ECT - Key Persons
A GE company, FieldCore, is a global industrial field services company that Leticia is still working for today. With the experience she gained over the years, she was able to familiarize herself with power generation technologies. However, she notes that there is increasing development inside the industry.
She points to digital twin technology as a fascinating development in the industry. Digital twin technology is a virtual model of a process, product, or service. Utilizing this technology, Leticia says, helps with predictive maintenance.
Aaron Giovenco is an electro-technical specialist who works in the maritime and offshore oil and gas industries. He says our Advanced Diploma of Industrial Automation developed both his theoretical and practical knowledge in the automation space, which will help him to further his career.
He began his career as an electrician after seeking employment opportunities in Perth, Western Australia, due to its mining boom. While studying his apprenticeship, he realized he was interested in engineering.
"Back in 2008, when pursuing my electrical apprenticeship, I found the theoretical side interesting and enjoyed learning it," he said.
"This passion has continued to evolve over my career. I enjoy designing and coming up with solutions, which is why I've decided to pursue a career in the engineering industry, and automation and control engineering has great future job growth potential."
Once he became qualified, Aaron spent a couple of years working in a myriad of different environments. One thing he says he noticed was how much technology had bled into the sector and fundamentally transformed it. After he took an opportunity to lead a team on a coal seam gas project in Queensland, he realized he wanted to pursue a career in the engineering industry.
He currently works as an electro-technical officer for a marine operations management company on Shell's Prelude FLNG Project. The job sees him working with a team of people within the ship's engineering department, and his responsibilities include carrying out electrical and electronic maintenance, repairs, diagnosis, installations, and testing.
Belinda's career originated as an auditor with KPMG. Due to a desire to have more involvement in the financial aspects of business, Belinda transitioned into broader accounting roles. Belinda has significant experience across diverse industries including manufacturing and mining services. Her strengths include implementing process improvements to increase efficiencies and create cost savings. Belinda's wide skill set and meticulous attention to detail is highly valued at EIT.
Job Titles:
- Academic Resources Manager
Danielle has a background in project management, with extensive experience in coordinating projects and people. Her knowledge of, and a life-long passion for, writing has put her at the center of EIT's material development process. She is always looking to improve the student experience through the provision of interactive, professional, and consistent materials that work to support students throughout their studies.
Danielle is responsible for developing and updating the teaching and learning resources for all of EIT's courses, including implementing a continuous improvement process to ensure the materials are of the highest standard. She also manages EIT's eLibrary and is constantly looking to expand the volume and quality of resources offered to students.
Job Titles:
- Dean
- EIT Representative
- Founder of the Engineering Institute of Technology
Dr. Steve Mackay is the founder of the Engineering Institute of Technology. He firmly believes in Nelson Mandela's mantra that, "Education is the most powerful weapon which we can use to change the world." His leadership has inspired EIT's unique and distinctive approach to engineering education.
Gerrit Botha is an engineering professional currently working in the automotive, brewing, and mass manufacturing industries. He is also an Engineering Institute of Technology graduate. Once he completes his current studies, he would have undertaken four courses with EIT.
He obtained his Professional Certificate of Competency in Allen Bradley Controllogix/Logix5000 PLC Platforms in May 2016. He followed that up with a Professional Certificate of Competency in Instrumentation, Automation and Process Control, in 2017. After that, he earned his Advanced Diploma in Remote Engineering, Mechatronics and Robotics in July 2017. He is now working through the Advanced Diploma in Industrial Automation.
Gerrit's engineering career, while impressive looking - based on how many qualifications he has amassed - has been filled with ups and downs. His journey reveals how one can both be a student of engineering and life. His love for engineering stems from his childhood days.
"I have always been fascinated by how things work," he said.
"Even when I was young, I was more intrigued by taking apart and investigating my radio controlled car than I was with actually playing with it. This curiosity just never left me and that's why engineering was a natural choice."
Further enhancing his love for engineering was spending time in his father's engineering workshop. His father serviced the structural steel and earthmoving machinery market. One of the first artisanal skills Gerrit learned was the operating of milling machines and lathes. On weekends, he had a part-time job rewiring trucks and earthmoving machinery.
As a hobby, Gerrit busied himself with learning programming. He also had a knack for mechanical and electrical machine setups. He was a proverbial kid in a candy store when it came to exploring technologies. When the time came for him to decide what he was going to do in terms of tertiary studies, he chose mechatronics. However, his life then changed significantly.
Gerry Downing is a recent Engineering Institute of Technology graduate with over thirty years of experience in the mining industry. He currently works as the Design Lead for WorleyParsons on the Koodaideri Iron Project based in Western Australia. Gerry's story is an inspiring example of how everyone has their own path when navigating a career in engineering.
Gerry completed his high school years in Johannesburg, South Africa. Right out of school, Gerry was conscripted to the army for two years. After leaving the military, he took a six-month draughtsman course. He was soon short-listed to work for a leading engineering firm in the mining sector where he completed his apprenticeship as a Mechanical and Piping Designer.
Getting swept up into work meant Gerry was unable to finish his formal technical training. At this time he had partially completed an NTC4 mechanical engineering certificate. Once he had stacked up considerable work experience, he decided in 2019 that the time was right to obtain a formal qualification to stay abreast of the industry developments.
Gideon Strydom works in the design, manufacturing, and wire and steel industry as a Commissioning Technician as well as an electrical designer at Clifford Machines and Technology. He is also a recent graduate of EIT's 52726WA - Advanced Diploma of Applied Electrical Engineering (Electrical Systems). With some work experience under his belt, and now a qualification, Gideon's dream of becoming a fully qualified electrical engineer is in motion.
Gideon graduated high school in 2006 at Pioneer High School. He quickly enrolled at a Further Education and Training college to complete a National Certificate in engineering studies. He soon was employed at Hlobane Coal Mine as an electrical assistant.
In 2008, Gideon knew he needed to level up if he wanted to remain employable in a technologically advancing world. He moved to Pietermaritzburg to further his studies, but at the same time pursue an apprenticeship. However, his affinity for engineering was apparent from a young age.
"Since I can remember, I was always fascinated by how things work, why they work, and sometimes more importantly, why they don't work. If you can understand these three things, nothing can stop you. What a better place to get to understand this than through engineering?" Gideon remarked.
In 2009, he started an apprenticeship with Ramsay Engineering. He spent seven years with the company, eventually qualifying through Ramsay to work as a Maintenance Electrician. In 2016, Gideon was offered the role of electrical designer and team leader at Clifford Machines and Technology. In 2019, the company went through a restructuring process, and Gideon found himself in the role of a commissioning technician once more.
Nonetheless, Gideon knew that engineering practitioners keep their skills updated, no matter the highs and lows of business. He searched around and found EIT, which allowed him to both continue working and expanding his skills online.
"There are a couple of reasons I specifically chose this course. I think the first factor was the fact that the course is covered by the Dublin accord. Secondly, it is such an inclusive course - it covered all my needs and more".
The Dublin Accord is an international agreement that provides international professional recognition of selected programs. The Engineering Institute of Technology's courses are covered by the accord. Thus, Gideon's engineering skills and knowledge are now recognized globally and can be employed in a large majority of countries.
"I was the electrical team leader and designer for four years, and this course gave me a very fresh insight into electrical systems. It also gives you a fundamental understanding of how and why certain aspects work the way they do. My employer reacted very positively toward the online qualification and to the freedom and flexibility that came with it," he said.
Gideon further comments that he is more confident in his knowledge and understanding of electrical engineering since he wrapped up the course. The developments in the engineering industry as a whole have made him look into expanding his skills in the right areas, as automation replaces some of the more routine jobs an engineering practitioner does.
"I believe the fourth industrial revolution is taking every industry by storm. Included in this is Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence. We see this more and more as we try to make our machines easier to maintain, increase production and just all-around more intelligent. Who doesn't want a machine that can tell you something is about to break down before it even does? Scrooge McDuck said: Work smarter, not harder," Gideon comments.
Gideon's passion is to become a fully-fledged electrical engineer and a consultant engineer of project manager sometime in the future. He encourages the youth to get involved in the engineering industry as it is continuously evolving.
Grant Kirkby is a graduate from the Engineering Institute of Technology. He studied Electrical Engineering through EIT, starting in 2009 and graduating in 2011.
He is now the director of a company that grapples with the most dangerous, most unpredictable forms of electrical current: lightning.
Islam Sarwat graduated from EIT in 2015 with a Advanced Diploma of Plant Engineering. Before completing the program, he was an in-training operation and mechanical engineer. He noticed that he had some spare time on his hands and a dream to attain a senior engineering job in the future.
Islam chose this particular program because, he says, it was comprehensive and covered a lot of material that would improve his knowledge and enhance his skills. He also knew it would help him find direction in his career.
Job Titles:
- Acting Higher Education Manager
Jason has an immense amount of experience in coaching and learning development and his 10 year career has provided him exceptional administrative skills. He is enthusiastic about helping people, and with his outstanding communication skills, provides our students the highest level of encouragement in anticipation of their success. Jason is currently Acting Higher Education Manager and oversees EIT's Learning Support Officers who ensure the Bachelor of Science, Master of Engineering, Undergraduate and Graduate Certificate course units are run effortlessly each semester, and that students are afforded the very best support for their studies.
With 20-years experience in driving Australian education and training into greater recognition and acceptance in the domestic and international markets, Kevin works closely with individuals, companies and government departments in over 150 countries. Kevin has negotiated contracts for training with many major multinational corporations, with notable deals achieved with; NASA, Boeing, the US Departments of Energy and Defense, BP, Chevron, Rio Tinto, Rolls Royce and BHP Billiton. Assisting with multiple layers of EIT's international collaborations and partnerships, Kevin helps in opening doors and closing deals. Asked what his key business philosophy is, Kevin confidently responds; "To always do, what I say I will do!"
Job Titles:
- Controls Technical Field Advisor
- Professional Certificate of Competency in Programmable Logic Controllers ( PLCs ) & SCADA Systems
An accomplished Controls Technical Field Advisor, Leticia Oppong is a recent graduate of EIT's Professional Certificate in Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs) & SCADA Systems. As technology and software in the PLC and SCADA industrial world has developed over time, the need for ongoing education in the sector is necessary. Leticia enrolled with EIT to broaden her expertise in the field and ensure she stays on top of industry developments.
A self-proclaimed natural problem solver, Leticia's journey towards her engineering career began after graduating high school when she enrolled in Electrical Engineering at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology.
"I've always had a knack for fixing broken things. I was the child who tore electronics apart and put them together. So, pursuing engineering was a natural progression." Leticia said.
Job Titles:
- Office and Human Resources Manager
Lisa manages Human Resources at EIT, from staff performance management to recruitment. She is always on the lookout for experienced and qualified lecturing staff to include in our team. Lisa is also responsible for student FEE HELP applications, travel and logistics for our onsite training courses and the general, day to day running of the office.
Job Titles:
- Chadanian Engineer
- Online - Master of Engineering ( Industrial Automation )
Manga Olivier is a Chadanian engineer who completed his Master of Engineering (Industrial Automation) through the Engineering Institute of Technology. He currently works for ExxonMobil in Chad as an Instrument and Controls Engineer. His career has grown in leaps and bounds over the years, but his fascination with engineering began when he was younger.
"I was interested in engineering at a very early age. I like challenging situations in the realm of troubleshooting faulty devices, appliances, and equipment. I liked discovering new technologies from a young age too. All this led me to technical schools at college level."
Manga started his engineering journey in school, and in 2002, he pursued a Bachelor's Degree in Electro mechanical and Industrial Computing, which he finished in 2005. In 2007, he found employment at the Chad Brewery Company, where he worked from July to September.
In September of that year, he switched companies and began to work for Esso Exploration and Production Chad Inc. as an Instrumentation Technician. It would turn into an eight-year stint that would see him working indirectly for ExxonMobil. In those eight years, he would fulfill roles as an Instrumentation Technician, a Measurement Technician, a PLC Technician, and then his final role, which he is in today.
However, it was in mid-2015, Manga decided to broaden his knowledge in the engineering world once more. He began studying his master's degree with EIT in July 2015 and graduated in October 2018. At the time of enrolling for the course, he was an Instrument Technician but knew he wanted to learn more so that he could progress his career in automation.
"When I started the course, I was working as an Instrument Technician, and when troubleshooting tricky issues related to PLC, I just got stuck and asked for help from a PLC Technician. As I progressed with the course, my troubleshooting skills were getting better and better, and finally, I was appointed as a PLC Technician."
Right after he graduated, ExxonMobil promoted him to the role he is in today; Instrument and Controls Engineer. The daily responsibilities at his job include:
Process engineering surveillance
Place orders for instrument and control spare parts
Initiate MOC for equipment when needed
Make changes to PLC or DCS logics when required
Tune process loops when the process variable (PV) is not following the setpoint (SP)
Root cause analysis for equipment failures
Manage small projects
Edit or make changes to P&IDs
Assessor and procedure editor
Manga is an excellent example of a dedicated worker with a hunger for knowledge. As a result, he has been internally promoted within ExxonMobil. Now, he is encouraging others to follow in his footsteps.
Job Titles:
- Secretary
- Marketing Analytics and Growth Manager
Carolina completed a Bachelor of Production Engineering and a Master of Commerce (Marketing), equipping her with a distinctive set of skills to analyze data in order to improve marketing processes and results. At EIT, Carolina is responsible for the ongoing review of marketing and sales figures and identifying growth opportunities on a global scale. When it comes to scrutinizing big data, she is a passionate advocate for precision and accuracy in order to make properly informed decisions.
Job Titles:
- Staff Representative
- Accreditation and Compliance Manager
Caroline's career in education and training has spanned 17 years, and she has been involved with multiple successful regulator, professional body, and internal audits. She has extensive experience in policy development in the VET and Higher Education sectors, ensuring compliance across all policies and processes institute-wide.
Caroline is responsible for the oversight of EIT's VET and Higher Education operations and also is a member of EIT's Governance Board.
Paul is a qualified and experienced manager and administrator. Paul graduated with a bachelor of business degree, a post graduate diploma in business administration and also a certificate IV in training and assessment. Paul has managed teams at different levels for over 25 years in different countries and is very passionate about education and training and the effects they have on the individual and the community as a whole.
Job Titles:
- Engineer
- Superintendent
- Supervisor
- Online - Master of Engineering ( Industrial Automation )
Ray Crawshaw is an engineer who currently works in the mining industry in Australia. He is also an Engineering Institute of Technology (EIT) alumnus, having studied our Advanced Diploma of Applied Electrical Engineering and our Master of Engineering (Industrial Automation).
Ray has spent his working life pursuing more practical and hands-on jobs and has filled a plethora of roles in several countries and regions. He truly has had a decorated career, with 35 years of experience in the oil & gas, power generation, and mining sectors. Later on in his career, Ray looked to add higher education qualifications to his resume, further building upon his skills and technical knowledge. Nearing retirement age is not slowing Ray down - he is more determined and hungry for growth in his academic and working career than ever before.
A son of a farmer, Ray went to school in a country farming region in New Zealand. When he was 11 years old, his father tragically passed. In 1966, he started living on his uncle's farm. His uncle encouraged him to take up a trade so that he could find work.
Ray applied for a job as an electrician and was soon employed by a power supply authority in New Zealand. He started as a substation cadet. Ray ended up spending eight years with the Bay of Islands Electric Power Trust (now known as Top Energy). There, he earned a trade certificate in the first two years of his four-year apprenticeship. He still, however, had to complete the 8,000 required hours.
In 1978, Ray moved to Australia for work, which saw him fulfilling an altogether different role. He became a fireman on a train that transported freshly cut sugarcane. A year later, he went back to New Zealand for Christmas and incidentally met his future wife.
Six months later, Ray was married and began working for New Zealand's only oil refinery, Marsden Point Oil Refinery. Refining NZ, the company that operated the refinery, was spending several billions of dollars upgrading it. He spent two years on the refinery, saving money to buy a house for his family, which was soon to grow.
Back in his hometown, Ray decided to start a business that sold whiteware, such as fridges and stoves. His wife oversaw the operations of the store.
Ray began to do commercial and domestic contracting work. His industrial experience, however, took precedence and saw him constructing mills in the north of New Zealand. Along with a crew of 50, they ran the project from start to finish. Ray then returned to contracting himself out to dairy farmers and abattoirs.
Job Titles:
- Managing Director of Victory Business Ventures
Ryan Smith is an Engineering Institute of Technology graduate who earned his Advanced Diploma of Biomedical Engineering in 2018. First working in the audio engineering industry, Ryan now works for an American multinational conglomerate in the healthcare industry. His engineering journey proves that, regardless of the discipline, you can go cross-disciplinary based on your passion for technology alone.
After completing a Diploma in Audio Engineering in 2011, Ryan spent six years in the professional audio industry. However, Ryan always had a predisposition to technology, and this keen interest led him to apply for an apprenticeship in electronics.
From that apprenticeship, Ryan was granted a trade qualification in Electronics and Communications. Now equipped with expanded electronic knowledge, he found employment within the biomedical industry. His work now saw him repairing, maintaining, and installing medical equipment.
Answering why he chose the engineering industry, Ryan said, "I pursued a career in the engineering industry to satisfy my curiosity for technology and problem solving. It's incredibly fullfilling to be a part of something that benefits the wider community, and I love seeing a challening project come to successful fruition."
Sarah specializes in the organization of EIT's technical industry events, running conferences in Australia, Asia, the UK, North America, New Zealand, and South Africa. Her solid organizational skills and eye for detail on each project from beginning to end, combined with her background in marketing, events, media, and business administration, have built up a large professional catalogue of events. She is always on the look-out for the newest developments in critical engineering subjects with a focus on practical case studies and applications of technology in industry.