IT'S NEVER TOO
LATE TO LEARN
February 20 2025: two presentations on truck accidents and design shortcomings
30 members and guests had the benefit of two very good presentations at the Auburn Hotel, Hawthorn.
Here are links to the addresses:
Raph Grzbieta on a fatal multi-vehicle accident at Dubbo
Peter Hart on several design flaws in truck design, mirrors and speed limit advice.
The presentations are 45 and 50 minutes long respectively.
Raph: 
Peter: 
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December 12: Artificial Intelligence
Brett Rutledge gave an excellent presentation on the strengths and pitfalls of Artificial Intelligence, with practical advice on how to use it and what to be very careful about.
You can view the presentation by clicking here. Please be patient while it
Note: The recording is in three parts.
1. (6 minutes) - recording stopped for meal ordering
2. Presentation (56 minutes)
3. Questions and answers (26 minutes).
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November 14: the Baltimore Bridge Collapse
Dr. Colin Caprani presented on the Baltimore Bridge Disaster, covering key insights on bridge safety, risk management, and lessons learned for asset owners globally.
Dr. Caprani is the Head of Structural Engineering at Monash University. He is a Registered Professional Engineer, and a Chartered Structural Engineer (CEng FIStructE). He is also the Chair of CROSS-AUS and the Australian Regional Group of the Institution of Structural Engineers. With extensive expertise in bridge safety and performance, his research focuses on bridge traffic loading, vibration serviceability, and structural reliability.
Topics covered included -
- Issues of large ship management
- What happened in Baltimore
- Risk management for ship impact, mainly driven by US and European approaches
- What went wrong in Baltimore
- Lessons for asset owners around the world
A 55 minute recording of the presentation can be viewed here. Passcode (if needed) ZM0we!k@
Colin's Powerpoint slide set (without any commentary) is here: fesa-fsk.pdf
October 24 - injuries to young workers
Engineer Roger Lewis spoke on young workers (under 25 years of age) who are over-represented in serious injuries in the construction and manufacturing sectors, noting that the injury rates to young workers have increased since 2016.
This presentation examined three construction-related case studies, identifying common and systemic causes, and describing inexpensive measures that would likely have prevented the incidents from occurring.
1. Nail gun incident with loss of eye;
2. Circular saw kick-back and amputation:
3. Fall from an unstable work platform.
Using the lessons from the case studies, a strategy was presented to help unravel the full circumstances of a young worker’s injury. It emphasises identifying gaps in training, supervision, tool selection and systems of work – and how a prudent employer of young workers should diligently control the higher risks faced by such workers.
Recording of Roger's address (35 min) is here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/7dG7XrV7VDu4Zb9JA
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September 2024: Risks facing children - and what design changes are needed.Gail Greatorex has a passion for product safety and good product design. For 25 years she worked in consumer product safety with the Australian Government, mainly at the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.
Product safety can be a complex field, especially where standards and regulations are involved. Gail believes there are great benefits in people working together and supporting one another to make our lives simpler. Designing a product well from the start will make sure it’s as user-friendly and as safe as it can be. Her website (www.productsafetysolutions.com.au) provides guidance and examples of all these things.
Gail's presentation is available here.
You will need this passcode: +5z^Re8u
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26 August 2024:
Rescue of 41 Indian miners
Prof Arnold Dix ("scientist, lawyer and tunnel guy") gave a fabulous presentation at the Auburn Hotel Hawthorn of this extraordinary rescue, seen around the world in 2023. The presentation was hugely informative, entertaining and encouraging. Arnold is President of the International Tunnelling and Underground Space Association – representing the interests of more than 100,000 global subject matter experts and 81 Member nations as the world’s peak Underground NGO to the United Nations.
Arnold outlined the basics of tunnel rescues generally, the behaviour of mountains, and spoke persuasively on important non-technical attitudes and behaviours appropriate to engineers working on any problem involving other people. He urged us as engineers to "Get out and talk to the people affected", " Just DO IT, don't hang back"; "focus on the problem - put all other noise aside"; and in particular, to "be aware of and carefully consider your instincts" - ie treat seriously the wisdom, "sensing" and experience that you feel, apart from your rational deductions. (Session recording details: see below)
Arnold is a great communicator - a man who humbly links his redoubtable skills as an engineer, barrister and geologist with practical attitudes that inform his work, his hobbies and numerous activities. For example, in relation to working on a rescue or a similar problem with others, he said -
Things are never like it is in the movies
Everyone is clever in retrospect
You never have enough information to make a perfect decision
No “one” person saves anyone – it Is always a team
Things always take much longer than expected (even if you expected it would take longer)
You always have to make do with what you’ve got
Information includes “instinct”
Learn lessons – be humble.
This was one of our best sessions yet.
Session recording: a recording in four parts (totalling about 78 minutes, with plenty of of TV and other clips) is here: on the FESA members-only page ( - follow that link - the page is configured to restrict access to financial members, who are entitled to recordings). Please raise any questions about your membership status with Sara Abbasi.
25 July 2024: Artificial intelligence
FESA member Kelvin Genn gave a very informative Zoom presentation to a large gathering .
Using practical examples, Kelvin demonstrated how artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming the way experts conduct inquiry and research. Key topics covered were analysing unstructured data; intelligent information retrieval; knowledge state assessment; and enhancing collaboration and communication. An outstanding topic and presentation.
A recording (50 minutes) of Kelvin's presentation is here
Passcode if needed: J%%8Z@7v
20 June 2024: Legal changes affecting building practitioners and engineers
55 people attended a highly informative presentation by lawyer Bronwyn Weir, a leading authority on building regulation nationally, and an advisor to government regulators. In 2017 she co-authored the Building Confidence Report (Google it) with Prof Peter Shergold; it remains an influential report on policy development.
Bronwyn advises on building regulatory matters including the impact of combustible cladding, security of payment, regulating developers, apartment defects, product safety and the exercise of enforcement powers.
She presented a highly informative account of the emerging engineers' registration schemes, state by state, and the new property developer accountability scheme in the ACT. She dealt with key features of the NSW Engineers' Practice Standard which will take effect in September 2024. Finally, she updated us on her second case study for the NSW Building Commissioner, Broken Promises, Blame Games, balconies.
Bronwyn's Powerpoint set is now available (click here). This brings up the front page. You may need to click the little icon at the left of "Page 1 of 21" to start it.
The recorded presentation (of 75 minutes) has also been posted on Youtube, in 4 consecutive segments (of 11, 30, 16 and 29 minutes). Go to youtube.com and search for FESA June 24. Scroll down and you will find FESA 24 Bronwyn Weir 1 of 4. Start there.
An apology: issues at the venue (one non-working screen, a flat microphone) made recording difficult, and we could not put Bronwyn's Powerpoint up simultaneously with her address. No great matter).
Lots of networking and conviviality made this a great night:
Next month: a Zoom meeting, then in August, a presentation at the Hawthorn pub dinner by Prof Arnold Dix. a very interesting and creative problem solver who was recently centrally involved in the rescue of miners in India.
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18 April 2024: expert evidence
Dr Ian Freckelton AO KC gave a great talk at the Auburn Hotel on expert evidence, specifically on how to be a great expert witness. He covered forensic investigations, report writing, court attendance, giving evidence, judges' vagaries, and how to get things wrong. Many entertaining anecdotes illustrated the address.
Dr Freckelton is the leading legal expert on this subject. He is the author of the Australian leading legal volume ‘Expert Evidence’ (which is in its seventh edition). His ‘day-job’ is as a practicing senior barrister. 
22 March 2024
An excellent Zoom presentation by Hannah Prouse on a 16-tonne mobile crane rollover.
34 people participated - Hannah explained the causes, the general effects of wind, boom extension and relevant principles of stability. Codes and regulatory gaps were addressed. It was a very good coverage of cranes generally. The full recording (43 minutes) is available here - you may need this Passcode (copy it in case): HaM3N+C?
22 February 2024
A full house (42) at the Auburn Hotel, Hawthorn, for convivial drinks, welcomes to several first-time guests, a good dinner, and excellent presentations from Bill Gleeson on the Lithium Ion Big Battery fire in Victoria, and Peter Freere on Wind Turbines - how their performances differ and why they are hard to test.
Recordings are available via the links below, after these photos.
Your Committee spent a convivial hour and a half before the meeting, discussing many things:
L to R: President Geoff Fletcher, Vice President David Lake, webmaster Mark Dohrmann, Secretary and Past President Patrick Irwin, Grant Gatland (who flew from Adelaide), Peter Hart, Kelvin Genn and Treasurer Margarita Vargas (who drove to Melbourne from Wagga this same day).
Dr Peter Freere opened the batting:
Margarita Vargas (Treasurer) and Patrick Irwin (Past President, now Secretary) - President Geoff Fletcher behind:
Do listen to and watch our two presentations via these Dropbox links.
Amateur recording now has good audio with a new wireless mike, and we're working on local lighting to adjust contrast:
Peter Freere on Wind Turbine Testing (20 minutes) - watch it here
Bill Gleeson on the Lithium Ion Big Battery fire (38 minutes) - watch it here
The March meeting (Thursday 21) will be on Zoom.
We have some fabulous speakers who have agreed to present to us this year. All will be revealed. No, not Taylor Swift.
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23 November 2023: electrical switchboards fires and faults
A recording of the FESA Zoom presentation from last Thursday November 23 on "Electrical Switchboards - fires and faults" by Peter Hart and Martin Mulcahy is available here. Note: you will need to copy then enter this passcode to play the recording: +8+Jb+pv
October 2023 - building collapse and lessons for engineers
FESA member Geoff Fletcher spoke on the 2013 collapse of a multi-storey building in Dhaka, Bangladesh. 34 members and guests were present at this interesting talk, which was preceded by our AGM.
The collapse killed over 1,100 people and injured some 2,500. It is claimed to be the deadliest accidental structural failure in modern history. Geoff, an engineer, outlined incompetence, shortcuts, greed, lack of review, and third world low-paid garment manufacture factory stacking, But just what does "accidental" mean? Numerous people faced murder charges as a result, from a litany of failures - negligence, recklessness and corruption in administrative, design, construction and operational controls. The public suffered - and their need for engineering competence and ethics (in any discipline) has never been so great!
Geoff's main takeaways for ALL engineers were these:
- Check your own character before starting your calculations and computer! Uncompromised ethical standards are always paramount.
- No “something” is better than a bad “something”!
- Be careful with whom you get into bed!
- NEVER fear inspection / verification / 3rd party reviews. Encourage it!
- NEVER progress past an unexplained, unsolved problem.
- You mght get away with breaking the laws of the State, but never the laws of physics.
- You get not what you EXPECT, but what you INSPECT.
- Imagine one day being cross-examined in Court re your actions!
A good evening of networking and a fine meal rounded things out well. The presentation was professionally recorded and is available here now.
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21 September 2023
Dr Reza Javaherdashti spoke to FESA via Zoom on 21 September (from Croatia) on Microbiologically influenced corrosion (MIC), with a focus on off-shore engineering due to its importance for Australian industry. MIC refers to the influence of micro/ macro-organisms on the kinetics of corrosion processes on metals, caused by adhering to the interfaces (usually referred to as “biofilms”-which, in fact, is a wrong terminology).
The presentation focussed on the necessity of understanding MIC mechanisms as per API 580/581 and how forensic engineering methods may or may not be useful in dealing with failures stemming from MIC mechanisms. During the presentation, some interesting aspects of MIC (such as EMIC) which are very important to interpret high corrosion rates were presented.
Some facts and figures about its importance from a corrosion science and engineering point of view as well as the names of some important bacteria associated with MIC were briefly explained.
A one-hour recording of the presentation is here. If needed, the Passcode is tGb1E^cz
Reza also gave us the following links to Youtube clips, giving further information on the topic:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCmgrcXJ_8w
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fA5Da4GOTnQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2YfNbiffs4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKw85VokBBg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_zcCaioMyg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSfgJtUoPUM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z848Cv2Sdm8
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24 August 2023
45 people attended a presentation on Waterproofing by Karl Wootton. It was a very informative talk, well illustrated, with practical illustrated examples.
The talk (37 minutes plus 4 minutes introduction) is here. The Q & A session was not recorded by request - candour, confidentiality, etc.
27 July 2023
42 people attended a Zoom presentation by slips, trips and falls expert Richard Bowman, who spoke in helpful detail about surfaces, gait, falls, standards, protocols, expert evidence - with good examples.
His session has been recorded (50 minutes plus Q & A) and is available here:
Passcode if needed: *E?Q%uW522 June 2023
60 members and guests attended to hear barrister Tim Sowden speak helpfully on Effective Expert Evidence. He addressed rules of evidence as they affect experts; things you can, can't or must do; what gives a barrister confidence in an expert; hot tubbing; recent leading cases affecting experts; subpoenas; and numerous interesting questions from the floor.
Tim's Powerpoint slides are here; and separately, here is his 38 minute presentation.
An excellent night of conversation, questions and answers, discussions, networking and as usual, a fine meal and drinks.
27 April 2023:
Engineer Ted Metcalfe delivered a presentation to 30 present on Professionalism, Ethics and Protecting the Public
Ted explained the tradition of the Iron Ring and other reasons why professional engineering practice is different in Australia from that in Canada. He presented some of the findings from his study of failure of Complex Engineered Systems, using the Dreamworld Tragedy and the Longford Gas Plant Explosion to illustrate the role of Royal Commissions and Coronial Inquiries in learning for engineers. (It’s usually not engineering incompetence that causes the failure). He went on to describe the recurring role of systemic regulatory failures, the consequences of commercial pressures on engineering outcomes, and gave an overview of the continuing importance of Professionalism and Ethics.
Lively question and discussion spells covered a range of interesting themes.
