Agricultural Engineering Society

The Society for Engineering Agriculture (SEAg) is a technical society of Engineers Australia.

It was formed to promote and support the application of engineering in agriculture.

The aims of the Society are to:

1. improve communication among those with an interest in engineering in agriculture;
2. extend appropriate technical information to Society members and others involved in agriculture;
3. raise awareness of the role of engineering in agriculture.

International visitors and members are very welcome.

A SEAg Conference is normally held every two years.

History

The Society for Engineering in Agriculture had its origins in the Agricultural Engineering Society (Australia), which was formed in Melbourne, in May, 1950. In 1953, it was registered as a non-profit Society under the Companies Act in Victoria. In 1969, Branches were formalised in New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia, followed by Queensland in 1977, and Western Australia in 1985.

The Society was formed to provide a meeting place for the exchange of views and the gathering and dissemination of the latest information relating to farm mechanisation and agricultural engineering.

The Agricultural Engineering Society (Australia) functioned until 1991, when the AESA was disbanded and the Society for Engineering in Agriculture (SEAg) was formed. SEAg is a Technical Society of the Institution of Engineers, Australia, and was formed to promote and support the application of engineering in agriculture.

Publications

The Society's journal, 'Agricultural Engineering Australia', was launched in March 1970, and continued publication until 1996. In more recent years, research reports and topics of interest related to engineering in agriculture have been disseminated through the publication "Leading Edge", which is a joint venture with the Australian Centre for Precision Agriculture. "Leading Edge" appears as a feature insert in three rural magazines (Australian Grain, Australian Sugarcane and Australian Cotton) which are published six times per year. Publication of peer reviewed papers is available to members through the CIGR Journal of Agricultural Engineering Scientific Research and Development, which is available on-line at the CIGR and accessible through the SEAg web site.

Organisational Structure

A National Committee manages the affairs of the Society on a national basis. This committee is comprised of 6 elected members, with each member being eligible to hold office for two terms of two years each. State Branches have their own committees, and are responsible for the organisation of events, such as meetings, seminars etc. at a regional level. The Chairperson of each State Branch holds an ex-officio position on the National Committee. While the Society receives administrative support from the Institution of Engineers, Australia, the work of the National and State committees is carried out by volunteers.

Committee Structure

Chairman - Glen Riethmuller - Development Officer, Department of Agriculture and Food, WA, Dryland Research Institute, Great Eastern Highway, Merredin, Western Australia 6415

Treasurer - Chris Saunders - Barbara Hardy Institute, Agricultural Machinery Research & Design, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes, SA, 5095

Secretary - Troy Jensen - National Centre for Engineering in Agriculture (NCEA) Faculty of Engineering and Surveying University of Southern Queensland (USQ), West Street, Toowoomba QLD, 4350

Recent Past Chairman - Thomas Banhazi - A/Prof. Thomas Banhazi, National Centre for Engineering in Agriculture (NCEA) Faculty of Engineering and Surveying University of Southern Queensland (USQ), West Street, Toowoomba QLD, 4350

Additional Committee Members

Education - Erik Schmidt - National Centre for Engineering in Agriculture (NCEA) Faculty of Engineering and Surveying University of Southern Queensland (USQ), West Street, Toowoomba QLD, 4350

Communication

Guangnan Chen - National Centre for Engineering in Agriculture (NCEA) Faculty of Engineering and Surveying University of Southern Queensland (USQ), West Street, Toowoomba QLD, 4350

Paul Harris- School of Agriculture, Food and Wine; Faculty of Sciences, The University of Adelaide, Waite Campus, SA 5064

Student member – Nicholas Berry – PhD Candidate with the University of South Australia

Student member – Matthew Tscharke – PhD. Candidate with the University of Southern Queensland

Recent Past Committee Members

Richard Williams - DPI Victoria

Benefits of membership

You will be able to keep in touch with current developments in your specialist area and to meet with other interested people. You will also be able to attend the biennial conference at special member rates.

The Society for Engineering in Agriculture publishes a regular newsletter which appears as a section entitled "Leading Edge" in the publications: Australian Grain, Australian Cottongrower, and Australian Sugarcane (Greenmount Press, Toowoomba). This newsletter provides local and international news related to engineering in agriculture and precision agriculture. The magazines are all published six times a year.

Members are entitled to receive any one of the three publications which contain "Leading Edge". The other two publications are available by direct subscription to Greenmount Press at a discount rate, provided you mention to Greenmount Press that you are an SEAg member.

The items which appear in "Leading Edge" are not necessarily the same across all three publications, as the publisher of Australian Grain, Cotton and Sugarcane undertakes some editorial streaming of articles to suit the target audiences of the different publications.

Membership details

Membership is open to all people interested in 'Engineering in Agriculture' (not necessarily 'Agricultural Engineering'). This includes scientists, farmers, surveyors, technical officers, engineers, manufacturers, distributors and processors.

Formal qualifications are not necessary. International membership is welcome.

Membership runs from 1st July in each year to 30th June the following year. There are no pro-rata costs and periods: e.g. if you join in September your membership period runs until the next 30th June.

How to join

If you are a member of the Engineers Australia: When filling out your annual subscription forms, in the 'Technical Societies' section, simply tick the box to join SEAg. Your Engineer Australia subscription goes up by the relevant amount, and these funds will later be forwarded to SEAg.