October 2011 Eng-Zone: Engineers Australia Sydney Division's e-newsletter sent to you on the first week of every month with news and details of activities around Engineers Australia.
An Engineering Success Story Finisar Australia was presented with the prestigious Bradfield Award at the Engineering Excellance Awards held in September 2011. The J.J.C. Bradfield Award is presented to the overall winner of Sydney Division Excellance Awards. It recognises an acoomplishment of exceptional engineering merit. Finisar's FlexGrid is a flexible software enhancement within the company's range of Wavelength Selective Switches which allows telecommunications carriers to re-route signals throughout their network. The FlexGrid has the capacity not just for everyday usage but could prove instrumental in communication during disasters such as floods, earthquakes and bushfires.
Congratulations ! We would like to congatulate the following Engineers Australia Sydney Division members who have been appointed with Chartered (CPEng) Status during September 2011. New Chartered Members Amir Miralena Hrncic Samantha Prasad Jayawickrama Rebecca Semrani Johann Izak Havenga Andrew Wilfred Russell Mitri Saad George Verghese Ranbir Virdi Adrian Krekacs Alan Crombie Awatif Moustafa Helmy Joel Gregory Hill Tomm Lewis Kathy Hoi Yee Lau
"The FlexGrid can be used for instance if someone digs up a cable by accident. The telecommunication provider can use it to re-route traffic of phone and internet so phones don't drop out. It can also be used on occasions like Mother's Day when capacity goes up - carriers can use the Flexigrid to add more capacity to their network," says Dr Steve Winnall of Finisar Australia. "There are problems with the current legacy system which telecommunication provider now use. For example in situations like the City-to-Surf people couldn't make a mobile call because there were so many people in one location. Our product helps to alleviate that and provide a better quality of service. This is a great success story in terms of manufacturing and innovation in Australia as 99 per cent of our sales have been through export, so it is a device that is being used all over the world." The judges said the Flexigrid is an innovation that "overcomes the current constraint associated with fixed channel plans used in current optical networks. It is a unique and world leading product in optical fibre telecommunications."
NEWS Sydney Engineering Excellance Awards winners Announced! Engineers Australia Sydney Divison Excellence Awards was held on 16 September where thirteen Excellence and twelve Highly Commended, along with four Personal Awards were presented at The Westin Hotel. Read more... Looking for a way to get more involved? The Australian Engineering Week Committee are looking for more members to help make Engineering Week bigger and better. Committee meets the second Thursday of every Month in Chatswood. If you are interested please contact us at: aewsyd@engineersaustralia.org.au WSRG Visit to Mt. Piper Power Station The WSRG hosted a technical visit in September to Mt. Piper Power Station, located in Portland, NSW. View details. There were many lively questions answered about the 660 MW, now uprated to 700 MW, power plant units. Read more...
SPONSORS
MISE 2011 Materials Australia is hosting a two day conference in Melbourne (18th – 10th Oct) on materials innovation in surface engineering (MISE). Please visit the Events page on our website www.materialsaustralia.com.au for further information. Nominations now open for state's most prestigious Science Awards
The State's most prestigious science awards are set to be bigger and better in 2011 with more prize money on offer and three new award categories.Nominations close Monday 17 October 2011 and will be announced at NSW Government House on 23 November. For further details including nomination forms and guidelines visit www.business.nsw.gov.au/scienceawards . Engineers Australia Sydney venues for hire Engineers Australia Sydney Division offers spaces for hire with areas suitable for your next workshop or meeting. These include a Ground Floor Auditorium and 2 meeting rooms at Level 3. We are located at Chatswood, easily accessible via Pacific Highway and a short walk from Chatswood Station. For enquiries or advice on hiring a venue please email Julia on jbresolin@engineersaustralia.org.au.
EVENTS
Find us elsewhere ...
06.10.2011 The 2011 Young Engineers Debate: Australia's Humanitarian Issues 2011 is Engineers Australia's Year of Humanitarian Engineering, but how prominent should engineering be when tackling Australia's humanitarian issues? View details... 08.10.2011 Pathways to Development On Saturday 8 October, academics, professionals and humanitarian volunteers will engage in a dialogue on development. Hosted by Engineers Without Borders, you are invited to participate in Pathways to Development at the University of Sydney. Read more... 10.10.2011 Thomas Midelton and the NSW Railways in the 1880's Lecture by Ian Dunn, editor of The Australian Model Railway Magazine focusing on the career of Thomas Midelton in his various engineering role in the New South Wales Railways of the 1880’s. Register now... 10.10.2011 Tour an “Activity Based Work Environment”. Is it the ‘funky future’ of office life? Hot desking was yesterday’s concept. Today it’s all about Activity Based Work. When GPT moved into their refurbished offices, there were only 272 desks for 320 staff. Join SSEE for a tour at GPT’s new offices. View details... 12.10.2011 Coastal and Marine Geotechnics: Foundations for Trade Annual Symposium by Australian Geomechanics Society - Sydney Chapter, and the NSW Maritime Panel. View details... 12.10.2011 Site Visit: Australian Institute for Innovative Materials Visit the The Australian Institute for Innovative Materials (AIIM) facility on the University of Wollongong’s Innovation Campus houses the University of Wollongong’s flagship research groups – the Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials and the Intelligent Polymer Research Institute. View details... 13.10.2011 iOmniscient Technology Leader in Video Analytics Joint Electrical seminar presenting Dr Rustom Kanga, Founder and CEO of iOmniscient
Register now... 13.10.2011 RTA update on Shoalhaven and southcoast roadworks Join for an informative night to hear the latest news on RTS plans for the area and the history of challenges of road development in the shoalhaven. View Details... 13.10. 2011 WIE Annual Breakfast The Woman in Engineering Sydney Division (WIE) and Abigroup cordially invite you to our biggest annual event - WIE Breakfast. Register now... 13 - 14.10.2011 LSAA 2011 Conference on Collaborative Design The Lightweight Structures Association of Australasia (LSAA) is holding a Conference, Workshop and Industry Design Awards in Sydney. The theme is Collaborative Design and will highlight how complex construction projects can be more successful when collaborative tools such as 3D Modeling, interoperability between software systems, effective use of electonic communication and visualization is used. Building Information Modeling (BIM) is increasingly being adopted by forward thinking designers. Register now... 14.102011 Welding Requirements of AS/NZS1554.1 Structural Welding Guest Speaker: Craig Poulsen, Head Engineering Teacher, TAFE NSW Riverina Institute, Leeton Campus. Register now... 17.10.2011 Climate Change, Fact or Fiction The talk will discuss the evidence for long term climate variability concentrating on the past 3,000 years for which we have written records, man-made structures and other reliable information. View details... 18.10.2011 Engineering Towards a Better World Adjunct Associate Professor Don White with Observations from a Career in Industry, University and the Conservation Movement. View Details... 18.10.2011 Conducting Polymer Medical Bionics Research Presentation by Dr Simon Moulton, Senior QEII Research Fellow, ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science, University of Wollongon. View Details... 19.10.2011 Toastmasters Sydney Division - ‘Halloween’ Gain confidence and learn public speaking skills in a supportive club environment. Held at the Roseville Memorial Club 7-9.15pm. The club is open to all men and women over 18 years and is not restricted to Engineers. Contact Kvin Sansome 0401987739. 20.10.2011 Engineers Supporting Humanitarian Outcomes in the Acute Phase of International Disasters The engineering profession supports the response and recovery of communities from natural disasters and conflict. The Asia Pacific region suffers from significant disasters and recently New Zealand and Japan were devastated by horrific earthquakes. Register now... 24.10.2011 'Brisbane Gateway Upgrade Risk Engineering Society (RES NSW Chapter) AGM forllowed by Technical Presentation by Peter Trueman from Evans & Peck. 25.10.2011 North West Rail Link This Civil and Structural Engineering Panel presentation will cover the planning, project development, and some of the engineering challenges identified to date. View details... 27.10.2011 Biometric Modalities & Technologies for Improved Identification How can a task such as identifying a person irrefutably become easier and non intrusive? Presentation on many biometric modalities being used today, the methods and technologies available to “collect” biometric markers and process them in a few milliseconds. Register now...
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