News
| 01 December 2022

A look back on a year of engineering in South Australia

Welcome to the last edition of Engineering News for 2022. As we all wrap up for the end of the year, Engineers Australia would like to thank our members for their continued support. This article will look back over the achievements of our South Australia members and committee groups, their contributions to the engineering profession and community are many.

Our South Australia team was transformed during 2022 with Jan Irvine – General Manager, Leah Tattersall – Member Engagement Manager and Cara Heathcote – Member Engagement Officer all joining Engineers Australia between May and October.  

Now in the job for almost six months, Jan took on the role with a solid appreciation and understanding of the practice of engineering. She came to the role with knowledge of  the challenges and the opportunities facing the profession, having worked with businesses specialising in engineering, advisory and design for well over a decade.

“I have loved connecting with members, office bearers and our stakeholders to understand our challenges,” Jan said.

“More importantly I’ve enjoyed discovering the opportunities to support engineers in the critical role they play in finding solutions to global challenges, shaping Australia’s future and as we say at Engineers Australia, ‘making life happen’. I am really looking forward to seeing what we can achieve in 2023.”

This year South Australia members and staff have been able to collaborate and connect in-person again. It has been brilliant for the new SA team to build relationships with members and the wider engineering community. The team would like to thank members for being a part of the progress  made this year. 

A stand-out in the return to in-person events would have to be the Excellence Awards held in August, where we included a celebration of recent achievements of Chartered, Fellows and EngExecs. Guests were very reluctant to leave as the evening came to an end. 

The Force Forty Engineers program saw an engaged cohort meet high profile SA leaders and participate in conversations covering topics such as driving growth in SA into the future; why space?; the state of science; future proofing; and entrepreneurship in SA.

A briefing paper was developed prior to an Engineers Australia Space Workshop held in Adelaide, in March. Hosted by Chief Engineer Jane MacMaster, with invitees including space startups, the Australian Defence Force, state government and members of the National Committee on Space Engineering, the topic for the workshop was ‘how does Engineers Australia support the emerging civil space sector?’

Other achievements to note include:

  • Our SA General Manager joined the Industry Advisory Board of the Flinders University College of Science and Engineering.
  • We partnered with HOST International to facilitate professional mentors for engineers from migrant and refugee backgrounds.
  • We also partnered with STEM Returners Australia, a program helping STEM professionals return to work following a career break. Engineers Australia facilitates mentors for candidates on this program, a large percentage being women.

The SA Government has now committed to introducing a registration scheme for engineers. Engineers Australia was invited to participate in a roundtable on 2 December to help inform the development of this scheme. The team will keep members informed as this discussion progresses, keep an eye on Engineering News next year for updates.

The SA Committee has met and drafted the operational plan for 2023-24 which will be shared more broadly with members once finalised in the new year. 

Engineers Australia’s Adelaide office holiday shutdown period will run from Friday 23 December 2022 to Friday 6 January 2023 inclusive. During this time our office will be closed and there will not be any events held. 

The team wish you a very happy and safe holiday period and we look forward to seeing you in 2023.