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Director, Taylor Thomson Whitting

CVEN Degree & Year of graduation:
BE Hons ’81, MEngSc ’89

School memories:��

Fellow students bonding through working together as teams to complete assignments. Lecturers Ken Faulkes (clear thinking on concrete design and enthusiasm for it); Alex Heaney (how he quizzed us on the shapes of bending moment diagrams and deflected shapes); Ray Lawther (laid back analysis wiz with a cool MG); Peter Kneen (who supervised my Masters project on the analysis of cable structures). Being told in first lecture in Statics that ‘this was the culling subject and 50% of you would fail’. Least liked - statistics lectures. Sneaked off to the Blockhouse and applied my physics & dynamics skills on the snooker table.

���������¼� was good at teaching us how to think; how to problem solve which I think is much more important for a uni than just delivering content.

Career rewards:

Starting my firm’s first overseas office (in Jakarta) where I caught up again with School lecturers Vir Murti and Peter Kneen. Continuing relationships, personal & professional, that came from that time overseas. Working with a creative team that turns a sketch on a page into a building. Seeing the fruits of my labour in concrete (literally). I feel very fortunate to still be working in a job where I ‘do’ engineering every day.

Director, Water Licensing & Compliance at IPART

CVEN Degree & Year of graduation:
BE Environmental Hons 2006

How has your degree benefitted you?

Environmental engineering at ���������¼� Australia gave me skills which I would call ‘beyond technical’. So yes, as an engineer I can do the maths and the science, but the most important skills I got from my degree were skills in communication, problem solving, strategic thinking, working in a team and applying the maths and science for positive outcomes. Maths and science alone won’t save the world!

What is your advice to current or prospective students?

Get as much diverse experience as you can both while at university and in the workforce, always learn from what you have done before and wherever possible challenge yourself.

Look for the degree, the project, or the job that you think is most likely to change you, change Australia or change the world.

Associate Principal and Australasia Maritime Business Leader, Arup

CVEN Degree & Year of graduation:
BE (Environmental) 2003,
MEngSc (Coastal Engineering) 2004��

David Dack��is��an Associate Principal at Arup, leading their maritime business in Australasia.��He is a��maritime and coastal infrastructure specialist, a chartered Fellow of Engineers Australia, and has over 20 years’ experience in both project leadership and technical roles working from Australia and the UK.�� David’s professional focus is on responding to the socio-economic and climate change-induced challenges faced by ports, coastal infrastructure, and coastal communities and the need to move towards a more resilient and sustainable future.���� David is also a member of the AU-NZ Board for PIANC, the��international��association for��waterborne��transport��infrastructure.��

Best part about your current work?

I really enjoy the variety of my work, and working with a wide variety of people (my team, clients, builders, and other stakeholders) towards a common goal of sustainably improving the built environment for the benefit of us all.

Although I’m doing more leadership and review roles these days, I still try to make time to do what I enjoy at core which is to get my head down solving tricky technical problems.��

Work achievements most proud of?

I’m most proud of the projects I have led or been involved in that have really benefited the community. These include a new waterfront development for London’s Canary Wharf, expansion of the Port of Melbourne for increased future trade, and the (award-winning) on the NSW central coast.

It is also very satisfying to be able to pass on what I know to upcoming engineers and support their career development.��

Usefulness of your degree?

While of course a lot of my learnings since uni have been made through practice on the job, my engineering degree gave me the essential knowledge and mindset to logically solve problems on real infrastructure projects. Many of the connections and friendships I made along the way at ���������¼� I still tap into for my work. It has been really satisfying seeing my ���������¼� peers doing great things in different fields and organisations.��������

Future visions?

There are a lot of problems to solve, and opportunities to realise, to ensure a resilient and sustainable future for our society.��Engineers need to play a significant part in this, working closely with a wide range of other specialists and interest groups. It’s a very exciting time to be in this profession!

Greens Member Of the NSW Legislative Council

CVEN Degree & Year of graduation:
MEngSc ’94, PhD ’00

‘Civil Engineers can do anything and everything!’ I can remember my Dad, also a civil engineer, repeating this line quite often.

School memories:

I did my post graduate study (Master and PhD) in environmental engineering. We had an amazing cohort of research students from all over the world. The professional and social networks we formed continue to this day. My lecturers, in particular Stephen Moore and Ronnie Harding, are passionate teachers and really inspired me.

Career rewards:

I have worked in a variety of organisations including local government, consulting firms and universities. I believe that Engineers today need to take a leading role in delivering current and future human needs, addressing complex environmental challenges such as climate change and ecosystem degradation, while understanding the ‘exquisite interdependence’ of science and technology with business, politics and society. What inspires me most today, are my own students whose diverse views and expertise paves the way for creative and innovative thinking - the only way to lead change.

Chief Scientist and Deputy Director of R&D at Origin Water, Beijing

CVEN Degree & Year of graduation:
PhD'99

Jing Guan��is chief scientist and deputy director of R&D at one of China’s largest water treatment membrane technology companies, Beijing Origin Water Technology Co (B.O.W.). Already with more than 100 membrane patents, and 1000 completed membrane projects that provide 2 billion tonnes of high-quality reclaimed water a year, it’s a boundless task.

Jing says the company’s main products are PVDF MF/UF membrane and low pressure reverse-osmosis membranes for the treatment of municipal and industrial wastewater, drinking water treatment, domestic tap water purification and seawater desalination. “The company also provides technologies for solid waste and sludge treatment, water engineering construction and water industry investment,” she says. “It also plays an important role in water environment treatment in new rural construction. B.O.W. has made a great contribution to water environment protection in China.”

Formerly a senior research fellow at ���������¼�’s Centre for Water and Wastewater Technology in the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Jing moved back to China and began her current role five years ago. In 1999 she completed her PhD in Environmental Engineering at ���������¼�.

She says she receives great job satisfaction working with such a strong R&D team in an area of such global concern. “The biggest engineering challenges for my work are how to develop a right, proper technology as well as ensure it is able to apply to solve the water problem.”

Geotechnical Engineer PSM

CVEN Degree/s & Year of graduation:����
BE(Civil) Hons /BSc (Computer Science), 2024

Award-winning student, 2022 President of student society CEVSOC, ���������¼� Engineering student ambassador and popular tutor, and already with several successful internships in large consultancies under her belt, Christine Ha made the big leap at the beginning of 2025 to work as an engineer at leading geotechnical consultancy PSM, a company which prides itself on its commitment to continuous technical growth and education.

Christine was soon on another course, this one led by PSM’s geotechnical and geology experts, which combined theory and practical learning to ‘equip our employees with the foundational skills needed to thrive as consultants.’�� Not surprisingly, she loved it. Continuous learning and growth and attention to craft – a perfect fit for Christine’s own world view.

‘The problems we face as a humanity are getting more and more complex’ she says, ‘We need collaboration and diversity to tackle these issues successfully and survive as a species for generations to come.’ She sees herself as an engineer of the future. ‘Through the use of my technical and interpersonal skills, I hope to help solve these problems and leave a lasting legacy.’

Principal, Sydney Buildings Design Group 1, Arup

CVEN Degree/s & Year of graduation:
BE Hons ’95

School memories:

Ray Lawther’s classes were always entertaining…… and whilst (from my perspective!) I didn’t always understand his lectures at the time, I found myself afterwards - in exams and the early years of my professional career - having moments when the light switched on or the penny dropped. Thanks Ray! Ian Gilbert for his knowledge and tireless effort to improve the design of concrete structures. Skipping lectures and tutes to get to the Village Green for cricket training – a small price for a learning-life balance…..

Career rewards:

It is an exciting and important time to be an engineer. The associated impacts from climate change and population growth - such as sufficient food and water supply, and necessary changes to the built environment and the way we live today - will require creative and innovative solutions from both today’s and tomorrow’s engineers. The most rewarding moments are always seeing designs realised – in particular those where problems have been solved creatively, collaboratively, and functionally. The most challenging is to maintain the mindset and environment to realise continual innovation and creativity.

CEO and Executive Director, DURA Technology

CVEN Degree/s & Year of graduation:
Be Hons 1 '01, PhD '04

Dr Voo Yen Lei has been setting world records in bridge-building. In 2011, the company that he founded and of which he is CEO and Executive Director, DURA Technology, built the world’s longest trafficable bridge using ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC): the Kampung Linsum Bridge in Malaysia. Voo designed, manufactured and built the cutting-edge bridge, which won the Husband Prize from the Institution of Structural Engineers. His company is currently building a 100m single-span bridge using the same technology. He says the breakthrough “followed many years of research and development and close collaboration and fruitful scientific discussion with��Professor Stephen Foster��(Head of the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering)”.

Voo says that as well as the long spans making the bridge quick to construct, UHPC has environmental benefits. “As a rule of thumb, a UHPC bridge is generally able to give immediate inventory savings of 20–25% in terms of carbon footprint or global warming potential when compared to current design.”

Voo left Sydney in 2003 and spent four years developing the technology, marketing, and dealing with regulators and industry bodies. The company has completed 14 bridges for the Malaysian government, 12 more are under construction and 10 others are under tender. “Almost all our clients have no knowledge about UHPC technology,” he says. “One of the reasons I am still active and teaching lectures at university level [he is adjunct professor for University Putra Malaysia] is because it is the most suitable way to teach UHPC technology.”

Facade Engineer, Arup

CVEN Degree/s & Year of graduation:
BE Civil Engineering with Architecture, 2011

Arup are an independent global and multidisciplinary firm of designers, planners, engineers, consultants and technical specialists offering a broad range of professional services.

My job today:��

At the moment, I am predominantly working as a façade access and maintenance consultant. This involves working closely with architects, clients and other engineers in the design phase to come up with strategies on how a new building façade will be accessed in order to carry out routine maintenance work. This can be quite a complex task which requires coordination with many different parties to work out spatial requirements, costs, safety, workability and structural adequacy to support the systems which must be installed. Most of the projects I am working on are very large scale buildings and developments around the world and working with some of the most well known architects globally has been the most exciting part for me thus far.

How my degree benefitted me:

I learnt all the technical skills and established my foundations as an engineer (excuse the pun!), but at the same time I was exposed to how architects are taught to think and ultimately come up with designs for buildings. I engaged with this process myself and learnt how the creative process happens. I am able to appreciate where an architect's design has come from and the reasoning behind it, and I feel that I can communicate and collaborate with architects more easily as well.

My advice to current or prospective students:

To current students: My number one piece of advice is to really try to get out there and get some work experience as soon as possible in your degree. I found uni so much easier after I had gone out and seen how things are in the real world, just by going out on site and seeing how buildings are put together. Everything you learn at uni gets put into context after doing work experience and then it is so much easier to approach problems at uni logically rather than just memorising a method and trying to re-apply it to new things in exams, which never works out!

To prospective students: As an engineer, the opportunity to do this degree is invaluable. Particularly if you think you would like to work as an engineer on building projects, this degree is for you. You will have the opportunity to learn all about the creative design process as well as the technical and problem solving skills you need to have as an engineer.

Conversely, be warned of the level of mathematics involved in engineering. I feel lucky that I was interested in both arty and creative things as well as the technical/problem solving side. It feels empowering to be a woman in an industry which is male dominated. I feel that people respect and admire you for doing it.

Personally this degree was a huge challenge for me and there were times where I questioned my decision to do it, but looking back now I don't think I would have done anything else!

Ian McIntyre, Chair, CVEN Industry Advisory Committee����

Principal and Service Lead, Contractual Services, Advisian

CVEN Degree/s & Year of graduation:
BE Hons 1 ’74

School Memories:

I have always felt a debt to David Howell for the General Systems Thinking perspective that I have utilised to good effect ever since. The ability to use the General Systems paradigm to structure a sensible formulation of new fields, issues and problems has been a recurring theme throughout my career. I also clearly remember the ease with which Professor Valentine made the study of Hydraulics simple and straightforward and I have sought to emulate his explanatory ability ever since.

Career Rewards:

I have never regretted my choice of Civil Engineering as a career. I was the third person in Evans & Peck (now Advisian) and I have found its development and maturing over the years to be very satisfying, particularly in regard to the high calibre of people we have attracted into the business, especially the excellent and bright “twenty somethings” who will lead the organisation in the future. Individuals can achieve little except as part of teams and I have found the membership and leadership of project teams that genuinely operate as integrated teams to be very rewarding and satisfying. Engineering is, above all else, a people business.

Principal, Pells Sullivan Meynink

CVEN Degree/s & Year of graduation:
BE Hons 1974, MEngSc 1976

Why civil engineering:

When I completed the HSC in 1969, a man had just been on the moon. It seemed engineers could do anything. I happened to be very good at maths and physics and my background was that you did what you were good at. I didn’t want to be in an office full time and had a view that civil engineers worked on sites and built big things. That was good enough for me.

Clearest memories of School days:

To be frank, I remember excellent academic staff (Professor Ian Lee, Ian Cordery and Ken Faulkes to name a few) and somewhat idle students, myself included. Mid career, I spent 12 rewarding years on the School’s staff. It struck me that the students were much more motivated and focused.

Career rewards and challenges:

Two projects with very challenging technical problems are especially memorable: Working with an international team on re-engineering the North Rankin A platform in the early 1980s, and managing to get Burnley Tunnel re-opened in less than a week when the side wall failed in 2000. More recently, I have had to challenge a number of orthodoxies and have managed to take multiple technical reviewers on the journey. Most rewarding? That’s easy. Working with very bright and motivated young engineers.

Engineering challenges of the future:

The major challenge facing First World civil engineering is providing new infrastructure in congested urban environments where the local community bears the cost but a more remote (in time and space) community reaps the benefits.

Project Engineer

CVEN Degree/s & Year of graduation:
BE Civil Hons 2009

Water Research Laboratory, ���������¼� Water Research Centre WRL is a leading international consulting and research laboratory and is a major group within ���������¼� Australia's Water Research Centre. WRL is unique in housing academic staff alongside a commercial Projects Team. The Projects Team offer commercial services of expert advice to industry and government, while the academic staff carry out research programs and supervise postgraduate students.

My job today:

Since I began at the WRL I have worked in a variety of areas within the water discipline including: physical and numerical modelling, contaminate fate and transport (tracer) studies, estuarine and wetland projects and groundwater quality and monitoring programs. All of the work that I do at the ���������¼� Water Research Laboratory is exciting. The Lab is considered the birthplace of coastal engineering in Australia with a highly regarded international reputation in the fields of coastal and ocean engineering.

Why I chose my degree:

I first heard about the ���������¼� Civil program through my Physics teacher in high school and he encouraged me to pursue a career in engineering. ���������¼� Engineering has a steadfast reputation as being the best in the business and also offered a coastal focus which was one of my interests. I was also offered a 4-year scholarship to study civil engineering at ���������¼�. Also a BE (civil) degree at ���������¼� is a good platform to begin a career in engineering particularly when one considers the industry partnerships the Faculty maintains.

The BE civil engineering program provides substantial variety in the courses offered over the five discipline areas – construction and management, geotechnical, structural, transport, and water engineering - to undergraduate students which gives them the opportunity to find their personal strengths, weaknesses and interests. The high calibre of teaching staff within the faculty not only provide students with the tools for learning but are also readily available to mentor individual students throughout the degree so that they are ready to face whatever "real-world" challenges come their way in the future.

My advice to prospective students:

All I can say is that you will not look back after completing a BE (civil) degree at ���������¼�. I haven't. If you are dedicated to achieving the goal to become eminent in the field of civil engineering then this program will provide you with the tools and stepping stones in order to do so. Jump in, do the work, but enjoy yourself along the way!

Co-Founder,��

CVEN Degree & Year of graduation:��
BE Environmental Hons 2007,
MEngSc Sustainable Resource Management/ Project Management, 2008

Winner: ���������¼� Women in Engineering��Ada Lovelace Medal��for Outstanding Engineer.

After 17 years at the United Nations, working to support and promote the circular economy and sustainable lifestyles, strengthening the science-policy interface, providing technical assistance to governments, and supporting startups in the private sector that offered sustainable solutions, Janet co-founded climate tech startup FootprintLab in 2022.��

FootprintLab provides current, accurate and commercially ready data that can be integrated into environmental or financial accounting software, procurement, fintech, open banking, investment, and any other transactional processes, enabling local and global organisations to meet their sustainability goals with confidence.��

'When you work in climate action long enough,' Janet says, 'you see that the problem is not a lack of technology solutions, it’s that the solutions are not connected to consumption or production decisions.�� We need to get sustainability into financial decision making.' Footprint Lab aims to do just that, by integrating sustainability information and data into financial transactions.

Janet believes that an engineering degree can be applied in different ways. 'I’ve always seen it as a science of solutions – that kind of training can be applied in many jobs that don’t require a hard hat.' She has continued her studies with a PhD in sustainability and carbon footprint accounting at University of Sydney, where she also lectures and supervises students in the Masters of Sustainability Science. She also mentors climate start-ups in����program.��

Janet sees her being awarded the 2022 Ada Lovelace medal��'as an encouragement��to the engineering community to engage in entrepreneurship and climate solutions. Even if that means leaving a successful career to do so. It’s been great to see how many engineers are behind the innovative climate tech start-ups that I come across, so I am in good company.'

Em Prof Elizabeth Taylor, AO

Chair, RedR Australia

CVEN Degree & Year of graduation:
BE Civil ‘78

Structural engineer, engineering academic, humanitarian engineer.

Previous roles included Pro-Vice Chancellor and Executive Dean, Sciences, Engineering & Health at University of Central Queensland��

Awarded the Order of Australia in 2004��for her services to engineering education, and for enhancing the status of women in engineering.

While a student I enjoyed��the hands-on engineering such as making concrete, and the survey camp at Richmond. Project based aspects such as the “Footpath Foreman” activity in first year. In this activity each student was required to find a construction site and, with the permission of the foreman, follow and document progress over the six months of term, write a report and give a presentation to the class. I also enjoyed playing cards in the “Blue Room” in later years.

I did not enjoy the isolation and lack of support. I was not assertive, and the boys did not speak to me for the first year. Upon reflection I feel that it was an unconscious rather than an active exclusion. ���������¼� at that time reflected the norm culturally. What perhaps is sad is that universities generally reflect rather than challenge prevailing social norms.

Career Highlights:

As a professional engineer: construction and contracts engineering on site around Sydney Harbour. As an academic: in collaboration with wonderful colleagues who are passionate about their area of expertise, integrating curriculum and support for students while extending the boundaries of our understanding of our professionalism. I am privileged to have been a part of the movement that made some shift to greater inclusivity within universities, and a member of groups such as AAEE (Australasian Assoc for Engineering Education) and the Women in Engineering Units who were critical change agencies.

Graduate Engineer - Sydney Buildings Facades - ARUP

CVEN Degree & Year of graduation:
BE Civil with Architecture 2011 University Medallist in Civil Engineering with Architecture

Arup are an independent global and multidisciplinary firm of designers,planners, engineers, consultants and technical specialists offering a broad range of professional services.

My job today:

The heart of my job is design. It’s not limited to technical/engineering aspects but is also heavily involved in coordination and discussions with architects, builders, contractors and so on. My undergraduate education has better prepared me for design, a constantly evolving and iterative process. The “big picture” approach, often downplayed in engineering education, has turned out to be the most applicable lesson in the workplace.

Why I chose my degree:

I was attracted to ���������¼�’s great reputation in engineering, I enjoyed the teaching and the large variety of subjects. The civil engineering subjects are very relatable and true to life - it made me appreciate the everyday conveniences we take for granted. While allowing us to be practical and analytical in doing the engineering calculations, we could release our creative energy with the architecture subjects. It was great fun. The Design Studios trained students towards a holistic approach to design, from planning, developing ideas, to presentation. There was plenty of time on one-on-one feedback or discussion with tutors on various issues. Other than architectural design, discussion also ranged to include practicality, materials, construction, buildability, and so on.

Most challenging aspect:

Time management, especially when juggling engineering assignments with architecture ones, which were often very time-consuming. Prioritising is everything!

Future Hopes:

I’m just starting out in the industry. It’s exciting, fast-paced, dynamic. I’m hoping to gain valuable experiences and learn what it takes to be a real, capable engineer. I’m also keeping my eyes open for further education in engineering or maybe architecture in the future.

NSW Surveyor-General

CVEN Degree & Year of graduation:
BE Hons 1 Surveying and Spatial Information Systems, ’09

Member of the School’s Industry Advisory Committee

On 2 September 2016, NSW Department of Finance, Services and Innovation Secretary, Martin Hoffman, announced the appointment of Narelle Underwood as the NSW Surveyor General.

Mr Hoffman said Ms Underwood brings a wealth of experience, most recently as the Acting Principal Surveyor at NSW Roads and Maritime Services.

“Ms Underwood is a leader in her profession working as an advisor to the Board of Surveying and Spatial Information and Chair of the Surveying Mapping and Industry Council,” said Mr Hoffman. “She has also played a significant role in promoting and developing the survey profession, particularly in the tertiary sector and with young professionals.”

In addition to her considerable personal and professional capabilities, Narelle Underwood also has the distinction of being the first female Surveyor General in Australia.

In her relatively short career to date, Narelle has won a total of nine industry awards for her innovation and commitment to quality outputs, including the Asia-Pacific Spatial Excellence Awards Young Professional of the Year in 2011, which she won from amidst a highly capable international field.

In 2014 the team which Ms Underwood managed won a NSW Excellence in Surveying and Spatial Information Award for the technical innovation and efficiency they displayed during stage 1 of the WestConnex development project. Under Narelle’s management, six teams covering vast geographical areas used the latest mobile laser scanning technology, cutting surveying time by up to 70%. Because of the densely populated urban environment, other technologies such as traditional detail surveying and Terrestrial Laser Scanning (TLS) were also used to enhance the accuracy of MLS-derived data and filling in any apparent gaps.����

“Merging new and traditional technologies continues to be one of my greatest joys. Combining data drawn from different sources allows surveys to be much richer and more useful,” she says.

Narelle Underwood is not daunted by the ever changing technological landscape of the surveying industry; she is excited by it. Technological innovation can ensure the expansion of public infrastructure in the future.

In her role with RMS, overseeing surveying projects in the Sydney region, much of her work focused on research and development of better, safer and more accurate outputs. Take as an example mobile laser scanning which, as the name suggests, consists of a device mounted on a vehicle which then moves through the area to be surveyed. The device takes images at up to two million pixels per second, which is an astounding feat and allows surveys to be extremely accurate, often down to ten millimetres. Because of the accuracies involved – projects which may ordinarily have taken over 12 months can now be fully completed in a third of the time.

Narelle is working with two professional bodies (ISNSW and SMIC – of which she is chair) on the NSW Surveying Task Force to encourage more graduates to consider a career in surveying – without whom the construction industry could very well grind to a halt.

“There is a severe shortage of Registered Land Surveyors in Australia so we’re working to lifting the profile of the profession,” she said. “With technology changing so rapidly, we really don’t know what will be happening in five or ten years, what people will need and how data and information will be used. It’s an open book, which makes this profession extremely exciting.”

Senior Manager Model Planning, Transport for NSW (TfNSW)

CVEN Degree & Year of graduation:����
BE(Civil) Hons 1, 2016
BE (Enviro) Hons 1, 2016
PhD (Civil Engineering) 2020

About:��

Navreet��uses data-driven analytics in the form of transport modelling and forecasting to help inform planning, business case development, and infrastructure delivery of transport infrastructure in New South Wales.

Navreet's first taste of transport engineering was during an undergraduate course where students designed an optimal ramp metering solution for the Sydney M4 motorway. This course inspired him to investigate further into the discipline of transport planning and engineering, discovering that it was a field leveraging mathematics, programming, optimisation, problem solving, software development, geospatial systems, and graphical visualisation. The variety that this field offers informed the direction of his career.

Navreet's honours thesis centred on the mathematical modelling and microsimulation of mixed fleet systems containing Autonomous and Connected Vehicles. He pursued the topic through a PhD, focusing further on the implications of such vehicles, and the design or policy changes that may be necessary to take full advantage of their capabilities. He is fascinated by intelligent driving systems capable of optimised operation through co-operation and communication.

Best part about your current work?

I have the opportunity to help inform the 50-year strategic direction of NSW’s transport infrastructure. My work provides me with a look into NSW’s future population and employment distributions, placemaking visions, and transport infrastructure needed to support future mobility.

Work achievements most proud of?

I led the development and writing of the 2025 Transport Modelling Guidelines, adopted for all transport modelling and forecasting applications across New South Wales.

Future visions?

I aspire to continue serving the community by upholding strong ethical values, informing sound land use and transport planning decision making, and promoting an equitable and multi-modal future for NSW.