ARCIA update: Gala Dinner highlights

ARCIA

By Hamish Duff, President (Hon)
Thursday, 12 November, 2026

October was a very busy month for ARCIA and its members, with our major events — Comms Connect and the Annual Gala Dinner & Excellence Awards — taking place in Melbourne. The Gala Dinner was once again held at the Sofitel Melbourne on Collins, showcasing the people, the products and the projects that make this sector what it is — critical to the safe and smooth running of the communities that we all live and work within. Thanks from our board go to the AES team that helped organise and run the event on the day on behalf of ARCIA, and of course to Paul Davis, who oversees all aspects. We had some great feedback on the night and will be taking all comments into account when planning for 2027.

The Gala Dinner is held in conjunction with Comms Connect each year, and WF Media once again put on a great conference and exhibition — helping to bring local and international experts and the wider community together for three days of learning, sharing ideas and collaboration. In these uncertain times, it was refreshing to see so many people working together on the future of critical communications across the various market segments. Whilst there were many newer technologies showcased on the exhibition floor, the fundamentals of LMR were still prominent, with manufacturers, system integrators and end users all working on combining available technologies to deliver real benefit using the latest features.

Attendance at both Comms Connect and the ARCIA Gala Dinner & Excellence Awards included people from all corners of Australia, and indeed from around the globe, as in previous years — and what was clear was that all countries have similar challenges and opportunities, with perhaps the pace of progress being a key differentiator. And with this in mind, ARCIA continues to advocate across the board for users of critical communications, whether they be from transport, public safety, power generation or the resources sector — each plays their role in our society, and all are important.

One of the highlights of the Gala Dinner is to witness the anticipation and joy as our industry recognises excellence from right around Australia, the judging of winners having taken place in the weeks ahead of the awards night — not without some serious discussions amongst the panel. A huge thank you to BAPCO COO Duncan Swan and Chief Superintendent Matthew Wormald, Fire and Rescue NSW’s Commander of Operational Communications, who contributed significantly to the judging process again this year with their knowledge of the critical communications market and its requirements.

And whilst there is no doubt, as demonstrated by the strong nominations, that there were some incredible people, projects and products put forward, on the night there can be only one winner for each award.

ARCIA congratulates all the 2026 winners:

ARCIA Life Membership — Jamie Baker
Small Business Award — Ruff Road Communications
Exceptional Talent Award — Darien-Lee Holiday, Ace Communications
- Highly Commended — Maddison Craven, Tait Communications
Outstanding Professional of the Year Award — David Deacon
Major Project Award — CSE Crosscom
Industry Innovation Award — Etherstack, LMR-MCX, 3GPP Compliant IWF
Local Manufacturing Award — Omnitronics
Outstanding Critical Communications Project Award — Telstra, Maritime Safety Queensland Radio Upgrade

In addition, the night also sees one further individual recognised, with the presentation of the Jonathan Livingston Seagull Award. Unlike the Excellence Awards, this is not judged by the assembled ARCIA judging panel, but by the former winners of this prestigious award, which was first presented in 1977.

Its purpose is to recognise someone who has, in their work for the industry, gone above and beyond what is expected and has risen above their peers. That being said, this year it was tremendous to see Paul Davis, ARCIA’s very own CEO, recognised for his contributions over the years that have helped to shape key aspects of the Australian radio and critical communications landscape. Congratulations, Paul.