Some 630 Surbana Jurong employees will receive advanced digital skills training, in line with the transformation of the construction industry.
Urban and infrastructure consulting company Surbana Jurong and the Building Construction And Timber Industries Employees’ Union (BATU) made this commitment with the formation of a new company training committee (CTC) on 20 August 2019.
The CTC will ensure workers are equipped with advanced industry-specific technology skills in the areas of design, construction and site inspection.
The workers will apply their new skills in either current or near-term projects, according to Surbana Jurong.
The company also said that training places will be set aside for new employees, to allow them to be updated about the latest industry technologies.
Meanwhile, training on new digital tools will be stepped up, to enable a more productive and safer workplace.
Surbana Jurong will work with BATU, NTUC’s e2i (Employment and Employability Institute) and NTUC LearningHub to train the 630 workers.
Some of the initiatives include developing mentorship programmes, using digital tools and drones, and advanced computational training.
The training content and delivery will be continually fine-tuned according to the needs and competency levels of the employees.
The CTC formed with BATU is part of Surbana Jurong’s next phase of digitalisation efforts, which started in 2016 with the setting up of a digital management office to accelerate digital technology adoption and improve productivity.
"Surbana Jurong’s core competencies are in helping our clients tackle increasingly complex challenges in urban and infrastructure developments. We, therefore, need to employ the latest and most advanced digital technologies to better serve them. Since early on, we have decided on a people-centric approach in our adoption of digital technologies by placing emphasis on inculcating in our workforce, a culture of innovation.
“We are happy that BATU has invited us to form this company training committee, which will contribute significantly towards supporting our efforts to prepare our Singapore workforce for a transition to the digital world,” said Surbana Jurong Group CEO Wong Heang Fine.
BATU will help to mobilise workers on the ground to facilitate two-way feedback from employees during and after training.
The union will also work with the company’s management to ensure training is put to good use in current or upcoming projects.
BATU Executive Secretary Zainal Sapari said: “We are pleased to partner Surbana Jurong to reap the benefits of higher productivity and efficiencies through digitalisation. We at BATU are committed to walking this journey with our workers.
“Firstly, by helping them visualise the potential of such transformation sweeping across the construction sector. Secondly, by equipping them with adaptive skills, especially in change management that not only complements their mastery of new technologies but also empowers them to become agents of change within the company. And thirdly, to ultimately enable them to move up the value chain and seize better wages, welfare and work prospects.”
