8th Young Geotechnical Professionals Conference Proceedings

Welcome to the Eighth Australia & New Zealand Young Geotechnical Professionals Conference, Wellington, New Zealand, 2008. Following on from previous successful conferences held in Sydney 1994, Auckland 1996, Melbourne 1998, Perth 2000, Rotorua 2002, the Gold Coast 2004 and Adelaide 2006, this biannual event is a joint initiative of the New Zealand Geotechnical Society and the Australian Geomechanics Society.

The aims of the conference are to:

  • Promote the professional development of delegates through sharing experience and ideas, and by presenting a paper to senior professionals and peers
  • Expand and strengthen the lines of communication between young professionals within the field of geomechanics
  • Promote an enhanced perspective of the varied roles, responsibilities and opportunities encompassed by the geotechnical profession

The specific goal of the organising committee has been to prepare an interesting, meaningful, informative and enjoyable conference from which delegates can gain an enhanced understanding of their profession.

As with all previous YGP conferences, support of the geotechnical community is very important to ensure a successful event. We would like to thank all the companies and individuals that have provided assistance to committee members in our preparation of the conference over the past two years. Thanks also to the various employers of the committee members (many of whom are also event sponsors) for their support in releasing staff to organise and attend this conference.

A big thanks goes to Nick Perrin, Dick Beetham and Rob Langridge from GNS Science for designing and accompanying us on the field trip.

Bruce Symmans and Gavin Alexander will be acting as senior mentors along with Elisabeth Bowman, Ross Kendrick and our guest speaker will be Prof John Atkinson. Without such valuable input, the conference would lack much of what makes it such a success.

It is hoped that delegates will interact with their peers openly, make some new friends and maximise their exposure to the geotechnical community during the conference. A short question time has been allocated to each talk and we hope that delegates will take this opportunity to ask questions and learn more about the topics on offer.

Most of all we hope you have a rewarding time at the conference. The organising committee members look forward to meeting you all and joining you in an informative and enjoyable three days.

Elisabeth Bowman
Proceedings Editor
8YGPC Committee