BANGKOK POST Issued date 10 August 2017
POST REPORTERS
Technology transfer, training key issues
A network of Thai engineers and architects has called on authorities overseeing the Sino-Thai high-speed rail development to use a 5-point proposal they have written to set the project’s technology transfer and training framework.
Knowledge transfer ranging from design to operation and maintenance is needed for Thailand’s future rail development, while training is necessary for 400 Chinese engineers and architects before they start work in the joint rail construction of the 252.5 km rail line from Bangkok to Nakhon Ratchasima, secretary-general of the Council of Engineers Amorn Pimanmas said.
His council, together with the Architect Council of Thailand, the Engineering Institute of Thailand, the Council of Engineering Deans of Thailand and the Federation of Thai Industries, has jointly drafted the five-point proposal – four concerning technology transfer and one for a training schedule.
“We want the Thai government to back our proposal during talks with Chinese authorities tomorrow,” Mr Amorn said.
The talk is a prelude to the 20th meeting of the Thai-Chinese committee in Thailand on Aug 15-17 during which a final decision will be made.
Beijing earlier said it supports technology transfer under the joint cooperation, a part of its ambitious plan to build a network of trans-Asia transport systems known as the “One Belt One Road” initiative.
Professional and business groups want to see technology transfer in “25 branches of nine areas” concerning design and construction, Mr Amorn said.
Similar technology transfer can happen in rail operation and maintenance, train carriage and spare parts production.
Knowledge on spare parts production should enable Thai companies to make them domestically. At least 50% of carriages must be manufactured by Thai companies, Mr Amorn said.
The network suggested holding training sessions for Chinese engineers and architects between September and October.
Experts are also required to attain training to acquaint themselves with working in the Thai context, though Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha earlier invoked the powerful Section 44 under the interim charter to allow Chinese engineers and architects to work on design and construction without obtaining licences.
The Transport Ministry has also discussed with China the prospect of jointly setting up a Thai-based company through which to transfer rail system technology in preparation for the building of the ThaiSino rail project.
Transport deputy minister Pichit Akrathit said Thailand proposed that China establish a company with the State Railway of Thailand (SRT) to pass on the highspeed train technology.
He said the transfer of technology in the Thai-Chinese train development can be later applied to similar infrastructure projects such as the dual-track railway and city rail system.
Mr Pichit was speaking at the Thailand Rail Academy, a symposium zeroing in on the development of human resources and knowledge sharing related to the rail system, in Bangkok on Monday.
Subsequently, Mr Pichit said Thailand will need around 30,000 personnel in the rail system industry in the next five years to fill vacancies in civil and track work, electrical wiring, maintenance and safety.
The National Science Technology and Innovation Policy Office and the Railway System Innovation Centre (RSIC) at the Rajamangala University of Technology Thanyaburi (RMUTT) also helped draft a framework for the allocation of workers to meet the demands of the Thai railway system.
Mr Pichit said the allocation of human resources in this field required estimates to be made on how much should be budgeted for equipment and research needed to build the rail system, adding the framework will be written up in six months.
According to Mr Pichit, the Railway Technical School has the capacity to produce around 300 graduates per year to feed the railway industry.
