With a view to providing users with a convenient, comfortable, healthy and safe living or working environment, buildings nowadays are normally installed with various kinds of electrical and mechanical engineering installations, such as electrical installations, lighting system, air-conditioning system, lifts, water supply and drainage systems, fire alarm and fire extinguishing facilities, security and communication systems, etc. The discipline of plumbing has been providing buildings with engineering services related to sanitary ware and fittings. Engineering services generally include design, installation, repair and maintenance work, which enable users of buildings such as offices, hospitals, schools, factories or living quarters to enjoy a hygienic and clean environment.

Plumbing plays a vital part in the building services as it has affects on everyone’s health directly. Since the plague of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (also known as SARS), people have been paying unprecedented concern to plumbing engineering, especially the drainage system. Hong Kong Water Supplies Department formulated a system for the registration of licensed plumbers requiring that all plumbing works should be carried out by licensed plumbers. The Hong Kong Licensed Plumbers Association, the Hong Kong Plumbing and Sanitary Ware Trade Association and the Hong Kong Plumbing General Union have been set up respectively in the Industry to look into the improvements and training on plumbing and drainage, so as to enhance the quality of professional management and service provided by practitioners. Following the changes in technology and environment (e.g. limited land supply, continuous high-rise development of buildings, etc.), however, plumbing engineering has raised its standards and techniques to meet the changes. Technologically, new designs and knowledge have been introduced to safeguard the living quality and health of people.

The plumbing industry has laid extremely great emphasis on on-the-job training for long, and many organizations have their own comprehensive, versatile and systematic training mechanism. Nevertheless, if there is integrated and systematic staff competency training for all related organizations, it will certainly give greater benefits to the enhancement of the staff competency and the standard of the Industry.

Hong Kong has become a financial centre in Asia, with an undeniable international status. However, Hong Kong’s success today is definitely built on the long-term silent endeavours of a group of enthusiastic and enterprising professionals in various sectors. As a discipline of the electrical and mechanical industry, the plumbing engineering team has actively participated in various infrastructure plans. In respect of the improvement of the hygienic environment of buildings, the practitioners in different positions in the Industry including engineers, technicians, and skilled workers have paid different levels of efforts in building Hong Kong. Following the development of the society, there will be more new and high-rise buildings in Hong Kong and the demand for plumbing equipment will continue to change. The Industry also needs to make continuous improvement accordingly, implying that plumbing industry will bear a greater responsibility.

Since the opening up of Hong Kong as a port, the plumbing industry has been developing. Nowadays, fundamental waterworks have been well-developed and, in respect of some installations, even better than other developed countries. With the outbreak of SARS, however, the Housing Department has issued drainage repair orders requesting house owners or management companies to fix damaged pipes, thus providing many jobs to plumbing practitioners. Plumbing engineering is now facing big challenges. As far as technical training is concerned, training providers have provided plumbing practitioners with basic training facilities and courses. Nevertheless, there is a gap in the training of design and management that needs to be filled. Practitioners should be equipped with the ability to handle overall plumbing works for the improvement of the building systems, so as to safeguard people’s lives and health. The advancement of information enables exchange of different areas and, as new products and systems emerging, plumbing practitioners should enhance relevant skills so as to keep pace with the development of the Industry.

As local economy improves, the demand for plumbing experts increases. Along with the active development of Macau in recent years, the many construction projects have also directly and indirectly increased the demand for plumbing practitioners. Besides, the surge of Mainland’s economy and in the number of individual visitors, China’s entry to World Trade and Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA), etc. have opened up new opportunities for local plumbing personnel. As people’s living standard rises, business opportunities are found everywhere in the Mainland. Heavy industry, light industry, manufacturing industry and various kinds of building constructions, etc have attracted many factories to invest in the Mainland, thus consolidating China’s economic status invisibly. It can be seen that the demand for related technical manpower will become stronger in order to cope with the development of the industries. Backed by China and facing the world, the elite of the plumbing industry in Hong Kong will be an ideal choice for many Mainland factories that intend to enter the international market.

Nowadays, although individual universities, training institutes or some large enterprises have provided pre-employment technical or on-the-job training courses related to plumbing industry, these courses cannot fully cater for the development of the plumbing industry in different domains. As a result, for the frontline practitioners in some domains like technical staff, designers and maintenance technicians, etc., they in general can only learn from their experienced colleagues or masters to deal with common routine work upon employment. Along with the downfall of traditional “apprenticeship”, quite many practitioners become unable to fully master formal professional knowledge and the application of new technology related to the Industry.