Building skills through building services

23 years at WSP have given Dan Cunningham a deep appreciation of the benefits of shared experience and learning from different sectors. From hazardous zones to heritage buildings, Dan has jumped at the opportunities to grow his knowledge and take on a role where every day is different.

Australia | 27 January 2025
Reading Time : 4 minutes

Let’s start with a fly-through of your career.

I’m a trained electrical engineer with a postgraduate qualification in lighting design. After graduating, I worked for the Queensland Government for a couple of years and then joined Lincolne Scott, which WSP acquired in 2009. I’ve moved around the east coast of Australia in my 23 years with the company, including Brisbane, Cairns, and Canberra, where I ran the WSP office, and now Sydney. I’m currently our Structures and Civils Lead for New South Wales .

Lincolne Scott engineers were pioneers in green buildings. How has that influenced your career?

Early on I remember visiting the Melbourne office and having a chance to look over the documents for Australia’s very first Green Star building. I was impressed with the groundbreaking work my colleagues were doing. A little later I had the opportunity to work on my first Green Star project, an office building in Cairns, and learned a great deal from the experience.

I have a keen interest in renewable power and zero-emission vehicles and it’s encouraging to see the number of zero-emissions projects we’re winning and to be able to draw on our global expertise.

What projects have had the greatest impact on your career, and why?

I’ve been fortunate to have worked on a range of projects throughout my career. My first job at WSP was to work on what is still the tallest building in Australia, Q1 Tower, on the Gold Coast in Brisbane. At the time, WSP was also developing the Gold Coast Exhibition and Convention Centre in Brisbane. That project was particularly challenging as construction had started before design was completed – it taught me a lot about time management and prioritization! I also did more lighting calculations and maximum demand calculations than I have ever done in my life.

Since then, I’ve been involved in projects for the tourism industry in Cairns, data centres and significant government buildings in Canberra. In Sydney, my repertoire has expanded to include projects for the pharmaceutical industry, healthcare, defence, mixed-use developments, and transport and infrastructure. We recently completed work on the Parramatta Light Rail, a 12km light rail line in Sydney, creating highly detailed designs for the trains’ maintenance facilities.

As one of the NSW Government’s major infrastructure projects, the Parramatta Light Rail is being delivered by WSP to serve a growing Sydney.

Parramatta Light Rail, Sydney

Dan Cunningham

Australia

What’s been your most interesting technical challenge?

A helicopter facility for the Royal Australian Navy. Engineering the maintenance, repair and logistics facilities needed to support the operations of the fleet presented us with a significant technical challenge – how to supply power to the helicopters in a hazardous environment with fuel present. It needed a completely new design approach and our electrical, structural, environmental and hazardous area engineers worked together to develop an innovative solution to address this.

Another technical challenge was designing a fire suppression system compliant with strict FM Global regulations. Rapid fire suppression is critical in the case of a helicopter or fuel catching fire, and we had the opportunity to witness an impressive pre-commission test when nine million litres of foam were pumped into the hangar in three minutes – quite a spectacle.

Powerhouse Sydney

What makes you most proud?

Witnessing the pride of our team when we’ve delivered a great project. When we have enjoyed working with each other and our client – and they give us positive feedback and want to work with us again – that’s a terrific achievement.

How do you feel buildings contribute to placemaking?

They are a key part of creating better places for people. Recently, we worked on the redevelopment of the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney, which included the renewal of a 35-year-old wing and expansion of the site. The new building is more welcoming and connects seamlessly to the site’s heritage buildings. It was a pleasure to be involved, not just in the technical delivery, but also in contributing ideas for revitalizing the museum and creating a place that will enhance the cultural life of the city.

Is there a magic ingredient?

I was told by a wise mentor, many years ago, that communication is the key to the success or failure of a project. You must have great communication to achieve great outcomes.

And finally, after 23 years, what do you enjoy most about working at WSP?

I enjoy the entrepreneurial culture and how our leaders support us while giving us the freedom to explore new projects, client relationships and new technologies and services. As we’re a global firm, when a client needs advice on something my team doesn’t know about, there’s always someone who can help. We are constantly learning, and everyone wins when we work together – I love making that happen.

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