We comprehend the magnitude of the unifying force that can be exerted by a reputable professional body like us on the international engineering community. Seizing on this critical asset of ours amidst the global nexus, we have been organising visits to Canada in April and Australia in May in the ardent hope of presenting Hong Kong in the best of lights and uniting the divergently disposed stakeholders in the three loci.
With Immediate Past President Ir Aaron Bok at the helm and two Protégés of his supplying the necessary youthful energy, the Canada visit from 8 to 11 April encompassed Career Talks at Universities of Toronto and British Columbia, convivial Cocktail Receptions in Toronto and Vancouver, and visits either professional or technical—to British Columbia Institute of Technology and Waterfront Toronto for instance. The delegates’ invigorating dialogues with their foreign counterparts in all these programmes not only reinforced mutual understanding but also heightened their appreciation of Hong Kong’s unique prospects and opportunities.
President Ir Dr Barry Lee and Vice President Ir Alice Chow will be taking over the baton, so to speak, from Ir Bok with their equally consequential Australian visit from 26 to 29 May. They will be engaged in broad-based exchanges on professional approaches with Arup and on cross-institutional stratagems with Engineers Australia (EA) in both its Canberra and Sydney offices. The Cocktail Reception at Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (Syndey) and Discission Sessions at Western Sydney University and the University of New South Wales, while cultivating new friendships and renewing old ones, will necessarily be dictated in their slants and focuses by Hong Kong’s need to recruit new talents and proclaim itself a fit locale for enterprising professionals to base their future careers in.
It was a historic moment for the Institution when there took place, in our Headquarters on 13 April, a dissemination seminar on 粵港澳大灣區港澳工程專業人才職稱評審 led by 劉桂雄教授 (港澳大灣區港澳工程專業人才高級職稱評審委員會辦公 室主任) and attended by President, Senior Vice President Ir Eric Ma, Development Bureau’s Deputy Secretary (Works) Ir Tony Ho, and over 90 members. Five other Mainland experts were also present and participated in the question-andanswer session.
It might have been a slight exaggeration to refer to the moment as “historic” but, being there myself, I can truthfully report the palpable excitement evinced by everyone with the developments announced in the seminar. For it is a settled fact that HKIE members in Civil, Geotechnical, Electrical, and Control, Automation & Instrumentation Disciplines can now apply for five Mainland professional titles (職稱) corresponding to their Disciplines through 粵港澳大灣區港澳工程專業人才職稱 評價 coordinated by the Guangdong Institution of Engineers. The five classes of these titles are “Technologist”, “Assistant Engineer”, “Engineer”, “Senior Engineer” and “Professor-level Senior Engineer”. By conferring on our members an enhanced accessibility to non-local career opportunities, this epoch-making breakthrough has added substantial value to the HKIE membership. We are immensely grateful to the Development Bureau, Human Resources and Social Security Department of Guangdong Province, and Guangdong Provincial Association for Science and Technology for the smooth implementation of this monumental initiative.
What the Institution does, however, is done with both current and future members in view. We must see to the proper nurturing of every new wave of young scholars introduced by each new year into our universities’ engineering departments, for many of these youngsters will be working in our midst in a few years’ time. The Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University set a good example, on 6 April, of how to make them feel at home. It hosted a Welcoming Tea Reception for their first-year students and invited distinguished lecturers, alumni, and other guests to elucidate the academic program, share their own success stories, and network with these freshers. Our President and I were on the guest list. So was Past President Ir Dr F C Chan, an alumnus. Which just goes to show my point that when we take care of the young, the future—of the engineering world anyway—may well take care of itself.
In the Reception’s sharing session, President provided an outline of the Institution and elaborated on a professional engineer’s career prospects. I, speaking more specifically as an electrical engineer, presented my own view on what innovative and technological advancements may and should obtain, prospectively, in the field of electrical engineering. I supplemented that with a few words, which I hope were motivating, on the need to distinguish oneself in a competitive environment like ours by developing “hard skills” and “soft skills” in parallel.
That same day we held a sharing session on The Two Sessions 2024, which had been convened in Beijing in March, to acquaint members with the essentials of the Sessions and the spirit conveyed in them. In addition to our Vice President Ir Prof Frank Chan (an HKSAR deputy to the National People’s Congress), the chief speakers were Ir Prof the Hon William Wong Kam-fai and Ir the Hon Lee Chun-keung, both Members of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference. Among the topics they delved into were the ideas ladled out during the Sessions about Hong Kong’s future development, President Xi Jinping’s talk on “New quality productive forces”, and the necessity for Hong Kong’s industries to integrate themselves into the nation’s grand developmental scheme.
I remember speaking, in the last issue, of how much I appreciated the support shown to the recipients of the HKIE Awards by the overwhelming attendance of our Annual Dinner, where the Awards were presented. I am pleased to make known another means by which that support can be shown: Up until June, videos with these illustrious awardees sharing their thoughts will be coming out one after another. They are filled to the brim with words of wisdom which anyone, but especially engineers, can derive tremendous benefits from. Watch the videos here.
Another video campaign that we had launched in April is the “3-minute Engineering Discovery”, an inviting series that isolates—through pithy, 3-minute video clips—certain engineering projects in our day-to-day lives that might have escaped the notice of less acute observers, but which nevertheless hold profound significance as engineering breakthroughs. Though accessible even to junior students, curious engineers will assuredly find plenty that is worthwhile in these videos. Check back on our social media platforms for them.
Trainee of the Year Award 2024 - call for nominations
The Trainee of the Year Award was established in 1993 by the HKIE to recognise outstanding achievements of Scheme “A” trainees. Registered Scheme “A” trainees whose nominal training period lies within 1 September 2023 and 31 August 2024 are eligible to apply for the Award. Nominations for the Award are now open until 31 August 2024. For details, please visit the HKIE website at https://hkie.org.hk.
President's Protégé Scheme
The President's Protégé Scheme has been very successful and well-received since its launch in Session 2009/2010. Over the years, the Scheme has not only provided an opportunity for young engineers to gain insights into the work of senior industry figures, but also offered a valuable opportunity for them to build a solid foundation for their future career development. The Scheme for Session 2024/2025 will be open for application in mid-May 2024. Please stay tuned for further details on the HKIE website.
“3-minute Engineering Discovery” Video Campaign
A new video series titled “3-minute Engineering Discovery” is now released on HKIE’s YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLhxqxiy1rYNMTRsHZ6eJTASJ zf4t4k-Vl&si=F5NTiREAPSHDkC9S.
As engineers, our members possess a wealth of knowledge regarding diverse engineering achievements. However, for school students, engineering can often feel intangible and distant. With the aim of bridging this gap, our video series showcases distinctive projects throughout the city. Its purpose is to enable the public, particularly students, to appreciate the marvels of engineering, witness its integration into every facet of development, and inspire and educate future generations about its transformative power.
In recent years, the Institution has been more dedicated than ever to engage students. We have recognised that one challenge in nurturing a strong interest in science and engineering is the misperception of irrelevance. Building upon the success of our previous video campaigns, we have now launched the “3-minute Engineering Discovery” series on our YouTube and Facebook platforms. By highlighting unique projects within the city, this video series aims to foster an appreciation for engineering, demonstrate its pervasive role in development, and inspire and educate the younger generation.
We hope that this series will help cultivate students’ interest in engineering from an early age, preparing them for future studies and careers in the field.