Engineering Success

Rick Merten
  • 4.3 (3)
  • Management
  • Updated Monthly

Every entrepreneur starts their business full of dreams. Whether it’s innovating a better product or service, creating wealth, building a life to be proud of, or changing the world in some way, engineers are no different. ’Engineering Success’ is a podcast about keeping your dreams alive when things get tough. Because even the strongest technical skills can get overwhelmed by the endless demands of building a business, and one day, you realise that even the best product or service isn’t enough to guarantee success. ‘Engineering Success’ features engineering and industrial leaders chatting candidly about their journey to long-term success: the challenges they encountered, the lessons they learned and the solutions they put in place. Whether you’re an engineering consultancy, an industrial service provider, or a manufacturer, you’ll hear actionable insights from your peers on how they established strong company cultures, systemised operations, leveraged sales and marketing to generate customers consistently, overcame financial challenges, faced increasing competition, adapted to change and managed growth. The host, Rick Merten, has been running his own business for over two decades, partnering with hundreds of SMES to help them achieve sustainable success. Rick’s ambition with this podcast is to let entrepreneurial engineers know you are not alone, and to share real-world insights that will help you engineer your success and build a better business.

  1. 7 Sept

    Standing in the Wreckage: Doron Levy on Fire Engineering, Failure, and Quality

    Most engineers never see their own designs fail. Doron Levy has built a career on standing in the wreckage to work out why.  Doron founded Fahrenheit Global, a fire engineering consultancy based in Sydney with offices in Milan and Buenos Aires. He trained as a structural engineer but left after three years, it wasn't the right fit. His first day as a fire engineer was spent at a still-smouldering, burnt-out vodka distillery, and that experience hooked him for life. He went on to complete master's degrees in both fire engineering and fire investigation, giving him a rare dual perspective: designing fire protection systems and investigating why they fail. Last year, his team won Fire Protection Project of the Year at the Fire Australia Awards for a COVID ward at Canberra Hospital.  In this episode, Doron traces his path from structural to fire engineering and explains how working both sides of the industry, design and investigation — shapes everything he does. He talks through starting a business during the GFC, moving from solo operator to a brand built to outlast its founder, and holding quality standards even when it means walking away from work. He shares his philosophy of dropping a client every year, the sign above his office door that reads "Can you sleep tonight?", and how he keeps quality consistent across three international offices. He also covers the weight of responsibility fire engineers carry, the role of certification and due diligence, and what he's learned as an expert witness investigating fires.  A must-listen for engineers, business owners, and anyone interested in fire safety and risk management.

  2. 24 Aug

    Three Sides of the Same Problem: Gary Finke, CleanTeQ Aromatrix

    Solving odour problems for major infrastructure projects isn't glamorous, but getting it wrong makes life miserable for nearby communities. Gary Finke has spent 35 years making sure that doesn't happen.  Gary is managing director of CleanTeQ Aromatrix, which designs and builds air and odour control systems for major infrastructure projects across Australia and overseas. A chartered chemical engineer, he has worked all three sides of the same problem: inside a water authority, inside a design consultancy, and now running the company that builds the fix. He became sole owner of Aromatrix in 2019 and was named APAC Entrepreneur of the Year for Air Quality Management in 2025.  In this episode, Gary talks about buying the business from its overseas owners, why a genuine problem-solving mindset beats a sales pitch, and how odour control evolved from an afterthought into a primary design consideration. It's a look at building a successful niche business while staying true to your values.

  3. 21 July

    Redefining Civil Superintendency: Edmund Tsang, Tsang Civil Consultants

    Most superintendents administer contracts. Edmund Tsang believes the role should do far more than that.  Edmund Tsang is the founder and principal of Tsang Civil Consultants (TCC), a civil engineering consultancy headquartered in Bella Vista, Sydney. Edmund built his career onsite across roads, drainage, earthworks and civil infrastructure before moving into consulting, and that hands-on background is the foundation of everything TCC does. The firm delivers Superintendency and Project Management services across some of Sydney's most significant subdivision and infrastructure projects, with clients including Lendlease and Landcom, the NSW Government's land development agency.  In this episode, Edmund makes the case for a different kind of superintendent: one who catches design clashes before construction begins, resolves utility conflicts before they become delay costs, and acts as a genuine intermediary between the principal and the contractor. He also shares the stories behind winning Lendlease and Landcom, the hard lessons of scaling a people-led firm, and the training legacy he wants to leave for the next generation of civil superintendents in Australia.

  4. 26 May

    Scaling an Engineering Business Beyond Technical Work: Michael Jones on Systems and Structure

    When Michael Jones launched Jones Structural Engineering, he had no client base and no safety net — just a clear sense of how he wanted to build: on genuine relationships, quality work, and a value-first mindset he held to even when cash was tight.    In this episode, Michael unpacks why so many engineering firms struggle to scale. Early success built on individual effort becomes a bottleneck without systems, structure, and clear accountability. He talks about transitioning from engineer to business leader, building teams that can operate independently, and what it really takes to move from solving technical problems to enabling others to do the same.    Growth, Michael argues, is not just about winning more work. It is about building a business that delivers consistently, supports its people, and maintains quality over time — and this episode is a practical look at what that demands from the person at the top.

  5. 23 Apr

    From Migrant Teenager to Business Owner: Jocelyn Do on Building a Civil Engineering Firm

    Starting a business at 26 with no formal business training is daunting. Doing it during a global pandemic, as a female immigrant in a male dominated industry, takes a special kind of courage.  Jocelyn Do is the director of JOCES, Jo Civil Engineering Services, a civil engineering consultancy based in New South Wales that specialises in stormwater, flooding and development consent for local government clients. She arrived in Australia from Vietnam at 16 with limited English, no family and a fierce determination to build a future for herself.  Jocelyn opens up about learning to delegate, managing the uncertainty of fluctuating workloads, and leading a team that includes engineers with decades more experience than she has. If you are an engineer considering starting your own firm, this episode offers practical insights and genuine inspiration.

  6. 23 Mar

    Balancing Engineering Rigour With Commercial Reality: Kym Wilkinson, Wilkinson Shaw and Associates

    Most civil engineers solve the technical problem. Few also think about who has to pay for it, deliver it, and make money from it.  Kym Wilkinson is the principal engineer at Wilkinson Shaw and Associates, a Brisbane-based civil engineering consultancy specialising in residential subdivision projects. With more than two decades of experience, she's built a reputation for balancing engineering rigour with commercial reality — because in her world, time, cost certainty, and practical decision-making matter just as much as technical compliance.  In this episode, Kym shares how thinking like a developer changes every engineering decision on a project, and why the most successful engineers understand not just the technical requirements, but the commercial pressures their clients are actually facing.

  7. 26 Feb

    Building Discipline Into Growth: Shannon Neyland on Sustainable Engineering Leadership

    What does it really take to grow an engineering business without losing control of quality, culture, and accountability?  Shannon Neyland has built his career at the intersection of engineering delivery and executive leadership, starting on the tools and working his way through project performance, financial accountability, and team development, ultimately to become a senior leader. His focus has always been the same: building structured systems that support sustainable growth, not reactive expansion.  In this conversation, Shannon gets into the realities of scaling in a competitive market, why growth without structure strains people and performance, and why discipline has to underpin every expansion decision. He also reflects candidly on the transition from hands-on sparky to a business leader; the shift from solving engineering problems to leading people, managing financial performance, and building real accountability into an organisation.  If you're an engineering leader navigating growth or making the move into senior leadership, there's a lot here for you.

  8. 28 Jan

    Pushing Limits Without Compromising Safety: Tim Cartledge, Cartledge Mining and Geotechnics

    What does it take to keep a mine operating safely when the ground is unpredictable, and getting it wrong can shut down the entire operation?  Tim Cartledge is the founder of Cartledge Mining and Geotechnics, a principal geotechnical engineer with decades of experience solving the mining industry's toughest stability challenges. After working with major consultancies including Coffey Geotechnics and GHD, he established his own specialist consultancy in 2015, supporting some of Queensland's most challenging coal mines.  In this conversation, Tim explains how mining geotechnical work differs from civil engineering, shifting from rigid standards to a focus on geology, behaviour, and uncertainty. He discusses looking for opportunities alongside risks, pushing limits responsibly without compromising safety, and making critical decisions under intense pressure. Tim also shares the transition from technical expert to business owner, why integrity matters when advising clients, and how relationships and trust drive long-term consulting success.  For engineering and industrial leaders navigating complex risk and difficult decisions, this episode offers an honest look at leading with confidence, integrity, and experience in high-stakes environments.

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Ratings & Reviews

4.3
out of 5
3 Ratings

About

Every entrepreneur starts their business full of dreams. Whether it’s innovating a better product or service, creating wealth, building a life to be proud of, or changing the world in some way, engineers are no different. ’Engineering Success’ is a podcast about keeping your dreams alive when things get tough. Because even the strongest technical skills can get overwhelmed by the endless demands of building a business, and one day, you realise that even the best product or service isn’t enough to guarantee success. ‘Engineering Success’ features engineering and industrial leaders chatting candidly about their journey to long-term success: the challenges they encountered, the lessons they learned and the solutions they put in place. Whether you’re an engineering consultancy, an industrial service provider, or a manufacturer, you’ll hear actionable insights from your peers on how they established strong company cultures, systemised operations, leveraged sales and marketing to generate customers consistently, overcame financial challenges, faced increasing competition, adapted to change and managed growth. The host, Rick Merten, has been running his own business for over two decades, partnering with hundreds of SMES to help them achieve sustainable success. Rick’s ambition with this podcast is to let entrepreneurial engineers know you are not alone, and to share real-world insights that will help you engineer your success and build a better business.

Information

  • Creator
    Rick Merten
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    30
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2023 All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    Engineering Success