Dr. Steve Mackay is the founder of the Engineering Institute of Technology. He firmly believes in Nelson Mandela’s mantra that, “Education is the most powerful weapon which we can use to change the world.” His leadership has inspired EIT’s unique and distinctive approach to engineering education.

Since 2008 three core objectives define the essence of the institute:

Collaborating comprehensively with industry to ensure graduates are job-ready.
Employing platforms of learning to facilitate student accessibility and engagement.
Keeping the business of education student-centric.

Dr. Mackay has enjoyed a varied career in engineering, having worked in automation, data acquisition, instrumentation, data communications, and process control throughout Australia, Europe, Africa, and North America over the past 35 years. He has successfully pioneered the application of new technologies in Australia and overseas, installing industrial data communication systems and implementing live online education, (including remote laboratories), for engineering students worldwide. Dr. Mackay has been involved in a range of industries, including power stations, mining, mineral processing, oil/gas/petrochemical plants, and platforms. He has presented courses on industrial data communications, data acquisition, instrumentation, and process control to over 30,000 engineers and technicians worldwide for clients such as NASA, Rolls Royce, and BP. He has also co-authored and edited 25 engineering books that have been published across the world. Dr. Mackay is a Fellow of Engineers Australia with a license to practice as a Chemical, Mechanical, and Electrical Chartered Professional Engineer. As Dean of the Engineering Institute of Technology, Dr. Mackay leads the institute in providing microcredentials and engineering qualifications to over 2000 students per year from 140 countries. He has an unswerving focus on student outcomes and on excellence in education.

On campus - another first!

October 3, 2018 3:28 pm
As we rapidly move through our first year of hosting on-campus students, we are consistently experiencing lots of ‘firsts’. In their first year of study, our students take part in a site-visit to gain a little insight into the engineering industry they have chosen.   CELEBRATION OF SUCCESS Recently, one...Read More

Do female engineering graduates really earn more than their male counterparts?

October 3, 2018 3:02 pm
A new report from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) shows female engineering graduates earned slightly more than their male counterparts for the first time in 2017. These figures account for males and females who have completed an undergraduate engineering degree and have started in their first full-time role.  According...Read More

India’s most famous civil engineer celebrated

October 2, 2018 3:36 pm
India celebrates Engineering Day on the 15th of September every year. Google, this year, decided to honor one of India’s most celebrated engineers -Sir Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya. He was the Google Doodle for the day. Behind him on the Doodle, is the work he is most famous for; the Krishna Raja...Read More

World’s first hydrogen fuel train unveiled

October 2, 2018 2:04 pm
Germany has unveiled not one but two Hydrogen fuel trains. It is being celebrated as a world-first. The train can traverse 600 miles (1,000km) of railway on a single tank of hydrogen. What is significant about this number is that it matches what diesel trains can do. The new-fangled trains...Read More

Digital advancement highlights skills shortages and ill-prepared educational institutions

October 2, 2018 1:52 pm
In a digital world, higher education becomes a shapeshifter. Even after graduation, continuous and life-long re-skilling and up-skilling is becoming a necessity. The difficulty for universities is to keep up with the demand for new forms of education and training as a result of the internet age. Brick-and-mortar institutions are...Read More

Mechanical engineers achieve world first for nanomotors

October 2, 2018 1:19 pm
How do you make a nanodevice move? Add some light. No, really. A nanomotor is a molecular or nanoscale device capable of converting energy into movement. The motors are so small they can fit inside human cells. The benefits of engineering these kinds of motors in the future of biomedicine...Read More

Wind and solar could help desert bloom

October 2, 2018 11:16 am
Could solar and wind farms create gardens of Eden in the desert? According to a newly published study in the popular journal, Science, bringing rain to the desert with solar arrays and wind turbines is not far-fetched. The study is entitled: ‘Climate model shows large-scale wind and solar farms in...Read More

True AI and autonomous vehicles

October 2, 2018 10:51 am
The convergence of machine learning and engineering is perhaps the most important crossing of paths in modern times. Companies in a plethora of industries are expected to (and already are) opting-in to the AI future. As technology advances, it is up to the prospective engineer to adapt to the innovation...Read More

Engineers unveil wearable ultrasound sensor

October 2, 2018 10:31 am
The advancement of technology has its advantages, especially for rural areas and low-income households around the world. With microsystems and nano-engineering, processes can be made more efficient and the cost of operation reduced. Also, some engineers have turned their skills in this direction, designing complex wearable technologies that are improving,...Read More

Make Engineering Learning and Development Part of Your Mantra in your Job and Team

September 19, 2018 12:02 pm
The Art of Support: EIT’s Learning Support Officers InformationCategory Education10 September 2020Written by: Quintus Potgieter The Engineering Institute of Technology (EIT) is a unique global institute, delivering online engineering short courses, diplomas, and degrees. Students around the world log into EIT’s synchronous online virtual campus to network with other... Read...Read More

Partnerships are empowering employees at SA Power Networks

September 17, 2018 10:31 am
SA Power Networks is South Australia’s electricity distributor. And what a dynamic organisation it is too. Steve Mackay, the Dean of the Engineering Institute of Technology, and a colleague were shown through the building at 1 Anzac Highway in Adelaide, on the morning of the 28th of August by Barney...Read More

Mechanical engineers crucial to future of guided surgery

September 12, 2018 10:40 am
Biomedical engineering is continuing its amalgamation of individual disciplines of engineering, fusing it into one discipline that has the health of humanity as its core focus. A host of startups and companies are developing technologies that will assist the healthcare sector and keep people healthier. United States company, Neocis, is...Read More

Civil engineers look to remedy London Tube’s heat problem

September 12, 2018 9:30 am
As the seasons change and the Northern Hemisphere gets a taste of what the Southern Hemisphere was feeling during winter, commuters on London's Underground could not be more ready for winter than right now. In the month of August, London observed a sweltering heat wave that scorched the region for...Read More

Gravity energy storage applications show promise

September 10, 2018 10:17 am
Concrete batteries? It seems that civil engineering and mechanical engineering have met in the middle for a new type of energy storage. A Swiss startup named Energy Vault has showcased an unorthodox experiment — they have stacked concrete blocks via an electric crane, and in doing this, stored energy. The...Read More

Gravity energy storage applications show promise

September 10, 2018 10:17 am
Concrete batteries? It seems that civil engineering and mechanical engineering have met in the middle for a new type of energy storage. A Swiss startup named Energy Vault has showcased an unorthodox experiment — they have stacked concrete blocks via an electric crane, and in doing this, stored energy. The...Read More

The blind man who invented cruise control

September 10, 2018 10:09 am
Engineers are exceptionally skilled at designing products that assist people who are disabled. But it's not often that we see a disabled person engineering for those who are able-bodied. While millions of people use cruise control every day, many wouldn't know that it was invented by a blind engineer. His...Read More

How engineering changed time

September 10, 2018 9:30 am
A full rotation of the earth around its own axis produces patterns and rhythms in nature known as the diurnal cycle. Ever since human beings could perceive that the sun rose in the East and set in the West, the assumption was that there was a passage of time. Then...Read More

Entrepreneurship, the gig economy and you

September 10, 2018 9:14 am
What is a side-hustle? It's really anything that you can do on the side to make money while pursuing higher education or employment. It may be a hobby you are trying to monetize for a little bit of extra cash, it may be a serious venture you are working to...Read More

Electrical engineering jobs in high demand

September 7, 2018 11:29 am
ZipRecruiter, one of America's top job recruitment sites, has reported that the most in-demand jobs are in the electrical engineering industry. The site is visited by millions of people every day, and the most searched for positions — in fact, the top five searches — were all pertaining to electrical...Read More

The future of lightweight, flexible, industrial robots

September 7, 2018 9:56 am
China was abuzz at the 2108 World Robot Conference 2018 in August. Manufacturers from around the world descended on Beijing to showcase their latest robotic endeavors. China is stepping up its robotic output and intends to increase manufacturing operations as we approach 2020. Xin Guobin, China’s vice minister of industry...Read More

Smartphones hold more tech than 60s NASA computers

September 7, 2018 9:53 am
In July 1969, Neil Armstrong became the first man to walk on the moon as part of the Apollo 11 mission. In August and September 1977, NASA launched Voyager 2 and then Voyager 1 — space probes with the primary purpose of exploring the outer reaches of the galaxy. Voyager...Read More

A tale of two gold mines

September 7, 2018 8:16 am
The automation of mining operations is inevitable. Mining is a high stakes business with costly equipment and a small margin for operational error. Thanks to the digital disruption of the sector, mines are being made safer, more efficient, and productive. Not many underground mining operations are automated. However, this will...Read More

New Online Application System

August 30, 2018 9:55 am
The Engineering Institute of Technology (EIT) is pleased to announce that from 03 September 2018, a new application system will be made available to allow interested students to apply online for their course or program of choice. The implementation of this new online system will make it easier for interested...Read More

Curiosity Didn’t Kill the Engineering Cat

August 21, 2018 12:00 pm
Dear Colleagues We wouldn’t have breakthrough discoveries without that wonderful quality – curiosity - from inventing fire, the aircraft  to the Google search engine. That magical feeling  that goes about investigating  new information, pondering on a different way of doing something or  simply trying something out new (and often having...Read More

Digital fabrication producing smart constructions

August 13, 2018 12:20 pm
The casting of concrete is becoming smarter and smarter by the day. The digitization of concrete casting has revolutionized the way both architects and engineers do their jobs. It is now possible to 3D print concrete in novel geometric patterns that defy belief and produce artistic results. However, it’s not...Read More

Plastic roads: paving the way to a plastic-free future?

August 13, 2018 10:46 am
The war against plastic is gathering force. Environmentalists have made it clear: the continuing use of plastics bodes badly for Planet Earth. It is gratifying to learn that the initiatives to eliminate or reduce the use of plastics are gathering speed and popularity. For example, Starbucks aim to remove plastic...Read More

Origami inspired mechanical engineering

August 13, 2018 9:52 am
Origami is the Japanese art of folding paper into decorative shapes and figure. Its use of geometrical shapes makes it a curious art form — one that could inspire mechanical engineering design. According to Northeastern University researcher Soroush Kamrava, the future solar panels and air bags will be informed by...Read More

New quantum battery could recharge in seconds

August 9, 2018 11:21 am
A new ‘quantum battery’ could charge devices in less than a second, making your uncharged phone a thing of the past. The University of Adelaide’s newest Ramsay Fellow Dr James Quach is currently researching this new technology. His previous experience in quantum mechanics could help him turn this theory into...Read More

Predictive maintenance trumps preventative maintenance

August 9, 2018 11:10 am
Manufacturing equipment requires maintenance; efficient machines to get a manufacturing job done. With the arrival of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), modern sensors are able to observe every nook and cranny of a manufacturing plant. Traditionally, the responsibility of improving efficiencies and maintaining the operations in manufacturing was down...Read More

China’s investments into the country’s clean energy marches on

August 9, 2018 10:34 am
The head of states of the BRICS nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) have met for the 10th BRICS Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa. Topics on the agenda were energy, manufacturing, technology, industrializations, and more. But most importantly, deals were being made. China will be giving US$14.7 billion...Read More