Second-generation family business Bowhill Engineering traces its origins to the 1970s, when the current owners’ father started as a diesel mechanic with Bowhill Motors, which opened in the mid-1970s. In the early 1990s, with his two sons Simon and Jeremy joining the business and preferring to build rather than repair, the operation evolved into Bowhill Engineering.
Initially based on the family farm, the company relocated to its current site in 1996, some 1.5 hours east of Adelaide in the Murray River town of Bowhill, which has a population of fewer than 300.
In 2002 the family suffered a tragedy when Simon, an innovator and driving force behind Bowhill Engineering, was killed in a car accident. At that point Jeremy’s wife, Jodie, who was on maternity leave from the local high school with their eldest daughter just six months old, joined her husband, managing director Jeremy, in the business to do whatever was needed.
Over the following 10 years, Jodie took on roles spanning administration, finance, IT, marketing, compliance and strategy, allowing Jeremy to concentrate on developing the business and overseeing day-to-day operations.
Today, Jeremy is director of business development, while Jodie is chief executive officer. The company also maintains strong community links through the local CFS, the Bowhill Progress Association and the local Post Office.
Employing more than 70 staff, along with around 20 subcontractors supporting current workloads, Bowhill Engineering specialises in heavy and complex structural steel fabrication and surface treatment. The company focuses on one-off bespoke structures, primarily for the infrastructure sector, while also servicing the marine, sovereign defence and mining industries.
Investing in the future, Bowhill Engineering has long maintained a strong commitment to apprenticeship training, adopting a strategy many years ago to ‘grow our own’ workforce.
“We spend a lot of time visiting schools, having group tours through the site, hosting work experience and intern students and this has resulted in over 56 apprentices and trainees taking part in our training academy over the years. Drawing on local talent, we currently have 15 apprentices and one trainee at various stages, and we look to introduce four to five first-year students each year to this programme. Our previous apprentices and trainees have gone on to become team leaders, supervisors, production managers, welding supervisors, WHSE coordinators, project administration and accounts support,” says Jodie.
Following detailed research, Bowhill Engineering has commissioned an Okuma CNC double column machining centre MCR-A5CII with OSP-P500 control.
“Okuma was consistently recommended to us and we took time to speak to others who have this equipment. This reconfirmed what we were hearing about the company’s support, replacement parts to maintain productivity and technical advice from passionate engineers,” says Jeremy. “Word-of-mouth referrals by people you trust are the best advice you can get and we intend to take full advantage of the ongoing training from Okuma.”
“The new Okuma double column machining centre enables us to undertake large, complex CNC work that we would previously have had to outsource, making it difficult to remain competitive. The all-inclusive approach to the investment package meant there were no surprises with the contract and commissioning. Okuma engineers also took great care to ensure the machining centre was the right fit for our forward projections and strategies,” says Jeremy.
“The first CNC contract for the company includes 648 10-tonne segments for the Torrens to Darlington Cross Tunnel Passage opening, with parts measuring 4 metres long, 2.4 metres wide and 1m high, incorporating facings, grooves, tapered holes, threaded holes and radial milling with the indexing head, so there is a lot going on with these components.”
The new machine is expected to create further opportunities by building on the company’s established reputation in heavy fabrication and large-component machining while supporting future market growth.
According to Jeremy and Jodie, there is a strong sense of excitement among engineering staff, who see opportunities to develop new skills and gain hands-on experience with the advanced tooling and programming capabilities offered by the new machine. Staff are also gaining a deeper understanding of modern fabrication methods while improving overall efficiency and accuracy.
Most of Bowhill Engineering’s work is produced to customer-supplied designs, although recent projects have created opportunities to optimise designs for improved manufacturability. For structural integrity and accuracy, design refinements can unlock production efficiencies that complement the capabilities of the company’s advanced equipment.
Bowhill Engineering operates an integrated business management system supported by a document management platform accessible to stakeholders. The company holds certification including ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management, ISO 45001:2018 Safety Management, ISO 14001:2015 Environmental Management, SCA Steel Compliance Construction Level 3, and EPA Abrasive Blasting and Surface Coating certification. It has also received more than 30 community and business awards over the past 15 years.
“What we value most is the opportunity to work collaboratively with the client and their designers to optimise designs for durability,” says Jeremy. “The specific capabilities and nuances of the tooling and the machine itself often influence practical and efficient design outcomes. The engineering discussions and input also allow our staff to contribute to effective solutions and gain valuable technical knowledge that would otherwise remain outside the fabricator’s scope. It is a rare and highly beneficial opportunity for professional growth and collaboration – together we thrive.”
Commenting on South Australia’s current economic conditions, Jodie says the company is involved in two of the state’s largest infrastructure projects while continuing to navigate uncertainty in global markets.
“Strategic plans for the next 10 years are no longer an option and there is a need to be ready to pivot quickly to meet current circumstances. Today our mission is to focus on return on investment following our recent investment in a new heavy lift with a 100 tonne gantry and the machining workshop expansion. Bowhill Engineering is strongly positioned for further tunnel works, sovereign defence, mining, marine and infrastructure projects and has the ability to take advantage of new opportunities.”
Currently, some 80% of Bowhill Engineering’s work is undertaken in South Australia, with the remaining 20% across mainland Australia.