What's your job about?
Ascent is one of the leading suppliers of explosive ordinance expertise to the Australian Defence Force. This primarily involves the certification of explosive ordinance that the ADF acquires, sustains, and disposes of. Ascent Explosive Ordinance (EO) Engineers are typically contracted by the ADF to provide expert advice on EO that are to be acquired or managed to defend Australia. This means that an Ascent EO Engineer has the potential to work on any product that contains an explosive component – From fighter jet ejection seats to guided missiles and more.
As an EO Engineer, I have been embedded into a defence project, where I have been providing working to acquire large calibre munitions. So far I have learnt the details of the Engineering Management System and all the technical aspects of my project and specified munitions, and attained Engineering Authority for my project, allowing me to make a meaningful impact on defence capabilities.
Additionally, Ascent has provided many professional development opportunities outside of my daily duties. I have had the opportunity to:
Travel to America to volunteer at the world’s largest university rocket competition, where I made valuable international contacts;
Attend domestic conferences, tradeshows, and site tours to broaden my understanding of the industry;
Attended and observe a ground vibrational test of aircraft at a RAAF base, providing detailed context to the work I conduct on a daily basis;
I will attend a conference in the UK to further develop my technical understanding of exposed to cutting edge research.
What's your background?
I am Canberra born and have lived here my whole life. I studies my undergraduate degrees at ANU and chose to study science and engineering because I always wanted to do something related to rocket technologies. In my third year at ANU I joined ANU Rocketry as a founding member in the structures team. ANU Rocketry is a student run rocketry team, founded to compete in the Australian University Rocket Competition (AURC). Within 9 months of the team’s foundation, we had built our first competition rocket that flew in the 10,000ft category achieving 2nd overall flight performance, and 3rd overall. After the 2019 AURC, I left the structures team and joined the executive leadership team, where I helped lead and grow the team through 2019 and into the COVID. I left the team in mid-2021 to focus on my honours thesis, having not only kept the team from disbanding during covid, but actually having grown to over 50 students strong and with great prospects to go forward to compete overseas at Spaceport America in 2023. I graduated from ANU in mid 2022 and started as a graduate EO Engineer with Ascent shortly after. My experience with rocketry and handling energetic materials helped me to successfully apply to the grad program, and continues to drive my career aspirations going forward.
Could someone with a different background do your job?
Absolutely! There is no such thing as an “Bachelor’s Degree of Explosive Ordinance” in Australia. Everyone I work with has adapted what they have learnt in their studies or prior experience to what we do on a daily basis. All that is required is critical thinking, eagerness to learn, and willingness to take opportunities. Ascent fully appreciates that EO Engineering is a field that is seldom considered by most graduates, and is willing to put in the work to get the best out of their graduates.
What's the coolest thing about your job?
The Coolest thing about my job is the unique opportunities that get offered to me. I have had the opportunity to get hands on with platforms I am working to integrate EO onto or observe tests on platforms that I am yet to work on directly. I have gotten to go overseas for professional development, and will get again in the near future. Ascent’s reputation and connections within defence, and their willingness to invest in people, gives their graduates more opportunities to develop and grow than the industry standard.
What are the limitations of your job?
The job requires respect for the products that you will be managing. There is a significant amount of responsibility required to certify EO to ensure that they are safe a suitable for service. Although you may be unlikely to handle dangerous items yourself, your work ensures those that do come home safe every time.
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