Lessons from 44 Years of Change in Geotechnical Engineering
Peter Hollingsworth Honoured Lecture
Dr Burt Look OAM
In appreciation of Peter Hollingsworth, the AGS QLD Chapter has initiated an honoured lecture series named after him. The Peter Hollingsworth Honoured Lecture is delivered every two years.
The winner of the 2025 Peter Hollingsworth Honoured Lecture is Dr. Burt Look OAM who will share Lessons from 44 Years of Change in Geotechnical Engineering.
About the presentation
This lecture reflects on how changes in investigation methods, quality control, data interpretation, and risk communication have reshaped the profession on or using expansive clays, residual soils, and weathered rock. These experiences underscore the importance of integrating theory with field observations, laboratory data, and reliability‑based thinking to avoid overconfidence and ensure defensible decisions are made in a complex and variable Queensland geotechnical landscape.
It is not all good news. Even with improved data, cognitive dissonance (conflicts between beliefs and knowledge) impedes progress, and geotechnical practice needs to evolve. The current state of practice lags known technology and methods as it is slow to embrace modulus‑based thinking, challenging density‑driven conventions, or advocating for clearer risk-based solutions. Conservative assumptions being used as a safety blanket is not risk management.
More and improved testing is necessary but not the end game. Data and test model interpretation is also required prior to analytical modelling. The use of statistics provides both transparency and accountability as judgment often varies between practitioners given the same data. Data should not be a point of view.
About the speaker
Dr Burt Look OAM Consultant
Burt is currently an independent consultant with AGTRE (Applied Geotechnical Testing Research and Education) with his focus on championing evidence-based decisions for value engineering, risk clarity, and education. He believes long-term learning and improvements emerge not from perfection but from reflection, and a willingness to adapt.
Burt completed his master’s degree at Imperial College, London, and his PhD part time at The University of Queensland while working at Queensland Main Roads. He also has a Graduate Certificate in Philosophy. He was previously the Global Practice Leader in SKM (now Jacobs), and at Aurecon. He was a director at FSG Geotechnics + Foundations.
Burt is the 2014 Queensland Professional Engineer of the year and recipient of the 2018 AGS Practitioner Award. He was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in 2020. Burt has published 4 geotechnical engineering books and over 100 technical publications focused on industry practices.
About Peter Hollingsworth
Peter Hollingsworth qualified as a civil engineer from the University of Queensland in 1951 and as a licensed surveyor in 1954. He worked in North Queensland and Papua New Guinea until the end of 1956. He was involved in the construction of Warragamba dam, design and construction of precast prestressed concrete structures and problem foundations throughout Australia. In 1962 partnered the founding of Coffey & Hollingsworth consulting in Geotechnical engineering in Australia and Southeast Asia. In 1974 he founded Hollingsworth Consultants specialising in Environmental impact studies and Geotechnical Engineering in Australia and Papua New Guinea. In 1989 the firm merged with Dames & Moore and entered the world of waste management engineering. He retired from the firm in 1993 and continued as a consultant (Hollingsworth Project Consultant) in business development in engineering.
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