Aurecon strengthens Australian leadership to drive strategic growth
Aurecon bolsters Australian leadership with 3 key appointments: David Derrick, Emma Charlton, and Dean Ayres to drive growth amid major infrastructure projects.
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As the leading planning partner to water utilities in Australia, Asia Pacific engineering consultancy Aurecon has announced three Water and Environment leadership appointments, increasing support for clients and industry to unlock growth constrained by complex water requirements and environmental risks.
Water utilities and industrial asset owners are under pressure from increasing population growth and industrial requirements, reduced natural water supply, and ageing infrastructure requiring significant investment. Tackling these challenges takes well-planned capital and asset management programs, proactive climate resilience, and seamless navigation of tightening environmental regulations.
“The complexity of water security and management for industries, such as data centres and resources, is significantly impacting productivity and profitability. And environmental risk is directly influencing whether large, complex water, energy and transport projects can be delivered at the pace and scale required for economic growth,” Aurecon Chief Executive, Australia, Todd Battley said. “Our three appointments are all about helping our clients stay ahead of these challenges.”
Julie Harrison has been appointed as Managing Director, Water & Environment. Harrison currently leads Climate, Environment & Engagement at Aurecon and brings more than two decades of experience shaping pragmatic strategy, planning and delivery at executive level. With clients, Harrison has achieved clear business outcomes across asset intensive industries including water, resources, energy and transport, and will be invaluable in collaborating with water and environment clients to stay ahead of challenges.
Her experience includes large-scale transformation, operating model and organisation redesign, technology implementation, governance and decision support, and infrastructure and major capital project planning and delivery. Harrison has held Executive consulting roles such as Advisor to the CEO and Executive team of one of Australia’s largest water utilities and has worked extensively delivering projects for resources clients in Australia and internationally.
“Collaboration between governments and industry is more critical than ever to effectively address water scarcity and achieve environmental approvals with greater efficiency and certainty. Through her role, Julie will scale the services Aurecon provides to help clients manage risk, improve natural resource management and project certainty, and add value with the best people and most effective delivery models,” Battley said.
Harrison is joined in the Water & Environment market by two senior Aurecon leaders, Nick Quinn as Water Leader – Australia, and Braith Gilchrist as Environment Leader – Australia. Both are well-known to Aurecon’s clients, partners and teams, bringing deep organisational knowledge and long-standing industry relationships. These appointments reflect Aurecon’s recognition of their technical, commercial and leadership capability, and the company’s ongoing investment in developing leadership talent.
Nick Quinn has a significant reputation across water, energy and transport sectors for enabling business growth, jobs and economic development. Quinn has led and supported both government and industry through the formation, financial and environmental approvals, and engineering and construction, of some of Australia’s largest infrastructure projects and government-private partnerships. A key example is Borumba pumped hydro, a multi-decade and intergenerational asset developed at Lake Borumba in Queensland to support the state’s renewable energy transition.
Braith Gilchrist has built a career on navigating environmental, regulatory and technical challenges on major projects. Gilchrist’s critical thinking and decades of cross-sector experience, including as transport industry and client director at Aurecon, is invaluable for large-scale infrastructure investment and delivery in Australia. His track-record in project leadership and governance for major infrastructure projects, and experience leading high-performing teams, enhance Aurecon’s ability to support clients in de-risking infrastructure that will define the next decade.
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Aurecon bolsters Australian leadership with 3 key appointments: David Derrick, Emma Charlton, and Dean Ayres to drive growth amid major infrastructure projects.
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