In recent years, Victoria has taken significant steps in ensuring the competence and accountability of engineering practice. Mandating registration for engineers in disciplines like fire safety, civil, structural, electrical, and mechanical engineering signifies the government’s commitment to upholding standards in crucial areas of engineering sector. However, one notable discipline absent from this list is chemical engineering, raising questions about the rationale of such an exclusion.
To understand this, we must remember that the move towards mandatory registration stemmed from a series of sub-par engineering work in the building industry including the Opal Tower in Sydney. This led to costly building repairs to bring them back in line with building standards even after independent surveyors had certified buildings as code compliant. There are many reasons why these defects went unnoticed but some pointed the finger squarely at the engineers who were involved in the design and certification of such buildings, questioning their competence. Government’s response to this concern was to enact the Professional Engineers Registration Act 2019 (Vic).
While under this legislation most engineers in Victoria need to be registered to practice, chemical engineers remain an exception. Chemical engineers in Victoria play a crucial role in many sectors, including food and beverage, pharmaceuticals, mining, chemicals manufacture, and water/wastewater treatment. Their responsibilities encompass the design, optimization, and quality control of products and processes vital to public health and safety. From ensuring the safety of consumables to managing environmental impact, the work of chemical engineers encompasses many critical domains. And so, chemical engineers’ exclusion from mandatory registration requirements is perplexing at best.
Despite the absence of these requirements, we must acknowledge that many organizations employing chemical engineers implement rigorous quality assurance measures to uphold ethical and professional standards. Many require engineers to attain chartered status with Engineers Australia, a testament to their commitment to excellence. This can be at times an even higher standard of practice. However, while these internal mechanisms serve as effective safeguards in many cases, they may not provide comprehensive oversight across the profession.
While stringent internal controls may mitigate risks to some extent, the potential consequences of subpar practice in critical areas like food safety, pharmaceuticals, water consumption and environmental management underscore the need for widening the scope of legislation to include chemical engineers. Drawing parallels with jurisdictions like Queensland, where chemical engineers are required to be registered, implementing mandatory registration in Victoria could ensure consistency and accountability across all main engineering disciplines and reinforce public trust in essential services.
The Victorian legislation was intended to protect consumers, and so by mandating registration, Victoria can establish a safeguard for consumers and promote best practice in engineering services. This proactive approach not only mitigates risks associated with negligent work but also fosters a culture of continuous improvement and professional development within the engineering community.
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