Bolt-on skills for low-carbon construction? British training in European context

1. Bolt-on skills for low-carbon construction?British training in European context Presentation: New Skills for Green Jobs Workshop Programme, BictonEaRTH Centre, Bicton College Professor Linda Clarke & Colin Gleeson Westminster Business School, School of Architecture & the Built Environment, University of Westminster

2. Aims • Identify key professional and operative skill/competence requirements to low energy construction, focussing on housebuilding and trades • Set in context of vocational education and training (VET) system, entry into construction, employment/working conditions • Indicate strategic direction for construction VET for "green buildings" across occupational and professional barriers to make paradigm shift - from ‘bolt-on skills’ to the development of occupational/industrial capacity.. • Address gender and diversity disparities

3. European Emissions Reductions Targets: “20/20/20” Reduce energy use, increase renewable energy, reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 20% by 2020 Construction sector = 40% EU CO2 end-use emissions:→ Energy Performance of Building Directive (EPBD) 2010, covering all buildings over 50m2 Renewable Energy Sources Directive (RES) 2009 →’near zero emissions’ for new and retrofitted buildings through energy efficient envelopes & on-site renewables supported by: New qualifications Quality assurance schemes and ‘Green Deals’ (on retrofitting energy saving products and ‘Feed-in’ tariffs)

4. EU dwellings built before 1945 generally “Hard to Heat” add concrete Tower Blocks Add “Fuel Poverty” HUGE WORK POTENTIAL Source: GEODE 2005,http://www.ceps.lu/pdf/6/art1143.pdf

5. Energy flows: Heat losses & gains: the importance of interfaces -1oC 20oC

6. A New “thermal literacy” CO2 emissions result from: Regulated Emissions: Space heating, hot water, lighting Non regulated: Appliances – cooking, TV, computers, electrical goods • Target “Near Zero Emissions” • The building envelope – low carbon construction techniques: super-insulation, thermal bridge-free construction, air-tightness • New materials (aerogel insulation, hempcrete, triple glazing, etc) • New technologies: LEDs, heat pumps, MVHR, compact service units, etc) • Off-setting emissions – RENEWABLES – PV, ST

7. Heat losses and interfaces: e.g. between groundworker and bricklayer • FABRIC: walls, floor, roof, windows, doors. Requirement for low u values (rate of heat loss) • THERMAL BRIDGES: lintels, junctions between floors & walls, walls & roof, glass & frame, etc, (incomplete insulation) • AIR PERMEABILITY: unintended air leakage (draught) through gaps in envelope – wall and window, builder’s openings, use of tapes and mastics

8. Where do we go from here? • building envelope key to emissions reductions ~ not strap-on PV or ST • knowledge, skills and competences needed not widely available & generally not in curriculum • construction industry factional with silo-thinking

9. Subjective Demand-based Skills Analysis

10. roofer plumber architect construction manager quantity surveyor bricklayer site manager joiner SKILLS QUALIFICATIONS UNTRAINED carpenter

11. Trade versus Occupation (e.g. Beruf) formally recognised, adaptable and developing social category regulated VET and qualifications, theoretical & practical knowledge necessary to undertake defined and broad range activities holistic and multi-dimensional competences linked to developing individual capacity and labour process change Systematised combination of knowledge, skills and competence Scope determined by social partner negotiation Bound up with wage relations system • Performance of employer-defined tasks in work process • skills acquired through traditional apprenticeship, largely on job with little theoretical underpinning • competences confined to narrow trade skills to produce given output • geared to single workplace • Scope defined by employer/trade associations with little involvement of trade unions and educationalists

13. The structure of learning in the UK

14. The structure of learning in Germany

16. How many apprentices?How old are they? Apprentices per 1000 employed 2009 Apprentices in France, Ireland and the three dual-system countries are normally below 25. In Australia, a half and in England a quarter of all apprentices are over 25

17. UK Construction Workforce 1996-2009 (thousands)

18. Women and ethnic minorities in building occupations post 2000 Women:10.2% construction, 0.3% manual trades Painters and decorators 3% Floor and wall tilers 1.4% Carpenters and joiners 1% Women make up 3% of all construction trainees Women make up 7% of all construction trainees in further education colleges Male workers dominate the industry in manual occupations where they constitute 99.7% of the private-sector workforce Ethnic minorities in construction = 2.8%, in economically active population = 7% in London = 30% working population, 12.4% in building trades; unemployment = 11.7%, white population 5.2%

19. Subcontracting & operative input on English housing site

20. Subcontract firms on D1

21. Productivity comparisons of English, German and Danish housing projects

22. Implications • Importance of : • interfaces and building envelope in heat loss →breaking down trade divisions • roof and wall insulation, boiler and controls, and photovoltaics in energy saving interventions → integrated teamworking • Difficulties: • bridging interfaces and teamworking with trade-based system and ‘bolt-on’ skills training→ developing occupational capacity • Bridging professional-operative divide and creating permeability with employer-based system →ensuring trade union/educationalist involvement • Way forward: new approach to VET based on developing individual capacity not imparting skills for job-in-hand

23. The Future • Need for new approach to construction to achieve “near zero emissions” buildings – BUT • Need comprehensive, regulated and inclusive VET system based on social partnership • Need for diverse, qualified workforce, particularly more women - supported by child care provision etc.