Sub-sea sector lab faces testing time securing skilled workforce

IN A corner of a giant hangar clinging to the Forth waterfront at Rosyth, a small group of hard- hatted men are forcing complex pieces of cable through exacting tests designed to simulate conditions in the deep oceans. They are operating a new £1.2 million machine that represents a crucial commitment by one of the world’s leading firms in the subsea sector.

The testing equipment sits in a laboratory purpose-built by Oceaneering Umbilical Solutions, an American firm that provides power and control cables for the offshore oil and gas industry. The company has invested in the Fife facility after being lured by Scotland’s engineering heritage.

But Oceaneering vice president Chuck Davidson, in Scotland last week for the opening of the new lab, says that companies are fighting a “war” for talent.

Davidson set up the company’s Rosyth-based global engineering group last year to increase the capabilities and durability of Oceaneering’s umbilicals – cables that control oil production equipment under the sea – in response to the ever-demanding environments that the oil industry works in. The firm is backing his ambition with a $5 million (£3m) a year investment into the project that is providing work for 80 engineers. But finding them is not a simple task.

“We are placing more emphasis on talent management, getting people in early, and we’re planning to put a lot of effort into developing and retaining them,” he says, acknowledging that the company faces a battle to attract skilled people. “There’s definitely a war for talent and you’ve got to nurture and develop it,” he says.

Peter Hughes, chief executive of Scottish Engineering, has also seen evidence of the lengths companies are having to go to attract qualified people in a limited talent pool. He said some firms in Aberdeen, where big money paid for offshore work makes the shortage more acute, are offering sizeable “golden hellos” to attract employees. These are typically between £3,000 and £5,000.

Hughes says Scottish Engineering’s member companies across Scotland continue to report skills shortages in everything from machinists and welders to graduates, but there is evidence that a corner has been turned.

“Five or six years ago a lot of kids were ducking out of subjects like physics and maths,” he said. “The good news is that since 2007 we are getting them back, but they will take a few years to come through as graduates.”

Scottish Engineering has long campaigned for more “stem subjects” – science, technology, engineering and mathematics – to be taught in schools, and this week it is launching a campaign sponsored by Weir Group to encourage more 13 and 14-year-olds to look at careers in engineering, science and technology.

Scottish universities are now working more closely than ever with businesses, which in turn are putting more money into academic circles.

The number of students enrolling in Scottish Advanced Higher courses in physics grew particularly strongly last year, rising 12 per cent, although mathematics slipped back slightly, falling 3 per cent. Meanwhile, the number of people studying at a higher education level in science-related subjects full-time in Scotland has risen steadily from 11,635 in 2007/8 to 12,920 in 2009/10.

Hughes says Scotland’s universities are a key asset for employers, “punching above their weight” by capturing a disproportionate amount of the UK’s research grants. But he warns that cuts to college budgets could endanger the engineering revival.

“The danger is that we will get fewer crafts people and technicians coming through, just as demand is hopefully increasing as the engineering sector in energy and renewables moves forward,” he says.

The shortage of engineers is also being tackled through modern apprenticeships. Apprentice numbers have been growing rapidly in recent years, although numbers in engineering fell slightly in the current year because Scotland’s shipyards have largely fulfilled their recruitment needs around the aircraft carrier project.

Brian Humphrey, Scotland manager for Semta, the Sector Skills Council for Science, Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies, said that as a demand driven system apprenticeships were particularly valuable because they could react quickly to employers’ needs. Recent work with Scottish shipyards saw the system adapted to fast-track people with a background in the industry, cutting the amount of time it takes to complete a modern apprenticeship from four to two years or even less.

“We are also looking at higher level apprenticeships going on to degree level, and that could become a growth area by combining the academic and vocational routes, which seems popular with employers,” he says.

Oceaneering took on a number of students from Heriot-Watt for work placements this summer, giving them valuable experience and may take them on full-time when they finish their degrees next year.

The company’s need for research engineers is relatively modest – about 80 work in its global group, half of those at Rosyth – but Davidson is clearly pleased with the decision to base the group in Scotland.

“Engineering is viewed very well in Scotland and there’s a great work ethic,” he says.