Conference Speakers

Jo was very proud to be selected as the Bernadette Hartley Memorial Award winner 2009, for her significant contribution made to the increased use of water based fire suppression systems in the East Sussex area and her wider contribution to the promotion of sprinklers nationally.

Phillip has been providing building consulting services for the past 6 years specialising in Bushfire Consulting and Sustainable/Energy Efficient Building Design. Phillip is the Director of Newcastle Bushfire Consulting. He has a background in software development with experience in database development and algorithm modelling. He completed the Graduate Diploma in Design for Bushfire Prone Areas at University of Western Sydney and is a Bushfire Planning and Design Consultant for Alternate Solutions (BPAD-A) registered with FPA Australia.

Christian has been working since a couple of years in the field of emergency & crisis management and homeland security. After working in the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone he started in 2003 to work for the Federal Office of Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance. After going through different departments he ended in the Director General’s Staff Office. He has been delegated as liaison officer to the National Information and Cooperation Centre (NICC) within the Federal Ministry of Interior for the FIFA ConfedCup 2005 and the FIFA WorldCup 2006. Christian also works as a contractor for the German Red Cross Headquarters, Civil Protection Section. He is member in the “Forum on the Future for Public Safety & Security” in the German Parliament, co-author of  the Green Book ”Risks and Challenges for Public Safety and Security in Germany – Scenarios and Key Questions” and member in the “interdisciplinary working group internal security” (AKIS).

He has been involved with the design, peer review and independent verification of fire safety systems in Australia and international infrastructure projects including rail and road tunnels.

Trevor has a career spanning over 25 years in architecture and has developed an extensive understanding in the areas of building construction techniques, building codes regulations and standards, fire safety engineering and environmentally sustainable design (ESD) practices.

Trevor’s role at NBRS+P is to provide in-house advice during the design process on building regulation compliance issues, ESD and fire engineering.

A Chartered Mechanical and Electrical Engineer, with a Masters Degree in Project Management. Mr Lau has over 30 years of experience in electrical & mechanical works, including maintenance and construction of installations ranging from large plants in power stations to building services.

He has been involved in nearly all road tunnels constructed in recent years, in various capacities on tunnel electrical and mechanical systems, and fire and smoke control systems.

Dr Marianne Foley is a Fire Safety Engineer and Principal with Arup in Sydney . She has been practising as a professional fire safety engineer in Australia , specialising in performance based design, since 1997. She has a PhD in Fire Safety from the University of Edinburgh .

Marianne is a member of the Fire Access and Services Advisory Panel to the Heritage Council of NSW and has worked on fire safety upgrades for several heritage listed buildings including Sydney Opera House, 39 Hunter St, Transport House, and David Jones Sydney Stores.

Felix Gamon leads Arup’s fire engineering team in Sydney . Originally a structural engineer, his first experience in the fire industry came about through a structural assessment of a fire damaged heritage building whilst working for Arup in South Africa .

His most significant heritage project has been a reinvigoration of the planetarium building at the Royal Observatory, Greenwich , which is a world heritage site.

Chris Gildersleeve is a Principal of Arup resident in Brisbane. He has over 30 years design experience in building and infrastructure projects in Australasia, Europe and East Asia combining structural and civil engineering design experience with specialist skills in fire engineering of structures.

Currently Chris is leading the Fire and Life Safety Team responsible for undertaking the engineering assessment of fire resistance of the tunnel structures on Brisbane’s Airport Link project. 

Terry has a number of senior roles in public and private enterprise. In his current role he has been instrumental in establishing CFA’s 2009-10 Bushfire Preparedness Program.

Benjamin is the senior engineer for the NSW Fire Brigades, Chartered Professional Engineer with Engineers Australia and Member of the Institution of Fire Engineers. Benjamin is registered with the National Professional Engineers Registry and has completed a Masters of Fire Safety Engineering, Bachelor of Engineering Mechanical and two Diplomas of Engineering. Benjamin joined the NSWFB two years ago and with the support of the structural engineer, surveyor and Fire Safety Officers has made several improvements in the communication between the NSWFB and industry. In the past two years Benjamin has contributed to reducing the NSWFB Alternative Solution review backlog to manageable levels. With over five years of private practise in Fire Safety Engineering Benjamin is focused on improving fire safety for Persons, Property and the Environment within NSW and Australia as well as improving the role of the NSWFB in industry. In June this year Benjamin toured central Europe reviewing historic buildings and their fire safety provisions and precautions.

Peter is a Fellow and a Director of the Global Consulting Sector board at Arup, an international firm of engineering and business consultants. Peter leads Arup’s international fire engineering business and has particular interests in fire safety engineering, risk assessment, corporate risk management, and regulatory reform.

Ray Manser is a fire engineering consultant with expertise in fire safety design, fire investigation and post fire analysis. He has had extensive training and experience in management of fire service operations, including emergency response and risk management.  He has also carried out investigations into the origin, cause, development and spread of fires in a wide variety of settings. 

Shan has been a member of the Institution of Fire Engineers since 1983, and has held a number of executive positions on the Australian Board.  He is currently holds the position of Acting Inspector, Major Infrastructure Development with the Queensland Fire and Rescue Service in Brisbane.

Debbie Scott graduated with a Masters of Fire Engineering with distinction in 2000 from Canterbury University .  She has worked primarily as a consulting fire engineer on a variety of projects in NZ.  She also spent time in a technical development and testing role with GIB – the leading plasterboard manufacturer in NZ.  Debbie started her own business, OnFire Consulting Ltd, in 2005 and works on projects throughout New Zealand for a variety of private clients and government agencies.  She is on the Executive of SFPE New Zealand Chapter as well as a past Governing Board member of the Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand (IPENZ).

Chief Stewart is a thirty-seven year Fire Service veteran having served in the former City of North York Fire Department for 26 years prior to the amalgamation of the new City of Toronto on January 1, 1998.  He has served as an operations fire fighter, Captain, Administration Chief, Assistant Deputy, Deputy Chief and the Fire Chief since May 1, 2003.

Bill is a graduate of the Ontario Fire College , Technology Diploma Programs, general and advanced levels, Executive Development Program and the Canadian Emergency Preparedness College .  He also holds professional designations from the Institution of Fire Engineers FIFireE; Ontario Municipal Management Institute, Certified Municipal Manager CMM, and the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs, Chief Fire Officer, CFO designation.  Bill is committed to life long learning, and is currently serving as a Board member for Public Administration and Governance, Ryerson University .

Lisa’s international background brought her to Victoria in 2007 and most recently has overseen the implementation of several key recommendations in the 2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission Interim Report and provided key evidence.