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THE INSTITUTION OF ENGINEERS, MALAYSIA

PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS 2010

Engineering Mobility,
Globalisation and Green Technology
for a
Sustainable Future

Y.Bhg. Ir. Professor Dato’ Dr. Chuah Hean Teik, FIEM, PEng
IEM PRESIDENT
Session 2010/2011
THE INSTITUTION OF ENGINEERS, MALAYSIA
51ST PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS

Engineering Mobility, Globalisation and Green Technology for


a Sustainable Future

Y.Bhg. Ir. Professor Dato’ Dr. Chuah Hean Teik, FIEM PEng
Session 2010/2011

Past Presidents, Deputy President, Vice Presidents, Members of Council and my fellow
engineers.

It seems like only yesterday that I spoke with you in this auditorium, at IEM’s 50th
Annual General Meeting and Golden Anniversary Celebration last year. May I take this
opportunity to record my gratitude to the IEM Council for re-electing me to the office of
the President of the IEM for the 2010-2011 Session. I am humbled by the trust placed
upon me and shall strive to carry out this important responsibility with utmost care,
integrity and diligence.

I am indeed grateful to the Executive Committee, Council and IEM Members for the
support given to me over the past twelve months. I cannot express in words what a
pleasure it has been to serve the IEM this past year. During the previous tenure I have had
an opportunity to meet with IEM members both at headquarters and at the respective
branches. Whether we were renewing old friendships or making new acquaintances, I
was overwhelmed with your unceasing support and generosity. For this, I heartily thank
each and every one of you.

During the past session, I have also represented the Institution before cabinet ministers,
senior government officials and foreign engineering fraternity members. The IEM is a
tremendously significant organisation in its own right, and serving as its President has
been a gratifying — and humbling — experience.
I was indeed privileged to be elected President on the golden anniversary of our beloved
Institution’s inception. As IEM members, we should be proud of the various
achievements in the profession since the formation of IEM in 1959. As engineers we
have been playing a vital role in the infrastructure and economic development of our
country. Needless to say, we must continue to play a crucial role in the growth of our
country.

However, now that the festivities are over, we must seriously ask ourselves what we have
achieved so far and what we must do to remain relevant fifty years from now and beyond.

Engineering Mobility and Globalisation

In my Presidential Address last year I propounded the principles of the “Three I.C.’s” i.e.
Integrity and Competency; Integration and Communication; and Internationalisation and
Cooperation. These are qualities to the making and requirements of an international
engineer.

Globalisation and Internationalisation through international trade, relations and treaties


have set aside what was once an immobility of labour and capital between or among
nations. More than ever, barriers to international trade have been considerably lowered
through international agreements. This is also true for cross-border engineering works
and services. According to industry analysts, demand for engineering services will grow
substantially across most sectors and geographies through 2010, with only about 10% of
the world’s work being based in the U.S. and other developed countries, versus about
40% back in the 1990’s. So what does this entail for us? As the maxim goes, “With
prosperity comes opportunity”. And for IEM Members, now would be the prefect
opportunity for us to soar and spread our wings.

The Nobel Laureate, Linus Pauling, once suggested that "we need to have the spirit of
science in international affairs, to make the conduct of international affairs the effort to
find the right solution". The advent of globalisation has opened up numerous
opportunities and challenges for the engineering sector, and is crucial for IEM Members

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to be a part of it. Therefore, I am delighted to inform you that Malaysia was admitted as a
full member of the Washington Accord in June 2009. The Washington Accord is an
international accreditation agreement for professional engineering academic degrees,
between the bodies responsible for accreditation in its signatory countries. With Malaysia
being a full member, engineering graduates of accredited programmes in Malaysia are
recognised by the other signatory countries as having met the academic requirements for
entry to the practice of engineering from the date of Malaysia’s admission to full
signatory status. This opens up the opportunity for Malaysian engineers to offer their
services in all the signatory countries in the world such as the United States, Canada,
United Kingdom, Australia, Ireland, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Africa,
Japan, Singapore and South Korea. India is in the process of getting full membership,
while China is expected to apply for membership in the near future. Thus our engineering
graduates are truly internationally recognized.

The IEM is also a signatory to the Engineer Mobility Forum (EMF) and the country
registrar of the ASEAN Engineer Register in Malaysia, thus enabling our engineers to
practice cross-border. With engineering being an international profession, signatories of
this nature are powerful and essential arrangements to mobilise our professional
engineers to practice across the world. In addition, IEM, being the permanent secretariat
of ASEAN Federation of Engineering Organisations (AFEO) and Federation of
Engineering Institutions of Asia and the Pacific (FEIAP), will continue to create
platforms for our Malaysian engineers to compete and contribute towards the economy
and well being of the nation, the region and the world. IEM has established Memoranda
of Understanding with similar organisations in the US, UK, Australia and many others.
In addition, through IEM’s Pro-ETI Bureau under the Standing Committee on Corporate
Affairs, IEM is creating various business forums and platforms for members to network,
exchange ideas explore business opportunities and promote their expertise overseas.

But you may ask - why is there such a need and who would want to do so? The simple
reason for this is mobility. Mobility provides opportunities for our engineers to share
knowledge and expertise with their international counterparts. Many Malaysian
companies have already established their presence in the global construction industry

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with commendable achievements. The number of overseas projects awarded to Malaysian
contractors has increased by 43% to 40 in 2008 valued at RM8.5 billion, from just 28
projects valued at RM2.9 billion in 2004. In 2008, the Middle East region, being the
major end-users of the projects undertaken by Malaysian contractors, accounted for
nearly RM6 billion or 68% of the total value of the projects comprising various sectors
including energy and transportation. Indeed, the achievement signifies that our local
engineers and contractors do have competitive advantage to reap the vast opportunities in
the global market.

Under Malaysia’s 3rd Industrial Master Plan or the IMP3 (2006-2020), the Government
has called upon non-governmental services and logistics sectors to be the collective
engine of growth. The IMP3 places great importance on the private sector’s contributions
and involvement. IMP3 has set out many initiatives, among which are the creation of the
Malaysian Services Development Council and the Malaysian Logistics Council. The
services liberalisation will be for the following 4 modes of supply of services i.e. Mode 1
– Mobility of supply; Mode 2 – Mobility of consumption; Mode 3 – Mobility of capital –
or mobility of legal-persons (for commercial presence); and Mode 4 – Mobility of natural
persons (professionals, para-professionals, skilled workers and talents).

As the Government has made a success of our export in goods (as encouraged by the
earlier IMP1 and IMP2), MITI has organised both MATRADE and MIDA to embark on
similar success, that is – roadmaps for “Services”. Thus, MIDA is encouraging FDI’s in
services so that Malaysia can tap into the international supply loop. To this end, MIDA
has set up the Services Sector Capacity Development Fund to assist in capacity
development and for services export. This move is indeed very timely in light of the
move towards full liberalisation and opening up of the market of the Services Sector in
2012. I am indeed very happy to inform you that the IEM has been granted a Fund of
RM472,100.00 under the Services Sector Capacity Development Fund (SSCDF) by
MIDA in August 2009. The Fund has been used to conduct a series of Outreach and
Capacity Building Training Programmes to prepare our Members for the advent of the
liberalisation and opening up of the domestic services sector. This will serve as a first
mover advantage for our commitments by 2015 under the ASEAN Framework

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Agreement on Services (AFAS). In addition, IEM was also granted RM1 million by
MIDA in August 2009 to provide the IEM with an integrated ICT digital environment,
which includes upgrading its web portal to accommodate on-line CPD and accreditation
processing, as well as incorporating a knowledge repository for members’ use. Two task
force committees have been set up at IEM to implement these two activities.

I strongly encourage IEM Members and fellow engineers as well as engineering service
professionals to avail themselves to the capacity building training programmes now being
organised by the IEM Training Centre, in accordance to the SSCDF Agenda. In the wake
of this development, I would like to call upon all Members to be ready for the advent of
globalisation and liberalisation of engineering services by working together as a team by
pooling our resources and core competencies. We must enhance our efforts to work with
our partners in the ASEAN, the Asia-Pacific region and beyond to export our engineering
services regionally and globally.

Green Technology & The Environment

As we move ahead in rapid development in the 21st century and embrace modernisation,
we enjoy social opportunities, flexibility in the working world and personal enrichment.
But these achievements come at a cost of long term negative implications. The
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) concluded that most of the observed
temperature increase since the middle of the 20th century is caused by increasing
concentrations of greenhouse gases resulting from human activity such as fossil fuel
burning and deforestation. An increase in global temperature will cause sea levels to rise
and will change the amount and pattern of precipitation. Signs of global warming are
already there: we hear of countries facing extreme climatic changes such as storms and
hurricanes resulting in devastation of property and the loss of lives. Even back home, we
have experienced more rain fall in the past 4-5 years, causing more landslides and flash
floods.

Uncontrolled, rapid growth can lead to devastating social and environmental issues. The
primary task of developing countries including Malaysia is to develop the economy and

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eradicate poverty. Without economic growth, there would be no material basis for a
better life or better environment for the people. However, economic growth must not be
achieved at the cost of environment or resources. It is estimated that there will be two
billion more people on the planet in about thirty years’ time. At present, 40% of the
world’s population is short of fresh water; on current trends this will rise to 50% by 2030,
in west Asia it will be 90%. Alarmingly, the World Bank estimated that nearly one fifth
of preventable disease in the developing world is caused by environmental factors, such
as urban air pollution and unclean water. More worryingly, one-third of the world’s fish
stocks and one-quarter of the world’s mammals are threatened with extinction. In the
absence of proper resource and environmental protection, there could be no sustainable
economic development. Thus, there must be harmony between economic development,
utilisation of resource and environmental protection. All these will require us to change
the way we do things in the future.

It is a known fact that, whatever we do, there is an impact on the environment. Take for
example the construction of a road or highway. It used to be seemingly only the job of a
civil engineer. Nowadays it requires the involvement of a geotechnical engineer as well
on the hill-slope stability and the expertise of a drainage engineer on the prevention of
soil erosions during and after construction as well as subsequent siltation in the rivers. As
engineers, we cannot run away from using technology as a tool for development. The
focus should therefore be for us to enhance our capacity for sustainable development,
further increase our input in science and technology, intensify our efforts in the
development of environmental friendly infrastructure, apply clean manufacturing
technology, develop the industry of environmental protection and improve the resource
and environmental management systems.

One of the ways to do this is in the construction of residential and office buildings. While
buildings play a fundamental role in providing the recreational and work structures where
people work, play and live in, it is also impossible to ignore the negative effects they can
have, especially when a sustained amount of massive energy is needed to power them. To
address this issue, Malaysia has embarked on the National Energy Efficiency Programme
under the Ministry of Energy, Green Technology and Water. Thus, many Low Energy

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Office (LEO) buildings and Zero Energy Office (ZEO) buildings are commissioned. One
prime example of an LEO is the Ministry’s Administrative Building in Putrajaya. The
19,237m2 LEO building is built for energy efficiency and low environmental impact. The
LEO building demonstrates integration of the excellent energy efficiency measures,
optimised towards achieving the overall best cost/effective solution whereby energy
saving is more than 50% compared to traditional new office buildings in Malaysia. The
LEO building was built at extra construction cost of less than 10%, giving a payback
period of the extra investment of less than 10 years. Similarly, the Pusat Tenaga
Malaysia’s (PTM) new Zero Energy Office (ZEO) is built to capitalise on energy
efficient measures implemented through various facets of the overall design. Fashioned
after the Ministry of Energy, Green Technology and Water LEO building, the PTM’s
ZEO building has placed Malaysia on the regional map as the first completely self-
sustainable building in Southeast Asia. The ZEO building exemplifies the use of energy
efficiency, with solar building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) System that sets a new
standard for sustainable building in the ASEAN region.

The Government through the Ministry of Energy, Green Technology and Water is
creating a conducive environment for Renewable Energy (RE) development by offering
subsidies and tax exemptions, creating a renewable energy pricing system for a planned
and organised RE development, determining a fair interconnection procedure and a
transparent metering policy to expand RE integration as the fifth fuel source. It has also
embarked on a renewable energy implementation policy, incorporating legal, national
development/economic, funding and financing, and incentives/taxation aspects, as well as
studying the legal framework for renewable energy development. Therefore, it is
pertinent for our members to get involved in the forums initiated by the Government
when called upon for negotiations and exchange of ideas, and strengthening capacity
building. We should improve the mechanisms and the legal system through institutional
reforms so as to facilitate the effective implementation of sustainable development
strategies.

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Sustainable Future

Being in the academic line and as the President of a professional learned society it is
always of utmost concern for me to look into the future well-being of our fellow
engineers, especially in the training of younger professionals. The concept of
sustainability and the ways and means to achieve it will have to be introduced in
university syllabus. Future engineers will need to understand the equal importance of
society, economy and the environment – i.e. the three underlying principles of sustainable
development.

As Albert Einstein once observed, "the significant problems we face cannot be solved at
the same level of thinking we were at when we created them." Therefore, in the next
twenty to forty years, society must adopt new strategies that allow the needs of an
expanding population to be met in an environmentally sustainable and equitable manner.
Future engineers and scientists must collaborate with all industries to design technology
and economic activities that sustain rather than degrade the natural environment. We
must dramatically reduce the resource and energy throughput of our economy and
minimise our ecological footprint to maintain the life support system that will make a
sustainable future possible.

As engineers, planners, scientists, academics and technical professionals, we have


opportunities — everyday — to re-design the blueprint for how systems are created and
operated. By changing the way we think about planning, design, and construction, we can
literally change the environmental, social, and economic “footprints” we leave on our
world. The goal of sustainable development is to enable all people throughout the world
to satisfy their basic needs and enjoy a better quality of life, without compromising the
quality of life of future generations.

The practice of engineering in future can no longer be a single discipline. A multi- and
inter-disciplinary approach is much to be required. From the choice of materials to the
very technique of construction methods, Green Philosophy is very much the norm from
now on. The engineers of the future must be much more interdisciplinary – therefore the

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lines between the conventional engineering disciplines must be much more flexible. We
must be forward looking in allowing engineering degree programmes in new emerging
engineering fields such as Green Technology, Nano Technology, Internet Engineering,
Information Engineering, etc. Engineers will also have to join forces with physicists,
biologists, chemists, economists, planners, political scientists, and community leaders in
unprecedented ways to lead society on a sustainable path.

As I have reiterated time again, engineers must play a much bigger role in the public
policy process. With this in mind, the IEM called on the Government of Malaysia to
“adopt Sustainable Economic Development Model” for the country. This call was made
at the end of an Open Forum at the IEM’s Green Workshop and Exhibition entitled
“Engineering A Sustainable Economic Development Model For Malaysia” which was
held in November 2009. Through the Kuala Lumpur Green Declaration, IEM and the
participants of the Workshop called on Malaysia as a nation to make a conscious decision
to adopt a Sustainable Economic Development Model for its transition into the
Ecological Age. This is because the current model of economic development practiced in
Malaysia poses significant challenges when it comes to achieving a more sustainable
future. The Government was called upon to adopt the following measures:

o To implement renewable energy tariffs as an incentive to encourage the adoption


of renewable energy through government legislation

o To create a regulatory authority to oversee an approach to Integrate National


Physical Plan together with National Water Resource Management Plan and
energy-efficient public transport systems

o To review and analyse the ecological footprints of programmes targeted for


implementation in the National Plan

o To empower the engineers and to encourage implementation of Green Building


Initiatives in all residential and commercial buildings (using nett zero-energy
building concept)

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The Government was also called upon to formulate policies, plans and approaches in
tandem with engineering practitioners, architects, academics, building & construction
industry players and other stakeholders in adapting planning, design, production and
work procedures to address the issues of resource efficiency and pollution prevention.

In this respect, the IEM has made headway into the development of renewable energy.
The IEM Sarawak Branch has been given the blessing by the Sarawak State Government
to build a Centre of Engineering Excellence as part of the human capacity building
inititative for the Sarawak Corridor for Renewable Energy (SCORE) Project. The IEM
Sarawak Branch’s Centre of Engineering Excellence will be dedicated to the
development of post-graduate engineering study and cutting-edge research and
development programmes in renewal energy and natural resources. We hope this Centre
will work closely with outstanding universities and organisations, both local and abroad,
to provide solutions to real world engineering challenges particularly in addressing the
issues of renewable energy, energy conservation, green energy, water resources and
sustainability.

Making IEM Voices Heard

As you know, one of the roles of IEM has always been to channel engineering and
technical advice and services where needed, as well as to take an active part in the field
of engineering at national and international levels. I am happy to inform you that
currently IEM has been recognised by several state governments and their agencies by
IEM members being appointed into Technical Committees at state and national levels,
and into local councils. This has provided the major impetus in IEM’s aspiration towards
becoming the largest and most influential engineering professional body in terms of
policymaking in Malaysia. This is particularly critical and timely at this moment when
Malaysia is shaping its new 1Malaysia Economic Model.

With this objective in mind, IEM presented various Position Papers to the Federal
Government with regards to engineering matters. We have also formed special interest
groups in formulating policies related to the engineering such as a policies and
procedures for mitigating the risk of landslides on hill-site development, building

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collapse, prevention of flash flood, erosion and siltation, prevention of traffic congestion
and safety against fire in buildings. During the past tenure, IEM has met the Minister of
Energy, Water and Green Technology to present the Ministry with the Position Paper on
Energy Efficiency. I am happy to inform that the Minister had agreed that IEM would be
invited to nominate suitable representatives for the energy efficiency initiatives to the
Economic Planning Unit (EPU), the Ministry of Finance (MOF), the Ministry of Housing
and Local Government (KPKT), Suruhanjaya Tenaga (ST), and MITI/MIDA.

In addition, IEM’s recommendations for the Government to institute a policy of


“Leadership by Example/Kepimpinan Melalui Teladan” - by declaring that the
Government will only buy energy-efficiency products and appliances, and instituting
Energy Management in government facilities to achieve 10% energy savings (as declared
by the Government in 2005) - had been met very positively. I am happy to inform that the
Minister had categorically agreed that the two recommendations could be implemented
with little problems as they were practical and administrative thus requiring no legislative
or institutional framework changes.

During the previous tenure, the Position Paper for Mitigating the Risk of Landslide on
Hill-Site Development was revised in response to more recent landslide incidents
particularly following periods of prolonged rainfall including the landslide along Federal
Route 1 at Templer Hill between Selayang and Rawang; and at Taman Jasa Utama in
Batu Caves on in November 2009, which resulted in partial closure of the roads. In
addition, the Position Paper recommended a number of specific procedures to be
instituted for developments on sites with slopes. IEM took the initiative to convey its
stand and recommendations to the Minister of Housing and Local Government. The
Position Paper recommended that a new federal agency for control of development on
slopes be formed to act in an advisory capacity to Local Authorities which are entrusted
with the certification of the safety for slopes. IEM further recommended that the
formation of this dedicated federal agency be expedited.

I would like to take this opportunity to seek participation of more IEM Members to
volunteer to prepare position papers in areas of their expertise and also to assist the

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Secretariat, Technical Committees and Executive Committee by providing input for press
statements and press interviews. We are definitely going on the right track in our
endeavour for the IEM to be the definitive reference point for government agencies and
the industry for engineering matters. Engineers should play a more decisive role in
determining the steps to be taken to meet targets in this age of global community where
there is a need for innovative approaches to planning and good engineering practice. Thus
in my opinion, it is crucial for IEM to have a close relationship with the relevant
government ministries and agencies to enable IEM to play an active role in responding to
and dealing with specific issues which affect the profession or public and for which our
stand or opinion is imperative.

Conclusion

Please allow me to refresh your memories with the tenets established in the Kuching
Declaration read out during the International Conference on Engineering and Education
in the 21st Century (ICEE 2009) organised by IEM in March 2009:

The Engineers of today and tomorrow must:

 Possess universal skill for international mobility and alertness towards financial
tsunamis and/or unethical practices of the profession;

 Be creative, innovative, and market ready.

 Have high moral fibre, ethics and integrity.

 Adapt their design and work to address the issues of sustainable lifestyles,
resource efficiency, pollution prevention and waste management.

 Be more “society-conscious” and understand how their work interacts with


society and the environment, locally and globally, in order to identify potential
challenges, risks and impacts.

 Participate actively in the discussion and definition of economic, social and


technological policies, to help redirect society towards sustainable development.

 Apply professional knowledge according to universal values and ethics.

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Let us all strive to abide by these principles to propel us forward. Ahead of us, it will be a
challenging task to ensure that IEM will meet the needs and expectations of an evolving
engineering society. Rest assured that IEM shall continue its commitment in bringing the
engineering profession to greater heights and to extend and strengthen our achievements
and esteem around the globe, in the interests of our members and the profession. In
closing, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of you for the trust you have
placed in me and the incoming Council. I hope for your continued support and
cooperation during my second term as the President of the Institution of Engineers,
Malaysia. Last but not least, I call upon all Members to give your utmost support and
sincere commitment to enable IEM to sustain its long established tradition of excellence
for the betterment of the Institution, our profession and above all, our nation.

Thank You and with my Best Personal Regards,


Yours Truly,

Ir. Professor Dato’ Dr. Chuah Hean Teik


President, IEM

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