ECS is currently involved in an initiative to support the development of sector specific frameworks, including LV Electrical, Fire, Emergency and Security Systems (FESS), Building Controls, Network Infrastructure, Cabling and Jointing, Electrical Product Service Engineering and other related electrotechnical occupations.
Multiple installer disciplines have begun codifying standards and competences for the sector, through the involvement of coordinated trade association bodies, including the Engineering and Building Services Skills Authority (EBSSA), The initiative is part of wider industry and government efforts, to ‘raise the bar’ on individual competence within the built environment, in line with the new post-Grenfell competence regime established by the Building Safety Act.
The JIB, through ECS, has been working for several years with a number of Industry Working Groups to develop occupational frameworks, such as Fire and Security, Network Infrastructure Installation, Cabling and Jointing and also Building Controls occupations - through the Building Controls Industry Association (BCIA) Employer Skills Group. This work has been carried out to structure career entry options, routes to qualified status and the award of an ECS gold card. It also includes CPD options and advanced technical and management roles in all of these sectors.
The hundreds of organisations, which have helped to establish the ECS occupational frameworks, are now furthering this work on individual competence by beginning to develop CPD and revalidation options. They are also devising Experienced Worker Assessments (EWA) as a way to reach baseline competency. Two EWA options launched for FESS in late 2023, and others for Network Infrastructure Installation and Building Energy Management Systems are in pilot.
JIB and ECS Director of Growth and Development Andy Reakes explained: “The work of the ECS Industry Groups has put the electrotechnical sector in a strong position in terms of setting out the industry approved routes to qualified status and detailing options for continuing professional development. The development of EWAs provides an essential option for those who did not get the opportunity to undertake or complete apprenticeships and allows people to prove their occupational competency via an equivalent route.”
EBSSA was convened last year by Actuate UK members together with other leading sector bodies, such as BEAMA, CIPHE, TICA and the standards organisation MCS, to provide a credible authoritative voice for skills across all engineering and building services.
To find out more about the occupational frameworks and requirements for each occupation under ECS, take a look at the card types here.