Meet our team: Technical Safety & Risk Expertise in Perth, Australia

As the energy sector evolves, technical safety and risk management are more important than ever. Offshore projects are becoming more complex. They also face stricter regulatory requirements. Our Perth-based team supports clients with technical safety, risk assessments, and safety case development. We help ensure safe and compliant offshore operations across Australia.

Based in Perth, our Technical Safety and Risk team plays a key role in delivering robust safety cases, technical risk assessments, and independent technical assurance across the full project lifecycle. We sat down with one of our team members, Harrison Pilling, to learn more about his day-to-day work, what drives his passion, and the evolving landscape of technical safety in the energy industry.

1. Give us a glimpse into your day-to-day life at AGR. What keeps you on your toes?

I work in the technical safety and risk team. My role includes developing safety cases, scribing (and soon facilitating) workshops, and conducting technical safety and risk studies.

Many of our projects involve offshore construction and decommissioning in Australia. Each project requires a regulator-approved safety case before offshore work can begin. No two projects are the same. Each one brings new challenges. We need to constantly adapt our risk management approach to different challenges, stakeholders, and technical environments. This keeps the work interesting and dynamic.

2. What drew you to the industry and what keeps you passionate about it?

Technical safety is fundamental to everything we do – especially in the offshore oil and gas industry, where managing risk is critical to protecting people, assets, and the environment.

What I find most rewarding is engaging directly with project and facility teams during the safety case development process. It provides real insight into how people perceive and manage risk in practice, and allows you to understand operations from their perspective.

Seeing a project move safely from planning through to successful offshore execution, knowing you contributed to its risk reduction and safety assurance, is incredibly motivating.

3. Can you tell us about something exciting you are working on right now?

I am currently supporting the Australian safety case development for the largest construction vessel in the world. It’s a complex and high-profile project, involving detailed technical risk assessments and safety assurance activities to ensure safe offshore operations in line with regulatory requirements.

4. How is the demand for independent technical assurance evolving in today’s energy landscape?

The demand for independent technical assurance and technical safety expertise is evolving rapidly as the energy sector becomes more complex, capital-intensive, and risk-sensitive.

Today, technical assurance is no longer a tick-the-box exercise. It requires integrated risk management and safety assurance throughout the entire project lifecycle, from concept through to execution and decommissioning.

For our team, this means working closely with clients to embed technical safety and risk thinking early, ensuring better decision-making and more resilient project outcomes.

5. Beyond the work, what makes you tick outside of the office?

Outside of work, I enjoy immersing myself in my hobbies – taking time to recharge and maintain balance, which is just as important as managing risk in a professional setting.