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“We are producing innovative solutions in response to world-wide Dodson’s solution to this critical shortage of skills is by no means
problems that are bought to us,” he says. revolutionary, and the drum he beats is a familiar one.
For example, there is a great demand for cement to feed the “We know that Science Technology Engineering and Maths (‘STEM’)
need for concrete in countries like China, India and other rapidly skills are not as popular as they used to be,” he says. “In my
developing economies. Torftech have already adapted and opinion, it would help enormously if we as businessmen and
licensed their proprietary TORBED
®
Process Reactor Technology in
engineers could encourage primary school year 5 and 6 children
India to combust a waste product - rice husks - and turn the
(9-11 yrs old) to become interested in Maths and its application to
resulting ash into a cement substitute.
real world problems. Maths is a critical foundation for so many
technical qualifications and careers.”
Paper manufacture uses vast amounts of clay and chalk to create
the smooth finish on the paper we use and waste everyday.
On top of that, he laments that engineering and the sciences are
Torftech has built a commercial demonstration plant in Canada
not further up older students’ career choices. “For example, in
that extracts the clay, chalk minerals and significant amounts of
Germany, Europe’s principal exporter, engineering is regarded with
energy from paper sludge so the minerals can be re-used and not
respect and as a very desirable professional career. In the UK,
sent to landfill.
engineers have historically been poorly rewarded for their very
significant contribution to society. This has taken glamour away from
It makes a massive difference and is absolutely vital to our export
the profession and we need to get this back - we need to educate
earning potential to prosper in just these topical markets where we
engineers who can design and make physical products that create
are capable of leading the world on such a broad front.
wealth for UK PLC.”
“The annual return on investment for plants like that paper sludge
plant in Canada is more than 50% based on the cost savings,”
For all his frustration, or perhaps because of it, Dodson works hard to
Dodson says. “And the call on fossil fuels and increasingly scarce
make things better. He took on the role of IoD Chairman for
minerals is reduced, so it has a very positive effect.”
Berkshire to help promote his case for better training and
education, particularly in technical subjects, to fellow business
He has other ventures afoot that demonstrate the point that
people and to government. He visits schools whenever he can to
markets can cause solutions to be created if allowed to. There is a
promote technology as a career, although he is concerned about
TORBED
®
processing plant under development for upgrading lignite
the way the government is introducing the new diploma system,
- effectively young coal - into an end product that is as, if not more,
designed to help children gain the skills that business needs.
efficient than the real thing. And in mainland Europe, Torftech has
“Berkshire is well regarded enough to get all five of the new
been contracted to design a series of plants to turn biomass such
diplomas, including Engineering, in one go, and they’ll be
as wood or straw into a highly efficient fossil fuel substitute for power
introduced in September,” he says. “It is concerning that hardly any
stations both large and small.
local employers have heard about these new qualifications. We
really must get initiatives like this right if we are to strengthen our
This is British technology out there on the worldwide front line. But for
technical skills base for the future.”
Dodson to maintain his business’s lead, it is important to be able to
recruit suitably qualified engineers in Britain.
Dodson may have the country’s best interests at heart, but he also
has a company to look after, which means chasing opportunity
where he can find it.
”A year ago, we wanted to hire another process engineer to be
based in the UK, someone in their early 30’s, with a bit of
“Like so many others, we have already had to move some of our
experience and all the right qualifications,” he says. “Salary offered
operations out of the UK,” he says. “We have established
was good but unspecified. Over three hundred people applied, all
manufacturing capability in Poland, Canada and recently
but three from outside Europe! Companies like Shell and BP are
Thailand.”
short of such skills and are paying £80k plus per annum to recruit
these engineers - when they can find them! I eventually hired a
His company presently conducts most of its R&D in Canada,
brilliant young engineer from Malaysia.”
because the tax system there rewards innovation more effectively.
”We try to support innovation in the UK but the implementation is so
Skills crisis
bureaucratic and rigid. In Canada, we get 20% tax relief on all R & D
expenditure, although already fully paid for from outside Canada
In that one anecdote, you see the main problem that concerns
and 10% in cash from the Province of Ontario, where we are
people like Chris Dodson so deeply, one that he believes we may
situated in world class facilities. All this with the minimum of
well not be able to fix quickly.
bureaucracy - it isn’t hard to see why we prefer to do our global
R & D business in Canada.”
“I attended the summit in China led by Gordon Brown in January,”
he says. “Gordon Brown stood before an audience of Chinese “We look forward to the day when we can recruit the talent that we
politicians and businessmen, pledging that Britain had the need, return our R & D and all the profits to a low tax ‘business
technical skills to help China’s lightning-fast transformation into a friendly’ UK economy. We have a fantastic future ahead of us with
global economy. Many of us in the audience knew that this would world leading technology in markets that are growing fast.”
prove to be demanding with the technical skills shortages that we
face in the UK.” Source: Chris Dodson, Torftech. www.torftech.com
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