Don Fry
Encyclopedia
Don Fry AO
is an Australia
n engineer
, company director, entrepreneur
and philanthropist
.
, Queensland
as a general engineering company contracting to the mining industry, then diversified. Fry started his apprenticeship as a Fitter and Turner with NQEA.
Under Fry's direction, NQEA later entered the boat building
and maintenance industry, and won the contract to build the 14 Australian follow-on 42m Fremantle Class
patrol boat
s for the Royal Australian Navy
that entered service in the 1980s, then provided maintenance for the ships. NQEA later built and maintained luxury pleasure boats.
NQEA has built:
• Automatic road to rail Bin Transfer System
• Continuous 'A' grade Fugal for the separation of molasses from sugar
• Semi-Swath Passenger/Vehicle Catamaran
• Low Wash Ferries operating in Sydney, Tahiti, Holland, Nigeria and London
• Automatic Docking Systems
• Coffee and Tea Harvesters
• Bauxite washing facilities
• Coal loading conveyor systems and bucket wheel reclaimers
• Semi-submersible Reef Viewer
• 100 tonne Ship ‘Travellift’ and associated infrastructure.
• 27 fully automatic Bagasse Storage and Reclaim Systems in Fiji, Jamaica, NSW & Queensland
• First silica sand processing, stockpile, wharf and ship-loading facility at Cape Flattery
• Landing craft
• 30 tonne bollard pull tugs
• Prawn trawlers
• Luxury passenger ferry for Hayman Island
• 22 work boats for the RAN & Australian Army
• 8 Work Boats for the PNG Government
• 14 Fremantle class Patrol Craft for the RAN
• 6 low wash ferries for Sydney, numerous fast ferries for Queensland tourist operators
• 5,000 tonne deadweight slip hopper powered barge
• Luxury yachts for Australian and US clients
• 3,000 tonne deadweight ore carrier - fitted with a fully automatic filling and discharge system and autodocking system
• Fast ferries and hovercraft exported to PNG, Japan, New Zealand, Kuwait, Yugoslavia, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, Canada, England, Seychelles, Angola and Holland.
in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory contracted NQEA to build a complete ground testing hypersonics test chamber to a design developed by him.
In 2004 NQEA built a nozzle for a scramjet
(supersonic combustion ramjet engine) to be tested by the University of Queensland
ground test facility, the T4 tunnel. Fry has been designated as an Adjunct Professor of the University's School of Engineering.
on homelessness.
He is chair of the James Cook University
Engineering Advisory Board.
Fry is a recipient of the Institution of Engineers Australia highest National award. He was the inaugural recipient of the Queensland Division Hall of Fame.
Fry has also been inducted into the Queensland University of Technology
Hall of Fame for Outstanding Constructors.
He is Patron of the FNQ Independent Living Support Assoc. Inc, a longtime board member of Lifeline
Cairns, and has been for 30 years member of the Cairns Salvation Army
Advisory Board.
In 2006 he was appointed a special trustee for ensuring the allocation of funds under the federal government's Cyclone Larry
assistance package.
Order of Australia
The Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, "for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service"...
is an Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n engineer
Engineer
An engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality,...
, company director, entrepreneur
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
and philanthropist
Philanthropy
Philanthropy etymologically means "the love of humanity"—love in the sense of caring for, nourishing, developing, or enhancing; humanity in the sense of "what it is to be human," or "human potential." In modern practical terms, it is "private initiatives for public good, focusing on quality of...
.
NQEA
Fry is Owner & Chairman of AIMTEK (formerly NQEA Australia Pty Ltd, formerly North Queensland Engineers and Agents Pty Ltd), started by his father in 1948 in CairnsCairns, Queensland
Cairns is a regional city in Far North Queensland, Australia, founded 1876. The city was named after William Wellington Cairns, then-current Governor of Queensland. It was formed to serve miners heading for the Hodgkinson River goldfield, but experienced a decline when an easier route was...
, Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
as a general engineering company contracting to the mining industry, then diversified. Fry started his apprenticeship as a Fitter and Turner with NQEA.
Under Fry's direction, NQEA later entered the boat building
Boat building
Boat building, one of the oldest branches of engineering, is concerned with constructing the hulls of boats and, for sailboats, the masts, spars and rigging.-Parts:* Bow - the front and generally sharp end of the hull...
and maintenance industry, and won the contract to build the 14 Australian follow-on 42m Fremantle Class
Fremantle class patrol boat
The Fremantle-class patrol boats were coastal patrol vessels operated by the Royal Australian Navy from 1979 to 2007. Designed by British shipbuilder Brooke Marine and constructed in Australia by North Queensland Engineers and Agents, the Fremantle class were larger, more powerful, and more...
patrol boat
Patrol boat
A patrol boat is a relatively small naval vessel generally designed for coastal defense duties.There have been many designs for patrol boats. They may be operated by a nation's navy, coast guard, or police force, and may be intended for marine and/or estuarine or river environments...
s for the Royal Australian Navy
Royal Australian Navy
The Royal Australian Navy is the naval branch of the Australian Defence Force. Following the Federation of Australia in 1901, the ships and resources of the separate colonial navies were integrated into a national force: the Commonwealth Naval Forces...
that entered service in the 1980s, then provided maintenance for the ships. NQEA later built and maintained luxury pleasure boats.
NQEA has built:
• Automatic road to rail Bin Transfer System
• Continuous 'A' grade Fugal for the separation of molasses from sugar
• Semi-Swath Passenger/Vehicle Catamaran
• Low Wash Ferries operating in Sydney, Tahiti, Holland, Nigeria and London
• Automatic Docking Systems
• Coffee and Tea Harvesters
• Bauxite washing facilities
• Coal loading conveyor systems and bucket wheel reclaimers
• Semi-submersible Reef Viewer
• 100 tonne Ship ‘Travellift’ and associated infrastructure.
• 27 fully automatic Bagasse Storage and Reclaim Systems in Fiji, Jamaica, NSW & Queensland
• First silica sand processing, stockpile, wharf and ship-loading facility at Cape Flattery
• Landing craft
• 30 tonne bollard pull tugs
• Prawn trawlers
• Luxury passenger ferry for Hayman Island
• 22 work boats for the RAN & Australian Army
• 8 Work Boats for the PNG Government
• 14 Fremantle class Patrol Craft for the RAN
• 6 low wash ferries for Sydney, numerous fast ferries for Queensland tourist operators
• 5,000 tonne deadweight slip hopper powered barge
• Luxury yachts for Australian and US clients
• 3,000 tonne deadweight ore carrier - fitted with a fully automatic filling and discharge system and autodocking system
• Fast ferries and hovercraft exported to PNG, Japan, New Zealand, Kuwait, Yugoslavia, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, Canada, England, Seychelles, Angola and Holland.
Hypersonics
The Australian Defence Force AcademyAustralian Defence Force Academy
The Australian Defence Force Academy is a tri-service military Academy that provides military and tertiary academic education for junior officers of the Australian Defence Force in the Royal Australian Navy , Australian Army and Royal Australian Air Force .Tertiary education is provided by the...
in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory contracted NQEA to build a complete ground testing hypersonics test chamber to a design developed by him.
In 2004 NQEA built a nozzle for a scramjet
Scramjet
A scramjet is a variant of a ramjet airbreathing jet engine in which combustion takes place in supersonic airflow...
(supersonic combustion ramjet engine) to be tested by the University of Queensland
University of Queensland
The University of Queensland, also known as UQ, is a public university located in state of Queensland, Australia. Founded in 1909, it is the oldest and largest university in Queensland and the fifth oldest in the nation...
ground test facility, the T4 tunnel. Fry has been designated as an Adjunct Professor of the University's School of Engineering.
Community involvement
Besides his business and scientific interests, Don Fry chairs Australia’s national committee advising the Government of AustraliaGovernment of Australia
The Commonwealth of Australia is a federal constitutional monarchy under a parliamentary democracy. The Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901 as a result of an agreement among six self-governing British colonies, which became the six states...
on homelessness.
He is chair of the James Cook University
James Cook University
James Cook University is a public university based in Townsville, Queensland, Australia. The university has two Australian campuses, located in Townsville and Cairns respectively, and an international campus in Singapore. JCU is the second oldest university in Queensland—proclaimed in 1970—and the...
Engineering Advisory Board.
Fry is a recipient of the Institution of Engineers Australia highest National award. He was the inaugural recipient of the Queensland Division Hall of Fame.
Fry has also been inducted into the Queensland University of Technology
Queensland University of Technology
Queensland University of Technology is an Australian university with an applied emphasis in courses and research. Based in Brisbane, it has 40,000 students, including 6,000 international students, over 4,000 staff members, and an annual budget of more than A$750 million.QUT is marketed as "A...
Hall of Fame for Outstanding Constructors.
He is Patron of the FNQ Independent Living Support Assoc. Inc, a longtime board member of Lifeline
Lifeline
Lifeline or Lifelines may refer to:Non-Medical In-Home Services to the Elderly:* Lifeline utility, in New Zealand, an essential service during major emergencies* Crisis hotline:** Lifeline , Australia-based, now international...
Cairns, and has been for 30 years member of the Cairns Salvation Army
Salvation Army
The Salvation Army is a Protestant Christian church known for its thrift stores and charity work. It is an international movement that currently works in over a hundred countries....
Advisory Board.
In 2006 he was appointed a special trustee for ensuring the allocation of funds under the federal government's Cyclone Larry
Cyclone Larry
Severe Tropical Cyclone Larry was a tropical cyclone that made landfall in Australia during the 2005-06 Southern Hemisphere tropical cyclone season. Larry originated as a low pressure system over the eastern Coral Sea on 16 March and was monitored by the Australian Bureau of Meteorology in...
assistance package.