Having left home unexpectedly at the tender age of 16, she leapt at the opportunity to study for her Civil Engineering National Diploma at Technicon Free State courtesy of a VKE bursary. "It was the only prospect available on a very bleak horizon; I grabbed the chance immediately."

"All my hobbies, though, are found on the artistic side of life. I play the piano, design my own clothes, and embroider. I have just embarked on two new hobbies. Stamping - making cards using repetitive stamping designs - and topiary trees, which is making realistic trees out of artificial material."

Despite, or maybe because of, her extra-curricular artistic activities, she has excelled in the engineering industry. "Last year I was appointed by the Minister of Public Works as a member of the Engineering Council of South Africa," she says quietly and modestly.

"I serve also on the Registration Committee for Technicians as Vice Chair, Central Registration Committee and the Investigation Committee. Serving on the Investigation Committee is really interesting. A judge, two attorneys, and an arbitrator are part of the committee," she says.

"Being exposed to the workings of different professions is both educational and exciting. It is a great honour to serve on this committee as it is the body responsible for protecting the public."

Jeffares & Green have been very supportive in the four years she has been with them as a Senior Technologist. "In addition to the committee work, I still have to pull my weight in terms of my work load," she says of her busy schedule.

Madeleine recently finished a large sewer project in Pampierstad. This residential development is a few sweltering kilometres away from Hartswater in the North West Province.

"The project meant having to design a sewer reticulation system to replace existing pit latrines and soak-aways. Approximately 18km of sewers and 790 toilet structures will be constructed."

The actual work took 130 hours. "Thanks to the super Civil Designer software, the generation of all the plans only took two days," she says. "It was not a very difficult project to do, except at various places existing services had to be crossed which were at different levels."

"The time-consuming part of a design of this nature is always the calculation of the slopes and flows together with the creation of the longitudinal section plans. But this is where Civil Designer makes everything so easy and quick. It is extremely beneficial to be able to make adjustments to the design during the refining process, and to see how the output is affected after the analysis.”

"It is very satisfying to know that I have played a small part in helping a community to enjoy a better quality of life. Preventing the spreading of diseases by providing proper sanitation at a cost the community can afford is a big plus factor for the people of Pampierstad. The environment too will be improved with the proper disposal of human waste," she says.
 

Does she encounter any pressure being a woman in a male dominated industry? "Sometimes it is a bit daunting to be the only woman in a meeting of twenty or so men," she smiles thoughtfully. "Sometimes the tension is apparent, but that may be because they are unsure how to handle me."

Does she regret not being a spy? The laughter tinkles, "I suppose being on the Investigations Committee does involve finding out what actually happened, so in a strange and mysterious way, the meandering road may have come full circle for me!”