Tony Armstrong, 60
Manager of Research and Development at Austal, Perth
Naval architect, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK

Dr Tony Armstrong has been pushing the boundaries of building fast multihull ships in Australia for more than 20 years.
He first designed catamarans with Tasmanian ship builder Incat, and since 1998 has been working for Austal in Perth. Apart from designing ever faster and bigger catamarans, Armstrong developed a trimaran seaframe which led to the construction of the first commercial aluminium trimaran and the world’s longest aluminium ship.
According to Armstrong, the trimaran’s three-hull design offers a large number of possible combinations for new sea routes and uses.
Outside work, Armstrong spends much time with his young son. He also listens to classical music and engages in woodwork.

Chris Nicol, 40
Chief Technology Officer (Embedded Systems), National ICT Australia (NICTA), Sydney
Computer engineer, University of NSW

Dr Chris Nicol has been working on building and sustaining a world-leading integrated circuit research group and chip design team in Australia. Pioneering products developed under his technical and business leadership are deployed in mobile network infrastructures across the US and in mobile phones around the world. Nicol holds 17 US patents.
He is currently responsible for embedded systems development at NICTA and is part of the Research Strategy Group that is responsible for hundreds of millions of research dollars, supporting about 50 ICT research projects undertaken by over 400 research staff and 250 PhD students.
He joined NICTA to further his vision of “economic growth via national core competency in embedded systems”. Nicol lives on a small acreage on the fringe of Sydney. He has set up a pottery wheel and a gas-fired kiln that he looks forward to firing up this year.

John Blakemore, 67
Principal Consultant Innovation, MASC T/A Blakemore Consulting International, Sydney
Industrial engineer, University of NSW

With expertise in accelerating and improving manufacturing flexibility and reducing time to create and commercialise new ideas, Dr John Blakemore is principal consultant of MASC which has a current turnover of approximately $1 million.
He recently designed a new manufacturing facility that has significantly reduced waste, developed a new manufacturing process to reduce working capital and inventory, and implemented a successful continuous flow system in seven small companies. He is recognised for innovation and invention of uniquely engineered galvanising processes for variable and flexible manufacturing systems.
In his spare time, he plays piano and enjoys time with his wife Deirdre, two sons, and three grandchildren.

Francis Rose, 58
Chief Scientist at Platform Sciences Laboratory, DSTO, Melbourne
Mechanical engineer, Sydney University

Dr Francis Rose, the 2007 AGM Michell Medal winner for contributions to mechanical engineering, is an expert in fracture mechanics and in structural health monitoring. His work on crack bridging now forms the basis for the design of bonded repairs to aircraft structures known on the Rose Model. His theory of transformation toughening in partially stabilised zirconia ceramics has provided new insights into its strength and toughness, for which he has received international acclaim.
He has also carried out extensive research in laser-generated ultrasound which has become a standard reference in the emerging field of laser ultrasonics.
Rose is an adjunct professor at three universities and is currently the chairman of the National Committee of Mechanical Sciences of the Academy of Technical Sciences and
Engineering.

Greg Dunstone, 54
Surveillance Program Leader, Future Direction Division of Airservices Australia, Canberra
Electrical engineer, University of NSW

Greg Dunstone works in the Future Direction Division of Airservices Australia as strategic team leader for surveillance, leading the planning of all surveillance including Automatic Dependent Surveillance – Broadcast (ADS-B), radar, surface movement radar, wide area multilateration and precision runway monitoring.
Together with a colleague, Dunstone has been responsible for the automation segment of the Australian advanced air traffic control (ATC) system. With expertise in the ADS-B technology and its application, he is moving to implement the technology into Australian civil ATC.
Outside work, Dunstone occasionally enjoys orienteering and rogaining and has recently started to learn piano.

Jim Patrick, 50
Chief Scientist and Senior Vice-President of Cochlear, Sydney
Electrical engineer, Melbourne University

Jim Patrick is chief scientist and senior vice-president of Cochlear, which develops implantable hearing technology.
Patrick was part of the research team that designed the company’s first clinical implant system. He influenced the company to incorporate neural response telemetry into its products.
This assists the fitting of cochlear devices on young children.
He is the joint inventor of the MP3000 coding strategy, which is currently under clinical evaluation in Europe as part of research into more advanced signal processing.
Patrick currently leads a research and applications group which is conducting 60 collaborative studies to improve recipient performance.
He is also leading long-term research into improving the interface between electrodes and the auditory nerve, and the use of nanotechnology in future implantable technologies.
Patrick’s fascination with electronics began when he received his first crystal set.
Outside work he still enjoys using an amateur radio along with reading and spending time with family.

Tony Hyde, 59
Executive Director – Engineering, GM Holden, Melbourne
Mechanical engineer, Caulfield Technical College (now Monash University)

Tony Hyde was appointed director of engineering and design at Holden in 1997 and executive director engineering in 2000, having first started with the company in 1968 in the experimental engineering division.
Hyde oversaw the development of the new VE Commodore series which came onto the market last year and currently heads the engineering design and testing of the Chevrolet Camaro coupe and convertible models for the US market.
All design and test work on the US Chevrolet Camaro program is being completed in Australia which has become GM’s centre for rear-wheel drive (RWD) architecture, Hyde said.
He is also a member of GM’s Global Engineering Leadership team which investigates the global network of facilities, and aligns the global business.
In his home garage Hyde has a 1976 Chevrolet Corvette that he likes to drive around the Mornington Peninsula with his wife.

Brian Smith, 55
Project Manager, EOS Joint Venture, Perth
Civil engineer, University of Western Australia

Brian Smith has been working in the offshore oil and gas industry for 27 years. He has performed the lead structural engineering role for the design of jackets, decks and modules for a diverse range of offshore structures.
Smith has made significant contributions to the design and construction of offshore platforms. For instance, he managed all aspects of the structural, naval architectural and foundations engineering for the award-winning Bayu Undan project from the concept development phase through to the completion of the detail design.
He was responsible for a number of innovations including the use of two smaller bridge-connected platforms both with floatover decks, instead of one large platform.
Currently he is working on the Angel Gas Project on the Northwest Shelf as project manager for the EOS joint venture between WorleyParsons Services and KBR.
Outside work, he enjoys being with his family – he has three teenage children – and getting away to the family holiday home near Yallingup.

Doug Maconochie, 57
National leader for tunnels, PB (Parsons Brinckerhoff), Brisbane
Civil engineer, University of Melbourne

Dr Doug Maconochie has contributed to the geotechnical and tunnelling fields of engineering since the late 1970s, when he completed his PhD at the University of Newcastle on Tyne, UK on geotechnical studies for the Channel Tunnel.
He led the design of the tunnel movement joints for the subway in Bangkok to allow for the continuing settlement of the city. He also championed the limit state approach to the use of permanent rock bolts in major civil tunnels and implemented monitoring procedures to ensure their safe use.
Maconochie has helped implement safe support procedures for rock bolting and shotcreting in major civil tunnels in NSW.
Away from work Maconochie is an inventor.

Lincoln Wood, 56
Director of Engineering and Product Assurance, BAE Systems Australia, Adelaide
Aeronautical engineer, UNSW

Director of engineering and product assurance at BAE Systems Australia, Dr Lincoln Wood holds technical accountability over 900 engineers and 600 high-end technicians with an order book in excess of $1 billion for complex, software-intensive, integrated military systems.
His model of engineering operations and governance has been adopted by BAE Systems in the UK, where he is also working with BAE Systems and Cambridge University to develop a new postgraduate program in the field of support and service engineering.
In 2006, Wood conceived the establishment of a Master of Military Systems Integration program at the University of South Australia which inserts industry integration processes directly into the curriculum.
He also conceived the “concept-to-creation” high school program in socially disadvantaged areas of northern Adelaide.
In his spare time Wood enjoys outback travel to locations often difficult to reach including the central deserts of WA and Arnhem Land.

Engineers Australia Magazine, Volume 79 No 6, June 2007.

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