The Optimisation Community Brisbane: Powered by Gurobi
Empowering Better Decisions with Mathematical Optimisation
📍The Westin BRISBANE | 111 Mary Street - Brisbane City, Queensland
📅 Thursday, 25 September 2025
🕒 3:00 PM – 6:00 PM (Arrival from 2:30 PM)
As industries navigate 2025’s evolving pressures—AI adoption, supply chain volatility, net-zero targets, and labour constraints—making faster, smarter decisions has never been more critical.
The Optimisation Community: Brisbane Edition brings together a vibrant network of professionals from industry and academia who are applying mathematical optimisation to solve real-world challenges at speed and scale.
Join us for an afternoon of actionable insights, local Brisbane-based success stories, and networking with peers using optimisation to drive tangible business impact.
Seats are limited—register now to secure your place!
🗓️ Agenda
Time
Session
2:30 PM
Arrival & Registration
3:00 PM
Welcome Remarks by Gurobi
3:05 PM
Ten Years of Lessons in Decision Support Tools
For the past decade, Jackson Richards has worked at the intersection of optimisation, technology, and industry - deploying bespoke SaaS decision support tools across shipping, mining, rail, and energy. His projects have ranged from real-time decision automation through to long-term strategic planning, with experiences that delivered both breakthroughs and challenges.
In this session, Jackson reflects on the key factors that shaped those outcomes and distils the practical lessons learned. Attendees will gain valuable insights into what makes decision support tools truly effective — and how to avoid common pitfalls when applying optimisation in complex, real-world environments.
Presented by: Jackson Richards | Software Team Lead | Deswik
3:30 PM
Building Value Through Simplicity: Optimisation for Asset Management
With over a decade of experience at Aurizon, Karla Bos leads the company’s Data Science practice, where optimisation is a core capability driving speed, efficiency, and agility in a rapidly changing operational landscape. Working alongside her, Sam Gamble, a Machine Learning Engineer, brings expertise in mathematics and computer science to collaborate with the business and translate optimisation needs into practical solutions
In this session, Karla and Sam will share the story of an internally developed optimisation solution that, while technically modest, has delivered substantial value for Aurizon. Their experience highlights how focused, well-aligned approaches can generate significant business impact without requiring overly complex systems.
Presented by:
Karla Bos | Leader - Data Science | Aurizon
Samuel Gamble | Machine Learning Engineer | Aurizon
3:55 PM
Optimisation of Labour at Scale: Avoiding Common Pitfalls
Insights and lessons learned from implementing labour optimisation across diverse sectors—from high-volume warehousing operations to complex care industry environments. This session will highlight what worked, what didn’t, and how to adapt strategies across different workforce models.
Key takeaways from the delivery of optimisation projects: from warehousing to care industries
Modelling decisions and business risks when applying optimised planning to large workforces
Presented by:
Dave Lynch | GM Commercialisation | Biarri
3:50 PM
Gurobi on GPUs: Current State and Future Directions
Recent research applying Primal-Dual Hybrid Gradient (PDHG) methods to linear programming has shown that first-order methods can be a useful part of the mathematical programming toolbox. These algorithms also lend themselves to GPU-based implementations, raising the prospect of exploiting the current surge in hardware development for optimisation applications.
This session will focus on the current state of Gurobi’s GPU capabilities and explore future directions for leveraging GPUs in optimisation. Attendees will gain insights into how GPU technology can enhance the performance of Gurobi’s solver and what advancements are on the horizon.
Presented by: Steven Edwards | Product Manager | Gurobi
4:20 PM
Fireside Chat: Beyond the Model – How Organisations Are Navigating Optimisation in 2025 and Beyond
Panellists include:
Sean Stewart | Principal Advisor Product Management | Rio Tinto
Tammy Wigg | Chief Data Analytics Officer | Aurizon
Evan Shellshear | Principal | BCG X
From 5:00 PM
Event Conclusion & Networking Reception
🌏 Other Cities on the Roadshow
Melbourne | Thursday, 17 July 2025
Perth | Thursday, 7 August 2025
Sydney | Thursday, 14 August 2025
Auckland New Zealand | Official Date TBA
