Harriet James and Milliam Murigi

How long have been in this industry, and what are the changes you noted in the in that period?

I have been in this field for 30 years, and a lot has changed, starting from the design codes of practice.

We started with the International Building Code Section 110 and then we moved to BS 8110, a British Standard for the design and construction of reinforced and prestressed concrete structures.

Now we are talking of the the EN Eurocodes, which provides a common approach for the design of buildings and other civil engineering works and construction products.

There has been a continuous improvement and development of both design and construction.

The advent ofthe Chinese into the market has also resulted in some positive changes, including the ability to manage a construction process and deliver on time, because they have the financial capacity to do so.

Most of them will not rely so much on the advance payment by the client and this ensures that projects are run efficiently. 

How can engineers fast track realisation of the government affordable housing agenda?

Engineers should seek innovative, safe but cheaper methods of construction in order to bring down the cost of construction.

Engineers should also take advantage of the Government’s initiative to ring-fence the supply of certain components, such as doors and windows, under the affordable housing program.

How has the entry of the Chinese in the market affected the field?

The Chinese entry into the construction industry has brought a lot of development in terms of technology and skills, however, the challenge has beeen human resource management.

For the government to bring Chinese labourers from china when we have our own local labourers is wrong.

There should be a framework where they bring ideas and transfer of technology that we don’t have, but use our people to do the job.  

What other challenges do engineers face in construction?

The national government has a way of ensuring that every project has an engineer to run the infrastructure sector, but of late, we have seen attempts by parliament to legislate management of projects that require our expertise to non-engineers. Since the sector gets a lot of funds, they selfishly desire to push legislation to get access to contracts instead of a trained person.

This is quite dangerous, because we will be  putting projects in the hands of a person who lacks the technical know-how.

The Ministry of Transport, Infrastructure, Housing, Urban Development and Public Works is also lacking an engineer to advise on projects.

The ministry’s cabinet secretary and his four principal secretaries are not engineers. 

When you hear things like, engineering is a dead course, what goes through your mind?

I don’t think that its correct for people to say that. If things were done in the proper way, engineering is a great course since Kenya’s development is at its infant stages and we have so many projects to develop. We need to train more engineers to push the country forward. 

There have been complains about this sector having so many quacks why the influx and what are you doing to solve the problem?

IEK is seeking the support of the National and County governments to weed out quacks who have infiltrated this sector.

Failure by County Governments to employ professional Engineers has exacerbated the problem increasing the risk of collapse of buildings.

We propose that approval of structural drawings at all levels be done strictly by Professional Engineers duly licensed by Engineers Board of Kenya (EBK).

We are also seeking the support of National Construction Authority to strictly enforce existing regulations. 

What are some of the successes that you have attained as an organisation?

We have ensured that there is a data base of qualified engineers where the public can be referred to when they need service.

We have also been able to recommend jobs for our people and involved them in related workshops to sharpen their skills, share ideas and bring them up to speed on the latest technology in the world.

Further, we have been able to lobby and direct the government and advise them in terms of policy formulation. 

Currently over 70 per cent of Engineering degree graduates are yet to transition to professional engineers why?

This is mainly due to inadequate facilitation for training. Though there is a Graduate Engineers Internship Program (GEIP) that is designed to enable graduates acquire requisite hands-on skills and prepare them for professional practice in their respective engineering fields a lot more need to be done.

Our recommendation is that about 2.5 per cent of the value of all ongoing projects should be ring fenced for the programme.

This will facilitate requisite three year paid Internship for all Graduate Engineers and fast track transition to Professional Engineers.

There is a suggestion that the Salaries and Remuneration Commission to be involved in the regulation of professional consultancy fees what is your take? 

That suggestion is misinformed because EBK under the Engineer’s Act 2011 is fully responsible for regulation of professional fees and the process of getting Engineers Scales of fees gazetted is ongoing.

We require government support in getting the engineers scales of fees gazetted as soon as possible.