QUESTION SPOTLIGHT
WHY IS DIVERSITY IMPORTANT FOR THE INDUSTRY? Julie Jupp Digital Design and Construction Within educational institutions the number of women in engineering and construction project management roles has remained low, despite university campaigns to show women the diverse range of disciplines on offer. This year alone in the BA Construction Project Management at the University of Technology Sydney, only 20% of our first year intake are women. Some would argue that the gender imbalance in the education pipeline is less significant than equality in the workplace and equality in salary and senior roles. However this argument is flawed and to some extent raises the “chicken and egg” paradox about diversity in the workplace versus diversity in the education pipeline and in my role as a university professor I feel that it’s just as important to fix the gender imbalance at the tertiary education level as it is to address equality in the workplace. Diversity in the university classroom is vital to the continued success of not only the Australian construction industry and economy but also to the new digital capabilities being taught, and this will therefore have impact on the continued digital transformation of traditional working practices. Our digital design and construction subjects here at UTS rely on greater levels of diversity in the problem and project based approach that we take in the Construction Project Management degree. Teaching digital technologies is not just about the ‘picks and clicks’ of software training, it is more about an integrated approach to the technologies, processes and policies used on projects delivered using building information modelling (BIM) and managing multidisciplinary collaborative teams in this context. Fostering
diversity in student teams is difficult when there aren’t enough females to populate groups. We find that diversity in student teams fosters more creative, more flexible, and more innovative outcomes in subjects that are focused on producing digital design and construction outcomes. Now is a great time for women to enroll in degrees that will lead to working in the construction industry, whether that be in a design, engineering or construction based role. New technologies are supporting dramatic changes in not only the way AEC professionals work but also in the way universities approach teaching and learning. The traditional roles that have been responsible for rigid frameworks in tertiary education, professional development, and glass ceilings in the workplace are changing more rapidly due to the digital transformation of the industry. This transformation coupled with the demand for graduates with digital capabilities in BIM and management, provides exciting new opportunities for younger female architects, engineers and construction professionals that did not previously exist. At UTS, we strive to challenge and change the construction industry and we are making great progress. Our teaching and research in the areas of BIM, virtual design and construction, digital engineering, and AI mean that we are increasingly engaged with industry change agents. Practitioners and organisations who first build virtually are able to relate to and support our teaching and research approaches that utilise the virtual world as a vehicle that allows us to take abstract concepts and understand as well as test their application, making learning outcomes more concrete. Although addressing diversity and equality in the construction industry may seem like a daunting challenge, the use of technology in our tertiary institutions means that we can shift construction education away from the
stereotypes that many people still associate with the industry.
Sara Wilkinson Chartered Building Surveyor – Sustainability & Building adaptation LIVE RESEARCH: The Algae Prototype Panel (The APP Project) [2017] / A National Green Roof And Green Wall Policy For Australia [2016-2017] We only have to look at Darwin’s seminal Origin of the Species to learn how diversity is essential to survive and even thrive in the future. It is the way of things; that the fittest are those who survive the best. We should read the fittest as those who take the time to comprehend the world around them and explore different ways of dealing with change. Collectively, it goes without saying that the fittest are also diverse. It is also said the only constant is change; and indeed, these are rapidly changing times. Currently the major change drivers for the future include globalisation, population growth, rapid urbanisation, political instability, a precarious economic future for many as the employment market and jobs change and, of course, climate change. So, the future is uncertain to say the least. Our industry has huge potential to affect many of the changes in respect of the type of built environment we deliver. Undoubtedly some of our fears will be unfounded and other issues, things we should be fearful of, will impact on us without us being fully or even partially cognisant of them. One of the ways of surviving and thriving even, is to embrace diversity and difference. Inclusion as opposed to exclusion.
THE BUILDING ECONOMIST - MARCH 2017 - 39