The inaugural meeting of the Electrical and Communications Branch of IEAust Newcastle was held on 19 July 1972, with those present being:
Chairman: Ian Henderson
Vice chairman: Ted Perrin
Secretary: Tom Roberts
Committee Members: Ron Goodhew, Phil Cooper, Alan Benn.
Alan Benn remembers some of the first meetings held by the committee, which included discussions about the QANTAS flight simulator and the Opera House lighting, and a visit to Killingworth substation.
Alan said it was felt the branch needed to provide both a social function and a lively forum to promote and exchange ideas, leading to continuous improvement for participants and their organisations.
“Ian invited me to join him in forming a new branch of the institution to provide a forum for electrical engineers to share their experience in the rapidly emerging technology at a time when institution meeting topics were not attracting electrical engineers,” Alan reminisced.
Half a century later and the committee has hosted approximately 300 technical presentations and half day seminars and participated in more than 55 site visits.
It has worked to put in place annual student prizes at the University of Newcastle since 1991, purchased the first data projector for the Newcastle Division Auditorium in 1998 and since 2014 has been delivering webinars to maximise the impact of auditorium presentations for the benefit of its regional members and to reach members across Australia and the world.
Today, the committee continues to support webinars with auditorium presentations soon to return to Newcastle, and actively supports member engagement and diversity. The continuing enthusiasm and dedication of the committee, with its ever-evolving membership, is something the group is proud of and wishes to celebrate.
In keeping with the committee’s original objective, all engineers and partners are invited to register for the Newcastle Electrical & ITEE Branch’s celebration dinner, where the group’s achievements will be recognised during a lively forum of shared stories from both past and present members.
Register your interest for the Celebration Dinner on Thursday 21 July in Newcastle.