Skills and training to reduce error - what did we learn?
14 Oct 25Improving competence at all levels across the construction industry is critical to reducing errors and compliance with regulations and standards. At GIRI's September members' meeting focused on skills and training, members heard how the CITB is working with government to target essential skills, how AI could transform the sector in as little as five years, and how members are working to raise skill levels and ensure quality within their organisations.
Here are the key insights from our speakers.
Targeting construction skills for the future
The construction industry needs to recruit 250,000 new entrants in the next five years to keep up with demand, Carl Licorish from the CITB (Construction Industry Training Board) customer engagement team told GIRI members. He explained how CITB is working to identify and target areas of skills demand and liaising with the UK Government to influence investment and connect industry with available programmes and resources.
What is it like to become a GIRI Approved Training Provider?
In early 2024, Kier Natural Resources, Nuclear & Networks was awarded £109,620 by CITB to roll out GIRI training on eight diverse projects: Hinkley Point C, AWE (Atomic Weapons Establishment), Mansfield Sustainable Drainage Systems, Thames Water WAAP (Waste Assets Assurance Program), UK Power Network (UKPN), Environment Agency Collaborative Delivery Framework, South West Water Framework, and the Anglian Water Framework.
At the meeting, Joanne Arnott and Dave Beer from Kier discussed the challenges, benefits and lessons learned from the business’s internal rollout of GIRI training.
Putting quality at the forefront
McLaren Construction is partnering with Sizewell to deliver the campus construction for the Sizewell C nuclear power station. Covering 19 hectares, the campus will provide 2,400 living units as well as an amenity building. Skills development, construction rehearsals, and ‘pressing pause’ are among the strategies being employed by McLaren to ensure quality on the project, campus director Leigh Greenway told GIRI members.
The opportunities and challenges of AI in construction
While AI offers huge potential for error reduction and productivity improvement in construction, it should be used in concert with clear policies and strategies, human oversight and assurance procedures to reduce the risk of AI-introduced error, explained GIRI Technology Working Group chair John Priestland.
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