In July the Defence Force held a ceremonial parade to mark the establishment and first birthday of 13th Brigade’s 13th Engineer Regiment in Western Australia, the first of its kind in Defence.
Commanding Officer 13th Engineer Regiment Lieutenant Colonel Lachlan Robertson said the 13th Engineer Regiment structure had two squadrons – the existing 13 Field Squadron and a new specialist 22 Engineer Squadron.
The Engineer Squadron adds science, technology, engineering and maths [STEM] capabilities such as innovation, experimentation, project management and technical reconnaissance.
“These will be applied through an integrated approach with academia, industry and government partners in support of national defence,” he said.
Engineers Australia Western Australia General Manager Susan Kreemer Pickford said an engineering specific regiment will be invaluable to the WA Defence force.
“The heart of engineering is problem solving and this squadron will be a huge asset to the Western Australian defence force, coming up with innovative ways to solve the countries problems.”
Ms Kreemer Pickford was invited to be the Business member for the judging of the 2023 Defence Employer Support Awards for WA.
“It was great to see engineers nominating their employer for the awards to recognise their commitment to supporting employees with their service to Defence. I was humbled to read of the nominees’ personal contributions, enabled by the support of their organisations, a number of which employ large numbers of engineers.”
“Along with the specialist STEM capability, 13 Engineer Regiment will continue to provide combat and force support engineering capabilities to enable integrated manoeuvre,” Lieutenant Colonel Robertson said.
“The establishment of 22 Engineer Squadron has seen a number of specialist service officers recruited from industry and the recruitment of ‘any corps’ personnel. Combining these specialists, with a focus on new ideas and concepts, will strengthen Army’s innovation and experimentation capability.”
“13th Brigade is continuing to be a test bed for military innovation and transformation for greater Army.”