ENGINE - Royal Australian Navy

BY CDRE JOHN BRYSON
INTRODUCTION BY HEAD
NAVY ENGINEERING
INTRODUCTION
I welcome this opportunityto address the Royal Australian Navy's engineering
community for the first time in the Naval Engineering Bulletin and with my
new title of Head Navy Engineering (HNE), As HNE my responsibilities
are largely the same as for CNE in the past: I am the professional head
of Engineering in the RAN and also Head of the Engineering Community,
These responsibilities entail providing specialist advice to Chief of Navy
on engineering matters, developing Navy's engineering requirements to
feed into the capability development cycle and advising on engineering
personnel issues,
What is different however is that by
making me one of his direct reports,
CN has made a significant statement
on how he values engineers,
technicians and the engineering
function in the RAN.
Some changes that have occurred
in the transition from Navy Systems
Branch, Navy Systems Command
to Navy Engineering Division, Navy
Strategic Command include:
• DNPR(E&L) has been re-titled
Director Navy Category
Management and moved
into People and Reputation
Division (with a small policy
and professional development
element remaining within Navy
Engineering Division under the
title Director Navy Engineering
Policy); and
• RANRAU has been moved from
DNWS and placed in COMFLOT
Branch to realise synergies with
MOAC and TOG.
Many other engineering issues have
also been recently examined or are
under review at the moment and
worthy of mention:
• we are in the implementation
stages of a revised MT training
continuum (refer CN AUSTRALIA
Z4P/ W4L/ HAA 122215Z JUL
09) that will provide more
relevant, nationally recognised
qualifications that also better
meet the way that we actually
employ MT sailors;
• ETs are currently undergoing a
reinvigoration to their technical
training, moving away from
the Metals, Engineering and
Manufacturing National
Competency Standard to the
Electro Technology Training
Package 2007 National
Competency Standard (EE-Oz).
These new skills, concentrating
particularly in the area oftechnical
diagnostics, are imperative to the
next generation of equipment and
complex systems that Navy will
soon commission;
• the AT training continuum has
also been closely looked at and
measures have been put in place
to better prepare ATV sailors for
the rigours of their training at
RAAF Wagga and thereby improve
pass rates;
• Engineers Australia has recently
examined the education
and training continuum for
professional engineering
officers and has accredited
that continuum such that on
award of the ME/WE/ AE Charge
Qualification, officers are now
eligible to sit for a Professional
Interview with Engineers Australia
and if successful be awarded
Chartered Professional Engineer
status (without having to write up
a single Career Episode Report I);
• I have recently approved payment
of professional association
membership dues for associations
other than Engineers Australia,
thereby opening the way for
engineer officers to choose which
organisation has the greatest
professional relevance for them;
and
• In a similar vein to the
arrangement above with
Engineers Australia, we are in the
process of concluding a similar
arrangement with the Institute
of Marine Engineers, Scientists
and Technologists to examine
and accredit our engineer officer
education and training continuum
(in the Royal Navy IMarEST offers
Chartered status based upon
achievement of CQ).
Perhaps one of the most important
issues for the Engineering
Community at the moment is the
Strategic Review of Navy Engineering
(refer HNAVENG WAC 310240Z
JUL 09). By way of background, CN
initiated a number of reviews last
year that brought forward engineering
related recommendations, including
the MFU Due Diligence Review, the
Training Pipeline Review and the
Submarine Workforce Sustainability
Review. Not surprisingly there were