The Engineering Construction Industry Training Board’s (ECITB) labour market intelligence work has been hailed as a great example of industry collaboration at a prestigious awards ceremony in London.
The ECITB was shortlisted in the Collaboration category at the Energy Industries Council’s (EIC) 2026 World Energy Supply Chain Awards (WESCA), held at the Marriott Hotel in Grosvenor Square.
The industry-led skills body for engineering construction was shortlisted for the awards alongside AAL Shipping, Cargostore, Cokebusters, Forsyths and overall winner Siemens. The ECITB was also featured in the EIC’s annual Survive & Thrive insight report for 2026.
Why WESCA judges shortlisted ECITB
An independent judging panel recognised how the ECITB’s Labour Forecasting Tool (LFT) is helping the engineering construction industry (ECI) plan for future workforce needs, tackle skills challenges and prepare for significant growth ahead.
The LFT provides insights into workforce numbers across regions and sectors, predicting trends and potential future demand for workers across the ECI, which spans sectors including oil and gas, nuclear, power generation, renewables, carbon capture and storage, hydrogen and chemicals.
The ECITB worked with Whole Life Consultants and a technical reference group of key industry stakeholders to develop the tool, which first launched in 2023 and was significantly updated using data from the ECITB Workforce Census in 2025.
Using data on this scale had not been done before in the ECI, which had long lacked reliable workforce data. There was previously no consistent way to track labour supply and demand, identify shortages or anticipate future skills gaps linked to major projects.
This limited confident hiring decisions, targeted training and the ECITB’s ability to represent industry needs to government as large-scale energy projects emerged.
“We were delighted to be shortlisted in the Collaboration category at the EIC’s globally recognised awards. Well done to Siemens for winning and to all our fellow shortlisted finalists.
“At a time when industry is expected to need thousands of additional workers to meet demand on major engineering construction projects, it is vital that decisions made by governments, asset owners, contractors and other industry partners to tackle these challenges are informed by evidence.
“This is where the value of rich sources of data becomes crucial and why the first-of-its-kind Labour Forecasting Tool for the ECI has been of massive benefit for industry.
“This innovative solution to help industry track supply and demand has provided critical insights into the make-up and future direction of industry and allowed for evidence-based, targeted initiatives and interventions to tackle looming skills shortages.”
Andrew Hockey
ECITB Chief Executive
Key findings from Labour Forecasting Tool
When it was first launched in November 2023, the tool predicted 40,000 extra workers could be needed in the ECI by 2028.
The ECITB’s updated forecasts in May 2025 revealed that this figure remains unchanged, but indicated that peak demand has now shifted to 2030. Factors include delays in some projects that now coincide with other planned activity, along with an upcoming wave of possible retirements in key roles.
The LFT states that the size of the overall ECI workforce could total more than 135,000 workers by 2030 to meet demand. The tool highlights that roles most in demand will include mechanical fitters, electrical technicians, process engineers, project managers, pipefitters, welders and design technicians.
The tool is updated using findings from the ECITB Workforce Census and publicly stated timescales on 3,000 active and future ECI projects.
The LFT and Workforce Census have contributed – either through direct ECITB involvement or as a data source – to the development of strategies aimed at addressing skills shortages and ensuring that the needs of engineering construction projects are properly understood and analysed. Examples include reports related to the national infrastructure and construction pipeline, sectoral and regional skills gaps and the Government’s Clean Power 2030 Action Plan.
Pictured main image (left to right) at the 2026 WESCA EIC Awards in London are:
- Mark Riley, Project Controls Lead at Phillips 66 Limited, who was part of the technical reference group when the LFT was being developed.
- ECITB Director of Strategy and Policy David Nash.
- ECITB Head of Research, Insights and Evaluation Franziska von Blumenthal.
- Mark Rouse, Director for the Nuclear Skills Plan and Co-chair of the Nuclear Skills Delivery Board. The nuclear sector has benefited from the LFT’s data.
- Doug Forbes, Director at Whole Life Consultants Limited, which helped develop the LFT.
