The Conference dinner and awards ceremony on Thursday 27 August brought the 2026 PIANC APAC Conference to a close, capping off a fantastic few days of knowledge sharing, collaboration and connection. Special congratulations to our wonderful award winners.
Congratulations and thank you to all involved for a hugely successful conference that certainly made an impact. The event truly embodied its theme of connecting and sharing across Oceania and the wider Asia-Pacific region, reinforcing a simple message: we are better together.
PIANC APAC Author Award – Aidan Lewis
Awarded to an outstanding APAC Conference paper related to PIANC issues and activities, and its presentation.
Aidan is Manager of Technical Services at Tasmanian Ports Corporation. His paper was ‘Managing Critical Mooring Risks at TasPorts.’
The paper summarises the work TasPorts and Holmes Solutions have done in recognising the rare but credible risk of mooring line snapbacks within ports where public spaces and high-tension moorings coexist in close proximity. The paper provides practical lessons for ports and operators assessing similar risks,
The team developed and validated two new snapback protection systems, one using a modular barrier solution that can be deployed across different port environments, and the other a fixed steel and polycarbonate design for use where visual appeal and sight lines are important to the public and neighbouring businesses. Full-scale tests showed that, at elbow speeds up to about 210 m/s, the barriers redirected the mooring line without breaking or causing hazardous debris and kept the line within the working area.
PIANC APAC Young Author Award – Edwin Swierstra
Awarded for the best paper presented by an Australian or New Zealand author under the age of 40 and is assessed based on the extended abstract as well as the presentation.
Edwin is Senior Engineer – Marine Structures at Aurecon in Brisbane. His paper was ‘Jetty bent corrosion repair optimisation at Lucinda Bulk Sugar Terminal.’
Edwin presented on the automation tool he developed with Richard Woollard that optimises corrosion repair for STL’s Lucinda Bulk Sugar Terminal jetty bents.
‘Thanks to the organisers for this great event,’ he shared, ‘and to everyone I met from across the industry for all the nice conversations.’
Peter Fountain Award – 2026
Peter Fountain (1946-2021) was a longstanding member of PIANC AU-NZ who led the Maunsell/AECOM maritime engineering practice in Australia for decades. Peter had a stellar reputation in the maritime engineering industry within Australia and New Zealand and internationally.
In recognition of Peter’s contribution, in 2024 his family in collaboration with PIANC AU-NZ created the Peter Fountain Memorial Fellowship Fund. The fund is to support young AU-NZ engineers to attend PIANC AU-NZ conferences and to be inspired to make a career in port and maritime engineering.
2026 awardees
Ashvin Balaraman, BE Civil Hons student, UNSW Sydney
Milo Gruwez, BE Civil student, University of Wollongong & U/Grad Engineer at Moffat & Nichol‘s Sydney Office.
Isabel Upson BE Environmental Engineering student, UWA
Ankia Van Zyl BE Civil & Environmental Engineering student, University of Auckland
PIANC APAC Lifetime Achievement Award – Greg Britton
For outstanding involvement and contribution to the AU-NZ Waterborne Transport Infrastructure industry.
The 2026 award recognises Greg Britton’s outstanding and sustained contribution to waterborne transport infrastructure and the coastal and maritime engineering profession.
Throughout a career of nearly five decades, Greg has helped shape the way Australia approaches coastal, maritime and environmental engineering. His work combines robust infrastructure solutions with environmental stewardship, community value and long-term resilience.
Greg has made important contributions to environmentally sensitive seawall design, sustainable dredging and coastal hazard assessment. His technical leadership has supported significant projects including Shell Cove Boat Harbour and Marina, the rehabilitation of Homebush Bay and the South Arm of the Hunter River, and the Queensland Government’s maintenance dredging strategy for ports in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area.
Greg is Technical Director at Haskoning Australia, and a longstanding member of the PIANC Australia and New Zealand Board, Greg has contributed to technical guidance that informs coastal and maritime infrastructure practice internationally. He has also supported the profession through mentoring, peer review and knowledge-sharing with emerging engineers.
PIANC APAC Contribution Award – Peter Engelen
This award is presented to an individual for their commendable input to supporting PIANC AU-NZ aims and activities.
Peter, who is Deputy Chair of PIANC AU-NZ Board has made significant contributions to PIANC AU-NZ operations management, overseeing communications, engagement and promotion. As a firm believer in PIANC principles of opening doors for connection and collaboration, Peter established the successful PIANC AU-NZ mentoring programme, which aims to provide members an opportunity of giving back to their coastal and maritime industry colleagues through sharing professional experiences and life lessons.
Peter is the General Infrastructure Manager for NSW Ports, where he oversees the strategic and statutory land use planning, as well as the development and maintenance of the port and intermodal infrastructure in line with NSW Ports’ strategic asset management plan.
Peter has over 20 years experience in the planning, design and delivery of port development projects. From 2007, he was involved with the expansion of Port Botany and its container terminals. He transferred from Sydney Ports Corporation to NSW Ports at its inception in 2013. Prior to coming to Australia in 2006, Peter held a senior position at Royal Haskoning, where he managed international port planning and development projects.
Congratulations to all our award winners! Thank you to the LOC. Peter Fountain’s family, and the PIANC AU-NZ Board for all their work in organising the awards.