Member Profile, Cody Granger

Cody Granger

I am an Infrastructure Planning Engineer at South Burnett Regional Council (SBRC) having started with SBRC in January 2020 as a Graduate Engineer in Assets.

Prior to South Burnett Regional Council, I worked for Gympie Regional Council for two years. I undertook compulsory work experience (while studying) in a volunteer capacity, and eventually obtained a contract as an Assistant Project Manager in the Water & Sewerage Business Unit.

I graduated from the University of Sunshine Coast with a Bachelor of Engineering (Civil) (Honours) in September 2020.

My hobbies include training horses and competing at Team Roping throughout Australia, in which I won a National Rodeo Association Championship in 2018.

What have been your career highlights?

My current involvement in the Kingaroy Transformation Project as a Project Engineer has given me an understanding of major projects within a CBD. This project involves replacement and upgrade of all underground infrastructure from shopfrontto-shopfront within four streets in the Kingaroy CBD. This infrastructure includes conduiting for future upgrades for fibre to premise for multiple suppliers, renewal of water mains and services, stormwater upgrades, conduiting for LV & HV power to be brought underground, wider DDA compliant concrete footpaths, and new full depth EME2 pavement and asphalt surfacing. A major part of my involvement includes the development of shared/community areas within the CBD. I have presented design reports to Council and undertaken community consultation to further refine the areas to reflect the community’s vision. Moving forward into construction will further enhance my construction skills involved with delivering major CBD transformations.

Do you have a particular mentor who has made a big impact on you and your career?

Both Aaron Meehan (General Manager Infrastructure) & James D’Arcy (Manager Infrastructure Planning) at South Burnett Regional Council have been amazing mentors who have given me opportunities to learn and grow my career in Local Government. South Burnett has an awesome Graduate Program which encourages and promotes graduates to get involved beyond their everyday roles.

Another huge mentor from my early career is Dan O’Brien (Senior Project Manager – Airservices Australia) whom I worked with when undertaking unpaid work experience. Dan introduced me to engineering and project management and continues to mentor my professional development.

Cody asphalting KTP.

What has been the most valuable advice you’ve received?

To make sure you celebrate the wins, especially more than you dwell on the downfalls.

And, to report every problem with at least three solutions. Managers dislike being given only problems with no solutions on how to move forward.

What has been your biggest challenge so far?

Learning to balance and prioritise major construction involved with the Kingaroy Transformation Project, while managing the ‘business as usual’ in my Planning Engineer role.

Also being more involved with the political side of local government by working firsthand with the Mayor and Councillors has been an eye-opening experience. I believe these skills will be essential for promotion within local government.

What common mistakes do new graduates tend to make when starting out in the industry?

I think graduates assume that they need to know everything about everything as soon as they finish university.

I believe university introduces you to the tools/mechanisms

Cody KTP asphalting with Councillor and ED officer.

Cody Gympie careers expo - including Steve Baxter.

required to be an engineer, but the skills required to be a successful engineer are learnt through mentoring and years of real-world experiences.

What is a common misconception others have about what you do when engineering solutions for communities? What do you enjoy most about your job and the location in which you work?

I love living and working in regional/country Queensland. I come from a country background and even when studying at the Sunshine Coast was always wanting to get back to the farm.

Where do you see yourself five years from now?

In five years I see myself as an RPEQ engineer with the experience to allow me to pursue higher level job opportunities within local government.

What inspired you to join IPWEAQ and what services are of most value to you?

I started using the ‘Ask your mates’ forum when I joined with South Burnett as I was new in the Asset Management space. My first course as a member was “Assessing Heavy Vehicle Access to Bridges” and I attended the SWQ Branch Conference in Chinchilla this year.

I think people outside of local government overlook how every resident is a key stakeholder on everyday decisions.

It’s amazing how something that may seem as small as a lower kerb, or location of a pram ramp can really affect how people go about simple daily activities. My weekends usually involve working on the farm or with our horses, and it’s not far to get to the coast or Brisbane for a weekend away.

I believe there are a lot of opportunities in regional Australia that get overlooked because people haven’t experienced the towns outside of SEQ. Smaller regional councils can provide a more direct working relationship with higher managerial levels than big councils which I see as invaluable in the early stages of an engineering career.

Attending these events does not only offer industry expertise but connections throughout local government and contractors which has been very helpful at this stage of my career. I look forward to continuing my attendance and hopefully one day presenting at a future conference.