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You are here - From Bricks to Bytes - more technology skills needed for the modern day construction industry.

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From Bricks to Bytes - more technology skills needed for the modern day construction industry.

Skills gaps within the NI construction industry are on the increase and the number of employers anticipating the need to upskill in the year ahead has increased, according to research carried out by CITB NI in 2014.   
CITB NI conduct a regular programme of research in relation to the local industry and most recently this included the research ‘Skills and Training in the Construction Industry 2014’, which looked at a wide range of topic areas including recruitment difficulties, skills shortages,  skills gaps and upskilling. 

The research showed that although skills gaps amongst the existing construction workforce are not extensive, they have increased in recent years and whilst the skills gaps reported are mainly job specific, IT related skills is one area were skills are also frequently reported as lacking.  

The need to improve the IT skills of the local industry has also been highlighted in other research such as the UKCES 2013 Skills Survey, which found that of those NI construction establishments reporting skills gaps, 36% reported a lack of basic computer literacy skills and 32% reported a lack of advanced IT/ software skills. 

Barry Neilson, Chief Executive, CITB NI said “Skills are a key driver of growth, performance and prosperity and even more important now as some growth is expected to return to the NI construction industry after several tough years in economic decline. Our aim is to develop a qualified and competent workforce within the NI construction industry and to help encourage and support training to ensure the right skills in the right place at the right time.  Our industry relies heavily on information exchange to achieve time, cost and quality efficiencies on a project.  Technology is changing our industry and with advances in the use of Building Information Modelling (BIM), 3D digital design and efficient knowledge transfer we need to ensure our people are able to embrace new ways of working to fulfil their full potential.”

With that in mind, CITB NI would like encourage NI construction employers to take action now to address the IT training needs of their employees.  There is a vast range of IT related training courses available, ranging from basic IT courses to advanced/ specialist IT training.  Many of these are currently approved for CITB NI grant aid and are listed on the CITB NI Training Directory on our website http://www.citbni.org.uk/Training/Approved-Courses.aspx,. 

The 2014-15 CITB NI grant scheme has £1.1 million available to support a wide array of training and qualifications for the NI construction workforce, including over £260,000 to support off-the-job training for the existing workforce.  Local employers are encouraged to avail of the funding available through the ‘Off-the-job Training’ grant category to address the IT skills gaps within their existing workforce.