Eric has been at the forefront in the application of technology to improve efficiency. His early engineering career was in the development of leading edge automation of manufacturing processes, applying technology to improve quality and speed of manufacturing processes. He was also an early adopter of 3D design and BIM (Building Information Modelling). Following this, Eric worked with a start-up company to transition out of R&D into large scale manufacturing. In the last ten years Eric has transitioned his skills from Manufacturing and applied this knowledge to transport infrastructure engineering and construction. Eric has a passion for technology and driving industry change. Working on the implementation and standardisation of Digital Engineering in Infrastructure, he was formally EIC’s Principal for Digital Integration and Capability supporting the CIMIC Operating companies which include: CPB Contractors, UGL, Leighton Asia, Thiess, Sedgman and Broad. Eric is now CEO of Kephron Pty Ltd, providing strategic consulting and training. Eric is also the Chair of buildingSMART Australasia and Chair of buildingSMART International.

Gavin Cairns has been involved in Queensland’s transport infrastructure sector since 2006 and has been a key driver in the adoption of openBIM across the state. He has led the development of openBIM documentation, data standards and supporting software systems since the Department of Transport and Main Roads’ first BIM pilot in 2014, working closely with the TMR Digital Systems team and industry partners.

Through collaboration with buildingSMART, Gavin and the TMR team have aligned contract documentation and digital workflows with IFC, IDS and IDM standards. This work has enabled stronger lifecycle asset management, including interoperability between project information  models, GIS platforms and TMR’s Asset Management systems.

Recognised with a Special Mention in the 2025 buildingSMART International Awards, Gavin is widely regarded for his expertise in IFC schema, attribute standardization and BIM data validation. Gavin remains passionately committed to contributing to openBIM standards and advocating for the long-term value of digital engineering.

After completing a Bachelor or Architecture at the University of Sydney Scott has over 35 years of experience practicing in Architecture and 28 years in CAD-BIM teaching at university and technical colleges. For the past 6 years, as well as his university commitments Scott has worked as a digital technology manager for a leading quantity surveyor helping with validation of models for quantification to derive costs.

Dr Julie Jupp is Associate Professor of Digital Engineering at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) in the Faculty of Engineering and IT. Julie’s research, teaching and professional interests lie in the creation of a smart, resilient and sustainable built environment.

As an interdisciplinary academic, Julie works in the cross-cutting fields of digital engineering that link model-based design and construction with intelligent operations and maintenance, resulting in smart built environments. Research impacts originate from innovative contributions to the theory and praxis of sustainability, with the goal being to advance data-driven processes, and inform the policy and practice of smart property development, construction and operations. As the co-founder and Director of Research for the not-for-profit International Intelligent Building Organisation (IIBO), Julie aims to make a difference and help industry push the frontiers of digital building capabilities. In this role Julie is leading the development of the Intelligent Building (IB) Index, a multi-criteria performance assessment method for measuring the intelligence of smart buildings and precincts. Julie is also an active member of a number of academic and industry committees, including the Technical Education Committee in the Australasian BIM Advisory Board (ABAB), a core member of the BIM Excellence (BIMe) Initiative, SYDBIM Consortium, and Intl. Federation for Information Processing’s PLM Working Group (WG 5.1). In the Faculty of Engineering and IT, Julie is teaching studio-based and industry-engaged courses on Digital Engineering and BIM, including under- and postgraduate subjects in 3D modelling, model-based co-ordination, 4D construction scheduling and simulation, and BIM management. Julie has published in the fields of design science, engineering design, BIM, through-life knowledge and information management, multidisciplinary design optimisation, and artificial intelligence.

Holger de Groot is the CEO and Founding Director of Modmation, having more than 20 years of experience within the AEC industry. As a certified BIM Manager, he has accrued invaluable experience in (building) information management and digital project delivery in Australasia and Europe.

Holger is also the Vice Chairperson at buildingSMART Australasia, registered with the German Chamber of Architects of Lower Saxony (#020262), associate member of the Australian Institute of Architects (#69913) and a sought-after author and regular speaker at high level industry conferences.

Before Holger founded Modmation in 2020, he has led the BIM implementation while employed at HDR as their National Director of BIM for the Australian region, and at Grimshaw Architects as their Office BIM Manager for the Sydney studio, advising on BIM matters at all levels.

Today, Holger’s professional experience in digital project delivery and his technical competence and comprehensive knowledge of BIM allow him to provide advice, support, guidance and resources to clients who need strong information management capabilities.

Jon Mirtschin received his Bachelor of Engineering/Science from the University of Melbourne, Australia. He worked for Connell Wagner and Expedition Engineering (London) before starting Geometry Gym in 2009. Geometry Gym provides consultancy, training and develops BIM software tools specifically for Model Exchange using OpenBIM standards such as IFC. These are primarily in the form of plugins for applications such as Revit, Rhino, Grasshopper, Civil 3D and various Structural Analysis applications.  Jon has been a director on the board of buildingSMART Australasia since 2019.