With Engineers Australia members spread across the Newcastle region getting out and meeting those based rurally is a key consideration for our regional engagement strategy.

Recently Newcastle General Manager Helen Link and President Stephen Palmer went to Calala to visit members and take part in a local site tour of the Outlook Estate roundabout.

Helen Link said we loved getting out and visiting our Northern Group members and catching up with the local Tamworth committee.

“Meeting our members regionally enables us to chat face to face about any concerns or ideas they might have,” she said.

“Plus we were able to give them an update on what we’ve been working on at Engineers Australia in Newcastle and nationally. We spoke about changes to our ways of working to become one Engineers Australia, succession planning for the committee, sponsorship, communications and where to go to find out what’s on.”

The roundabout site visit gave members a chance to learn about a major local civil engineering project.

With a growing suburban population of around four thousand people the Outlook Estate is home to many that commute into Tamworth for work. At peak hour Calala Lane, feeding onto the roundabout services around 1100 cars per hour.

The upgraded roundabout featured a hybrid single lane design with a future slip lane, for westbound traffic to incorporate bridge widening works, to be completed soon.

Significant constraints restricted the site with a bridge to the left, Water Treatment Plant land to the north and related infrastructure running through a nearby intersection.

Members learned from the project team about their solutions and innovations to tackle these challenges and about construction in a flood prone area.

Engineers Australia Newcastle aims to host regular meetings in regional areas. The next one is planned for Port Macquarie in late September. Keep an eye out in Engineering News for a registration link coming soon.