Visit to the China Association of Engineering Consultants (中國建設監理協會)
On 17.5.2013, the Immediate Past Chairman, Sr Vincent HO, and I visited the China Association of Engineering Consultants (CAEC) and met its new President, GUO Yunchong (郭允沖會長), in his office at the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development (MOHURD). Sr Vincent invited President GUO to join the HKIS Annual Dinner, which will be held on 4.11.2013, and President GUO expressed his interest in it, subject to the approval of the MOHURD for temporary leave from the Mainland. We had a very good chat lasting for over an hour and President GUO gained a better understanding of building surveying and the relationship of our profession with CAEC now.
We also had a fruitful meeting with the new Secretary General of CAEC, Mr XIU Lu (修璐秘書長), afterwards. We exchanged our views with Mr XIU on the future mode of cooperation between building surveyors in Hong Kong and engineering consultants in China, particularly on the feasibility of the synergy of a united body comprising project management consultant and engineering consultant firm in development projects which developed by Shenzhen Project Management Engineers Association (深圳市監理工程師協會) and us. We expect a closer working relationship with CAEC, especially to develop Shenzhen’s Qianhai District.
The Deputy Secretary General, Mr WEN Jian (溫健副秘書長), had a long talk with us to illustrate the history and development of supervision engineering in China. After reviewing the material Mr WEN gave us, we considered the mode of cooperation with building surveyor, as development project manager, and engineering consultant for meeting the statutory requirement of construction work in Mainland would be a perfect match for development projects.
商務部援外司到香港調研
4 月29 日，中國國務院商務部援外司俞子榮副司長聯同商務部援外司品質監督處王立貴處長、商務部財務司援外財務處桑建國處長、商務部經濟合作局綜合統計處王興順處長、商務部台港澳司港澳處方宜先生在中聯辦經濟部副部長兼貿易處負責人楊益先生和中聯辦經濟部貿易處投資組王正旺處長陪同下訪問了香港測量師學會，調研中國對外援助成套項目引入香港測量師進行監理的可行性。參與討論的香港測量師學會代表包括會長賴旭輝測量師、副會長何鉅業測量師、建築測量組理事李海達測量師、謝志明測量師、李國華測量師和我。在會議上，我們詳細研究了香港測量師，尤其建築測量師如何在國家對外的援建項目發揮作用，我們提出了發展項目策劃管理暨監理一體化的概念：由香港測量師擔任房地產發展項目的策劃管理聯同內地監理工程師團隊直接監督整個施工過程，並因應國內施工單位在進行援外項目時可施行國內的標準，俞子榮副司長認為有關方案可透過幾個就試點項目來落實具體的執行方法。
商務部已於5 月16 日正式發函邀請合適的建築測量行參與試點項目，有關內容節錄如下：
「為儘快啟動引入香港顧問公司承擔援外工程監理的工作，商務都對外援助司決定，近期擬推出3 個援外工程項目，直接議標交由香港顧問公司承擔施工監理任務。
為此，請貴會協助聯繫列入香港特區政府建築署“屋宇測量類”顧問公司名單的企業，徵詢其參與援外工程監理的意願，於5 月31 日前將有意參與援外業務的3-5 家顧問公司名單、連絡人、聯繫方式告我處。擬於6 月中、上旬組織上述顧問公司赴京商談具體合作專案及合作方式。」建築測量組已直接向有關顧問公司提出並統籌訪京事宜
Alternate Routes to Membership
On 22.5.2013, I attended the Discussion Forum on Alternate Routes to Membership. There are some observations that I would like to put forward:
Application for membership via this alternate route could only be made if the applicant is a corporate member of a commensurate professional body and has already worked in a surveying-related sector for at least three years after obtaining his or her primary professional qualification. To illustrate, let us take Mr. MAN, who has obtained the “XYZ” professional qualification and has become an MHKIS under the proposed alternate route.
Q.1 Will Mr. MAN affect the employment opportunities for our younger surveyors?
Probably NOT because:
- His professional surveying experience will count from the date he attained the MHKIS. The three prerequisite years will not count towards his post-qualification experience the way the government counts during the employment exercise.
- Having been in the surveying practice for at least three years – in addition to the experience he gained after attaining his primary qualification – Mr. MAN should have secured a salary that is higher than the market value of a newly-qualified surveyor. Therefore, if an employer decides adopt the pay scale for employing a newly-qualified surveyor, it would be unable to hire Mr. MAN.
- A prospective employer may want a younger surveyor with two years of surveying experience. Whether or not Mr. MAN has a competitive edge over other candidates would depend on situations. If his “XYZ” qualification is not relevant to the post, Mr. MAN would probably have to accept a lower salary than that in his previous employment. If the qualification is relevant, the employer has to pay for it. Thus, only the employment opportunities for “XYZ” holders would be affected.
- Mr. MAN has already worked in a surveying-related sector. Regardless of his MHKIS qualification, he has work experience in a surveying-related field and, thus, will not affect the employment opportunities for younger surveyors.
Q.2 Will Mr. MAN’s credentials affect the appeal of surveying degree courses?
Probably NOT because:
- Mr. MAN’s eagerness to obtain an MHKIS qualification on top of his “XYZ” will only raise the status of the surveying profession, and hence, the courses.
- As only a very small group of “XYZ” members could attain an MHKIS, it is unlikely that this would attract more high school students to choose degree courses leading to the “XYZ” instead of direct entry via the surveying degree courses.
Q.3 Will there be a flood of applicants for membership, which would lead to lower standards for our members?
Probably NOT because:
- The admission standards for the MHKIS have always been comparable to those for the professional interview for APC candidates, as we require our Divisional Membership Committee to scrutinize applications carefully.
- If Mr. MAN cannot perform well as a surveyor after he obtains the MHKIS, it could be an odd case similar to that of a member who qualifies via the APC route.
- If Mr. MAN and almost all other applicants holding the “XYZ” qualification under this alternate route cannot perform well as surveyors, which is highly unlikely, the commensurate status of the “XYZ” qualification body would have to be reviewed and the General Council could decide to NOT accept its commensurate status from time to time.
Regular Gathering
Owing to some unforeseen incidents, our next gathering will be held in mid-to-late June. We will have a short sharing session with experienced members to grasp your interest.
Please keep in mind the e-broadcast of the event. I trust that the gathering be held in an ideal place for chatting with your new and old friends. Don’t miss it.
Authorized Person (Surveyor) Group
The participation rate by members in this group meeting was not satisfactory. As the meeting forms the basis for future discussions with the government, in particular the Buildings Department, concerning the professional practice under the Buildings Ordinance, it is crucial that we have your input. If you have any idea of how to conduct these meetings, please contact me so that I can accommodate you.
Direct Communication with the BSD Chairman
If you have any idea or comment that you would like to share with me, please e-mail me at: bsd.chairman@gmail.com .
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