Peter De Roma is a highly experienced Civil Engineer with over 33 years of professional practice. After graduating with honours from James Cook University in 1988, he began his career in Cairns, working for national engineering firms for 6 years.

In 1994, Peter moved to a firm focused on infrastructure projects in rural and remote areas of the Cape and Torres Strait regions. This kickstarted his extensive experience working on critical infrastructure such as water, sewerage, waste, structures, roads, drainage, airports and marine projects in these communities.

In 1999, Peter established his own engineering consultancy, PDR Engineers, which was initially based in Thursday Island. The firm quickly gained a reputation for leading major infrastructure programs on behalf of state and federal governments. Peter served as Program Director for the Major Infrastructure Program in the Torres Strait for 8 years, as well as the Seawalls program addressing coastal issues for 5 years.

PDR Engineers expanded into the Cairns region in 2006 and became known for providing specialized engineering services. The firm was acquired by SMEC, one of Australia’s leading infrastructure consultancies, in 2017.

More recently, Peter has partnered with Chris Taifalos to establish a new engineering consultancy to better serve their well-established client base.

Key highlights of Peter’s career include:

• Extensive experience as a principal design engineer and project manager
• Strategic expertise in leading large-scale infrastructure programs
• Strong corporate governance and commercial experience
• Extensive knowledge of statutory approval processes
• Cultural awareness and sensitivity working in indigenous communities
• Expertise in accounting, finance and legal matters