ABERDEEN businessman Stewart Milne has launched a campaign to raise awareness of traditional trades amid concern a lack in skills could hold back the upturn in the construction sector.
Mr Milne, now executive chairman of the Stewart Milne Group, said the construction industry is gearing up to address the long-running housing shortfall after the lean years of recession.
However he fears the upturn could be stymied by a lack of qualified electricians, joiners and bricklayers, noting that the industry lost a huge chunk of its workforce during the recession.
The downturn saw a raft of people retire or switch sectors, with declining order books also leading foreign workers to return to their home countries and fewer apprentices being taken on. With the fortunes of the sector improving, Mr Milne said boosting skills is one of the biggest challenges the construction industry faces.
And he warned the growth ambitions of the Stewart Milne Group, which is aiming to effectively double in size over the next three to four years, will be thwarted unless action is taken.
Mr Milne said: "Without any doubt, it is a huge challenge for the sector as a whole. It's one of the key elements to underpin our growth going forward.
"We need to grow our workforce. We plan to take on an extra 200 people between now and the middle of next year.
"Our aim is to effectively double the size of the company over the next three to four years and our current workforce of around 800 will double in that period as well."
The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) estimates that 182,000 qualified tradespeople are required if the industry is to keep up with anticipated demand in the next five years.
Asked how the campaign will seek to address the skills shortage, Mr Milne said there will be a sector-wide focus through the CITB, which will promote the career "pathway" the industry has to offer.
He also envisages people from his own company spending time talking to pupils in schools and briefing careers advisors on what the industry and the Stewart Milne Group has to offer.
Mr Milne, who served his time as an electrician, said: "We've got to get the message out there that taking up a trade is a great pathway. It will provide a lot of career opportunities down the line."
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