Adults 'misunderstand impact of engineering'

Date: 25/01/2012 13:57:50

Engineering workers that rely on mobile data software are undervalued, according to a recent survey.

The study, carried out by Bosch, found that the impact of engineering on the UK's economy is misunderstood and common misconceptions about the sector still exist, reports the Engineer.

Less than half (45 per cent) of the 1,347 people canvassed believed that the industry was key to economic success in the country, with 92 per cent believing that engineers have a mostly technical role within business, with less than two per cent thinking that they are involved in running organisations.

It is perhaps because of this that very few of those surveyed, particularly young people and women, said they would consider engineering as a career.

Peter Fouquet, president of Bosch UK, told the news provider that engineering is still generally viewed as a "behind-the-scenes" part of business, but, in fact, workers within the industry have been responsible for a huge amount of innovation and growth.

"Our awareness and acknowledgement of engineering all around us is not as strong as it should be," he explained, adding that it was perhaps most concerning that only 11 per cent of all participants and five per cent of 18 to 24-year-olds considered the sector as a potential career.

"The traditional view of engineering, as more of a manual-labour profession, discourages some people from thinking about a career in it, but the modern reality of engineering is very different," he added.

Despite this, Mr Fouquet was confident about the future of the industry, claiming that a significant proportion of the country's economic growth in the coming years is to come from sectors like low-carbon technology, which involves a high level of advanced engineering.

Bosch is a leading global supplier of technology and services, working within the areas of automotive and industry technology, consumer goods and building technology.