclneers .. Enalneers •

16. Human Factors P-0.049, Manufac-

ring Enolneers ..

17. Marketing skills P-O.022, P=0.016, Civil Manufac-

Engineers. nng Enoineers .

18. Saclal SCiences P=0.010, Civil

Enoineers

211

I) Country-Oriented Differences

Some of the examples of significant differences identified in this

category are discussed below (refer to Appendix 3 - Tables Appendix

3.6a & b):-

a) Functional Image of Engineers

i) "Engineers as competent in sciences and technology" with p

value of 0.001 for scenario 'processes improvement'. The

Malaysia's engineers ratings were considerably higher than

UK's engineers with R.I. of 0.845 and 0.839 compared to 0.787

and 0.615. As Malaysia is still a developing country, the

sciences and technology knowledge based is still being

established. Malaysia's engineers need to acquire this

knowledge from the developed countries and thus, they

regarded to be 'competent in sciences and technology' as

very essential. While in UK the knowledge based is quite well­

established supported by research and development and

therefore the acquiring of this' knowledge will not be as

difficult as in Malaysia. This is maybe one of the reasons for the

relatively low rating given to this image.

a) Technical Knowledge and skills: (refer to Appendix 3 - Tables

Appendix 3.8a & b)

i) "Project Management" for 'globalisation', p = 0.004. Civil

engineers in both countries gave higher rating compared to

engineers in manufacturing (R.I. 0.880 & 0.850 compared to

0.738 & 0.741). For civil engineers all their work is in terms of

project but in manufacturing this concept is still being

established.

ii) "Research and Development in Construction/Manufacturing"

for 'processes improvement', p=0.003 - this was due to the

relatively low ranking given by the civil engineers in UK's

212

construction industry (R.I. 0.600 & 0.573). The other engineers

gave higher regards with R.I. values ranging from 0.755 to

0.800. Most of the research and development in UK's

construction industry are carried out at the universities with or

without collaboration with industry.

c) Non-Technical Knowledge and Skills: (refer to Appendix 3 -

Tables Appendix 3.9a & b)

i) "International Professional and Technical Standards" for

scenario 'processes improvement'. p=0.003 - this was due to

relatively low ranking given by UK's civil and manufacturing

engineers compared to Malaysia (R.I. 0.560 & 0.600

compared to 0.759 & 0.732). This was maybe due to wide

experiences of UK's industries in international market. As

Malaysia is still improving in international trade the engineers

regarded this knowledge and skill highly,

11) Discipline-Oriented Differences

Some of the examples include:-

a) Functional Image of Engineers (refer to Appendix 3 - Tables Appendix

3.6a & b):-

i) "Engineers as specialised problem solver" with p value of 0.003

for scenario 'globalisation' in UK case. The UK's civil engineers

gave considerably higher rating compared to manufacturing

engineers with R.I. of 0.867 and 0.662 (Table Appendix 3.6a). In

construction industry the problems faced are specialised to some

extent with some set procedures in-place while in manufacturing

the problems are more variable.

213

b) Technical Knowledge and skills: (refer to Appendix 3 - Tables Appendix

3.8a & b)

1) "Project Management" for 'globalisation', p = 0.003, for Malaysia

situation. The Malaysian civil engineers gave considerably higher

rating compared to manufacturing engineers with R.I. of 0.850

and 0.741 (Table Appendix 3.8b). This is in line with the country­

oriented difference, where for civil engineers all their work is

established in terms of a project but in manufacturing this

concept is still being developed.

2) "Management Practices in Construction/Production Project

Proces"s, p=0.003, for 'globalisation' in Malaysia case. The

Malaysian civil engineers gave considerably higher rating

compared to manufacturing engineers with R.1. of 0.836 and

0.712 (Table Appendix 3.8b). The project concept in

manufacturing industry is still relatively new.

3) "Research and Development in Construction or Manufacturing"

for 'processes improvement' and 'globalisation', p=0.004 and

0.001 respectively in UK case. This was due to the relatively low

ranking given by the civil engineers in UK's construction industry

(R.I. 0.600 & 0.573) compared to manufacturing (R.I. 0.785 &

0.769). This indicated most of the research and development in

construction industry in UK are carried out at the universities with

or without collaboration with industry but for manufacturing

considerable amount of research and development are

happening at the workplace.

ill) Scenario-Oriented Differences

The majority of the highly significant differences were under the'

scenario-oriented differences'. Some examples of the highly significant

differences are discussed in Table 5.16. The scenarios were different in

nature and represented different work environments and work

processes change and therefore there must be some specific

214

differences in the requirements. This showed that 'Scenario-based

design' method has managed to represent future scenarios and

solicited information required for specific situation. This also showed that

the respondents managed to engage with the scenarios. The scenarios

also enabled similar characteristics of the future to be compiled and

analysed.

215

Table 5.16: Highly Significant Differences - Scenario-Oriented

Significant No. Elements Difference Note

Scenario· Oriented

1. Responsibilities of 'CEng' (AppendIX 3· Tables AppendIX 3.5a and b). I. Introduce new and efficient X (p=O.OO1. MY UK manufactunng engineers

manufactunng techniques manufactunng placed this responsibility higher in p=0.005. UK 'processes improvement' than In manufacturing) 'globallsation' (R.I. 0.923

compared to 0.754). Malayslan engineers concurred (R.I. 0.893 compared to 0.790).

2. Responslb"Hles of'lEng' (Appendix 3· Tables Appendix 3.5a and b). I. Exercise Independent technical X (p=O.OO3 MY Malaysia manufactunng engineers

judgement and management manufacturing) placed this responsibility higher In In a recognized field of 'processes improvement' than in technology 'globalisation' (R I. 0.815

compared to 0.7221. 11. Key personnel In operational X (p=0.005. MY Malaysia cIVil engineers placed

management functions civil) this responsibility higher in 'globalisation' than in 'processes Improvement' R.I. 0748 compared to 0.686).

3. Funcllonallmaoes of Enolneers (Appendix 3· Tables Appendix 3 6a and b). i Engineer as specialised X (p-O 0001. MalaYSia manufacturing engineers

problem solver MY regarded thiS Image higher in manufactunng) 'processes improvement' than in

'globalisation' (R.I.0.858 compared to 0 6541.

Hi. Engineer as deSigner. Inventor X (p=O 001. MY MalaYSia manufactunng engineers and producer manufacturing) placed this image higher In

'processes improvement' than in 'globallsallon' (R.I. 0.834 compared to 0 693).

4. Attributes of Enolneer. (Appendix 3 - Tables Appendix 3.7a and bl i. An ability to Identify and define X (p-O 0001. Malaysia manufactunng engineers

a problem and evaluate MY placed this attnbute higher In altemallve solutions. and apply manufactunng) 'processes Improvement' than in one or more designs to solve 'globalisation' (R.I.0.932 the problem. compared to 0.780).

11. A breadth and depth of X (p=O.OO1. MY Malaysia manufacturing engineers technical and technological manufacturing) placed this attribute higher in background 'processes Improvement' than in

'globalisation' (R.I. 0.883 compared to 0.7611.

216

III An understanding of wo~d X (p=O.oool. MalaYSia manufactunng engineers affairs. cultures development MY civil; placed this attnbute higher in and languages. p=O.OO3MY 'globahsafton' than in 'processes

manufactunng) improvement' (R.I. 0.829 compared to 0.717). The civil engineers concurred

IV Knowledgeable of emerging X (p=0.004, MY Malaysia manufactunng engineers advanced matenals manufactunng) placed this attribute higher In technology and englneenng. 'processes improvement' than in

'globahsatlon' (R.I. 0.829 compared to 0.741).

5. Technical Knowledge and SklJls Required (Appendix 3- Tables Appendix 380 and b). I. Management Practices In X (p=O.ool. MY Malaysia manufactunng engineers

Production Project Process manufactunng) placed this knowledge and sJalls higher in 'processes Improvement' than in 'globahsation' (R.I. 0.819 compered to 0.7121.

6. Non-Technical Knowledge and SklJls Re ulred (Appendix 3- Tables Appendix 390 and bl. i. Problem-solving SKills X (p=O.004. MY Malaysia manufactunng engineers

manufacturing) placed this sJaIl higher in 'processes Improvement' than In 'globahsatlon' (R.I. 0.878 comoared to 0 7801.

11. Foreign Languages Skills X (p=O.oool. MY civil; The engineers from both countries p=O.oool, MY agreed that thiS sJaIl is more manufacturing; important in 'globalisatlon' than in p=O 002. UK 'processes Improvement'. CIVIl; p=0.002. UK manufacturingl

III Cultural Understanding and X (p=O.ool. MY The engineers from both countries Development civil; p=0.002. agreed that this skill is more

MY important In 'globalisation' than in manufacturing) 'processes improvement'.

IV. BUSiness Skills (Include X (p=O 000 1. UK The UK manufactunng engineers Internaftonal BUSiness) manufactunng) placed this knowledge and skills

higher for 'globalisatlon' than 'processes Improvement' (R.I. 0815 to 0.6151.

VI International Professional and X (p=O.OOO 1. Technical Standards MY civil; The engineers from both countries

p=Ooool.MY agreed that this knowledge and monufacturing; skill is more important In p=O.oo2. UK 'globahsation' than In 'processes civil; p=0.002. improvement' • UK monufactunngl

7. Methods of Delivery (None)

I I I I

217

5.3 SUPPORTING FINDINGS FROM OTHER METHODS

Relevant findings (data and information) also were obtained through other

methods at the beginning (before) and also at recent events (after). These

would be used to triangulate the results. They are presented as follow:

5.3.1 Requirements of Engineers at a Manufacturing OrganIsatIon In UK -FindIngs from Interview and Case study. (before)

The manufacturing organisation being studied is 0 world leader in aerospace

and defense with annual sales exceeding £7 billion and order book more than

£19 billion (data for 1996/1997). The entire organisation employed about

42.000 human resources in the design. development. manufacture and testing

of civil and military aircraft, guided weapon systems, artillery and ammunitions.

The semi-structured interview session was administered to three senior

engineers of the organisation in 1997, namely the Head of Design, a Senior

Avionic Engineer and a Senior Design Engineer. This has produced valuable

information on the changes of work processes and the requirements of the

engineers. Also, some pointers for improvements of engineering education

are obtained and will be discussed in Section 6.3.1.

The organisation has envisaged starting from 1991 and over the next 20 years

both the main products and the preferred ways of working would change. The

changes in work processes experienced by the organisation as identified by

the three engineers together with the requirements of engineers ore shown in

Table 5.17.

218

Table 5.17: Changes in Work Processes and Engineers' Requirements

No Change In Work Processes Engineers' Requlremenls

1. The organlsalion Is moving oway from her • Engineers with allrlbutes of beside having Iradltlonol production approach toward a 'problem resolutlon/lrouble shooting' concurrenl englneenng philosophy together role. could pertorm an integrating role with works be more and more In lorms of wrthln the organisation and a~o, facrutate projects with teams being gIVen the a change emphas~ and approach for responSibility to undertake them the organ~ahon as a whale.

2. The organ~atlon strategy toward concurrent • Engineers' with roles seen as the 'glue' engineering ond leamwork ~ manifested In that binds together project teams her 'Inlegrated Product Development' and Involving specialists In dlVooe d~clpllnes 'Integrated Project Team' concepts which and be able to talk to the different Involves the locus on customer during product speclarlSl to assist them integrale Into development stage, formation of cross- effective teams. functional team at the outset stage of a project, Increase consideration of • Engmeell capable of wor1dng In teams manufacturing process at design stage and effectively and making a worthwhile use 01 lead lime as a source of competrtlve contribution In a variety of technical and odvantage organisational roles.

3 The situation ~ occurring where 'the • Requre knowledge and skn~ which manufacturing team are now started to cut Include Systems Engineering (the design, the metal before the fulJl drawing ~ development and maintenance of completed complex, muHI<lisclpfinary entities or

systemsj; teamwarklng; technical

4. The 'over Ihe wall' project development has knowledge and sklJls; Interpellonal and been eliminated presentallon; business and a positive 'can-

do' mentality. 5 Some of the objectives of the changes

recorded dunng the Interview Include to • Requte technical knowledge and skll~ reduce lead hme In product development, 10 component that Is mulll<llsclpllnarles form Integrated project team, to focus on transcending the Iradlllonal disciplines of customer requirement, to achieve product IT and Computer, Human Sciences, balance and optimum solullon. to achieve Electrical, Mechanical and Aeronautical the 'fit the purpose' quality and to optlm~e Engineering 'overall producllon' not Just the IndIVidual comoonent

6. The dIStinctive features that characterise the team include consisting experts from vanous • Requi'e another companent of funchonal groups (e g design, manufacturing. knowledge and skills known here a s the assembly, systems, etc j, formed at Ihe outset 'systems elements/skDIs' Which Include stage of the project, consensus way and amongst othell communication, balance partlclpallon In decision mak Ing. collaboratIOn or teamwork. analysis, share common goal and obJective, equal synthes~, confidence, assessment. measure of representation, collocated. anficlPCtlon and hor~m. transparency In InformatIOn between members and has suffiCient authorrty to make deCISion tor the&' orolecl

7. IT Is essential in supporting the changes In work process for communication and enabling tocl such as the use of digital representation of the producl model accessible to all team members

219

In the interview it was quoted that the organisation has already benefited

from the changes in work process above in terms of cost reduction, improved

quality and reduction of product development time. Thus, in order to

continuously reaping the benefits, it is essential that engineers equipped with

the relevant attributes, knowledge and skills are available to the organisation.

This led the organisation to approach Loughborough University in her effort to

fulfill these needs. The result is a unique and 'complete package' type of

approach to respond to the above challenges and requirements as will be

presented in Section 6.3.1.

5.3.2 Requirements of UK's Engineers In Future - Findings from Focus Conference Discussion about fwo reports, Standards And Routes Towards Registration 1997 (SARTOR 3 (3rd Edillon) or 1997) and Dearlng Report 1997 - (before).

The focus discussion session with the panel of experts was held during a one­

day conference attended by the researcher, 57 higher institution educators

(mostly engineering educators) and 36 professionals (mostly engineers) from

industries, on Wednesday, 15 October, 1997 on the topic of 'Engineering

Education for the Future'. The panel of experts were made-up of

representatives from Member of Dearing Committee Working Group, The

Engineering Council, the employers and the Local Education Authority (LEA).

The discussion session was divided into two parts. The first part was concerned

with the identification of prominent proposals and requirements of the Dearing

Report (1997) and SARTOR (1997) which would impact the UK's engineering

community. The findings of this first part are discussed here. The findings for the

second part which were related to engineering education will be presented in

Section 6.3.2.

In line with Section 5.3.1 above, the findings from the focus discussion will

concentrate on the changes of work processes and the requirements of the

engineers (Refer to Table 5.18). These will give some pointers to the subsequent

220

implications for engineering education in educating the UK's engineers in the

future.

Table 5.18: Change in Work Processes and Engineers' Requirements

No Change In Work Processes engineers' Requirements

• The need for ability for conlinuous or 1. The changing nature of englneenng. lifelong leaming such as through

conlinuous professional development (CPD);

2. The development of the global market for • The engineers need breadth and goods and services. depth in their knowledge and skills.

3. The dnflln standards. • The importance of knowledge and skills called 'key skills' In SARTOR

4. The increasing use of 'occupational (1997) or 'process skills' in Dearing standards' by employers. Report (1997) namely effeclive

communicalion (written. spoken, presentation), working effectively with others (teamwork) and managing own nfelong leaming and development (nfelong or continuing leaming skills) in order to function effectively in worl:place and society.

• The need for social awareness, professional ethics and knowledge of business practice.

As a whole, the changes in work processes and globalisation manifested by

various parts in the Dearing Report (1997) and SARTOR 1997, have led to

increasing demands on UK's workforce capabilities in general and the

engineers in particular. The complexity of the requirements reflects the ever'

growing complexity and scope of engineering theory and practice in times of

change. These have consequences for the formation and development of

engineers including the engineering education practices.

The Dearing Report (1997) and SARTOR 1997 also suggested and

conceptualised some measures in order to respond to the above

requirements. For examples, the Dearing Report (1997) advises on the long­

term development of the overall higher education (HE) in the UK and contains

recommendations on how the purposes, shape, structure and funding of HE

should develop in the next twenty years. In addition. the Dearing Report (1997)

221

stresses on working towards delivering, assessing and accrediting better

teaching practice, with greater emphasis on new approaches to teaching

and learning.

The specific concern of this research is related to the engineers and the

engineering education. Section 6.3.2 will describe the response to the above

requirements and demands as spearheaded by the Engineering Council,

United Kingdom, through the enhancement and improvement of standards

and routes for accreditation and registration. This is the focus of SARTOR 1997

which will form the framework for the 'formation of engineers' that more fully

prepare engineers for professional life in the future. Also, the consequences for

engineering education practices will be discussed.

5.3.3 Observations from Seminar Between Institutes of Higher Education and Industrv In Malaysia on 6·7 August 2002 In Bangl. Malaysia. (after)

This is the first seminar of its kind organised by the Higher Education

Department, the Ministry of Education Malaysia. The goal is to develop

networking with industry and 'stake holders involvement' in order to achieve

excellence in higher education. The exchange of ideas would provide the

universities with needs of the industry and to incorporate these needs in the

curriculum, thus equipping the students with the required knowledge and skills.

Also, it has been reported in several main stream newspapers in Malaysia that

too many graduates go out into the workplace ill-equipped to solve problems

in a cooperative way and also, they are lacking the skills to continue learning.

The researcher was one of the participants and related observations are

presented in Table 5.19.

222

Table 5.19: Changes in Work Processes and Engineers' Requirements

No Change In Work Processes engineers' Requ~emenls

1. Malaysla's only car monufacturer. PROTON. • The need for versatne engineers. has been shilling from manulaclurtng and espeCially those who can make Ihe assembltng to Include desgnlng as well since transition from manufacturtng to design. 1998 Th~ was hlghllghled by PROTON's Chief especially for PROTON (Flexible and Executive Officer. adaptable to changesl

• The needs lor communication skn~ and

2 Engineers In Malaysia are also working Ionguage proficiency. especially In IncreoSlngly In an Internatlona I environment. Engl~h.

often In teams consist of engineers from vonous counlrtes Also. many Malayslan • The needs for ICT (Including 'vitual companies have slrong englneenng and reanty'l. business and economy manufacturing links wtlh Japan. Korea. knowledge and skn~. Taiwan. Amertca. UK and Europe.

• Require creallve thinking skn~. problem-solving skUls and analytical skills.

• Engineers capable of warldng In teams

3. The 'excellence culture' ~ being Incul caled In effectively and making worthwhne Malaysia's industry because th~ Is Ihe only cantr1butlon In giving dtfferent way to be campetHlve and excel In the perspective for the organization based on globalization era. Th~ Involves the whole dala and Information. range of activities Including quality assurance. changes In worX processes (teamworlc. • Engineers need to under.tand global concurrent englneertng etc I, 'excellence palltlcs. global knowledge and strategic Ihrough teamworX'. focus on customer needs. thinking. technology development. forming straleglc partnerships and nelworklng. Increasing • Engineers should be equipped with research and development and conllnuous competitive sl<ll~ wI th appreciation of Improvement process marXet and consumers.

4. Malaysia's MultlmedlC Super Corridor (MSC) • Engineers need to be weD verse in new proJect ~ progressing well to drtve the technology or concept such as changes in work processes enabled by IT. IT concurrent englneertng. 'block tools and research and development are technology'. 'rapid-prototyplng' and prOVided to support the change. 'virtual realtty'.

5. MalaYSia will offlclolly Implement the free • Ability and commitment for continuous trade regulollons (AFTAlln Ihe year 2005. Th~ and lifelong leamlng will open th e MalaYSlOn market to the world Without much restrtctlons. This will have • AgUe With multl-tasklng capabmtles. tremendous Impacts on the way of dOing bUSIness and wOrX environment In the Industry. • Able to partiCipate In cross-cultural

Interactions.

6 MalaYSlan Industry has to keep pace wt!h • Knowledge on Human Resource technology advances and marXet. Development.

7. Human resource development has been Identified as a key factor In enhancl ng bUSiness competitiveness.

The implications on the engineering education practices in Malaysia will be .

presented in Section 6.3.3.

223

5.3.4 Findings from Focus Discussion with Three German's Consultants Working In Malaysia on 22 August 2002 In Kuala Lumpur. (after)

The researcher was given the opportunity to discuss with three conSUltants from

Germany who are working in Malaysia on the Dual System Concept. This was

done on the 22 August 2002 at the German-Malaysia Institute in Kuala Lumpur.

The related issues are presented in Table 5.20.

Table 5.20: Changes in Work Processes and Engineers' Requirements "

No Change In Work Processes Engineers' Requlremenls

1. Global.allon has created a new International • Capacity for thinking - abstract; logical; ogenda for development. Including In planned. problem-solving; thinking In Malaysia Preporatlon of productive and systematic context. flexible human resource ~ crucial to competition In the 2 I" centuIY

2 Malaysia IS part of a global m arket as • Creatlvrty - generating Ideas; pu~ulng multinational companies like Exxon Mobn. Ford new pathways In search of solutions Motor. Toyota Motor. Mrtsublshi. Siemens and a few othe~ are outgrowing Malaysia In term • AbDlty to make dec~ions; se~ of the Gross National Income 2000 consciousness for calculafed tisks.

3. The knowledge developmenf Is Increasmg In • Capacity for assessing sHuatlon including rate as shown by 'number of pages of the the capacity for se~-cntlclsm. Repa~ Manual of Opel Ca~ which has Increased 4526 pages In 1983 for 'Model • Willingness for continuous and I~elong Record E' to 13865 pages for 'Model Omega learning S'In 1998

• Abmty to cooperate and work In teams as wen as the abDlty to Identity oneself

4 The expected changes In work envronment with tasks and goals. for 2000s

• The focus of business Is on speed • Social attHudes. personal and profitability of Innovation. responsibirrtles. Inter-pe~onal skDls

• The technology Will be Integrated In and valu~rlentatlons. set-up. • Target orientation

• The structure of organization will be • Work process knowledge: prominently networks. · orientation knowledge

• The knowledge·worke~. especlolty · comprehensive knowledge the englnee~. Will play cruCial roles of systems In Initiating change · detaDed functional

knowledge · extended speclaDzed

systematic knowledge.

In the discussion the consultants stressed that change is continuing at·

increaSing rate in the forms of globalisation, advances in technology and work

processes. Input from industry and also workplace must be sourced out in order

224 I

I

I

I

I

J

to be relevant. All the above information should be taken into account when

planning the education and training of human resources. especially the

engineers. The implications on engineering educational practices would be

discussed in Section 6.3.4.

The findings from 5.3.3 and 5.3.4 have shown that the findings of the research

which were gathered in 1997 and 1998 are still relevant in year 2002. The data

and information from Sections 5.3.1 to 5.3.4 were used to triangulate the results

from Scenario-based design method with questionnaire survey and they

seemed to identify similar changes in work environment or processes and with

similar requirements for the engineers. Efforts are being made to improve

engineering educational practices based on the data and information

compiled by this process. which is the focus of Chapter 6.

5.4 THE IMPORTANCE OF THE DIFFERENCES

After gOing through the information on the significant differences. the research

concluded that the differences were in the context of system concept of

interactions between components of a system. and also between the system

and its environment. This indicated that 'Scenario-based design' method

based on 'Socio-technical systems' concept has managed to elicit and

gather the information required. Through the significant differences. we would

recognise that:

(a) different scenarios or contextual settings have certain specific

requirements and should be taken into account;

(b) different engineering disciplines have certain specific

requirements and should be provided for;

(c) different countries have certain specifiC needs and should be

into consideration.

Another contribution by the significant differences is conceming decisions

about engineering education should be informed by the well-established

practices or sometimes. best practices. This research used UK engineering

225

practices as a benchmark for Malaysian engineering practices and

consequently the engineering education. The findings would provide

information for improvement initiatives in Malaysian engineering education

system. The significant differences would furnish gaps to be covered or

considered by Malaysia. Examples include:

i. The image of "engineers as competent in sciences and

technology". the emphasis must be higher in Malaysia in terms of

acquiring and developing knowledge in sciences and

technology. This body of knowledge must be established and

replenished continuously. Malaysian engineering education

needs to contribute to the development of new knowledge

rather than just being user.

ii. "Research and development in construction/manufacturing"

knowledge and skills is another gap that needs to closed.

Malaysian engineering education system must increase research

and development activities at the university both in construction

and manufacturing, and also in other engineering disciplines in

general. This will contribute to the development of new ideas.

body of knowledge as well as the research skills.

ili. "International professional and technical standards" knowledge

and skills is aspects to be work on by Malaysia. Malaysia

engineering education needs to multiply her efforts to compile

this body of knowledge as more and more engineering practices

will involve intemational environment and counterparts.

Improvement processes in engineering practices will require

more and more of this body of knowledge.

The rest of the differences are due to one group of engineers giving lower

rating compared to the other group for different scenarios. The specific

requirements for different future scenarios will be different. This is shown clearty

by recent event where University of Toronto, Canada is tuming the study of

emerging field of 'nanotechnology' into an undergraduate major because the

226

prevailing scenario Is Indicating that this technology has an Incredible future

potential (PRISM Magazine, November 2002). On a cautious note, any measures

taken with this Information must remember that system approach will always

require a balancing of costs and benefits.

5.4 SUMMARY

Each engineering education Institution should have explicit simple and cost­

effective processes for obtaining and refining Information about changes In

engineering practice and the related Implications and requirements. The

processes used In this research have managed to acquire, dlstlll and assimilate

knowledge about the ongoing and future changes In the environment In which

engineering graduates work.

5.4.1 The findings as a whole have confirmed the scenarios of changes In work

processes. The findings from the main method used, 'Scenarlo-based design with

questionnaire survey' (supported by other methods (,Case study' with Interview;

'Focus Discussion' at seminars and 'Focus Discussion' with the experts or

consultants) have shown that the new work system called "Integrated work

system" would consist of the key elements of change proJected by this research.

These elements are considered significant In work processes changes as

confirmed by the analysis of the responses. These elements should be

conSidered. refiected and Incorporated In any planning measures to Improve

engineering education.

5.4.2 The findings Indicate that there are a variety of roles and responsibilities for

engineers. (especially for civil engineers and manufacturing engineers) In the

future and they need to be reflected In engineering curricula.

5.4.3 The findings on 'functional Images' of engineers Indicated that all five (5) Images

proposed by the study are relevant and can be used as the foundation elements

In any engineering education programmes presentiy and also In the future.

5.4.4 The profile of the attributes required by engineers In the future times of

unprecedented change has been established and will contribute In the

development of any curriculum model.

5.4.5 The profile of technical knowledge and skills that are required by engineers In the

future times of change have been determined and should be Included In any

engineering education programmes.

5.4.6 Also. the profile of non-technical knowledge and skills that are required by

engineers In the future times of change has been determined and should be

227

Included In any engineering education programmes. Thus, It has been shown

that engineers In the future would need breadth and depth In their knowledge

and skills.

5.4.7 The engineers Indicated that universities would stili be the prominent providers of

engineering education, thus the needs to Improve engineering education at universities to face the challenges and opportunities of changes In work process

specifically and times of changes generally.

5.4.8 The Information complied In 1998 Is still relevant as verified by the findings from the

seminar and focus discussion held during August 2002 In Malaysia.

Decisions about engineering education should be Informed by the knowledge

of the current practice of engineering and the related requirements. The

research has shown the possibility of collecting and organising Information on

changes In the work environment via Interactions with Industry and other

stakeholders through 'Scenario-based design method with questionnaire survey'.

The data and Information were triangulated with results from other methods such

as 'Case Study with Interview survey'. seminar discussion and discussion with

experts or consultants. The costs associated with the 'Scenario-based design

method with questionnaire survey' were low enough that InstlMlons can perform

the process on a sustained and regular basis.

The findings from Scenario-based design with questionnaire survey supported

as well complemented by the Information from the other methods Indicated that

significant changes are occurring and will continue to occur In the future at

workplaces where engineers practise. These resulted In Implications on the

requirements of engineers to practise In these workplaces. such as the attributes

and knowledge and skllls. Consequently. slgnlf1cant changes In engineering

education will be required In order to meet the needs of engineering graduates

In preparing them for the challenges. Thus. the findings of phase 1 will be utilised

by phase 2 In order to study the Implications on engineering educational

practices. Chapter 6 will present the findings of the phase 2 of this research.

228

CHAPTER 6

THE CONSEQUENCES FOR ENGINEERING EDUCATIONAL PRACTICES

6.1 INTRODUCTION

The findings from Chapter 5 have shown the changes of work processes are

happening In real world. Chapter 5 has also complied the Implications or

requirements of engineers In the future 'Integrated work system'; the

responsibilities, functional Images, attributes, knowledge and skills, which form

the 'profiles of future engineers'. All these have Implications for the

educational practices In the future Including the engineering education

systems, contents and delivery processes. Thus, Chapter 6 presents the findings

of the phase 2 of this research, the Implications for engineering education and

some Issues that need to be considered In planning the Improvement process

In engineering education programmes.

The major focus of phase 2 of this research Is gathering data and Information

through a 'Scenario-based design' method together with semi-structured

Interview survey. The package of scenarios with semi-structured Interview

(questioning) survey was administered to UK and Malaysia engineering

educators from the manufacturing and civil engineering disciplines and also

other contributing lecturers, 5 people for each discipline and country. The

objective Is to elicit their views on the feaslbili1y. maturl1y, enabling and

inhibiting forces and the way forward for three (3) proposed Improvement

Initiatives In engineering education In order to respond to the requirements of

the "integrated work system" placed on'the engineers In future as complied In

Chapter 5.

In addition. relevant data and Information were also obtained through other

methods at the beginning and also at recent events (after the main method)

which would be used to triangulate the results. The other methods Involved

were:

229

a) A case study through on-site semi-structured Interview and

documents study of one unique response of engineering education

to the requirements of a manufacturing organisation Involved (as

presented in Chapter 5) - UK case only (before the main method)

b) A focus discussion between practising engineers and engineering

educators and a panel of experts on the response of The Engineering

CounCil, UK to the Implications or requirements of the Issues Identified

In Chapter 5 - UK case. (before the main method)

c) Researcher participation In a 'Seminar between InstlMes of Higher

Education and Industry' In Malaysia on the 6-7'" August 2002 In

Malaysia. (after the main method)

d) A focus discussion between the researcher and three conSUltants

from Germany In Malaysia on the 22"" August 2002. (after the main

method)

Furthermore, this chapter will furnish Input towards establishing a conceptual

framework or plan that will help engineering education planners or managers

In UK and Malaysia, create 'improvement process' In their respective

engineering education systems.

The moderate Idea being adopted here Is 'Improvement process' not

'transformation' or 'reform' or 'redesign' because of the well-establlshed

nature of engineering education systems, especially In UK and relatively so, In

Malaysia. The view here Is that any system will benefit from an Improvement

process, approach or Initiative.

230

6.2 RESPONSES DERIVED FROM FINDINGS OF THE PHASE 2 OF THE RESEARCH

The findings of the Scenario-based design method with questionnaire are

presented and discussed below:-

6.2.1 The Scenario-Based Design with Semi-Structured Interview

The scenario-based design method presented three (3) scenarios to project

possible future Improvement processes or Initiatives In engineering educational

practices namely scenario 1 - 'IT mediated learning', scenario 2 - 'Integrated

curriculum mediated learning' and scenario 3 - 'partnership mediated

learning'. The scenarios were presented In Plate 6.1. The scenarios were In the

forms of short textual passages and the titles have been chosen to be

representative and prominent. It was hoped that these scenarios would trigger

further discussion during the Interview sessions.

231

Plate 6.1: Scenario-Based Design for Three (3) Improvement Process Initiatives In Engineering Education

Scenario 1 : IT-mediated leamlng

• In this scenario students leem of a distance. students enrolling In on engineering programme from 0 unlversl1y will enjoy much flexibility. They may never have to set foot on the campus; they can attend courses from the comfort of their homes or workplaces or even hotel room when they ore travelling. The constraints of traditional lectures and discussion sessions that require students and lecturers to be In the some place. simultaneously are things of the past. Instead. the university's students learn of their leisure through instructional CD-RaMS and Intemet communication.

• Communications with their classmates and lecturers usually takes place through onllne discussions enabled by conferenclng softwares such os Lotus Notes etc .. SImilar to e-mail. conferenclng software allows for the exchange of electronic messages. Bectronlc conferenclng. however. Is much more dimensional. enabling easy-te-follow discussions among a group. Each member of the group can see the others comments and responses. Comments are organised by discussion topiCS and, are left onllne throughout the course so students can review the whole discussion at their convenience. Students access these conferences through the World Wide ~ Web or by using their modem to dial Into a computer. Conferences are usually password-protected for security reasons and to prevent people not enrolled In the class from disrupting them. r

• Also. previously when students had questions about theIr work. theIr used to show up at the respective lecturer office wIth computer printouts In hand. The development here Is that they send theIr queries with computer files attached. The

, lecturer responds by e-mal~ or If the Issue Is of general Interest to the class. It will be POsted on the courses' electronic bulletin board for all to see. The lecturer can quickly spot any problems students ore having by checking postlngs on the electronic bulletin board. students ore privy to all enqUiries. Students even transmit their completed assignments to the lecturer electronically. In turn the lecturer can read. correct and retum them with 0 few simple keystrokes.

• In this method of delivery. the concept Is to think of every person on the network as both a user and 0 resource. This Is Important towards forming a network of people In on Interactive leamlng community that Is not limited by time. place. or the constraints of classroom. As people get comfortable with the medium. they began to Interact and respond.

• lecturers are acting more as a guide or facllltator. Students review the course material on their own. always knowing that the lecturer Is there to lend a hand should they stumble. The lecturer monItors the students by reviewing their aSSignments and facilitating electronic conferences while remainIng accessIble through e-mail.

232

Scenario 2: Integrated curriculum-mediated leamlng

• The picture emerges where engineering departments have to put more emphasis on IntegraHng teamwork skills. communlcaHon skills and leadership skills Into the core engineering courses. As an example. the new focus on design work Is where students work In teams. give presentaHons to their classmates os well os Industry members. Then they hove to wrlte reports on their progress which helps to develop these skills. This Is relevant to the way design engineers work In Industry.

• This Is further reinforced by Involving students from other engineering disciplines.' . business. human factors etc. During lectures students leam how engineering meshes with markeHng and the arts to produce a successful product. Through this , Interdisciplinary work. the students begin to understand each others' disciplinary languages. Furthermore. In the final year. after gaining some experHse In their own fields. engineering and business students take the Interdisciplinary work a step further by working In teams to develop real products for Industry. Students not only. design a product but also develop the technical manuals. develop the safety procedure. devise a market analysis and a business plan. The engineering students leam about the business. economics. human factors aspects etc. from course lectures and from team members who have experHse In those areas.

" ,

• At higher levels a version of the concept Involves cOmbining engineering with advanced degrees or post-graduate degrees In other areas such as shown today In the popular M.BA programmes.' .

Scenario 3: Partnership-mediated leaming ,

• In this partnership programme, Industry brings a real problem to the university, and for an agreed budget, a group of students. working with a company liaison and aided by on engineering deportment, on-ccmpus and off-campus, devise a soluHon to the satlsfaclion of the customer.

• Such ventures help engineering departments overcome some of the biggest " complaints about engineering educclion: students' lack of hands-on experience. teamwork skills and real world appJlcalions. Students also can hone communlcalion skills when they have to write reports and present the soluHcn.

• Every aclivlty should hove technical and non-technical knowledge and skills , objectives. Technical knowledge and skills objectives specify the concepts and strategies to be leamed. Non-technlcol knowledge and skills objeclives specify the teamwork skills. communlcaHon skills. leadership skills etc. that to be mastered and used during the activity.

• The extreme of the partnership programme Is when the Industrial organlsaHon , determines wholly the programme content with the sole obJecHve of fulfll1lng Its specifiC requirements.

233

6.2.2 Responses from Scenario-Based Design with Semi-Structured Interview of Engineering Educators

The audlotape recordings and notes (taken by the researcher) of the scenario

sessions (scenarios scrUtinising and Interview) were transcribed to compile the

contents. The contents were subjected to systematic analysis In an attempt to

elicit characteristics, components and prominent Issues of the Improvement

process or Initiatives In engineering education, from the educators'

perspective. Perception of the feasibility of Initiatives prOjected through the

scenario-based design and views through accumulated personal experiences

In practiSing of engineering education were the main sources Information

gathered.

The contents were analysed using the following major headings, guided by

the questions asked, which grouped the common strand of aspects or Issues

arising from the three scenarios presented In the scenario-based design

approach CIT-medlated learning', 'Integrated curriculum-mediated learning'

and 'partnerships-mediated learning'):

Information acquisition from the scenarios (complemented by

researcher briefing) as the 'anticipatory' approach.

Generally findings comprising feasibility of areas of Initiatives ('IT­

mediated learning', 'Integrated curriculum-mediated learning' and

'partnerships-mediated learning'); where are we now and where do we

want to be (maturity)?; what are the enabling and Inhibiting forces?; and

what actions to take?

6.2.3 InfOrmation acquisition from the scenarios <and researcher's briefing) as the 'anticipatorv' approach

The endeavour to Improve engineering education commences With

anticipating the possible futures In engineering education. In this research, the

'anticipatory' approach was provided by the Scenario-based design method

With semi-structured Interview. This method was used to present possible futures

234

(the three (3) scenarios of Improvement Initiatives), acquire data and

Information. analyse them and act on the data and Information by developing

a framework for Improvement processes. this method could produce

recommendations that are acted upon by the Institution within certain

specified time period.

The baseline for this research Is that the conventional engineering

educational model Is content-oriented together with face-to-face activities

and Interactions such as lectures, seminars, tutorials, laboratory experiments,

field-works, coursework and projects. The organisation of the courses Is fulltlme

or part-time, requiring students to attend predetermined locations at

predetermined times. Face-te-face allows for student questioning and direct

feedback from lecturer to student. this Imposes considerable Infrastructure

requirements on the Institutions Including the provision of lecture theatres,

teaching laboratories, libraries and accommodation facilities. In addition. the

ongoing Improvement Initiatives have concentrated on qualifications, quality

control and development, which In essence Is the evaluation or assessment of

the education. The evaluation or assessment culture has had a tendency to

consider both the education practices and students as products to be

processed like any other material.

6.2.4 Ihe General FIndings

All the educators accepted the scenarios presented as possible improvement

initiatives In education In general and engineering education In particular, and

used the Information from the documents containing the scenarios and

concise findings of phase 1 (see Appendix 2), as the basis and reference for

their responses during the interview. They complemented as well as supported

the discussions and consequently their responses during the interview sessions

with their experiences In the existing engineering educational practices.

The general view of the findings Indicated that a conventional content­

oriented engineering education model is no longer sufficient. The findings also

suggested that engineering education must Include and Initiate new and

235

diverse methods In order to effectively determine and address the current and

future needs In the educating of engineers. Not all the findings and comments

are presented In the form of how many respondents brought them up, but they

are noted due to relevancy and as legitimate Issues for consideration. It Is

Important to note and analyse any points or Issues which are relevant to the

proposed 'Improvement Initiatives' In equipping future engineers for the

'Integrated work system'.

6.2.4.1 Feasibility (In your opInIon. can the InItiatives presented contribute towards Improving engineering education?)

Engineering education must diversify In several areas and all the

respondents (Malaysia and UK educators) agreed that the three (3)

areas of Initiatives represented by the scenarios would play a critical role

In the engineering education successful fulflllment of the requirements of

findings from phase 1.

1. Sultabllltv of the 'Initiatives'.

Suitability of the Initiatives for different levels In engineering education

was explored. The consensus responses from UK's and Malayslan

educators were as follow:

• 'IT-mediated learning' Is suitable for undergraduate and postgraduate

levels especially so for Continuous Professional Development (CPD)

through distant education and learning.

• 'Integrated curriculum-mediated learning' Is suitable for undergraduate

and postgraduate courses but more prominently applied at

postgraduate level.

• 'Partnership-mediated learning' Is suitable for undergraduate and

postgraduate levels Including CPD.

236

2. Contribution to lifelong or Continuous learning

In addition, feasibility were Indicated by the contribution of the InitiatiVes

In fulfilling the requirements of engineers such as the lifelong learning

ability or skills. (How should the 'lifelong leamlng skills' be taught to

engIneers?)

All the educators agreed that: 'IT mediated learning' should be Introduced early on In students'

university experience. They learn subject matter and also various

modes and methods that Information can be accessed, received

and delivered. This can develop lifelong learning ability as students

would be equipped for work environment where they are tasked to

finding and communicating solutions to real world problems.

A multl-disclpllnary team approach ('Integrated currlculum

mediated learning') to problem solving or project best reflects

current Industry or engineering practices would contribute to lifelong

learning ability.

Exposure to real world practices In 'partnership mediated learning'

will Inculcate lifelong learning ability.

3. Teaching and Learning Aspects

Feasibility could also be addressed by the teaching and learning Issues

contributed by the Initiatives. (What are the teaching and leamlng Issues

that are present In the Initiatives that wll/ contribute towards Improving

engineering education system/programme? )

Relevant aspects projected by majority of UK's and Malayslan educators are:

(i) IT Mediated Leamlna (IT-MU The learning environment Includes multimedia-rich. distant learning,

computer hardware and software, Internet and videos. All play

significant role In providing students with diverse means of receiving

and applying knowledge, Information and skills.

237

This would result In a more engaging and Interactive educational

setting.

This helps to address the diverse ways of IndMduallearnlng.

This results In a shift from teacher-centred to leamer-centred as IT­

assisted learning allows students to control learning process with

educators serving as facllltators.

(11) Integrated Curriculum Mediated Leaming (le-MU Traditionally. curriculum for various engineering disciplines focused

on Independent discipline with little to no reference to other

disciplines.

Cross utilisation of multiple disciplines should be Incorporated Into

each discipline-specific engineering education curriculum.

This would Insure graduates leave not only with a firm grasp of their

chosen discipline. but also With the ability to collaborate effectively

with those from various backgrounds on multl-dlsclpllned projects.

Multl-dlscipllnary projects would require students to work In teams

which Instill teamwork skills. communication skills. negotiation skills.

Interpersonal skills and also need them to be more responsible of

their projects Qeamer-centred learning). The lecturers would be more

as facllltators or coaches.

(iii) partnership Mediated Leamlng (P-ML)

Students need opportunities to link theories developed In classroom

with practical application In work environment.

Provide practlcal-orlented industry exposure and Industry-relevant

knowledge and skills through partnerships with government. Industry

and business (customers).

Need high commitment from industry.

This partnership should be 'learning partnership' Instead of just as

conSUltants.

Also. the engineering systems' ability to form partnerships with their

customers and find out what they are looking for Is essential because

238

of the needs to be very clear about the graduates required by

Industry.

Real world experiences can be Introduced In the classroom In the

forms of current. developing projects, practlclng engineers and

corporate executives.

Similarly as In 'Integrated curriculum mediated learning', working

with real world problems or prOjects would expose the students to

teamwork skills, communication skills, negotiation skills, Interpersonal

skills, work organisation skills, ethical Issues, business aspects and also

need them to be more responsible of their projects (Iearner-centred

learning). They would have the opportunities to Interact with and

leam from the practising engineers, professionals and other

stakeholders In the Industry.

4. Teaching and Learning Method The study tried to detect any change In teaching and leamlng method

required that would be relevant to feasibility of the three (3) Initiatives.

(What Is your opinion on the changing roles of lecturers and students?)

All the respondents were In agreement that most students entering

university are as 'dependent or passive learners', relying on their

lecturers to present. organize and Interpret knowledge, (teacher­

centred learning). The requirements of future workplaces Indicated that

they needed to be proactlve with commitment to continuously

upgrade their knowledge and skills. Thus, engineering education must

prepare them during their undergraduate education. They must be

more proactive, take more responsibilities In their learning, know the

sources and means to get Information and committed to continuous

learning. This Is through new method In teaching and learning, the

student or learner-centred learning with lecturers as facllltators of

learning process. The responses from educators from both countries

Implied that all the three (3) Initiatives require changes In roles and

responsibilities of educators and students take on during teaching and

239

learning process, namely from teacher-centred to learner-centred

model of learning. Students w11l be the active learners with educators as

the guides or facllltators of learning.

Another Important point raised by the majority of the respondents

(especially UK's educators) Is that there Is a need for appropriate

Infrastructure, management (administration) and support systems

(technical and management/administrative supports) for both students

and staff In order to support the Improvement process In the curriculum

development production and delivery components. One example

mentioned Is the Loughborough University's 'Flexible Learning Initiatives'

which consists of Interlinked aspects Including support of Innovative

teaching and learning projects; computer-asslsted learning (CAL); study

sk111 provision; continuing education; computer assisted assessment

support and distant learning. this Initiative Is described comprehensively

in Wade et. al (eds.) (1994).

6.2.4.2 Maturity (In your opinIon where are United Kingdom/Malaysia now In

terms of the development of the Initiatives proposed?)

The approach Involving the three Initiatives, 'IT-mediated learning',

'Integrated curriculum-mediated learning' and 'partnership-mediated

learning', are at various stages of development and Implementation In

Malaysia and UK depending on the Institutions that are offering

manufacturing and civil engineering programmes. At one InstlMon

one of the Initiatives could be at 'trial-run' stage while at another It Is

being Implemented, and at another Is st11l at the planning stage. The

developments emerging from the responses are presented In Figure 6.1

and Tables 6.1 & 6.2.

240

Maturity stages

Uncertainty

Awakening

Explanation

The existing development process of engineering educaHon programmes do not Include any of the Improvement InlHcHves but InlHal consldercHons are menHoned.

Awareness of the needs for Improvement InltlaHves but no agreement Is reached on the way forward.

Enlightenment InlHal attempts within the development plan for Improvement process or InlHcHves and seeking methods for the way forward.

Wisdom SystemaHc and early attempts to plan Improvement process using the three Improvement InlHcHves with relevant trial groups and to provide methods to support stakeholders pursuing these InltlcHves.

Certainty The formal development process Is In-placed which consists of the plan of Improvement process using the three Improvement InitiatIVes together with methods, the way forward and speclflccHons of the responsibilities of stakeholders.

Figure 6.1 : Maturity Model of Improvement Initiatives

241

----------- -

Table 6.1: Maturity of Improvement In Initiatives - Spread of Responses

MALAYSIA (MY) UNITED KINGDOM (UK) MATURITY

IT-ML IC-ML P-ML (%) IT-ML IC-ML P-ML (%) (%) (%) (%) (%)

Uncertain 15 30 10 Awakenln 25 60 25 10 10 5 Enll htenment 50 10 30 20 30 5 Wisdom 10 25 40 30 40 Certain 10 30 30 50

Table 6.2: Examples of Quotes on Maturtty Aspects of the Initiatives

Mgturib!; Wh!!:m gr!!: w~ nQw gnd wh~m gQ we want IQ !;!e2 There Is little consensus on the maturity stage of the Initiatives projected amonQ the Malayslan and UK educators. 1) 'Some elements of the three Initiatives of the concept are at various stages of

adoption and development but there Is no concerted or well-planned efforts with clear obJectives. The IT-medJOted learning Initiative Is at the 'awakenlng' stage due to the Infrastructure and ffnanclal constraints and expected to become common by the year 2005 and beyond. The Integrated curriculum-mediated learning Initiative Is at 'enlightenment' stage and will become common by the year 2000 and beyond. The 'portnershlp-medlated learning' Initiative Is at 'certalnty'stage but Is stili unstable due to the variable responses from IndustrY. It Is hoped this component will be consolidated by the year 2000 and beyond'.(UK's educator)

2) 'Some elements of the three Initiatives are at various stages of adoption and development but the trend Is not so clear. The 'IT-medlated learning' Is at the 'enlightenment' stage due to the Infrastructure and ffnanclal constraints and expected to become common by the year 2000 and beyond. The 'Integrated currlculum-medlated leamlg' Is at 'awakening' stage and will become common by the year 2005 and beyond. The 'partnershlp-medlated learning' Is at 'enlightenment' stage and will become common after the year 2000. The concept either with Integration of the three Initiatives or IndMdual/y Will contribute to Improving mechanical and manufactunng engineering education for undergraduate, post-graduate and continuing education levels. Also, the effectiveness of the Initiatives IndMdually or as a group will varies according to the subjects or modules for example Design module needs all three components'.(UK's educator)

3) 'At present the adoption of the concept Is not coordinated as port of departmental agenda but more through Initiatives of lecturers. The 'IT-mediated learning' Is at the beginning stage - 'awakening' as the awareness of the needs for this component Is present but there Is no agreement on the way forward. It Is expected to be prominent after the year 2003. The 'Integrated curriculum-mediated learning' Is also at 'awakening' stage and win become common affer the year 2005. The 'partnership-mediated learning' Is at 'wisdom' stage as experiences are widespread with guldeDnes evanab/e. Further consolidation beyond the year 2000 will make this component as common practice'. (UK's educator)

242

4)

5)

6)

"Presently. from personal experience the adoption of the concept Is not a formal departmental agenda but encouragement Is given to lecturers to Initiate. The 'fT-mediated leamlng' Is at the beginning stage - 'awakening' as the awareness of the needs for this component Is present but there Is no agreement on the way forward. It Is expected to be prominent after the year 2005. The 'Integrated currlculum-medlated /earning' Is at 'wisdom' stage with some forms of formalised procedure and will be further enhanced by the year 2003. The 'portnershlp-medlOfed learning' Is at 'wisdom' stoge as experiences are widespread with guidelines ovallable. For example, the development of undergraduate engineering degree programme specifically for one private corporation. TItan Corporation. Malaysia. Other examples Include practical training for students In Industries and lecturers giving short courses as part of Industries' human resources development programmes. Further consolidation by the year 2003 will make this component as part of InstItutionalised teaching and learning actlv1ttes-.(MY's educator)

"The three Inlttatlves of the concept are at very earlY stage or about at 'awakening' stage development In Malaysia and expected to become common by the year 2010 and beyond. There Is no strategic emphosls towards the development of the concept whether at government policy level or Instttuttonallevel-,(MY's educator)

"The 'IT-mediated learning' Is sttllln Infoncyor 'owakenlng' stage. The 'Integrated curriculum-mediated learning' has been used by some programmes but a lot more must be done. In the case of 'portnershlp-medlated learning' some programmes have existed and Individual staff Inl/lotlves hove been made but there Is no reliable Indicator to gauge the progress. Both 'Integrated curriculum and partnership mediated learning' Inltlot/ves are at 'enllghtenment'stage and also, all three are expected to mature after 2005-.(MY's educator)

In summary, In Malaysia was behind UK in the progress of the

Improvement initiatives, In 'IT mediated learning' the majority of

responses Indicated that Malaysia was stili towards the 'enlightenment'

stage (9Cfl,) with only 10% for 'wisdom' stage compared to UK with 9Cfl,

from 'enlightenment to certainty' stage, The government of Malaysia Is

spearheading the progress In 'IT mediated learning' with mammoth

project of IT-Infrastructure In the Multi-Media Super Corridor ProJect.

In the 'integrated curriculum mediated learning' Initiative, Malaysia

was stili finding her footing with 100% up to 'enlightenment' stage with

6G% at the 'awakening' stage, this was due to the deep-rooted

compartmentallsed nature and attitude of the departments at the

universities. There were few formalised Inter-departmentals' programmes

but the educators were aware of the needs, In UK the responses

Indicated that this initiative was widespread with 9Cfl, In stage

243

'enlightenment to certainty'. The UK's respondents also viewed that

there were stili areas that need to be Improved such as more

coordination as part of departmental activities rather than heavily

depended on lecturers' Initiatives. In the case of 'partnership mediated

learning', Malaysia was progressing well as Indicated by 65% at

'enlightenment to certainty' stage. These were In the form of well­

established Industrial placement for students as part of their bachelor

degree programmes. In the teaching and learning aspects such as real

world proJects, lecturers from Industries and programme customised for

a specific Industrial organization were stili being established. In UK

'partnership mediated learning' were well-establlshed with 90% In the

'wlsdom-certalnty' stage, The respondents Indicated the unstable

nature of this Initiative and the difficulty In sustaining It due to the

variable responses from Industry which In turn depend on the economic

situation and the needs of the Industry.

6.2.4,3 Enablina and Inhlbitina Forces (What are the enablers (drivers) and

Inhibiting (obstacles) you think wlfl facilitate and hinder the

Implementation of the Improvement Initiatives?

Obstacles and enabling force that can result In failure or Improvement

of the Initiatives. Useful techniques to systematically Identify enabling

and Inhibiting forces are the 'force field analysis' (Brager & Holloway,

1992; The Financial Times, 1997) and 'fish-bone analysis' (ImaL 1986).

Both Involve creating a force field of enabling forces, which aid the

Initiatives or make them more likely to occur, and Inhibiting forces, which

are obstacles In the way of the Initiatives. The analysiS of both

techniques Involve looking at which enabling forces may be

strengthened and which Inhibiting forces may be eliminated or

counteracted. It Is also Important to note any points of resistance which

are relevant. (Refer to Figure 6.2 and Table 6.3)

244

1. Force-field Analysis. (Brager & Holloway, 1992; The Financial TImes. 1997)

Enabling Forces

Dlrecflon of Progress

Process Improvement Initiatives In Engineering Education

(Progress depends on which resultant forces Is winning)

2. Fish-Bone Analysis: (Imal, 1986) I Enabling Forces

Start

The progress depends On which resultant Forces Is winning.

Inhibiting Forces

Target

Figure 6.2: Analysis Techniques for Enabling and Inhlb~lng Forces

245

Table 6.3: Enabling and Inhibiting Forces

IT-ML IC-ML P-ML

c) EncbllT'lg_ Forces 1. Effecflve Information gathe~ng and dlssemlnaflng ~& (UK& (UK & My)

structure (IS). (#) MY) 2. Staff development for upgrading and to change (UK& (~& (UK & My)

attitude (#) 'MY)

3. strong leadership at all levels. (#) (UK& (UK& (UK & My) -MY) -MY)

4. Financial resources for Infrastructure, equipment (UK& (UK& (UK&My) and ooeraflonal costs. (#) MY) MY)

5. Govemment's and InsflMons' policy Initiatives and sustained commitment: (#)

maker (~& (~& (UK&My)

6. Systems for conflnuous Improvement that anflclpote (UK& (UK& CUK & My) and tackle various problems. (#) MY) MY)

7. Students get better Jobs. are more employable. (UK & My) 8. Students acquire a better understanding of the (UK&My)

workplace. 9. There are opportunlfles for faculty development (UK & My)

through contact and collaboraflon with IndustJy.

b) InhlblHng Forces 1. Lack of sustained management commitment and (UK& (~& (UK&MY)

leadershlo. (#) MY)

2. Unreallsflc scope and expectaflons. (UK& (UK& (UK & My) -MY) -MY)

3. Resistance to change. (#) (UK& (UK& (UK & MY) MY) MY)

4. There are unequal levels of availability of IT taclllfles (~& and skills (human resources). (#)

5 With reference to collaboraflon. there are different (UK& rules and regulaflons regarding student use of computers depending on unlversllv_ and country. (#)

MY)

6. Computer-mediated communlcaflon (CMC) does (~ not work when students see each other reaulariv. 7. Students have a lack of access to computers. (UK&

presenffy, there Is stili a huge diversity regarding My) access and provision of 'networked' computers for both staff and students. ThIS obviously affects the levels of skiD and confidence In IT for those with limited experience. (#)

8. The reluctance of universities to transform their (UK& (UK& (UK & MY) educaTIonal settings to accommodate such MY) MY) Inltlaflves (#)

9. Educators have few Incenflves to develop the (UK& Inteerated cumculum (#) -MY)

10. Lack of related funding or budget constraints (#) (UK& (UK& (UK & My) MY) MY)

11. The general reluctance to move away from (UK& textbooks. Includlnq students' desire for text. -MY)

246

12.

13

14.

lS.

16.

17.

18.

19.

20.

21.

22

23.

~: 1. 2. 3. 4. S. 6.

Strong departmentol structure make It difficult for (UK& (UK& effective communlcotlon and a tendency to maintain decortmental awnershlp over prolec!.(#)

MY) MY)

Negative attitude of staff. (#) (UK& (UK& (UK & MY) MY) My)

The lack of cooperotlon of the administrator or (UK& (UK& (UK& MY) management (Including policy-makers) due to lack MY) MY) of understanding of the purpose of the efforts and trends In enalneerlna education J,Jll The students entering universities which are the end (UK& (UK& (UK & My) products af the school system - prominently passive MY) MY) learners Mainly the lack of experience or exposure (My) (MY) (MY) (esoeclallv In Malavsla's case). (#)

T DO much bureaucratic process Is retarding the (UK& (UK& (UK & My) efforts (#) 'MY) 'MY)

Scheduling courses around partnershlp-medlated (UK & MY) learning Is difficult. It Is not always easy ta get Industry to participate. (UK&My) (#) Programmes may add an extra time (6 months or 1

I year) to the course duration. (UK& 'MY)

DIfficult to ensure quality of the programmes. (UK& (UK& (UK & MY) MY) MY)

While many partnerships with Industry hove been (UK & My) mounted over the years. sustaining them Is a serious problem. Some lecturers have no Industrial work experience (UK & My) (especially the Junior lecturers) and may find lack of Incentives for working with Industry as partners because tenure decisions and reward systems do not reward such work. In fact. they are likely to see these programs as drains on their precious time, which could be devoted ta publishing and raising research fundlne.

IT-ML - IT-mediated leamlng IC-ML - Integrated curriculum mediated learning. P-ML - Partnership mediated learning. (UK & MY) - applicable In UK and Malaysia from the responses. (MY) - applicable In Malaysia only from the responses. (#) - Forces related to organisational environments.

Most notable about the enabling and Inhibiting forces, comparable to

both countries. is that the majority of the forces have less to do with the

concept of Improvement process or the Initiatives presented and much

more to do with the organisational environment. leadership

(government and Institution), budget availability and motivation for

change. It can be concluded that no matter how feasible or viable the

247

Initiatives may be, they will not replace the conventional engineering

educational practices. Organisations (govemment, university,

department of engineering) must take steps to establish a suitable

climate for change before any significant change can take place.

These may be In the forms of:

strong and sustained leaderships at all levels;

more funding;

cooperation between departments;

planned and concerted effort with strategic emphasis;

more supports for lecturers' Initiatives;

effective Information gathering and disseminating structure

(IS) - to support claimS of Improvement In englneenng

educational practices to make It easier to disseminate

Improvement process (Materials developed must be made

Into accessible Information to support and sustain the

Improvement process);

reward system that recognise Innovative Initiatives;

system or framework for continuous Improvement that

anticipate and tackle various problems;

IT-Infrastructure and facilities;

staff development.

In addition, stake holders Involvement Is Important In order to produce

widely accepted, negotiated, relevant and distributed Improvement

process mechanism and plan of action; which has the support and

ownership of all people especially senior management. senior

academic staff and dedicated support teams. The key players or

stake holders Identified by the respondents from UK and Malaysia

Include the department/faculty of engineering, the rest of the university,

Internal partners (lecturers, management. students and other staff) and

external partners (e.g. school system. Industry, government. professional

bodies, other countries).

248

1)

2)

3)

4)

5)

6)

6.2.4.4 Accreditation (What do you think the aff/tude of the engineering professional bodies towards the engineering courses that adopt the Improvement inltlattves?)

Accreditation was regarded as one of the most Important Issues In any

engineering education change. Majority of the UK's and Malayslan

engineering educators agreed on the following points (Table 6.4)

regarding accreditation of programmes or courses to be considered In

the Initiatives:

Table 64' Accreditation Issues ..

Accreditation Issues· It Is Important to clarify the term accredlfatfon used In this section which Is different from evaluation or assessment. Evaluation ar assessment is the Intemal assessment (within an Institution/organisation) while accreditation Is the assessment performed from oul5lde an Institution by peer review (usually by the respective engineering Institutions/professional bodies).

Some of the prominent Issues on programmes/courses accreditation that transpire through the responses Include:

The accredltaflon of englneenng educaflon programmes by the relevant professional bodies or Instltuflons Is the life-blood of most of the engineering education programmes. This determines whether the programmes' graduates will be recruited by the Industries and also, Is essenflal to the career progression of the graduates. Another essential paint Is that the engineering professions are heavily regulated as any failures will result In legal Impllcaflons. ThUs. engineers need to adhere to the professions' guidelines. regulaflons and code of pracflces for their own legal protecflon.

The professional bodies should be Involved from the start of the planning of the Improvement process using these Inlflatlves. This will ensure their recognlflon.

The professional bodies might Imposed their requirements and then analyse whether these requirements could be accommodated In the programme using these Inlflaflves. Once they are satisfied that the requirements could be accommodated then they will give their blessing.

The professional bodies might be concerned about the duration the programme as whether sufficient knowledge and skills are Imparted to the students.

The professional bodies will recognise engineering programmes that undergo the process Improvement through the proposed Inltlaflves as the elements Involved are already available In bits and pieces In the exlsflng programmes.

There Is a need to convince the profeSSIonal bodies of the viability of the Inlflatlves before gauging their atmudes towards accredltaflon of the programmes.

249

6.2.4.5 Sugaestions for Moving Forward

The amount of knowledge (and skills) and Information that engineers are

collectively called upon to know and acquire Is Increasing far more

rapidly than the ability of engineering curricula to cover It as shown by

the profiles of attributes and knowledge and skills (Tables 5.6, 5.7 and

5.8). Structuring a four-year or even five-year engineering curriculum

that meets the needs of most engineering students appears to be an

increasingly unattainable goal. No matter how many 'core modules',

'workplace or transferable modules' and 'specialised modules' are

offered, however, It will never be possible to teach engineering students

everything they will be required to know when they go to work.

The findings of phase 2 suggested that an approach that may has to

shift emphasis away from providing engineering education and training

In an ever-Increasing amount of content to provide a core set of

sciences and engineering fundamentals (In the 'core components',

'generic component' and 'specialised component') using model

proposed In Chapter 7 together with helping students to Integrate

knowledge and skills across courses (,Integrated curriculum mediated

learning') and equipping them with lifelong learning ability (contributed

by all the three (3) Initiatives).

The findings also suggested that Improvement Initiatives that will move

engineering education In the desired direction consist of:

revision of engineering curricula or courses structure:

teaching and learning delivery aspects or process:

teaching methods (teacher-centred to learner-centred):

organisation environment (leaderships, reward system. staff

development, facilities, resources etc.)

250

NO.

The research suggested that engineering education system can best

be represented by the 'Soclo-technlcal systems' concept or approach:

Toble 6.5: Characteristics of Soclo-Technical System for Engineering Education

CHARACTERISTICS

Charact!i!ristics for Soclo-Technlcal S~ste!!lldentified

1)

2)

3)

4)

5)

6)

7)

8)

9)

Founded on well-occepted and durable 'functional Images' of an engineer and supported by !he concept of IndMdual knowledge and skills development.

Able to strike a balance between teacher-centred leamlng or Instruction and student-centred (or leamer-centred) leamlng culture and also, Individual knowledge and skills development.

Able to strike a balance between current focus on specialised discipline and a fresh focus on Integrative nature of engineering which Involves Inter-dlSClpllnary team to solve significant engineering problem.

Able to strike a balance between research mission of academe and teaching and leamlng Innovation as well as Integrating research output Into !he curriculum.

Able to strike a balance between !heory and practice In real life or work situation In programme's actMHes.

Aware to recognise and anticlpote !he IncreaSing diversity and changing student knowledge, skills and leamlng requirements,

Responsive to !he marketplace/Industry and customer's needs,

Responsive to technological developments and changes In work process,

Suooort IIfelono or continuous education and leamlno concept.

The general summary from the responses Is that the goal of

Improvement process or Initiative in engineering education Is to develop

flexible and responsive systems to face the challenges and demands of

'times of change' represented by key words such as 'changes In work

processes', 'Improvement processes', 'globallsatlon', 'technological

change', 'new Integrated work system', 'new Industrial requirements',

'customer-focussed or orientation', 'broader knowledge and skills for

graduates', 'new learning technologies and methods', 'lifelong or

251

continuing learning', 'creativity', 'innovation', etc. The findings of phase

2 of this research can contribute towards providing a 'framework'

consisting of components and processes for a strategy to Improve

engineering education In both countries that Is applicable at policy,

detailed and operational levels.

Suggestions of activities to move forward Include:

a. Develop a 'framework' for any Initiatives for Improvement

process In engineering education.

b. Build self-directed and cross-functional teams.

c. Create a vision and objectives that motivate team members.

d. Create an environment that enables and facilitates their

achievement.

Some guides on the characteristics of successful Improvement Initiatives

that can be considered for the 'framework':

I. Active top management leadership and commitment.

11. Guide by workable scope of work.

ill. Well-defined and widely communicated organisational

(Institutions, departments, programmes) strategies.

Iv. Integrate Into the existing processes and strategies.

v. Effective and persistent monitoring, feedbacks and results.

6.3 SUPPORTING FINDINGS FROM OTHER METHODS

Relevant findings (data and Information) also were obtained through other

methods at the beginning and also at recent events (after). These would be

used to triangulate the results. They are presented as follow:

252

6.3.1 Response through the System Engineering Undergraduate Programme at Loughborough University, UK • Findings from Interview and case Study. (before)

The 'anticipatory approach' stage of this case study could be represented by

the requirements engineering determination carrled-out by the organisation.

as gathered from the Interviewees. This led to the projection that over the next

20 years (from 1991). both the main products and the preferred ways of

working would change. Work would be more and more In forms of projects

with teams being given the responsibility to undertake them (See Section 5.3.1

for detailed discussion on the requirements). Therefore. the organisation would

need engineers equipped with the knowledge and skills to operate In that work

environment.

The manufacturing organisation approached the Loughborough University In

1991 with a proposal that they would sponsor a degree course for 40 students

per annum If the University could provide a programme of study that fulfilled

their needs. The 'foundation' of the programme Is to produce engineers whose

functional Images and roles include:

problem resolution/trouble shooting;

performing an Integrating role Within the organisation;

facilitating a change emphasis and approach for the organisation

as a whole;

seen as the 'glue' that binds together project teams involving

specialists in diverse disciplines;

able to talk to the different specialists to assist them to Integrate Into

effective teams.

The programme was also 'founded' on the definition of Systems Engineering as

the design, development and maintenance of complex. multl-disclpllnary

entitles or systems.

253

The two most Important 'objectives' are that all students graduating from the

course should:

(a) be effective engineers capable of working In teams and making a

worthwhile contribution in a variety of technical and organisational roles;

(b) have internalised the need for, and advantages of, the systems approach

with some of them (20-25%) being able to operate as 'fully fledged' systems

engineers Immediately.

The concept of 'development of the Individual' was Incorporated In the

programme as manifested by the development of a novel teaching

mechanism for the systems modules. This Is by providing an 'accelerated

leaming environment' where students are encouraged to try out their skills,

praising them when they succeeded and supporting them when they failed.

The main teaching and learning technique Is to put teams of students In

situations where they are asked to do challenging things and then each team

reports back to the whole class. They are encouraged to reflect on what had

happened and how things might have been done differently.

The 'curriculum model' developed encompassed two components:

I) The 'Technical Elements' which would equip graduates with technical

knowledge and skills; Interpersonal and presentation skills; business

knowledge and a positive 'can-do' mentality. These technical elements are,

In the main, taken from existing modules offered by five different

contributing departments In the University namely the Computer studies,

Human Sciences, Electronic and Electrical, Mechanical and Aeronautical

Engineering.

11) The 'Systems Elements/Skills' would equip graduates with knowledge and

skills Including communication, collaboration/teamwork. analysis, synthesis,

confidence, assessment, anticipation. holism, etc .. The systems modules In

the first and second academic year contribute one sixth of the overall

course and focus on getting the students to think about systems issues and

gaining practice with some tools and techniques (e.g. Rapid Prototyplng

254

concept). In the third year. they contribute one quarter of the course and

are made up of the systems group project module and associated lecture

room based module. The systems group project allows the students to

exercise systems skills (tools and techniques) In a more realistic systems

design environment while the associated lecture module gets them to

reflect on the systems Issues that confront them as they work on the projects.

There Is no formal system modules In the final academic year but students

are expected to apply their systems skills In an Individual project.

The way or path toward the operation of the programme encompassed the

following provisions:

Teamwork concept Is used In the management of the programme as no

separate department was formed. A two level management structure was

chosen. The first level concerned with the Issues of policy and day to day

administration. Issues on policy are controlled by a 'Steering Committee'

which contains the 'Heads' of the five contributing departments.

representatives of the sponsoring organisations and chaired by the Head of

the non-academic External Relations Department of Loughborough

University. Day to day administration (Including recruitment) lies within a

single department (Electronic and Electrical Engineering) with the assistance

of external relations staff. The second level deal with the detailed content of

each technical and service modules which Is the responsibility of the five

main contributing Departments plus Mathematics. Management and

Materials Engineering. Staff from the five main contributors help supervise

students taking the systems modules and take part In the discussions

regarding content and teaching and learning method. However. for

administrative convenience. the management of each module Is officially

the responsibility of a single Department (e.g. Computer Studies or Electronic

and Electrical Engineering) but an appropriate transfer of resources Is made

to the other Departments to cover their contributions.

The academics supporting the systems work come from as many

different departments as necessary. No separate 'Systems' Department was

255

set-up as the view Is that 'systems' need to be an approached which

transcend the various speciallsms but can be applied to all of them.

Initially. partnerships with Industry are In the mode of producing

graduates that are required specifically for one particular organisation. The

organisation provided the University with both start-up funding and on-golng

recurrent financial support. The students are sponsored by the organisation.

they were placed In the organisation for one year Industrial training and

they would work with the organisation after graduating. The founding

principle of the course has Incorporated the Initial requirements of a sponsor.

the changing requirements of the sponsor and the offering of a quality

academic product. This is to attract other prospective sponsors In the future.

and the recruitment of two new sponsors In addition to the continuation of

sponsorship by the original sponsor pay testimonies to the success of this

approach. Furthermore. as far as possible. the examples used In teaching

and learning and project work are all taken from real life examples In

workplaces.

this gave birth to a programme of study called the Master Engineering Degree

In Systems Engineering which admitted Its first cohort In October. 1992. It Is a

five-year programme Including a year of Industrial experience. this Is an

undergraduate degree programme awarding Master Engineering Degree In

Systems Engineering.

The Loughborough University Master Engineering Degree In Systems

Engineering programme Is a complete and revolutionary approach for

engineering education at undergraduate level In facing the challenges and

opportunities of times of change. specifically the changes In work process. this

approach has established a unique 'framework' Within which engineering

education systems (soclo-technlcal system) for producing engineers In the

future can successfully operate.

256

6.3.2 Response of Engineering Council UK through revised Standards And Routes Towards Registration that is SARTOR 3 (3'" Edition) or 1997 • Findings from Focus Conference Discussion

The 'anticipatory approach' stage In this case study involved the analysis of the

findings from the Dearlng Report 1997 and SARTOR 1997; and deducing their

consequences on engineering education practices. These were undertaken

through a focus discussion between engineering practitioners and educators

with the panel of experts during the one-day conference.

The New Development in Formation of Engineer in SARTOR 1997

The education and training of engineers (standards and routes) In the United

Kingdom (UK) has been regulated by the Engineering Council UK and Its

predecessors since the 1950s. This Is the overseeing body which decides the

overall rules and deals with the final registration of engineers. The Engineering

Council produces SARTOR documents (SARTOR 1. 1985, SARTOR 2. 1990 and

SARTOR 3, 1997) which contain the rules and regulations for the training and

educational requirements of the various levels of engineers namely 'The

Chartered Engineer (CEng)', 'The Incorporated Engineer (IEng)' and 'The

Engineering Technician (EngTech)'. These are the official documents which

university engineering departments and Industrial training managers have to

obey when devising any courses In engineering education and training.

The detailed administering of the system In the Individual subject areas Is left

to various nominated bodies (the Engineering Institutions). The nominated

bodies are Inspected by the Engineering Council at regular Intervals of no

more than five years and usually less. If their standards and procedures are

considered satisfactory then they are licensed to nominate candidates for

Inclusion In one of the sections of the Engineering Council Register. Each

nominated body has voting rights In the Engineering Council and each

provides representatives to various working groups within It.

The SARTOR 3 (1997) Is a revised version of SARTOR 2 (1990) and has been

developed to enable UK's engineering community to cope successfully with

257

the changes In work process, the engineers requirements (attributes,

knowledge and skills) and to counteract the drift In standards that has been

occurring. The founding principle: It Is that only by maintaining a healthy base

for the training of engineers that UK can successfully maintain standards, vigour

In the profession and meet the demands of the 21 st century.

The 'foundation' of an engineer development Is based on the three levels of

accredited engineer namely the Chartered Engineer (CEng), Incorporated

Engineer (IEng) and 'Engineering Technician'. The definitions of the respective

levels are:

a) The Chartered Engineer (CEng) who would be expected to be Involved

In design, research or the commissioning of major systems. They would occupy

pOSitions In middle or senior management and would normally hove a

university honours degree or higher.

b) The Incorporated Engineer (IEng) has a different training from the

Chartered Engineer. The training would be more practical oriented as

Incorporated Engineer would be responsible for the day-to-day running of an

Industrial plant or the design and commissioning of systems. They could

occupy key positions In operational management and would usually have a

university degree or a Higher National Diploma.

c) The Engineering Technician requirements for accreditation are more

concerned with practical training and experience rather than advanced

qualification. They would be expected to hove an Ordinary National Diploma,

or equivalent, and to hove considerable experience at an appropriate level.

Their work roles Include as technicians, foremen or supervisor.

The foundation Is enhanced by the Individual (human resource)

development concept (the 'formation of engineer,) which Involved the

personal knowledge and skills development of the engineer. Thus, the contents

and approaches of engineering courses need to be re-evaluated to take

258

account of the requirements to live and work In a rapidly evolving professional

world.

The objecHves of engineering education must fulflll:

• the need to Integrate Into the mainstream engineering curriculum and assess

as part of education process the knowledge and skills called the 'key skills'

(SARTOR. 1997) or 'process skills' (Dearlng Report. 1997) namely effective

communication (written. spoken. presentation). working effectively with others

(teamwork) and managing own lifelong learning and development:

• the need to Integrate Into the core curriculum the knowledge and skills

namely social awareness. professional ethics and a knowledge of business

practice;

• the need for the development of specialist knowledge and skills In specific

engineering disciplines;

• the need for future engineers to be equipped to manage career changes.

advances In technology and their own Continuing Professional Development

(CPD);

• the need to address. at fundamental level. the attitudes of engineers to Issues

related to people. Ideas. environment and social responsibilities.

The SARTOR 3 (1997) Is the resulting document which describes a new system

of steps towards recognition for CEng. IEng and EngTech. The main changes

between SARTOR 1990 and SARTOR 1997 Identified are given In Tables 6.6 and

6.7 for Chartered Engineer (CEng) and Incorporated Engineer (IEng):

259

Table 6.6: The Main Changes of SARTOR 1997 from SARTOR 1990 for CEng.

SARTOR (1990 Edition) SARTOR (1997 Edition)

a. §tQt!J!JQ ~IDt (EQY!;;Q!:lQ!JQI ~Q~!2l: ~rtlng PQlot (~QY!;;QtIQDQI ~Qsel: The starling point Is the entry of students to A requirement for four years of academic study accredited honours degree courses. The Instead of three. this Is expected to be met by a usual entry requirements to such courses Is four-year MEng degree or by a three-year a good performance In appropriate accredited BEng (Hons) degree plus a 'Matching subjects at 'A' level GCE. or equivalent. Section'. this 'Matching Section' must Include the Such courses are usually of three years equivalent of a further year of full-time study. duration. although 'sandwich courses' are Although the means by which this Is to be often offered which Include a yea~s achieved can be mony and vanous. the experience In Industry between the pnnclple aim must be one of broadening to second and third academic year. achieve equivalence with MEng graduates.

A further feature for accred~aflon within this new regulation Is that 80% of the Intake must gain 24 points at A level standard to ensure the students will be sufflclenfly able to cope with hleher standard of MEne course content.

b. InltlQI PrQf!!~IQnQII:1!2v!2IQl2m!!nt (IPQl: In!!IQ1 Er2f!!~IQnQI D!!v!!IQQOO!20t (IE0: After gaining an honours degree (BEng The requirements are going to be considerably (Hons». the graduates then need to enhanced. When applicants apply for CEng obtain an engineering post In Industry. status they are going to have to prove that they Their professlonal developments must have acquired sufficient relevant specialist skills Involve promotion. further training. have and knowledge to be considered competent In responsibility for other staff and be part of their own field of engineering. ThUs. they have to a team but will have a degree of keep an IPD joumal In which their records will Independence In how they fulflll ~ have to be certified by their Immediate oblectives. supervisor or bv a speclallv aooolnted mentor.

c. PrQf!mIQ!JQI Review (EI!l: ErQf!m!Q!JQI B~!i!~ (ERl: Four or five years after they started work. ~ this review Is going to be more formalised In that Is time to apply for CEng status. The steps the assessment by Interviewers Is to be based on Include applying to become a corporate evidence of professlonal competence set member of an approprlate Insfltuflon; fill In against agreed cnteria for the type of work they the application form which wants a have been Involved. It Is alsa going to require statement of where they have trained and the candidate to demonstrate a commitment to what jobs they have since graduation Continuing Professional Development (CPD) and (supported by two CEngs. from the to a professional Code of Conduct and the Insfltutlon and a confidential report from a relevant codes of proctice for their chosen field. referee who has known the candidates for the previous 4 years and familiar with their works; write a 3.000 word report on how their works have formed them as engineer; and finally being Interviewed In depth about the report contents by two SUitably exoerienced CEnes.

260

Table 6.7: The Main Changes of SARTOR 1997 from SARTOR 1990 for IEng.

SARTOR 1990 SARTOR 1997

a. ~tQr:!!ng EQID! (EQ~~Q!IQOQI ~~: ~r!!ng PQIo! (!;g~~Q!!QoQI ~Q~: The starting point Is the entry of students to A requirement for three years of academic study two-year Higher National Diploma or a Instead of two. as the educational base. It Is three-year accredited BEng degree expected that specialised and more applied courses. The usual entry requirements to degrees will be developed as well as a vartety of such courses Is a SatIsfactory performance matching courses, equivalent to one-year ful~ In approprtate subjects at 'A' level GCE. or time study. to enable students with Higher In the Ordinary Naflonal Diploma. Naflonal Diplomas to meet the new crtterta.

Some of these matching courses will also be needed by BEng (Hens) graduates who hove decided to follow careers as IEng.. They will need vocaflonally ortented matching courses. as their Initial training would not hove met the more applied requirements of the IEna ..

b. lol!lgl ~f!1Il!IQOQI tl~!1IQI:l!D!10! (lEm: lottlgl Profell!lQOQI Dev!1IQI:l!Il!1D! (I~): IPD requires five years of relevant Industrtal The requirements are going ta be considerably experiences and a pertod of training In enhanced. When applicants apply for IEng their progression or promoflon. status they are going to hove to prove that they

hove acquired sufficient relevant specialist skills and knowledge to be considered competent In their own field of englneertng. ThUs. they hove to keep an IPD Joumal In which their records will have to be certified by their Immediate suoervlsor or bv a soeclallv apoolnted mentor.

c. ~rQf!i!~IQDQI B!i!vl~ (~Bl; Prof!i!li~IQDQI B!!YI~ reBl; After five years experience they apply for This review Is going to be more formalised In that IEng status. The steps Include applying to the assessment by Interviewers Is to be based on become a corporate member of an evidence of professional competence set approprlate InsflMon; submit a against agreed crtterta for the type of work they professional review and then be have been Involved. It Is also going to require Interviewed by two engineers. who may the candidate to demonstrate a commitment to be CEng. or IEng .. Conflnulng Professional Development (CPO) and

to a professional Code of Conduct and the relevant codes of pracflce for their chosen field.

In order to complete the findings. briefly. the Engineering Technician roles are

applying proven techniques and procedures to the solution of day-to-day

practical problems. They can exercise a measure of supervisory and technical

responsibility although they would often work under the guidance of an

Incorporated Engineer (IEng). They contribute to design. development.

maintenance. commissioning and manufacture. An apprenticeship leading to

an approved National Vocational Qualification (NVQ 3) followed by

experience plus an appropriate Professional Review can lead to EngTech

registration via one of the Engineering Institutions.

261

These changes are necessary because of the changed national and

International circumstances (globaITsatlon) namely operation In global market

for goods and services, underlining the need for Internationally recognised

qualifications (especially within the European Union). Also, these changes

Involved changes In work process especially the Increasing use of

'occupatlonal standards' by employers. Finally, these changes apply to all the

engineering disciplines within the jurisdiction of the nominated and licensed

bodies under the Engineering Council United Kingdom (The list of nominated

bodies Is In SARTOR 1997.

The focus group considered these changes and concluded they had the

following Implications. The provisions towards the relevant engineering

education and continuing engineering education systems and programmes

need to Include:

Cooperation or partnership between the engineering education system

with Industry In Identifying the knowledge and skills required. the way to

achieve them and In Identifying as well as clarifying the guidelines for the

operation and Implementation of engineering education programmes. The

employers' representatives highlighted these needs especially In Identifying

as well as clarifying the guidelines for the operatlon of SARTOR 1997 (e.g. the

sltuatlon of Industrial training/Internship In relation with the Matching Section,

etc.).

Cooperation or partnership with the Engineering Council UK and

relevant Engineering Institution Bodies In order to satisfy SARTOR 1997

requirements for courses' accreditation.

As these changes are going to cause a major upheaval In UK's

universities' engineering departments and thus the new requirements are

going to be brought In gradually over a four year period from 1999. Some

examples of the upheavals Included the Increase In duratlon for bachelor

degree In engineering, the Increase In entrance requirements to

engineering programmes and the accreditation of programmes for either

CEng or IEng.

262

The SARTOR 1997 Is going to make tremendous demands upon

universities, the engineering Institutions, as well as the people who run them.

Thus, the engineering departments need to Innovate and Improve their

existing programmes In order to face the challenges and opportunities of

SARTOR 1997, together with Dearlng Report 1997 and UK Foresight

Programme. These Include the holistic view of engineering education

system (the curriculum content, the teaching and leamlng process, policy,

management and administration, technology, etc.), thus the soclo­

technical systems concept.

The increased In breadth and depth In knowledge and skills required by

engineers leads to the Increase In the duration of undergraduate degree or

the academic base for the accreditation of the engineers (3-year BEng

(Hons) to 4-year MEng. programme or 3-year BEng. (Hons) plus Matching

Section).

The needs to provide for continuous or lifelong leamlng engineering

education opportunities as the candidates are required to prove their

commitment to Continuous Professional Development (CPD) and also,

training.

May result, as voiced by some worried participants, in the closure of

some BEng courses, the closure of weaker departments, the creation of

'second division' departments with BSc. courses for engineering, the

uncommon route of MEng, the creation of CEng 'First Class' with potentially

no place for the practical engineers (IEng) and the virtual Impossible route

of registration for mature candidates.

The response shown here provides another unique 'framework' that will pave

the way to Improvement process In engineering education. In my view, this Is a

top-down approach with official policy of the top most body contrOlling the

formation of engineers In UK. the Engineering Council, descending to the

Implementation level of engineering education (universities and training

institutions) In forms of standards and routes to recognition of engineers. The

Impacts and Implications manifested In the synthesiS must be considered In the

development of any engineering education systems. The responses at detail

263

and operational levels are stili the responsibilities of the engineering education

Institutions and providers.

6.3.3 Observations from a Seminar Between Institutes of Higher Education and Industrv In Malaysia on 6·7 August 2002 In Bangl. MalaYSia.

Changes In Engineering Educational Practices Recommended by the Seminar's Findings The consequences for engineering educational practices Identified by

the seminar Include:

I) Engineering education has to keep pace with changes In Industry

requirements.

11) Close collaboration with Industry. ('partnershIp mediated

learning) through attachment programmes. Industrial training for

students and staff and joint projects, Is Important. Strategic

partnerships between universities. government (public sector)

and the private sector must be developed.

ill) Engineering education has to benchmark against International

standards.

Iv) New model of curriculum need to be developed consisting of:

• Broad-based Core Competencies.

• Speclailsatlon In certain competencies.

• Incorporate ProfiCiency In Engilsh Language: ICT

and Business. (,Integrated curriculum medIated

learnIng,)

• Incorporate job placement or Internshlps between

semester for Initiation Into the real worid of work.

(,partnershIp medIated learnIng)

v) Engineering education must be clear on Its continuum concept

where It starts with the basics at the undergraduate level,

foilowed by practical education, In-house training, on-the-job

training and continuing professional development In either

degree or non-degree programmes.

264

vi) Put In place Infrastructure to support the flow of Information and

creative ideas. (toward 'IT mediated learning?

6.3.4 Findlnas from Focus Discussion with Three German's Consultants Working In Malaysia on 22 August 2002 In Kuala lumpur

Chanaes In Engineering Educational Practices Recommendated by the Focus Dicusslon's Findings The focus discussion started with Identifying requirements of the actual

situation at workplaces which was presented In Chapter 5. The next

phase of discussion was to look at the effects on the education and

training of engineers In Malaysia. In this regards, the conSUltants

emphasised the following aspects:

a) 'The workplace as Indispensable leamlng environment'. Thus, partnership

and collaboration between university and Industry Is an Important

component of engineering education system. This concept must be

promoted and IntenSified to the Institutions and Industry Including the

small and medium Industry (SMI), (,Partnership mediated learning). The

activities Include:

(I) Collaboration with practlclng engineers.

(11) Combining teaching, research and practice In collaboration

with Industry.

(Ill) Provide hands-on experiences for students.

(Iv) Leaming functional and extra-functional skills In real work

environment.

They suggested that engineering education when Isolated from the

practice of engineering would become Irrelevant and obsolete.

b) It Is necessary to shift from a teacher-centred to a student-centred

learning approach. The role of lecturers must be revised to become

advisers or facilitators who are asking questions and providing guidelines

for the acquisition of knowledge. The student must be self-reliant and be

an active learner In his/her approach to leamlng. The student plans,

265

executes and monitors her/his learning tasks. The student Is able to

acquire knowledge. communicate and work In a team. ('Teaching &

leamlng method/ approach ')

Two necessary steps to achieve this goal are:

I. The lecturers must recognise the advantages of and be

capable of applying the approach.

11. The students must recognise the advantages and accept the

approach.

6.4 EXAMPLES OF OTHER MAJOR SCENARIOS IN ENGINEERING EDUCATION

Some major change scenarios In engineering education development

Internationally are presented In Table 6.8 to complement the findings. The

scenarios In France and United States of America seem to agree with the goals

of phase 1 and the scenario 3 at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (M.I.T.)

which Is about delivery process - Is In agreement with some of the results of

phase 2.

Table 6.8: Major Change Scenarios In Engineering Education

~~~~~------------~ No. Major Trends In En 1. In France (reference Lesplnard (1998) =="'""~==:':":"-------f

- Mathematics as a tool for modellng. - Basics of Physics and Chemistry are necessary for all. - A deep knowledge of the speCiality (theory. practice. design. etc.). - Familiar with the use of updated databases. and ready for lifelong

leamlng. - Sufficient training In communication. SOCial and human sciences.

management. etc. - Fluent use of two foreign languages. Including English; ability to work In

a foreign envlronment. - Professional skills developed by Intemshlps and proJect work In Industry:

an Increasing participation of companies to training of engineer (altemate curricula. apprenticeship. etc.).

266

2. United States of Amerlcg (ABET CRITERIA 2000 (1996» The called for reform In engineering educallon In United States have been substatlated by numerous reports published between 1981 and 1997; and particularly focussed on engineering as an Integrallve process, to add more breadth of subjects. to Incorporate Interdisciplinary and project based leamlng and to change faculty atIItudes to define education as a student-centred activity rather than just a process of knowledge delivery (Kemnltzer, March 20, 1999).

One of the most prominent Inlllallves Is the development of ABET CRITERIA 2000 (1996) as a starling point In determining the speclflcallons for designing any future undergraduate engineering educallon system which require the engineering programme to demonstrate that their graduates have:

,

• an ability to apply knowledge of mathemallcs.sclence and engineering;

• an ability to design and conduct experiments, as well as to analyse and Interpret data;

• an ability to design a system, component or process to meet desired needs;

• an ability to funcl10n on multl-dlsclpllnary teams; • an ability to Identify, formulate and solve engineering problems; • an understanding of professional and ethical responsibility; • an ability to communicate effecllvely; • the broad education necessary to understand the Impact of

engineering solullons In a global and socletal context; • a recognise of the need for, and an ability to engage In life-long

leamlng; • a knowledge of contemporary Issues; • an ability to use techniques. skills and modem engineering tools

necessary for engineering pracllce.

3. Approaches from Massachusetts InsUtute of Technology (MID (Massachusetts InsHtute of Technology (MID Engineering System DMsloo: hHo:[lesd.mll.edu[: access 28.3.1999)

• One of the responses of MIT to the requirements of the engineering education In the 21st century Is based on the concept In order to solve 21st century problems. engineers need frameworks and methodologies that view technology as part of a larger socletal whole. MIT develops engineering educallon programmes (academiC and research) that reflect the Integrallve aspects of engineering, complement tradll10nal engineering science strengths and enable students to better understand complex engineering systems.

• This Integrallve education approach Is called Engineering System Studies offered by the Engineering System Division (ESD) (founded In 1(98). EDS combines the MlT's School of Engineering's strengths (eight engineering departments) with those of management (the Sloan School of Management), architecture (the School of Architecture) and social sciences (the School of Humanllles and Social Sciences) to develop a new spectrum of solutions for contemporary engineering problems. This Is achieved through developing new Intellectual frameworks, leveraglng MIT and Industry resources In Innovative ways. and building new

267

knowledge critlcol to Industrial competitiveness and sustainable development.

• The Important points on engineering education process related to the MIT approach Include:

At the early stage the programmes start at post-graduate level, the master and PhD programmes. A whole system of business or work processes approach Is adopted where students learn to solve physical engineering problems In systems context Involving all the stages from Initiation (preliminary studies), design. manufacture/construction, marketing and maintenance. Partnerships with Industries (teaching and learning, and research) bring pragmatic expertise Into the knowledge and skills resources. Also, students engage In Industry Intemshlps and research opportunities through these partnerships which Indicates a distinct feature of deep Involvement with engineering practice. The programmes are taught by a growing number of staff who hold dual appointments In ESD and either the Schools of Engineering, Management. Humanities and Social Sciences and Architecture. The programmes also, offer System Design and Management's distance education programme for professional engineers.

• The future developments and engineering problems In Industries such as manufacturing, construction, telecommunications and transportation are Increasing In size, scope and complexity with diverse makeup of the project teams. These call for an Integrative approach In engineering edUcation, such as the System Engineering Studies programme.

• Another approach, as well as contributing to the System Engineering Studies measure above, also has a far reaChing Impacts on engineering education In the future, that Is the Industrial partnerships. MIT has forged many long-term partnerships with Industries such Ford Motor Compony and companies founded by MIT graduates. These partnerships benefit both parties the university and Industry. Mlrs experiences, for example tlhrough 'Leaders In Manufacturing Programme', have Identified several trends In engineering education driven by Industrial portnershlps which need to be considered In any planning of Improvement process. These Include an emerging emphasis on science and engineering practicality; a push to system engineering concept (Including design, manufacturing, marketing and sales); a focus on Interdisciplinary engineering and management; and the Importance of research, discovery and Innovation.

268

6.5 SUMMARY

Prevalent view Is that the primary engineering education systems outputs are

well-educated graduates and hlgh-quality researchers. Thus, engineering

education should be clear about their roles whether to focus on research and

development or Introduce new Ideas, theory and techniques or provide

excellence In teaching and learning or the combinations of all three areas.

The results of the main method, Scenario-based design with semi-structured

Interview of the engineering educators have furnished us with Information on

the feasibility, maturity model, enabling and Inhibiting forces and accreditation

Issues related to Improvement Initiatives In engineering educational practices.

The Information complied from other methods carrled-out before the main

method (case study with Interview, focus discussion at a seminar) and after the

main method (focus discussion at a seminar, focus discussion with consultants),

generally, are In agreement with the results of the main method. These are

complemented by three (3) scenarios of engineering education developments

In France and USA. The results of phase 2 can be compared for UK and

Malaysia but there are some differences, for example the maturity of the

Initiatives. Achieving Improvements Is never going to come In one giant leap. It

Is a continuous and sustained process with many Inhibiting forces to cause

setbacks and enabling forces to drive advances. There are some

recommendations proposed on the path ahead.

This research Is not trying to formulate the detailed curricula or activities of

any engineering education programme. This Is the responsibility of the

respective engineering faculty/department/school. In trying to achieve the

purpose of this chapter, that Is to contribute toward establishing a 'conceptual

framework' of creating an Improvement process In engineering education, the

findings from phase 2 of this research manage to polnt-out some prominent

provisions, aspects and Issues Including:

269

I) The findings Indicate that the design process of Improvement

process of engineering education for the Mure should Include:

• Anticipatory approach to respond to market/Industry or customer

needs (scenario-based design methodology)

• Holistic and Integration (soclo-technlcal systems approach -

goals, roles/responsibilities, foundation, curriculum, delivery

process, stakeholders, etc.);

• Requirements (or Implications) generation through stakeholders

(e.g. engineers, educators, etc.) Input, Involvement/participation

and collaboration/cooperation (build partnerships);

• Continuous Improvement process.

11) The prominent Issues being projected by the respondents In an

improvement process of engineering education for the future are

concerned wlth:-

• IT developments and engineering education;

• Changes in work process and system and engineering education;

• Teaching and learning process, learning-based with emphasiS on

learner/student-centred learning (not just teacher-centred learning);

• Practice of engineering oriented while firmly founded on

fundamentals;

• Incorporate individual (human resource) development orientation

together with subject matter orientation (Integrated curriculum

mediated learning);

• Resources - policy directions, funding, staff, facilities, etc.;

• Partnerships - as ultimately engineering education role Is to translate

theories and tools (Ideas, knowledge, skills, methods, techniques,

etc.) Into applications and practices; thus, learning partnership

(partnership-mediated learning) Is essential Instead of the traditional

partnership mode as a 'consultant';

• Continuous or lifelong education and learning

270

110 The findings also Indicate three prominent areas In engineering

education delivery provisions that will contribute In the Improvement

process of engineering education for the future:

• IT-Mediated Learning

• Integrated Curriculum Mediated Learning

• Partnership Mediated Learning.

There Is agreement amongst all respondents that the engineers we educate

today will become the Industrial employees, educators (pre-college and

higher education), and researchers of the future. The task they have set Is to

ensure that they are prepared to face and overcome the challenges of the

next century. In order to be effective In preparing our students for these

Increasingly complex roles, while continuing to provide the research leadership

upon which economic competitiveness ultimately relies, we will have to

undertake Improvement process for the system. What Is called for from us Is the

more effective application of the analytic skills which characterise our

technical work to the social problems that face us. It Is essential for each

engineering Institution to update Itself within the context of an Institutionally

shared vision of the overall system and Its goals.

Generally, the following actions are recommended for all Institutions:

• Conduct an Institutional self-assessment

• Improve teaching methods and practices

• Ensure that the curriculum that support Institution's Improvement

plan/process fulfill the needs of market/Industry and customers

• Expand beneficial interactions through partnerships.

271

CHAPTER 7

CONCLUSIONS, RECOMMENDATIONS AND FURTHER RESEARCH

7.1 INTRODUCTION

This research should be of Interest to those Involved in designing, planning

and managing engineering or technical educational programmes. This

chapter acts as a conclusion by providing a summary, discussion of analysis

and statements about the recommendations for approaches, In the form of

an 'Improvement process framework'. Thus, Chapter 7 describes a

framework that can help engineering education systems or instlMlons plan

and devise Improvement measures, Initiatives or Innovations In the

engineering education processes to face the challenges, requirements and

opportunities of the 'times of change'. Before presenting the ,framework

the findings of phase 1 and phase 2 are summarised because they provide

the basis for the recommendations In the framework.

In planning the 'Improvement process In engineering education', the

following challenges must be overcome and thus, form the research

questions:

I) How to overcome the difficulty of anticipating or predicting the future,

or even projecting current trends Into the future?

10 How to overcome the difficulty of developing clear objectives for the

'Improvement process In engineering education' which are

appropriate for whatever view of the future unfolds?

110 How to develop a system or framework which will address and meet

these objectives?

Iv) How to overcome the difficulty In meeting the above challenges by

considering the enabling and Inhibiting factors, as what Is clear about

the future It Is continuous?

272

7.2 THE STUDY

This research contributes to the body of knowledge and practice In the

planning of the 'Improvement process In engineering education' through

the concept of human resource (indlviduaO development or the formation

of engineers' to face the challenges and opportunities of 'times of change'.

The contextual focus Is the new world of work. with particular attention to

that Involving civil engineers and manufacturing engineers In United

Kingdom (UK) and Malaysia. In this time of rapid change, It Is essential to

have In place an agile, responsive and adaptive engineering education

system that can respond appropriately to Intemal and extemal forces.

This research Investigates the following Issues In order to meet the above

demands:

I. The major characteristics, In the form of Ideas and tools (concepts or

methods or techniques), of the 'new world of work' In general, and also

specifically In the UK and Malaysia. Then, the Implications on work

processes/activities and the consequent requirements are Identified and

studied.

11. The major Mure planning activities In Malaysia and the UK Including the

methods used and their Importance.

Ill. The major characteristics, In forms of Ideas and tools (concepts or

methods or techniques), of 'new world of work' In construction Industry

and manufacturing Industry In general and specifically In UK and

Malaysia. Then, the Implications on 'business or work processes/activities'

(including roles and responsibilities) and the consequent requirements of

civil engineers and manufacturing engineers are Identified and studied.

Iv. The major attributes, knowledge and skills required by civil engineers and

manufacturing engineers In construction and manufacturing Industries

respectively.

v. The major aspects or areas related to any approaches ('Improvement

process In engineering education') towards producing an effective plan

In the 'formation of civil engineers and manufacturing engineers',

specifically through Improvement in engineering education systems.

273

The conclusions and recommendations, presented In this thesis, are

applicable for UK and Malaysia situations but some of the Important

differences are highlighted.

The conduct of this research comprised the following activities:

I. Uterature review of the major characteristics, In forms of Ideas and tools

(concepts or methods or techniques), of the 'new world of work' In

general and the Implications on 'business or work processes' together

with the consequent requirements;

11. literature review of the major scenarios of change Involving Mure

planning activities In Malaysia and the UK Including the methods used

and their Importance;

Ill. literature review of the major characteristics, In forms of Ideas and tools

(concepts or methods or techniques), of 'tImes of change' In construction

Industry and manufacturing Industry and the Implications on work

processes/activities (including roles and responsibilities) and the

consequent requirements of civil engineers and manufacturing engineers

In general, and speCifically In UK and Malaysia;

Iv. a 'case study' of real-life examples of an organisation In the middle of this

change scenario;

v. a focused discussion with a panel of experts at a one-day conference on

the response of the UK's engineering community lead by Engineering

Council to the challenges and opportunities of the 'times of change';

vi. applying scenario-based design method with structured questioning

(scenarios plus postal questionnaire survey) to obtain responses on the

following aspects relating to 'times of change' from civil engineers and

manufacturing engineers In Malayslan and the United Kingdom:

"major change characteristics of the 'new world of work' In form of the

'key elements of change'

·change In roles and responsibilities

"attributes of the civil engineers and manufacturing engineers

"knowledge and skills required by the civil engineers and manufactUring

engineers

"effective methods of delivery chosen by the civil engineers and

manufacturing engineers.

274

vI. a literature revlew on engineering education and the Impacts of the

'times of change';

vii. applying scenario-based design method with semi-structured

survey) of the questioning (scenarios plus semi-structured Interview

engineering educators and other contributing educators on selected

aspects related to changes In engineering education practices;

viii. proposing a framework for Improvement process approach In

engineering education.

7.3 SUMMARY OF FINDINGS

The following Table 7.1 summarises the conceptual essence of the findings complied throughout this research:

Table 7.1: Challenges to Engineering EducaHon In "nmes of Change"

World or World of Engineers (Chapters 3 Engineering EducaHon PracHces Work (Chapters 2 andS) (Chapter 6) - Phase 2

and 3) - Phase 1 • Times of change • Malaysia's and UK's • Engineering education should couple

or Information or future developments with their coun1Ty's strategic process Knowledge Age plans. Including the and observe global competition to exhlbltlWo manufacturing and support the coun1Ty engineering defining constructlonlndustrtes needs. characterls11cs (Chapter 3). Involve namely the upgrading of the • Engineering education need to be Increasing rate Industrtes' able to anticipate or at least of change and technologies. These observing and be sensitive to these Increasing upgrading of changes and transitions (future complexity. technologies are developments. work processes.

either due to a employment. restructuring. etc.) • New Issues will continuous strategic

be holistic and choice (processes • Historical discussion on the multldlsclpllnary Improvement) or development of engineering (systems global competition education In Chapter 3 showed that concept) In (globalization). previously the development and areas such as progress were exclusively concemed Industnal • When the Industries with knowledge. that was In what developments. upgrade their areas or disciplines should an business or work technology. there are Ins11tutlon be strong. In the process corresponding work Information/Knowledge Age the changes and process changes questions and demands are different education or enabled and/or driven namely can the engineers solve human by the new Ideas and problems. can they manage resources tools (IT. Information & projects. can they work In teams. can development. knowledge. they communicate effectively with

globallsatlon. new customers? These are to a large • Continued rapid concepts. new extent attributes. knowledge and

development of techniques. etc.) skills. which are IndMdual science and which will require new characteristics. All these are due to technology. knowledge and skills. amongst others Industrtal problems supported by continuing knowledge are becomlna more comolex and to

275

research and and skills upgrading; solve them require collaboration and development thus Introduction of Interaction belween many people (R&D) In new ways to leam and with variety of disciplines (multi-Malaysia and communicate. disciplinary teams); Industrial work UK. will establish today and In the future Is more often new knowledge • The future economic performed as projects which require frontiers and vitality of both countries certain skills from people who make new (Malaysia and UK) will be manage or participate In projects; technologies based on their ablllnes to and certain skills and personal feasible. Results create new. Innovallve characte~stlcs are necessary for and applications technologies and positive human Interaction and of these new applied sciences. Use of collaboration. Thus. to educate In Ideas and tools current technologies knowledge and skills In form of will change and creation of new IndMdual characteristics will put new Indu~al technologies are at the conditions In the teaching and developments. heart of the englnee~ng learning process and also Interaction business or work profession. ThUs. belween university and Industry. processes. englnee~ng education organisational must hove an eye on the • The demand for higher education Is supports and fruits of the profeSSion's soaring due to transformation In human activities. and designing Industry (examples manufactu~ng resources englnee~ng educational and construcnon Industries In (Including civil programme towards Malaysia and UK) which dictate that and these ends will hove a human resources must be more manufactu~ng tremendous Impoct on educated. or that they upgrade their engineers). the viability of the knowledge and skills or acquire new

profession. Further. this knowledge and skills. will be enhanced If englnee~ng education Is • The drMng and/or enabling forces Intimately familiar with and developments presented In the concept of Chapters 2 and 3 may not be entirely Innovation. the same In Malaysia and UK.

however. they do exert considerable • It Is recognised by both mutual Influences. They are external

countries that to hove to engineering education; but. In tum. well educated human they generate some Internal forces resources Is Important that challenge engineering from Indu~al growth education programmes. for examples viewpoint as better curriculum reform. redefining the educated human educational process and coping with resources are more as well as embracing technological Innovative. creative. change to advantage. Further. all the Inventive and responsive above lead to the key message that to change. Is engineering education (Including

civil englneenng and manufactu~ng • Human resources englnee~ng) In Malaysia and UK must

(lndMdual or a team) evolve to keep pace with assigned to solve the unprecedented changes occurring In problem (e.g. the civil times of change. and manufacturing engineers. must hove breadth and depth In Translating these concepts Into a viable knowledge and skills. flexible and respanslve englnee~ng

education systems In the face of rapid

• The main conclusion changes In Industry and society; raises a from Chapter 5 Is that core set of Issues and challenges facing the civil engineers and englnee~ng education. Moving from manufacturing there. the following are the preliminary engineers require a mix themes of the evolution of englnee~ng of technical and non- education deduced from the flndlngs of technical knowledge phase 1: and skills. The non- • need to study the future Indu~al

276

technical knowledge developments, the future and skills consist of requirements, curricular content and managerial. business professional experiences; and economic. legal. • engineering education must be human relations. designed to accommodate current communications. etc. trends and future needs - need for The conventional anticipatory component such as the practice Is to take the scenario-based design method; engineering graduates • engineering education must create and consider them as more networks and partnerships with 'seml-complete'. and Industry; with varlely of engineering. then graft on the other sciences. business and IT disciplines; required knowledge and with leaders In education; with skills at a later stage of govemment; with school systems their careers. But In and with soclely to bring knowledge 'times of change' with from national and global context; tremendous • engineering education needs to competition, this focus on engineering as Integrative approach will put process by embracing and organisation at a encouraging Innovative and disadvantage. Also. the creative problem soMng (that other required facilitate the ability to Integrate knowledge and skills complex systems and technology) keep Increasing and and also project work across many changing. thus different disciplines and fields organisation will find It (teamwork and making the difficult to plan and connections that will lead to deeper Implement an effective Inslghts, more creative solutions. and 'graft on' programme. getting things done);

• easier access to

• The findings from phase Information/knowledge and 1 of this research polnt- Improved connectlvlly (IT) will out that the 21 st century enable engineers to make more or future engineer needs productive networks to leam and to have the capacity to: create;

- design meeting safely. • while acknowledging scientific. reliability. mathematical and technological environmental. cost. knowledge and skills are necessary operational. and for professional success. nevertheless maintenance an engineering student must also objectives; experience the functional core

- Invent. design and activities of engineering -produce products (and participating In the entire concurrent services); process of realising a new product

- create. operate. and through Integration of seemingly sustain complex systems; disparate skills Is an educational

- understand the physical Imperative; engineering education constructs and the should therefore shift emphasiS from economic. Industrial. course content to a more sociaL political. and comprehensive view. a view that Intematlonal context In focuses on the IndMdual (human) which engineering Is development and the brooder practlced; educational experience In which

- understand engineering IndMdual courses and experiences as Integrative process - are connected and integrated. In Integrating different the researcher view. this concept will forms of knowledge to become more and more Important some purpose; In the Information/Knowledge Age.

- understand and participate In the • Developing a system or framework process of research and which will address and meet these develooment; objectives

277

.......... ------------------- ---------------------------------------------

- gain the Intellectual skllls needed for lifelong • Overcoming the difficulty In meeting leamlng; the above challenges by

- develop attributes. and consldertng the enabling and knowledge and skills obstructing factors. as what Is clear beyond the traditional about the future Is Its prevailing constraints of the emphasis on accomplishing much classroom; with very little.

- adept to both abstract and expertentlal leamlng.

- understand certainty and handle ambiguity.

- formulate and solve problems. - work Independently and In teams. - meld englneertng science and technology. and englneertng practice.

278

7.4 LIMITATION OF THE RESEARCH

Some limitations In the research warrant particular attention. The limitations

noted here were primarily due to low response rate and limited In scoplng

of engineering disciplines and context, for example two engineering

disciplines In two countries. This Is Just to Indicate the researcher's concern

and caution In Interpreting the results. Nevertheless, It Is the opinion of the

researcher that the findings reported here are substantiated by the

extensive range and types of data obtained In the research. Furthermore,

conclusions are derived through the accumUlation of data from different

countries UK and Malaysia, from different disciplines of engineers, Civil and

Manufacturing and also from two different scenarios, 'processes

Improvement' and 'globalisatlon'. Thus, this gives confidence that the

conclusions are generallsable. Also, the validity of the research method

come from triangulation data sources namely 'Scenario-based design' with

questionnaire, 'Scenarlo-based design' with semi-structured Interview,

Interviews, focus seminar discussions. The data were enhanced by

Information from recent events.

The research Is exploratory In nature, using two countries (UK and

Malaysia) as the contexts and also two types of engineering disciplines as

representations of engineering as a whole. The researcher view Is that a

complete analysis of the overall area of this research Is highly contextual

and this particular research proposes a framework for going forward rather

than any ready-to-use solution.

The method used to elicit data, 'Scenario-based design' together with

accompanying structured questionnaire, presented the respondents with

opportunities to respond In a number of ways. They might take the easy

way out by responding to the questionnaire without scrutinising or engaging

the scenarios or they would have gone through the scenarios diligently and

responding by referring to the scenarios. In the researcher's opinion both

paths could have been taken by the respondents. This was alleviated to

some degree by choosing a representative title for each scenario. This

would affect the data obtained through this method but In this research,

279

the effect was minimised because of the representative titles as well as the

'well-known' nature of the two scenarios presented.

7.5 CONCLUSIONS

7.5.1 General Overall Conclusions

The general overall conclusions are ones that are common to all

circumstances considered in the research namely Malaysia and the UK, civil

engineering and manufacturing engineering and also, 'processes

Improvement' and 'globallsatlon' scenarios. In order to maintain the flow of

the findings with respect to conclusions, they are presented In two parts In

accordance to the stages of the research, the phase 1 and phase 2:

The researcher observed that the respondents were engaging In the

scenarios presented. This was shown by the differences In the findings which

were more 'scenario-oriented' than 'discipline or country-orlented'. The

examples Include "foreign language skills", 'cultural understanding and

development" and "International professional and technical standards"

were rated highly In 'globallsatlon' compared to 'processes Improvement'.

The Items Involved In the 'discipline-oriented' and 'country-oriented'

differences were mainly due to higher placement In ratings from one group

compared to the other. Section 5.2.4 discussed some of the differences and

should be referred to when using the Information In future work.

I) The Phase 1 - The Necessity of Improvement Process

The focus on changes In workplace and work process Involving the

engineers was obtained through the literature study (Chapters 2 and 3) and

findings In the phase 1 of the research. The demands now being placed on

engineers bring the following needs Into sharp focus which must be

considered In the formulation of objectives of change Initiative or

approach, namely the 'Improvement process In engineering education':

a) To equip the engineers to the changed patterns of engineering work

processes in the Information/Knowledge Age that are emerging and

replacing the traditional pattern of working. This Is represented by the

280

change from traditional work processes system to new Integrated system

(see Figure 7.1 ):-

Function 'A'

FuncllOn 'B'

Function 'C'

Traditional Work Processes System

Function '0'

to New Integrated System

Figure 7.1: Traditional Work Processes System to New Integrated System

The new integrated system of working is embedded with these elements:

• The increasing pressure of globallsation with intemational competition;

• The prominent shift from the linear/generic mode of business or work

processes and aiso Innovation with their sequence of operation, design

(suitable also research) and development, production or manufacturing,

marketing and sales, to simultaneous or concurrent operation (the

grouping together of knowledge and skills to provide the service of

linking a technological opportunity and a market need.(Chapters 2, 3 &

5);

• Improvement processes from 'mass production of more or less standard

products' to 'batch production of customised and highly sophisticated

products for niche markets', thus moving from mass production

techniques to Innovative (flexible, JIT, CIM, etc.,) production techniques

and on Increasingly active engineers' role at the end product and Its

market/customer front line (Chapters 2, 3 & 5).

• The Increasing commercial or business elements In the engineers' role as

the day-te-day activities of Individual engineers become deeply

Immersed In commerce or business. This leads to requirements in

management and dealing with customers In a business sense as It Is no

longer appropriate to assume that the engineering divisions can function

In isolation from other business functions/processes and the engineers

offer only technical services. Also, to provide adequate Intellectual

281

support for the Important attributes of engineering work In design and

commerce/business related activities (Chapters 2. 3 and 5).

• Traditionally, the professional activity that Is embedded In the engineers'

mind consists of Instrumental problem solving by the application of

scientific and technological knowledge (theory and technique) and skills

accumulated through education, research and development and also

practice. This leads to the characteristics of engineering's body of

knowledge and skills which are specialised, firmly bounded, scientific and

technological. and standardised. Thus. engineering education Is

traditionally grounded In scientific and technological knowledge and

skills. This has to be expanded for effective practice In a rapidly

changing technological society and In uncertain and continually

changing real-world practice to Include:-

management and business knowledge and skills Induced by

Increasing responsibility for decision making In business (commercial)

and organisational matters (Chapters 2. 3 & 5).

emphasis on design. Invention and production aspects (Chapters 2.

3&5).

• Since engineers' concern Is to apply knowledge and skills to real-world

problems. and the environment Is continuously changing (together with

the knowledge and skills which Is always growing and changing).

engineers have to continuously update and upgrade their knowledge

and skills through continuous or lifelong learning. (Chapters 2. 3 and 5)

b) The list of knowledge. skills and attributes obtained through this

research are not exhaustive. and no doubt will continue to change

because there may well be other possible Mure scenarios. The precise

names of the various knowledge and skills are not Important. What matters

Is the message behind the list; that the many and varied knowledge and

skills or abilities are all resources that engineers can use to contribute to the

world of work. even to the world and to make a difference.

c) It should be the first duty of engineering education to help the

students build up an understanding of the profession of the 'engineer'. In

the 'Introductory Courses'. This could be based on a suitable profile of

282

engineers which consists of the well accepted and durable 'functional

Images' and also, attributes, knowledge and skills required. The 'holistic

engineer profile' In Figure 7.2 Is developed from the findings of phase 1. This

profile Is suitable for engineers that will face the new Integrated work system

manifested by the changes In work process, roles and responsibilities of the

engineers as shown by Figure 7.3 (Chapters 2, 3 and 5).

283

~ • Engineer as

speclollsed problem solver.

• engineer as colT'4>9tent In sciences and tecMology

• Engineer as teclY1lcol business monagerlalleadet

• Engineer os designer. Inventor and producer

• Engineer os eal'l'4>9tent In reseorc:h and development

A TI'RIBUJES

o An ability to ldenflfy and define a problem and evaluate a~emcttve soIuIIons. and apply one or more designs 10 solve the problem

o A breactth cnd depth of technical cnd technOlogical background

o An effectiveness In colTlrT'<JM:aflng Ideas OntefP9"OnaI cnd Irrtra-pe""",,O and cUent reJoflon

o Ccpable In using computers cnd Informaflon technology (!I) for comm.nlcoflons. analysis and design

o Knowledgeable In human factors and humanItIeS

o Knowledgeable af business strategies and monagement practices

o An apprecIct\on cnd u>:kIrstandlng of Systerrs EngineOOng Perspect1ve/Approacn. sacJoI & er'NIronment

o A capability 10 continue the leamlng e_~nce - conflnuaus or IWelOng leamlng

o An u>:kIrstandlng ofwo~_ cuIIIxes development cnd languages

o High professIOnal cnd ethical standard o Ccpablllty of working across disciplines In

a team cnd exercising Inte!d1sclpllnary skills

o Recognbe cnd appreclote the existence of new teChnIques e g. concurrent englnee~ ele.

o Knowledgeable In the Management of Human Resources

o Knowledgeable In Quality Management Systems cnd Procflces -TQM. Ccnflnuaus Improvement ele

o Knowledgeable of emerging Inncva1ille construc1lcn technologle.

o Knowledgeable In research cnd development melhoclls cnd procflces

Figure 7.2: Holistic Profile of Engineer

284

o Project Management o Management PracIIc:es In

Manufa<:lullro/ConsIl\JcIIon Project Process

o Information Technalogy (!I) for Englnee~ng ProfesslOnab

o COrr'!:>uIar-Alded Design (CAD) and DraftIng. CAD/CI>M ele.

o Quality Systerrs and Management including TQM

o Quant1tatIve Analysis (Include statisIIc$)

o Systems Englnee~ o New Technique. - Ccncurrent

Englnee~ ele. o InnovatIVe Cons1ructIon

Technologies/Advanced Mate~b EngInee~ and TechnalgleS

o Research and Development In Manufa<:IuIIro/ConsIl\JcIIon

NON-TECHNICAL KNOWJ.EDGE AND m.Il

o Ccrrm.nlcailOn and Human Reio1lons skills

o EconarT'b and Anance o Analytical wI1h Attention 10

Detolb skllb o InnavaiIve and CreatIVe sldlb o Problem<OMng skills o Markeflng skills o Leadership skills

o Teamwork skills

o foreign languages ,ldlls

o CUltural Understandng and Development

o OIganlsaflanal and Working Procflce skllb

o ConIInuaus or Ufe-long Leamlng skllb

o BusIness skills Onclude. International BusIness)

o International Professional and Technical Standards

o Negoflaflon .ldlls • Management of Human

Resources

• HlJ'T'IOn Factors o SocIoI5clences

!;;HANG~ IN ROLEStJOBS CHANGES IN WORK • Quality Engineer

PROCESS. 'KEY / • Material Engtneer ELEMENTS OF CHANGE' • Network Engineer

Teamwork 1 /" • Design Engtneer • New emphasis on • Manufacturing

/' Improvement englneertng design and Engineer f1;auallty I LearnIng

productlon/cons1ructlon • • Project Engineer Focus concurrent ~

efficient, responsive and ./ Globallsation Jenglneering effective

Q!ANG~IN ° New techniques enabled RESPONSmILITIES l:nterconnectMty by Information technology CUstomer and Networks a)~ Focus 1\ e g. total quality

I Etc. management. continuous /0 Ensure !he progress Of \. ~

quality Improvement. re- technology (current ond New Integrated System englneertng. concurrent developing)

englneertng • Develop cnd opply new • Integrative aspects of technologies at highest

englneertng design. effiCIency practice and • Promote and apply management In systems advonced de~gns and

(drawing on techniques de~gn me!hods

\: Introduce new cnd efficient ~ and knowledge from many construC1lon techniques

disciplines) Introduce new and efficient • Incorporate humanities .l morkeflng techniques

(human factors) and social • Pioneer new englneertng sciences Into the services understanding of problems • Pioneer new mancgement and solutions me!hods Increased Interaction and • Mancge and direct hlgh-rlsk • and resource Intensive relationships beyond

1\ projects

workstatlon • teamwarklng • GMng profe~nal and cllent-ortentatlon Judgement

• Management of vast J.. Profitable mancgement of quantity of Informctlon Industrtal/commerclal

• Time-compressed working enterprtses environment

• High degree of empowerment In decision- b) Jm making

• Exponent of today's • Dynamic/mobility of civil

1\ technology (current and engineers/engineers In developing) manufacturtng roles - J.. Maintain and mancge design to appllcoflons of current cnd slte/manufacturtng to developing technology at project manager to team highest efficiency leader to soles engineer, • Exercise Independent etc. technical Judgement and

• The needs of continuous or mancgement In a

life-long leamlng 1\. reccgnlsed field of technology Provide Independenfly and as a leader, a significant ~ Influence on !he overall effeC1lveness of !he organisation

• Key personnel In operoflonal management funC1lons

Figure 7.3: Integrated Wark System: Changes In Work Pracess. Roles and Responsibilities of Engineers

285

Ii) The Phase 2 - Issues for the Change Approach in Engineering Education

In accordance with the traditional working system In most organisations,

traditional engineering education has been specialised In disciplines.

Graduates are experts as civil engineers, manufacturing engineers,

mechanical engineers, electronics engineers and so on. Much speCialised

knowledge and skills has to be stored In their brains, but the capability to

work In a team and to know where to get knowledge has not been given

the same level of consideration.

The research was carried out In two phases. In phase 1 where practising

engineers from Civil and Manufacturing were asked to assess two broad

scenarios of the future namely 'Processes Improvement' and 'Globallsatlon'

leading to the determination of Mure requirements of the engineers. The

message from phase 1 Is that engineers In the future have to be prepared

through their education for this new Integrative system of working.

Consequently, the approach to modern engineering educational practices

need to be explored. Phase 2 of the research proceeded to do that where

educators related to engineering education were asked to assess scenarios

for the future delivery of engineering education namely 'IT-mediated

Learning', 'Integrated Curriculum-Mediated Leamlng' and 'Partnership­

Mediated Learning'. The approach of preparing the future engineers

deduced from phase 2 emphaSises the development of the Individuals

(human resources), the' engineers', not the development of any specialised

engineering disciplines.

The main conclusions deduced from the process and subsequent findings

of this research Include:

a) The validity of any education programme, Including engineering

education, requires the maintenance of the programme and the

verification of the students' progress. The responses from educators In UK

and Malaysia Indicate that Improvement measures must Include change In

the organisational element (goals and objectives, structure, role, functions,

culture, etc.), curriculum element (foundation, Individual development

subject matter (material)) and teaching and learning (or delivery provisions)

286

- --------------------

element. In order to have a desired Impact. Engineering education systems

and Institutions have to recognise that Improvement efforts or Initiatives

through 'IT-mediated leamlng', 'Integrated curriculum-mediated leamlng'

and 'partnership-mediated leamlng', need to place equal emphasis on the

curriculum element (subject/content matter (materlaO) and teaching and

leamlng element (delivery provisions). In addition and not least Important.

the organisational element must be modified to support and facilitate the

Improvement effort.

A relevant lesson from the Introduction of technologies In the education

and training setting Is that most of these endeavours (Introducing

technologies In education) were characterised by poor documentation

and Inadequate replication which finally led to the failure of teachers to

adopt the new technologies on any large scale (Forsyth, 1996).

b) The findings Indicate a need for change In attitudes which are applied

to engineering education. Traditionally, engineering education was looked

upon as a series of Isolated events which were themselves Identified and

developed In Isolation which then produced a sum of knowledge and sklJls.

The new approach Is that each event Is linked and relevant to every other

event and to the total requirements of the students, Industries and work

environment or context. The new approach, with discussion In context,

suggests that the lecturer Is needed to be not only much more Involved In

teaching and leamlng with the students. but also with other stakeholders

such as the Industries, the public, the govemment and the pOlicy-makers.

c) The responses Indicate a challenge for engineering education to

consider the requirement that future engineers should be competent for

continuous or lifelong leamlng. Education as a lifelong leaming process Is

necessary not just for professional as well as personal growth and

development. but also, merely to stand stlJl In the rapidly changing world.

This Is being reinforced by Tony (1991) who states that the days when an

Individual leamed skills under professional training, apprenticeship, etc .. In

order to equip the Individual with a job for life are diminishing. Also, Forsyth

(1996) Indicates the notion that students (Including engineering students)

287

can be prepared for the complexities of workplace In the 21" century by

being equipped In a limited range of employment-related knowledge and

skllls only, Is changing to lifelong education. Thus, the need for emphasis on

human or Individual development of the engineers concept (e.g. the

'formation of the engineer') In any Improvement process Is of greater

Importance. This Is enhanced by a significant strengthening of links between

theoretical and applied leamlng.

This shift means that the leamlng process which could be described as

lecturer-centred is changed to a process of lecturers facilitating access to

Information for the students, 'Ieamer or student-centred leamlng'. This also,

places a greater emphasis on the students, who Is expected to be active In

their leamlng process such as In every aspect of leamlng obJectives, criteria

to the choice of teaching and leamlng and self-evaluation. People with a

exploratory tendency will benefit from this component of the Improvement

measures In engineering education.

In relation to the above aspect. In any kind of educational process, the

task is to guide students from 'where they are' to 'where you want them to

be.' This change In behaviour Is Identified as leamlng. The Important

characteristics of education systems are the body of knowledge and skills of

the subject and the ability and means to communicate these to the

students effectively and effiCiently. Rae (1992) mentions that research by

educational and Industrial psychologists showed that the lecture method of

education delivery, where the students are recipients not participants, sat

passively and were expected to accept Information, and to be able to

translate this Into knowledge and skills, was often not the most effective

method. This situation Is where the access to and manipulation of

information and activities In teaching and leamlng context, Is traditionally,

predominantly lecturer-centred.

d) These findings stress the need to recognise the changing roles of

both lecturers and students In the improvement process of engineering

education.

288

Changing Role of Lecturer

The obvious role of lecturer Is as a deliverer, so the key skill to acquire Is

'presentation skills'. A lecturer should be good at presenting Information

so that the attention of audience Is held and the informatlon Is

accurately conveyed.

However, the engineering education process Is much, much more than

this and In many situations the presenting role Is one of the many other

roles In action. Furthermore, the role of lecturer as the sole source of

knowledge and skills Is decreasing In prominence but a role related to

the knowledge, skills and attitudes associated with a programme Is stili

essential. Thus, a lecturer needs the skills of requirements/needs

determination and analysis, the skills of designing and planning a

course/programme, the skills of course evaluation, the skills of writing

resource materials and the skills of group management.

Contrary to an expectation that the lecturer's role will diminish with the

Improvement processes, the respondents Indicate that the demands on

lecturer's time remain the same and Indeed may even Increase.

However, the types of demand change, such as lecturer becomes more

a facllltator of learning process and less Instructional while more

supporting. As the main role of lecturers Is becoming more and more as a

'facllltator' or a 'coach', they require appropriate skills to facilitate by the

best method available and using the resources available towards the

learning and development of the students.

The distinct categories of the roles of lecturer/facllltator are as subject

expert, expert in teaching and learning methods and tools, and group

manager.

Changing Role of Student

The student's role changes from being a recipient to one of being a

participant In the teaching and learning processes. In 'IT-mediated

learning', 'Integrated curriculum-mediated learning' and 'partnership­

mediated learning', the student becomes a searcher and explorer with a

289

level of responsibility for their learning which Is generally not available In

lecturer-centred method. The approach Is more towards student or

learner-centred. Also, the students w1ll have to use new tools In order to

fully capitalise the resources of programmes available through IT.

The changing roles of lecturer and student require that the Improvement

processes have resources to support the appropriate development of

subject materials and support for lecturers and students. It Is Important to

make the materials Into accessible Information. If the design of the

materials does not support the student's ability to learn and the lecturer's

ability to be a facllltator, then students and lecturers w1l1 become frustrated

and dls1llusloned. This Is one of the Issues related to the organisational

element brought out by the educators which must be given urgent

consideration.

e) Partnerships with customers (Industry, government, students. etc.)

should be Included as one of the components of an Improvement process.

Partnerships between engineering education Institutions and Industry should

provide an efficient combination of theory and practice In analysing and

developing teaching and learning methods and processes (delivery

provisions).

7.6 RECOMMENDATIONS

In general. change In engineering education (and Higher Education as a

whole) Is driven by a number of forces, for example the demands of

employers and workplace, continuous Industry transformation, the

technological revolution, global economy, government policy Initiatives

and the changing nature of subject matter. Engineering education must

respond to the challenges and opportunities of the 'new world of work'

through 'Improvement process In engineering education'. This research

offers a 'framework' for planning the Improvement process In future

engineering education In order to prepare prospective engineers and also,

the practlclng engineer for the 'times of change' with new Industrial

290

agenda, and changes In work processes and environment (new Integrated

work system).

7.6.1 The Framework for Improvement Process

The 'framework' Is In the form of guidelines to provide solutions to the four

challenges In the research questions. Thus, the 'framework' operates under

the following themes of actions:

i) Overcomina the Difficulty In Envlsaglna or Predicting the Future as well as Prolecting CUrrent Trends into the Future

The findings from this research suggest that any engineering education

organisation must understand that It Is an organisation that lives or dies by

the quality of Its Ideas, Its ability to anticipate possible futures and Its

competence at designing strategies or plans against real needs and

Implementing them effectively. Improvement process In engineering

education starts with anticipatory and strategic Initiatives, the product of

many minds and diverse Input ('phase I'); then proceeds to a

consideration of the possible mechanism or framework of Improvement

processes leading to Improvement processes design or plan ('phase 2').

Improvement process In engineering education Is not the consequence

of a moment of brilliance; rather, It Is the fruit of an Integrative approach

which melds together anticipatory or strategy Initiatives, research and

development, scope setting and organising resources (materials, finance,

physical and human resources). Also, the capacity to manage human

intellect and Ideas, to find and explore Improvement options through IT,

Integrated-curriculum and partnership; and then to transform those

activities Into marketable products and services Is the core of any

engineering education organisation's success.

A means or process to envisage and represent the possible future

situations proposed as a result of this research Is through the 'Scenario­

Based Design' method. This type of anticipatory approach will facilitate the

obtaining of support and possibly commitment from stakeholders; and also

the determination of requirements of the stakeholders.

291

li) Overcoming the Dlfficultv In Developing Clear Oblectives for Improvement Process In Engineering Education'

The findings of this research have provided us with the basis to develop

clear objectives for the improvement process In engineering education:

• The programmes should reflect the new Integrated work system

and equip the graduates with knowledge and skills for this new

system.

• The programmes should provide the graduates with knowledge

and skills related to the complete life cycle of any project namely

from the Identification of the requirements. through feasibility

study. preliminary design. detail design. manufacture or

construction. distribution or commissioning and maintenance or

service.

• The breadth of studies needs to be Increased to Include the non­

technical knowledge and skills together with the Integration of

engineering studies with business. management. arts. humanities

and social sciences. It Is no longer sufficient to simply offer a

modified or updated version of what has been available In the

past.

• The undergraduate programme or stages of Initial formation of

engineers should change from that of producing graduates

capable of operating Immediately In the wOrkplace to that of

providing a basis for continual Improvement through various forms

of continuous or lifelong learning (e.g. workplace's experience.

continuous professional development. learning organisation. etc.).

• The programmes should no longer concentrate on equipping

graduates with In-depth speCialised techniques because the rate

of change of technology and knowledge Is so rapid that these

techniques are likely to become out of date very quickly.

• The emphasiS on continuous or lifelong learning with a high priority

to develop the ability to learn and seek knowledge/information.

• The programmes should be able to produce engineers capable of

operating across disciplines (multl-skllllng). In a multl-dlsclpllnary

project team and capable of exercising a system approach to

thinking and problem solving.

292

• The programmes should be planned strategically and long term,

rather than operationally and short term.

• The engineering education system should Include an approach

which enables the building of much stronger partnerships and

Interactions with Industry, govemment and school system.

• The total environment of the engineering education should be a

paramount consideration, thus the adoption of 'Soclo-Technical

Systems Approach'.

The approach recommended by this research toward developing a system

to meet the objectives above will be presented In the next section.

Iil) Approach in Developing a Svstem to Meet the Oblectives of Improvement Process In Engineering Education

The approach In developing a soclo-technlcal system which manifests the

base elements of the objectives of any Improvement process given above

consists of the following components:

a. Adopting the concept of Individual (human resource) development. the 'engineer' (the 'formation of an engineer')

This Is founded on the 'functional images' and complemented by the

responsibilities of engineers. The acceptable and durable 'functional

Images' are 'engineer as specialised problem solver'; 'engineer as

competent In science and technology'; 'engineer as designer,

Inventor and producer'; 'engineer as competent In research and

development'; and 'engineer as technical managerial leader'. The

concept of human resource development Is shown In Figure 7.4:

293

CUStomer Focus

Teamwork

Etc.

New Integrated System

AttMbutes, Knowledge &

Skills

Human Retource Development 01 EngIneen

The Work Performance in terms of quality,

speed and flexibility. (Direct and Indirect

tasks)

output

Figure 7.4: Generic Concept for Individual (Human Resource) Development of Engineers

Then, students are assisted to build the appropriate 'attributes profile'

for each Image which leads to development of respective

'knowledge and skills profiles', The methods and findings In phases 1

and 2 demonstrate one way of canylng-out these processes,

These should be enhanced by designing suitable and effective

teaching and learning materials and activities to be employed, and

also, the curriculum content of the programme that Is based on

Individual (human resource) development concept of the engineer

(formation of the engineer),

b. Adopting a conceptual system model.

The cumulative findings from this research lead to a conceptual

system model of engineering education that could contribute to

design, planning and implementation of 'Improvement process' of

engineering education In 'times of change',

The model Is a 'Socio-Technlcal System' consisting of technical and

social/organisational components and called the 'formation of an

engineer model'. The technical component Is made-up of

'contents/curriculum, and teaching and learning (methods &

294

technologies of delivery/teaching and learning)' elements, and the

social component Is the 'organlsatlonal' element. This model Is shown

In Figure 7.5, This model also, facilitates the plaCing of equal

emphasis on curriculum, and teaching and learning elements In the

'Improvement process',

295

SOCIO-TECHNICAL SYSTEM OF ENGINEERING EDUCATION; 1. (SOCIAL SYSTEM)

C) ORGANISATIONAL ELEMENT !INCLUDING STRUCTURE OR FRAMEWORK1

POLICY1 STRATEGY1 CULTURE1 ETC.}

2. (TEC~CALSYSTEM) a)TEACFUNGANDLEARNlNGELEMENT

Components: Methods and Technologies of Delivery

b) CURRICULUM ELEMENT

b2) KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS REOUIRED

a) Technical Knowledge and Skills Profile b) Non-Technical Knowledge and Skills Profile

bl)ATTrurnUTESOFENGmEER

Attributes Profile

FOUNDA TIONIPIDLOSOPHY • THE CONCEPT OF INDIVIDUAL ffiUMAN RESOURCE} DEVELOPMENT1

THE 'FORMATION OF AN ENGINEER'

1. Engineer as specialised problem solver 2. Engineer as competent in sciences and technology 3. Engineer as designer, inventor and producer 4. Engineer as competent in research and development 5. Engineer as technical business managerial leader

Rgure 7.5: 'Model of Formation of an Engineer'

296

c. Transforming the curriculum

In trying to plan and undertake the 'Improvement process' In

engineering education' or In the development of the engineers

(formation of the engineer) we should also remind ourselves that

'engineering' Is an old profession and 'engineering education' Is an

established and proven system which has been, and stili Is, producing

engineers for Industries and other employers. Therefore, the

profession called 'engineer' and the 'engineering education system'

has many firmly established traditions and practices. Any efforts that

neglect these aspects will face difficulties and have negative

Implications for the engineering graduates. A clear example Is the

Malayslan Govemment's policy Initiative of reducing undergraduate

engineering education by one year. This has resulted In the

professional bodies withdrawing accreditation for the engineering

courses and the recognition of the graduating engineers, unless

certain added criteria are Implemented by the universities. An

example of added criteria is carrylng-out post-graduate courses of

six-month duration which follow requirements specified by the

professional bodies or effectively reducing the undergraduate

engineering programmes by just six months Instead of one year.

Finally the decision was taken to revert back to 4-year bachelor

degree In engineering.

In order to avoid the above difficulties, the findings of this research

propose a curriculum model for the 'Improvement process'. In this

model due considerations are given to the above Issues. The

engineering curriculum model consists of 'core component' and

'work processes and workPlace component' (refer to Figure 7.6):-

cl) The starting point Is to determine a baseline level which

consists a basic engineering knowledge and skills, essential

fundamentals that every engineer needs regardless of their roles

and that will meet the demands of not only the current but the

future world of work. The findings from this research propose the

'core component' which Is guided by the foundation of the model

297

of the 'formation of the engineer' together with knowledge and

skills specified by accrediting professional bodies so as to satisfy

accreditation requirements at undergraduate degree level e.g.

sciences and technology, subject matters, design, Invention and

production of results, research and development, management.

this 'core component' must enable engineers to feel confident

and comfortable with a wide range of knowledge, skills and

technologies applications In variety of contexts.

c2) The 'work processes and workplace component' Is made-up

of knowledge and skills for performing successfully at the

workplace. The contents vary from time to time and some may

force their way Into the 'core component' at a certain time while

others wither away. These knowledge and skills are represented

by two successive layers surrounding the 'core component'. The

Immediate layer surrounding the 'core component' Is called

'transferable and generic component' which can be utilised time

and time again (examples Include lifelong leamlng skills,

communication skills, teamwork skills, customer relation skills,

human resources skills, systems engineering, etc.). The findings

from this research propose that these knowledge and skills should

be Integrated Into the 'core component'. The third layer

representing the 'specialised knowledge and skills component'

made up of more detailed knowledge and skills of specific or

specialised applications (examples Include specialized techniques

and technologies In manufacturing and construction; customised

softwares; specialised method of analysis such as 'Finite Elements

Analysis'). For most engineers with a solid basic or foundation level

('core component') and Integrated with transferable knowledge

and skills ('transferable or generic component'), these more

detailed or specialised knowledge and skills ('specific

component') can be acquired through graduate programmes,

career development programmes (CPD) or continuing/lifelong

leamlng or self-Ieamlng. Altematlvely, Institution should consider

extending the time required for bachelor's degree for example

298

the enhanced bachelor degree Master of Engineering (MEng.) In

UK's universities (4 years) and MEng In Systems Engineering at

Loughborough University (5 years).

The position of these layers from the 'core circle' represent the

prlorltisatlon of the respective knowledge and skills at a particular

time. These levels of priority and the group of knowledge and skills

located In the group are determined, one way through phase 1 of

this research or other mechanisms such as 'Curriculum Advisory

Board' and 'Accreditation Procedure Requirements'.

'Specialised knowledge and skUl. componenf made up of more detailed knowledge and skills of specific applications (examples Include specialised techniques and technologies In manufacturing and construction; customised softwares; specialised method of analysis such as 'RnHe Elements Analysis').

Figure 7.6: Knowledge and Skills Model

299

'Ccxe cOlT1)Onenf which Is guided by the fouodgtfon of me model of the 'formation of the engineer' together with knowledge and skills specified by accredItIng professioogl bodies SO as to satlsty accreditation requirements at undergraduate decree level

'Transferable and generic componenf which can be utilised time and time again (examples Include systems englneerlng concept. communication sklllt teamwork skills. customer relation skills. human resources skills)

Iv) Constraints and Enabllna Factors for the 'Improvement Process In Engineering Education'

It Is important to know where we are now and how to travel from 'here to

there'. The findings from this research recommend three provisions to

Improve engineering education process such as:

a. Adopting IT-mediated learning

Today, and In the forthcoming IT revolution, engineering, science and

technology In combination can create a conducive environment that

moulds human Intellect, creativity, enthusiasm, underlying curiosity,

hunger to explore, creative and learning. Consequently, there Is a need

to develop effective IT-based Infrastructures, products and tools that can

meet challenges faced by nations and also, engineering education as

resources become more scarce.

The engineering education system and management team must have a

strong grasp of IT. There are many examples of organisations wasting

millions on Information systems that were highly dysfunctional. Investment

In IT-Infrastructure must look beyond the traditional view of learning

occurring only when students are actively enrolled In a degree

programme. It will facilitate both 'distance education and learning' and

'lifelong or continuous education and learning' which can become part

and parcel of Improvement process. This Is through, for example,

providing a Mure stream of educational products available

electronically. As the need for lifelong learning Is highly Important to the

requirements of engineers, therefore any engineering education

organisation must try to provide some kind of 'engineering programmes

and Information/knowledge network' that will give students access to

courses. specialised data, conSUltations, etc .. when they need It. This

could form a lifelong seNlce that will be available to students over the

course of the next three, five, ten or twenty years as they advance

through their careers.

The responses related to IT-mediated learning need an integrative, cross­

cutting approach to formulate some radical suggestions for changes.

300

These changes are essential In the university and engineering

department structure In order to facilitate the Introduction of IT-mediated

leamlng and Include:

• the role of faculty will need to be redefined to allow more creativity In

teaching (e.g. one-on-one tutoring, coaching, and mentorlng), and to

permit faculty to oft-load rote leamlng aspects of education;

• the university Itself will need to be restructured to allow faculty to be

rewarded for development and Implementation of multimedia, to

provide more laboratories, and possibly to permit the partial elimination

of books and lectures;

• digital resources must be made more widely available, and

development should not be constrained to facilitate the dissemination;

• must take Into account the multiple teaching and communication

methods available and the fact that new student skills In

browsing/searching, communication, and collaboration are available

under the IT and multimedia approach.

b. Adopting Integrated-curriculum medlqted leamlng

Engineering education organisations (departments or faculties) must

collaborate with other relevant departments within the universities

(examples Business, Computer Studies, Human Sciences, etc.) to go Into

Integrated-curriculum and multldlsclpllnary programmes. The

respondents Indicate that this Initiative Is quite prominent at the post­

graduate level programmes, but slow at the undergraduate level.

c. Adopting Partnership-mediated learning

Partnerships with Industry, govemment and school system Is one the

critical elements In making 'Improvement process' In engineering

education. There Is much which can be achieved through a variety of

partnerships of engineering education system with Industry, Including

collaborative research and development, Industrial training for

undergraduate programmes, postgraduate education partnerships,

teaching and learning partnerships, Industrial fellowships and so on. Thus,

the partnership which has traditionally be seen In terms of single direction

301

linkages which have provided a supply of employees and knowledge,

needs to become multi-directional In nature.

Some prominent Issues were deduced from the findings by analysing the

organisational element such as the Inhibiting and enabling forces. The

analyses was done by using the 'Fish-Bone Diagram' and 'Force-field

Diagram' methods (see Section 6.2.4.3). The analyses Indicates that there

seem to be three Important questions regarding where we are now.

1) How are instlMlons organised for change? They have adapted In

response to expansion, new shapes of national poliCies, funding,

accountability, the labour market and more. Universities used to be

described as ,arge, decentralized, Informal organizations with little

hierarchical authority over teaching and research' where academic

administrators do not have the power to Insist that faculties adopt new

techniques, new courses. or new curricula. In a sense universities have

recognised the need to respond to the requirements and pressures for

change. The familiar phrases related to these developments Include mission

statements, policies, new committees for development, quality assurance

or teaching and leamlng, and hierarchical authority and direction.

2) Has all the effort that has been expended on analysing the

relationships between higher education and the outside world, notably

govemment and Industry, shown what the central lessons are for higher

education Institutions? The clearest area Is no doubt the ways In which the

substantial changes In the economy and the employment market have

affected the curriculum. The ways In which this relationship has Influenced

how lecturers teach and students leam has also been a live Issue.

Another Issue Is the possibility of transferring the Industrial experience of

'Improvement processes', such as TQM, Kalzen, JIT, etc.) to the very different

InstlMlonal cultures of higher education. The experience and analysiS of

corporate culture do seem to have significant messages about the

transmission of 'Improvement processes' In different directions In different

kinds of enterprise, the relationship between empowerment and Individual

302

and collective development (teamworklng). or between Individual and

team vision and planning. This Issue Is worth a further scrutiny.

3) What future Is there for the stakeholders? They Include the lecturers.

students. Industry. policy-makers at Institutions and government. Consider

the lecturers as an example. If Institutions are planning to reward

'improvement efforts' In teaching and learning. and curriculum

development the people we InteNlewed were on the whole sceptical

about this effort and Its outcomes. They were not sure about the criteria for

recognising them or about the committees that operate the procedures.

suspecting that these would be dominated by research-oriented senior staff

and InstlMlonal priorities. They are amused at having been occasionally

wheeled out of their corners by their department to adorn a presentation

for teaching quality assessment. and they do appreciate being quietly

given a grant by sympathisers on some development fund committee. But

for any effective role. for their work to be taken up more widely. often even

within the department. they have to change their Identity and become

change agents for the Institution, Implementing. and possibly to some

extent modifying. Institutional policy and action plans. Similar considerations

must be given to other stake holders as the success of any Improvement

process requires the participation. Involvement and commitment of all

stakeholders.

That Is a dark and possibly a pessimistic picture. It does not. however. fit

all the Institutions. and there are places where the picture Is different. Even

the most active and respected Innovators. however. tend to have little

Impact on the overall culture of their Institutions. The future for Innovators

may be mainly within 'directed' policy frameworks. There are good things.

but they're underfunded and undeNalued.

The synthesis of the framework shows that the approach to modern

engineering education needs to emphasise:

• an anticipatory approach hence the Scenario-Based Design

method:

303

• the teaching of core (basic) engineering knowledge and skills,

Integrated with 'transferable or generic component' together with

more detailed or 'specialised component' (guides from

foundation of engineers' functional Images profile, attributes and

knowledge and skills profiles (concordances and differences) and

accreditation requirements);

• the teaching of 'work processes and workplace knowledge and

skills component' Ontegrated curriculum, partnerships and also,

where upper grade students (7" year and above) should attend

more cross-discipline projects rather than too many courses where

specialised knowledge Is consolidated and detailed);

• continuous or lifelong learning;

• student-centred learning (rather than teacher-centred);

• the Integration of human resources (engineers), technology

(Including Ideas, concepts, techniques, methods, etc.) and

organisation hence the Soclo-Technical Systems concept;

• Provisions Process Diagram (Figure 7.7):

Requirements of the Means: Equipment,

Challenges "'. .1 People, Knowledge & Skills,

PROVISIONS

IN ..... (TEACHING & LEARNING ..

PUT I ~ ACTIVITIES, SCOPE, ., I OUTP UT

.ETC.)

"'-Procedure, Standards (Accreditation) & Tlmescales of Programme

Figure 7.7: Provisions Process Diagram Adopted

304

• The overall conceptual framework for englneenng education

Improvement process planning proposed Is as presented In Figure

7.S.

ENGINEERING EDUCATION IMPROVEMENT PROCESS /' Make decision

PLANNING I' on the Process

Organisation 1/ -J based on feedback from:·

Strategic I" I Anticipatory Approach I • resutts

Planning • Implementation

..L • Englneenng

Institutions

I Change Scenano 1 I I Change Scenario 2 I I Etc. I • Peer Review • Students, etc.

J.

Information and Anall/sls of Imellcatlons: Profiles of:

• Key Elements of Change • Responsibilities • Functional Images • Attributes • Knowledge and Skills • Delivery Methods of Acquiring Knowledge

and Skills

1 Developing Engineering Education by Adopting Soclo-Technical /

Systems Concept '" ;;:::::-- ~J. -......:::::::. • Alms'& Foundation Concept· Curriculum ProViSions: B!!"'oyrce~:

Objectives Development Development Model Teaching & Enablers & Formulation of the Development learning Inhibitors

IndMdual \, ete

1 .... ... .J.. ... .. RESULTS

• Structural and Rigorous Approach to Continuous Improvement Process • Design and Redesign of Modules, Courses, Programmes, etc. • Responsive Engineering Education System

• Continuous Improvement Advantage • Focus, Feedback and Resources

Figure 7.8: The Conceptual Framework for Engineering Education Improvement Process Planning

305

Furthermore, this research and the ensuing discussions are trying to show

and Impress that In any 'Improvement efforts', equal status much be given

to curriculum change and teaching and learning because focusslng on

one will have Implications on the other. It is Imperative in 'tImes of change'

that 'Improvement processes' are institutionalised (see Figure 7.9) In order to

be flexible and responsive to the demands, challenges and opportunities

taking shape ahead. The perceptions or fear of teaching and learning. and

'Improvement approaches' by the educators, have fared badly within the

existing system, must be allayed. Views such as to help to Improve teaching

and learning via subjects and their networks must be revised due to the

'instability' of subjects or curriculum as shown by the requirements of

change In work processes. The organisational element is concerned with

not whether our InstlMlons are really organised to encourage and

Implement change In either teaching and learning or the curriculum, but

must be In both.

SYSTEM PLANNING (Requirements Engineering, Design,

Prototype, ete )

SYSTEM OPERATION (Run, Measure & Monnor for

Control, Measure & Monner for Evaluation, etc.)

P OBLEM-SOLVlNG (AnlIClpate & Define Challenges, (Define Problems, Find the

Requirements Engineering, Develop & Select Ideas, ReView I.;l Root·Causes, Plan for

C I L!..J Resolution, Review Relevancy to ha! enges, Plan Resolution, Integrate Solution

for Improvement, DeSign. Prototype, Integrate Into Normal '--of Into Normal Operation,

Operation. Review) Review)

Figure 7.9: Holistic System Model to InstiMionalise Improvement Process

306

7.7 APPLICABILITY OF THE FRAMEWORK

In order to explore how applicable this framework Is In Malaysia and the UK

Its component ore mapped below against major developments In

engineering education In three Malayslan universities and In the UK (Master

of Engineering In Systems Engineering' undergraduate course at

Loughborough University, and Dearlng Report 1997 together with SARTOR

1997). (See Tables 7.2 and 7.3). The data from phase 1 and 2 are used to do

the mopping activity for the UK's developments. Interview sessions were

carried out with representatives of the three Malayslan universities to obtain

the Malayslan data.

In the Tables (X) In the cells Indicates the existence of efforts moving In the

direction proposed by the framework component.

307

Table 7.2: Mapping the Proposed Conceptual Framework for Engineering Education Improvement Process Planning for Three Malayslan Universities

Framework Institutions· Indicate by (X) If exist at your Institution No. Components Notes

UTM UIA UTP a. Anticipatory X X X

approach- Formally gathering Form Industrial In forms 01 systematic Input from Committees & Petronas Skill me1t1odsto Industries - Academic Board Groups & Overseas

loaklorend Interview, postal 01 Studies Extemal examiners

anticipate questionnaire,

change visits, etc.

b. Implications Analyses 01 and X X X data requirements complied. analYsis

c. Formulate alms In forms 01 and objectives X X X 'Mission

Statements' d. Develop X X X Include:

loundatlon • Business Acue-men

• CriUcaI & Analytical Thinking

• Commu-nication

e. Develop X X X concept 01 Oust starilng) Through Project Individual and Teamwork develooment

I. Develop Curriculum X X X Model

g. Provisions on IT: Integrated IT: Integrated IT (e.g. Computer-Teaching and Cumculum (newly Curriculum; Based Teaching Leemlng Introduced); Partnership (CBT); Integrated Delivery Partnership cumculum

Involve - IT. (Engineering

Integration 01 Prolesslon and Communication):

curriculum, Partnership partnership wl1t1lndustry. etc.

h. Resources. Enablers and X X X Obstacles

I. Revlew1t1e process based X X X on results. Englneenng Instltu11ons. Industries. peer, student etc.

308

Table 7.3: Mapping the Proposed Conceprual Framework for Engineering Education Improvement Process Planning

for Two Developments In the UK

Coses • Indicate by (X) If exist In the Cose study No. Components

M.Eng In Systems SARTOR 1997 and Dearlng Engineering Report 1997

(See Sections 5.3.1 and (See Sections 5.3.2 and 6.3.2) 63.1)

a. Anticipatory X X approach- The vision of the The analysis of the SARTOR 1997 systematic original sponsoring and the Dearlng Report 1997. methods to look organisation. for and anticipate chanae

b. Implications and X X requirements Requirements of the Requirements of the engineers -analysis engineers - knowledge knowledge and skills.

and skills. c. Formulate alms X X

and objectives The new development In the formation of engineer In SARTOR 1997.

d. Develop X X foundation The Definitions of CEng. IEng and

Engineering Technician. e. Develop concept X X

of Individual The new concept of the 'formation development of engineer'.

f. Develop X X Curriculum Model

g. Provisions on X X Teaching and The main component Is The vital component Is partnership Leamlng Delivery partnership with some and cooperation between Involve - IT. elements of IT and universities. engineering Instl1utlons. Integration of Integrated curriculum. Engineering Council UK and curriculum. Industries. This will also Involve partnership with Integrated curriculum and IT Industry. etc. components.

h. Resources. X X Enablers and Obstacles

I. Review the X X process based on Manage to attract A continuing effort. results. more sponsors. Engineering InstlMons. Industries. peer. student etc.

The results of mapping analysis Indicate that all the components of the

framework for Improvement process are applicable but not yet mature

practice in many places. The types of activities and methods used vary for

309

Notes

according to situation and organizational environment. Most of the

activities and components of the framework are closer to the common

language of academics. and In general the framework can be adapted to

each situation and organisation.

7.8 FURTHER RESEARCH

The findings of this research have provided a framework for the planning of

any Improvement process In engineering education system. However, the

Issues and problems regarding changes or Improvements In any

engineering education system (content and process) are complex and

multi-faceted. Any strategy must take Into account a range of needs and

Issues and the fact that achieving the goal will take time.

This research showed that In spite of a number of commendable efforts

and a sustained strategy for Implementation of Improvement process,

people at all levels needed more help In formulating clear policies and

strategies. This should go beyond focusslng on particular aspects of Issues

and problems; and should provide a comprehensive and long-term view to

take full advantage of the potential of IT-mediated learning, Integrated­

curriculum-mediated learning and partnership-mediated learning In an

engineering education system (content and process). The potential has

been Indicated. but there are substantial Implications for financial and

personnel (human resources) resources of all levels If this potential Is to be

achieved In any engineering education systems and In any country.

We are confident that this research Is only the beginning of the

'Improvement process' efforts In engineering education. We fully expect

that the many Issues Identified as needing additional considerations and

efforts will spark future researches as we continue to make strides to

Improve engineering education for the 'times of change'.

310

Furthermore, In the holistic perspective of any system, the Improvement

process Is one of the essentfal components as shown by Figure 7.9. Thus,

further research areas will require attention and further research Include:

(I) the effectiveness and Impacts of the Improvement process on

the other components (e.g. System Planning. System

Operation) of engineering education system;

(10 the development of curriculum content using the model

proposed;

(110 the challenges of Incorporating IT In the delivery of

engineering education;

(Iv) the InstlMlonallzatfon of the anticipatory process to compile

data and Information about the changes In work processes to

be faced by graduates In the future;

(v) to develop a process for compiling best practices In

engineering education for benchmarklng and reference;

(vO to study the effectiveness of different approaches to course

design and delivery;

(vii) to experiment with technology-based Instruction and distance

leamlng

(vllO to Investigate the Implications for course design and educator

training of changing roles from lecturer to facllltator of learning

process.

311

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I APPENDICES I

I APPENDIX ONE (1) I

Scenario-Based Design Package for Phase 1

1) THE LETTER

Loughborough University Human Sciences Department Loughborogh Leicestershire, LEll 3TU United Kingdom.

The Civil Engineer/Manufacturing Engineer United Kingdom/Malaysia June and July 1998

Dear Madam or Sir,

APPENDIX ONE Cl)

The Role of CMILManufacturlng Engineer In CanstructlonLManufacturing

We live In an age of accelerating change and the construction/manufacturing Industry Is going through a period of Intense change - challenging the structures, values and practices of the past. We are conducting a study of how these changes are likely to affect the roles, careers, skills and expertise of civil/manufacturing engineers. There are many predictions and many trends and in the first part of this research we want to collect the view' s of the people most affected (the civil/manufacturing engineers) on the likelihood and desirability of the various possibilities. We take the view that, where many things are possible, we have a chance to shape what actually occurs. We would be very grateful if you would spare the time to complete the enclosed questionnaire to help us In this research.

For this study we have grouped the trends and possible futures Into a series of scenarios which try to show the roles that civil/manufacturing engineers might be playing In Mure construction/manufacturing systems. This Is not an attempt to make specific predictions or to cover all the possibilities. We have tried to depict the major alternatives In order to get people' s reactlons to them.

The scenarios are reported In the enclosed paper which Is followed by a questionnaire In three parts:

Section A asks for background Informatlon on yourself and your organisation so that we can understand the perspective from which you are coming.

I

APPENDIX ONE Cl) Scenario-Based Design Package for Phase 1

Section B asks you to estlmate which of the events In the scenarios are most likely to become common and which are most desirable. Some of the scenarios may already exist or be close to Implementatlon. Please Indicate where you think this Is the case. Some of the scenarios may seem obscure. Since Images are often ambiguous we have tried to write a short tltle so that we can Interpret results In terms of common basis. If you have difficulty Interpretlng them please Indicate your understanding of what they represent 50 that we know how to Interpret your response.

Section C focuses on the Impllcatlons of the scenarios for the engineering professional. We ask you to comment upon the Impllcatlon of the scenarios for the "roles, "responsibilities, "activities, "relationships, and "knowledge and skills for the civil/manufacturing engineer In the Mure.

Your effort and time In completlng the questlonnalre will provide us with very valuable Information. Most of the predlctlons are abaut technological advances and we need to understand what they mean for engineering educatlon and professional development. Your views will help us examine the human side of these technical changes.

The views of Individuals will of course remain confldentlal. However, If you would like a summary of the conclusions of the research please provide us with your name and address.

Please retum the completed survey questlonnalre using the self-addressed envelope enclosed. SpeCific questions regarding the questlonnalre should be addressed to Mr. Abdul Rahlm Bin Ahmad at telephone: +44(01509) 263171 ext. 4263 or e-mail: A.R.Ahmad@lboro.ac.uk.

Thank you very much for your cooperatlon.

Yours Sincerely,

Professor K.D. Eoson Human Sciences Department Loughborough University England.

Abdul Rahim Bin Ahmad Human Sciences Department Loughborough University England.

IT

APPENDIX ONE Cl)

Scenario-Based Design Package for Phase 1

~: The context of role, responsibility, activity and relaHonshlp used here Is as shown by examples below -

"In any of the scenarios the role or Job Htle of a civil engineer can be as a 'site engineer' . So the responslblllHes Involved Include the guaranteeing the economic financial success of the company, through activities such as the management of technical and operational resources available, directing the site operaHons and appolnHng devlaHons In connection to what Is expected. RelaHonshlps are the organizational environment where the activities will take place which Include InteracHon with other human resources. organlzaHonal structure etc."

"In any of the scenarios the role or Job tlffe of a manufacturing engineer can be as a 'design engineer' . So the responslblllHes Involved Include producing technical speCification of a product, through activities such as the conceptual designing, details designing and testing. Relationships are the organlzaHonal environment where the activities will take place which Include Interaction with other human resources. organlzaHonal structure etc .•

ill

APPENDIX ONE (1)

Scenario-Based peslgn Package for Phase 1

2) SCENARIO-BASED DESIGN - SCENARIOS FOR MANUFACTURING AND CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRIES.

A) MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY

Scenario 1 - n Processes Improvement"

Whys?

a) The manufacturfng Industry. as 0 result of increasing competition natlonoUy and Intematlonany. Is driving to produce merchandises that are not Just competitively prfced. well-designed and weU-manufactured. but also In time.

, ' ~-

b) The manufacturfng Industry Is govemed by customer-focussed market which leads to business success to rely on coming to market faster with new products. Increase In , quality and lower manufacturfng cost. The conlfnulng trend Is to produce smaller batch sizes. Increase In complexities of products and shorter development lead times. Essentially. products are custom mode with the extreme cose of a product that Is manufactured only once.

c ,

The manufacturing system must cater for the Increase In product's variety while at the same time allowing for steadily decreasing product Ilfe-cycle. Also tailoring the product to the customer's needs as on element Important to quality Improvement Is an essentlol port of the system. . .

c) The customers are on the move too. They expect products and services ~re' tailored to their particular needs and desires. not off-the-shelf solutions. They do their homework and know what the competition Is doing. Therefore. they are much more apt to shop around for the best deal. Instead of avoiding the customer-specific. unique solutions; the produclfon systems need to respond and hove control over al\ aspects of the uniqueness of a product. The customer's wishes and requirements ore' the starting point of all the manufacturing activities. ;

Therefore. the philosophy being used os the foundalfon here Is that to thrive In the future manufacturing Industry Is no longer enough Just through product quanty and manufacturing excellence. SUccess In the future for manufacturing organisations require them to excel across the entire range of their operations related to product design. engineering. manufacture. marketing. sales. logistics. services and maintenance. human resources management and general management. that Is called here os the manufacturing business processes.

Processes Improvement enabled by advances In technology. which con come In Incremental or/and radical forms Is the trend. The essentlol characteristics being focussed Include fuller utilisation of work time. flexibility of work. flexibility of human resources. teamwork. continuous Improvement and Innovation. radical Improvement' (example reenglneerlng). continuous minimisation and elimination of wastes and non-value-odded activities. workers' empowerment and performances. and satisfying the customers and responsiveness.

IV

APPENDIX ONE (1)

Scenario-Based Design Package for Phase 1

Hows?

Today's manufacturlng concepts and techniques (such os Aexlble ManufacturIng Systems (FMS). Compufer-lntegrated Manufacrurlng (CIM). Manufacturlng Resources Planning (MRPII). Just-In-l1me Manufacturing (JITM). Cellular Manufacturlng. Concurrent Engineering. Total Quallly Management (TQM) etc.). and Information technology (11) (computers. virtual reallly (VR). performance support technology. Electronic Data Interchange (EDI). etc.). are the enabler manufacturing business processes Improvement.

The enabling posslbUltles offered are facilitating manufacturlng organisations' transformation from acting os a collection of locol operations and suppliers to globally distributed network of closely . collaborating companies. '< •

< "

BrIdging the gap of connection between manufaclurlng concepts and ~ .. techniques. and Information technology (11): and the activities at <" <

real manufacturing organisation In practice Is essential In manufacturIng business pr~cesses Improvement. ,," , .

Whats?

1) One of the pictures unfolding In this scenario Is the manufacturing organisation addresses the critical path between product design and production. by using computer-alded manufacturing" (CAM) tools together with a varlely of computer-alded design (CAD) tools (such as finite element analysis, simulation and rapid protolyplng). creating a virtual manufacturing environment. The <

concept Is based on virtual reallly (VR) where manufaclurlng • . " production processes can be evaluated as If It were working In the ' <

real world. <

Although product deSign Incurs only Cl smaO fraction of the total product cost. decisions made during the design phase determine a <

significant portion of product cost. and can be crucial to the success or failure of the product. As the cost of making essential design changes escalates steeply with time. the ablllly to make crucial changes during the design phase translates Into significant Saving over making changes during production run. this reduces and finally will eliminate the time-consuming bUilt-test-redesign Iterations.

Three major environments of the virtual manufacturing that enable processes Improvement are:- :

a) Deslgn-centred virtual manufacturing environment with results Include Items such os the product model and cost estimate. Therefore. potential problems with the design can be Identified and Its merit can be estimated.

v

APPENDIX ONE (]) Scenario-Based peslgn Package for Phase]

b) Productlon-centred virtual manufacturing environment provides environment for generating process plans and production plans. for planning resource requirements (example purchasing new equipment), and for evaluating these plans. This prOvides more accurate cost, Information and schedules for product delivery which enables the maintaining of manufacturing proficiency, without actually building products. '

c) Control-centred virtual manufacturing environment provides the capablllfy to simulate actual production. thus enabling the engineers to evaluate new or revised product designs with respect to shopfloor-related actMtles. Information for optlmlslng . manufacturing processes and also improving manufacturing systems are also provided here.

The Engineers with roles whether as design engineer, manufacturing , engineer and manufacturing/production manager are able to design. analyse and optlmlse products: manufacturing systems. processes and . ~ • qualify before costly Investments are made In capital equipment and production operations. In this environment, the engineers wnl r address various product IIfe-cycle considerations at the design - ,,' . phase and thus facilitating more and more downstream actMtles ' associated with various manufacturing aspects to be considered at " ' ~ the design phase. AI, the engineers must seek out all the facts ;,,', surrounding a situation In order to make well-Informed decision. the " , virtual manufacturing environment enables the' enhancement 0(-decision making and control. ' . '. , ' , '.

2) Aexlble Computer Integrated Manufacturing (CIM) system Is based on close connection between development, design and production Une . which leads to the Integration of design. manufacture and productlon, ' management. This provides a powerful business process to sel~ manufacture and deliver the product. ,~,

. .

The picture that Is unfolding, at the product development and , design phase, an Interactive toof called !a reference model browser and design tOOl' Is available which allows the engineers to work directly with the customers to design unique producfs configuration for the customer's needs. Together with Its order fulflllment . . . capablOty. this tool supports marketing strategy to permit custom design. .,

j , ,

At a kiosk, customer and product design engineer and manufacturing engineer sit together to begin the design process. The engineers can construct on screen a graphical representation of the customer's requirements or specifications. From a list of options. the customer can select configurations with which to experiment. The engineers can select those options. place them In the appropriate environment, and then let the customer see Immediately what this configuration of the product would look like. This process will' " continue until the customer Is satisfied and finalises his or her choice. Then order placement automatically proceeds.

VI

APPENDIX ONE Cl)

Scenario-Based Design Package for Phase 1

The tools can also generates a part list or bill of materials (BOM) list with prices. based upon the choices made on the screen. It will compare that price with ones from the configurations. As the engineers change dimensions and draw units to customer specification. the system automatically adjusts the price. The tool's Interactive design capability provides aD the necessary dimensions to ploce an order as well. The system Is able to produce accurate estimate with graphics to niustrate the many camblnatlons of products available.

The engineers are the key personnels In their roles as design engineer and manufacturing engineer with responsibilities to provide " technical specifications on what products to produce and how to produce those products. respectively. In this scenario. the design engineers and manufacturlng engineers must perceive the customers as an Important source of Information. who can contribute to the actual design and production of the product. Together they must work closely with customers. They communicate Interactively. putting" , forward questions at Issues relevant to their roles and tasks. and ' decisions that need to be made at specific stage of the design and production processes. It Is Important that customer requirements are articulated and then transformed Into engineering characteristics.

Essentially. engineers working on process of product development are ' no longer exclusively confined to the deslgn activity but must understand marketing. production. customer relations and everything else associated with the process. They must know both the " businesses they are trying to help and the customers as well as their own disciplines. They need to communicate effectively with other engineers. marketing experts, financial people and others.

, The manufacturing phase Is supported by a tool which prOvides the facilities for storlng. manipulating and accesslng expert knowledge operating on the existing and past best practices of manufacturlng systems design and operation. This tool will assist the ' , manufacturing engineer In producing the specification of how to produce the product. Together with that. the flexible manufacturing system also provides tools which facilitate the operation and control of manufacturing eqUipment. pra-productlon planning and' production planning and control.

The widespread of streamlining of manufacturing process begin under the principle of Just-In-Tlme (JIl) management practices and using the Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) technologies. EDI technologies revolutionise the delivery system of the products and services. EDI technologies allow manufacturing companies and Industries to link up automatically their business transactions In a ' way that give both large and small businesses the ability to lower Inventory costs and Increase customer service; Existing machines being upgraded to process capability. and then move Into cells that make and feed parts forward Just In time for the next machine to use them. "

VII

APPENDIX ONE (1)

Scenario-Based Design Package for phase 1

Also, Computer Assisted Deslgn (CAD) and Computer Assisted Manufacturing (CAM) are augmenting the manufacturing business processes Improvement. Computer AIded engineering (CAE) systems provide considerable support to IndMdual engineers to Improve the qualHy of their work. '

The decreasing lot sizes and Increaslng customer Intervention lead to the power of production systems to shift from technical Integration to human cooperation. Due to the uniqueness and complexHy of the products. the production planning. production resources and human resources need to be highly flexible. The one-task/one-employee principle In Adam Smlth's doctrtne which Is based on standardisation and specialisation. Is not adequate In this, situation.' '

Also this situation requires capabilities that are so complex and flexible that a Single employee could normany not cope with. This leads to the essential requirement of teamwork. The culture of working responslve and customer-oriented manufacturing Is partnership. teamworklng. shared values and goals. This Is clearly shown by the strong voice of manufacturing engineers In development and design phase while the deslgn engineers always visit the production line and talk things over with their counterparts on the shopfloor. This reduces the serious gap between development and ' production as the design work has Input In term of production' perspective. ' • .

, '

Further development sees the engineers leading the organisation In upgrading the manufacturing system where the customers (individual or companies) Involvement In manufacturing business processes wlU reach a stage whereby they can Input their speCification directly Into the organisation's (manufacturer's) computers which will In turn control the production line. The computer will not only design the product the customer wants. but also select the manufacturing, process to be used - assign machines. sequence the necessary steps. wrtte the necessary programs for numerical control devices (NCO). . feed adaptive control that optlmlse various processes for economic and environmental purposes. Also the machines can continuously , reset themselves so that the units of output - each one different , ' from the next - stream from the production Une In an unbroken flow which lead to machine customlsatlon on a round-the-clock continuous basis. (roffier, 1980).

In summary. the engineers must cope with an environment of an explosion In the amOunt of Information available which facilitates their declslon-maklng and acHvltles. They are be expected to act as a leader Individually and In a team with empowerment given for example the engineers are asslgned to the production line and are given an Important say In business operation.

In terms of human resources. the processes Improvement In this case Is facilitated prominently by using smaller self-governlng units

vm

APPENDIX ONE (1) Scenario-Based Design Package for Phase 1

which Is assigned certain process. This decentralisation Into autonomous units Is 0 prominent and critical feature of the organisation. This has resulted In shift from command-ond-control to the Information-based structure that Is organisation of knowledge specialiSts. So engineers must be able to manage Information and knowledge.

The working environment Is where networking of people from the following functional departments of englnee~ng. manufactu~ng. finance. sales and marketing. service and human resources; Is the , ' norms. Multl-dlsclpllnary teams are formed to accomplish a specific, :' project and members are Jointly responsible for the project from Its Inception until completion. '"

Also. the method of working Is that everything proceed In parallel following the concept of concurrent englneemg. An the disciplines (such os englnee~ng. manufactu~ng. finance. marketing etc.) come on-stream In unison from the beginning. Interacting and con~butlng.' They participate together os the product develops. ." At the planning stage. Input and Ideas from participants are " , collected and Incorporated In the work processes os when,' , ," , appropriate; and this Is made known to the participants. They seek' to develop new products In 0 manner that ensures not only that all ' aspects of the new product work but, they work In as 0 team. ' , ,

" " I. <

When undertaking fhelr tradltlo~al roles os design engineers and , manufacturing engineers under the processes Improvement using new ., concepts and techniques, and IT. the engineers must have the skill ' to Isolate the crucial factors which ore perceived os making the recl difference between success and failure. They ore also required to identify the core. irreducible elements that constitute the real cutting edge whether they ore human factors. continuous development. flexibility and team working. production control elements, Interaction between technology and social organisation etc.

These ore among the' key skills required by engineers to enable , them Improving enterprise performance and productMty more effectively. This will also lead to more and more engineers requiring to know the principles of best practice In the management of organisations. 0 , 00

3) Another picture of processes Improvement a~es from the massive diffusion of IT throughout the workplaces which leads to the development performance supports technologies. Together with new, Information systems. the entire workflow for any processes Is presented to the employees and also supporting services team win 0

provide suppart for the completion any of the manufactumg business 0

processes. Therefore. these will provfde 011 the necessary supports In order for on employee to complete any process at any time.

,0

Also. as the many engineering disciplines related to manufacturing. developments ore so rapid that It Is Impossible for 0 single person to assess the practical ImplicatiOns for production system design and redesign. Furthermore. the forces of change are

IX

APPENDIX ONE (1) Scenario-Based peslgn Package for Phase !

altering the fundamental of manufacturing business processes and their underlying knoWledge and sldlls bases. Therefore It Is _ - , necessary to make knowledge and experience from many sources accessible to other designers or relevant member of the team which requires an Information system to embed the knoWledge. ThIs enhances the decision of the organisation to put In-place performance support technologies enabled by IT.

As an example, at a manufacturtng company, engineering personnel " hove to repair certain equipment which Is one of the products of the

- company. The engineers work WIth notebaok computers, to which they -downlood diagnostic Information from testing run of the equipment. Based on this information. the prototype performance system advises the engineers abaut the most Ukely reason for the equipment fault, helps the engineers Isolate the problem. Iocctes the necessary -parts, and coaches the engineers through the repair. _

In addition to that, durtng the times when the engineers would _ previously hove been Idle, the system ccn conduct multfmedla training sessions, allowing the engineers to practfse repairs by , actually manipulating graphical representctlons of vcrtous " " equlpments and products manufactured by the company, et, _ the computer workstotfon. , --

N2!!:

The definition of the process being used here Is a raicted and:: coordinated group of tasks (unit of work) that together create cl result of value to a customer for example product design. product production. customer services etc.

Scenario 2 - "GLOBALlSATIONn

Whys?

Global electronic commerce conceptualises the promise of a borderless global economy, especially trade on the Internet or Web which Is doubDng or tripling every single year and generctlng hundreds of billions pounds stertlng In goods and services. The, " picture of global economic environment and competftlon see the resurgence and the rise of powerful competitors around the globe.

British Telecommunications Plc. environmental Report 1997 -mentions that already 5 per cent of tota! United KIngdom trade Is done electronically and this will continue to rtse. The report also ' gives Indication from a recent survey, about 20 per cent of soles between companies Will be attributable to the Internet by the year 2001. -

x

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APPENDIX ONE (1)

Scenario-Based Design Package for Phase 1

Hows?

The InformatIon technologIes (Il) have rewritten the rules of the global economy. IT provides the abllHv to complete transactIons quIckly without any poperwork. the convenIence of sendIng and retrIeving messages and faxes from almost everywhere and the opportunity to create a 'vIrtual busIness'. '

The unlockIng of multimedIa technology potential produclflg the followIng applications:

a) World-wIde manufacturlng Webs IncludIng Web-basect desIgn b) Borderless marketing centres c) Global Research and Development clusters

The Internet has become the people's communleatlons sYstem' ';, " carryIng pIctures. voIce and data messages cheaply all over the' ' world. Also information flows freely and inexpensively to computers and televIsIon sets, whIch Increasingly are becomIng a single " , appliance. Furthermore, Internet has become a truly "global" system allowIng people next door or continents away to cummunlcate with ease.

Also avaIlable are the "groupwor!<" and "telewor!<" modules.' WhIch enable several people In different locotJons to work on a task sImultaneously or to build upon one anothe~s work by gMng Input at dIfferent times. They will provide a new and valuable functlon­linkIng people together effectively regardless where they happen to be and when they con be reached, that Is bridgIng space and time.

, '

All the abave lead to the establishIng of a global multimedIa' network and the synerglstlc Impoct Is the revolutlonlsatlon of how ' the world does busIness. Also such brIdging of spoce and time wnJ become more Important as people IncreasIngly work with dIstant portners on ever-shrInking planet. '

Whats?

The manufacturIng trend that unfolds Is that the components , manufacturIng can be done In 'country A', on machInes programmed from 'country B', with softwares written In 'country C' and financIng comIng from financIng centre In 'country 0', Then the ' product may be assembled In 'country E' and shIpped to global ' , customers dIrectly from her InternatIonal airport.

A sItuation that will become common. a desIgn engIneer, working In London wIth a few engIneers In a Japanese factory to create an Illustrated technIcal specification of a new product. The

XI

~' f'

APPENDIX ONE Cl)

Scenario-Bgsed Design Package for Phase 1 'groupwork" and "telework" module that seNes him/her knows how to handle delayed messages. because the time-zone differences make Is very difficult for all participants to work at the same time. The module shows and time-stamps each person's edlllng of the speclflcallon's text and redrawing af diagram and delivers audio sound-bites of the engineer explaining the rationale for his/her changes. It also keeps orderly records of Intermediate ond discarded text, pictures, verbal Instructions and diagrams/drawings. So work advances nearly around the clock without a live conversation. . ,

Similarly. the Web-based deSign tool wRl pull many engineers with narrow specialities Into the less-structured world of "Integrated teams' locally or globally. Both the • module and Web-based design tooL require the engineers to be equipped with exellent Interpersonal and communlcoflon sldlls to work effecflvely In a team. In the team environment. the engineers need to explain their Ideas during Impromptu working .. sessions with the entire team looking over their shoulder. The, Important thing groupwork' and 'telework' Is, they wI]1 do this everyday ~

, ' ,

In summary. IT also dramatlcallly Impacts on the shape and deSign of organlsallons. Many organisations are changing their organisational structure to flat hierarchies and teamwork decision maldng. Team" , worldng. and sharing data, concepts and Ideas through the medium of ' , , IT. becomes a powerful way for operallons. ,', ' .

, u' '

XII

APPENDIX ONE (1) Scenario-Based Design Packgge for Phase 1

B) CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY

Scenario 1 - "Processes Improvement"

Whys?

Some of the reasons that necessitate processes Improvement In . construction Industry are:-

0) The construction Industry must make 0 concerted effort to undertake substantial improvements In productivity (e.g. reduction .. In project delivery times) and cost performance without compromising standards of quality despite Increased uncertainties and . complexities that surround today's projects. this Is essential to ' ; '. the survival and competitive edge of the organisation related to the ' Industry. -

b) In the climate of Intense comPetltlon..~ on effeCtive and: ; , efficient Information system (EIS) Is 0 life-saving importance. Communication and Interaction of oD portles Involved In construction project and project information's transparency are Important to the smooth progress of the project. ,

c) Not less Important Is that one of the criteria for success Is to satlsfy clients' needs os client orientation Is becoming on '

. '

Important competltlve factor In the construction and building Industry. Rapid and quality delivery of buildings or other construction products tailored to the Individual needs of clients Is " setting new challenges to the systematiC methods applied In design.

'" ,

Also the conformity of technical solutlons to the requirements that . • ore specified must be managed throughout the constructlon process by " on participants In a complex ond rapidly changing environment. .

Hows?

The capoblllty of Informatlon technology (1l) together with engineering knowledge and cost data. to develop a number of tools con old practlcally In improving the construction project processes. this Is by allowing simultaneous conSideration of main stages of construction project namely design.. costing and construction. Also. complex construction operations ore analysed and designed using' ' computer simulation and modelling.

In addition. simultaneous Interaction of an parties Involved In a construction project Is made possible by IT such os , vldeo-conferenc1ng. Intemet and concurrent file exchange between. sites. founded on effiCient Information system (EIS). These enabled the appllcotlons of collaboratlve and distributive design aspects of Constructlon Project Management.

xm

APPENDIX ONE Cl)

Scenario-Based Design Pgckage for Phase 1

What?

1) The envlronment In this consfructlon organisation Is 'Integrated' In terms of working strategies and enabling technologies. The process Improvement involves that all project activities. from the conceptuollsatlon state through to the handover of the facility are Integrated and all aspects of design. consfructlon and operation are concurrently planned. The Implementation of advanced Information technologies and management where personal computer (PC) based hardwares together with Industry~ , standard softwares are Integrated through an Intelligent object oriented knowledge-based system. In this environment, the project Information Is shared and transferred automatically and transparently' as and when required by the software/construction packages and alsa by project partiCipants. The engineers are provided with facilities that automatically generate vfrtuol reality (VR) models. speclflcatllons, consfructlon plans. cost estimates. site layout' " planning - directly from computer assisted design (CAD) drawings. These enabled the clvD engineers, at design stage, to appraise the likely consequences of various design options and can achieve a better overall economic solution. " . ~

'. '

Furthermore, the cOmpany ~lvanlses ihe cMI engineers' (design. site and may be project manager), suppliers. contractors and clients to work together In a multl-dlsclpllnes working group. The group , adopts a cohesive strategy for continuous processes (design & " . construction) Improvement and change, and Its strength lies In the ' multkllsclpllnary approach to tfie Issues. The cMI engineers will work In on environment of multl-dlsclpllnary working groups from the Initial stage of the project tU! completion.

As the success of the endeavour'requlres working environment of less-sfructured 'Integrated teams', civil engineers must be • equipped with execellent Interpersonal communication skills to work effectively In a team. In the team environment, the engineers need to explain their Ideas during Impromtu working sessions with the entire team looking over the shoulders. The Important thing Is, they wiU do this vfrtuolly everyday. "

2) Early capturing of'critlcal client requirements Is the key to ' success In responsive construction. The avallabllty of Interactive Information technology system provides systematic methods and tools for understanding the cllenfs needs, and managing the canformlty of the technical solution to the requirements throughout the construction process. The company will work with cfient to design unique looks and then will construct to order.

At a kiosk. a client. for example building or remodelling a home, can work with civil engineers and contractors to begin the design, process In real time. The engineers can construct on screen a graphical representation of the client's speclflcatlons. From a list of options, the client can select configurations with which to

XIV

APPENDIX ONE Cl) Scenario-Based Desian Package for Phase 1

experiment. The engineers can select those options, place them In the appropriate environment. and then let the client see Immediately what this configuration of the product would look like. this process will continue unlil the cnent Is salisfled and finalises his or her choice. Then order placement automatically proceeds accompanied by Bill of Quantities (BQ).

The civil engineers working for the organisation are also responsible to market the company's range of products to Client based upon anliclpoted needs. The Information extracted from clients will contribute to the actual technical speclflcalions of -product (deSign) and construcffon. So It Is Important thot client's requirements are arHculated and then transformed Into engineering characterlslics. Engineers must perceive the clients as an ._ Important source of Information. who can contribute to the actual ' design and construction of a product ..

3) There Is a belief In the compOny that: In the near future, " Innovative construction technologies win be Implemented on most construction sites and those campanles that do not Invest In such . technologies will be left behind. So the company Is also Involved' In the development of Innovative cons1ruclion technology where cMI engineers are part of teams that work concurrenffy on different aspects of the project - developing an automated or robollsed construction technique where the building basically builds Itself. this Is to cut-down on the overaO lime needed to tum around a , finished product. Commencing after the foundaffon Is laid, a model known as supercons1ruction floor Is put Into place, consisting of '. - " vats of concrete, steel girders. prefabricated floors and waOs. •. and various robolics cranes. welders and concrete sprayers. Once the ground floor Is completed, the supercons1rucffon floor moves upward, climbing Its own steel frame as It Is constructed Into place companent-by-component.

4) In Its continuing search for compeHtlve 'and strategiC advantages through processes Improvement, the company Is parHclpaling In research and development with local university Involving further advancements In Infomatlon technology (fT) which have paved ways for very much wider range of appllcalions to become suitable for CAD. FIrst. the development of Object Technology (OT) , leads to easier ImporHng and exporting files from other CAD systems and Civil Engineering applications, and also manipulating and ' viewing data. Object databases allow greater Interoperablllfy. Also the nature of deSign process changes with OT as parts or objects can hove relationships with other objects and their , surroundings,

Secondly, the technology that enables the use of Information from virtual world, for example electronic CAD data, In increasing productlvlfy and directing and controlling work In construction sites. Instead of just during the design stage. this will see the ease at which Informalion of various types can be put onto a laptop/notebook and taken to the job sites to be viewed and manipulated electronically. The much wider range of applications

xv

APPENDIX ONE (1)

Scenario-Based Design Package for Phase 1 suitable for CAD will see an engineer In using CAD technology Interactively can carry out sequence of calculaHons where the computer doing the mundane arithmetic and design. clvn engineer providing the control and making the decisions.

The picture will unfold that site engineer using a portable computer moves about a site and Instan objects such as fooHngs. This Is done by selecting the footing from the 3-dimensionai CAD data file and then watching the measurement wand moves interactively within the CAD display as he/she moves around the site. When the site engineer Is at the correct 10caHon. the object can be Installed on the drawing and marked In reol space simultaneously. This eliminates the drag stakes. batter boards. plumb bobs. levels and other tools usuaRy required to Install each object. The key here Is that the engineer can select the InformaHon hlmself/herself and then go about the business of doing the work without the help of costly surveyors or data manipulation wizards.

In summary. civil engineers must be able to adapt to changes In the ' construction Industry related to processes Improvement enabled by , " advancement In technologies especlaly IT. InnovaHve canstructlon ' technologies and new concepts and phnosophles working processes. , Also. as the mantra of the future In canstrucHon Industry Is efficiency In satlsfylng clients' needs that Is to be respanslve ~, do It faster. do It cheaper. do It now. and therefore Hme Is the true compeHtlve fronHer. So civil engineers must be able to adapt

, In shorter and shorter cycle Hmes.

XVI

" ,,'

APPENDIX ONE Cl)

Scenario-Based Design Package for Phase 1

Scenario 2 - nGloballsation"

Whys?

The globallsatlon of commercial environment resulting In a construction companies undertaldng overseas development projects In partnership with a locol contractor. Therefore cMI engineers will Increasingly find themselves Involve In the~lntematlonol arena as ., • they practise their profession.

, " Another aspect to be considered, with the advent of this new era

of globallsatlon. It has become obvious that for any countries ' (especially developing countries) govemment protection end leadership cannot withstand the large competitive forces at work In the world. New rules of competition are emerging and quickly . replacing the old ones. ;,'

Hows? " ' v.- ,"' 'It .,,, c E

This scenario Is driven by Implementation of market meChanism and ." , free competition and the Geneva Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GAll) together with the development of telecommunication. the pervasiveness of Information technology (11) and the massive',' , Improvement In Intematlonolloglstlc. especially transporta,tlon.' " ;

Whots?

The project Is constructing Infrastructure facility which Involves crossing an International border. The project could not be ,',,~ undertaken on the basis of technical and cost factors alone. The ' success of the project depends on the effective considerations of the Interests of various groups. This means from the cMI , engineer'S point of view. building a single edifice that Is partly In one country and partly In another. Moving around the construction site means crossing en International boundary - perhaps many times per day. '

The civil engineer Is finding this major project supervision very challenging and demanding. Certainly. the work Is quite different ' from the design office tasks he/she was performing before this assignment. The engineer and his/her local counterparts are spending more time dealing with people Issues. project deadlines and budgets than with technlcol matters. They hove to deal with construction workforce drown from two countries with very different standards of IMng. wage rates and skill levels. and employed under two sets of labour laws.

"

The engineers has as a client an international agency. the funding body of the project. but they are operating In the

XVII

" ,

APPENDIX ONE Cl) Scenario-Based Design package for Phase 1

Jurisdiction of two other countries who are the real end users. These real end users had to be satisfied not only with the final result. but also with the manner In which the all porHes, carried out their obligations under the contract.

There Is a technical side of the englneer's responsibilities that Is new. The subcontractor Is using a number of new materials that are composite In nature which the mast Important one Is called 'polymer-reinforced concrete' with properHes the engineer has not met before.

The engineer Is relieved to remember that hls/her undergraduate' , course Included a significant emphasis on project management and economics. although he/she needs to brush-up on the detail. Also. fortunately there are good communication links to the construction' sites, so the engineer with a notebook computer get access via Internet to a "virtual resource centre - a prominent university" specialising on composite materials. Together with that. the engineer spends a couple of hours on certain evening on-line to a graduate course In composite materials offered by the some prominent ' university. The engineer Is also polishing-up hls/her knowledge of ,,' economics and construction project management through on-line Internet, which will lead to the accumulation of enough credit to be awarded a Master degree.

The engineer realises that declslon-rnOklng Is essential In this, ' ' project. Multimedia provides the civil engineer with an effective means of bringing Ideas, presentations. reports etc.; before the , Interested audience for example the clients. especially International clients or the public. The engineer uses mulllmedla technology which leads to faster declslon-making and the decisions are fortified with greater understanding and communication through the use of this technology.

The local civil engineer has one distinct perspective due to the ' pressure of global competition. In adopting to changes, It is , ' necessary to have Improvement which is deeply embedded In the downstream business of his/her company. that Is at the project level for this porHcular project and also for future undertakings. The engineer must be competently equipped with Project Management knowledge and skills. and Management In the areas of deslgn.,' , construction. marketing and service. It Is hoped from this project he/she will able to undergo prompt transfer and acquisition of , refined cir updated technical knowledge, management and skills from the partner.

In summary, civil engineers must be well-equipped to be able to adapt to many changes as consequences of the globallsatlon of the commercial environment of the construction Industry.

xvm

, '

APPENDIX ONE (1)

Scenario-Based Design Package for Phase J

3) QUESTIONNAIRE

HUMAN RESOURCES (HR) PLANNING FOR ENGINEERS -ISSUES IN TIMES OF UNPRECEDENTED CHANGE

SECTION A: BACKGROUND INFORMATION

1. Which of the following categories best fits the number of employees In your organization? Please tick the appropriate space.

Less than 200 ( ) 201-500 ( ) More than 500 ( )

2. Which of the following sectors does your organization primarily operate In? Please tick only ~ space.

Manufacturing ( ) Construction ( ) Others: ................................ .

3. How experienced Is your organization In Its process fo HR planning? Please tick only one appropriate space.

( ) Emergent: Procedures and policies for conducting planning Just beginning t emerge. Uttle HR planning experience among participating managers.

( ) Evolving: Planning procedures have been developed and Implemented. Some HR planning experience among participating managers. Process for planning Is stili being refined.

( ) Mature: Long history of planning activities. Much HR planning experience among participating managers. Well-developed policies and procedures for conducting planning are In place.

XIX

APPENDIX ONE Cl)

Scenario-Based Design Pgckage for Phase 1

4. Does your organization explicitly attempt to: (Please tlck the appropriate space)

a. Align HR plans with business strategy. Yes ( ) No( )

b. Identify opportunltles for using HR plans to gain a competltlve advantage. Yes ( ) No ( )

c. Align HR plans with human sides of the technical changes (consider human factors). Yes ( ) No( )

5. Professional positlon of respondent In the organizatlon:

••••••••••••••••••••• , ••••••••••• 0 •••••••••••••••••••••••••••• t ••••••••••••••• o •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

6. The number of years experience In the position In question (5):

••••••••••••• , ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 11 ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

7. The engineering discipline respondent belongs to:

•••••••••••• , •••••••••••••••• It •••••••• , •••• t ••••• to, ••• to •••• to ••••••••••• , ••••••••••••••••••• , •••••••••••

8. The total number of years experience In engineering profession:

••••••••••••••• to •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• to •• o ............. , •• 0.0 •••••••••••• to •••••••••••••••••••••••

9. Company/Organisation name: .......................................... (Optlonal)

10. Company/Organisation address: ...................................................... ..

11. Respondent's name: (Optional)

12. Contacttelephone number: (Optional)

........................................................

........................................................ (Optional)

......................................................

........................................................

xx

APPENDIX ONE Cl)

Scenario-Based Design Package for Phase J

SECTION B: SURVEY ABOUT THE SCENARIOS OF THE FUTURE

Instruction: Carefully look at the Scenarios and decide what you think each Is trying to show. Since Images are often ambiguous, we have tried to write a short title so that we can Interpret results In terms of common basis. Here are the steps we would like you to go through for each scenario: (please answer all Items)

1. a) In your opinion does the short title sums up what each Scenario represents: (Please tick)

# Scenario 1 - Processes Improvement: Yes ( ) No ( ) # Scenario 2 - Globallsatlon: Yes ( ) No ( )

b) If NQ please suggest the suitable title or comment:

Scenario 1 Scenario 2

• ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• I ....................... .

· · ................................................................. . 2. Mark (x) the period you think each 'Scenario' will (or has become)

become most common In you country and also throughout the world.

Period Before 1995 1996-2000 2001-2005 2006-2010

Be ond 2010 Other comments (specify)

Scenario 1 Scenario 2 eoun World ~ Coun World

•••••••• I ••••••••••• 10.. • •••••••••••••••• , ••••••

••••••••••• t ••••••••••• , •• 10 •••••••••• t •• I ••••••

3. In the 'Scenarios' presented, rate the response that best describes your opinion on the Importance and desirability of the development In the 'Scenarios' for manufacturing/construction Industry. Please rate and where the rating: 1 =very loW; 2=low; 3=average; 4=hlgh; 5=very high.

Scenario I , Scenario 2

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APPENDIX ONE (1)

Scenario-Based Design Package for Phase 1

SECTION C: REQUIREMENTS OF THE SCENARIOS

Note: SC1 =Scenarlo 1; SC2=Scenarlo 2; will be used throughout Section C.

1. The common roles of engineers In manufacturing are as design engineers, manufacturing engineers and sometimes as manufacturing/production managers (for construction as design engineers, site engineers or project manager). Please rate the level of Importance of the 'functional Images' of these roles relevant to each 'Scenario'.

a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

t.

Where the rating: I "least Important; 2=less Important; 3=lmportant; 4--conslderable Important; 5::mosllmportanl

SC! SC2 The 'Functlonallrnages'

Engineer as specialised problem solver.

Engineer os competence In sciences and technofoov. Engineer os technical business manogerlalleoder.

Engineer as designer. Inventor and producer.

Engineer os competence In research and development others (specify)

2. Please rate the level of Importance of the following responsibilities of an engineer stated In the Engineering CounCil, United Kingdom definition of 'Chartered Engineers (Ceng)" as you can relate to each 'Scenarro'. Where the rating: 1 =Ieasl Important; 2=less Important; 3=lmportant; 4=conslderable Important; 5::mosllmportanl

SC! SC2 The ReSPOnslblrlties

Chartered Engineer (CEng) o. Ensure the progress 01 technology (current Q"ld developing) b. Develop and apply new technologies at highest efficiency c. Promote and apply cdVcnced designs and design methods d. introdUce new cnd efficient constructJon/monufacturJng techniques e. introdUce new and efficient marketing techniques f. Pioneer new engineering services g. PIoneer new management methods h. Manage cnd direct hlgh-nsk and resource intensive projects I GMI1g prolessloncJ judgment J Profitable management 01 Industrial/commercial enterprises

XXII

APPENDIX ONE (1)

Scenario-Based Design Package for Phase 1 3. Please rate the level of Importance of the following responsibilities of an

engineer stated In the Engineering Council, United Kingdom definition of "Incorporated Engineers (IEng)" as you can relate to each 'Scenario'. Where the rating: 1 =Ieast Important; 2=less Important; 3=lmportant; 4=conslderable Important; 5=mast Important

SCI SC2 The ResPOnslbllltles

Inco porated Engineer (IEng) a. Expone~~~ today's technology (current and

developl, b. Malnt~~gd manage a~~tlons of current and

develo technolOgy_cl h hest efflclancv C. Exercise Independent technical judgement and

manooement In 0 recoonlsed field of technoloov d. Provide Independently and os 0 leader, 0 slgnlllcant

Innuance on the overon effectiveness of the oroanlsotlon e, Key personnel In operational management funchons

4. Please Indicate the level of significance In your opinion of the following key elements of change that will affect the roles and responsibilities of the engineers as prOjected by each 'Scenario'. Where the rating: 1 =Ieast sIgnificant; 2=less significant; 3= significant; 4=conslderable sIgnificant; S=mast significant

SCI SC2 Item The Key Elements 01 Change a. New emphasis on englneertng design and

constructlon/manufocturtng • effiCient, responsive and effective

b. New techniques enobled by Information technology e.g. TQM, Kalzen, re-enolneertna, concurrent enalneertna etc.

c. Integrative aspects of englneertng design, practice and management In systems (drawing on techniques and knowledae from many disciplineS)

d. Incorporate humanities (human factors) and social sciences Into the understandlnQ of problems and solutions.

e. Increased Interaction and relationships beyond workstatlon • teamworklnQ and cllent-orlentatlon.

f. Management of vast quantity of Information a Tlme-compressed worklna environment h. Hlah degree of empowerment In declslon-maklna I. Dynamic/mobility of cMl/manufacturtng engineers roles·

design to SIte to project (or manufacturing) manager to team leader to soles enalneer vice-versa

j. The needs of continuous or lifelong learning k. Others (specify)

XXIII

APPENDIX ONE Cl) Scenario-Based Desian Package for Phase 1 5. Please rate the level of Importance of the attributes of an engineer In

order to carry-out his/her responsibilities effectively In each 'Scenario', Where the rating: 1 =Ieast Important; 2=less Important; 3=lmportant; 4=conslderable Important; 5=most Important

se! SC2 The Attributes

a. An ability to Identify and define a problem and evaluate alternative solutions, and apply one or more designs to solve the problem.

b. A breadth and depth of technical and technologlcol backQround.

c. An effectiveness In communicating Ideas (Interpersonal and Intra-personal) and client relation

d. Capable In using computers and Information technology (11) for communications, analysis and design.

e. Knowledgeable In human factors and humanities.

f. Knowledgeable of business strategies and manaaement oractlces.

g. An appreciation and understanding of Systems Engineering Perspective/ Approach- social & enwonment

h. A capability to continue the leamlng experience -continuous or lifelong leamlllg._

I. An understanding of woMd affairs. cultures development and languoaes.

J High professional and ethical standard

k. Capablllfy of working across disciplines In a team and exerclslno Interdisciplinary skills

I. Recognise and appreciate the existence of new technlaues e a concurrent enalneeMna etc.

m. Knowledgeable In the Management of Human Resources

n. Knowledgeable In Quollty Management Systems and Practices - TQM. Continuous Imorovement etc

o. Knowledgeable of emerging Innovative cons1ruchon technologies (for construction)

or Knowledgeable of emergIng advanced materials fechnology and enolneerlno (for manufacturing).

p. Knowledgeable In research and development methods and oractlces

q. Others (specify)

XXIV

APPENDIX ONE Cl)

Scenario-Based Design Package for Phase 1

6. The Important knowledge and skills Identified from literature search that will provide the competencies required by the engineer In order to carry­out his/her responsibilities effectively In the future are as followed. Please rate their level of Importance relevant to each 'Scenario', Where the rating: 1 =Ieast Important; 2=less Important; 3=lmportant; 4=conslderable Important; 5::most Important

1) The Technical and Technaloalcal Knowledae and SkillS SCI a. PrOject Management

b. M~I~agement PracHces In ConstrucHon/Productlon Pro ect Process

c. Information Technology (11) for Engineering Professlonols

d. Computer-AIded Design (CAD) and Drafting or CAD/CAM. CAE

e. Qualltv Svstems and Manaaement Includlna TQM f. Quantitative Malv<is Include. stoHsHcs' g. Systems engineering

h. New Techniques - Concurrent Engineering. FMS, CIM. JITM etc.

I. Innovative Construc!lon Technologies or

Advanced Materials Technoloov and Ennlneerina J. Research and Development In

Constructlon/Manufacturina k. Others (specify)

2) The Non-Technical TechnoTcKiical Knowledae and Skills a. Communication and Human RelaHons skills b. Economics and Finance c MaMlcal with Attention to Details skills d. Innovative and Creative skills

e. Problem-soMng skills

f. Marketing skills

g. Leadership skills

h. T eomwork skills

I. Foreign Languages skills

rT. Cultural Undemandlna and Develooment k. OraonlsoHonal and Worklna Practice skills I. Continuous or Ufelona Leamlna skills m Business sklllsnnclude. InternotJonal BUSInesS) n Intemotlonal Professional and Technical standards 0 Neaotlatlon skills

rn: Manc;r;Ament of Human Resources rn: Human Factors

r. Social Sciences m. Others (specify)

xxv

SC2

APPENDIX ONE (1)

Scenario-Based Design Package for Phase 1

7. Generally. engineers' roles/job titles In a manufacturing organization are as design engineers. manufacturing engineers. assembly engineers. quality engineers. systems operations engineers and sometimes as manufacturing/production mangers Qn construction organization as civil engineers. site engineers. design engineers. construction engineers and project managers).

a) Are the 'Scenarlos' unfolding any new role(s) for the engineers?

Scenario 1: Yes ( ) Scenario 2: Yes ( )

No{ ) No ( )

b) If Yes. suggest the new role/roles (or job titles):

Scenario 1: ......................................................... , ......... .

Scenario 2: .................................................................... .

8. In general. please rate the vlabllltv of the following methods of delivery. In your opinion. for the continuing education and professional development of engineers of manufacturing/construction organisation In times of unprecedented change transpired through the ·Scenarlos.

a.

b.

C.

d.

Where the raHng: 1 =least viable; 2-less viable; 3= viable; 4=conslderably viable; 5::most viable

sel sa The Methods of DeRveIV

'Onllne' courses through Intemet by universltles/lndustlY/professlonal bodies/consortium etc. which can be accumulated towards achieving formal certlflcatlon ego post-graduate or professional.

Full-time or part-time at universities cooperatlon with IndustlY-accumulation towards achieving formal certlficatlon ego past· graduate or professlonal.

Accredited human resources development courses at workplaces.

Short courses at unlversltles/lndustJY /professlonal bodies etc. Without formal certification.

XXVI

I APPENDIX TWO (2) I

APPENDIX TWO (2) Scenario-Based Design Package for Phase 2

Phase 1:

The Future of Engineering Education

A Research Programme

Summary of the Views of United Kingdom and Malayslan Industrialists on Future Engineering Needs and Implications for Education.

• The Increasing breadth and depth of knowledge and skills (technical and non-technical) required by engineers In the future.

• The significant Impact and Involvement of Information technology (11) on the engineering profession and consequently on engineering education.

• The needs for Industry and practitioner Involvement In the engineering education process such as a 'partnership' arrangement.

• The need to Integrate non-technical knowledge and skills Into the 'core technical curriculum', although the possibility of extending the duration of undergraduate degree courses Is a remote possibility.

• More than 7(J%, of the responding engineers Indicated the need of continuous or lifelong leamlng (considerable to most Important) as they are continuously being asked to Improve and upgrade their knowledge and skills.

• More than 7(J%, of the responding engineers regarded as a high viable solution (more to most viable) university-based engineering education with continuing education and some forms of partnership with Industry.

Phase 2: The Views of Engineering Educators on Possible Scenarios

The second phase of the research is to develop a concept of the educational processes and practices which might meet Mure needs of Industry. The general requirement Is for a 'flexible and responsive' engineering education system.

The modus operandi for this phase of research Is:-

• Initiatives of Improvement process are presented In forms of 'scenarios' using 'Scenario-based design' method based on 'soclo-technlcal systems' concept.

• Engineering educators and other lecturers will be Invited to provide their views based on their experiences and also on the 'scenarios'.

The objectives of these discussions Included: • To Investigate the feasibility of the Initiatives presented by the

three (3) 'scenarios'. The feasibility Is Indicated by the suitability,

I

APPENDIX TWO (2) Scenario-Based Design Package for Phase 2

teaching leamlng aspects, teaching and leamlng method, contribution to lifelong leamlng, changes of roles of students and educators and accreditation Issues.

• To study the 'degree of maturity of experiences', the drivers or enablers towards successful Implementation and the Inhibiting forces (obstacles) encountered or envisaged/expected.

Summarise as the overall need that shapes the 'scenarios':

1) The foundation of engineering profession which Is based on enduring and relevant 'functional Images' Is emphasised to the students. The Images are engineer as specialised problem-solver; engineer as competent In sciences and technology; engineer as designer, Inventor and producer; engineer as competent In research and development; and engineer as technical business managerial leader.

2) Determination of the requirements of Mure engineers In the forms of: a) attributes b) knowledge and skills

3) Delivery process that Incorporated human potential development, contents, and methods and technologies. Three (3) prominent components are being projected namely "IT-mediated leamlng", "integrated curriculum-mediated leamlng" and "partnership-mediated leamlng".

IT

APPENDIX TWO (2) Scenario-Based Design Package for Phase 2

The following scenarios will emerge:

Scenario 1 : IT-mediated learning

• In this scenario students learn at a distance, students enrolling In an engineering programme from a unIVersity will enjoy much flexibilIty. They may never have to set foot on the campus; they can attend courses from the comfort of their homes or workplaces or even hotel room when they are travelling. The constraInts of traditional lectures and dIscussion sessions that require students and lecturers to be In the same place, slmuffaneouslyare thIngs of the past. Instead, the unIVersity's students learn at theIr leIsure through instructional CD-ROMS and Internet communIcation. -

• CommunicatIons with theIr cIassmates and lecturers usually takes place through onllne discussions enabled by conferenclng softwares such as Lotus Notes etc .. Similar to e-maiL conferenclng software allows for the _ exchange of electronic messages. ElectronIc conferenclng, however, Is much more dImensIonaL enabling easy-te-follow dIscussions among a ' , group. Each member of the 'group can see the others comments and ' responses. Comments are organIsed by discussIon topIcs and are left onllne throughout the courSe so students can review the whole discussion at theIr convenIence. Students access these conferences through the World WIde Web or by usIng theIr modem to dial Into a computer. _ , Conferences are usually password-protected for security reasons and to, prevent people not enrolled In the class from disrupting them. ' , "

'" "

• Also, previously when students had questions about their worlG their used to show up at the respectIVe lecturer office wIth computer printouts In hand. The development here Is that they send their queries with computer flIes attached. The lecturer responds bye-maiL or If the Issue Is of general Interest to the class, It wIll be posted on the courses' electronic bulletin board for all to see. The lecturer can quIckly spot any problems students are havIng by checkIng postlngs on the electronIc bulletin board. :, ' students are privy to all enquiries. students even transmit theIr completed assignments to the lecturer electronIcally. In turn the lecturer can read. correct and return them with. a few simple keystrokes. "

• In this method of delivery, the concept Is to thInk of every person on the network as both a user and a resource. This Is important towards formIng a network of people In an InteractIVe learnIng community that Is not lImited by tIme, place, or the constraInts of classroom. As people get ;, , comfortable with the medium, they began to Interact and respond.' '

• Lecturers are acting more as d guIde or facllltator. Students review the course material on their own, always knowing that the lecturer Is there to lend a hand should they stumble. The lecturer monitors the students by reviewing their assignments and facilitating electronic conferences while remaining accessible through e-mail. :

ill

APPENDIX TWO (2) Scenario-Based Design Package for Phase 2

ScenariQ 2: Integrated curriculum-mediated leaming:

• The picture emerges where engineering departments have to put more emphasIs on Integrating teamwork skills. communicatIon skIlls and leadershIp skills Into the core engIneering courses. As an example. the new focus on desIgn, work Is where students work In teams, give, " presentatIons to theIr classmates as well as Industry members. Then they have to write reports on theIr progress whIch helps to develop these skills. ThIs Is relevant to'the way desIgn engineers work In Industry.

• ThIs Is further relnforced'by InV~lvJng students frOm other engIneering disciplines. business, human factors etc. During lectures students leam , how engineering meshes with marketing and the arts to produce a ; successful product. Through this InterdiscIplinary work. the students begin to understand each others' discIplinarY languages. Furthermore. In the ", final year, after gaining some expertise In theIr own fields. engIneering and busIness students take the InterdiscIplinary work a step further by working In teams to develop real products for Industry. students not only design a product but also develop the technical manuals. develop the safety , , procedure. devIse a market analysIs and a busIness plan. The engIneering students leam about the business, economics. human factors aspects etc. from course lectures and from team members who have expertise In', , those areas. " ' '

, ' ,

• At higher levels a version of the concept Involves combining engineering with advanced degrees or post-graduate degrees In other areas such as shown today In the popular M.B.A. programmes.' , ' " , ' '

IV

APPENDIX TWO (2) Scenario-Based Design Package for Phase 2

,

Scenario 3: Partnership-mediated learning", '- ~ " j ~

• In this partnerShip programme, Industry brings a real problem to the university, and for an agreed budget, a group of students. working with a company liaison and aided by an engineering department on-campus ' and off-campus, devise 'a solution to the satisfaction of the customer. '

) '" ~

• Such ventures help engineering departments overCome some of the biggest complaints about engineering education: students' lack of hands­on experience, teamwork skills and real worid applications. Students also ' can hone cammunlcatlon skills when they have to write reports and', ' , present the solution. ' ' , , , ' " , ' ' "

(, ( ,

• Every activity should have :technlcal and' non-technical knowiedge'and ' skills objectives. Technical knowledge and skills objectives specify the , ,: concepts and strategies to be,leamed. Non-technical knowledge and,' skills objectives specify the teamwork skills. communication skills" ' ."',;' , , leadership skills etc. that to be mastered a'nd used during the actlv/1Y., '

! " " ~ ,~ ,- ~¥.,rc" ~"

,~ ~" :~,,, ~~"", / '/"~;,..;:\);,-

• The extreme ofthe partnershJp'programme Is when the Industrial 'c organisation determines wholly the programme content with the sole,' " " objective of fulfilling Its specific requirements" , '",~,",' ',',' ,:,,': " "

~ '; *' ." , ',1 '- '< ~ ~" _ ' ,.,,~, ,,' I" '-A' "., '"

, ,- ; ,,\, , \-' " , " / = ~ \ ~"" i') ,"~ ,

v

APPENDIX TWO (2)

Scenario-Based Design Package for Phase 2

DISCUSSIONS GUIDES;

1) In your opinion, can the Initiatives presented contribute towards 'flexible and responsive' engineering education system which can Incorporate and adapt to the new demands and at what level undergraduate (UG), post-graduate(PG) or continuous professional development (CPD)?

2) In your opinion where are United Kingdom/Malaysia now In terms of the development of the Initiatives proposed?

3) What are the drivers or enablers that you think will facilitate the Implementation of the Initiatives and give your reasons?

4) What are the Inhibiting forces or obstacles that will hinder the Implementation of the Initiatives and give your reasons?

5) The Initiatives are not the only solution, would you suggest other solutions?

6) What do you think the attitude of the engineering professional bodies towards the engineering courses that adopt the Initiatives?

7) What Is your opinion on the changing roles of lecturers and students?

8) What are the teaching and learning Issues that are present In the Initiatives that will contribute towards 'flexible and responsive' engineering education system/programme?

9) How should the 'lifelong leamlng skills' be taught to engineers?

10) Please give brief Information about yourself In terms of the discipline, number years experience etc.

Thank you for your time and cooperation.

A.R.Ahmad. Department of Human SCiences. Loughborough Unlverslly. Loughborough. Leicestershire LEll 3'TV. (Tel: (01509) 263171 -x: 4263: e-mail. A R.Ahmad@lboro.qc.uk) June 1999.

VI

APPENDIX THREE (3)

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Dgta for Phase 1

THE IMPLICATIONS OF MAJOR CHANGE ON THE FUTURE WORK OF ENGINEERS (PHASE 1)

Analyses of Datg from United Klnadom's gnd Malaysia's

1) The Sample Characteristics

1.1 Profiles of Respondents

Tables Appendix 3.10 and 3.1b show the basIc characterIstics of respondents,

engIneers from UK's and MalaysIa's construction and manufacturIng IndustrIes.

Nearly all the respondents (UK(93.3%), MY(loo%» from constructIon were In cIvil

engIneerIng dIscIpline. While the respondents from manufacturIng Industry

were made up of various engIneering dIscIplines namely

manufacturIng/productIon, process, software, operatIon, mechanical,

electrical and electronics, chemical, Industrial design, and Industrial.

The respondents' experience In the civil engineering discipline, In term of

number of years ranged from one (1) year to twenty-three (23) years with ten

(10) years experience as the median. Similarly In manufacturing, the

respondents' experience In their respective engineering disciplines, In term of

number of year ranging from one (1) year to twenty-three (23) years with five

and a half (5.5) years as the median.

The construction Industry's respondents experience In the present roles, In

term of number of year ranging from twelve to forty years with 10 years as

median for Ut<; and one (1) year to twenty-three (23) years with nine (9) years

experience as the median for Malaysia. In manufacturing for UK between 2 to

42 years with 5.5 years as median while MalaysIa between one (1) year to

twenty-three (23) years with nine (9) years as the median.

The roles of the civil engineers that have responded spread across fourteen

(14) Job titles as shown In part (c) Tables Appendix 3.1a & b, from the high

I

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase 1

senior positions like director, project manager, airport manager, planning

manager, head of department to the other end of the rank namely civil

engineers and engineering lecturers. The roles In manufacturing spread across

seventeen (17) roles with Job titles as shown In part (c) Tables Appendix 5.1 a &

b. from the high senior positions like executive director, managing director,

engineering manager, senior speCialist to the other end of the rank namely

engineers and engineering lecturers.

a.

b.

c

Table Appendix 3.1 a: Profiles of Respondents: United Kingdom - Civil Engineers In Construction and Engineers In Manufacturing.

CIVIL ENGINEERS IN CONSTRUCTION ENGINEERS IN MANUFACTURING

CharaCledsllcl No. (%) CharacIeIIIIIcI No. DIIcIpIIrw DIIcIpIIne ~ CM! Erglneerirg 14 93.3 ~ Mart.lfactlJl1ng/Producllon Eng. 7

I) Others: 1 6.7 11) Process EngIneerirg 1 Ill) Sa!!ware EngInee!Ing 1 Ill) Operallon Englneemg 1 V) OIhell 3

Told 15 100 Told 13

~ In Dllclpllne (ynJ: ~_In DIIcIpIIne (years) 12 1 67 2 3 18 2 13.3 6 1 25 2 13.3 10 2 26 1 67 12 1 30 3 200 16 1 31 1 67 18 1 32 3 20.0 20 1 36 1 6.7 25 2 40 1 6.7 42 1

Tolo1 15 100 TaIaI 13 ~ Medkln 10 yea" t/Q!A. MedIan 5.5 years

RoI81/Job Title'· RoIOI/Job Tln.-~ D/teCtOr 2 133 0 Chief Execul!ve 1 11) Managlrg Director 1 61 I) 0peraII0n Director 2 11) Assocklte Ol...ctor 1 61 11) EngIneering Manager 1 1\1) Chief executive 1 67 Ill) Mart.lfacturlng/Productlon 1

Manager V) MarlcefIMg Manager 61 V) Producllon Pklnnlng Manager

Ill) Serlar SpecIalist Ill) BusMss De\leklpment 61 vii) Research Fellow

Manager vlO Dilector 01 Englneerirg 4 261 vIIO Project Mancger viII) Clvl engineer (CErg) 2 13.3 Ix) TQM Leader 1 61 Ix) Senior Mart.lfacfurirg/PfOdUCtlOn

Engr. x) Group StructuIaI engineer 61 x) Mart.lfactul1ng/PrOductlan Engr 1

xl) Human Resources Manager 2

TolaI 15 100 Total 13

n

(%)

538 7.7 7.7 7.7 23.1

100

231 77 154 77 7.7 77 77 15.4 7.7

100

7.1 154 77 154

77 77 1.7

1.1

77

77 154

100

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase 1 Table Appendix 3.1 b: Profiles of Respondents: Malaysia - Civil Engineers In Construction

and Engineers In Manufacturing. CIVIL ENGINEERS IN CONSTRUCrlON ENGINEERS IN MANUfAClURlNG

Charoctel1sHCI No. ("I.) Charact.rIIHCI No. ("I.) a. D~cJpIlne ~

o Civil Engineering 44 100 o MarufacturinglProductJon Eng. 7 17.1 11) MeehonIcoI Engineering 8 19.5 ID) EIectlIcoI and EJec!ronICI Eng. 13 31.7 Iv) Chemical Engineering 6 146 \I) Industrial 0e<Jgn Engineering 1 2A vi) Process Englneerl'lg 2 49 vii) Industllol Englnee!lng 3 7.3 lIIII)Compu!er Software Engineering 1 2A

Total U 100 ToJal '1 100

b. Experlenceln Discipline CV ... ): ExpeJJonce In Dllc:lpIIne IV .... ) 1 3 68 1 8 195 3 2 45 15 1 2.4 4 2 45 20 3 7.3 5 5 114 3 4 9.8 6 1 2.3 4 1 2A 7 4 91 5 3 73 8 1 2.3 5.5 1 2A 9 1 23 6 2 4.9 10 5 11.4 7 2 49 11 1 23 8 3 7.3 12 4 9.1 10 1 2A 13 3 68 11 2 49 15 7 159 12 2 49 16 1 2.3 14 1 24 17 1 23 15 3 1.3 18 1 2.3 16 1 2.4 22 1 23 20 1 2A 23 1 2.3 22 1 24

23 I 24

Total U 100 Total .1 100 tI2m Median 10 yeom ~ M_ 5.5 yOOfl

c. _, __ .

_Job_" 0 DJrector 1 2.3 0 ExecutIve D_ 1 2A i) PIOjecI Manager 2 45 i) Managing Director 1 24 DO SHe Manager/Englneer 2 45 10 Engineering Manager 3 13 Iv) SenIor CMI Engineer 3 68 Iv) AssIsIont Production Manager 1 2.4 \I) AIrport Manager 1 2.3 \I) Senior Mat'l.Jfocturing Engineer 1 2A vi) Planning Manager 1 23 vi) SenIor Specialist 1 2A v10 Project Engineer 1 23 vJO Groop EIec!1tcoI Engineer 1 24 viII) Head of Department 2 45 vII0 PIOjecI Engineer 1 24 Ix) CM! Engineer 15 341 be) Senior Process EngIneer 1 24 x) CerIIflcotJon Engineer 1 23 xl As$ISIQnI Soles Manager 1 2A XO ArcMec!utol Assistant 1 2.3 XO Mar<Jfacluring/ProdUCHOn Engr. 2 49 x10 Assistant DIrector 1 2.3 x10 Consultlng/DeSlgn Engineer 4 98 x110 engineering Laclurer 12 213 xiII) Process Engineer 2 4.9 xlv) Resident Engineer 1 2.3 xlv) R&O EngIneer 1 2A

xii) Plant EngIneer 1 2A xvi) Engineer 11 268 xvii) Soles Engineer 1 2A l<VIll)Englneering Leclurer 1 11.1

Total U 100 Total 41 100

ill

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase 1

1.2 Profiles of Respondents' Organisations

Construction and manufacturing Industries' organisations that the respondents

(refer to Tables Appendix 3.2a & b) came from were active stakeholders In

industry namely the contractors, 47.7% and the service providers to

construction Industry, 52.3%; and 63.4% the manufacturers and 36.6% the

service providers to manufacturing Industry. The construction Industry's

organisations consisted of 56.S% small organisation Oess than 200 employees),

25.0% medium organisations (between 201 and 500 employees) and IS.2% big

organisations (more than 500 employees). While In manufacturing Industry, It

was 34.1 % smalL 29.3% medium and 36.6% big.

Majority of the construction Industry's organisations, 29 (65.90%) were with

evoMng human resources planning experience where planning procedures

have been developed and Implemented together with some planning

experience among participating managers. Process for human resources

planning Is still being refined In these organisations. Only 6 organisations

(13.60%) were with 'mature' experience in human resources planning where

well-developed policies and procedures for conducting planning are In­

placed due to long history of planning activities and much accumulated

experience among the participating managers. There were 9 organisations

(20.50%) with 'emergent' human resources planning experience where

procedures and policies for conducting planning just begin to emerge; and

there Is little human resources planning experience available among

participating managers. Similarly, the figures for manufacturing Industry are

58.5%,31.7% and 9.S% respectively.

Majority of the construction industry's organisations realised the Importance

of human resources in the business success of the organisations by giving

explicit considerations on aligning human resources planning with business

strategy, 35 firms (SI.S%) and gaining competitive advantage, 37 firms (84.1 %).

The figures were even higher for manufacturing Industry's organisations, 90.2%

and 97.5% respectively.

IV

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase 1

It Is refreshing to know that In construction Industry. 20 firms (68.2%)

considered human sides of the technical and technological changes namely

the human factors or human resources development during human resources

planning process. This moved away from the traditional practice of

considering only the fulfillment of technical and technological requirements

during human resources planning. When human sides of the technical and

technological changes are considered together with fulfilling the requirements

of technical and technological changes. hence problem of Incompatibility will

be minimised later. The manufacturing organisations seemed to place greater

emphasis on this as testified by the higher percentage of 90.2%.

v

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase 1

Table Appendix 3.20: Profiles of Organisations Respondents Come From - United KI d C t ti dM ut turt Id trt noc om ons rue on on on ac no n us es

construcfton Manutoctu~na

No. Characteristic. of Organloaflon No. of Percentage No. of perc:;:)tage Organloaflon (%) Or~onloafton

I. TVDe: 0) Construction/Manufacturing 14 93.3 12 92.3

Contractor b) services to 1 67 1 7.7

Constructlon/Manufacturing e g ConsuHants. Training etc

Total number 01 Orgonloaflon. 15 100 13 100

2. CoIagory: 0) SInaI (less than 200 employees) 3 200 4 308

b) Medium (between 201 and 600 3 20.0 4 30.8 emolovees)

c) Big (more than 600 employees) 9 60.0 5 38.4

Total number 01 Orgonloaflona 15 100 13 100

3. Human Resource. Planning Experience: o EmerQent 3 200 7 538 b EvoMno 6 400 4 308 c Mature 6 400 2 154 Total number of Orgonlsollono 15 100 13 100

4. Human Resource. Plann!11!I SIIaIegy: o Business StroteQV 12 BOO 10 769 b Comoetltlve AdVantooe II 73.3 8 615 c Human Factors II 733 II 846

VI

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase 1

Table Appendix 3.2b: Profiles of Organisations Respondents Come From - Mclayslc's C onstruction and Manufacturing Industries

Construcflon Mcnulaetudng

No. Characteristic. 01 Organlsaflon No. 01 Percentage No. 01 pere~)tage _~n1saflon (%) Organlsaflon

I. Type: c) Constructlon/Manufactudng 21 47.7 26 63.4

Contractor b) services to 23 523 15 36.6

Constructlon/Manutaclul1ng e g. Consuttants. Training etc

Total number 01 Oroanlsaflons 44 100 41 100

2. CoIegorv: a) SmaU (less than 200 employees) 25 56.8 14 34.1

b) Medium (between 201 and 500 11 25.0 12 29.3 emolovees)

c) 81g (more than 500 employees) 8 18.2 15 366

Total number 01 Crganlsaflons 44 100 41 100

3. Human Resource. Planning Expedence: o Emergent 9 20.50 4 9.8 b EvoMna 29 6590 24 58.5 c Mature 6 1360 13 317 Tolal number 01 Omcnlsaflon. 44 100 41 100

4. Human Resource. PIonnlng : a) Bus.,ess Stroteav 36 818 37 902 b) Competitive AdVantage 37 84.1 39 975 cl Human Factors 20 682 37 90.2

VII

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase 1

1.3 profile of perception of the possible Future throuah Scenario· Based peslgn

Table Appendix 330 u : Perception on Possible Future by nlted K1 nodorn Enolneers No. Characteristics I I

ConstrucHon Industry_ Manufacturing Industry_ Scenario 1 Scenarfo2 Scenario Scenario

1 2 1. Level of Acceptance (Ok): 86.7 100.0 92.3 92.3

2. Tlme·frame Scenario becomes most common (% of acce~ce): a) United Klnadom:

1996· 2000 33.3 267 30.8 385 Beyond 2000 60.0 66.7 385 462

b) Worldwide' 1996· 2000 20.0 200 23.1 23.1 Beyond 2000 73.4 73.3 462 61.6

3. The Importance and Deslrabluty of the Future Scenarios ta UnIted KJngc:lom Construction and Manufacturing Industles (rate>3): al High to very high Importance 93.3 '(6.7) 46.7"(67) 846 '(0) 69.3 '(0)_

bl High to very high desirability 80.0 '(67) 46.7"(0) 77.0 '(0) 61.6 '(0)

'( ) percentages for rate <3 less to least Importance or desirability ...

Table Appendix 3.3b: Perception on Possible Future by Malavs an Enalneers No. Characteristics I I

1.

2.

Level of Acceptance (%):

Tlme·frame Scenario becomes most common (% of acceplOnce): al MaJaysla:

1996·2000 Bevond2OOO

b) Worldwide' 1996·2000 Bevond2OOO

3. The Importance and DeslrabIDty of the Future Scenarios to Malayslan Construction and Manufacturing Industries:

Construction Industry Manufacturlnalndustry Scenario 1 Scenario 2 Scenario Scenario

1 2 93.2 100.0 97.6 95.1

25.0 18.2 27.5 32.5 522 704 42.5 SS.O

273 34.1 225 30.0 43.2 386 25.0 350

a) Hlah to very hloh Importance 796 '(23) 72.7 '(23) 878 '(0) 78.1 '(0) b) Hlah to very hlah deslrabllltv 79.6 '(23) 65 9 '(45) 82.9 '(0) 75.6 '(0)

'( ) percentages for rate <3 less to least Importance or deslrabHIty ...

VIII

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase 1

1.4 The Key Elements of Change

Table Appendix 3.40: Level of Significance of lhe Key Element of Change by United KIngdom Civil Engineers and Manufacturing Engineers

CONSTRUcrION MANUFACTURING Scenario 1 Scenario 2 Scenario 1 I ScenaJl02

The Key Elements 01 Change (%) R.I. (%) R.I. (%) R.I. (%)

a. New emphasis on engineering design and 86.7 0.867 66.7 0.787 924 0.877 61.6 construcflon/manufacturlng - '(0) '(0) '(0) '(15.4) effiCient. responsive and effecffve

b. New techniques enabled by Informaflon technology e g. 80.0 0.840 80.0 0.827 61.6 0.769 69.3 TQM, Kaizen. re-engineering. '(6.7) '(0) '(0) '(7.7) concurrent engineering etc.

c. Integroffve aspects of engineering design. pracflce 73.3 0.827 60.0 0.747 69.3 0.800 69.3 and management In systems '(0.0) '(0) '(0) '(7.7) (drawing on techniques and knowledge from many disciplines)

d. Incorporate humanlfles (human factors) and social 400 0.693 66.7 0.787 53.9 0.662 38.5 sciences Into lhe '(20) '(0) '(23.1) '(30.8) understanding of problems and soluffons.

e. Increased Interacflon and relaflonshlps beyond 667 0.760 73.3 0.827 847 0.846 76.9 workstaflon - teamworklng '(6.7) '(0) '(0) '(7.7) and cllent-orlentaffon.

f. Management of vast quanffty 700 0.840 66.7 0.773 23.1 0.615 76.9 ollnformotlOn '(6.7) '(0) '(15.4) '(0)

g TIme-compressed working 66.7 0.787 53.3 0.720 308 0.631 76.9 environment '(13.3 '(13.3) '(23.7) '(15.4)

)

h. High degree of 800 0.827 73.3 0.800 53.9 0.738 61.6 empowerment In decision- '(0.0) '(0) '(7.7) '(23.1) maklno

I. Dynamic/mobility of civil/manufacturing engineers 73.3 0.760 53.3 0.720 69.2 0.769 38.5 roles - design to site to proJect '(0) '(6.7) '(0) '(7.7) (or manufacturing) manager to team leader to soles engineer vice-verso

J. The needs of conffnuous or 86.7 0.853 80.0 0.827 77.0 0.846 846 lifelong leamlna '(6.7) '(6.7) '(0) '(15.4)

~ I. (%) - The Level of Significance of Key Elements of Change, rote >3- considerable to very

Significant while '( ) % value for rote <3-less to least significant. 11. R.I. - The relative Index represenhng the ranking.

IX

R.I.

0.769

0.785

0.754

0.600

0.862

0.800

0.754

0692

0.662

0.846

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phose 1

Table AppendIx 3.4b: Level of SIgnIficance of !he Key Element of Change by MalaysIa's CIvil EngIneers and Manufacturing EngIneers

CONSTRUcrJON MANUFAClURING Scenario 1 Scenario 2 Scenario 1 Scenario 2

1he Key Elements of Change ("to) R.I. ("to) R.I. ("f.) R.I. ("f.)

a. New emphasis on engIneering desIgn and 77.3 0.836 68.2 0.795 85.4 0.824 73.2 construcHon/manufacturing • "(2.3) "(4.5) "(2.4) "(4.9) efficient, responsive and effecHve

b. New techniques enabled by InformaHon technology e.g. 81.8 0.845 72.7 0.852 85.3 0.858 80.4 TQM. Kaizen. re-englneering. "(D.D) "(D) "(24) "(2.4) concurrent enalneerina etc.

c. Integrative aspects of engineering design. pracHce 68.2 0.809 61.3 0.773 80.5 0.834 73.2 and management In systems "(D.D) "(2.3) "(4.9) "(2.4) (drawing on techniques and knowledge from many disciplines)

d. Incorporate humanlHes (human factors) and social 52.2 0.736 61.3 0.768 58.5 0.752 48.8 sciences Into !he "(46) "(6.8) "(7.3) "(12.2) understanding of problems and soluHans.

e. Increased InteracHon and relaHonshlps beyond 61.4 0.768 727 0.809 87.8 0.834 73.2 warkstaHon • teamworklng "(2.3) "(0) "(D) "(2.4) and cllent-orientaHon.

f. Management of vest quanHty 56.8 0.727 63.7 0.750 61.0 0.741 68.3 of InformcHon "(6.8) "(9.1) "(7.3) "(7.3)

g. Tlme-compressed working 36.3 0.655 45.4 0.673 46.3 0.688 43.9 environment "036 "(73.7) "(9.8) "(2.4)

)

h. High degree of 70.4 0.800 70.4 0.795 70.8 0.790 73.4 empowerment In decision- "(D.D) "(2.3) "(4.9) "(9.8) maklna

L Dynamic/mobility of civil/manufacturing engineers 72.7 0.786 68.2 0.773 70.7 0.776 61.0 roles· design to site to project "(4.5) "(4.5) "(98) "(14.6) (or manufacturing) manager to teem leader to sales enalneer vice-verse

J The needs of continuous or 77.3 0.873 750 0.827 854 0.873 75.6 lifelong leamlna "(OD) "(6.8) "(4.9) "(7.3)

~ I. (%) • The Level of Significance of Key Elements of Change. rete >3· considerable to very

significant whlle"( ) % value for rate <3-le55 to least significant. 11. R.I.· The relative Index represenHng the ranking.

x

R.I.

0.780

0849

0.780

0.717

0.795

0.824

0.673

0.746

0.732

0819

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase 1

1.5 Responsibilities of Engineers

Table Appendix 3.50: Level of Importance of Responsibilities by United Kingdom Civil E d nglneerson Mon~acrunnaEnalneers

CONSTRUCTION MANUFACTURING Scenario 1 Scenario 2 Scenario 1 Scenario 2

Percentages 01 engineeR Indicating the unloldlng 01 38.6% 43.2% 220% 22.0% new roles for engineeR

The ReSPOnslbllifles (%) R.I. (%) R.I. (%) R.I. (%)

1. Chartered Enalneer (CEna) o. Ensure the progress of 66.7 0.760 46.7 0.707 77.0 0.815 61.6

technology (current cnd develoolno) .

"(0) "(6.7) "(0) "(0)

b. Develop cnd apply new 80.0 0.853 86.7 0.800 84.7 0.846 84.6 technologies at highest "(!J) "(0) "(0) "(0) efflclencv

c. Promote cnd apply adVanced 73.4 0.773 66.7 0.733 84.7 0.877 84.6 designs and design methods "03.3) "(6.7) "((J) "(0)

d. Introduce new and efficient 1000 0.933 93.4 0.880 100.0 0.923 53.9 construction/manufacturing "(0) technlaues

"(0) "(0) "(0)

e. Introduce new and efficient 26.7 0.640 20.0 0.587 30.8 0.538 53.9 markeflng techniques .(20.0) "(32.4) ·(53.9) "(30.8)

I. PIoneer new engineering 46.7 0.693 53.4 0.680 38.5 0.662 46.2 services "(6.71 "03.41 "(23.7) "05.4)

g. Pioneer new management 66.7 0.760 600 0.693 53.9 0646 539 methods .(6.7) "(2() D) ·(23. I) "05.4)

h. Mancge and direct hlgh-rlsk 80.0 0.800 73.4 0.813 61.5 0.723 69.2 and resource Intensive projects ·(133) "03.3) "(7.7) "(23.7)

1. GIvIng professional judgment 73.3 0.853 66.7 0.840 69.3 0.800 61.6 "(0) "(01 "(0) "0542.

J. Profitable mcnagement of 93.3 0.893 73.4 0.827 61.5 0.785 61.6 Industr1cl/commerclcl enterorls9s

"(0) "(0) "(75.4) "(75.4)

2. Incorporated Engineer (IEng) a. Exponent of today's 70.0 0.760 66.7 0.760 77.0 0.815 69.3

technology (current cnd develoolnO) .

"(6.7) "(6.7) "(0) "(7.7)

b. Maintain and manage 80.0 0.813 66.7 0.773 77.0 0.846 69.3 appHcctlonS of current and "(6.7) "(0) "(0) "(7.7) developing technology at hklhest efflclencv

c. exercise Independent technical 66.7 0.787 533 0.733 61.5 0723 462 Judgement and management "(0) In a recognised field of

"(6.7) "(7.7) "(7.7)

technoloov d. Provide Independently and os 66.7 0.787 53.3 0.747 69.3 0.754 77.0

a leader. a significant Influence "(133) "(73.3) "(75.4) "(7.7) on the overall effectiveness of the orQanlsatlon

e. Key personnel In operational 66.7 0.760 60.0 0.707 38.5 0.662 38.5 management funcflons ·(67) "200) "05.4) "(7.7)

~ (%) - The Level 01 Importance of Responsibilities. rate >3- considerable to most Important while "C ) % value for rate <3-less to least Important R.I. - The reloflve Index represenflng the ranking.

XI

R.I.

0.815

0.831

0877

0.754

0.708

0.692

0.662

0.708

0.754

0.692

0.754

0.754

0.692

0.800

0.677

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase 1

Table Appendix 3.5b: Level of Importance of Responsibilities by Malaysia's CIvil En Ineers and Manufaclurlng EI)gineers

CONsrRUCTION MANUFACTURING Scenario I Scenario 2 Scenario I Scenario 2

Percentages of engineers Indicating the unfolding of 38.6% 432% 22.0% 22.0% new roles for enQlneers

The Responsibilities (%) R.I. (%). R.I. (%) R.I. (%)

1. Chartered Engineer (CEng) a. Ensure the progress of 69.0 0.790 71.4 0.781 75.6 0.815 63.4

technology (current and developing) .

*(7.1) *(11.9) *(2.4) *(0)

b. Develop and apply new 64.3 0.781 69.0 0.781 90.3 0.878 78.0 technologies at highest *(11 9) *(9.5) *(0) *(0) efflclencv

c. Promote and apply adVanced 73.8 0.795 66.7 0.781 80.4 0.849 65.8 designs and design methods *(11 9) *Ql.9) *(0) *(7.3)_

d. Introduce new and efficient 78.6 0.838 78.5 0.805 90.2 0.893 60.9 construction/manufacturing *(2.4) *(9.5) *(0) *(0) techniques

e. Introduce new and efficient 40.5 0667 69.1 0.752 48.8 0.702 48.8 markeflng techniques *(19.0) *04.3) *(195) *(19.5)

f. Pioneer new engineering services 45.2 0.724 57.1 0.729 70.7 0.805 53.6 *(95) *(19) *(0) *(22)

g. Pioneer new management 52.4 0.690 71.4 0.743 46.3 0.702 41.5 methods *(16.7) *(16.7) *(146) *(17.1l

h. Manoge and direct hlgh.nsk and 61.9 0.724 71.4 0.752 70.7 0.766 58.4 resource Intensive proJects *(11.9) *(11.9> *(122) *(122)

I Giving professional Judgment 738 0852 810 0.824 78.0 0854 70.8 *(2.4) *(7.2) *(2.4) *(2.4)

J. Profitable management of 595 0.767 64.3 0.767 65.8 0.580 73.2 Industrlal/commerdal enterpriseS '(95) *(7.1) *(7.3) *(48)

2. Incorporated Engineer (IEng) a. Exponent of todoy's technology 66.6 0.757 61.9 0.757 73.2 0.805 58.5

(current and developing) *(9.5) *(72) *(2.4) *(2.4)

b. Maintain and manage 71.4 0.876 76.2 0.800 80.4 0.844 75.6 appDcoflons of current and *(48) *(4.8) *(4.9) *(7.3) developing technology at hlahest efflclencv

c. Exerctse Independent technical 71.4 0.795 64.3 0.781 78.0 0.815 58.5 Judgement and management In *(9.5) o recognised field of technoloov

*(7.2) *(2.4) *(12.2)

d. Provide Independently and os 0 71.4 0.757 667 0.762 65.9 0.771 53.7 leader, 0 slgnlflcanf Influence on the overaR effecflveness Of the

*(4.8) '(9.5) *(4,8) *(12.2)

org~,"lsotIon

e. Key personnel In operational 42.9 0686 52.4 0.748 65.9 0.751 48.8 management funcflons *(119) *(7.2) *(7.3) *(146)

~ I. (%) - The Level of Importance of Responsibilities. rate >3- considerable to most Important while

*( ) % value for rate <3-less to least Important. 11, R.I. - The relative Index represenflng the ranking.

XII

R.I.

0.805

0.834

0.771

0.790

0.722

0.717

0.693

0.722

0.815

0.766

0.776

0.800

0.722

0.702

0.707

Analyses of Data for Phase 1

1.6 Functional Images of Engineer

Table Appendix 3.6a: Rate of Imrlf,rt,nnr''''

c.

e.

Engineer os competent sciences and technology.

nil'''''''''' managerlolleader.

Inventor and producer.

research and development. '(26.7)

~

APPENDIX THREE (3)

Imcme,s' of Engineers by United

'(26.7) '(15.4) '(7.7)

I. (%) • The Rate of Importance of Functionallmcges. rate >3- considerable to most Important while % value for rate <3·less to least Important.

Table Appendix 3.6b: Rate of Importance of 'Functional Images' of Engineers by MI CIvilE d ut tul El aaysla's nolneersan Man ac rno nOlneers

CONSTRUCTION MANUFACTURING Scenario 1 Scenario 2 Scenano 1 5cenario2

1) The 'FuncHonallmages' (Ok) Itl. (Ok) R.I. (%) Itl. (%) R.I. a. Engineer as specialised 750 0.827 59.1 0.755 80.5 0.858 41.4 0654

problem solver '([)) '(9.7) '(2.4) '(26.8) b. Engineer cs competent In 77.2 0.845 75.0 0.791 80.5 0.839 75.6 0800

sciences and technology. '(2.3) '(2.3) '(2.4) '(7.3)

c. Engineer as technical 52.2 0.718 61.5 0.773 61.0 0756 58.5 0.756 business managerial leader. '(13.7) '(4.5) '(722 '(7.3)

)

d. Engineer os designer. 705 0827 568 0.750 80.5 0834 56.1 0693 Inventor and producer. '(0) '(4.6) '(4.9) '(22.0)

e Engineer os competent In 77.3 0800 63.6 0.750 82.9 0893 65.9 0.771 research and development. '(77.4) '(13.6) '(4.9) '(9.8)

~ I. (%) • The Rote of Importance of Funcllonollmages. rote >3- considerable to most Important while

'( ) % value for rote <3-less to least Important. 11. R.I.· The relCtive Index reoresentina the ronklna

XIII

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase 1

1.7 Roles/Job Titles of Engineers

The purpose of questions 2 and 3 In Part C. Is to Investigate the Impacts of

processes Improvement and globallsatlon scenarios on the roles of the

engineers.

Civil Engineers The 'Scenario 1 - Processes Improvement' will unfold new roles for civil

engineers as Indicated by 38.6% of the respondents while 43.2% viewed the

same for 'Scenarlo 2 - Globallsation'. The new roles being suggested Include:

# Scenario 1: human leaders of project. construction engineer. human

resources manager. resource manager. communicator. expert partner.

moderator/promoter. business development manager. technology researcher.

research and development. public relation manager. civil and IT engineer and

marketing manager.

# Scenario 2: marketing manager. sales engineer. development consultant.

marketing executive/manager. resource manager. Intematlonal negotiator.

negotiator. marketing engineer. overseas financial experts. analyser/advisor.

research and development manager and problem solver/conflict resolution.

Mgnufacturlng Engineer Only about 22% of the engineers In manufacturing that responded envisaged

the birth of new roles for engineers In In both scenarios. processes Improvement

and globallsatlon. The new roles expected Include:

# Scenario 1: Process engineer. technical specialist. research and

development engineer. manufacturing adviser. service engineer. seNlces and

Improvement engineer and product development engineer.

# Scenario 2: Process and product engineer. negotiator. research engineer.

marketing engineer. Information engineer. system and Information engineer

and multimedia engineer.

XIV

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase 1

1.8 The Requirements of Engineers in the Future

1.8.1 Attributes Required

Table Appendix 3.7a: Rate of Importance of Attributes of Engineers by United Kingdom Civil Engineers and ManufacturlngEnglneers

CONSTRUCTION MANUFACTURING Scenario 1 5cenario2 Scenario 1 scenario 2

1) The AHrIbuIes (%) R.I. (%) R.I. (%) R.I. (%) R.I. a. AA ability to identify and 86.7 0.933 86.7 0907 92.3 0.923 770 0846

deflne a problem ond "(0) "(0) "(0) "(0) evaluate altemotlve solutions. ond apply one or more de~gns to solve the_ problem

b. A breadth and depth of 80.0 0.844 80.0 0.813 69.3 0.769 69.2 0.738 technical and "(6.7) "(6.7) "(7.7) "(7.7) technological backcround.

c. AA effectiveness In 867 0880 93.3 0.933 92.3 0.846 84.6 0.908 communicating Ideas "(0) "(0) "(0) "(0) (Interpersonal and Intra-personaO and client relation.

d. Capable In using 80.0 0.867 80.0 0.867 84.6 0815 100.0 0.938 computers and "(D) '(0) "(0) "(0) Information technology (11) for communications. analYsis and deoon.

e. Knowledgeable In human 46.7 0.760 60.0 0.773 46.2 0.708 61.5 0.723 factors and humanities. "(0) '(0) "(7.7) "(0)

f. Knowledgeable of 60.0 0.787 60.0 0.720 53.9 0.677 53.9 0.738 business strategies and '(0) *(6.7) *(23.7 "(7.7) management practices. )

g. AA appreciation and 33.3 0.640 53.3 0.680 61.5 0.692 69.3 0.769 understanding of Systems "(73.3) "(20.0) *(75.4 "(7.7) Engineering )

Perspective, Approach-social & environment

~ I. (%) - The Rate of Importance of Attributes. rate >3- considerable to most Important while *( )%

value for rate <3-less to least Important. 11. R.I. - The relative Index representing the ranking.

xv

Analyses of Data for Phase 1

continue Table Appendix 3 7a " ... CONSTRUCIION

Scenario 1 Scenario 2

1) The AHrlbutes (%) R.I. (%) R.I. h. A capability to conHnue 73.3 0.773 80.0 0.787

the leamlng experlence- *(6.7) *(0) conHnuous or lifelong leamlna.

I. An understanding of world 13.3 0.573 60.0 0.800 affairs. cultures *(26.7) *(6.7) development ond IanguCl~es.

J. High professional and 93.3 0.867 93.3 0.867 ethical standard *(0) *(0)

k. Capability of working 86.7 0.867 86.7 0853 across disciplines In a *(0) *(0) team and exerc~lng Interdlsclollnarv skills

I. Recognise and 733 0.800 53.3 0.720 appreciate the existence *(0) *(6.7) of new techniques e.g. concurrent engineering etc.

m. Knowledgeable In the 53.3 0.747 60.0 0.693 Management of Human *(0) *(0) Resources

n. Knowledgeable In Quality 40.0 0.707 33.3 0.680 Management Systems *(6.7) *(6.7) and ProcHces - TQM, ConHnuous Improvement etc

o. Knowledgeable of emerging InnovotlVe 60.0 0.747 60.0 0.720 construcHon technologies *(67) *(6.7) (for construcHon)

or Knowfedgeable of emergIng advanced materials technology and engIneering (for manufacturina).

p. Knowledgeable In 26.7 0627 267 0.613 research and *(20.0) *(20.0) development methods and prachces ~

APPENDIX THREE (3)

MANUFAClURING Scenario 1 Scenario 2

(%) R.I. (%) R.I. 77.0 0.785 69.3 0.769 *(7.7) *(7.7)

30.S 0.646 84.7 0.662 *(15.4) *(0)

66.7 0.800 66.7 0.833 *(8.3) *(0)

100 0923 77.0 0.831 *(0) *(7.7)

77.0 0.800 69.3 0.738 *(154) *(15.4)

25.0 0.600 SO.O 0.583 *(25.0) *(42.7)

53.9 0708 53.9 0.692 '(154) *(15.4)

92.3 0862 38.5 0.662 *(7.7) *(23.7)

53.9 0.708 53.9 0.723 *(7.7) *(15.4)

I. (%) - The Rote of Importance of Attributes. rote >3 - considerable to most Important while *( )% value for rote <3 - less to least Important.

11. R.I. - The relative Index represenhng the ranking.

XVI

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase 1

Table Appendix 3.7b: Rate of Importance of Attributes of Engineers by Malaysia's Civil I Eng neers and Manufacturlna Engineers

CONSTRUcrlON MANUFAClURING Scenario I Scenario 2 Scenario I Scenarto2

1) The Attributes (%) R.I, (%) R.I. (%) R.I. (%) R.I. a. An ability to Idenflfy and 88.6 0.877 750 0.827 97.6 0.932 56.1 0.780

define a problem and '(0) '(0) '(0) '(4.9) evaluate altematlve solutions. and apply one or more designs to solve !he oroblem.

b. A bread!h and dep!h of 84.1 0.864 72.7 0.827 853 0883 634 0.761 technical and '(0) '(0) '(2.4) '(12.2) technological backaround.

c. An effecflveness In 75.0 0.809 81.8 0.864 75.6 0.844 75.7 0.883 communlcaflng Ideas '(0) '(0) '(2.4) '(0) (Interpersonal and Intra-personaQ and client relation.

d. Copable In using 79.5 0.873 79.5 0.868 87.8 0.888 92.7 0.932 computers and '(0) '(0) '(0) '(0) Information technology (IT) for communications. analysis and design.

e. Knowledgeable In human 52.3 0.750 50.0 0.741 65.8 0.780 51.3 0.742 factors and humanlfles. '(9. I) '(2.3) '(2.4) '(9.8)

f. Knowledgeable of 68.1 0782 68.2 0.791 61.0 0.785 65.8 0.790 business strategies and '(6.8) '(4.5) '(4.9) '(9.3) management oracflces.

g. An appreciation and 61.3 0.750 56.8 0.736 48.8 0.727 65.8 0.776 undemanding of Systems '(0) '(2.3) '(98) '(9.8) Engineering Perspecflvel Approach-social & environment

~ I. (%) - The Rate of Importance of Attributes. rate >3- considerable to most Important while ·C )%

value for rate <3-less to least Important. 11. R I - The relative Index represenflng !he ranking.

xvn

Analyses of Data for Phase 1

c:onHnue Table Appendix 3 7b .. ... CONSTRUcnON

Scenario 1 Scenario 2

1) The AHrlbutes (%) Itl. (%) Itl. h. A capability to conflnue 79.5 0.850 75.0 0.809

the leamlng experience - '(2.3) '(45) conflnuous or lifelong leamlna

I. An understanding of world 38.7 0.668 63.6 0.827 affairs. cultures '(13.7) '(4.5) development and lanouaoes.

J. High professional and 86.4 0.891 81.8 0.891 ethical standard '(0) '(0)

k. Capoblllty of working 705 0.814 70.5 0.841 across disciplines In a '(0) '(0) team and exercising Interdisciplinary skills

I. Recognise and 70.5 0809 65.9 0.786 appreciate the existence '(2.3) '(4.5) of new techniques e.g. concurrent engineering etc.

m Knowledgeable In the 56.8 0.732 56.8 0.759 Management of Human '(6.8) '(9.7) Resources

n. Knowledgeable In Quality 63.6 0.791 636 0.786 Management Systems '(0) '(2.3) and Pracflces - TQM, Conflnuous Improvement etc

o. Knowledgeable of emerging Innovaflve 75.0 0.873 68.2 0.818 construction technologies '(0) '(2.3) (for construction)

or Knowledgeable of emerging advanced materials technology and engIneering (for monufacturino).

p. Knowledgeable In 61.3 0.809 59.1 0.745 research and '(4.5) '(77.4) development methods and oracflces

~

APPENDIX THREE (3)

MANUFACTURING Scenario 1 Scenario 2

(%) R.I. (%) Itl. 80.5 0.863 70.7 0.819 '(4.9) '(4.9)

48.8 0.717 '04.6)

73.2 0.829 '0.3)

80.5 0.839 78.1 0.854 '(4.9) '(2.4)

85.4 0.858 75.6 0.829 '(4.9) '(7.3)

82.9 0.868 75.6 0.829 '(0) '(4.9)

51.2 0.751 46.3 0.712 '(2.4) '(14.6)

65.9 0.815 63.4 0.780 '(0) '(4.9)

756 0.829 56.1 0.741 '(4.9) '(12.2)

73.2 0.815 65.8 0.776 '(7.3) '(9.8)

I. (%) - The Rate of Importance of Attrtbutes. rate >3 - considerable to most Important while .( ) % value for rate <3 - less to least Important.

11. R I -The relative Index represenflng the ranking.

xvm

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase 1

1.8.2 Technical Knowledge and Skills

Table Appendix 3.8a: Rate of Importance of Technical and Technological Knowledge and Skills of Engineers by United Klngdom Civil and M ut turl E an ac no nolneers

CONSTRUClION MANUFACTURING Scenado 1 Scenad02 Scenado 1 Scenado2

1) The Technical and TeCIlnOloglcal Knowledge and Skills (<to) R.I. (%) R.I. (%) R.I. (%) R.I.

a. Project Management 93.3 0.920 86.7 0.880 76.9 0.785 61.6 0.738 "(0) "(0) "(0) "(15.4)

b. Management Pracflces In 867 0.827 80.0 0.787 61.5 0.708 38.5 0.631 Construction/Production "(0) "(2.3) "(7.7) "(15.4) Project Process

c. Information Technology (IT) for 86.7 0.840 800 0.800 69.2 0.769 84.6 0.877 Enolneerino Professionals "(0) "(0) "(0) "(0)

d. Computer-Aided Design (CAD) 33.3 0.693 40.0 0.693 69.2 0.738 69.3 0.769 and Drafting or CAD/CAM. "(0) "(6.7) "(7.7) "(77)

CAE e. Quality Systems and 60.0 0.760 533 0.720 53.9 0.692 53.8 0.677

Manooement Including TQM "(0) "(6.7) "(154) "(15.4)

f. Quanfltoflve Analysis (Include. 40.0 0.667 26.7 0.627 23.1 0.631 46.2 0.723 Statistics) "(20.0> -aa.D) "(15.4) "(7.7)

g. Systems Englneerlng 33.3 0.627 40.0 0.640 38.5 0677 61.6 0.754 "(26.7) "(20.0) "(7.7) "(7.7)

h. New Techniques - Concurrent 533 0.747 53.3 0.693 76.9 0.785 69.3 0.769 Engineering. FMS. CIM. JITM "(0) "(133) "(7.7) "(154)

etc. I. Innovaflve Construcflon 73.3 0.787 66.7 0.747

Technologies "(6.7) "(6.7) or

Advanced Materlals 53.9 0.708 53.9 0.692 Technology and Englneerlno "0.7) "(15.4)

j. Research and Development In 13.3 0.600 26.7 0.573 69.3 0.785 69.3 0.769 Construction/Manufacturlng "(73.3) "(33.4) "(0) "(0)

~ I. (%) - The Rote of Importonce of Technical and Technological Knowledge and Skills. rote >3 -

considerable to most Important while "( ) % value for rote <3 - less to least Important. 11. R.I. - The relative Index representing the ranking

XIX

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase 1

Table Appendix 3.Bb: Rate of Importance ofTechnlcal and Technological Knowledge and Skills of engineers by Malaysia's Civil and Manufacturing Engineers

CONSTRUC!lON MANUFAClURlNG Scenario 1 Scenario 2 Scenario 1 Scenario 2

1) The Technical and Technologlcal Knowledg~ and SkIDs (%) R.1. (%) 11.1. (%) R.L (%) R.l

a. Project Management 84.1 0.841 81.8 0.850 68.3 0.800 63.4 0.741 ·(4.5) ·(4.5) ·(4.9) ·(9.8)

b. Management Practices In 70.4 0809 75.0 0.836 78.0 0819 56.1 0.712 Construction/Production ·(4.5) ·(2.3) ·(2.4) ·(14. Prolect Process 6)

c. Information Technology (11) for 77.2 0.827 71.5 0.827 65.9 0.829 73.2 0.839 EnQlneerlnQ Professionals ·(2.3) ·(2.3) ·(4.9) ·(2.4)

d. Computer-Aided Design (CAD) 70.5 0.786 65.9 0.773 73.1 0.800 63.4 0.751 and Drafting or CAD/CAM, ·(2.3) ·(2.3) .(0) ·(4.9) CAE

e. QuOllly Systems and 70.5 0.764 63.7 0.768 78.0 0.819 63.4 0.771 Manoaement Including TQM .(0) .(0) .(0) ·(7.3)

f. Quantitative Analysis (Include. 43.2 0.659 45.4 0.677 63.4 0.761 58.6 0.751 Statlstlcli ·08.21 .(82) ·(4.9) ·(4.9)

g. Systems Engineering 56.8 0.709 56.9 0.736 56.1 0.756 61.0 0.766 ·(9.7) ·(6.8) ·(2.4) ·(4.9)

h. New Techniques - Concurrent 65.9 0.750 66.0 0.759 78.1 0.815 63.5 0.756 Engineering. FMS, CIM. JrTM ·(4.5) ·(6.8) .(0) ·(4.9) etc.

I. Innovative Construction 65.9 0.782 65.9 0.764 Technologies ·(4.5) ·(6.8)

or Advanced Materials 65.9 0.776 46.4 0.693 Technoloav and Enalneerlna ·(2.4) ·(7.3)

J. Research and Development In 61.4 0.759 63.6 0.755 70.7 0.800 61.0 0.751 Constructlon/Manufacturlna ·(68) .(77.4) ·(7.3) ·(7.3)

~ I. (%) - The Rate of Importance of Technical and Technological Knowledge and Skills, rate >3 -

considerable to most Important while .( ) % value for rate <3 -less to least Important. 11. R.I. - The relative Index representing the ranking.

xx

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase 1

1.8.3 Non-technical Knowledae and Skills

Table Appendix 3.90: Rate of Importance of Non-Technical Knowledge and Skills of Engineers by United Kingdom Civil Engineers and Manufacturing Engineers

CONSTRUCTION MANUFAClURING Scenario 1 Scenario 2 Scenario 1 Scenario 2

1) The Non-Technical Technological Knowledge and (%) R.t. (%) R.t. (%) R.t. (%) R.t. SkIRs

a. Communlco11on and Human 86.7 0867 93.3 0.907 69.3 0.785 53.9 O.BOO Relations skills "(0) *(0) *(0) *(0)

b. Economics and Finance 53.3 0.733 60.0 0.720 53.8 0.692 53.9 0.723 *(0) *03.3) "(77) *(0)

c. Analytical with Attention to 66.7 0.760 60.0 0.720 46.2 0.708 76.9 0.785 Details skills *(73.3) *h3.3) "(0) "(0)

d. Innovative and Creative skills 80.0 0.827 80.0 0.827 92.3 0.831 76.9 O.BOO *(0) *(0) *(0) "(0)

e. Problem-solving skills 93.3 0.920 66.7 0.893 92.3 0.877 76.9 0.785 *(0) *(0) *(0) *(0)

f. Marketing skills 33.3 0.640 46.7 0.653 0.0 0.538 53.9 0.708 *m.O> *m.O> *(23.1) "(154)

g. Leadership skills 80.0 0.827 80.0 0.840 84.6 O.BOO 53.9 0.754 *(6.7) *(0) *0.7) "(154)

h. Teamwork skJlls 93.3 0.880 93.3 0.880 100.0 0.892 63.9 O.BOO *(0) *(0) *(0) *0.7)

I. foreign Languages skills 6.7 0.467 80.0 0.853 23.1 0.569 77.0 0831 *(6O.0) *(0) "(385) "(0)

J. Cultural Understanding and 6.7 0.520 80.0 0.840 30.8 0.600 92.3 0.846 Development "(46.7) "(0) *(30 8) "(0)

k. Organisational and Working 93.3 0827 80.0 O.BOO 69.2 0.708 53.9 0.677 Practice skills "(0) *(0) "(15.4) "(15.4)

I. Continuous or Ufelong Leamlng 80.0 0.787 73.3 0.773 769 0.785 77.0 o BOO skills *(6.7) *(0) '0.7) '(7.7)

m Business skills (Include. 53.3 0.693 73.3 0.787 30.8 0.615 69.3 0.815 Intemo11onal Business) 'm.O) *03.3) "(23 I) "(0)

n. Intemo11onal Professional and 13.3 0.560 66.7 0.747 38.5 0.600 61.6 0.738 Technical standards *(33.3) *(6.7) "(30.8) '(154)

o. Negotiation skills 60.0 0.720 66.7 0.827 30.8 0.646 69.3 0.785 '03.3) '(0) '(7.7) '(0)

p. Management of Human 60.0 0.760 80.0 0.827 41.7 0.650 33.4 0.650 Resources *(6.7) *(0) "(15.7) "(250)

q. Human Factors 40.0 0.667 53.3 0693 41.7 0.650 41.6 0.650 *m 0) *(J33) "(167) "(25.0)

r. Social Sciences 26.6 0.573 40.0 0.627 75.0 0.683 25.0 0.600 *(40.0) *(:20.0) "(250) "(25 0)

~ I. (%) - The Rote of Importance of Non-Technical Knowledge and Skills. rate >3 - considerable to most

Important while '( ) % value for rote <3 - less to least Important. 11. R.I. - The relative Index representJng the ranking.

XXI

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase 1

Table Appendix 3.9b: Rate of Importance of Non-Technical Knowledge and Skills of Engineers by Malaysia's Civil Engineers and Manufacturing Engineers

CONSTRUCTION MANUFACTURING Scenario 1 Scenario 2 Scenario 1 Scenario 2

1) The Non-Technical Technological Knowledge and (%) R.I. (%) R.I. (%) R.I. (%) R.L Skills

a. CommunlcaHon and Human 70.4 0.818 79.6 0.845 68.3 0.790 68.3 0.810 RelaHons skills *(O) *1'23} *1'2.4} *1'2.4>

b. Economics and Finance 455 0.695 61.4 0.745 48.8 0.678 46.3 0.727 *(68) *(6.8) *(19.5) *(19.5)

c. Analytical with Attention to 61.4 0.768 56.9 0.750 61.0 0.746 56.1 0.693 Details skills *(2.3) *1'23) *(122) '(146)

d. Innovative and CreaHve skills 66.0 0.773 56.9 0.741 80.5 0.815 68.2 0.776 *(O) 'r45} *(49) '(12.2)

e. Problem-solving skills 84.1 0.841 84.1 0.845 82.9 0.878 70.7 0.780 '(23) *(0) '(2.4) *(4.9)

f. MarkeHng skills 34.1 0.645 50.0 0.705 34.2 0.668 56.1 0.727 *08.2> '08.2) '(122) '(195)

g. Leadership skills 72.8 0.795 75.0 0.814 78.0 0.839 61.0 0.766 '(23) '1'2.3} *(2.4) '(17. I)

h. Teamwork skills 70.5 0.823 75.0 0.850 85.4 0.893 75.6 0.834 '(4.5) '(2.3) '(0) *(4.9)

I. Foreign Languages skills 27.3 0.627 61.4 0.773 24.4 0.580 58.5 0.751 *(22.7) ~(9.1) '(41.5) '(17. I)

J. Cultural Understanding and 29.5 0.636 64.6 0.764 36.6 0.610 58.5 0.624 Development '(182) '(9. I} '(22.0) '(22 0)

k. Organisational and Working 50.0 0.650 65.9 0.768 58.6 0.717 53.6 0.707 Pracflce skills *(23) '(6.8) *(9.8) '04.6)

I. Conflnuous or Ufelong Leamlng 70.5 0.805 72.7 0.805 70.8 0.815 73.1 0.800 sldlls '(2.3) '1'2.3) '(2.4) *(7.3)_

m Business skills (Include. 43.2 0664 54.5 0.745 39.0 0.663 63.5 0.776 IntemcHonal Business) *O82} '(6.8) '(17. I) '(46)

n. IntemcHonal Professional and 50.0 0.759 75.0 0.832 53.4 0.732 75.6 0.790 Technical Standards '(6.8) '(0) '(122) *(9.8)

o. NegoHcHon skills 59.1 0.741 61.3 0.773 58.5 0.727 60.9 0.761 '(114) 'r4.5} *(9.8) *(9.8)

P. Management of Human 50.0 0.745 56.8 0.732 586 0.732 53.7 0693 Resources 'O3.6} *(13.6) '(9.8) '(244)

q. Human Factors 47.7 0.718 47.7 0.536 53.7 0.712 41.4 0.668 '03.6) '(11.4) *(7.3) '07. I)

r. Social Sciences 29.6 0609 40.9 0.677 39.1 0.658 34.1 0644 '(25.0) *(182) '(146) '(22.0)

~ I. (%) - The Rete of Importance of Non-Technical Knowledge and Skills. rete >3 - considerable to most

Important while '( ) % value for rete <3 - less to least Important. 11. R.I. - The relative Index represenHng the ranking.

XXII

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase]

] .8.4 Methods of Delivery of the Continuing Education for Engineers

Table Appendix 3.100: Rote of Viability of Methods of Delivery for EducaHon and Training of Engineers In the Future by United Kingdom Civil Engineers and M furl E anufac no nolneers

CIvil Ell! Ineers ManulacturlnQ Engineers Raflng>3. Relative Raflng>3. Relative more to Index more to most Index

most viable; (R,I.) viable; *( ) % (R,I.) *( )%for for rat/ng<3. ~<3. less to least

1) The Methods of DeUvery less to least viable. viable. (%)

(%)

a. 'Onllne' courses through Intemetby universities/Industry/professional 26.7 0.587 48.50 0631 bodies/consortium etc. which *26.7) '(46.2) can be accumulated towards aChieving formal certification ego post-graduate or professional.

b. Ful~flme or part-flme at universities cooperaflon with Industry - accumulaflon towards 53.3 0.733 48.5 0.692 achieving formal certification *(6.7) *(7.7) ego post-graduate or professional.

c. Accredited human resources 60.0 0.747 53.8 0.677 development courses at '(20.0) *(15.4) workplaces.

d. Short courses et unlversiflestlndustry/professlonal 46.7 0680 61.6 0.754 bodies etc. without formal *(6.7) *(7.7) certiflcatlon

XXIII

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase 1

Table Appendix 3.1 Ob: Rate of Viability of Methods of Delivery for Education and Training of Engineers In the Future by Malaysia's Civil Engineers and Manufacturing Enalneers

Civil En Ineers Manufacturing Engineers Ra~ng>3, Relafrle R~ng>3, Relative more to Index more to most Index

most viable: (R.L) viable; .( ) % (R.L) .( ) % for for ratlng<3. rat/ng<3, less to /east

1) The Methods of DeUvery less to /east viable, viable, (%)

(%)

a. 'Onllneo courses through Intemetby universities/Industry/professional 40.90 0.673 43.90 0.683 bodies/consortium etc. which ·(18.2) ·(12.2) can be accumulated towards achieving formal certlflcatlon ego post.groduate or professional.

b. Ful~~me or port-~me at universities cooper~on with Industry - accumulation towards 75.00 0.791 70.70 0.805 achieving formal certlflcatlon ·(9.1) .(0) ego post.graduate or professional

C. Accredited humon resources 61.4 0.745 60.90 0732 development courses at ·(68) ·(9.8) workplaces.

d. Short courses at universities/Industry/professional 45.4 0.659 53.7 0698 bodies etc. without formal .(29.5) ·(24.4) certlflcatlon.

XXIV

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase 1

2. Summary of Results - Comparison Test

Table Appendix 3.11 a: Summary of Resulls In terms of p values for Comparisons Tesls­United Kingdom Case

Two-Independent Sample .. Two-Related sample .. Mann-WhIInay Ranks Tast WIICoxan Ranks Tast

(DIsclaUne-Crlenled) (Scenarto-Orlanled) CMland CMland CIvIl Manulaclurlng

Mcmulactudng Mcmulacludng Englneall Englneall for EngI ....... for Engln .. II for for Scanadosl Scenadol- Scenarlo2- Scenados and 2-

p-volua p-valua 1 and2- p-valua l>VOlue

I. Tha Key Elements of Change o. New emphasis on engineering 0928 0856 0084 0167

design and construcl1on/manufacturlng -efficient. responsive and effecl1ve.

b. New techniques enabled by 0.254 0856 0739 0.873 Information technology e.g. TQM, Kalzen. re-englneertng. concurrent engineering etc.

c. Integrative aspects of engineering 0.683 0650 0098 0.726 design. pracflce and management In systems (drawing on techniques and knawledge from many disciplines).

d. Incorporate humarunes (human 0.892 0052 0.112 0.336 factors) and social sciences Into the undemanding of problems and soluffons

e. Increased Interacflon and 0.217 0496 0187 0739 relaflonshlps beyond workstal1on -teamworklng and client-orlentaflon.

f. Management of vast quanftty of 0.041 0650 1.001 0.008 Informal1on.

g Tlme-compressed working 0065 0586 0.129 0023 environment.

h. High degree of empowerment In 0.230 0316 0527 0366 decision-making.

I. Dynamic/mobility of 1.001 0496 0.206 0035 civil/manufacturing engineers roles -design to site to project (ar manufacturing) manager to team leader to soles engineer vice-versa.

J The needs of conl1nuous or lifelong 0856 0618 0.317 1.001 leamlna

xxv

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analvses of Data for Phase 1 • continue Table Appendix 3 11a.

2. RasponslblIIH ... 01 Chartered Engln ...... (CE,,! ) a. Ensure the progress af technology 0363 0.235 OA72 1.000

(current and developing).

b. Develop and opply new technologies at 0.856 0555 0271 0.564 highest efficiency.

c. Promote and apply advanced de~gns 0.185 0025 0317 1.000 and design methods.

d. Intraduce new and efficient 0821 0.052 0.102 0.005 construct1on/manufacturlng techniques.

e. Introduce new and efficient marl<eHng 0235 0274 0.102 0008 techniques.

f. Pioneer new englnee~ng services 0.618 0.964 0.763 0.414

g. Pioneer new management methods. 0.294 0.650 0.102 0655

h. Manage and direct hlgh-rlsk and 0.201 0.142 0.705 0705 resource Intenwe projects.

I. GMng professional judgment 0413 0.316 0655 0.380 j. Profitable management of 0.316 0.294 0.102 0083

Indu~l/cammerclal enterprises

3. RasponslblUHal oIlnco~rated Engln ...... OEng) a. Exponent of today's technOlogy (current 0.467 0.892 1.000 0.102

and developlna) b. Maintain and manage oppllcaHons af 0.683 0.892 0380 0.058

current and developing technology at highest efflclel1Ql

C. Exercise Independent technical 0413 0.586 0.279 0.577 judgement and management In a recOgnised field of technok)gy

d. Provide IndependenHy and as a leader, 0786 0586 0257 0671 a slgnlflcant Influence on the overal effecllveness of the organisation

e Key personnel In operaHonal 0316 0683 0.180 1000 manaQement functions

4. FuncHonallmagal 01 Engineers a. Engineer as specialised problem 0004 0003 0.527 0.791

salver. b. Engineer as competence In 0022 0033 0.480 0.564

sciences and technology.

c. Engineer as technical bUsiness 0496 0.618 0564 0670 managerial leader.

d. Engineer as designer. Inventor and 0.717 0.650 0.705 0.131 producer.

e Engineer as competence In 0.108 0.072 1.000 0.914 research and develapment.

XXVI

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analvses of Data for Phase 1 .. continue ... I I I I

5. AHrlbule1 01 Enclneers a. An ablll1y to Iden~fy and define a 0.717 0.363 0577 0096

problem and evaluate altema~e solu~ons, and apply one or more deslons to solve the problem.

b. A breadth and depth of technical 0.294 0235 0.414 0.157 and technological backoround.

c. An effec~eness In communicating 0.467 0786 0.102 0.102 Ideas (Interpersonal and Intra-oersonal) and client rela~on.

d. Capable In using computers and 0.339 0339 1.000 0.021 Information technology (IT) for communications, analysis and deslon.

e. Knowledgeable In human factors 0586 0.525 0.783 0.739 and humanltles.

f. Knowledgeable of business 0.294 0.892 0.096 0366 strategies and management practices.

g. An appreciation and understanding 0274 0201 0.257 0096 of Systems Engineering Perspectlvel Approach- social & environment.

h. A capablll1y to continue the 0.683 0892 0705 0655 leamlng experience - continuous or Ilfelono lea mina

I. An understanding of worid affairs. 0316 0.555 0007 0006 cultures development and lanauaaes.

J. High professional and ethical 0516 0.792 1.000 0.317 standard.

k. Capability of working across 0.387 0.964 0.655 0.131 disciplines In a team and exerclslng Interdlsclpllnarv skills

I. Recognise and appreciate the 0.751 0.555 0.083 0.157 existence of new techniques e.g. concurrent englneertna etc.

m Knowledgeable In the 0075 0.114 0705 0.739 Manaoement of Human Resources.

n. Knowledgeable In Quall1y 0.821 0.650 0.414 0.564 Management Systems and Practices - TQM. Continuous Improvement etc

o. Knowledgeable of emerging 0316 0.387 0480 0739 Innovative construction technologies (for construction)

or Knowledgeable of emerging advanced materials fechnology and engineering (for manufacturlna)~

p. Knowledgeable In research and 0201 0.170 0739 0564 development methods and practices.

xxvn

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analvses of Data for Phase 1 ... contlnue .... I r I I

6. Technical Knowledae and Skills a. Prolect Manaaement. 0.015 0.142 0.257 OA96 b. Management Practices In 0058 0.025 0180 0.025

Constructlon/Producflon Project Process

c. Informatlon Technology (11) for 0.235 0.170 0.317 0.008 Enalneerlna Professionals

d. Computer-Aided Design (CAD) and 0294 0235 0.931 0527 Draftlna or CAD/CAM. CAE

e. QualHy Systems and Management , 0413 0650 0257 0564 Includlno TQM

f. Quantltatlve Analysis (Include. 0650 0.217 0.257 0034 Statlsflcs)

~ SVstems Enalneerlna. 0467 0.130 0564 0.059 h. New Techniques - Concurrent 0467 0274 0206 0705

Enolneerlno. FMS. CIM. JITM etc. I. Innovatlve Constructlon 0.235 0.467 0.317 0.317

Technologies or

Advanced Mateools Technology and EnQlneerlna

J. Research and Development In 0.004 0.010 0480 0.317 Construcflon/Manufacturlna

7. Non-Technical lCna and SIcIIIs a. Communlcatlon and Humon 0.185 0201 0.317 0739

Relaflons skills b. Economics and Finance 0650 0.928 0.705 0.414

c. Analytical with Attentlon to Details 0.363 0413 0180 0096 skills

d. Innovatlve and Creative skills 1.000 0.650 1.000 0317

e. Problem-solving skills 0387 0.058 0414 0.063

f. Marketing skills 0.185 0.586 0.803 0.016

g. Leadership skills 0.618 0.363 0564 0417

h. Teamwork skills 0892 0.363 1000 0.131

I. Forelan Lanauaaes skills. 0.156 0.717 0002 0.002

J. Cultural Understanding and 0.217 1.000 0002 0.003 Development

k. Organisational and Working 0.156 0.130 0.414 0.527 Practlce skills

I. Conflnuous or Ufelono Loomlna skills 1000 0555 0655 0.317

m Business skills (Include. Intematlanal 0.294 0.821 0102 0006 Business)

n. Intematlonal Professional and 0.467 1.000 0010 0007 Technical Standards

o. Neaotlation skills 0235 0496 0.033 0.014

o. Manaaement of Human Resources 0.167 0.028 0.096 1.000

a. Human Factors 0829 0486 0.414 1.000

r. Social Sciences. 0.829 0.683 0334 0.194

XXVIII

APPENDIX THREE (3) AnalYses of Data for Phase 1 ... conflnue .... I I I

CIvIl Englneel$ and 8. Melhods of DeUvery of Englnee~ng Manufac:lu~ng Englneel$-

Education and Tralnlno I)ovalue a 'Onllne' courses through Intemet by 0892

unlversltles!1ndushy /professlonal bodies/consortium etc. which con be accumulated towards achieving formal cerllficaflon e.g. post-graduate or professional.

b. Full-flme or part-flme at universities 0555 caoperaflan with Indushy -accumulation towards achieving formal certlficaflon ego past-graduate or professional.

C. Accredited human resources 0.363 development courses at workplaces.

d. Short courses at 0.363 unlversltles/lndushy /professlonal bodies etc. without formal cerllflcaflon.

XXIX

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase 1

Table Appendix 3.11 b: Summary of Results In terms of p values for Comparisons Tests­Malaysia

Two-Independent Samples, Two-Ralated Samples, Mann-Whllnay Ranks Tast WIIcoxon Ranks Tast

(DIsell>n"""O~anled) (Scana~O~anled)

ClvUand CIvIl and CIvU Manufaclu~ng

Manufactu~ng Manufaclurlng Englneert Englneert far Engineers for Engineers far far sce~OII Seanada 1- Sc8~a2- Se_os and2-

povalue povalU8 land2- povalue povalue

I. The Key Elements 01 Chal1ge a. New emphasis on engineering 0585 0.654 0.212 0.082

design and construction/manufacturing -effiCient. responsive and effective.

b. New techniques enabled by 0600 0.258 0.144 0696 Information technology e g. TQM. Kalzen. r&-englneerlng. concurrent engineering etc.

c. Integrative aspects of engineering 0.411 0741 0.087 0040 design. practice and management In systems (drawing on techniques and knowledge from mony disciplines).

d. Incorporate humonltles (humon 0721 0.221 0.248 0182 factors) and social sciences Into the understanding of problems and solutions.

e. Increased Interaction and 0052 0851 0.077 0124 relationships beyond worl<statlon -teamworklng and cllent-orJentation.

f. Management of vast quanlrty of 0596 0.051 0.244 0019 Information.

g. Tlme-compressed working 0.317 0981 0.378 0585 enVIronment.

h. High degree of empowerment In 0903 0368 0.827 0140 decision-making

I. Dynamic/mobility of 0899 0446 0.477 0.161 Civil/manufacturing engineers roles -design to site to project (or manufacturing) manager to team leader to sales engineer vice-versa.

J. The needs of continuous or lifelong 0.992 0.921 0029 0026 leamlng.

xxx

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analvses of Data for Phase 1 ... contlnue ..... I I I I

2. ResponslblDfle. 01 Chartered Englneen (CEn 11 a. Ensure the progress 01 technology 0.623 0.897 0696 0696

(current and developing).

b. Develop and apply new technologies at 0.043 0.318 0.985 0.084 highest efficiency

c. Promote and apply advanced de~gns 0.369 0.692 0609 0013 and de~gn methOds.

d. Introduce new and efficient 0.137 0.542 0.198 0001 construction/manufacturing techniques

e. Introduce new and efficient markeflng 0412 0537 0.007 0.554 techniques.

f. Pioneer new engineering services. 0.046 0.834 0.963 0.014

g. PIoneer new management methods. 0935 0.154 0.051 0.607

h. Manoge and direct hlgtHIsk and 0.237 0278 0.270 0.109 resource IntenWe projects.

I. GMng prole~onal judgment. 0944 0.652 0.175 0226

j. Prolltable management of 0.760 0.953 1.000 0859 Industnal/commerclal enterpriseS.

3. ResponslblUfle. ollncoJl)Orated Enalneers (lEna) a. Exponent 01 today's technology (culTent 0253 0803 0.981 0.290

and develoolna) b. Maintain and manage applications 01 0356 0.907 0686 0116

current and developing technology at hlahest efflclencv

c. Exercise Independent technical 0816 0.202 0.475 0.003 judgement and management In a recoanlsed 1Ie1d 01 technoloov

d. Provide Independenfly and as a leader. 0.911 0.195 0.796 0.033 a significant Influence on the overaD effecflveness 01 the organisation

e. Key personnel In operational 0.105 0.395 0.005 0.079 management funcI10ns

4. Funcfionallrnage. 01 Engineers a. Engineer as specialised problem 0298 0031 0.016 0.0001

solver. b. Engineer as competence In 0.780 0.612 0.027 0.823

sciences and technology.

c. Engineer as technical bUsiness 0.370 0.525 0.027 0.966 managenolleader.

d. Engineer as designer. Inventor and 0796 0262 0009 0001 producer.

e. Engineer as competence In 0.176 0.808 0.152 0008 research and development.

XXXI

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analvses of Data for Phase 1 •. continue .... I I I I

5. AHrlbut •• of Englneell a. An ability to Idenflfy and define 0 0059 0292 0047 0.0001

problem and evoluate oltemoflve soluflons. and apply one or more deslQns to solve the problem.

b. A breadth and depth of technical 0411 0.149 0083 0.001 and technological background.

c. An effecflveness In communiCaflng 0228 0378 0.032 0.195 Ideas (Interpersonal and Intra-personal) and client relaflon.

d. Capable In using computers and 0.790 0.054 0830 0.077 Informaflon technology (IT) for communications. analysis and design.

e. Knowledgeable In human factors 0474 0.970 0.634 0.160 and hunnan~les.

f. Knowledgeable of business 0945 0839 0.826 0.920 strategies and management pracflces

g. An appreclaflon and understanding 0.497 0.181 0.592 0108 of Systems EnglneeMng Perspectlvel Approach- social & environment

h. A capability to conflnue the 0.567 0.592 0.130 0.122 leamlng expeMence - conflnuous or Iffelong leamlng.

I. An understanding of woMd affairs. 0.278 0954 0.0001 0.003 cu~res development and lanQuaQes.

J. High professional and ethical 0.158 0.370 0.875 0.572 standard.

k. Capability of working across 0.154 0.853 0243 0.343 disciplines In a team and exercising Interdisciplinary skills

I. Recognise and appreCiate the 0.110 0240 0.357 0.128 existence of new techniques e.g. concurrent enQlneeMnQ etc.

m Knowledgeable In the 0823 0334 0302 0.148 Management of Human Resources

n. Knowledgecble In Quality 0519 0922 0820 0.169 Management Systems and Practices - TQM. Canflnuous Improvement etc.

o. Knowledgeable of emerging 0977 0082 0484 0.004 Innovaflve construcflon technologies (for construcflon)

or Knowfedgeable of emerging advanced materials technology and engineering (for manufacturlna':

p. Knowledgeable In research and 0242 0460 0303 0.252 development methods and practices

xxxn

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analvses of Data for Phase 1

continue I I I I

6. Technical Knowleda8 and Skill.

a. Project Management 0298 0003 0.819 0.047

b. Management Practices In 0.881 0003 0.109 0.001 Construction/Production Project Process

c. Information Technology (IT) for 0.221 0751 1.000 0.064 Enalneerino Professionals

d. Computer-Aided Design (CAD) and 0.737 0.581 0.380 0.118 DrattlnQ or CAD/CAM. CAE

e. Quality Systems and Management 0.066 0.816 0793 0058 Including TQM

f. Quantitative Analysis (Include. 0012 0.094 0.405 0.725 Statistics)

g. Systems Engineering 0.350 0.461 0.310 0.685

h. New Techniques - Concurrent 0060 0978 0.635 0051 EnalneerinQ. FMS. CIM. JITM etc.

I. Innovative ConstructJon 0.820 0.056 0569 0.083 Technologies

or Advanced Materials Technology and Englneertna

j. Research and Development In 0266 0.941 0.797 0.105 ConstructJon/Manufacturina

7. Non-Technical Knowledge and Sk"ls

a. Communication and Human 0467 0.351 0293 0553 RelatJons skills

b. Economics and Finance 0808 0.123 0018 0952 c. Analytical with Attention to Details 0.708 0.256 0381 0032

skills d. Innovative and Creative sldlls 0139 0.227 0.144 0.162

e Problem-solving skills. 0.166 0107 0.803 0.004 f. MarketlnQ skills. 0632 0.525 0022 0075

a Leadership skills. 0182 0.457 0356 0015 h. Teamwork skills. 0.085 0.679 0347 0027 I. Forelon LanQucQes skills 0.183 0700 0.0001 0.0001 j. Cultural Understanding and 0921 0.274 0.0001 0003

Development k. Organisational and Working 0.898 0136 0.057 0541

Practice skills I. Continuous or Ufelong LeamlnQ skills 0.755 0830 1.000 0490

m BUsiness skills (Include. Intemational 0.959 0349 0001 0002 BUSiness}

n. Intematlonal Professional and 0577 0449 0.0001 0026 Technical standards

0 Neaotlatlon skills 0.857 0978 0210 0222 p Manaaement of Human Resources 0548 0524 0.265 0.231

a Human Factors. 0611 0459 0.642 0.049 r. Social Sciences 0243 0485 0.010 0.635

XXXIII

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analvses of Data for Phose 1 ..... contlnue ... I I I

8. Methods of Delivery of Engineering CIvIl Englneell and Education and Training Manuloetudng Englneell-

,,"value a. 'Onllne" courses through Intemet by 0.703

universltles/lndustry /professlonal bodies/consortium etc. which can be accumulated towards achieving formal certlflcatlon eg post· graduate or professional.

b. Full-time or part-tlme at universnles 0.914 cooperation with Industry • accumulctlcn towards achieving formal certlflcatlon ego post· graduate or professional.

C. Accredited human resources 0.760 development courses at workplaces.

d. Short courses at 0.521 universities/Industry/professional bodies etc. without formal certification.

XXXIV

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analyses of Data for Phase 1

Table Appendix 3.12: Summary of Results In terms of p-volues for Comparisons Tests­Combined United Kingdom and Malaysia Cases for both Civil and manufacturing Engineer with 10 and more experiences In their respective disciplines.

Four-Independent Samples, KJuskal-Wams Rankl Test

(Counl!y-Odented) CIvIl and CMland

Manufactudng Manulactudng Engineers 101 Englneell fOI Seenado 1- Seenad02-

,,"valUe ,,"value

1_ The Key Elements of Chanae a. New emphasis on engineering 0823 0.724

design and construction/manufacturing -efficient. responsive and effective.

b. New techniques enabled by 0.149 0.664 Information technology e.g. TQM, Kalzen. re-englneerlng. concurrent engineering etc.

c. Integrative aspects of engineering 0.782 0637 design. practice and management In systems (drawing on techniques and knowledge from many disciplines)

d. Incorporate humanities (human 0.174 0180 factors) and social sciences Into the understanding of problems and solutions.

e. Increased Interaction and 0206 0.474 relationships beyond workstation -teamworldng and cllent-orlentation.

f. Management of vast quantity of 0.043 0840 Information.

g. TIme-compressed worldng 0040 0.251 environment.

h. High degree of empowerment In 0977 0915 decision-making.

I Dynamic/mobility of 0871 0.406 cMl/manufacturlng engineers roles -design to Site to project (or manufacturing) manager to team leader to soles engineer vice-verso.

J. The needs of continuous or lifelong 0.844 0.331 leamlnQ.

xxxv

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analvses of Data for Phase 1 ...... conflnue .....

2. Rasponslblnfla. of Chartered Engineers (CE", ) a. Ensure the progress of technology 0615 0.298

(current and developing).

b. Develop and apply new technologies ot 0.592 0.807 highest efficiency.

c. Promote and apply adVanced designs 0.307 0.024 and de~gn methods.

d. Introduce new and efficient 0650 0.299 construcHon/manufacturlng techniques.

e. Introduce new and efficient markeflng 0104 0115 techniques.

f. Pioneer new englneetlng services. 0105 0849

g Pioneer new manogement methods 0.633 0.089

h. Menoge and direct hlgh-rlsk and 0279 0387 resource Intensive projects.

I. GMng profe~onal judgment. 0.687 0730

J. Profitable management of 0.098 0.408 Industool/commerclal enterptlses.

3. ResponslblllHe. of Incorporated Enolneers (IEna) O. Exponent of today's technology (current 0.268 0.960

and develoolnal b. Maintain and manage appllocHons of Q.901 0.694

current end developing technology ot hlahest efflclencv

c. Exercise Independent technical 0.056 0.320 judgement and management In a recOanlsed lleld of technolQaY

d. Provide IndependenHy and as a leader, 0927 0925 a significant Influence on the overal effectiveness of the oraanlsotlon

e. Key personnel In operot1Onal 0332 0596 management functlans

4. Funcftonallmog". of Engineers a. Engineer as specialised problem 0049 0022

solver. b. Engineer as competence In 0001 0223

sciences and technology.

c. Engineer as technical business 0.585 0.223 managerial leader.

d. Engineer as designer, Inventor and 0.378 0.841 pr.oducer • .

e. Engineer as competence In 0.332 0231 research and development.

XXXVI

APPENDIX THREE (3) Anolvses of Data for Phose 1 ... continue .....

5. Attribute. 01 Enalneers a. An ability to IdentJfy and define a 0085 0663

problem and evaluate altemative . solu~ons. and apply one or more deslons to solve the problem.

b. A breadth and depth of technical 0.442 0.495 and technological background.

c. An effec~veness In communicating 0.596 0.538 Ideas (interpersonal and Intra-personal) and client rel~on.

d. Capable In using computers and 0.271 0811 Informa~on technology (11) for communlc~ons. analysis and design.

e. Knowledgeable In human factors 0.946 0.321 and humanities.

f. Knowledgeable of business 0.628 0.085 strategies and management prac~ces.

g. An apprecla~on and understanding 0028 0405 of Systems Englneerlng Perspective/ Approach- social & environment

h. A capability 10 con~nue the 0083 0797 leamlng experlence - con~nuous or IIfelono leamlno

I. An understanding of world affairs. 0027 0802 cultures development ond lanauaoes.

J. High professional and ethical 0332 0.422 standard.

k. Copablllty of working across 0170 0479 disciplines In a team and exercising Interdisciplinary skills

I. Recognise and appreciate the 0.456 0.331 existence of new techniques e.g. concurrent enolneerlno etc.

m Knowledgeable In the 0350 0.352 Manaoement of Human Resources

n. Knowledgeable In Quality 0270 0.258 Management Systems and Practices - TQM. Continuous Improvement etc.

o. Knowledgeable of emerging 0086 0021 Innov~ve constructJon technologies (for construc~on)

or Knowledgeable of emergIng advanced materIals technology and engIneering (for monufacturlng)~

p. Knowledgeable In research and 0037 0041 development methods and prac~ces.

xxxvn

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analvses of Data for Phase 1 ...... continue .......

6. Technical Knowledae and Skills a Prolect Manaoement 0008 0004 b. Management Practlces In 0.097 0.006

Constructlon/Productlon Project Process

c. Informatlon Technology (11) for 0.226 0754 Enolneerlno Professionals

d. Computer-Aided Design (CAD) and 0.127 0602 Drafting or CAD/CAM. CAE

e. Quality Systems and Management 0.617 0.940 Includlno TQM

f. Quantitative Analysis (Include. 0430 0487 StatistiCS)

, o. Systems Enolneerlno. 0182 0.262 h. New Techniques - Concurrent 0.703 0.519

Englneerlng. FMS. CIM. JITM etc. I. Innovative Construction 0754 0.386

Technologies or

Advanced Materials Technology and Enolneerlno

j. Research and Development In 0003 0009 Constructlon/Manufoctunnn

7. Non-Technical Knowlec:laa and Skills a. Communication and Human 0.082 0.224

Relations skills b. Economics and Finance 0.616 0.361 c. Analytical with Attention to DetailS 0963 0.210

skills d. Innovative and Creative skills 0.653 0367

e. Problem-soMng skills 0426 0.010

f. Marketing skills 0131 0.961

g Leadership skills 0.704 0.269

h. Teamwork skills 0.966 0.197 I. Forelan Lanauaaes skills 0077 0.677 j. Cultural Understanding and 0.053 0601

Development k. Organlsotlonal and Working 0130 0.394

Practice skills I. Conhnuous or Ufelono Leomlna skills 0925 0.505 m BUsiness skills (Include. Intemational 0.636 0.704

Business) n. Intematlonal Professional and 0003 0194

Technical Standards o. Neootiatian skills 0324 0.922 P. Manaoement of Human Resources 0241 0.166 a Human Factors 0788 0831 r. Social Sciences. 0.213 0882

XXXVIII

APPENDIX THREE (3) Analvses of Data for Phase 1 ............. contlnue ...... I 8. Melhods 01 DeOVery 01 Englneedng CIvIl Engln .. " and

Education and Training Man~ac~dngEn~n .. " a. 'Onllne" courses through Intemet by 0.713

universities/Industry/professional bodies/consortium etc. which can be accumulated towards achieving formal certification e.g. post-graduate or professional.

b. Ful~tlme or part-time at universities 0.747 cooperation with Industry -accumulation towards achieving formal certlficanon ego post-graduate or professional.

C. Accredited human resources 0.681 development courses at workplaces.

d. Short courses at 0.926 universities/Industry/professional bodies etc. without formal certlflcatlon.

XXXIX