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

If you are fortunate enough to still have training budgets to invest in your team, there are a number of courses scheduled for NQ/NT including:

• Bridge Inspections Levels 1 & 2 - Townsville, 23-25 March
• Erosion & Sediment Control Level 2 - Cairns, 16 March & Darwin, 31 August
• Type A, B & D Sediment Basin Design - Darwin, 3 September
• Erosion & Sediment Control Level 3 - Darwin, 1-3 September
  
  

With the NQ Branch conference cancelled in 2020, please also be sure to allocate your time and budgets to attend the NQ Branch conference to be held in Townsville, 17-18 June. The Call for Papers is now open so please submit an abstract, and also encourage your younger team members to take the step to deliver a presentation to a supportive audience. Up to 45 CPD hours are available if you are selected to present.

Each of the four IPWEAQ regional branch conferences have quite different programs tailored for local issues and projects however they all offer valuable learnings relevant and relatable for all of us so I encourage IPWEAQ members to login to the Knowledge Centre to view the audio visual recordings from the recent SEQ Branch conference and the imminent SWQ Branch conference. Access is complimentary to members offering you additional CPD hours. If you are not a member, this is yet another good reason to join.

 The IPWEAQ Knowledge Centre has been globally recognised in the Library Publishing Coalition which lists academic and specialist libraries across the world. IPWEAQ’s entry features our disciplinary speciality ie engineering for public works in Queensland.

Also coming up, and expected to be a major event with 200+ delegates, is the 2021 Asset Management Symposium to be held in Brisbane, 19-20 May. The program has just been launched [insert link - https://ipweaq.eventsair.com/asset-management-symposium-2021-brisbane/agenda] and includes Justin Fischer, Cassowary Coast Regional Council discussing practical asset management leadership. The program includes a number of interactive sessions aimed at determine our collective view to inform policy and identify needs to prioritise further initiatives. The Symposium will be held at Parliament House in Brisbane.

In October, 12-14, NQ will again host the IPWEAQ Annual Conference to be held at the newly-refurbished Cairns Convention Centre. The excellence awards gala ceremony/dinner will be held in conjunction with the conference and submissions are now open for the awards program. Please be sure to enter your projects as all projects nominated are featured in the annual Excellence Awards Commemorative Book and this is an excellent opportunity to showcase the work you do for your community.

And finally, I am pleased to have accepted a position on the RPEQ Assessment Board (RPEQ A-B). The role of the RPEQ A-B is to oversee the assessment processes established for IPWEAQ’s Assessment Scheme for civil engineering approved by the Minister in accordance with the Professional Engineers Act 2002. The IPWEAQ Board also recently approved Guidelines for the RPEQ A-B which are published in the 2021 March issue of Engineering for Public Works.

I look forward to seeing you all at the NQ Branch conference in Townsville, 17-18 June!