Engineering Asset Management Skills Gap: Research Project Assessment 1

This report investigates the skills gap in engineering asset management, focusing on the discrepancy between skills taught in universities in the USA and those required by the industry. The research problem highlights a significant shortage of competent engineers due to the skills gap. The report examines the two types of engineering asset management strategies: lifecycle management and holistic management. The importance of the research lies in understanding the specific skill gaps and ensuring that education policy makers provide better approaches to bridge the gap. The research aims to understand the strengths and weaknesses of tertiary institutions in the USA delivering engineering infrastructure and asset management programs. The report also includes a literature review, course practice reviews, and references, providing a comprehensive analysis of the issue. The study uses the University of Pennsylvania as a case study. The research also explores the accreditation organizations, such as the American Society for Quality and the Society of Maintenance and Reliability Professionals, which focus on practical skill acquisition in asset management. The report concludes by highlighting the complexity of company requirements and the need for better learning platforms to address the increasing skills gap between academia and industry practice.

ATTACH THE SCU COVER-SHEET THAT YOU ARE REQUIRED
TO ATTACH TO ALL ASSIGNMNETS

UNDERSTANDING THE GAP BETWEEN THE ENGINEERING
ASSETMANAGEMENT SKILLS TAUGHT IN UNIVERSITIES AND
THOSE REQUIRED BY INDUSTRY IN UNITED STATES OF
AMERICA

Introduction
According to a study on the American skill gap, it was established that there
are 7 million vacant positions in the job sector because of the unavailability of the
required graduate skills (Craig 2019). This gives a good impression, especially in
the middle and high skill professions, such as engineering (Eckert 2017). As it has
been noted, the engineering skill gap between education and the practical environment
is on an increase, with the shortage of competent engineers is expected to be at about 1
million by the end of the year 2024 (Lee 2019). In such a sense, this essay looks at
understanding the difference between engineering asset management skills in the
university and the actual job environment in the USA
Research Problem
Engineering asset management has been identified as the analysis of the
engineering assets lifecycle as an integral link in the strategy of an organisation. It has
been specified as a process which is vital in ensuring business success by providing a
vital aspect in the strategic management. In such a sense, it provides a vital connection
between the planning, control and management of all the company’s asset related
activities.
In this context, it has been noted that there are two types of engineering asset
management strategies: lifecycle management and holistic management. With that into
consideration, it has been noted that the lifecycle asset management standard is vital
when it comes to existing organisations (El-Akruti, Dwight, & Zhang 2018). That being
the case, the standard aims at ensuring that the company has a proper utilization strategy
for the available assets. It lies on the utilization stage of the company. As per the system
engineering requirements, it has also been noted that the asset management systems

must be capable of ensuring proper acquisition of utilization assets in line with the
current and future project requirements. On the other hand, the holistic asset
management skills focus on the control of the asset related activities that play a vital
role in the organisational success. However, the two systems are not easily separable,
primarily due to various overlapping principles. In such a sense, it has been noted that
the frameworks used in asset management primarily focus on the life stages of the
project as well as the interfaces between the different stages of the lifecycle (Rogers,
Winship, & Sun 2016). Nevertheless, the primary focus of many organisations is the
management maintenance tools such as Total Productivity Maintenance (TPM) and
Business Cantered management (BCM). As per research however, these models need to
be in line with various characteristics which include the GFMAM, asset lifecycle and
reinforcement alignment.
In the case of a country like USA, it has been established that there are
various accreditation organisations that focus on the reliability and the practical skill
acquisition in asset management). The certified reliability engineering course, as has
been established, is developed by the American society for quality to determine the
practicability of the skills acquired. The Society of Maintenance and Reliability
professional (Wu, Beng, Heričko, & Beranič 2017), furthermore, places greater
emphasis on the asset management skills that a student acquires. Nevertheless, the
career is specified to various engineering backgrounds, such as IT. The 6 model
learning, as such aims at empowering the student.
Nevertheless, there is a major skill shortage in asset management. In this case, it
has been noted that there are 39 subjects that are at the core of the practice (El-Akruti,
Dwight, & Zhang 2018). However, the ability to find a graduate competent in all the
subjects is still missing (Lee 2019)

That being the case, it can be seen that the complexity of the company
requirements necessitates the need for a better learning platform(Wan & Clegg 2010. It
has been emphasized by the increasing skill gap between the education sector and the
field practice. The frameworks available, as requirements for employment, as such,
necessitate the need for proper understanding the skill gap between the job and the
American University.
Importance of the Research
The main aim of the research is to:
 Understand the specific skill gap between the university and the job
practice.
 Ensure that education policy makers provide better approached to
bridging the skill gap between the university and the job practice.
Research aim
To develop an understanding of the areas of strength and weaknesses in United States of
America’s tertiary institutions delivering engineering infrastructure and asset
management programs
Research Question
Having regard to the heightening need for more effective asset management and the
concerns raised by Lee (2019) as to the necessary skills and capabilities not being fully
taught this research will seek evidence to assist us to answer the following questions:
RQ1: What are the current programs and units that are been taught at USA
tertiary institutions in the engineering infrastructure and asset management space

RQ2: Are USA tertiary institutions filling the identified skills, capabilities and
competencies gaps that the academics and industry Frameworks have identified?
Keywords
 Lifecycle analysis
 Holistic asset management
 GFAFM
Literature review
The asset management framework is vital for the GFMAM countries. In this it has
been noted that the different countries are to adhere to these guidelines. The
conceptual models and, the qualifications, the training course and even the training
courses have been provided to the member countries.
In such a sense, one of the most important journals on the difference between the
job skill and the education is provided by El-Akruti, Dwight, & Zhang (2018). This
is an important journal that states the gap between the job environent and the
Actual skill requirements. Through its exploration, it will be vital in understandin
trhe shortage of skils relative ton the job environent.
Practice review of Courses
The University of Pennsylvanian forms the core of research. It has been identified as the
university with the highest number of alumni employed in asset management. The
course in focus, in such regards, is the integrated physical asset management as it
requires more field skills.
That being the case, it has been noted that Universities lack the appropriate frameworks
fill in the required skills. It is important to establish what factors cause this shortage.

The use of a statistical analysis, as such, will indicate the difference in skill
requirements and education experience. Regression models, as such, will be vital.
References

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Neurocognitive Basis, Relationships to Other Cognitive Domains, and Uniquely
Human Aspects. Front. Psychol .
Craig, R. (2019). America’s Skills Gap: Why It’s Real, And Why It Matters.
Eckert, J. (2017). The Y-Shaped Designer--Connective Competences as Key to
Collaboration across Disciplines. Journal of Education and Learning , 6 (4),
137-144.
El-Akruti, K., Dwight, R., & Zhang, T. (2018). Exploring Approaches for Teaching and
Learning Engineering Asset Management Courses. 2018 IEEE International
Conference on Teaching, Assessment, and Learning for Engineering (TALE).
Lee, T. (2019). How to Close the Tech Skills Gap [online]. 15th November. Available
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skills-gap/
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