Engineers Australia Northern Division
Annual Report 2010 14 Shepherd Street Darwin GPO Box 417 Darwin NT 0801 Director Bronwyn Russell Telephone 08 8981 4137 Fax 08 8981 3449 Email nt@engineersaustralia.org.au Website: www.engineersaustralia.org.au
President’s Report I'm amazed at how fast this year has gone, it only seems like last week we were gearing up for the Gala dinner. This would have to have been one of the busiest years for Engineers Australia in a long time with the launch of our new Code of Ethics and the formulation of our new Royal Charter and Bylaws culminating in the recent Ballot, plus the launch of our Infrastructure Report Card along with all of our normal events such as our Gala Dinner, Engineering Week launch, Engineering Excellence Awards, Solar Car Challenge and our many other functions. As you would all know, by now, the By-laws ballot concluded with a resounding YES vote which was a pleasing and well deserved result for Engineers Australia as a whole and for Peter Godfrey and his team who worked tirelessly for 2 years in producing the new By-laws . I must admit that I enjoyed being involved with the Infrastructure report card and I certainly learned a lot about the Territory's infrastructure during our review and launch of the Report Card. I also learnt a lot about talking to the media. I sincerely hope that Government and other interested parties take the Report Card seriously, and use it as a basis and tool to ensure that our Infrastructure improves significantly over the next five years. I thank the review committee who gave so much of their time to help review and score the various sections of the Report Card National President Doug Hargraves visited the Northern Division in May and visited projects in Alice Springs, Darwin and Victoria River. It was a pleasure to accompany him on his visit through the Territory and to showcase to him the high quality projects which are being both designed and constructed by our local engineers. The highlight of the year, as always, was our Engineering Excellence Awards which were held in July this year. All of the feedback I have received on this year's awards has been very positive with a large number of people actually saying they thought this year's awards were the best ever. Congratulations again to the winners and special thanks to Bronwyn and her staff for organising such a high quality event. One of the other highlights of the year was the Heritage bus tour held as part of Engineering Week. The tour didn't attract a large number of people however all those who attended had an excellent time and most have requested that we hold the event again next year. A special thank you to Peter Poole who talked us through the tour and amazed us with the extent of his knowledge on Darwin's heritage. This year also saw visits from Engineers Australia's Eminent Speakers Rod Troutbeck, Chris Dann and Rob Heywood. We were also privileged to have past Northern Division President Owen Peake give a lunch time presentation. In conclusion I wish to thank the Divisional Management Committee members for freely giving their time and for their support during the year. I also thank Bronwyn and the Divisional staff for their effort and support throughout the year. Without these people we would not have a Division. Len Chappell Northern Division President
Director’s Report 2010 has been a year of activity again for Northern Division. We branded both the Gala Dinner and the Engineering Excellence Awards with the “Year of Engineering Leadership”. Sadly not many of our other planned events managed to materialise with regard to the year. It was interesting to see which leaders around the world are actually engineers however! We still had a lot of other activities and thanks to staff and volunteers who assisted in the program. The year has been busy with the Infrastructure Report Card launch in November. Several members volunteered their time to contribute to this important activity and the launch at Skycity was attended by 90 people. Media coverage was extensive and even extended to Wicking’s Tombstone Territory on the following Sunday! We continue to be the secretariat for the NT Business Council and the Built Environment Design Professions (BEDP) during 2010. This means that we have a close association with a large number of businesses in the NT as well as Government and regularly get asked to contribute to relevant advisory groups. Engineering week is a busy time as it is a short week with Picnic Day on the Monday. Nevertheless we managed to have events that attracted interest from appropriate groups. This year included a heritage bus tour around the Darwin region which was well received so perhaps we might have some volunteers in other regions next year to run a similar event. We also managed to run Sunchase in Darwin this year and included boats for the first time. The Youth programs this year have received a boost with funding from Questacon to expand into the Inspiring Australia program. Keely Quinn has been employed full time to take on both of these roles. We are now working more closely with CSIRO to develop networks and activities related to young people. We were excited when the NT Science and Engineering Challenge winners, Darwin High School came second in their national competition. Northern Division entrants in the Australian Engineering Excellence awards again proved that our standards keep up with the rest of Australia. Congratulations go to Power and Water Corporation for winning the Environmental Award for Water Reuse in the Alice in Canberra. We have been ably supported this year by Chris Jenkins, our very own assessor! I have often asked about having someone placed here and we were fortunate that Chris’s partner came to work at CDU so we were able to gain his skills and knowledge as a consequence. The increase in access has meant more members completing Career Episode Reports and subsequently Professional Interviews to become Chartered. Our other new staff person this year is Amanda Verhoeven. I want to thank all of the staff for their support during the year. Karen has been a tower of strength as usual and I couldn’t achieve half of what I do without her. We have run over 50 events this year - an enormous task. The biggest challenge for us is to get you to respond to our invitations! Bronwyn Russell Director
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1. Community Engagement Make it So Campaign
More than 100,000 members of the Australian public were engaged in the first phase of the ‘Make it so’ campaign, submitting almost 7,000 ideas since it first launched in February this year. However, one simple concept has captured Engineers Australia’s imagination and it has been selected to be made into a reality. ‘Make it so’ developing communities can reuse their agricultural waste to create bio-gas for cooking and heating The selected ‘Make it so’ idea was announced to National media during Australian Engineering Week and was contributed by Abdul Al-Dasooqi, an undergraduate student in South Australia. Abdul was inspired to submit the idea after studying energy proficiencies in bio-gas in first year of university. Abdul is studying a Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical) and is only 19 years of age, showcasing the young talent and ingenuity that will undoubtedly be seen in the profession in years to come. This humanitarian ‘Make it so’ idea will work two-fold – it will contribute to reducing the carbon footprint of developing countries whilst providing them with the innovative technologies to improve their daily lives. The announcement of the ‘Make it so’ idea comes during Australian Engineering Week, and coincides with the news that 2011 is set to become the Year of Humanitarian Engineering. The purpose of the ‘Make it so’ campaign is to raise awareness of the contribution the engineering team makes to the community by engaging both the engineering profession and the Australian public in an ‘ideas’ generation discussion. The engineering profession, with its know-how and creativity, has the right people to assist in tackling some of these difficult issues.
NT Business Council
Management Committee cont...
The Division continues to be secretariat for the NT Business Council. It has been a busy year for the council with various meetings with Ministers and members of the opposition to include Rob Knight, Minister for Essential Services and Terry Mills, Leader of the Opposition. The Reserve Bank also provided members with an overview of the Global Financial Crises and its impact on the Australian Market. The Statehood Committee also spoke with Council Members and gave an overview on why the Northern Territory should become a state. The NT Business Council is a coalition of business and industry groups in the Territory. The Council currently has 23 members.
New Management Committee 2011 Position
Name
President/Electrical College
Len Chappell
Transport College/Congress/Past President
Peter Hagan
Committee Representative
Chris Lugg
Committee Representative
Sumesh Dhir
Committee Representative
Louise McCormick
Committee Representative
Luo Mitchell
Charles Darwin University Representative
David Lilley
Coastal /Water Engingeering National Committee
Eric Valentine
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Position
Name
Women in Engineering
Nerida Beard
Heritage Committee
Trevor Horman
Mechanical College National Representative Young Engineers National Representative
Maj Stephen Menscheyli Bryan Davies
Young Engineers President Northern Division
Jean-Paul Foster
Regional Special Interest Group
Adam James
Defence Representative
Capt. Tim Hajenko
Centre for Engineering Leadership & Management
Vacant
Engineering Technologist National Representative Engineering Associate National Representative
Len Chappell Jaswant Deo
Structural College/Building Advisory Committee/Building Industry Reference Group Engineers Without Borders
Peter Russell
Alice Springs Representative
Vacant
Gove Representative
Vacant
Jabiru Representative
Tom Gooding
Vacant
2. Body of Knowledge & Professional Development Structural College
Young Engineers National Representative
The SCB met on three occasions during 2010 and held several teleconferences. The board comprises representatives from each state and territory plus a rep from women in engineering, young engineers and associates. The boards’ main business is audits, CPD, membership, the journal AJSE, awards, eminent speakers, standards, conferences and promotion. During 2011 college members will be contacted more frequently by the SCB following a campaign to let members know what it is we do. One of the key initiatives for 2011 is to commence an Australian version of CROSS (Confidential Reporting on Structural Safety) and we are fortunate to have Prof Lilley on that subcommittee.
I joined the Young Engineers, National Committee in their August meeting, taking over from our previous rep, Adam James. I was quickly involved and stunned just how much can be achieved within a day. The main event the committee ran this year was the YEA and CELM Engineering leadership conference in Brisbane. The other major action by the committee this year has been starting a major research report to Engineers Australia Congress on CPEng, and the lack of take up from Young Engineers. Other accomplishments include submission to change the criteria for Young Professional Engineer of the Year and the start of a national database of information for local committees on suggested events and how to run them. Finally, the August national committee meeting next year will be in Darwin. I look forward to introducing and involving many of you in events we will be running. Bryan Davies YEA National Committee
Building Industry Reform Group (BIRG) This group was set up to canvas the opinion of their professional associations regarding the impact of Home Warranty Insurance, a new level of practitioner “Building Inspector” and various other changes to legislation. A more extensive summary of the activities is covered elsewhere in this newsletter.
Building Advisory Committee Peter Russell has been the EA representative on the BAC for two years now. The committee comprises representatives from the NTG Building Branch, TIO, MBA, HIA and building certifiers. The BAC advises the minister on matters relating to the building industry. One of the continuing roles of the BAC is to administer the NT Deemed to Comply manual to make it relevant to industry today. Many of the DTC data sheets were out of date, incorrect and some products were unavailable, hence industry was given a substantial amount of time to rectify this situation before the DTC sheet was withdrawn. There is currently a significant number of applicants before the BAC and it has been a hectic year with meetings on a monthly basis and subcommittee meetings between times. An additional engineer will be appointed to the committee in 2011 to reduce the workload somewhat. Other matters that arose throughout the year are advice to the minister regarding fixing of PV cells to roofs in cyclone areas and response to the proposed Home Warranty Insurance scheme. Peter Russell Structural College Representative Building Industry Reform Group Representative Building Advisory Committee Representative
Electrical College The Electrical College met twice this year with our May meeting in Perth and our November meeting in November. The main functions of the Electrical College is to:
• • • • •
Promote electrical engineering Promote CPD Nominate and award prizes to eminent and outstanding electrical engineers and graduates promote research and development Review and comment on policy documents.
The May meeting was held in conjunction with the MA Sargent Medal award dinner. This year the award went to Dr. David Skellern for breadth and depth of his contribution to technical innovation, his eminence in electrical engineering practice and his exceptional management and leadership skills. The National Professional Electrical Engineer of the year was also announced at this dinner. This year the award went to Ken Browne from Western Australia. Len Chappell Electrical College Board
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2. Body of Knowledge & Professional Development Eminent Speaker Program
Site Visits
The Eminent Speaking Program continues to be popular with our Members. Professor Rod Troutbeck visited the Northern Territory in May and spoke on “Future Challenges and Responsibilities in Traffic Operation and Safety” Chris Dann from the Civil College’s topic was “Delivery of a Dam through innovation” in July. By coincidence the Division was also holding a site visit to Darwin River Dam which Chris took advantage of during his visit and our final speaker for the year was Dr. Rob Heywood who spoke on “Forensic Engineering”. This seminar was sponsored by the Structural College and was well received by those who attended. Rob also conducted a seminar in Alice Springs to ensure that our regional members do not miss out. Members may not be aware that it costs a considerable amount of resources for Engineers Australia to provide these eminent speaking programs in terms of airfares, accommodation and catering for the event. It is disappointing to note that we had 43 members registered for the Darwin event with only 26 members actually turning up.
CELM (Centre for Engineering Leadership and Management) In May the CELM board and Division Chairs met in Brisbane to discuss a number of issues including closer links between the Board and the divisions. It was also announced that Bronwyn Evans would take over the Chair of the board from Archie Johnston in July. Following the joint Chair/Board meeting, the highly successful CELM Leadership conference, in conjunction with YEA, was held at the Brisbane Convention Centre. The next CELM conference is to be held in Adelaide in May 2012, start planning now. The CELM Board met again in October to produce an activity plan for 2010 through to 2013, including items currently in the operational plan 2010-11. Of note was the renewed emphasis on EngExec and actions to increase the awareness and uptake of EngExec. A key initiative for the Year of Engineering Leadership was the Leadership Residential Workshop held in October. This workshop aimed at senior engineers with 15 or more years of experience to provide a practical focus for engineering leaders across all engineering sectors in Australia. This course will be repeated in November 2011 and registrations are open through the website. Kevan Blake Centre for Engineering Leadership Management
There were 2 Site visits this year, the first being Darwin River Dam follow-up site visit and HMAS Coonawarra. Both of these visits were well attended by members with over 41 attending. One visit had to be cancelled throughout the year—Tiger Brennan Drive tour due to lack of interest by members during Engineering Week and Robertson Barracks which was planned but cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances by Defence members who were deployed to Afghanistan.
National Assessor Report Until this year Northern Division assessments for Chartered Status and Registration was undertaken by a National Assessor based in Perth or, more recently, Adelaide. We give sincere thanks to these assessors, most recently Ewan Hazeldene from South Australia. In March 2010 this situation changed and the Division now has a National Assessor, Chris Jenkins, based in the Northern Division office. Chris was based in Newcastle Division but has moved to Darwin for family reasons and was very pleased to accept the offer of a transfer. Since March four Professional Interviews have been conducted in Darwin and our congratulations go to the following four members who achieved Chartered Status: Jaswant Deo Jayson Koother Scott David Jennifer Harris We offer them our best wishes for their future careers and thank our members who gave their time to interview these candidates. Chris has conducted nine presentations or workshops to 55 engineers interested in Chartered Status and Registration. One of these was presented in Alice Springs and more of these are planned in 2011. Several organisations have Professional Development Program partnerships with Engineers Australia and we welcome our new Partner, Sitzler. The Professional Development Program with Charles Darwin University is of particular interest because it is the only one which is open to staff and undergraduates. Co-op students may submit 3-5 competency elements for assessment after they have completed their industrial placements. Chris Jenkins National Assessor
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2. Body of Knowledge & Professional Development Engineering Technologists
Women in Engineering
The National Committee for Engineering Technologists Australia (NCETA) held meetings on 8 March in Melbourne and 17 September in Newcastle. It is pleasing to report that the NCETA now has representatives from All States and Territories except for Tasmania and ACT. Will Neethling from WA Division is the new national Chairperson and Len Chappell from Northern Division is the new Deputy Chair The focus of the NCETA this year has been • A concerted effort to get Engineering Technologist representatives on to all College Boards. To date we have representatives on the Electrical College, Civil College and Mechanical College boards. • Encouraging all members to seek chartered status • Reviewing and commenting on the draft Stage 1 competency standards • Trying to raise the profile of Engineering Technologists by encouraging more Technologists to attend meetings and to nominate for the People in Engineering Awards • Reviewing and commenting on the new Strategic Plan The NCTEA appreciates the support we have been given at National level, Divisional level and by the College Boards. Len Chappell TFIEAust. CEng T Northern Division Representative
Women in Engineering
drop out to start families). Recognising the inspiring achievements of women engineers also helps to keep the rest of us motivated by providing role models and mentors. It was great to see Northern Division was represented in the Women in Engineering National Committee at their two face to face meetings interstate this year, and all but one of the teleconferences. The first face to face meeting, in March was held in Adelaide which I attended. At this meeting we developed roles for the committee members and recommitted to our strategic plan in the different regions. I committed to start with two events in the NT this year – a survey of the female engineering membership of EA in the NT, and from that, an event or events relevant to the NT female membership. The Northern Division WIE survey resulted in 12 responses from the 40 female engineers who are members of EA in the NT. Those engineers were of varying ages and experiences with more than half in an early stage of their engineering career. Most were interested in some local WIE events, such as a breakfast or lunch event with a speaker. A smaller number were interested in speaking to science and maths students in High Schools to encourage female students to consider engineering careers. We hope to begin this in the 2011 year, and WIE has resources to assist, with the ‘Girl Talk’ CD produced early this year. Please contact the Engineers Australia office if others wish to assist with this in 2011. The second face to face WIE National Committee meeting was in September in Sydney and Mina Lee, an undergraduate engineering student from CDU was able to attend. Mina reported finding the group very inspirational, and particularly being in a small division, had no idea of the number of female engineers and their diversity of roles and achievements. Mina reported that attendance at the meeting re-inspired her and she is keen to contribute further to NT WIE activities. A breakfast was organised for the 30th November, to provide a networking opportunity for WIE in the NT, but also to celebrate the achievements of one of our imminent engineers, Louise McCormick. Louise was a Finalist in the Telstra Business Women’s Awards this year, and took out the gong for the Nokia Business Innovations Award. A talk on her approach to engineering and her tips for other female engineers provided further inspiration to our northern female engineers. By request, WIE Northern Division will also be organising bimonthly lunch or drinks in Darwin for NT women to network. If you are a female and engineer in the regions and travelling to Darwin at any stage, let us know when you’ll be in town and we can organise a lunch for when you’re here. If you wish to find out more about WIE and our activities in the Northern Division, please see the website or contact the Division office. We are always keen to meet new members and foster ideas on how to support the goals of female engineers.
Women in Engineering is a National Special Interest Group of Engineers Australia. A National Committee made up of 12 representatives from around Australia meet quarterly by teleconference, and twice per year hold face to face meetings in a capital city. The WIE team contributes to furthering our objectives, which are to: Attract women of all ages to Engineering Careers Retain women in Engineering Support women through their Engineering Careers Celebrate the achievements of Women in Engineering People often ask me why we need a special interest group for women in Engineers Australia. As a female engineer of 10 years experience, my response is usually from a personal perspective: that I have gained so much already from my own engineering career – opportunity, travel, financial independence, a chance to make a meaningful contribution to society – things that I feel that more women want and would take advantage of if they thought of engineering as a legitimate career way back when they were school girls or even later in life when thinking of retraining and a career change. There are more reasons – women are presently only 7% of the Australian engineering workforce, and 10% of the (http://www.engineersaustralia.org.au/groups/women-in-engineering/ membership of Engineers Australia. Advancing the goals of the women-in-engineering_home.cfm) WIE committee all contribute to improving the representation of women in engineering and supporting those to continue (as many Nerida Beard, Women in Engineering Committee
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2. Body of Knowledge & Professional Development Engineering Associates
Coastal Engineering
I start by saying that I volunteered to invigorate the Associates participation of Northern Division. Whilst the participation of associate members have been subdued in2010, there is no reason why this has to carry on to 2011. Associates are an integral part of the Engineering Team, and we encourage all of you to participate in activities organised by Engineers Australia. I have been to many events organised by Engineers Australia, and found them very interesting. There was also an opportunity to meet with other members and have a chat about what is happening in the industry. I realise we are all busy, but let me tell you, the information you gain from attending the events certainly makes up for the couple of hours that you lose. This attendance also goes towards your CPD. So, in concluding, I am looking forward to a great year in 2011 for Engineers Australia and hope all Associates participate.
This year, the National Committee on Coastal and Ocean Engineering has focused on the development of policy documents on Climate Change, particularly issues concerning the Australian Coastal DEM (Digital Elevation Model), coastal adaptation , and National Ocean Disposable Guidelines for dredged material. It also has interests in the Australian Rainfall & Runoff in the near coastal zone. Funding has been received to update the Climate Change guidelines. The committee has been expressing a concern related to the effect of sea level rise and the resulting changes in a range of tidal planes relative to the Australian Height Datum (AHD). This is not universal in Australia. There is also a conflict between what is defined by “mean sea level� in different States. This committee also has a successful series of conferences. Coast and Ports 2011 will be held in Perth in September next year. Eric Valentine Coastal Engineering National Committee
Jaswent Deo National Associate Representative
Water Engineering
Transport Engineering
This is a very active committee for Engineers Australia. Two face to face meetings have been held this year. A major activity for the last few years, and one which has been a sustained effort this year is the updating of Australian Rainfall and Runoff (AR&R). This had involved many people and goes far beyond the committee members in a large program to develop projects and review the outputs form new work by the Bureau of Meteorology on Intensity-Frequency-Duration relationships for rainfall to projects describing two-dimensional modelling of urban areas. When completed in 2014, this will make an important new contribution to rainfall-runoff estimation. This committee has a very active and successful suite of conferences. A major meeting, the 34th International Association of Hydro-Environment Engineering and Research World Congress will be held next year in Brisbane 26th June to 1st July. This is being held under the auspices of this committee and will include both the 33rd Hydrology and Water Resources Symposium and the 10th Conference on Hydraulics in Water Engineering. The last Hydraulics in Water Engineering was held in Darwin in 2008. The IAHR World Congress attracted 1300 abstracts and is expected to receive up to 800 full papers. Eric Valentine Water Engineering National Committee
The committee met face to face twice this year in Canberra and Sydney. The Sydney meeting abutted a Transport Seminar organized by the committee and attended by about a hundred transport practitioners. The subject was the major study into establishment of a major road rail interface at Moorebank in western Sydney. A similar seminar in planned for Melbourne next year. The committee is seeking funds to meet in a regional centre and conduct a seminar in 2012 expected to be the Year of Regional Engineering. This year Rod Troutbeck the 2008 Transport Medalist visited Darwin as an eminent speaker. The Transport Medal is awarded every two years. I was on the panel that selected the 2010 medalist however the result has not yet been announced. Further position papers on a variety of subjects are under preparation. Peter Hagan Transport Engineering National Committee
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2. Body of Knowledge & Professional Development National Council Report
Infrastructure Report Card NT
1. The National Council had 5 meetings during the year. 2. The Main focus of the Council is to review and provide direction on policy and governance issues for Engineers Australia. 3. The rewrite of the Code of Ethics and the Royal Charter and By-laws and the subsequent voting for their adoption was a time consuming task for National Council. 4. As the National Vice President for Internal and National Policy I am also on the following standing committees of Council namely; a. Audit and Risk Committee b. International Committee 5. The Infrastructure Report Cards for all State and Territories and Nationally was a significant achievement for Engineers Australia this year and clearly demonstrated our leadership on key community issues in the Year of Engineering Leadership. 6. The coming year being the “Year of Humanitarian Engineer” will provide opportunities for Engineers to let the community know the good work we do and set in place programs that will develop and help others.
Alice Springs Engineers Australia was busy in Alice Springs in 2010. held include:
The 2010 Infrastructure Report Card Launch was held in the International Room at Skycity on 9 November 2010 by the Deputy Chief Minister, Delia Lawrie. Infrastructure in the Northern Territory underpins the community’s quality of life and economic prosperity. Territorians deserve high quality transportation and communications systems, water and energy supply. These services are essential to the economic environmental and social aspirations of its current and future population and to improve indigenous communities. In 2005, Engineers Australia first examined the state of the Territory’s infrastructure and in 2010 this new report highlights what progress has been made and what still needs to occur. The findings were that overall the infrastructure requires major improvements, with a small number of infrastructure sectors being rated as good. While some improvements are planned or underway, many of these initiatives are either not funded or not expected in the short-term.
Civil College Events
Dinner with National President, Doug Hargreaves Science & Engineering Challenge Sunchase Solar Car and Boat Challenge National Assessor visit Eminent Speaker, Dr. Rob Heywood from the Structural College on “Forensic Engineering” The National President’s visit encompassed the Technical presentations for the 2010 Excellence Awards and a meet ‘n’ greet with members in Alice Springs. This visit also incoroporated site visits to Araluen Precinct to see the Stuart Expedition and Aviation museum, The Santa Theresa SIHIP Project, Town Camps SIHIP Project, Crowne Plaza Solar Array and Desert Knowledge Solar Centre Projects and Award winning Alice Springs Water Reuse facility. Our final event for the year was Eminent Speaker, Dr Rob Heywood who spoke on “Forensic Engineering”.
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Regional Special Interest Group As a result of the recommendations of the 2009 Regional Committee of Council put to Council in November 2009 the Council asked the Committee to develop some operating guidelines. As a result Council approved in May 2010 the establishment of a Special interest Group (SIG). The task is a substantial one, improving the lot of our regional members particularly in regard to CPD opportunity and access and to develop a proposal for the Year of Regional Engineering 2012. I was a member of the Regional Committee. Adam James has taken on the role as our Divisional representative on the SIG. The agenda of this SIG is relevant to all members of our Division. 2012 has been declared the “Year of Regional Engineer”
The Civil College Board had 2 meetings during this year. The main focus of the Board was on CPD for members and encouraging more members to seek Chartered status within the profession. The Board supported the activities of Technical Societies, Committees and Divisions in implementing programmes for the professional development of all members within Engineers Australia. 2 Technical Journals were published during the year. The Civil College Board organised with the Structural College the CECAR 5 – Civil & Structural Conference in Sydney this year which was a premier internal conference involving ACECC. The Board also supported the Year of Engineering Leadership through support for the Engineering Leadership and Management Conference in Brisbane in May this year. The Sir John Holland Civil Engineer of the year Chris Dann undertook an eminent speaker tour of 10 venues around Australia relating to the upgrading works on the Hinze Dam. Dave McHugh Civil College
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2. Body of Knowledge & Professional Development Technical Sessions/Seminars/Site Visits Month
Topic
Speaker
Feb 2010
Charles Darwin University Chair of Structural Engineering
Prof. David Lilley
March 2010
Transient Vibration Serviceability of flat Concrete Floors
Charles Jetann
April 2010
National Assessor Chartered Information Session
Chris Jenkins
April 2010
Conceptual Design of Large Spans
Prof. David Lilley
May 2010
Lunch National President
Prof. Doug Hargreaves
May 2010
Young Engineers - Voting National Representative
N/A
May 2010
Future Challenges and Responsibilities in Traffic Operation
Prof. Rod Troutbeck
May 2010
Dinner National President Alice Springs
Prof. Doug Hargreaves
June 2010
Structural Dynamics
Nicholas Haritos & Nelson Lam (SDAC)
June 2010
Challenges of Working Offshore
Chris Gamble
June 2010
One Steel Seminar
One Steel
June 2010
Technical Presentations Engineering Excellence Awards
Hosted by Darwin City Council
July 2010
Delivery of a Dam - Value through Innovation
Chris Dann
July 2010
Site Visit - Darwin River Dam
Power and Water Corporation
August 2010
Heritage Bus Tour (Engineering Week)
Peter Poole
September 2010
Engineering Heritage Australia
Owen Peake, Past President
September 2010
Chartered Information Session - Alice Springs
Chris Jenkins, National Assessor
September 2010
HMAS Coonawarra Site Visit
Navy
October 2010
Seminar on Statehood
Michael Tatham, Statehood Steering Committee
November 2010
Infrastructure Report Card Launch
November 2010
Forensic Engineering—Eminent Speaker - Darwin & Alice Springs
Deputy Chief Minister, Hon. Delia Lawrie Dr. Rob Heywood
November 2010
Engineering Education Australia - Capability Workshop
Anne Ellis
November 2010
Fellows Luncheon
Alan Wagner, CEO DCI
November 2010
Women in Engineering Breakfast
November 2010
Tiger Brennan Drive Fun Run Exhibition
Louise McCormick—Winner NT Telstra Business Women’s Innovation Award N/A
Volunteers Volunteers are critical to the success of the Northern Division and it is only with their efforts that we can continue to provide educational and important programs to our members and young people. We know that sometimes it is difficult to juggle your time, however, we are most appreciative of the contribution by our volunteers. We thank you for your continued efforts and look forward to working with you in 2010.
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3. Leadership and Influence Government & Industry Professional Links The President, Director and members of Northern Division represented Engineers Australia at many events, committees and meetings on many occasions during the year. These include: • Charles Darwin University Industry Engagement Committee, Curriculum Committee, Prize Giving, Graduation and Thesis Presentations, Science & Engineering Challenge, • Vice Chancellor, Head of Structural Engineering Head of the School of Engineering and IT at Charles Darwin University • The Hon. Paul Henderson, MLA Chief Minister of the Northern Territory • The Hon. Delia Lawrie, Deputy Chief Minister • Minister Rob Knight, Minister for Essential Services • Minister Gerry McCarthy, Minister for Infrastructure & Transport • Defence Liaison, Army & Navy • Defence Support Industry Skills Network • Media exposure through NT News, Mining Advocate, Imparja Television, ABC Television, ABC Radio, Territory FM • Northern Territory Business Council meetings • Built Environment Design Professional meetings
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Hon Terry Mills, Leader of the Opposition Hon Kezia Purick, Deputy Leader of the Opposition Department of Construction and Infrastructure CEO, Building Advisory Committee Building Industry Reform Group NT Building practitioners Board Procurement Board Department of the Chief Minister NT Building Advisory Committee NT Procurement Advisory Board NT Education Department Museum & Art Gallery Department of Business & Employment Department of Housing SIHIP Industry Engagement Group
Built Environment Design Professionals Engineers Australia took over the reigns as secretariart of the Built Environment Design Professionals in 2009. Quarterly meetings have been held. The BEDP was formed to be a “voice to government” and has 8 members.
Northern Territory Building Practitioners Board The Northern Territory Building Practitioners Board (BPB) is a statutory body responsible for the registration and monitoring of Building Practitioners in the NT for Building Certification functions under the NT Building Act. Our practitioner categories cover Engineers (Structural/Mechanical/Hydraulic), Building Surveyors, Builders, Plumbers and Architects. The current board consists a Chairman, a Lawyer, two Building Certifiers, an Architect, a Plumber, two Builders plus myself as an Engineer representing Engineers Australia. We generally meet once a month and most of the time is spent assessing new applications for registration and renewal applications. However there are always other matters to be dealt with and one of the main issues during my 2 years as a member has been to try to improve the practitioner categories and application processes so that they are more consistent nationally and more workable. Late last year (2009) the Minister for Lands & Planning appointed an industry group (NT Building Industry Reference Group or BIRG) to assist government through industry involvement on some areas of our building certification system. This also included some recommendations from the BPB on our current building practitioner categories and some possible new categories. A report was released to the public and throughout industry and comments were received and the government is still going through the consideration process. What we can advise is that the Engineers categories were included is these discussions, i.e. Structural, Mechanical, Hydraulic & Certifying Plumber/Drainer Design categories. The recommendations cover the following areas, keeping in mind that these issues still being considered and woul
need to be approved by the Minister of Lands & Planning: . All new Certifying Engineer applicants to have a NPER qualification and all renewal applicants to have NPER after a transition period (possibly 5 years). A major advantage of this is that the important matter of CPD (continuing professional development) is automatically taken care of. In any case the National Professional Engineers Register was set up primarily for the purpose of national uniformity so we judge that it would be unwise not to embrace it. . The two separate categories of Hydraulic Engineer and Mechanical Engineer to become one category ‘Building Services Engineer’. This will allow the BPB, through the use of endorsements on registrations, to more easily tailor a registration to suit an applicant’s specific area of practice/expertise. With the current two categories the Board regularly has difficulty slotting people into their requested area due to overlap between Mechanical and Hydraulic. This new category will also align with the NPER area of practice ‘Building Services’. . The category ‘Certifying Plumber and Drainer (Design)’ to change to a new category ‘Building Services Technician’, which will be subject to endorsements to suit, similar to Building Services Engineer’ Another area of concern for the Board is the low level of auditing being carried out on registered practitioners, including Engineers. It is expected that we will be recommending an increase in recourses to be made available for this purpose in future. Bede Rodeghiero Northern Territory Building Practitioners Board
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3. Leadership and Influence Cont. Engineering Heritage Committee (Northern Division) Engineers Without Borders Young Engineers Right now Engineers Without Borders conference is being held, called Impact 2010: Creating Change Through Humanitarian Engineering. It is covers presentations from volunteers with experiences from EWB partner projects, keynote speakers from organizations dedicated to assisting those less fortunate in developing countries, including disaster relief, water and sanitation, disabilities and environmental problems like rehabilitation of over farmed stations and climate change. Afterwards the social events are also a winner! The CEO is now Lizzy Brown replacing the once nominated ‘one of the most influential people in engineering’, Danny Almagor. Her efforts to pull together the conference this year, on top of all other responsibilities, have been astounding. The conferences are beginning from this year are to be bi-annual, to be held every two years. This will ensure a fresh panel of presenters to keep up the thrill of it all! Contact EWB for information on cultural training courses organizations or if you want to get involved to assist underdeveloped communities and mesh with like-minded people, Be a part of the hype, contact local chapter organiser Rana Everett at whos_lookn@yahoo.com.au for more information.
Young Engineers Australia, Northern Division has enjoyed another good year. We ran a number of events, and provided assistance to Engineers Australia, Northern division. The first event of the year was our traditional meet and greet. We changed venues this year to the University Pirates Bar. Attendance was double last year, with an estimate 40 young engineers enjoying the night. Many thanks go to the Uni Pirates for allowing us to use the venue free of charge. Next, we had our annual golf day at the RAAF Golf course. Numbers were slightly down this year, however, I do believe, and all the feedback agrees, that it was a very good day. The winning company was Aurecon, with Ryan Prescott, our student Rep, winning the closest to the pin competition. Our final event for the year was a Patrol boat visit at the RAAF base. Despite our first booking being bumped by the Chief of the Navy, the event was well attended and received. I look forward another defence site visit next year. I believe this year was very profitable for our YEAND committee and membership, and look forward to next year.
Young Engineers 2011 Committee President Vice President Treasurer Secretary Assisting Secretary Student Rep. National Rep
John-Paul Foster David Woerner Ryan Prescott Winnie Robertson Rowshini Ahmed Mina Lee Bryan Davies
Council Members Adam James Jay Bob Brewster Matthew Wallis
2010 Management Committee - Thank You Position
Name
President
Len Chappell
Past President/Transport
Position
Name
Young Engineers President Northern Division
Adam James
Peter Hagan
Defence Representative
Women in Engineering
Nerida Beard
Civil College/National Committee Representative Electrical College
Dave McHugh
Centre for Engineering Leadership & Management Engineering Technologist National Representative Engineering Associate National Representative Ocean & Coastal Committee/Water Engineering National Committee Engineers Without Borders/CDU Student Representative Alice Springs Representative
Capt Tim Hajenko Kevan Blake
Len Chappell
Transport College/Congress/Special Interest Group Communications
Peter Hagan
Heritage Committee
Trevor Horman
Structural College/Building Advisory Committee/Building Industry Reference Group
Peter Russell
Mechanical College National Representative
Maj Stephen Mescheyli Bryan Davies
Young Engineers National Representative
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Len Chappell Jaswent Deo Eric Valentine Rana Everett Steve Sawyer
Nhulunbuy Representative
Cameron MacDiarmid
Committee Representative
Sumesh Dhir
Committee Representative
Carolyn Gertz
4. Recognition, Promotion & Membership 2010 - A Photographic Journey
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4. Recognition, Promotion & Membership Gala Dinner This year’s Gala Dinner was held at the Holiday Inn Esplanade in March. In keeping with this year’s theme of “Engineering Leadership”, the activity for the evening was entitled “Take me to your Leader” with guests being asked to construct a transporter. Professor Jonathan Carapetis from Menzies School of Health was our keynote speaker for the dinner. Over 150 members and guests attended this year’s dinner and a good time was had by all.
National Excellence Awards Congratulations to Power & Water Corporation for winning the Environmental Award for the Water Reuse in Alice Project at this year’s National Engineering Excellence Awards. This project was submitted by Power & Water Corporation and the Northern Territory Government. The project’s aims were to return Ilparpa Swamp, into which the Alice Springs Waste Stablilisation Ponds overflow, to a more natural state, by means of a scheme to reuse water and reduce overflows in the area.
Engineering Week Engineering Week in 2010 was a very busy week for the Division. Several events were held in the week to include: • Launch by Minister Gerry McCarthy at Parliament House • A Heritage Bus Tour • Sunchase Solar Car and Boat Challenge • Young Engineers Annual Golf Day Sunchase this year incorporated “solar boats” for the first time and with the assistance of Ray Colley from Nortruss this attempt was a hit with the schools and children who attended on the day. With some refinement to the pool next year we guarantee that next year the boats will overtake the cars which are very popular with the kids. The Heritage Bus Tour was a first for this year’s Engineering Week and with better planning and more promotion in 2011 we believe that this event will become a “must do” on your calendar of events. Peter Poole’s knowledge of heritage in the Territory astounded those that attended. We ask that members please put Engineering Week 2011 in their calendar - the week commences after picnic day public holiday in August.
Membership - Companion- Ray Colley Congratulations to Ray Colley from Nortruss who became Northern Division’s newest companion. Ray works tirelessly for the Division with our youth program, Sunchase.
Membership In 2010 we welcomed 63 new members to the Division. These included a number of new students and a companion. We look forward to seeing you at our upcoming events in 2011. 14 students have also upgraded their membership from students to graduates in 2010. Thank you for the continued support of Northern Division. Northern Division currently has 589 members. An increase of 15 members from 2009. Stage 1 Assessments and Skilled migration continued to be steady in 2010.
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International Reach 2010 has been a quiet year for our International Membership however we continue to send our newsletters to ensure that they are kept apprised of the Division’s activities. With 2011 being “The Year of Humanitarian Engineering” we intend to encourage our overseas members to actively participate in this important theme year.
4. Recognition, Promotion & Membership Engineering Excellence Awards “Year of Engineering Leadership” The 2010 Engineering Excellence Awards dinner was held in the “Skyline” marquee at Darwin Turf Club for first time. The following project entries were received:
2010 Winners 2010 Engineering Excellence Award
Water Reuse In Alice Power & Water Corporation, Northern Territory Government
Small Business Ventures & Projects
Framelock Crowd Control Barrier System Framelock Structures Pty Ltd Royal Darwin Hospital Oncology Facility Wallbridge & Gilbert
Project Title
Submission
Bachelor of Engineering (Co-Op)
Charles Darwin University
Talinguru Nyakunytaku
Sinclair Knight Merz
Framelock Crowd Control Barrier System
Framelock Structures Pty Ltd
Water Reuse in the Alice
Power & Water Corporation
BOC Darwin Helium Plant
Nilsen Electrics NT
HMAS Coonawarra Fuel Facility, Larrakeyah Barracks
John Holland Pty Ltd
People’s Choice Award & Community Engagement Award
Royal Darwin Hospital Oncology Unit
Wallbridge & Gilbert, Halikos Group
Professional Engineer of the Year
Bachelor of Engineering (Co-Op) Charles Darwin University, Northern Territory Government Talinguru Nyakunytjaku Sinclair Knight Merz (SKM), Macmahon Contractors Ernie Wanka FIEAust CPEng
Victoria Highway Floodplain Upgrade
Department of Construction and Infrastructure
Young Professional Engineer of the Year
Dr Elisha Harris MIEAust
Highly Commended Young Professional Engineer of the Year
Nathan Johns MIEAust
Structural Innovation
People in Engineering Award Winners
President’s Award
Congratulations to the winners of the 2010 “People in Engineering Awards”:
Judging Panel Thank you to our team of judges for 2010
Ernie Wanka FIEAust, CPEng Professional Engineer of the Year
Dr Elisha HarrisMIEAust Young Professional Engineer of Year
•
Alan Grove MIEAust CPEng—Civil Engineer
•
SQNLDR Michael Kelly MIEAust CPEng Electrical Engineer
•
Peter Hagan FIEAust CPEng—Civil Engineer
•
Evelyn Robinson - Dept of Housing
The judges’ contribute their time on a volunteer basis and the Division is extremely grateful for this.
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5. Education & Qualification - Youth Programs Science and Engineering Challenge
Sunchase
The 2010 Science & Engineering Challenge, held on 28th & 29th April, saw four hundred students rally bright and early at the basketball stadium at Charles Darwin University to flex their brain muscle and put their problem solving mastery and team building skills to beat their ‘foe’ for the winning trophy. Mission to Mars, Flight of the Navigator, Escape to the Lost World and Gold Fever were amongst 8 activities on the day. The event helps young students to become more aware of how maths and science are everywhere in our daily lives and how essential they are for our community to function. Not unlike other competitions, The Science and Engineering Challenge demands goal setting and plan forming. It’s another great way to build skills for real life. The winner of the Darwin Challenge was Darwin High School, who attended the Grand Challenge in Gosford on the central coast. Darwin High School did the Northern Territory proud with the best ever NT result of second place in the Silver Division. Thanks go to Charles Darwin University for assisting the team of 34 students to make it down to the Grand Challenge event.
This years’ SunChase Solar Kit car and Boat Challenge had a new and exciting inclusion of boats to the line up, with some interesting results. Over 190 students and teachers attended this fun event, with perfect weather for optimal solar vehicle fun. Another new inclusion this year was the ‘Pitlane’ emergency vehicle repairs, which was actually very busy, and will be expended to 2 ’Pitlanes’ next year to keep up with demand! Power & Water once again provided support to ensure the event went ahead, and Nortruss provided their expertise and materials to ensure smooth racing in both the car and boat categories. SunChase Darwin would not go ahead with out the support of these organisations, and their help is greatly appreciated (and essential!) All the hard work of the students led to every school winning a trophy. Upper Primary Kit Cars 1st- Leprechaun (Good Shepherd Luther College), 2nd - Eyes of the Tiger (Good Shepherd Lutheran College), 3rd - Solar Buddies (Good Shepherd Lutheran College) Middle Primary Kit Cars 1st- Durack 2 ( Durack Primary), 2nd - Lightning (Larrakeyah Primary School), 3rd - Fire Flame (Larrakeyah Primary School) Boats 1st- Solar Speed Racers (St Andrews Lutheran School), 2nd - Sunny Sailers ( St Andrews Lutheran School), 3rd - Space Monkeys (St Andrews Lutheran School)
The Alice Springs Science and Engineering Challenge was also held in May and was a huge success and was held at St. Philip’s College. Teams of Year 9 & 10 students from various schools around Alice Springs competed to win the title for their school and for the opportunity to participate in the Grand Challenge. The triumphant team was from Our Lady of the Sacred Heart.
Sunchase was delayed in Alice Springs due to our unseasonal whether, however the event was eventually held on 22 October. A full report on this event will be included in the December newsletter.
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5. Education & Qualification Youth Programs cont…. Smart (Darwin & Regions) All the best intentions and plans can’t account for the weather, and the early appearance of the wet season threw a spanner in the works of the SMART (Science, Math And Real Technology) Program. With the threat of losing a University of Newcastle presenter somewhere in the remote Northern Territory to flood waters, it was decided that the SMART program will make its visit in April 2011 – hopefully after the worst of the wet season. Engineers Australia is hoping to extend the SMART program further in to the remote areas of the Northern Territory in 2011, and is awaiting the outcome of a funding proposal.
EngQuest Engquest was once again well received in the Northern Territory, mainly across the Top End, as 10 schools registered 663 students to the online program. 22 teachers were also registered for the program, however sadly there were no volunteer engineers registered in the NT to provide help to the program. Next year will bring a new Engquest program, with further support from the Engineers Australia Northern Division office, and hopefully some member engineers.
Inspiring Australia Keely Quinn from Engineers Australia has been appointed as the “Inspiring Australia” Science and Communications Officer for the Northern Territory. Inspiring Australia hit the ground running. Since July we have been building partnerships and developing activities to engage Australia in the sciences. An Inspiring Australia State and Territory Officers Working Group has been established to enhance collaboration between governments. This has already resulted in the joint funding of Inspiring Australia officers in a number of states and territories, jointly funded events around Australia and the drafting of a Framework of Principles for Science Communication Initiatives. National Science Week is now under the banner of Inspiring Australia, was a huge success in August this year with 1.6 million people participating and the prestigious Prime Minister’s Prizes for Science will continue with announcements to be made on November 17. Two groups of experts have also been created, one looking at ways to strengthen the media’s role in communicating science, and the other establishing a system for evaluating science engagement activities.
Charles Darwin University Engineering at Charles Darwin University has had another very successful year in developing its teaching and research activities. Full Engineers Australia accreditation has recently been gained for the distance-learning mode of the BEng Degree, adding to the internal study and Cooperative versions of this Degree. The new two-year Master of Engineering introduced this year is attracting a growing number of students, mainly from overseas but also from the domestic market. As was anticipated, the Coop Degree has attracted some students with very good entry qualifications, and they are now progressing through their studies. Student numbers continue to grow, and, judging by the number of external students located inter-state, it is clear that the engineering courses and teaching material available at CDU are gaining recognition and acclaim in wider Australia and beyond. Increasing numbers of enquiries from local companies and organisations seeking advice, guidance and professional expertise in helping to solve engineering problems further illustrates the increased standing of the academic staff and activities in engineering. CDU acknowledges and wishes to express thanks for the continuing strong support from NT Department of Construction and Infrastructure (formerly Department of Planning and Infrastructure) and other local organisations with regard to the BEng Coop Degree. It is particularly pleasing to report that the joint CDU-DCI submission of the BEng Coop Degree received the President’s Award at the EA Engineering Excellence Awards earlier this year. Current research projects include the study of disper-
sion of effluent in Darwin Harbour (a dye study for calibration and validation of the model at East Point was highlighted in the local media in July), optimisation of manufacturing features of axial flux electric motors, photo-voltaic cells, the new Centre for Renewable Energy and the just-established North Australian Centre for Oil and Gas. Studies of the effectiveness of the barrages on the Mary River floodplain for limiting saline intrusion are underway. The work will also look at the behaviour of the largely untouched Arafura swamp as well. Future developments expected within the next 12 months include units and courses in the area of Process Engineering and collaborative research with University of Newcastle (NSW) to examine the wear/corrosion of marine anchor chains. Funding is being sought to develop a new Structural Load-Testing Facility to enable large structural elements to be subjected to static or dynamic loads to determine structural response, ultimate load capacity, fatigue behaviour, etc.. Prof Friso de Boer, Head of School of Engineering and Information Technology said “These are exciting times for all those connected through work or study in the School. We have an excellent group of friendly, professionally-qualified academic staff delivering increasingly popular units to growing numbers of students. Our research projects and consultancy activities are also growing in both numbers and scope.” Prof. David Lilley Charles Darwin University Committee Representative
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6. Internal Structure and Administration Congress The main focus of Congress this year has been the reviMatters raised by Congress delegates. sion of the Royal Charter, the By-Laws and the Code of Ethics. Following review at the July meeting the drafts were put out for • Education in nuclear science and engineering – policy membership consultation and subsequently approved by mempaper being developed bership ballot. The Code of Ethics has been implemented. The • Engineering Education Royal Charter and By-Laws now await approval by the Governor • Marking of Engineering Projects – policy paper to be General. developed Members of Congress attended the launch of the 2010 • Promoting Innovation – policy paper to be developed National Infrastructure Report Card by Peter Taylor nationally • Separate chair for Congress and Council – not agreed televised at the National Press Club. • CELM as a college – not agreed The following reports were provided to Congress. • Royal Charter amendment to include a winding up • Council report to Congress – including approval of clause – not agreed the Regional SIG and 2012 as the Year of the Regional Engineer New members of Council 2011: • Launch of the 2011 Year of Humanitarian EngineerAdj Prof David Hood National Deputy President ing And Doug Gillott • Report on the 2010 Year of Engineering Leadership • Young Engineers Australia report • Progress report of the development of Stage 3 TechniPeter Hagan cal Competency Units Congress Representative Northern Division • Commissioner for Complaints report • Review of disciplinary procedures to fit with new Code of Ethics
Division Activities 2010 Month
Topic
Month
Topic
February
Meet and Greet Night – Young Engineers
August
Heritage Bus Tour
August
Young Engineers Golf Day
March
Welcome New Students Charles Darwin University BBQ
April
ENGQuest
August
Science & Engineering Challenge—Alice Springs
May
September
Sunchase Model Solar Car Challenge—Alice Springs
May
Gala Dinner—Guest Speaker Jonathan Carapetis, Menzies School of Health Sponsors/Supporters Cocktail Function
May
National Presidents Visit—Darwin/Alice Springs
September
Charles Darwin University Careers Fair
May
Students Thesis Presentations
October
May
Charles Darwin University Prize Giving
Charles Darwin University Student Thesis Presentations
May
Science and Engineering Challenge
October
Charles Darwin University Students Thesis Presentations
May
Science and Engineering Challenge Alice Springs
November
Infrastructure Report Card Launch
July
2010 Engineering Excellence Awards
August
Launch - Engineering Week 2010
November
Women in Engineering Breakfast
August
Sunchase Model Solar Car Challenge - Darwin
November
Young Engineers AGM
August
Launch of Engineering Week
December
Division General Meeting
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