Article written by Engineers Australia Queensland President Dr Peter Ho AM
Queensland Urban Utilities (QUU) have run a Third Party Certification Scheme for new Water and Sewer connections with over 100 engineering companies being involved with the self-certification of the design, construction, and maintenance of these works. All work is being signed off by a RPEQ civil engineer, and over the last year QUU have experienced areas of improvement in the design submissions.
QUU run forums twice a year, providing a platform to exchange discussions on areas that are of common concern to all parties involved and sessions to network. Recently, I was invited to participate in the 10 May 2016 Forum addressing delegates on the topic “Requirement of an Engineer” in design and construction.
Two identical sessions were conducted with over 140 engineers and technical staff in attendance. During my presentation I took the opportunity to highlight Engineers Australia’s vision to be “the trusted voice of the profession” and the Division’s policy positions in a number of key areas and our advocacy work being carried out in Queensland.
In addition, I detailed four key areas; Responsibility of an engineer to serve the community, whole-of-life consideration and maintaining safety in all account; Professional Ethics of an engineer to observe Engineers Australia Code of Ethics closely; Legal Liabilities of an engineer governed by the Professional Engineers Act 2002 and WHS Act 2011; and Sustainability of an engineer underpinned by the policy established by Engineers Australia. I also discussed the Queensland document Getting It Right the First Time, published in October 2005.
The network sessions during the forums were invaluable in exchanging ideas with the participants and offering further assistance from the Division, of which I was more than pleased to provide.
As your President, I am here to promote our profession in any shape or form. Do not hesitate to contact me about your views on areas of interest.
Members are welcome to contact Dr Ho at [email protected]