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Connect Issue 20 | April 2019

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Engineers Ireland's voice heard in updated 'Critical Skills List'

Dear <<Prefered Name>>

Welcome to the April edition of Connect.  For three years we in Engineers Ireland have been actively advocating with Minister Heather Humphrey’s Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation on the skills shortage and the necessity of having suitably qualified engineers available to operate at a professional level within the sector. We therefore welcomed the Minister’s announcement on 3 April of the inclusion of civil engineers and mechanical and electrical engineers with BIM capabilities to the ‘Critical Skills List’ of occupations. This increased flexibility around employment permits is most welcome as we look to increase the supply of engineers to meet Ireland’s current and future needs, including competitively delivering on the ambitions outlined in Project Ireland 2040.

I have been delighted to get out into our Regions in the past number of weeks. It is a joy for me to meet members all over the island and overseas. I appreciate your participation very much in organising local activities and I thank our committees for their excellent work. It is a busy time for members with calendar events, regional AGM’s and conferrings all happening or in planning. I was delighted to attend our conferring ceremonies in our GB region, North East Region and Northern Region in March (see some pictures below). I will be with our Midland Region on 15 April, Cork Region on 16 April, West Region on 25 April, Thomond Region on 7 May, South East Region on 14 May and in Dublin on 24 May for conferrings too.   Where possible I have been linking in with Local Authorities, meeting recently with engineering staff at Cavan and Monaghan County Councils.  I will continue to meet other Local Authorities in the coming weeks.

On 29 March we also welcomed the Joint Committee on Climate Action’s important Climate Change: A Cross-Party Consensus for Action report. We particularly welcomed recommendations around improved governance and the actions to be implemented across the energy and transport sectors and the built environment.

We signal below the availability of eight Council vacancies and all eligible members who can put their names forward will be encouraged to do so.  Voting is in May and the new Council members will be announced at our AGM on 30 May at 22 Clyde Road, Dublin 4. Please mark the date in your diary (6pm for 6:30pm start).

With best wishes

Peter Quinn, Chartered Engineer

President of Engineers Ireland


 



Engineers Ireland needs you

Would you like to be a member of our Council, which is the governing body of Engineers Ireland? We are seeking membership of our Council with eight vacancies available from 1 June 2019.  Election is for a maximum three-year period, which will be from June 2019 to May 2022.

Our Council meets up to five times each year on Saturday mornings at 22 Clyde Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4.  Elected members may not serve more than six consecutive years on Council.

The governance of Engineers Ireland is vested in Council subject to the provisions of our Charter, of our Bye-laws and to the resolutions of Special General Meetings. The key roles of Council include:

  • Election of the Executive Board
  • Deliberating on strategic planning and policy issues, in order to inform and advise the Executive Board
  • Final approval of any proposals prepared by the Executive Board in relation to
    • Changes to the Code of Ethics and disciplinary procedures  
    • Changes to membership regulations and changes to membership subscriptions
    • Changes to Bye-laws and changes to our Charter and legislation
    • New Regional Branches, Engineering Divisions and Societies or modifications to existing Regional Branches, Engineering Divisions and Societies
    • Any amendment to the Guidelines for Regional Branches, Engineering Divisions and Societies
    • Annual budget and annual accounts
  • Nomination of candidates for Vice-President and election of Honorary Fellows
  • Preparation of an Annual Report for the Annual General Meeting and for members, incorporating an Annual Report of the Executive Board
  • Conduct of elections to Council.

A notice will issue to all eligible members in April requesting nominations.  The ballot period will be for two weeks in May with the result of the election being announced at our Annual General Meeting on Thursday evening 30 May held at our offices in Dublin.

New Diploma in Engineering & Biopharmaceutical Operations

We are delighted to announce the expansion of our diploma course offering to engineers wishing to improve their continuing professional development (CPD). In a collaboration with NIBRT, the National Institute for Bioprocessing Research and Training, we are expanding our CPD course choice from September to include a new, 12-month TU Dublin-accredited diploma to support engineers develop skills and knowledge of biopharmaceutical operations. 

This stand-alone diploma builds on the existing CPD Certificate and Diploma in Professional Engineering offered by Engineers Ireland under its Future Professionals series. 

Caroline Spillane, our Director General said: “We are delighted to be collaborating with NIBRT - a world-class institute offering training and research solutions - to offer structured advancement for engineers to further develop their knowledge of biopharmaceutical operations. Our new diploma is targeted at those who wish to develop their career in the specific area of biopharmaceutical operations and also build competency in business improvement.  The major building blocks to high-level engineering competence will be covered across five core modules of the diploma.”

John Milne, Training Director, NIBRT said: “NIBRT is delighted to partner with Engineers Ireland on this exciting new programme. Ireland has seen tremendous growth in the biopharmaceutical industry in recent years. Engineering as a discipline will continue to play a crucial role in the successful operation of modern biopharmaceutical manufacturing facilities.”

Pictured above at the NIBRT facility in County Dublin are: Melissa Hoare, Senior Bioprocessing Trainer, NIBRT, Dee Kehoe, CPD Director, Engineers Ireland, John Milne, Training Director, NIBRT, Dominic Carolan, CEO, NIBRT and Caroline Spillane, Director General of Engineers Ireland.

For further information and to apply for the course see here.

Selected course

Blockchain Fundamentals for Engineers

CPD Credit: 6.5 hours

Dublin, 30 May

 

Selected jobs this month

Buildings Officer, Carlow, Teagasc

Assistant Resident Engineer - N60 Oran Road Project, Roscommon, McCrae Consulting Engineers

Junior Structural Engineer, Dublin, JBA Consulting

 

Future Energy Forum for Dundalk on 16 May

An Engineers Ireland forum on Future Energy will take place at Dundalk Institute of Technology, Dublin Road, Dundalk, County Louth on Thursday 16 May with an audience of member-engineers, local businesses and those committed to working in our energy industry.  Held in association with our dedicated North East Region, this forum will commence at 6:00pm (with refreshments from 5:00pm).  
The forum will aim to explore the issue of putting Ireland's energy use on a sustainable path. It will also focus on the new technologies and solutions that will be required for Ireland's low carbon energy transition.

The forum will take the form of a panel discussion and confirmed speakers include Mark Foley, CEO of EirGrid, Marguerite Sayers, Executive Director, Customer Solutions, ESB and Denis Duff of BENE Ireland. The M.C. will be Dr Pat McCormick, who is Head of Department, Department of Engineering Trades and Civil Engineering at Dundalk IT, and also a member of Engineers Ireland.

The goal of the forum, the second in our series of fora organised for 2019, is to support the business performance of companies and engineering businesses in the regions, through the provision of current knowledge and innovative practices at the business and engineering interface.

The forum will be preceded from 3:00pm to 5:00pm with information clinics on the campus held by local engineering firms including Combilift and Glen Dimplex, for both engineering students and interested businesses. 

To register your attendance click to our website.

 

Retaining engineering talent in Thomond

Thirty-five leaders from engineering-led organisations in our Thomond Region attended a Leaders’ Breakfast Briefing on talent hosted by our Thomond region in Limerick on Friday 29 March.

The keynote speaker, David Collings, Professor of Human Resource Management and Associate Dean for Research at DCU, told delegates that 85% of respondents to a recent PWC survey agreed that attracting and retaining key talent would be the top HR challenge in 2019. Mr Collings also detailed the Buy-Build-Borrow model for talent and urged leaders to take a far stronger strategic approach to talent building, which will result in better engagement, innovation, performance and retention.

Dee Kehoe, our CPD Director, introduced leaders to our CPD (continuing professional development) Accredited Employer standard.  She said that 130 organisations across all engineering sectors are accredited to this voluntary standard for CPD and that the benefits of attaining the standard include the ability to harness a holistic framework for CPD policy and practices, improved talent recruitment and retention, increased innovation and benchmarking, and knowledge sharing with a network of high performing organisations.

Pictured at the Leaders’ Breakfast Briefing on talent hosted by our Thomond region are: (L to R) Niall Looney of 4site, Barry Lowe of LTTS, Pat Donnellan of Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Prof. David Collings, DCU and Dee Kehoe, Engineers Ireland CPD Director.

Engineers Ireland Thomond region will host a free CPD event on 15 May in Limerick for engineering and HR personnel from local engineering-led organisations to hear in more detail the significant positive outcomes for organisations that have achieved the CPD standard.

If you are interested in attending this complimentary event, please contact cpdemployers@engineersireland.ie.

 
 

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Picture gallery

Here are some pictures reflecting recent activities of staff, our President and members. Pictures are welcome from our regions, divisions and societies events at connectnewsletter@engineersireland.ie.

Pictured in Dublin at EirGrid’s offices on 15 March is our Director General, Caroline Spillane
with Mark Foley, CEO of EirGrid and
European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, Phil Hogan.


Minister for Finance and Public Expenditure and Reform, Paschal Donohoe TD,
pictured with Engineers Ireland's Deputy Registrar & Policy Officer, Dr Richard Manton,
at the launch of 'Build', the first annual report on Construction Sector Performance and Prospects.
The report is the first in a series of outputs from the Government's Construction Sector Group
on which Engineers Ireland is represented by our Director General, Caroline Spillane.

Director of Innovation at the Resilient Africa Network (RAN) in Kampala, engineer Dr Dorothy Okello
and her husband Jimmy were welcomed at our offices on 21 March
by our Director General, Caroline Spillane and Dee Kehoe, our CPD Director. 
Supported by USAID, RAN is a partnership of 18 Sub-Saharan African universities that seeks to
identify, develop and scale innovative solutions that will strengthen the resilience of African communities
afflicted by natural as well as man-made shocks and stresses.
Dr Okello is also a Council member with the Uganda Institution of Professional Engineers.

Pictured at our offices on 8 March are Caroline Spillane, our Director General,
Anne Dooley, Managing Director, Winthrop Engineering, Dee Kehoe, our CPD Director and
Barry Hennessy, Business Development Director, Winthrop Engineering.
Winthrop received their parchment from Engineers Ireland recognising that
they now hold our CPD Accredited Employer Standard.
Anne Dooley, Managing Director at Winthrop commented: “Winthrop is a company that has
continually invested in improving its capabilities and in developing its people.
All our engineers are highly adaptable and very practical minded – it is the quality
and calibre of our staff that has developed our position in the market
and has helped ensure that 80% of our contracts derive from repeat clients.”

Pictured on 19 March in London is Jeff Mahony, Chair of our GB Region with
Peter Quinn, President of Engineers Ireland.  Jeff was presented with a small token of appreciation
that evening as part of our member recognition programme.
Peter Quinn also delivered his Presidential Address that evening.

Pictured on 19 March in London are Cormac Bradley, Fellow,
Andrew Wyllie, President of the UK’s Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE),
President of Engineers Ireland, Peter Quinn,
Karen Britton of ICE and
our Sectoral Engagement Director John Byrne at our President’s Address to ICE.
Our GB Regional conferring ceremony also took place that evening. Thank-you to all who attended.
2019 marks the 50th celebration of the Chartered Title.

Dr Robert Eadie, Chair of our Northern Region is pictured on 29 March
welcoming guests at our Northern Region’s Black-Tie dinner held at the Titanic Centre Belfast.
Our President Peter Quinn was also in attendance.

Our President Peter Quinn (back row, 2nd left) was delighted to meet with members of
Cavan County Council including its engineering staff on 27 March.
Also pictured is our Associate Director of Membership, Shirley McDonald. (back row, right).

Pictured at Trim Castle Hotel on 27 March is our President, Peter Quinn (front row, 2nd left)
and also the Chair of our North East Region, Barry Hyland (front row, 2nd right) at
our North East Region conferring ceremony. 
John Byrne our Sectoral Engagement Director is also pictured (front row, 1st left).
Professional titles were awarded that evening to several engineers with
many proudly receiving the Chartered Title - the gold standard of our profession.

Engineers Ireland in numbers

25,000+ members
32 regions, divisions and societies
1 community



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