Body of Knowledge sparks £12 billion power electronics, machines, and drives revolution

A groundbreaking initiative aimed at unlocking the universal language of electrification was launched yesterday at a significant event in London.

More than 100 industry experts attended the event at the Museum of London to get a first look at The Power Electronics, Machines, and Drives Body of Knowledge (PEMDBoK).

This valuable new resource is poised to redefine industry standards and harmonize the understanding of the essential skills and capabilities required by the sector.

Hosted on the Electric Revolution Skills (ERS) Hub, individuals, employers, course providers, recruiters, and companies are encouraged to register and access the wealth of information on skills, competencies, and training necessary to work in PEMD, both now and in the future.

The shared framework, developed through collaboration among industry and academic experts led by Coventry University, is being celebrated as a game-changing moment for a sector expected to generate over £12 billion in domestic revenue by 2025 and create more than 169,000 jobs.

A special panel discussion, chaired by Deepak Farmah, ERS Hub Commercial Director, and featuring Rowan Crozier (Brandauer), Louise Phipps (West Midlands Combined Authority), Jason Cole (Jonathan Lee Recruitment), and Elizabeth Bonfield (Skills 4), discussed current industry challenges and emphasized the transformative potential of the Body of Knowledge.

Petar Igic, Academic Director of the ERS Hub, commented: “PEMD requires a broad and evolving set of skills and competencies that traditionally have been challenging to navigate for individuals and organisations, a problem exacerbated by differences in language used by employers, course providers and learners.

“This situation is holding the sector back and preventing new talent from entering at exactly the time companies need them – if we don’t try to reverse this trend, then the UK could quite easily find itself falling behind in the electrification race.”

He continued: “We had to do something about this and by bringing together more than 100 different industry and academic experts, we have come up with The Power Electronics, Machines and Drives Body of Knowledge.

“This ground-breaking initiative has captured the full scope of topic specialist areas and the skills required to do jobs ranging from Lead Power Electronics Engineer, Thermal Management Design, PCB and Sub Systems Integration to Power Converters and Instrumentation and Compliance Testing all in one place and, importantly, in a unified language that everyone can understand.”

The PEMDBoK is officially live and accessible via the ERS Hub website, and it anticipates thousands of new users within the coming year.

Job requirements, course offerings, skill profiles, and career trajectories will be easily accessible. Additionally, a machine-readable specification will enable industry services, recruiters, and course providers to precisely define underlying data, ensuring consistency and interoperability.

The objective is to initiate the process of addressing the skills gap by creating a common framework for technology, skills, and competencies. This underscores the importance of ongoing learning and evolution as this groundbreaking initiative progresses and the electrification ecosystem continues to evolve.

“The issue is that there aren’t enough people to fill those 169,000+ jobs. While there are multiple engineers with experience and recent graduates, only a few decide to enter the PEMD field,” added Petar.

“There are multiple reasons from both a recruiter and workforce perspective. Employers would rather hire experienced engineers than train people, unappealing job offers, unclear requirements/skills for roles, or a language gap in industry and education.

“ERS Hub and BoK aim to support at both ends of the spectrum. By creating a common language, we allow recruiters and employers to easily create ‘standardised’ job profiles that can be understood whilst also helping education and course providers design their courses/training to better meet those demands.”

The PEMD Body of Knowledge stands as the core of the ERS Hub, which was successfully launched in Birmingham earlier this year and has already garnered 87,000 engagements.

This digital platform is assisting numerous businesses in attracting new talent to the electrification field and supporting its growth. It accomplishes this by providing easy access to an extensive catalog of 838 training courses, including subjects such as electrical engineering, laminations, motors, automation, and 3D printing.

Furthermore, the ERS Hub features the industry’s inaugural job board dedicated exclusively to electrification. This job board offers a continually updated list of 390 available positions, complete with the necessary skills for each role and the average compensation.

The last component of this offering is directed at academia. The ERS Hub has established robust connections with more than 200 partners, encompassing schools, colleges, universities, and businesses.

Deepak Farmah, Commercial Director at the ERS Hub, concluded: “There was a fantastic response to the official PEMDBoK launch yesterday and we want to take this level of interest and leverage it to ensure everyone knows and interacts with the Body of Knowledge.

“The universal language of electrification is now live – it is time for the sector to embrace it to ensure the UK leads the way to a greener future.”