Owing to the global Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdown, skills development has been severely impacted owing to physical attendance of courses being brought to a halt, says industry body Consulting Engineers South Africa (Cesa).
It notes that this has not deterred the organisation’s School of Consulting Engineering (SCE).
Cesa’s SCE was created to meet the specific needs of the built environment industry.
Speaking about the launch of the SCE-Learning virtual courses, SCE manager Brenda Lacey-Smith says students can take advantage of this new normal by attending training from the comfort of their homes, offices and other locations, while also interacting with course convenors and other students.
“While we had been accustomed to commuting in the morning and attending courses at Cesa’s training centre and other venues across the country, I believe we can use that commuting time to better use elsewhere,” she states.
Lacey-Smith also announces the introduction of an updated course list, as well as an increased number of convenors available to share their specific industry knowledge and expertise with students.
The updated groupings include analysis and investigation; legal and contractual; project management; ethics; marketing management; quality and risk; financial management; personal development; regulations; information technology; procurement; tech and innovation; leadership; professional registration; and technical, civil, structural and electrical.”
The SCE also aims to provide the opportunity for consulting engineers, their staff, their clients (government and private sector) and other interested parties in the infrastructure and built environment to enhance their engineering, professional management and entrepreneurial skills.