Scotland's construction industry could face a skills crisis if it becomes too complacent; that is according to new research by sector recruitment expert Search Consultancy.

The Construction Industry Training Board's (CITB) Construction Skills Network has predicted an average annual growth of 4.7% and additional demand for new, private housing, infrastructure and industrial projects is expected to help strengthen the sector by potentially creating a further 30,000 construction jobs by 2018.

However, Andrew Stephen, Director of Search Consultancy's construction division in Scotland, said there is a danger of the industry becoming complacent following the reports of market improvement. He warned that although there are encouraging signs, filling the vacancies with skilled and qualified individuals could be a problem, unless the appropriate action is taken.

He said: "I can definitely foresee a skills crisis similar to the one we experienced from 2005-2007, before the recession hit. It resulted in lots of people leaving construction to move into new areas, from oil and gas to going self-employed. We've even heard reports of people leaving the sector behind to do completely different jobs, such as driving taxis.

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"This has resulted in a considerable headcount loss. The skills gap needs to be filled urgently or construction companies simply won't have the manpower to cover the work needing done now that the sector is recovering.

"Companies have not invested in apprenticeships to anywhere near the level they would have in the 90s. We need to be thinking of the long-term, not the short-term, and invest in all areas in order to sustain growth."

Mr Stephen added: "We're not out of the woods yet and more action must be taken to make the industry more bulletproof in future. Companies are starting to understand that staff recruitment and retention means it's not always about choosing the cheapest possible option – good wages secure good people and remembering that is key to attracting people back into the industry."

Search Consultancy works closely with companies to devise strategies to address their skills gaps, as well as liaising with training companies to find ways to up-skill general labourers. Despite having reservations about the available labour pool, Stephen said his division had noticed a number of very positive changes in the sector over the last 12 months.

"There has undoubtedly been a massive improvement, with £400 million worth of infrastructure work being signed off in Aberdeen earlier this year," he explained. "Furthermore in the next five-to-six years, an estimated £1 billion worth of infrastructure work is expected to be carried out in Scotland alone.

"The commercial sector is also dramatically improving. Just recently, we've seen major office developments in Edinburgh which would never have happened this time last year because the sector was too nervous and there wasn't the demand for it."

(JP/IT)