Index Engineering June 2023 Newsletter

View this email in your browser

JUNE 2023 NEWSLETTER

Beautiful Lake Okareka, photo by Ingrid.

- - RECENT JOBS - -

Tom provided API653 engineering support for Downer New Zealand Ltd's 10 yearly internal inspection of their Bluff bitumen tank. This involved a review of the model of tank, handrails, insulation, roof cladding mounts and repairs, as well as an FEA and seismic analysis.

Laurence, Tom and James recently completed work for Mercury on plant equipment that had pitting corrosion. Index visited site to collect information, completed repair concept design drawings, and then worked with the client on a proposed solution, including material selection and detailed design drawings of the selected repair concept.

Josh and James designed a staircase for an energy company to provide stairs down to the river for kayakers. According to Power Station Manager Craig Rowe at Southern Generation and Pioneer Energy, the Directors recognised the community recreational value of the river and decided to build the stairs after looking at the risk to members of the public entering the river. He said: "It is very well engineered and the lower part especially has had to be made very robust as it will be covered during flooding events." Photo courtesy of Troy Baker.

Bevan and James recently completed a fitness for service assessment on the No.3 Lime Kiln Sector Cooler at OjiFS Kinleith and identified actions that could be taken that would extend the life of the cooler prior to replacement.

- - INDUSTRY NEWS - -

ENGINEER REGISTRATION

The first Recognised Engineers were registered by Engineering New Zealand Te Ao Rangahau on 13 April and, in May, Engineering NZ opened the register for general applications to be assessed and registered. It is anticipated that it may be up to six years before the new regime is fully implemented.

ENGINEER SHORTAGE

There continues to be a shortage of engineering personnel in New Zealand.

The NZ unemployment rate was at 3.4% for the first quarter of 2023 and despite borders opening to workers from overseas, there are still hurdles and delays in visa processing for people wanting to enter NZ.

A recent Strategic Pay Pulse Survey by ACE New Zealand for the December 2022 - February 2023 quarter, found that vacancies remain difficult to fill. Vacancies are down overall from the quarter before but up for graduate engineers, CAD draughtspeople, senior management and support staff. On average, turnover for general staff is at 10 per cent, and small and large firms are experiencing more difficulty recruiting than medium sized firms.

The new direct pathway to citizenship for New Zealanders in Australia, that comes into effect on 1st July, will make it more attractive for New Zealanders to head across the ditch.

It's not all bad news though. It's a record year for enrolments at the University of Canterbury, and there are just over 1300 students enrolled as first year BE(Hons) students.

- - NEWS FROM OUR PEOPLE - -

We are pleased to welcome two graduate engineers to the team this year.

Both Chris Perry (L) and Sharik Burgess-Stride (R) have completed BE(Hons) degrees. Chris studied at Waikato University and then worked as a Warehouse Supervisor for 9 months before joining Index, while Sharik studied at the University of Newcastle in NSW.

Both engineers are enjoying their experience at Index Engineering so far, in particular: the variety of work, support from other team members and our "people-first" approach.

Holly is on a period of extended leave, and Cynthia has stepped in as our Office Administrator for six months. She has recently completed her MBA studies at Waikato and is enjoying learning about consulting engineering.

admin@indexengineering.co.nz

Index Engineering staff wearing loud shirts because it's a Friday - and why not?!

IANZ conducted a Routine Reassessment of our Inspection Body in April 2023. In the Assessment Report by IANZ, Jennifer Foley stated: "During the assessment, Index demonstrated a good comprehension of the accreditation criteria and a dedication to continuous improvement, exemplified by good utilisation of their continuous improvement system."

- - PLEDGE 1% - -

We are pleased to support the Rotorua Mountain Bike First Response Unit (FRU) as one of our Pledge 1% donation recipients. This Unit provides a crucial service to bikers in our Whakarewarewa forest. For the twelve month period to 30th June 2022, the FRU responded to 226 patients, with the majority of these being from Rotorua but many also from throughout the North Island. Injuries included straight forward pain relief or assessment (28%), wound dressing and cleaning (36%), splints and slings being applied (21%), ambulances being called to extract the patient to hospital (15%).
Photo: Pierre cycling in the forest

We would like to do a Shout-Out to the team at CloudIT: Marcus, Logynn, Mike and Jason. The CloudIT team have been providing IT support to Index Engineering for the last ten years. We particularly appreciate that CloudIT has an eye on the future, looking at trends and potential risks so that our data is well protected and we can provide continuity of service. http://www.cloudit.kiwi

A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity;
an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty

Winston Churchill

Visit our website