IPWEAQ

Glenda Kirk (Branch President)

Director Infrastructure Services

Mareeba Shire Council

Natasha Murray (Vice-President)

Manager, Infrastructure

Douglas Shire Council

Joshua Flanders (Ambassador)

Project Engineer

St George Project Services

Neil Allen

Director

Endgame Projects

Hari Boppudi

Director of Engineering

Flinders Shire Council

Justin Fischer

Manager Asset Engineering

Cassowary Coast Regional Council

Danny Lynch

Director Infrastructure and Operations

Townsville City Council

Victor Mills

Director Works & Building Services

Wujal Wujal Aboriginal Shire Council

It was great to see so many NQ Branch members in Brisbane for the 2020 IPWEAQ Annual Conference with delegates in attendance from the following councils: Townsville City Council, Whitsunday Regional Council, Charters Towers Regional Council, Cairns Regional Council, Flinders Shire Council, Douglas Shire Council, Burdekin Shire Council and Mareeba Shire Council. NQ firms represented include Trinity Engineering & Consulting, St George Project Services, Brad Finegan & Associates, all.PM plus TMR and the FNQROC.

On behalf of Mareeba Shire Council, I was delighted to accept the 2020 Asset Management excellence award for our project, Bridging the Gap between Engineering and Accounting. I encourage you to consider submitting awards for 2021 as it is an excellent platform for showcasing the great work we do in the north. All nominees are featured in the Commemorative Book.

Congratulations to Paul Steele, Partner, Trinity Engineering & Consulting who was runner-up for the Best Paper award (by a mere 0.05%) for the impressive Cobbold Gorge glass bridge project. Paul’s presentation is available online. The accompanying PowerPoint presentation is also available in the Conference Proceedings.

If you were unable to attend #IPWEAQ20, 22.5 CPD hours are available by subscribing to the Conference Proceedings. For delegates, access is available now in the Knowledge Centre including access to the presentations for the three streams you were unable to attend in person.

Some of our NQ projects and past winners of an excellence award, are also featured in the inaugural Every Community Needs an Engineer calendar including:

• June: Whitsunday Regional Council & Mackay Regional Council, Mirani Water Recycling Facility/Bowen Sewage Treatment Plant
• October: Cairns Regional Council, Shields Street Heart
• December: Department of Transport and Main Roads, Beames Brook Bridge, Burketown

Please be sure to print each month of the calendar and hang it on a wall in a public space in your council or organisation to draw attention to the role of public works engineers in our communities.

The first IPWEAQ event for 2020 is the President’s Breakfast, Friday 5 February, 7am to 9am. Mackay Regional Council arranged a satellite breakfast to watch this live streamed event last year and we would like to see more NQ Branch councils and organisations participating in 2021. It’s a great way to stay connected, listen to great presentations and enjoy breakfast with colleagues. If you would like to participate, please contact Monica Robertson.

Thank you to all our members, Partners and sponsors for contributing to our ongoing growth and successes, and to the wider public works sector for being a part of our community. Best wishes to you and your family for a healthy and COVID-free 2021. And please also stay safe on our roads this Christmas.