Abstract
D.Phil. (Engineering Management)
A developing economy requires a strong manufacturing base, and this, in turn, requires highly skilled engineers and experts to manage and guide the industry. South Africa’s Operation Phakisa initiative to develop the ocean’s economy requires a strong manufacturing ocean-related sector to support future growth. However, the last three decades have seen a reduction in the marine-manufacturing sector in South Africa owing to many factors, including globalisation. This has resulted in a loss of skills and education systems to grow, or even maintain, these specialised marine-related skills. To support the initiative to grow the ocean’s economy in South Africa, it is necessary to develop the skills to support a growing marine-manufacturing sector. Therefore, this research focussed on high level skills and developed a higher educational framework for marine engineering and naval architecture that supports the future growth of this industry in South Africa. There are significant public (and governmental) related ship and boat building plans, which will be implemented in the next 20 years that will require highly-skilled engineering practitioners to manage, design and manufacture the vessels. Additional skills will also be required in the Oil and Gas private sector as well as the leisure craft industry. A content survey questionnaire was used to quantitively and qualitatively assess the South African maritime industry to establish the current manufacturing capabilities, future development needs and future skills and knowledge requirements. The results were compared with international best practice for manufacturing and higher education. It is important that the manufacturing industry is using the latest global technology and trends in the building process to ensure efficient and effective builds. This research also considered/identified the latest ship-building trends and technology and compared them to the current technical and engineering capabilities within South Africa to provide an effective solution for a more sustainable and profitable marine-related manufacturing sector. The outcome of was a higher educational framework for marine engineering and naval architecture, as well as a recommended management and construction process for shipbuilding. This will contribute towards a sustainable and more inclusive ship building industry in South Africa, providing new information and insights to the existing marinerelated manufacturing knowledge base.