Offsourcing industry jobs becomes issue

Daily Reporter (Milwaukee), Apr 25, 2006 by Sean Ryan

Professional associations and business interests are visiting Congress to give their ideas on how to regulate the outsourcing of engineering jobs to foreign countries.

Engineering associations, including the Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc. and the National Society of Professional Engineers, are pushing for regulations to dispel concerns about lost jobs, technological innovations and security of building designs. There are numerous businesses from different industries arguing against additional regulations, especially on issues relating to the country's discussion of immigration, said Vin O'Neill, legislative representative for IEEE.

I can't fault them for trying to have less restriction than what we would call necessary safeguards, he said. Our organization has historically not been reluctant to take on employers' interests on pocketbook issues.

Both O'Neill and Lee White, director of government relations for NSPE, said there isn't much information that can help gauge the prevalence of offshore outsourcing, or offshoring, in the construction industry. Kermit Baker, chief economist for the American Institute of Architects, said his group also doesn't have a strong handle on offshoring in the United States, and that he was not aware of any organized effort by the AIA to address the issue.

Companies such as Dimension Interactive LLC in Plano, Texas, show that it is going on out there. Dimension's offices in Plano and Belgium line up computer-aided design contracts with U.S. and European firms. Employees in its New Delhi office do the work.

Sudhir Gupta, a director with the seven-year-old company, said business has been good and his U.S. clients come from all regions of the country. Gupta said his company is currently working for the AIA to draft drawings for one of its publications.

Architectural documents work

The lion's share of Dimension's work is for architecture firms that want hand-drawn building documents from older projects recreated digitally for easier use in the future, Gupta said.

Business has been good, we get lots of inquiries, some from small architects, some from big architects, he said.

O'Neill said his organization realizes that in today's global economy, offshoring is inevitable, especially for technology jobs. O'Neill and White are meeting with lawmakers in Congress to build support for a committee hearing on the topic.

We just would like to see additional safeguards built in, he said. We're just trying to ensure that we get our reasonable share of winners while accepting that some jobs will be done in other places.

O'Neill said improvements in technology come in baby steps as workers make innovations while doing their jobs. If the country sends its computerized engineering work overseas, the technological improvements will go with it. The IEEE is pushing for a tax incentive to encourage businesses to invest in research and development efforts, he said.

White said a recent point that seems to be resonating with lawmakers is the security of building documents sent overseas. Designs for courthouses, power plants or water utilities could be misused. He said the NSPE is asking Congress to look at who has access to project documents sent overseas and what safeguards offshoring companies have for them.

White also questioned whether offshoring would discourage students from studying to become an engineer.

A lot of kids will say it's just not worth it, I'll go to law school, White said. They're killing our own seed corn. If all the corporations do this based on cost alone, of course you are going to go to the cheapest source.

The National Academy of Engineers recently received funding to study offshoring in five areas - personal computing, semiconductors, automotive, construction engineering and design, and pharmaceuticals and biotechnology. The National Science Foundation, United Engineering Fund and National Academy of Engineering Fund are sponsoring the study. The main workshop for the event will be held around November.

Ken Simonson, chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America, recently polled his members for the study. He said he received only 30 responses to his e-mail survey, 12 from responders who said they had no experience with it.