Peyi Pey

Peyi Pey joined Aurecon in 2007 as a graduate civil and environmental engineer in Water & Environment. She was drawn in after spending a summer at Aurecon as a work experience student. She describes her colleagues as “charismatic and lively”.

At university, Peyi Pey served as an executive of Engineers without Borders (South Australian chapter). It is one of her long-term goals to do a volunteer term with this organisation. She currently stands on the Women in Engineering committee of Engineers Australia. Beyond the world of maths and science, Peyi Pey is a budding pianist, studying piano in her spare time, with one of her dreams to play at the world's best conservatorium.

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Down-to-earth, professional and sociable.

Among local jobs, I have also had the opportunity to travel to Perth for a regional project. One significant project I am currently working on is the Port Road Rejuvenation project.

Port Road Rejuvenation involves stormwater upgrades to Port Road, the major arterial road from the City of Adelaide to Port Adelaide. The median strip is very unique, at 40 m wide. Wetlands and detention basins are designed within the median strip to manage stormwater in the local catchment, in addition to plans for rejuvenation of the landscape offered in the corridor.

In Adelaide, all graduates are paired with an experienced engineer in a different discipline within the company as their mentor. I have regular meetings with my mentor and it is a great opportunity to debrief on project experiences, and gain the benefit of other experiences and bi-partisan opinions. My mentor is very supportive of my professional goals and offers valuable advice.

We are also assigned a buddy who is an experienced engineer in our discipline and market area – another technical resource!

Aurecon is very supportive of my professional advancement. I have had the benefit of managers and leaders who are willing to spend valuable time discussing my professional interests and investigating opportunities to support my professional development. As a graduate in Aurecon, I feel that my contribution and commitment is valued.

A typical day may involve engineering design, working with technical drafters, report writing, communicating with clients or managing sub-consultants. Each month I also get involved in invoicing! Each day brings a different set of challenges.

To date I have been exposed to the water, urban development, project management and industrial markets. I have also spent some time in the Perth office to gain experience in other markets. I anticipate further experience in the industrial market over coming months.

The Aurecon office in Adelaide is very dynamic and sociable. One of the unique aspects of our office is that the Associates and Principals are integrated with technical staff on the floor. I feel this encourages a horizontal structure and also provides broader opportunities to interact with senior staff. On the whole, everyone is friendly and helpful.

An open office culture enhances opportunities to meet other staff. The Adelaide office held its mid-year event recently at a café bar, a fun night with everyone young and young-at-heart! It was a mix of great company, a great selection of wines and beer. One of the great aspects of the social culture is the interaction between different levels of staff.

I currently stand on the Engineers Australia Women in Engineering interest group as the National Committee member for the SA Division. I hope that my involvement with Engineers Australia will increasingly contribute to supporting diversity within Aurecon.

Over the next three years, I hope to develop my technical expertise in Civil & Environmental Engineering and project management experience. With a personal interest in policy, I am also keen to gain exposure within the Advisory group. To facilitate my learning, I have an interest in secondments to other Aurecon offices.

Working at Aurecon allows me to gain experience in a wide range of projects, from local stormwater upgrades to major infrastructure projects. The larger projects are an excellent opportunity for exposure to higher-level innovation and hands-on appreciation of the scale of engineering. With offices across Australia and South-East Asia, there are also opportunities to learn from other technical experts in the company and bring new skills to my local office. This journey has already begun, with recent secondments to the Perth office, which was a very rewarding experience.

Challenging, empowering and dynamic.