Meet Shruti Srivastava: Engineering a Path Forward

Just ahead of International Women's Day (IWD), we'd love you to meet Shruti Srivastava... a Project Engineer working for our principal contractor on the Aura and Harmony Program.

Shruti arrived on the project in September last year and she's based at the main site office in Meridan Plains, Caloundra. We thought it was a great idea to share some of her thoughts on what it is like to be an Engineer working on Unitywater’s biggest infrastructure program to date.

Well hey Shruti can you tell us a little bit about yourself? Hi there, I am currently a Fly In Fly Out (FIFO) worker for McConnell Dowell. I am based in Sydney and lucky to be spending some time here on the Sunshine Coast. I studied at the University of Sydney after which I worked for Transport NSW for many years and was fortunate enough to be exposed to various roles in alliances and projects in the heavy rail field.

What do you love about Engineering? I enjoy the real time problem solving aspect of it, which at times can feel larger than life! It’s very satisfying to be presented with a challenge and to find a way to resolve it or come up with a suitable solution which works hard to keep our stakeholders happy.

What do you love about working on the Aura and Harmony Program? It’s a new scope for me and I really enjoy learning all the details and intricacies of the water and wastewater infrastructure work. The positive and supportive team are always smiling and ready to help make it easy to want to come to work every day. Working with a professional and friendly client makes a big difference also. The seaside location is also a massive bonus.

If you had one positive piece of advice for women thinking about entering the construction industry, what would it be? It’s easy to feel intimidated by the industry and feel out of your depth, but keep chugging along one day at a time and learn from the experiences and knowledge of those around you. Everyone has unique and interesting stories to pass on and most people will happily share. It’s also good to remember that women bring such an important dynamic and different perspective to the industry, so don’t be afraid to question the norm and try things a little differently.

There you have it… thanks for having a chat with us today Shruti and keep up the great work!

Pictured: Unitywater's senior project engineer for the Aura and Harmony Program, Scott Mackie, is currently working closely with Shruti as the program moves into the commissioning phase.