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IET Western Australia  A brief history of an IET Local Network

Brief History

The IET Western Australian Local Network (IET WA LN) was founded on the 11th of November 1914. Unfortunately, little of the history of the IET WA LN exists before 2000, however the network’s members have been instrumental in the development of the power network in Western Australia.

Record of the IET Western Australia Chairs

  • 1978-1990 Bruce James, OAM
  • 1978-1990 Dr Ric Smith
  • 2000-2003 Trevor Bowland
  • 2003-2010 Gordon March
  • 2011-2017 Derek Boardman
  • 2018-Present Dr Martin King

Notable Members

Bruce James, OAM (West Australian Power system)

Bruce James, OAM

Former Chair, Bruce James OAM has been a member of the IET Western Australia Local Network since 1971. An active member with the Local Network, Bruce James has served as Treasurer, Deputy Chair, and has greatly contributed to discussions, and provided guidance to fellow members.

Bruce James has shown a commitment to the history of engineering with his role as Chair of the Heritage and Historical Committee that brought recognition to Wireless Hill and of the Perth Narrows Bridge. Additionally, Bruce James has been active with charitable committees and chaired numerous organisations delivering social services to the community.

Bruce James’s career in power distribution systems saw him involved in the change of frequency from 40Hz to 50Hz and the change of DC to 50Hz in regional areas of Western Australia.

Gordon March (High Achiever)

Gordon March

During his tenure as Chair of the WA IET LN committee, Gordon March introduced several new activities, most notably was the Networking Dinners. These Networking Dinners raised the profile and encouraged membership to the IET in Western Australia.

Gordon March’s leadership led to the creation of an effective team that obtained sponsorship funds for the Networking Dinners and other LN activities.

Martin King (High Achiever)

Martin King

Chair since 2018, Martin King’s innovative leadership style at the WA IET LN has helped to motivate and lead committee members.

Peta Blight (Young Professional High Achiever)

Peta Blight

Peta Blight has made significant contributions to the Young Professional Committee and its success. Peta Blight is founder of the Young Professional Leadership Programme, a programme that boasts of strong competition for places and has seen many former members join the IET WA LN Committee.

Peta Blight’s encouragement and support of Young Professional women in the early stages of their careers is indicative of her resourcefulness and motivation of others.

Rob Moore (Young Professional High Achiever)

Rob Moore

Former Chair, Rob Moore, was an early member of the Young Professional committee and instrumental in its growth. During his time as Chair of the WA LN, Rob Moore created an active committee that provided opportunities for future leaders.

After winning the WA PATW, Rob Moore used his presentation visits to connect with other young professionals both internationally and nationally and promote the WA YP committee.

Michael Luo (Young Professionals Committee)

Michael Luo

Responsible for the formation of the Young Professional Committee, Michael Luo sought to attract young professionals to the IET. Michael Luo’s commitment to this aim led him to Chair the Young Professional Committee where he helped the implementation of training activities and functions.

In addition to the Young Professional Committee, Michael Luo has helped establish four IET Engineering university societies in Western Australia and organised a Faraday lecture at Curtin University that promoted engineering and the IET to students attending the event.

Derek Boardman (High Achiever)

Derek Boardman

Derek Boardman’s leadership and motivation of others has encouraged the growth of the Young Professional committee. He is also recognised for his support and guidance of new Young Professional members. Derek Boardman has also represented the IET WA LN on several of IET committees

Community Activities

GC 2017 Chief Judge assistant with teacher team leader and 2 IET YP judges

Game Changer Awards

Dr W B Green, a Telecom Chief Engineer and long-standing member of the IET, devised the Game Changer Awards with the goal to promote STEM subjects in Australian schools and to work with teachers to better teach and endorse STEM subjects to students.

IET WA LN members have continually supported the Game Changer Awards by acting as judges in the competition and promoting the awards through school visits. The competition has also provided valuable experience to Young Professional members who have used their voluntary work in the competition towards their required industry experience hours.

The Game Changer Awards have proven to be successful as it enters its fourth official year in 2021.

Topical Presentations

In 2018 and 2019, the IET WA Topical Presentations were held. The aim of these talks was to connect engineers to a wider audience. The talks aimed to discuss topics that were of interest to engineers, non-engineers, and to tailor the talks to engineers at every stage of their careers. The two talks, ‘Artificial Intelligence: The Inside Story’ and ‘Analytics in Action’ both attracted large audiences with attendees ranging from students to senior managers and generated much discussion after the talks. The Topical Presentations also provided an opportunity of individuals to connect.

Sponsored Christmas Events

The end of year Christmas functions enabled all members of the IET WA LN to unite, make and renew connections with other committee members. The Christmas functions also provided Young Professional members and members of the WA IET LN to connect, encourage new membership, and recognise individuals who excelled during the year.

Networking Dinners

IET Dinner 2010 Governer Dr Ken Michael

In 2005, former Chair, Gordon March, proposed an IET networking dinner that would provide students the opportunity to meet potential employers. The first one was held in 2006 and proved to be a success attracting leaders in engineering to speak at the events and saw many university students being offered jobs. The dinners continued until 2017.

Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Events

The IET WA LN has collaborated with other professional membership institutions. The IET WA LN was a member of the Joint Electrical Engineering Power (JEEP) Committee that co-ordinated CPD events with organisations including the IEEE, Institute of Instrumentation, Control and Automation and Engineers (IICA). The IET WA LN also initiated a collaboration with the IEEE to provide CPD events to those working in electronics, software engineering, and telecom fields. This collaboration lasted many years and reached those working in large mine sites in the Northern part of Western Australia.

IET WA Young Professional Leadership Programme

Founded and organised by the IET Western Australia Young Professional committee, the Leadership Programme was created to provide engineering young professionals with leadership skills and knowledge to support them in their careers.

The Leadership Programme was comprised of lectures on leadership and interpersonal skills; case studies; team projects; and organising events for the IET Western Australia Local Network. The programme was supported by the IET WA Local Network, the Australian Institute of Management Western Australia, and industry professionals who provided course content and assistance in judging projects. Candidates who were not selected for the Leadership Programme were not overlooked, events focussed on leadership skills and interpersonal skills were available to these candidates.

Many members of the programme joined the IET Young Professional Committee and progressed to becoming members of the IET WA Local Network.

Marketing Success

Engineering Trump cards-505 Brunel

To develop the IET WA LN’s links to the wider engineering community and to enhance the perception of engineering to the general public, ‘Engineering Trump’ cards were developed. These cards were left at events, IET venues, and given to teachers and students. The success of this initiative saw the creation of the ‘Engineering Triumphs’ cards that have been given to Ministers of State, leaders in business, and the general public.

Achievement and Awards

The James N Kirby Awards

Dr Ken Michael- Kirby Award Gov House Nov 2012-11

The James N Kirby Awards is regarded as one of the highest honours the IET awards in Australia. It is presented to an individual who has obtained distinction in their field of engineering.

The award was named after Sir James N Kirby in recognition of his contributions to Australian manufacturing and his involvement with the Institution of Production Engineers (IProdE), the institution that founded the award in the 1950s. The award is now managed by the IET after the IProdE merged with the Institution of Manufacturing Engineers (IMfgE) and then later the Institution of Electrical Engineers (IEE) who merged with the Institution of Incorporated Engineers (IIE) in 2006 to form the IET.

Dr Ken Michael- Kirby Award Gov House Nov 2012-10

The following IET Western Australian Local Network members have been the recipients of the James N Kirby Awards:

  • 1971 Sir Charles Court
  • 1993 W H Clough
  • 2000 Professor Ian Constable
  • 2001 Professor Jörg Imberger
  • 2012 Dr Ken Michael

Thank you

Look out for more historic IET Network stories as part of our 150th anniversary.