Message from the Director

We are pleased to report that the total revenue of the EMSTF reached HK$9,281 million during the year, representing a steady growth of 4.2%, while the return on revenue dropped slightly to 1.5%. The decreased return, partly due to our offering of value-added services to clients, was consistent with our operating principle of cost recovery. Furthermore, our 2023 Staff Satisfaction Survey reports record highs in both staff satisfaction rating and response rate. We believe that the next Customer Opinion Survey of the EMSTF, scheduled for later this year, will also continue to achieve high ratings.

During the year, the colleagues of the Department served the public wholeheartedly and performed above standard. Although we have fully discharged our duty and spared no effort, given that public expectations are very high, the Department must make continuous progress to live up to their expectations. We shall continue to leverage innovation and technology (I&T) to achieve the “zero incident” goal, provide enhanced quality services for clients, and foster Hong Kong’s smart city development and carbon neutrality efforts, thus making Hong Kong a more efficient, eco-friendly and dynamic city for a caring community.

HIGHLIGHTS: SUPPORTING THE ECONOMY AND PEOPLE’S LIVELIHOODS

Much of the EMSD’s work during the year echoed the Chief Executive’s 2023 Policy Address entitled “A Vibrant Economy for a Caring Community”.

The new energy industry can create jobs for Hong Kong, foster green economy and diversify development. We are delighted to engage in the initiatives for promoting the development of hydrogen energy. To support the development of hydrogen energy in Hong Kong, the Government set up an Interdepartmental Working Group on Using Hydrogen as Fuel (Working Group) in 2022 to coordinate preparatory work of various bureaux and departments for using hydrogen as fuel locally, as well as to promote the local application of hydrogen energy through trial projects. The EMSD has been actively participated in the Working Group, providing professional support in terms of technical and safety expertise and conducting relevant consultancy studies, to assist the Working Group in examining applications for trial projects on hydrogen fuel technology intended to be taken forward locally and to establish an operational safety framework for the use of hydrogen energy in Hong Kong. The Working Group has examined and given agreement-in-principle to 14 applications of trial projects on using hydrogen as fuel, including hydrogen fuel cell double-decker buses, hydrogen fuel cell street washing vehicles, hydrogen fuelled light rail vehicles and hydrogen refuelling facilities. The EMSD provided professional advice on technical and safety aspects during the review process, and followed up on the implementation of these projects.

To cope with the use of hydrogen fuel in Hong Kong and to manage various potential risk, we have conducted an in-depth study of global hydrogen development and application of technologies. After reviewing national and international regulations and standards, consulting professional organisations, the trade and stakeholders, and thoroughly considering local situations, we formulated three technical guidelines to serve as interim standards for trial projects of hydrogen energy and support the industry to jointly ensure the safe use of hydrogen fuel. We will continue to update the guidelines having regard to the development of hydrogen energy technology and the experience gained from implementing trial projects on hydrogen fuel technology, in order to keep pace with the times.

Furthermore, to cope with Hong Kong’s hydrogen development in different areas including manufacture, storage, transport, supply and use, we have commenced the preparation work for the amendment of the Gas Safety Ordinance to cover the regulation of hydrogen fuel safety, including the hydrogen fuel systems of vehicles, hydrogen fuel facilities at hydrogen refuelling stations, hydrogen fuel supply chain, and safety of hydrogen vehicle mechanics and maintenance workshops.

2023/24 was the first year of the EMSTF’s third Five-year Strategic Plan, which is aimed at achieving “E&M 3.0 – Intelligent E&M”. In recent years, the EMSTF has proactively implemented digital transformation of assets for clients and applied I&T, such as artificial intelligence (AI), to optimise the operation and energy performance of clients’ E&M systems, winning awards along the way. One of the highlights of the year was our in-house-developed ChillStream^® solution, which uses AI to analyse real-time data collected at our Regional Digital Control Centre to optimise the energy performance of clients’ chillers. Successful trials of ChillStream^® were carried out at venues of the Department of Health and the Hospital Authority (HA) respectively, achieving ideal energy-saving performance. In the long run, the solution will also enable fully automated remote monitoring and control of chiller operation, freeing up manpower for other tasks to raise productivity.

Building people-oriented society with citizens’ wellbeing in mind remains our goal. During the year, the EMSD responded to many emergencies. For instance, our team promptly repaired over 100 damaged traffic lights and assisted in the recovery of seriously flooded areas after the passage of Super Typhoon Saola and the subsequent severe rainstorm in early September 2023. Likewise, we supported various activities to boost the postepidemic economy and improve people’s livelihoods, which included providing E&M professional support for the Waterfront Carnival held at Wan Chai harbourfront in late September 2023, as well as similar events under the Night Vibes Hong Kong campaign in other districts. We also provided temporary electricity supply, and footfall monitoring and crowd control systems for the Lunar New Year fairs across the city in February 2024, so that the public could enjoy the events to the fullest.

A stable power supply is a prerequisite for people’s livelihoods and economic development. With regard to the major incidents of the two power companies in recent years, we strengthened our supervision of both power companies during the year and urged them to implement a series of improvement measures, such as enhancing risk assessments of cable bridges and other infrastructures as well as commissioning work, in order to prevent recurrence of similar incidents. All major improvement measures had been implemented by the end of 2023. We also encouraged the power companies to use more I&T for monitoring the operation of their systems in real time to enhance their adaptability.

Lift safety is another focus of the EMSD. Since 2018, we have collaborated with the Urban Renewal Authority to implement the Lift Modernisation Subsidy Scheme, helping private building owners in need to carry out lift modernisation works. As at March 2024, around 800 lifts have their modernisation works completed, while modernisation works of around 4 300 lifts were in progress. We also provided outreach social services for needy residents affected by the works, so as to reduce the inconvenience caused by suspension of lift service. This move was appreciated by many members of the public.

I&T OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES

The EMSD has taken the lead many years ago in applying I&T solutions to our internal operations, clients’ E&M asset management, as well as operation and maintenance (O&M) work. We have also encouraged regulated organisations and the E&M trade to use more I&T to improve safety, efficiency and energy performance. Though the efforts have yielded some results, and our in-house-developed solutions and joint projects with other organisations have won numerous awards, many regulated organisations and clients have yet to fully deploy I&T solutions in their operations. Therefore, accelerating I&T implementation will be one of the key focuses in our future work.

During the year, we stepped up I&T collaboration with regulated organisations to enhance safety. For example, we completed the development of the Gas Pipe Health AI Prediction Model this year. The model utilises big data and AI analysis technology to analyse and predict the health condition of gas risers in buildings, thereby identifying the sections with potential safety risks. We also signed an agreement with the Hong Kong and China Gas Company Limited, authorising them to use this model for monitoring the health condition of gas risers and drawing up predictive maintenance plans for the pipelines.

Another example is our collaboration with the MTR Corporation Limited (MTRCL). The MTRCL’s replacement of its signalling system requires massive amount of testing, but they can only utilise the “two-hour golden window” of non-traffic hours overnight for conducting the tests every day, so the time is very tight. In this connection, the EMSD has been working with the MTRCL and an I&T company to jointly develop the Universal AI Interacted Automated Scenario Tester (AI-AST), which is expected to be launched in 2027. The AI-AST can automatically generate hundreds of thousands of testing scenarios for identifying potential issues or loopholes in the signalling system, thereby significantly shortening testing time and making railway services more robust and reliable. We aspire to establish the AI-AST as an international testing standard, contributing to the promotion of railway safety.

Besides, we launched multiple I&T projects for the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Hong Kong Port, using AI and image analytics technologies to support smart crossing, intelligent asset management, carbon neutrality, and Northbound/Southbound Travel for Hong Kong, Mainland and Macao Vehicles. We launched our departmental AI Master Action Plan and Multi-trade integrated Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing (MiMEP) Master Action Plan in the second half of 2023. Both are milestone documents setting out the EMSD’s strategies and action roadmap to promote and facilitate the wider use of AI and MiMEP technologies. Furthermore, to facilitate AI development in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), our team has started working with the Guangdong Provincial Academy of Building Research Group Co., Ltd. to draft an E&M AI Data Standardisation Guideline for the E&M trade in the GBA.

In addition to the E&M InnoPortal which is our highly popular online I&T solution matching platform, we also soft launched the E&M InnoCatalogue in February 2024 to further foster the development of I&T as an industry. It is a new interactive platform which currently showcases over 50 successful projects to help our clients quickly find proven I&T solutions according to their specific needs.

As AI develops rapidly and computing power becomes ever stronger, they can be readily combined with the increasingly popular Internet of Things technology and sensors to comprehensively monitor and fully automate E&M systems for optimising their efficiency. However, these developments may give rise to new challenges. Will AI replace the preliminary manual tasks conducted by human beings across different trades and professions? How will the EMSD’s operations be affected? How should our clients and the trade plan early to meet those challenges? In this respect, I have asked our staff to set up a Technology Radar and commissioned two Assistant Directors, one from Regulatory Services and one from Trading Services, to lead the initiative of continuously monitoring AI and other high-tech development as well as its impact on the Department and society. A key aspect will be cybersecurity, ensuring that the development and use of AI comply with safety and ethical principles, including the protection of personal data and privacy of individuals under the relevant laws and regulations. In addition, as geopolitics is likely to hamper the sourcing aspects of our I&T work, I have asked the team to consider these factors together in order to formulate plans accordingly.

BUILDING AN INCIDENT PREVENTION CULTURE

To further cultivate our incident prevention culture, we have actively improved the relevant mechanisms and raised staff awareness. Nevertheless, this is a long-term effort. It will take time and perseverance to attain our goal of zero incident via “preventive treatment of disease”.

In recent years, suppliers of household air-conditioners have increased the use of R32 mildly flammable refrigerants to slow down global warming, but this also poses safety risks. Therefore, we launched in May 2023 the Voluntary Registration Scheme for Technicians Handling Mildly Flammable Refrigerant of Household Air-conditioners to raise the safety awareness of technicians handling this type of refrigerants and hone their skills. About 1 400 technicians have already registered under the scheme.

To reduce potential gas safety hazards, we will step up inspections of restaurants to combat illegal use of cassette cookers without GU marks, and strengthen the supervision of local retail merchants and online e-commerce platforms to strictly prohibit the import and supply of cassette cookers without GU marks and other non-approved gas appliances.

We also attach great importance to identifying and eliminating safety hazards through I&T solutions, including AI, image and big data analytics technologies. During the year, there were a number of voltage dip incidents causing suspension of lift service in housing estates and inconvenience to residents. In this connection, we instructed the power companies to develop measures to prevent recurrence of similar incidents, such as using image monitoring systems and various condition monitoring technologies to collect data for incident prediction on power supply equipment.

Final preparations are underway for the launch of the EMSD’s Departmental Digital Control Centre scheduled for 2024/25. Once the centre comes into operation, we can utilise the big data collected from over 300 major government buildings for more comprehensive predictive maintenance.

It must be mentioned that the EMSD was invited by the HA to assist in investigating several incidents occurred in early 2023, even though the EMSTF did not provide O&M services to the hospitals involved. We were also invited to share our experience and professional knowledge of medical equipment maintenance with the Review Committee on Medical Equipment and Facility Maintenance set up by the HA in response to the incidents. Our health sector team’s sharing of rich experience accumulated in E&M O&M at public hospitals has enhanced the client’s awareness in pursuing “preventive treatment of disease” and capabilities in incident prevention in its asset management and maintenance work.

ADOPTING A NEW MINDSET IN TALENT DEPLOYMENT

There are two aspects to the manpower issue: firstly, attracting young talent to join the E&M industry; and secondly, finding ways to do more with limited human resources.

In recent years, we have been working with the E&M trade to attract young people to join the industry, including participating every year in career expos, holding joint orientation events for Technician Trainees (TTs) with major E&M organisations in Hong Kong, and conducting various school and youth activities to raise the youth’s awareness of and interest in the E&M industry. To attract young people, we must convey two messages: E&M work is about technology, and it makes a meaningful contribution to society and people’s livelihoods.

The EMSD has been sparing no effort in promoting public education and youth development. The EMSD established the E&M Youth Development Committee in July 2023 to equip our young staff members to pursue diversified development. At the same time, the EMSD has expanded the scope of the existing E&M Young Ambassador Programme to further promote the knowledge of E&M safety, energy efficiency, I&T and E&M industry among young people, enabling them to unleash their potential and achieve their goals.

As electric vehicles and other new energy vehicles become increasingly popular, the demand for vehicle maintenance technicians is on the rise. To allow seasoned mechanics to obtain qualification recognition based on their work experience, the EMSD collaborated with the Qualifications Framework Secretariat, the Vehicle Maintenance Technical Advisory Committee and the Vocational Training Council to introduce the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) mechanism. Starting from 3 July 2023, the Voluntary Registration Scheme for Vehicle Mechanics accepts Level 3 qualifications acquired via the RPL mechanism as registration requirements, thus enabling experienced mechanics to obtain certification and qualify as registered vehicle mechanics. As at the end of March 2024, 356 registered vehicle mechanics had obtained Level 3 qualifications via this route.

As for doing more with limited human resources, we must abandon the past mentality of “asking for additional resources to cope with new work”, and instead adopt the new mindset of finding ways to make the best use of technology for productivity improvement, so that more can be achieved with limited human resources. A good example is the trial of the Biomedical Engineering Services e-form platform that we initiated for the HA in 2022 with the aim of streamlining the maintenance workflow, thus making the process truly paperless and more efficient while saving manpower.

During the year, we organised a variety of E&M technical training courses for staff and held technical exchange activities with training institutions in Guangdong Province. These included experience exchange on I&T development with delegations from the Guangzhou Electromechanical Technician College and the Guangzhou Industry and Trade Technician College during their visit to the EMSD Headquarters. We also collaborated with the Guangzhou Technician College, the Guangzhou Electromechanical Technician College, the Guangzhou Industry and Trade Technician College, and the Guangzhou Communications Technician Institute to organise training courses in air-conditioning and refrigeration, electrical work, electric vehicles, and building services.

Moreover, we are delighted to send two TTs to compete in world-class events once again. Two candidates from the EMSD have qualified to represent Hong Kong in the Refrigeration and Air-conditioning as well as Electrical Installations trades and will enter the 47th WorldSkills Competition taking place in Lyon, France this September. They will tell the good stories of Hong Kong with their outstanding technical skills, and enhance their skills through competitions.

WIDE-RANGING CO-OPERATION YIELDS RESULTS

The EMSD has signed in recent years a number of memoranda of co-operation (MoC) and agreements with organisations in Hong Kong, the Mainland and overseas, which have yielded concrete results. In 2023, we signed two new MoC with the Mainland institutions, one with the Shenzhen Association for Science and Technology to establish a new strategic partnership, and another with the Guangdong Provincial Academy of Building Research Group Co., Ltd. and the Guangdong Province Construction Technology and Standardisation Association to jointly foster the development of green building E&M systems technology and AI standards.

Regarding the collaboration with the Mainland, this year marks the 20th anniversary of the cooperation between the EMSD and the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China. We organised a ceremony and a retrospective exhibition to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Cooperation Arrangement on Electrical and Mechanical Products Safety and Energy Efficiency and showcase the journey, achievements and future outlook of our collaboration.

Furthermore, we established a new partnership with the State Administration for Market Regulation to enhance our joint efforts in promoting cooperation and exchanges in the areas of hydrogen energy development (including green hydrogen certification), gas safety, machinery safety and energy efficiency of products, etc. We are delighted that Greater Bay Area (GBA) Standards and certification work will be included in the MoC signed in 2024, which will be conducive to our establishment of standards in other areas in the long run and even making contribution to the formulation of national standards.

We have also been actively promoting the application of retro-commissioning in the GBA. In March 2024, the EMSD and the Guangdong Provincial Academy of Building Research Group Co., Ltd. jointly issued the Technical Guide on Retro-commissioning of Buildings in Greater Bay Area, providing operational guidance for practitioners in the GBA, with a view to enhancing the energy performance of existing buildings.

Mainland institutions, such as the Guangzhou Industry and Trade Technician College, have been providing high-standard training for our TTs competing in the WorldSkills Competition in recent years. These institutions have also been working with us on joint I&T development projects to drive technological breakthroughs. One of the award-winning projects is the Autonomous Airfield Ground Lighting Cleaning and Inspection Robot, a joint project with the Guangdong Academy of Sciences and the Airport Authority Hong Kong. The robot can automatically detect and remove rubber deposits left on airfield ground lights by aircraft wheels during landing, with trials being held at a Guangzhou workshop. The robot, as well as transportation vehicles, has the exciting potential to become driverless and fully automated in the future.

In another new initiative, we collaborated with the Tsinghua University’s School of Economics and Management to organise a three-day management training programme for directorate officers, which was held in Shenzhen in June 2024. Rich in content, the programme covered topics such as the latest developments in technology and management strategies, and provided participants with a deeper understanding of developments in the Mainland and the GBA. Our staff members also shared Hong Kong’s experience in working towards carbon neutrality and promoting I&T. Apart from the EMSD, directorate officers from the Development Bureau and other works departments were also invited to join the programme, resulting in a total of 45 participants. The programme will be held again in Shenzhen this December.

Regarding regional cooperation, we hosted the 71st International Meeting of Technical Authorities for Cableways (ITTAB) for the first time in September 2023. The meeting brought together regulators, experts, professionals and academia from 13 jurisdictions to exchange views on the administration and regulatory control of the safety of aerial ropeways and funicular systems. Furthermore, our two veteran officers have continued the leadership work in the Energy Working Group of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), actively exploring energy efficiency and new energy matters while enhancing collaboration with other member economies and international organisations. In addition, in collaboration with the National Railway Administration and the MTRCL, we will host the annual conference of the International Railway Safety Council in Hong Kong in 2025. More than 200 railway experts from around the world will be invited to come to Hong Kong to exchange views on matters relating to railway safety, regulation and technical developments.

STUDY OF THE 2035-2050 VISION

Lastly, I would like to talk about our study of the EMSD 2035-2050 Vision that explores the medium and long-term vision and prospects of the Department and formulate corresponding strategies and actions. Originally an initiative related to the Government’s commitment to achieving carbon neutrality before 2050, the study was conceived as part of our responsibilities as the government department responsible for driving energy efficiency and I&T development in Hong Kong, to make forward-looking plans to help achieve the decarbonisation goals more securely. In view of myriad macro changes impacting Hong Kong and the world, such as technology development and geopolitics, the scope of this study will be therefore broadened. Now the study is aimed at exploring and analysing changes in the macro environment as well as opportunities and challenges likely to arise in the next five, ten and even thirty years; and devise corresponding short, medium and long-term strategies and actions.

We will first ask our staff members to work in small teams to study individual topics, such as climate change, I&T development, integration into national development, geopolitics, future evolution of the Department’s services, opportunities arising from Hong Kong’s new development areas, and the life cycle management of E&M equipment, etc. We will conduct an objective analysis of the macro environment in relation to these topics, review and analyse the EMSD’s strengths, develop short, medium and long-term development scenarios, and formulate our vision and goals for these time horizons. Next, we will work backwards to identify the strategies and actions to be taken between now and 2035-2050 to attain the vision and goals.

Though the study at this stage is far from being conclusive, the challenges are obvious. The rapid development of AI and technology, along with the increasing modularisation of E&M equipment, will on the one hand improve our work efficiency, and might on the other hand require us to reposition our O&M services or migrate to higher value-added work. These changes will have a fundamental impact on the department’s future work settings and training, and require thorough deliberation and strategic planning well in advance. Another challenge is geopolitics, which will have an impact on the smooth operation of our E&M systems and even that of our society. Hence, contingency plans are essential. The study of the 2035-2050 Vision is crucial to the EMSD’s future development, and we will report on the progress in due course.

GRATITUDE AND APPRECIATION

The EMSD would not have achieved so much in the past year without the strong support from our clients, the E&M trade, professional bodies, academics, and training and research institutions, as well as the collaboration and assistance of our Mainland and overseas co-operation partners; and for which we are deeply grateful. Our heartfelt gratitude also goes to the policy bureaux for their guidance and to other government departments for their support, and we sincerely thank all our colleagues for their ingenuity and hard work. Furthermore, our continuous reflection and improvement would not have been possible without the vigilance and feedback from stakeholders, such as Legislative Council members, the media, opinion leaders and the public. We owe them all a big thank you.

We look forward to achieving excellence again next year in support of our economy and our people.