Automation Strategies: Looking to the future of process control staffing
Technology is changing, and fast. Labor availability and skillset requirements are changing, as well. Process control personnel makeup and skillsets have evolved over decades of iterations. The process industries are challenged to continue to operate efficiently in an increasingly competitive environment.
Technology is changing, and fast. Labor availability and skillset requirements are changing, as well. Process control personnel makeup and skillsets have evolved over decades of iterations. The process industries are challenged to continue to operate efficiently in an increasingly competitive environment.
At the 2017 ARC Industry Forum in Orlando, we hosted a roundtable discussion that enabled process industry end users to exchange ideas on the changing responsibilities and skillsets in the operational technology space, and discuss strategies to address these challenges.
Process control challenges
Finding talent is a struggle. Most process companies prefer chemical engineers as process control staff. However, universities do not appear to emphasize process control training. People with process knowledge are rare, and chemical engineers with specific process knowledge and proper skillsets are even harder to find.
End users also noted that process control encompasses many divergent specialties, making it more difficult to find the right people. Two overall skillsets—knowledge of operational technology (OT) and information technology (IT)—increase the search’s complexity. This scarcity also makes it difficult to retain good process control resources.
It was also noted that management does not seem to recognize that an organization needs this “digital” engineer. Since the skillsets needed lead to operational silos (even within the process control department), users are challenged to justify the seemingly extra staff needed to address these areas. Attendees also voiced their struggles with finding the best way to leverage people efficiently, and acknowledged the need to identify transferable skillsets.
Another issue expressed was how to deal with cyber security, particularly since almost all available cyber security professionals are already employed. Engineers are pulled in all directions. The group posed the question: “What skills are really needed?”
Engaging human resources: A battle for talent
This topic is intriguing in the sense that HR personnel have little personal experience with the needs of process control. Several session attendees have engaged HR through preliminary reporting, using consequences like abnormal situation avoidance to justify the resources. Some have used contractors to augment staff, rather than hiring people directly.
A few realities were revealed, as well. New hires would prefer to work at Amazon, Alphabet, Uber, etc., instead of often-dirty, distant and/or dangerous industrial facilities. Some mentioned that the trailing off of hiring in the 1980s and 1990s created an experience gap in the market. Finding experienced hires often creates a culture clash between old and new companies.
Many have concluded that they have no long-range expectations for retention. One company uses a 5-yr rotation for new engineers, and suggested easing the acceptance of an assignment at a less desirable site with a fixed time frame if it does not work out. A second company recruited engineers directly to small towns for a term of 2 yr–3 yr before the possibility of going to corporate. A third company had an 18-mos minimum assignment, but provided the option to request a move. A fourth company built a model based on 5-yr–7-yr employee turnover.
Some suggested that companies should get involved in high schools, interacting with students interested in engineering so that they can discuss all options, including tech schools. Attendees emphasized a consistent presence at the schools of interest, and how those involved in the program should communicate the challenges and what excites them about the work.
If companies hire locally, then employees may stay with the company longer-term, as their mobility may be constrained. Individuals that relocated for college are potentially more mobile than those with strong ties to “home.”
There was some discussion about the competence of “GED” students. An example is during the Gulf War surge, the US military changed the requirement from a high school diploma to a general educational development degree (GED). This was not viewed as a success, and the requirement was changed back. The roundtable participants seemed to agree that the best resource for process control engineering roles are chemical engineering graduates. However, most agreed that the key is strong critical thinking skills. One quote offered was, “Hire for character; train for competency.” The challenge is how to measure character.
It seems that everyone is going after the same relatively small pool of technically adept people. One end user mentioned that of 100 potential hires, only 27 met the absolute minimum requirements. That spawned a discussion of how a company could make itself more attractive. The other, perhaps more difficult, and certainly longer-term approach is to increase the number of candidates that meet minimum requirements.
As available automation talent continues to dwindle, it is incumbent on the industry as a whole to create solutions that either reduce the reliance on this talent, or invest in talent development. HP
The Author
Gupta, M. S. - ARC Advisory Group, Burlington, Massachusetts
Mark Sen Gupta is a Senior Consultant at ARC, leading the coverage of process automation and automation supplier services. He also covers topics in process safety and SCADA. Mr. Gupta has more than 24 yr of expertise in process control, alarm management, SCADA and IT applications. He holds BS and MS degrees in electrical engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology.
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