Austrack Equipment understands that a woman is often the right man for the job.
Women are excelling in a multitude of fields across the pipeline industry, breaking down barriers in a traditionally male-dominated space. And nowhere is this more evident than at Austrack Equipment, where General Manager Donna Owens is the guiding hand.
Owens, who has been with Austrack since its inception in 2011, is the driving force behind the company’s relentless pursuit of delivering the very best customer experience.
Owens spends her days directing operations at the yard, making sure the right equipment is chosen for each job, ensuring all the contractual paperwork is in place with the customer, and that all equipment leaving the Austrack yard meets all necessary safety, documentation and performance criteria.
She is equally adept at negotiating hire rates and dealing with finance, legal and human resource matters.
With nothing at Austrack she doesn’t touch, Owens is often described by her team as the ‘beating heart’ of the company. Under her guidance, Austrack has grown to stock more than 1000 machines and attachments for its customers.
Austrack benefits from the preferred customer status, including working with major manufacturers such as Caterpillar, Komatsu, Hitachi and Superior.
“Among our customer base is the crème de la crème of pipeline contracting,” Owens said. “We are blessed with great staff who every day show us what can be achieved with us all pulling in one direction.
“So we think we have got the trifecta at Austrack: great customers, great suppliers and great staff.”
Austrack has welcomed more women to its ranks to ensure that the company’s customer experience is everything it should be.
“For a long while I was the only female in the company, but I am delighted to report that Austrack has discovered what many of us have known all along: that a woman is often the right man for the job,” Owens told The Australian Pipeliner.
“We are a small, dynamic company – and I would like to think progressive. Females now represent 33 per cent of our people.
“Reaching a more balanced gender ratio at Austrack benefits productivity, teamwork and inclusivity, with the happy bonus of being seen by our customers and suppliers and other stakeholders as progressive.”
One new team member to join the Austrack team is Alejandra Estevez, who leads the detailing section.
“Maybe it is an attention-to-detail thing, but according to our customers, our machines have never left the yard looking better,” Owens said.
The company’s latest hire is Lucy Hereward, a recent school leaver who believes her future might well involve heavy plant and equipment. Currently she works part-time so she can get real world experience of the role.
“It is great to be in a position to offer a young lady the opportunity to pursue her goal, and Lucy arrived wanting to try out to determine if a diesel fitter role would suit and we were pleased to be able to offer her an opportunity,” Owens said.
“As someone who has been in pipelining for more than 20 years, it is exciting to see the change in young women in 2025, who see possibilities beyond what their mothers saw.
“And, increasingly, they are seeing those possibilities in industries like ours.”
Owens said that the overall presence and the roles occupied by women in the pipeline industry continue to grow every year.
“In our business, without the very significant female contribution we enjoy we would simply not cope. And that’s entirely as it should be with 50 per cent of the available talent being female,” she said.
“At the end of the day, the company objective remains to be at least as good as the best, and better than the rest.
“And girl power at Austrack serves that objective every step of the way.”
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