European engineering consultancy federation issues position paper on the Commission’s proposals on AI and data.
European consultancy federation EFCA has published its position paper on the AI Omnibus and Digital Omnibus, reacting to the European Commission proposals.
EFCA welcomed the Commission’s Digital Omnibus proposal of the AI Act. In a position paper, the federation said that the Omnibus has the potential to create important opportunities for Europe’s construction and infrastructure sector, while also raising issues that require further clarification and sector-tailored guidance.
Inés Ferguson, president of EFCA, said: “To innovate responsibly in safety-critical infrastructure, our companies need clarity, coherence and proportionate obligations. The AI and Digital Omnibuses must strengthen competitiveness while safeguarding Europe’s high standards for safety and public trust.”
Under the AI Act, high-risk systems are likely to be used in infrastructure, transport and utilities. They can affect public safety if they fail and should be subject to cross-border testing, amongst other requirements. The stronger trade secret safeguards foreseen in the Data Act are welcome, says EFCA, but the sector needs more relevant guidance and access to high-value public datasets, which should remain low-cost for SMEs.
On the other hand, as there are costs associated with sharing business-to-government data in the other direction, the obligation to do so must be limited to genuine emergencies and firms must be properly compensated, EFCA says. Finally, never off the agenda of relevant discussions in EFCA, interoperability and avoiding vendor lock-in in cloud and BIM services remain key priorities.
With regard to the Data Act, EFCA has highlighted the importance of the re-use of public sector data relevant to construction and infrastructure. “As consulting engineers depend heavily on public sector data, EFCA welcomes the integration of public sector data re-use rules into the Data Act, as this may provide public authorities with clearer responsibilities regarding access and reuse conditions, thereby improving consistency across member states,” it said.
EFCA’s experts from consulting engineering firms contributed to the comprehensive position paper, which highlights a number of key points for consulting engineers to consider. The federation is currently feeding into the legislative debates as they proceed.
Click here to download the EFCA position paper on the AI and Data Acts.
