[Satellite News 03-25-10] The United States may experience a noticeable shortage of U.S. engineers entering the space and satellite industry due to strict International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) laws and a lack of strong science and math programs in U.S. schools, according to space industry consultant panelists at SATELLITE 2010’s wrap-up SWOT session.
    Keith Volkert, CEO of Satellite Consulting, said the industry would see a shift in how the United States plays a role in space development if the interest in space continues to wane. “The United States had the best and brightest pool of space engineers and scientists back in the day when the industry was more attractive to college students. Today, we are not getting the numbers or the excitement out of colleges to fill the gaps that we are seeing today.”
    Attracting fresh talent to the U.S. space industry has been a priority of several industry associations for years. The Aerospace Industries Association (AIA) has made efforts by releasing studies that show a dramatic increase in the average age of aerospace industry workers and a disconnect between the market and potential talent. AIA helped coordinate a survey in 2008 which found that more than 60 percent of the aerospace workforce was age 45 or older, and many of them are near or have reached retirement.
    In a report submitted to the U.S. Congress in April 2009, AIA President and CEO Marion Blakey warned that a shrinking aerospace workforce threatens the U.S. national security space industrial base. “We have very real concerns tha, as the current generation ages and retires, we are not renewing the workforce to keep America at the forefront of technology development,” Blakey told the subcommittee .“Indicators show there are not sufficient high school and college students studying science, technology, engineering and mathematics … to replace the generation of workers about to retire. And the shortfall of experienced workers age 35 to 40 calls into question the ability of our industry to meet the U.S. Defense Department’s needs,” Blakey said.
    Volkert, who admitted that the age gap brings more business to retired consultants, said he remains worried about the long-term consequences. “If the major space technology developers were hitting all of their hiring marks and meeting their demand, my firm would not receive any phone calls, but my phone is ringing off the hook and I get asked to come back and consult on a variety of projects because they simply do not enough people,” said Volkert.
    TelAstra President Roger Rusch said the situation should be noticed and resolved by the government. “There is no space policy to motivate engineers to come to the industry. We have to start before college at the elementary school level. Science programs have all but been eliminated from schools,” he said.
    Gilat Network Systems CEO Erez Antebi, whose company is based in Israel, said that the age gap issues have not been a problem in the international community. “We do not see the same problem in Israel that we see in the U.S. Even though Gilat is essentially a telecom, we see a lot of excitement to bring in new talent to our market and a lot of excitement over new space technology. I have also noticed that the United States has also benefited from the excitement abroad and has actively recruited foreign engineers, which have brought strength to its industries,” said Antebi.
    Volkert said that the United States is fortunate to have foreign engineers interested in working abroad. “I want to make it clear that the issue is not that we have more foreign engineers coming to the United States. We are lucky to have such talent. The concern is purely over education in the United States and how we do not want our students to be left out of the space community.”
    Panelists identified U.S. ITAR laws as one of the main obstacles for the development of the United States’ educational and professional programs, however, Brian Weimer, a partner of the Sheppard Mullin law firm, which specializes in policy and acquisition law, explained that the U.S. government might not budge on ITAR laws. “I don’t think we’re going to see ITAR changes, because nobody in Congress will want to be the one that publicly justifies a lax on national security. It’s not politically correct, whether you agree with national security or not. It’s the same situation for FCC indecency rules. Nobody in Congress will stand up and say ‘I’m for indecency.’ However, the consequences of not changing these standards are also the same. Both the FCC and ITAR regulations have driven business to other countries,” said Weimer.
    Volkert is skeptical that ITAR may be relaxed. “I was disappointed with what I heard from the ITAR panel at this convention, because I don’t think we’re going to get the near-term change that we need. As an American, I believe in national security, but its absurd how ITAR laws are implemented and how they apply to our industry,” said Volkert.