TECHNICAL CHAMBER OF GREECE
4, KARAGEORGI SERVIAS STR, 102 48 ATHENS GREECE
TEL. (01) 32 54 590-9, TLX: GR T.E.E. 218374, FAX: (01) 32 21 772
Visits from March 26, 1998
The Technical Chamber of Greece established in 1923, is an institution functioning under public law and supervised by the Ministry of Public Works. The Technical Chamber of Greece is by law the Technical Consultant to the State and the corporate body of all qualified engineers in Greece, its main objective is to promote, in general , the technological level in our country. For this purpose the Technical Chamber of Greece:
- Studies the scientific, technical, technoeconomic professional or development issues.
- Advice on request, on any matter that is within its competence.
- Collects and processes statistical data in relation to :
- a. the technical force
- b. the technical, scientific construction and relevant industrial activity.
- Publishes statistics and provides relevant information to authorities or to any other association.
- Conducts studies and researches , reports and drafts on standardization, drafts of codes and drafts of contacts, carries out researches either by itself, or in collaboration with other Associations or/and institutions.
- Contributes to the formation of technical education programs and to the development of domestic research and technology policies. Additionally, it contributes to the development of country’s technical force according to the needs.
- Works out assessments. The reports of assessments , numbering 500 a year, deal with technical matters such as :construction, engineering and discrepancies between the state and citizens. The Technical chamber of Greece is, by law, entitled to one third of the assessment revenues.
- Follows the scientific progress and documentation, and continues training
- Publishes two series or periodical scientific journals, a weekly bulletin and a great number of scientific and technical books.
- Keeps the records of professionally qualified engineers and protects the professional interests of its members.
- Promotes the employment and social security of its members.
The technical Chamber of Greece cooperates with Governmental , National and International Organizations and Universities, in all matters related to the engineering profession.
The Technical Chamber of Greece located in Athens and its regionally structured. The Technical Chamber of Greece consists of fourteen regional sections which have been founded taking into consideration geographic conditions , administrative division and distribution of the technical force of the country. The regional structure of the Technical Chamber of Greece is supported by 36 Prefectorial Committees, which prefectures where the Technical Chamber of Greece or a regional section does not exist.
The Administration of Technical Chamber is elected by a Universal vote of the regular members for the three years period. It consists of the following bodies:
a. The Assembly of the representatives consisting of 201 delegates.
This is the representative collective body of the Technical Chamber of Greece members.
ASSEMBLY PRESIDIUM 1997-2000
PRESIDENT
- MARAVEAS D.
A' VISE PRESIDENT
- OIKONOMOPOULOS V.
B' VISE PRESIDENT
- TSEGKOS E.
SECRETARY GENERAL
- IOAKIMIDES ST.
VISE SECRETARY GENERAL
- PAGKALOS ST.
b. The Executive Committee, consisting of the president and two vice-presidents of the Technical Chamber of Greece, a secretary general, an assistant secretary general and ten members making a total of 15.
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE PRESIDIUM 1997-2000
PRESIDENT
- LIASKAS KONSTANTINOS
A' VISE PRESIDENT
- SAVIDES KONSTANTINOS
B' VISE PRESIDENT
- KOTZAMPASAKIS ANTONIOS
SECRETARY GENERAL
- VAGGELATOU OLYMPIA
VISE SECRETARY GENERAL
- KAPETANAS DIMITRIOS
MEMBERS
- AGORIS DIMOSTHENIS
- ALEXOPOULOS KONSTANTINOS
- DRAGKIOTIS THEODOROS
- LOUKAS LOUKAS
- MPANIAS NIKOLAOS
- PAPAVASILIOU GEORGIOS
- PAVLOPOULOS DIMITRIOS
- SERAFIDES THEODOROS
- SINANIS HRISTOS
- TSOUDEROS IOANNIS
c. Fourteen Administrative and Executive Committees of the regional Sections.
These are elected bodies, each with seven or more members, they are elected at the same time as the other bodies of the Technical Chamber of Greece and deal principally with local problems.
d. Consultative Bodies
The Technical Chamber of Greece Administration is assisted for accomplishing its tasks by the following consultative bodies.
i. Scientific Sections
These are five member bodies with a consultative function, elected at the same time se the Administration, representing each of the nine basic professional fields in engineering namely:
- Civil Engineering
- Architecture Engineering
- Mechanical Engineering
- Electrical Engineering
- Rural and Surveying Engineering
- Chemical Engineering
- Mining and Metallurgical Engineering
- Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering
- Electronically Engineering
ii. Standing and ad hoc Committees
Several Committees are appointed for studying matters of interest to the Technical Chamber of Greece. There are specialized scientific committees supporting the Scientific section and permanent committees studying professional affairs and major issues of general concern to the Greek society.
The Permanent Committees cover the following areas:
- Research and Development
- Regional Planning
- Education
- Environmental Protection
- Local Authorities
- Employed Engineers
- Consulting Engineers
- Contractor Engineers
- Pension and other funds for Engineers.
There are also ad hoc committees, which the Executive Committee forms, in order to have experts advice on various problems.
iii. Working Groups
A great number of working groups are studying specific subjects supervises by the relevant committees. About 700 engineers and other professionals such as lawyers, economists sociologists, agriculturists are currently participating in these working groups.
The Technical Chamber of Greece haw a body of administrative service, the majority of which is located in its Athens offices and is working to support not only its scientific projects but also its day to day needs as a part of Public Service. In the above services 127 people are employed, scientists or not, who are divided as follows:
- Qualified Engineers 21
- University Graduate Employees 23
- Higher Education Employees 9
- Secondary Education Employees 58
- Compulsory Education Employees 17
Lastly the Legal Service of the Technical Chamber of Greece consists of 9 attorneys of law.
The fixed assets of the Technical Chamber of Greece amount to 15 billion drachmas The annual budget for 1995 was 5 billion, financed by its own resources. It has to be noted that, the Technical Chamber of Greece is not subsidized by the State.
e. Disciplinary Council
In the Technical Chamber of Greec0e are functioning the first degree and supreme disciplinary control on its members.
Membership in the Technical Chamber of Greece is restricted to engineers with a university level degree. The prerequisite for membership in the Technical Chamber of Greece is to have the work permit as a qualified engineer.
The Technical Chamber of Greece is responsible body, which gives the work permit to all the engineer specialists, graduates from Technical Universities of Greece and equivalent schools in other countries. The permit to practice as an engineer is awarded after successfully participating in special examination. These examinations are held by the Technical Chamber of Greece 3 times a year. The present number of regular membership of the Technical Chamber of Greece totals to about 62.500 engineers divided according to professional specialization’s as follows:
Civil Engineers 17.885 Architects 13.268 Mechanical and Electrical Engineers 3.328 Mechanical Engineers 7.338 Electrical Engineers 7.738 Rural and Surveying Engineers 4.144 Chemical Engineers 5.880 Mining and Metallurgical Engineers 1.850 Naval Architects 107 Marine Engineers 901 Electronic Engineers 1.246 TOTAL 62.495
The Technical Chamber of Greece is an active member of several international organizations and is represented in numerous international conferences. TCG is a member of:
- The World Federation of Engineering Organizations (WFEO)
- The European Federation of National Association of Engineers (FEANI)
- The International Union of Architects (VIA)
- The European Group of Surveyors (EGOS)
- The International Council of Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS)
- The World Energy Council
- International Council for Building Research Studies and Documentation (CIB)
- International Federation of Automatic Control (IFAC)
- International Federation of Surveyors (FIG)
- Conference Internationale de Grands Reseux Electrique & Heute Tension (CIGRE)
- The Steel Construction Institute
- The Permanent Conference of the Engineers of the Countries of South-East Europe (COPISEE)
- The European Council of Civil Engineers
- The Architects Council of Europe (ACE)
- The "Commite de Liaison des Geometres experts"
- The "Commite de Liaison des Associations d' Ingenieurs Universitaires (CLAIU)".
The Technical Chamber of Greece has official international cooperation and contracts. Its relations with many Mediterranean, Balkan, Arab and other European countries, in particular, are of a high level. Technical Chamber of Greece has signed agreements of cooperation with several organisations.
The Technical Chamber of Greece, as a professional body of qualified engineers studies and promotes issues concerning the Engineering profession in Greece. In Particular:
- It conducts statistical researches on employment, terms working conditions and professional fees of Engineers.
- It codifies the laws referring to Engineers.
- It studies the frame of professional rights of Engineers
- It deals with social security and accommodation matters.
- It supports the contracting unions and the technical offices of Engineers.
- Members are supported in arranging personal working problems, as well as any problem that lessens their status as Greek Engineers.
The Technical Chamber of Greece creates a Databank for its members. This is s pioneer project for Greece and Scientists. The users of the Databank will have an immediate access to great amount of information and this will result:
- Increase their productivity
- Suppress the cost for obtaining information
- Improve the work’s quality.
This project will also contribute to issues concerning to the transparency and diffusion of information. T.C.G.s' Databank is co-financed by the European Committee, through the «Telematique « program. It will start operating in April 1995, primarily containing the following information categories:
- Legislation concerning engineers
- Engineers rewards
- Insurance and social provision for engineers
- General urban-planning legislation/Town plans
- General technical legislation
- Industrial legislation
- Taxes legislation
- Legislation concerning employees
- Legislation concerning development
- Law references
- European committees Legislation concerning the above categories
- Engineers registry
- Programmes of European Union and other International Organizations
- Bibliographical Information
- Tables of real estates objective values
- Engineers working-market and searching for new collaborations
- T.C.G.s subjects and activities
- Competitions, Biddings, Declarations
- Firmsdata by offers services
- Information about the cost of products and services
The Technical Chamber of Greece, has been organizing since 1923 professional seminars, in order to inform its members on issues of technology and science.
Nowadays, within the European Economic Community Educational Programmes, the Technical Chamber of Greece organizes professional training seminars all over Greece for qualifies Engineers. The relevant cost is counted in hundred million drachmas.
Recently, a new foundation has been established by the Technical Chamber of Greece having as its main purpose the training formation and professional education of its members (IEKEM-S.A)
The Technical Chamber of Greece has developed during the last two decades (1974-1994) an intense activity towards matters concerning the European Communities. This activity has been focused on:
- The Community legislation on the profession and the professional activities of qualifies engineers (85/384,89/48, 92/50, 93/36, 93/37, 93/38). Considerable interventions were made for the formation of the Greek State’s positions during the adoption of the previously mentioned directives by the Communities Institutions and also during their application in the country.
- Activities for the Greek qualified engineers, which are financed by the Union, and concern to the sectors of professional training energy, environment, informatics, research & development.
The Technical Chamber of Greece participated in the Community support Framework 1990-1993 on a panhellenic level with program’s for the professional formation of engineers, at a range of 2 billion drachmas. The Technical Chamber of Greece promotes this activity on a national scale, directly to the E.C., of through the European organizations of engineers (FEANI, CAE, CLAIU, ECCE), in which it is a member. Within these organizations, the Technical Chamber of Greece has taken significant initiatives. In collaboration with them and with the European Community, Organizes meetings and conference on technological and constructional subjects. The Technical Chamber of Greece is also intensely interested about the development of the neighboring Balkan and Mediterranean countries. This interest is materialized, beyond other means, by the diffusion of the information about h the Unions activities in these countries to the Greek engineers. The possibilities arising in these countries are better than those of the countries of Africa, Caribbean, Pacific - LOME Convention.
The Technical Chamber of Greece publishes three professional periodicals, for the purpose of informing engineers and the relevant offices about the Technical Chamber of Greece activities.
- The information bulletin, a weekly journal, containing day-to day news which concerns the Technical Chamber Of Greece comments on current issues, useful instructions, information on legislation, texts and critiques of projected legislative bills.
- The Bimonthly journal contains studies, articles and reports on general subjects such as: technical education, research, planning, environmental protection, country’s adhesion to the EEC etc.
- Trimestially, Scientific Publications, addressed to separate engineering fields, containing scientific articles and treatises, specifications and various specialized, scientific subjects.
In addition to its publications, the Technical Chamber of Greece publishes scientific books and translations of foreign specifications.
DOCUMENTATION & INFORMATION UNIT
The Documentation and Information Unit includes four services. The Library, the Documentation, the Information and the Standarisation Offices, open to the public. It is supported by scientific personnel, engineers and librarians.
The Library contains 50.000 technical books, congress proceedings, seminars, reports and various publications of International Organizations. It contains 1.500 journal titles. An integrated system has been developed for the automation of all the library services. The Unit also has all the Technical Chamber of Greece scientific and technical reports, congress papers etc.
The Documentation Office is an abstracting service. It has created an automated database in engineering subjects which includes about 3.000 records and its continuously updated. Bibliographical research, compilation of Greek and international sources of information research and compilation of data are also carried out at the user’s request.
The Standardization Office contains a big collection of international standards such as ISO, BS, IEC, ASTM, DIN, AFNOR, ETSE, etc. As well as the Greek standards (ELOT) and the Technical Chamber of Greece guidelines (TOTEE). The Technical Chamber of Greece is responsible for the National Technical Committees for Standardization in Documentation, Terminology, Concrete, Thermal Insulation, Building Materials and Elements in collaboration with the Hellenic Organization for Standardization (ELOT).
The Electronic Information Office is an information retrieval service which provides the access to on - line vendors abroad as well as to the technical database on CD-ROM such as COMPENDEX, Applied science and Technology Index etc.
The Documentation and Information Unit offers special information services to the Technical Chamber of Greece, its Scientific and Regional Sections, its working groups, its members etc. It contributes to the regional Development Programme. Of the Technical Chamber of Greece through the establishment of libraries in its Sections all over the country.
It provides technical information to public and private services thus assisting the Technical Chamber of Greece in its role as consultant to the Government of technical subjects.
The Technical Chamber of Greece exchanges scientific and technical information with libraries , National and International Organizations of Information. It is an association member of the International Federation of Documentation (FID).
Copyright © 1998 TEE - West Greece Section