Alumni and Supporters

Jordan Butler wants to change the world, one structure at a time.

“I want to help build structures that have meaning and purpose, that enable humanity to be better and to do better,” says the 30-year-old structural engineer.

“My goal is to be able to look back 40 years from now and know that I helped create a world worth more to humanity than the stone and steel used to build it.”

If his achievements since embarking on an ECU engineering degree are any indication, Jordan is on track to achieve his ambitions.

In 2018, only a year after graduating with Honours, Jordan was named WA’s Young Professional Engineer of the Year. Presented by Australia’s preeminent engineering body, Engineers Australia (EA), the award acknowledged Jordan’s significant volunteer work and his technical contributions to a paper accepted for the 2018 Australasian Structural Engineering Conference.

Jordan began volunteering in his first year at university when he put his hand up to be the EA student representative on campus. A series of increasingly demanding volunteer roles in the WA Division of Young Engineers Australia (YEA) followed, culminating in two years as the chair for YEA’s National Committee. This role saw Jordan responsible for coordinating nine divisional committees across the country and representing 45,000 young engineers.

Throughout his many years of volunteering, Jordan has been a passionate advocate for improving work experience opportunities for engineering students and graduates.

As part of an initiative to strengthen the relationship between academia and industry, Jordan helped found the Student Practicum Working Group (SPWG) to identify issues associated with student practicum engagement.

“It is my hope that the ongoing work of the SPWG will influence a series of best practices that will future-proof student engagement in industry for the next economic downturn, as well as guaranteeing a higher standard of graduate who has a good well-rounded understanding of the industries they are entering,” says Jordan.

“Without a strong engineering pipeline our industry does not exist; it is imperative that we do what we can to guarantee the best for the next generation of engineers to come through.”

Jordan believes the environment at ECU encouraged him to seek these invaluable volunteering opportunities to complement his university studies.

“My ECU lecturers were always strong advocates for extracurricular engineering activities, such as joining the engineering clubs, the student Guild and being involved with Engineers Australia,” he recalls.

“I definitely feel I was supported in every avenue I wanted to pursue at ECU.”

Since graduating, Jordan has been employed on the engineering teams behind a number of award-winning projects in Australia and abroad, including the DFP Shopping Centre, Perth Metronet Project, and the Rottnest Island Fuel Jetty, as well as projects in major ports all around Australia.

While remaining an active member of the SPWG and the WA representative on the YEA National Committee, Jordan firmly believes that as his engineering expertise develops, he will also make significant contributions to his chosen profession.

“I want to be technically excellent and advance my field,” he states. “I believe engineers have a duty of care to the community, not just in building structures or roads or whatever else it is that we do, but also in our upkeep of the profession and our upkeep of the next generation coming through into that profession.”

Jordan’s passion for engineering is even more extraordinary given that Jordan was originally headed for a career as a professional musician.

A classical guitarist, he started a course at WAAPA straight from school, with a view to completing a Bachelor of Arts degree. However, he soon realised this was not the right career path for him.

“I enjoyed music then, I still enjoy music now. But I’ve also always loved problem solving,” he explains. “With engineering I felt that if I became competent in solving certain problems, there would always be harder problems to solve beyond that.”

Now 30, Jordan’s advice to engineering students is to remember that their goal is not a degree, but a career in engineering.

“Your career doesn’t start the second you get that piece of paper, there’s a lot you can be doing before that to involve yourself in industry,” he says. “It doesn’t even need to be engineering exactly – there are related industries such as construction, surveying and drafting which you’ll have skills in even after your first year of study. You could be putting these skills to good use, getting practical experience in industry that will supplement your education.”

With his career going from strength to strength, Jordan’s next goal is to gain his chartered status, a certification that demonstrates competencies across a range of professional engineering areas.

And as for his music? He still plays guitar, but it’s purely for pleasure now. Jordan happily recounts how in the last two years his musical skills have been appreciated by a whole new audience.

“While my engineering colleagues were all working from home during the COVID-19 lockdowns, we’d have online meetings and if it was the end of the day, we’d finish up with a virtual office drinks – and I’d get the guitar out.

“It was definitely a talking point,” he laughs.