National Water Week spotlight series: Jack Mears

National Water Week is making a splash across Australia this week with this year’s theme, ‘United by Water’. Taking place from October 16-22, National Water Week encourages individuals, communities, schools and organisations to be inspired to promote the importance of water.

At BMD, we’re making major waves in the water and wastewater sector which is why we’re excited to shine a spotlight on our people working across our many water projects nationally.

We have a long history of delivering effective and resilient water and wastewater infrastructure projects and our specialist teams work with our clients to offer industry leading technologies and treatment processes.

Meet Jack who is a Senior Project Engineer on the Baldivis Pump Station project in Western Australia. To celebrate National Water Week and BMD’s work within the sector, we took the time to get to know Jack and what he loves about working with wastewater.

Q: What do you enjoy about working on the Baldivis project?

A: Having previously worked predominantly on transport infrastructure projects, building a wastewater pumping station has been a great challenge and has given me a much better appreciation for the complex systems that provide really valuable services. This upgrade will cater for the future development of the rapidly growing suburb.

Q: How do you see your role in creating a positive impact in the water sector to ensure the infrastructure is resilient, fit for purpose and considers challenges going forward?

A: This is a key part of our HSEQ excellence which is to ensure that the quality of the product we deliver meets all the required standards, which will see it exceed its design life and cater for further growth.

Q: What sustainable construction practices and technologies are being utilised to minimise the environmental impact?

A: The project has developed complex temporary works structures which facilitate excavation to the required depths for construction, while also minimising the amount of dewatering required.

Q: What are the main challenges faced on the project?

A: By its nature, most water infrastructure is below ground level so many of the challenges involve constructing suitable retaining structures for access and ensuring that the durability of the finished product is protected from any harsh ground conditions to meet the design life requirements.

Q: What advice would you give to aspiring civil construction engineers who are interested in working in this field?

A: Water infrastructure projects are multifaceted and a great opportunity to gain exposure to not only structures, earthworks and pipework but also mechanical and electrical components. They are great for civil engineers to broaden their experience.

Q: How can the community do their part to improve our water supply?

A: I think it’s important to be water conscious at home but also to educate ourselves on the water involved in manufacturing many of the products we purchase so that we are able to make environmentally positive choices.