The winners of the 2023 Queensland and Northern Territory Welding Excellence Awards were announced last night in Brisbane.
Weld Australia’s Excellence Awards are the most prestigious event on the welding industry calendar. The Awards showcase and celebrate the world-class work being undertaken by local welders, fabricators and industry educators.
This year, the awards were held at Indooroopilly Golf Club and saw the best and brightest from the Queensland and Northern Territory welding industry come together to acknowledge the incredible calibre of work achieved over the past 12 months.
According to Weld Australia’s CEO, Geoff Crittenden, “The 2023 Welding Excellence Awards shine a light on the remarkable talents of welders and fabricators right across Queensland and the Northern Territory. Weld Australia is thrilled to celebrate both businesses and individuals who are making waves in welding through their dedication to quality, safety and innovation.”
“This year’s winners feature businesses and individuals committed to the pursuit of innovative, sustainable solutions that minimise risk and maximise project outcomes, as well as initiatives designed to increase the breadth and depth of skilled labour within the welding sector,” Crittenden said.
Munster Services Group won the 2023 Company of the Year Award – Fabrication. Munster Services Group have been one of the market leaders in complex, multi-disciplinary project delivery since 2008. They deliver turnkey engineering, fabrication and maintenance solutions across the infrastructure, water, utilities, food processing, and building sectors.
Bridgeman won the 2023 Indigenous Company of the Year Award. Bridgeman is a 26-year-old proud Supply Nation certified Indigenous company. They specialise in advanced metal manufacturing and construction, for clients such as Tier 1 companies like John Holland, BESIX Watpac, Lendlease, CPB, and Boeing.
Coregas won the 2023 Company of the Year Award – Supplier. Coregas is the only Australian industrial gases company and has been operating since 1974. They manufacture gases locally and distribute throughout Australia and New Zealand via a network of branches and third parties.
Monadelphous won the 2023 Health and Safety in Welding Award. Monadelphous is an ASX-200 company providing multidisciplinary construction, maintenance and industrial services to many of the largest companies in the resources, energy and infrastructure sectors.
Rockpress won the 2023 Project of the Year Award for the Gunungia Drive Shared Pathway Bridge. Rockpress is a privately-owned Queensland-based manufacturing powerhouse with a proud history dating back to 1972. The Gunungia Drive Shared Pathway Bridge project presented a unique challenge: constructing a 35-meter bridge within the confines of a workshop designed to handle small to medium assemblies in purpose built welding bays.
BHP won the 2023 Training and Education – Organisation Award. BHP was recognised for their highly innovative in-house training program, the BHP FutureFit Academy. The BHP FutureFit Academy disrupts the normal approach to training, attracting, and enabling diverse candidates to work in mining.
Clayton Dunne from TAFE QLD Skills Tech and Dave Holak from TAFE QLD East Coast were joint winners of the 2023 Training and Education – Individual Teacher Award. Clayton Dunne is a Leading Vocational teacher with TAFE Qld SkillsTech in the Metal Fabrication team. Clayton has a great depth of specialised knowledge in welding and has been part of the panel to upgrade the AS1796 standard.
With over 25 years of experience, Dave Holak is an exceptional engineering teacher known for his effective teaching style and commitment to student success. Dave recently gained his International Welding Inspectors qualification, further enhancing his knowledge and skills in welding. Dave has also led several major projects in the field of engineering education.
Brittany Hague from JRS Manufacturing Group was named the 2023 Young Trades Person of the Year. Brittany Hague is an apprentice boilermaker at JRS Manufacturing Group in Toowoomba. She commenced her apprenticeship in January 2022. When asked what makes Brittany’s work stand out from others, her supervisors will tell you, her steady hand, and finesse in technique when welding, all make her work quality stand out.
Peter Keubler from BOC was presented a special CEO’s Award for services to the Australian welding industry. Peter is a professional welding engineer and metallurgist with over 40 years’ experience in the construction, fabrication and welding products industries. He is a qualified International Welding Engineer and has a degree in metallurgy.
The winners of the 2023 Welding Professional of the Year Award were: Trevor Vonhoff from CS Energy for the Welding Coordinator category; Andrew Gray from Hivue for the Welding Supervisor category; and joint winners Paul Court from Maxcon Industries and Robart Jacob from Melco Engineering for the Welding Inspector category.
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