Wilmien

Position:

Process Engineer

As a Process Engineer, Wilmien (Meena), finds ways to optimise how Rous’ water treatment plants operate, ensuring the community continues to receive high-quality, clean, drinking water.

The role is very dynamic; I mostly work on improvement projects, but I also update important documents, monitor plant operational data, provide reports, and I contribute towards Rous’ Capital Projects.”

Meena received a Bachelor of Chemical Engineering from the University of Stellenbosch in South Africa (Class of 2017). After working in the water treatment industry for seven years, she brings a wealth of knowledge in chemistry and water quality to Rous.

My previous roles focused on reverse osmosis, and groundwater and seawater sources. Whereas my current role is centred on surface water sources (such as Rocky Creek Dam and Emigrant Creek Dam).  

The job requires hands-on work, like media sampling and waste-water turbidity sampling. Personally, I find that the tactile function of physically working with the equipment broadens my understanding and helps me to recommend improvements for the organisation’s infrastructure.

A typical day looks like this: I usually start work at 7:30 am at either of Rous’ water treatment plants.  (My morning can’t begin until I’ve had a strong coffee of course.) I like to spend time in the morning answering emails, checking water quality data, checking SCADA and planning the day ahead, before jumping into projects. For example, I have been working on optimising the DAF filters at Nightcap Water Treatment Plant. This involves collecting ‘backwash’ water samples, analysing the turbidity in the lab, logging the data, analysing the various trends and providing improvement recommendations before moving on to the next filter.

My days are never the same as it strongly depends on the various projects I’m working on.

I am very proud to work at Rous. I really enjoy the people and culture, while finding solutions to enhance the way in which we operate so Rous can provide the highest quality drinking water for the region.”

Rous

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