Smart buildings need engineers who understand people as well as data, says BCIA as skills shortage bites
Young engineers at Smart Buildings Show 2026 have set out the skills tomorrow’s buildings will need, as the Building Controls Industry Association (BCIA) calls on industry to invest in the next generation amid a growing recruitment shortage.
The UK construction industry will need an average of 41,200 extra workers a year between 2026 and 2030, according to the Construction Industry Training Board’s (CITB) latest Construction Workforce Outlook, with retrofit work among the pressures on demand. For the building controls sector, the challenge is not only finding enough people, but making sure they have the right skills for increasingly connected, data-driven buildings.
The BCIA says the sector must widen its idea of what a BEMS engineer looks like if it is to close that gap. That was the message from the BCIA Young Engineers Network (YEN) at Smart Buildings Show earlier this month, where a panel of engineers and industry leaders debated the skills the sector will need by 2040.
Graeme Rees, Interim President of BCIA and Global EcoXpert Leader - Building Automation & Security, Schneider Electric said: “Demand for smarter, more efficient buildings is only going one way, and the industry doesn’t yet have the people to deliver them. We need more young people coming in, and we need to give them the right mix of skills when they do.
“That mix isn’t just technical. Engineers aren’t being replaced by AI or analytics. Clients want someone who can take something complex, make sense of the data and fix the problem in front of them. That takes curiosity, judgement and good communication as much as technical knowledge.”
Josh Steel, Chair of BCIA’s Young Engineers Network said “The discussion showed that the next generation understands what the industry needs. Now it’s about making sure we give them the chance to make a difference.”
The YEN panel was chaired by Josh Steel, Chair of the YEN, with Jen Johnson, MD of learnd UK; John Clarke, Managing Director of One Sight Solutions; Stan Thomas, UK Sales Manager (South) at Sontay and Vice Chair of the YEN; and Graeme Rees, Interim President of the BCIA.
Four themes ran through the discussion:
People skills still matter. Technology only works when someone understands the customer’s problem, solves it and can communicate well with the customer.
Data is only useful if you can act on it. Engineers need to know what the numbers mean and how to turn them into action.
Cybersecurity is everyone’s job. As buildings become more connected, keeping systems safe becomes part of every engineer’s role.
No one needs to know everything. Teams with different specialisms get the best results for clients.
Josh added: “The skills gap and the performance gap are the same conversation. You can install the best controls in the world, but you need engineers who can read the data and act on it. Young engineers understand that, and the industry is backing them with proper training, clear routes in and a grounding in how buildings actually work, not just the software that runs them.”