According to the Wall Street Journal electronics giant Apple has declared the ‘Apple Car’ to be a committed project, and is tripling its development team with the aim of having something on the forecourts by 2019. With this launch, Apple is joining Tesla and Google in the race to transform motoring. All of these high tech cars are going to need high tech roads and we will need the best people we can gather to build the next road network.

 

We are in the first wave of the road revolution and still do not know exactly how those roads are going to work. But the UK has never had a shortage of engineering talent and it is exactly this kind of exciting challenge that our engineers thrive on.

 

Whether we have the right kind of talent for a world that is changing so fast, on the other hand, may be a more complex question. Does the industry adequately reflect the country it is trying to cater for?

 

This question is being contemplated by CIHT. While British society in general is rapidly changing, the engineering world remains steadfastly white and male. CIHT has decided to address this with the launch of a new ‘Diversity and Inclusion Toolkit’ as a practical, effective support for an industry working hard to close the diversity gap.

 

Diverse teams bring a wider range of experience and knowledge to the problem solving table than the traditional alternatives. In today’s world technological disrupters such as Twitter and Uber are created, launched and widely accepted in a very short window of time. When planning for an unknowable future, where technological shifts will combine with rapid social change and the infrastructure demands of climate change, we will require the best possible teams we can put forward.

 

CIHT Senior Vice President Steve Rowsell will be discussing the diversity challenge and presenting the Institution’s new Diversity and Inclusion Toolkit at the Highways UK event at London’s ExCel next month. Running on the 25-26 November, the two day event will showcase the very best and latest in innovation and good practice in highways and transportation. Supported by the leading names in the industry, the event offers briefings and an exhibition that are free to attend, alongside a paid-for, modular conference addressing important issues such as asset management, technological advances, population demands, and skills and diversity.

 

Mr Rowsell emphasises that the resources developed by the CIHT will be a practical aid to improving diversity and building those teams for the future: “Through practical guidance, case studies and links to reliable sources of expert advice, our toolkit will give you all you need to recruit, retain and develop a more diverse workforce. By doing so, you will improve your own business performance and increase capacity within the industry.”

 

CIHT supports the Highways UK event and members can secure special rates on both delegate bookings and exhibiting packages. Register online at here using the code HUKCIHT20 to secure a 20% saving on conference places. To secure CIHT rates on exhibiting please email Jon.Irwin@highways-uk.com or call 07748 150004.

 

This article has been prepared for TP Weekly News on behalf of Highways UK.