Looking Over the Horizon Monday, 30 November 2015

Written by Francis Norman AFIEAust CEngA, President of Engineers Australia WA Division.

As we move to the end of the year, I felt it appropriate to try to peer over the horizon, toward what I hope to be a future brighter than our immediate past.

I believe we end 2015 with some stabilising of the local engineering market. The numbers of job vacancies here have been holding steady for the last few months following a couple of years of, at times, rapid decline. We are having meaningful discussions around innovation and collaboration as well as the shape of our future engineering world here in WA. All of which point to, at least, the beginnings of stability and some planning for the future.

And yet, we are still facing many of the same systemic challenges we have had for years, both as a profession and a society. As a profession, we need to improve our overall productivity and regain our place in the world as a trustworthy place to undertake engineering. We need to find ways to engage and develop the next generation of engineers as they enter the workforce. To leverage their enthusiasm while equipping them for a successful engineering future and, sadly, we still need to find ways to eradicate serious injury and fatalities of all forms from our working lives, be they as the result of accidents, abuse of controlled substances or suicide.

The broader society, of which the engineering community is a part, must find ways to integrate those on the fringes of our wealthy modern world, to ensure no one is left behind. Specifically, we need to find ways to move beyond plans to active, meaningful, broad reaching reconciliation with the indigenous community. To shift conversations and preconceptions such that anyone, regardless of race, gender or background is welcomed into the science and engineering community and supported through their entire career, removing the challenges faced by working parents and members of lower socioeconomic groups.

As engineers, we are in a privileged position, we generally have interesting, challenging and well paid work that enables us to live meaningful and comfortable lives. However, it is often easy to forget those around us, we get wrapped up in our daily work and concerns over downturns in the industry, yet through it all we have an obligation to society to play our part.

As this is my last article before handing over to Incoming President Jason Flowerdew for 2016, I wanted to thank everyone who has supported me through the year. The amazing staff at the division office led by Susan Kreemer Pickford, the 2015 WA division committee, members of all of the committees and groups and, of course, all of you, the division membership. We are all part of such a powerful and complex organisation that is working hard to represent our profession to the broader community.

I would like to wish you all a happy and safe holiday season and a successful 2016.

@FrancisNorman