CESA Aon Engineering Excellence Awards 2025 finalists revealed. Part 1 of a two-part series.
CESA Aon Engineering Excellence Awards in a prior year. © RACA Journal
Consulting Engineers South Africa (CESA) has announced the finalists for the 2025 CESA Aon Engineering Excellence Awards. These awards honour outstanding projects, organisations and individuals who are shaping the built environment through innovation, collaboration, and engineering excellence.
Now in its 53rd year, the annual awards are a cornerstone of the consulting engineering industry – recognising excellence not just in design and execution, but in the transformative role engineering plays in society. This year’s awards spotlight sustainability, ingenuity, and the bold ideas driving progress across the country.
“Engineering the future we want, means reimagining infrastructure in a way that is inclusive, sustainable, and future-ready,” says Chris Campbell, CEO of CESA. “The 2025 finalists exemplify how consulting engineers are pushing boundaries through projects that prove that engineering is not only solving today’s problems but actively building the South Africa we aspire to.”
Projects submitted this year reflect a wide variety of sectors, including transport, water, residential and industrial, as well as social infrastructure – each one demonstrating a commitment to environmental stewardship, and technical excellence.
“In celebrating these finalists, we also reaffirm our belief that engineering is central to South Africa’s future. Through innovation and sustainable practices, consulting engineers are laying the foundation for economic stability and an improved quality of life. The diversity and creativity evident in this year’s submissions are a reminder of the talent and vision within our profession.”
Nolwandle Mgoqi, CEO of Aon South Africa, the platinum sponsor of the awards, underscores the importance of recognising these achievements: “Aon takes immense pride in our long-standing partnership with CESA and our continued sponsorship of the prestigious CESA Aon Engineering Excellence Awards, celebrating the innovation and sustainability of South Africa’s engineering sector.”
She adds: “As a trusted advisor in Risk Management, Aon’s involvement underscores our dedication to enabling the engineering sector to address complex risks, foster innovation and deliver projects that meet the highest standards of safety, quality and sustainability. Aon congratulates all nominees and award recipients who remain steadfast in supporting initiatives that drive excellence and capacity building within the industry”.
The finalists for the 2025 CESA Aon Engineering Excellence Awards are:
Young Engineer of the Year Award Category
- Daryl Gouws from Zutari
- Dhishan Mahabeer from Makhaotse, Narasimulu and Associates
- Jemma Dawson from Royal HaskoningDHV
- Imraan Akhalwaya from WSP Africa
- Lindokuhle Mbatha from Zutari
- Kelton Govender from WSP Africa
- Kyle Naidoo from Makhaotse, Narasimulu and Associates
- Tumelo Fosa from Nyeleti Consulting
- Pierre Vivier from MSW Consulting
- Tinashe Jubylant Mukalela from Avenir Holdings
- Christian de Charmoy from Bigen
- Gisella Mulder from Hatch
- Warren McLachlan from SMEC South Africa
