2023 Kyle Saunders and Mani Risal
Young Railway Engineer 2023
THE JOINT RECIPIENTS OF THE 2023 RTSA YOUNG RAILWAY ENGINEER AWARD ARE KYLE SUANDERS AND MANI RISAL
Kyle Saunders is awarded the 2023 Young Railway Engineer Award celebrating his excellent experience in track and civil design since graduation in 2011 and his achievement of CPEng in 2022. Kyle spent 5 years in South Africa before coming to Melbourne where he is an Associate Engineer at Aurecon. Kyle has a list of impressive projects across level crossing removals, West Gate Tunnel Project, sections of the Inland Rail Project and Light Rail experience in both Melbourne and Adelaide.
Kyle is recognised as having active roles in mentoring junior team members and emerging professionals including fortnightly training sessions and technical presentations and is recognised as a role model. There are also examples of his experience in the wider community with his work on Inland Rail and ARTC with videos to inform the community of project progress and receiving complimentary community feedback. Kyle was part of the RISSB Horizons Program in 2021 on leadership development and knowledge sharing. Kyle also has an abstract accepted for AusRail 2023 while also undertaking a series of presentations for Aurecon.
In summary, Kyle has had significant experience in the rail industry both heavy and light rail since graduation. He shows strong experience across his work achievements, including as a role model for junior staff, wide rail industry contribution and a good level of continuing professional development as well as his technical papers and training work. Kyle is highly respected by all his peers and is a well-deserved recipient of the 2023 Young Railway Engineer Award.
Mani Risal is a Chartered Engineer with 9 years of experience in Overhead Wiring Engineering. He is currently working as a Senior Overhead Wiring Engineer for Aurecon. He has a Bachelor of Engineering (civil) degree and is a specialist OHW designer for 1500V DC heavy rail and 600V DC light rail projects.
Mani has worked on major overhead wiring projects throughout Victoria and provides specialist advice on the technical aspects associated with overhead wiring design. Mani has developed a series of technical presentations to help develop overhead wiring design skills within Industry. He is a worthy winner of the 2023 RTSA Young Railway Engineer award.
