【CIC - See What I See】Transform to Embrace the Golden Decade Ahead | 【香港建造新視野】蛻變納才 建造業迎黃金十年
Over the next decade, the annual construction volume in Hong Kong is expected to increase to $300 billion per year. However, if the industry cannot keep up with the pace of growth in terms of human resources and technological advancements, it may miss out on the opportunities of the "Golden Decade". Speaking at the Hong Kong Construction Conference organised by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), Ir Thomas HO, Chairman of the Construction Industry Council (CIC), reminded the industry to prioritise high-quality development. He also encouraged the industry to learn from and liaise with mainland counterparts, in exchanging experiences and cooperating in search of excellence.
In his speech on "Performance and Prospects - Hong Kong’s Construction Industry," Ir HO pointed out that due to various factors, Hong Kong's development has lagged behind over the past 20 years. Despite the fact that the development plan over the next decade is poised to catch up by increasing land and housing supply, he emphasised that the industry should not only place focus on speed but also on quality, “don’t just look at how fast we can do, but how much wellbeing and how much sustainable development we can bring to the community.”
Forging Collaboration within GBA
Construction is not a one-person job, and teamwork is the key to success. Enjoying the locational advantage, the supply chain in the Greater Bay Area will certainly boost the development of Modular Integrated Construction (MiC) in Hong Kong. After the traveller clearance resumed normal earlier this year, the CIC has organised several exchange tours to the Greater Bay Area, leading delegations of industry practitioners to visit mainland counterparts and different construction projects. Citing the examples of Far East Facade, China State Construction Hailong Technology Company and the indemnificatory housing project in Zhangkeng, Longhua District , Ir HO praised the rapid development of the mainland construction industry. "The MiC indemnificatory housing project in Longhua had five blocks of 28-story buildings built in just 363 days. They completed everything within a year." Ir HO said. He further praised the project for fully adopting digital management, and one is able to monitor the construction site through real-time panels that can even reflect carbon emissions and carbon footprints, which is an unprecedented progress. Ir Ho urged the local construction industry to collaborate with their mainland counterparts, complement each other's strengths, and "let’s combine 2 giants together, make it 4 giants, this is what we should do.”
Digitalisation and sustainable development are the focus of the construction industry. At the end of this year, the CIC will hold the "International Forum and Exhibition on Sustainable Construction", and the "Charter of Sustainable Construction" will also be signed on this occasion. Ir Ho urged industry leaders to actively participate to achieve the goal of "carbon neutrality by 2050." He also mentioned that 60 companies have signed the "Charter on Construction Digitalisation" last year, and he hoped that more companies will participate this year to demonstrate their determination to apply digitalisation.
Four Ways to Tackle Safety Issues
Safety issues are a top priority in the construction industry. Ir Ho emphasised that if the industry cannot make progress in safety issues, all efforts will be in vain. Over the past 20 years, the number of construction-related deaths has remained in the double digits annually. Ir Ho called for actions from the industry to be more proactive in adopting Design for Safety (DfS), defining stakeholders' roles and responsibilities, formulating temporary engineering management plans, and applying Safety Smart Site Systems (SSSS).
Talent recruitment is another focal point of the industry. Ir Ho stressed that the key to attracting fresh blood is to build a positive image of the construction industry among the public. The CIC has launched the "Design for Future Build for Life" campaign to promote the industry through television programs and other channels. "The young people want to be seen to be important and we have to let their families feel proud,” he said. In addition, Ir Ho believed that the industry should provide a clear career path to practitioners “newcomers, semi-skilled and skilled workers should be offered the ladder of progression. This will help them to have a vision of the promotion path, and some of them can also attend degree courses as well. This is what the CIC and the Development Bureau are doing, but we also need everyone in the industry to work together towards this goal."
领英推荐
未來十年本港每年工程量預計將增至每年3,000億元水平，但如業界於人力資源、科技水平未能跟上增幅步伐，或與「黃金十年」的機遇失之交臂。建造業議會（議會）主席何安誠工程師早前於皇家特許測量師學會主辦的「香港建造業研討會」演講，提醒業界須以高質量發展為己任，並分享到大灣區考察的成果，鼓勵業界參考內地同業的例子，交流合作，強強聯手協同增效。.
何工程師演說以「香港建造業表現與期望」為題，他指過去20年本港發展因不同因素滯後，未來10年的發展計劃正好追回進度，增加土地和房屋供應，但他強調業界不能單單求快，更應求質，「不要只著眼於工程速度，反而要專注於為市民謀幸福和可持續性，尋求高質量發展。」
大灣區強強聯手
建築絕非單靠一人之力，群策群力尤為關鍵。香港建造業坐擁地利，大灣區的產業供應鏈齊備，將成本地建造業發展組裝合成建築法（MiC）的重要助力。今年兩地通關後，議會籌辦多場大灣區考察團，率領業界與內地同業交流，參觀不同建築項目，何工程師指此行收穫豐富，引用遠東幕牆、中建海龍及深圳龍華樟坑徑保障住房項目等例子，讚揚內地建造業發展一日千里，「龍華裝配式保障房以MiC建設，團隊只花363天即建成五幢28層高的大樓，短短一年已從無到有。」他續指內地項目採用全數碼化管理，工地實況透過控制板一覽無遺，更能反映碳排和碳足跡數據，進步前所未有。何工程師寄語本地業界應多與內地合作，互補長短，「兩地強強聯手，果效不限於『兩巨頭』，而是發揮出『四巨頭』的威力。」
四大方針 解決安全問題
解決安全問題為建造業當務之急，何工程師表示業界如於安全議題滯足不前，一切努力盡付空談。過去20年建造業每年死亡數字徘徊雙位數，何工程師敦促業界要痛定思痛，透過採用建築設計安全（DfS）、釐定持分者角色與責任、制訂臨時工程管理計劃及應用安全智慧工地系統（SSSS）。
招募人才亦為業界聚焦點，何工程師強調吸引新血關鍵在於建造業的正面形象需深入民心，提及議會透過『看「建」未來「築」及生活』計劃，以電視節目等渠道宣傳建造業，「我們要讓年青人感到重要，同時亦讓其家人引以為榮。」此外，何工程師認為業界亦須為後進訂立晉升階梯，確定前景，「我們應為新入行工人、半技術及技術工人提供生涯規劃，讓他們看到晉升階梯，能夠銜接學位課程。這正是建造業議會和發展局正努力的事，但我們也需要業界所有人士投入。」