Governance
Master Plumbers National Council is made up of representatives elected by and from members, to ensure their interests are understood and represented equitably. The Association’s Board is elected by the National Council.
National Council and Board of Directors
Our National Councillors are here to represent you, our valued members and the plumbing industry in which we operate. We understand and respect our position and responsibility. The decisions government and regulatory bodies make affect our members’ businesses, our industry and the greater Victorian community.
You can read our Financial statements, Annual reports and RTO reports here.
Norm Anderson
President
With over 44 years of experience in the commercial plumbing industry, Norm has spent more than 22 years as the owner of a leading tier 1 commercial plumbing company. He currently serves as the director of Commercial Hot Water & Maintenance Pty Ltd, where they specialise in commercial hot water systems, offering energy efficiency, and sustainability systems.
Norm is an active member of the Construction Division, a representative on the National Council, and a member of both the Plumbing Advisory Council and the VBA Plumbing Special Advisory Panel (PSAP).
Daniel Smolenaars
Vice President
Daniel, the Managing Director of Tequa Plumbing and Civil, has over 30 years of experience in the plumbing industry. Based in Gippsland, this family-run business has been serving the region for 50 years. The team specializes in all aspects of plumbing maintenance, as well as commercial building projects and a wide range of engineering services in the civil sector.
Over time we have expanded our offerings and placed a strong emphasis on investing in the growth and development of our people to nurture our future leaders.
Scott Dowsett
Vice President
Scott has over 36 years’ experience in the commercial plumbing industry and has been a member of the Association since 1997. He is the Director of Cooke & Dowsett Pty Ltd, an international Tier 1 commercial plumbing company that employs licenced plumbers across Australia and New Zealand.
Scott has been a committee member of the Major Contractors’ Division since 2006 and is the current Chairman. Scott was also a Director of Master Plumbers Australia and New Zealand Ltd.
Grant Donald
Hon. Treasurer
Grant is a licenced plumber who has been in the plumbing industry for 48 years. He is a Director of Premier Plumbing Service a 4th generation family run commercial plumbing business in Ballarat.
Proudly their membership with Master Plumbers has continued unbroken for 73 years.
Grant is the Honorary Treasurer and a member of the Major Contractors Division. Grant is also a Director on the board of LeavePlus (formerly CoINVEST) and a member of the Remuneration, People & Culture Committee.
Grant is also a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and serves as a Justice of the Peace.
Kevin Shinners
Board Member
Kevin’s company, Shinners Plumbing, has been a Master Plumbers member since 1953. In 2002, Kevin was presented with the Hygieia Award for outstanding voluntary services for the development of the plumbing industry and in particular, recognition of his dedicated involvement in pursuing improvements in apprentice training for the industry.
Kevin was granted Life Membership in recognition of his continuing contribution to the Association. In 2019 Kevin was presented with a Service Award in the Premier’s Volunteer Champions Awards for his contribution to the plumbing industry.
David Geschke
Board Member
David has been working as a licenced plumber in his family business for over 20 Years, he has always maintained an interest in various aspects of our industry, from ESV compliance, to working through various water authority’s requirements, VBA inspections and compliance matters as well as keeping up to date with the ever changing Standards landscape.
The Association of Hydraulic Services Consultants Australia (AHSCA) has been a keen interest of his. As a current Director of the (AHSCA) Research Foundation he has a good understanding of the support that the members may need and also the importance of maintaining the core values of non-for-profit organisations.
Paula Withington
Board Member
Paula has over 26 years of experience in the plumbing industry through Roofrite Guttering & Roofing Systems who have been members of the Association for 16 years. Paula has worked in a variety of industries from personnel to accountancy to media. Roofrite has positioned themselves to be a company of note in Victoria for their holistic approach to residential roofing services.
She has been part of Roofrite since its inception and joined the National Council in 2022, to give back to the association, bringing to the table an extensive background in business management. She has also been actively involved in the Plumbing and Gasfitting Division meetings for years and was a long-time contributor to the Bendigo Golf Day.
David McCarthy
Board Member
David has been plumbing for almost 20 years now. Hailing from a dairy farm in Colac, Victoria, his career has taken him all over Australia including a stint in Perth, and working as the M&E Manager for one of the UK’s biggest building companies, Ardmore, in London.
David started his business David McCarthy Plumbing in 2013 in Melbourne’s west and the business is multi-award winning including New and Emerging Wyndham Business Award Winners in 2016 and Trades Business of the Year in the National My Business Awards in 2019. His business passion is investing in his team and his aim is to create a culture of happy, talented plumbers.
National Council
Phill Craig
National Council Representative
Phill has carried a passion for people, plumbing and business for over 30 years and is the Director at Servus Group where he combines all three elements. With national coverage of both trades, Phill likes to engage in high functioning team environments, constantly striving for more for clients, colleagues and the plumbing industry.
Christopher Unwin
National Council Representative
Christopher has over 15 years of experience in the plumbing industry. He is a graduate of the Master Plumbers Group Training Scheme. He started his own business, Around The Clock Plumbing Pty Ltd, in 2000, specialising in commercial maintenance work throughout Victoria.
He strongly believes in the importance of future proofing our industry and upskilling both plumbers and apprentices. Christopher is looking forward to contributing further to the plumbing industry through his role on the National Council.
Tim Wilken
National Council Representative
Tim has been plumbing in the Hamilton region for over 16 years and has been working in his own business Wilken Plumbing for 9 years. Being located in the southwest of Victoria Tim specialises in all forms of plumbing, servicing both residential, agricultural & industrial plumbing needs of the surrounding area.
Tim has spent both time and money over the years to give back to his local community through the sponsorship of various local sporting clubs and organisations. Since joining Master Plumbers back in 2015, Tim has decided to give back to the association and join the National Council in 2023.
Luke Kennedy
National Council Representative
Luke Kennedy, owner of Jet Plus Plumbing, has been a dedicated plumber for 15 years and established the business in 2017. Jet Plus Plumbing specializes in residential, commercial, and industrial maintenance, including pipe relining. The company won the Australian Trades Small Business Champion Award in 2023, and Luke received the National Trade Leader Award in 2024.
A Master Plumbers member since 2020, he joined the National Council in 2023, showcasing his commitment to the profession. Luke’s focus on customer satisfaction and quality craftsmanship embodies the Master Plumbers’ values of being expert, committed, and professional.
Mark Humphery
National Council Representative
Mark Humphery joined Master Plumbers in 2019. Mark started his apprenticeship in 1972 with the well-renowned Melbourne plumbing company VG Burdens in Ringwood. In 1984 he founded R&T Plumbing & Gasfitting which specialises in developments, Government contracts, sewer connections and real estate maintenance, which it still does today.
Mark has extensive experience and knowledge around large government projects and now brings his knowledge and expertise to the Master Plumbers National Council.
Bernard Phyland
National Council Representative
Bernie has been in the plumbing industry for over 47 years, having completed his apprenticeship in 1981. After undertaking a variety of plumbing positions and works throughout Australia he began his own plumbing and gas fitting business in 1985.
His business, in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne, continues to provide plumbing support to the community to this day. Bernie is committed to the industry that has rewarded him over the years. He is looking forward to contributing to the great work of the National Council and sharing his knowledge and experience for the advancement of plumbing.
Management Team
The Association’s Management team works to ensure the delivery of services to members and is responsible for the representation of member issues to external bodies and regulators.
Peter Daly
CEO & Association Secretary
With more than 20 years’ experience in senior leadership roles in the corporate and not-for-profit sectors, Peter has a deep understanding of membership organisations and a proven history of working successfully with government and industry to build consensus around business and public policy outcomes. He is a Civil Engineer and a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. Peter is a Director of Incolink, the Indigenous Plumbing and Sanitation Foundation, Plumbing Staff Solutions, Master Plumbers Australia and New Zealand, National Centre for Vocation Education Research and a number of Master Plumbers’ associated entities.
Brendan Gould
Executive Manager Training Services
Brendan has a strong educational background and significant experience with training development in the plumbing sector. After completing a plumbing apprenticeship and working within industry Brendan’s focus turned to education and has been involved in plumbing training and delivery since 2000.
In his role, Brendan oversees training, including the expansion of courses offered to members and industry. Master Plumbers delivers a range of courses including Certificate III Plumbing Apprenticeship, Certificate II Plumbing Pre-Apprenticeship and a number of license level and post-trade training courses.
Thanuja Gunatillake
Executive Manager Member and Corporate Services
Thanuja is an experienced senior professional, leading multidisciplinary teams across Australia’s largest membership and industry-based organisations. Her career has spanned the transport, construction, and hospitality sectors with a strong focus on affecting positive change within organisations, their customers and the communities they serve. She brings a background in Civil Engineering, Business Management and Social Impact to the team at Master Plumbers. Thanuja’s role includes responsibility for driving membership growth, business development, strategic partnerships and membership value proposition.
Honorary Positions
Peter Jensen
Honorary Historian
Peter is the Managing Director of Worboys Plumbing, which has been a member company of the Association over 75 years. In 2005, Worboys won the Green Plumbers Domestic Project of the Year award and was granted Life Member status of the Association 2016.
In 2023, Peter stepped down from his National Council position. For many years Peter had made a concerted effort to identify, sort, catalogue and preserve a significant part of our Heritage Collection. Because of this the association decided to make a new position for Peter and at the 2023 Annual General Meeting, Peter was made the first Honorary Historian of the association.
