Alice Edwards, technical project engineer at The Crane Industry Council of Australia (CICA) was the winner of the Industry Advocacy Award, which recognises the way she has helped shape a positive view of the crane industry and helped to create policy changes which benefit those working in the sector.
Edwards has worked at CICA since 2013, and her work has contributed to the compliance and safety outcomes in the crane industry both nationally and internationally. Edwards represents CICA on Australian Standards and has participated in Standards Australia’s Young Leaders Program.
Edwards has a Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Shenyang University of Technology and a Master’s Degree in Engineering from the Australian National University. She is also a member of Engineers Australia and has recently received her Charter Accreditation (CPEng, NER, RPEQ).
Edwards has formulated industry guidance papers, researched and written position papers, the Crane Industry Code of Practice, and industry standards – all of which advocate for a safe and effective crane industry. Edwards regularly presents these at workshops and conferences, to educate, engage and develop key members and stakeholders of the crane industry. Edwards’ position papers have been recognised in the International Crane Stakeholder Assembly which is a consortium of crane manufacturers and users from Australia, Canada, Europe, Japan, and US.
The work that Edwards is completing in the industry is leading the way to making change in an entire industry sector. Her list of achievements includes being:
The first to create a lift planning tool to safely perform multiple crane lifts for industry.
The first industry representative to develop an independent bridge assessment tool that correlates to the bridge assessment tools used by government road managers and now expedites road access assessment.
The internal auditor for the NATA accreditation of the only crane inspection program in Australia.
The lead author for the only Industry Code of Practice for heavy vehicles, currently under review by the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NVHR).
The project manager for the revision of the popular Crane Safety Manual with over 10,000 copies in circulation in Australia.
The content producer for the first CICA App that can be used in the field by crane operators to assess ground conditions before setting up a crane. This app will assist in confirming suitability of the ground before operation, which has been the root cause of multiple fatalities and property damage in the past five years.
Prior to joining CICA, Edwards had worked for a consultant company, Parsons Brinckerhoff (now WSP). There, she worked on several water treatment plant design and construction projects, including the Victoria Desalination Project and the Gippsland Water Factory Upgrade project. In this role, Edwards specialised in equipment specification and procurement, water treatment process design, pipe support design and pipe stress analysis.
Edwards has always had a passion for engineering work, she has enjoyed problem solving since she was young. Throughout her career as an engineer, she has overcome many challenges, but this has also afforded her the opportunity to get involved in many different projects and to meet and learn from experts in various fields.
Outside of work, Edwards loves to read books about Chinese ancient history and build Lego machines with her son.