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Great time to be a rail engineer

Phillip Hodgson, rail and property department manager at Matchtech, discusses the opportunities available for rail engineers in CP5.

There was an era in which the rail industry in the UK was commonly known as a great network – specifically during Victorian times. But due to a lack of investment since then, we are now left with an infrastructure which has a plethora of challenges when trying to service a modern society of travellers who are increasingly fed up with sitting in motorway traffic jams or the stresses of their current rail commute.

These challenges come in many forms, including building new routes, increasing capacity on existing routes, the influence of modern technology, a lack of space in major cities, design and construction problem-solving, securing funding for flagship major projects and also funding for maintenance and upgrade programmes. Whilst all of the above are extremely important challenges to tackle in their own right, there is one more challenge that is arguably the most important of them all: securing the right people and the right skills.

Skills shortages

The skills shortages in engineering have been a hot topic of debate for some time and the rail industry is no different. In fact with new high profile projects such as HS2 and Crossrail, as well as confirmation of nearly £40bn being spent in CP5, the skills challenge is now more critical than ever. So what exactly does this mean for the rail sector and for those working within it? It means that 2014 is a great time to be a rail engineer.

The dawn of CP5 paves the way for exciting and interesting projects to be a part of and we’ve recently seen the go-ahead given for a number of huge and exciting electrification programmes, such as the Great Western Electrification project, on which a number of Matchtech’s clients are currently working.

Other notable schemes include the West Coast power supply upgrade, Midland Main Line electrification, Anglia traction power upgrade and the Northern Hub, which will greatly change the public transportation horizon in the north – allowing more than 250,000 more trains to carry 44 million more passengers per year.

With these all set to begin in the near future, the opportunities for rail engineers are continually increasing, and so are the salaries. Over the past year, at Matchtech, we have witnessed an average 15% increase in salaries and contractor rates.

Remaining globally competitive

Not only has this resulted in the rail industry attracting skilled candidates from other industries, but with new and exciting engineering projects already in the pipeline, these are set to continue to rise.

This increase has enabled the industry at large to retain its current workforce and defend its position against competing UK industries and has also meant that the rail industry has been able to compete with recent overseas projects such as Doha Metro and Riyadh Metro. The challenge here is to make sure we continue to address our global competitiveness to maintain our position, both nationally and internationally.

We are also seeing those employed in rail experiencing increased job security and opportunities to work on longer-term assignments. With Crossrail underpinning the rail industry as CP4 started to come to an end (and before HS2 even became a talking point) employers lacked the confidence needed to offer long-term contract assignments and to invest in permanent headcount.

However, CP5 brings a host of opportunities which now means for rail engineers, that this is simply not the case.

As companies look to deliver these huge schemes across the country, the investment in training and skills within the current workforce will be significant and provides a great opportunity for current rail engineers, as well as engineers from other related sectors and new entrants, to take advantage of this. With enhanced skills and knowledge, the rail engineer is able to up-skill and ultimately become more appealing to the wider rail community – not just in the UK but also abroad.

Optimism in CP5

It is therefore clear that the news that Network Rail will have £37.9bn to spend on CP5 – whilst some £2bn less than desired – is great for the industry’s continued growth.

The fact that the CP5 budget represents a 33% growth on the £28.5bn invested in CP4 can also only send a positive message to the organisations and individuals who operate within the industry, as well as to those who could potentially be attracted to it.

We also recognise the need to work with our clients to retain the skills the industry is investing in, as front-end investment is only worthwhile if the industry gets the long-term output from these candidates to deliver not just CP5, but many control periods to come.

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