However, such shortages can be expected to be temporary.

However, local shortages of employees with certain skills could occur, particularly if a number of plants were to be constructed in a sparsely populated region. For example, one study (Hudson Institute, 1977a) has shown that even for the skill (boiler makers) in shortest supply in 1994 that the demand, under conditions of maximum synthetic fuels growth, would require only 6.1% of the total number of boiler makers available. No national shortages of these kinds of skills should occur if synthetic fuel development occurs in an orderly fashion. In addition, shop fabrication of the equipment needed will require a large number of machinists and steel and foundry workers. Construction skills required on site are pipe fitters, electricians, carpenters, iron workers, boiler makers, and welders. The maximum number of construction workers required for a 250 million cubic foot per day high-Btu gasification plant has been estimated in one study to be 3000. Estimates of manpower requirements during the construction phase will vary from year to year, building up to a peak about 60% of the way through construction.

In evaluating manpower requirements a distinction must be made between the construction and the operation phases. Harry Perry, in Advances in Energy Systems and Technology, VolC Manpower Requirements and Availability

Manpower engineering contractors