Most of us will spend the majority of our adult lives at work. To do something truly
fulfilling, that goes far beyond paying the bills, to positively touching the lives of
others, is a goal that many strive for. Construction is the primary way that human
beings impact this planet. From the spaces that we call home and the environments where
our children develop, to our hospitals, the places where we work, the roads, railway lines
and airports that enable our travel, the infrastructure that generates our energy and our vast cities;
our society simply could not function without this industry.
The importance of construction at this moment in time cannot be overstated. Despite centuries
of progress, several factors have brought our world to a critical juncture.
The global population is larger than it has ever been and is now rising faster than at any time before.
More than half of us now live in cities and millions more are migrating into urban areas.
Several nations are grappling with housing crises and cannot construct homes
for their people fast enough. Our climate is changing, and our buildings now account
for 40% of all greenhouse gas emissions.
More than any other sector, construction has the ability to overcome these challenges
and make a positive difference. The people who choose to work in this industry
have immense influence over the shape of the world that billions of us experience every day.
Almost every other job role is enabled by construction.
And while those job roles may be impactful in their own right, the work of the building
industry lasts for generations and touches more of the population than any other.
At a time when our world faces such challenges and with a socially conscious young generation
who value our planet and the direction of society, arguably more than any other before them,
a new wave of young people around the world are now choosing to build their careers in construction.
I wanted my profession to be something that
motivates me and inspires me daily. After some consideration, I decided that construction
is the point where I can be useful and develop my skills, that I feel are the greatest asset of mine.
Engineering is not an easy job and it's really hard work.
But at the end, it really pays off. One of the best jobs is to inspire the
next generation of engineers, because we do need talents to work in the industry.
So, here at KEA School of Design and Technology, we give them all the tools and all the teaching,
so they are ready for their own future.
I have more or less 20 years of experience so I like to put it in the heads of the students
so they go out and conquer the world with their new buildings and new technology.
What attracted me to working in the industry was to take charge of some great projects,
not just working on it, but actually taking charge of it.
You definitely get a chance to do it here with this education.
Now I'm doing my MSc in Construction Economics and Management at UCL and before that
I graduated with first class in BEng Civil Engineering at London South Bank University
It is very important for us to invest time
and resources in training up future engineers because we need a lot more engineers to tackle
the future challenges. One of the big ones is climate change, which is becoming a global
issue now. So, we do need to work together and tackle this problem.
People often say that construction is a man's world, but I believe that it's a world of
possibilities so anyone can have access to it. And I hope that I will inspire others
to perceive a route that is not so obvious at first.
I think women and men are definitely equal because we have to use computers, it’s not
about strength, it has to be about smartness and technology and there we are definitely equal.
A lot of women should try this education.
Since I started my studies in engineering,
I knew that project management is what is really like my passion, because I believe
that the skills that I have, and I believe to be my strongest ones, are the ones that
I can develop and use to be successful in what I am doing.
Throughout their development, Niya and Thomas have been supported with access to Bluebeam
technology, made available under the Bluebeam Academic Program. In an industry currently
being disrupted by technology, with many workflows becoming digital and with project teams sometimes
widely spread across different geographic locations, the need for new talent to have
a high level of digital literacy is critical and investments like this are key.
But the next generation have grown up immersed in technology, and in many cases, access to
Bluebeam has had a greater impact, catalysing and giving oxygen to their talent, helping
them achieve more and develop broader skills.
For all of the technology now coming into use,
construction relies on people and the communication and collaboration between them
in order to succeed.
Using Bluebeam at such a formative time has developed collaboration skills within these young people.
We do need to embrace technology in this engineering industry,
and that way it will help collaboration between different partners. We work with architects,
we work with MNE engineers (Mechanical and Electrical Engineers), we work with planners etc.,
and that will really help us to improve communications between all aspects.
There is a lot of opportunities in that Bluebeam program that we use. That's why it's one of
the programs that the students should have, because that's what we're using out in the industry.
While both Niya, Thomas and the mentors who
support them are strong examples of young people coming into the world's greatest industry,
they are in a minority and more needs to be done to attract talent in our ever-noisier world.
To a large extent, the construction sector
has not shouted about its successes; while mistakes, delays or cost overruns often lead the news.
Many people misunderstand this broad sector and have different preconceptions of
what it means to work here. The issue has become compounded with the rise of social media,
24-hour news and the increasingly media-rich environment surrounding us, that construction
has failed to compete in. The solutions can be found amongst these challenges.
The issues facing our world, combined with a socially- conscious young generation, the rise of cutting-edge
technologies and many mediums through which to broadcast to millions, creates the perfect
list of ingredients for fundamentally changing the perception of construction on this planet.
By showing an already concerned young generation, and their parents and influencers, the true
nature and power of construction, we can start to shift the way this sector is seen, attracting more talent.
The results will be the very best people making decisions that affect us all,
that shape our cities, plan our homes and design the environments that our children
will spend their formative years in.
Well I hope to set an example that it doesn't matter where you come from,
who you are, it's just important what you want to do and if you're good at it,
and I hope that people seeing that a lady can be in this construction
sector can motivate them to pursue paths that are not so obvious at first, you should do
what you're passionate about, it doesn't matter what it is.
It's been great. I think I learned something new every day. My biggest hope in this industry
is to build green, definitely. Different materials and how to combine them and how to create
something out of those materials and ideas. We are too bad at using our resources too quickly.
So I think a good way to start is to start building green and reuse these things.
Construction is really a world of possibilities wherever you go around the world, the language
of construction is one and the same, so you can go explore, develop and hopefully like
shape the future the way you want to and to bring importance the way you want to.
So in our overwhelming, noisy world, don't be told that you are less than you are.
Don't be told that your skills are needed in industries that perpetuate our challenges.
Don't waste your potential. Be known for having made a difference.
Be celebrated for your positive impact. Be proud of your remarkable achievements.
Be awed by your own creations every day. Be surprised by what you are capable of.
Be a part of construction.