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Scout Radio & Electronics Service Unit |
Agenda - October Monthly Meeting
Tuesday 11th October 2022, 7.30pm
BATCave, Legana Street, Mount Waverley
Chair: Andy King
Minutes: Matt Cengia
Meeting Opened: 7.36pm
Attendees
Luke Byrnes, Andy King, Mark Perkins, Karl Donald, Kent Cochran, Murray Taylor, Glenn Perry, Neil Wilson, Daniel Gutsell, Gemma Nash, Matt Cengia, Philip Adams, Juliet Montague, Bibby Montague
Online: Steven Munro, Alan Kanowitz
Apologies
Allison Burdon
Absentees
Alan Stratford, Alberto Scelsi, Alister Blaney, Anders Hamilton, Andrew Canet, Ash Clark, Ben Hodder, Bryan Ackerly, David Timms, Franc Rojo, Hayden McManus, Jenny Adams, Jodie Bedford, Kevin Bedford, Kieran McGuinness, Peter Chaplin, Peter Fraser, Peter Robinson, Peter Watkins, Quintin Coutinho
Action Items Summary
| Expected Delivery |
Reference | Description | Lead | Assist |
|---|---|---|---|---|
JOTA |
||||
Program Planning |
Plan night |
|||
| Nov 22 | Oct 22 Program Planning |
Heany Park Joey Unit Plan night |
Andy |
Meeting Items
Administration
Chair's Comments
- Kangaree - thanks to Andy, Matt, and Daniel for contributing to making the STEM base a huge success.
- Adult Membership Reviews are now annual - Luke will reach out to each team member individually.
- JOTA cancellations and low participant numbers - don't let this dishearten you.
Previous Minutes
It was moved by Murray Taylor and Matt Cengia that the minutes of the Scout Radio Victoria meeting held Tuesday 13th September 2022 be adopted. Carried unanimously.
Finance
| Account | Balance on Tuesday 11th October 2022 |
|---|---|
| STEM - State Radio (Bendigo Bank) | $5,995.08 |
| Cheque Account (ANZ) | $0.00 |
| Savings Account (ANZ) | $0.00 |
| Total | $5,995.08 |
- Some big expenses this month including callsigns, marine radio exams, and foundation manuals. Income from respective courses will cover the training related expenses.
- Further details are included in the finance report attached as Appendix 1.
Work Health & Safety (WHS)
- Please ensure you remain on top of eLearning modules including WHS as they become due.
- First Aid Course arrangements for the team to be made over coming months.
- Access to powerpoints, doorways, etc. at the BATC.
- Luke will following this up with the new BATC Leader in Charge.
- Child Safety - we are all responsible for reporting suspect activity; this can be done anonymously through Scouts Victoria or directly through the Scouting hierarchy.
Program Review
Sustainable Tech Camp - Sarah Thom
Thanks to Daniel, Andy and Luke for their support of the Sustainable Tech camp at Clifford Park during the holidays. Daniel opened up the radio shack on the Monday night as an optional activity and the majority of the 27 camp participants chose to drop in for a visit at some point and have a look. Two of the Venturers/Scouts who stayed the whole time the shack was running and one of the leaders on the camp are now keen to do a Foundation course next year. Having access to amateur radio as a short evening activity on an existing camp was a good way to expose lots of youth members to it without the logistics of running an entire event. It might be worthwhile getting CP to add the SRV contact details to the "Attractions Onsite" list in the CPAC info booklet to encourage more use of the shack.
Made contact with 2 Japanese stations. Everyone who got behind the mic ended up making a contact, a successful night.
| Event | Kangaree 2022 |
|---|---|
| Section | Joeys |
| Date | Friday 30th September - Sunday 2nd October |
| Location | Lardner Park (155 Burnt Store Rd, Lardner VIC 3820) |
| Lead | |
| Assist | Andy, Matt Cengia, Daniel |
- From the STEM team, thank you to the radio members who helped deliver a successful base at Kangaree.
- Brief review of radio activity
- Having 20 UHF CB channels in use in a small range posed some challenges.
- Another on-site team was using one of the UHF channels but this hadn't been communicated, so we had a clash.
- Luke thanked the entire team for helping out with this, and had reports that the STEM and Water activity were both the top rated activities, which is great feedback.
- Luke also thanked and congratulates Andy for leading the Kangaree activities.
| Formation | Carlton Rover Unit |
|---|---|
| Section | Rovers |
| Date | Monday 3rd October |
| Location | Carlton Scout Hall |
| Lead | |
| Assist | Kent, Murray, Neil |
| Overview | Fox hunting, amateur radio |
- Covered a lot of different concepts of amateur radio, repeaters, maps.
- In review: successful night, but worth having a mechanism to call people back at the end of the activity.
Program Planning
Program Activities - Dates Confirmed
Energy Breakthrough Expo - Sarah Thom
STEM is working in collaboration with Scouts Vic Marketing to run an expo at the Energy Breakthrough Human Powered Vehicle competition for schools in Maryborough (VIC) on Friday 18th and Saturday 19th November. There will be over 7000 school aged participants camping onsite for the event and many more (up to 20,000) visiting over the course of the event. Marketing are running abseiling tower, rope bridge etc. and STEM will be doing a variety of drop in and try activities similar to VicJam TechWorld. I am in need of people who are available to help on those dates and have the skills to run activities such as soldering. There is also scope to include radio-based activities if there are enough people available to staff them. Expressions of interest to Sarah this week please.
- Let Andy or Sarah know if you're interested in helping out with this.
| Formation | Heany Park Joeys |
|---|---|
| Section | Joeys |
| Date | Thursday 3rd November, 5.45pm to 6.45pm |
| Location | Heany Park, Rowville |
| Lead | Andy |
| Assist | |
| Contact | Louise Robertson |
| Overview | Fox hunting night for Joeys following on from district Radio & STEM day in July |
- Andy is looking for somebody to help him run this.
Program Activities - Dates/Details TBC
| Formation | Berwick |
|---|---|
| Section | Cubs |
| Date | |
| Location | Berwick |
| Lead | |
| Assist | |
| Contact | Vanessa Percy |
| Overview | We are a Cub Scout group and have not done any of this before. We have 26 Cubs in our group. I am a mother of one of the Cubs and was looking to send him to a day to learn about Communications please all so we can discuss what can be done |
- Luke, Glenn, and Alli may be available to assist with a weeknight activity. The Unit meets on Thursday nights.
- Potential to integrate bushwalking OAS items.
- Glenn has drafted a program and will send it through to Luke.
No action required currently
| Formation | Bayside District Cubs |
|---|---|
| Section | Cubs |
| Date | TBC, morning/afternoon weekend activity |
| Location | |
| Lead | |
| Assist | Kent (PA equipment) |
| Contact | Karl Donald |
| Overview | See Appendix 2 |
- No further planning required by our team at this stage.
- Looking more like occurring during Term 1, 2023
Amateur Events
None this month.
Training Courses
-
Review:
- Amateur Foundation, Friday 7th to Sunday 9th October, Camp Warringal
- 7 participants
- A lot more hands on practical experience compared to recent courses.
- All paricipants were successful on their prac.
- Participants diagnosed an issue with the SWR on a 20m dipole (which was that they were trying to use it for 40m comms!) without direct assistance from instructors
- Venue is great, albeit somewhat echoey.
- Luke thanked Phil for taking the lead on the course, and to Kent's assistance with the assessments.
-
Upcoming:
- Amateur Foundation, Saturday 12th - Sunday 13th November, no suitable halls available
- Aiming for Ballarat area. Re-engage with Geelong participants who were unable to complete the course during lockdowns.
- It would be good to engage with the Ballarat/Bendigo radio club.
- Amateur Foundation, Saturday 12th - Sunday 13th November, no suitable halls available
-
General:
- The Camp Warringal course reinforced that the residential model is good. We do not recommend day courses going forward for amateur assessments unless we know for sure that the pre-study level is there.
- We may look at standard/advanced exams in 2023 by demand. These would work best by participants following one of the available courses (such as Ron Bertrand's CD) prior to the weekend, then having a 'cram and exam' weekend rather than attempting to cover all content in a course.
Program Support
Operation NightOwl Review
- In a challenging situation because we didn't have a great idea of site logistics - propagation issues with the HQ location. Made worse by the fact that Luke needed to be in two places at once setting up the repeater and HQ - we didn't find out that our plan wouldn't work until the 'last minute'. Trying to distribute the load a bit better and a better idea of site logistics further in advance would be better.
- Worth training up people on how to set up the radios and repeater trailer.
- Relay worked well from Paige at event HQ to Luke and Matt at a different location.
- RadioActiv8 tracking worked well.
- Sandra is on board for any changes we want to make.
- They were more than happy to pay our $1,000 invoice.
- RadioActiv8 worked really well - we were able to look at when did a Patrol checkin versus when did HQ know, estimates of average time between bases in either direction - lots of data available. Predicted when the final Patrol would arrive within 2 minutes.
- Thank you to Matt for the map for the event.
- Thank you to Mark for the event logsheet.
- Thank you to Paige and Sarah - recent foundation licensees - for their assistance.
- Thanks to Daniel for towing the trailer up the mountain, and rescuing Luke and Alan at 2am on their way back down with the trailer.
Mallee Mud Camp
| Event | Mallee Mud Camp |
|---|---|
| Section | Scouts |
| Date | Friday 4th - Sunday 6th November |
| Location | Tapio Station, near Wentworth, NSW |
| Lead | Luke |
| Assist | Glenn |
- A couple of Venturers to fly up on the Friday paid for by state.
- Glenn is still good to travel up - be there Friday morning.
- Event is being moved up the hill from their usual location due to the high water level this year.
- https://www.sunraysiascouts.org.au/event/rover-camp-2022/
| Event | Cuboree 2023 |
|---|---|
| Section | Cubs |
| Date | 25 - 29 September 2023 |
| Location | Gilwell Park, Gembrook |
| Lead | |
| Assist |
- Looking for some form of radio activity for 30 min sessions with 3 sessions each evening for 4 evenings. Cubs in Patrols of up to 10 with leader would book to complete the activity.
- Update from Murray
- Half hour activity to run four times in an evening - Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday.
- Numbers anywhere from a Unit (36) down to a Patrol
- Murray needs a team to run the activity, as he'll be busy in another capacity.
- Maree Pascoe is one to reach out to. Bibby is happy to help. Alan K would be happy to be a remote station or similar from home.
Support Development
ScoutHike Collaboration
No progress on this at this stage. Luke will be in touch with Brett Cole to discuss further.
New Licencee 'Welcome pack'
- Lead: Neil
- Thanks to Daniel for preparing some resources. Please provide any feedback you have directly to Daniel.
Program Enrichment
None this month.
JOTA-JOTI (Friday 14th to Sunday 16th October 2022)
- Gemma - Mafeking
- Mark - Woodend Joeys
- Karl - Gilwell
- Kent - Free
- Glenn - Pax Hill cancelled - won't be around
- Juliet - Castlemaine
- Bibby - Castlemaine
- Neil - Free
- Phil - popping up on air as can over weekend
- Murray - popping up on air as can over weekend
- Daniel - Clifford Park
- Matt - Road trip with Luke
- Andy - Western Vic JOTA - Day Event in Horsham on Saturday
- Luke - Road trip
- Steven - Saturday - until 10pm-ish. IRC, Minecraft, Fox Hunting
Aware of other events running in:
- Bendigo (BAREC Clubhouse)
- Kerang
- Updates on September discussion on purchase of bandpass filters
- Scout Radio Victoria would consider purchasing two sets to cover 80m, 40m, and 20m
- Murray provided the following link for consideration: https://lowbandsystems.com/collection/200w-perfobox
- Approx. $175 each
- Icom radios
- 7610 for Andy at Western Vic
- 705 for Douglas at Clifford Park
- Philip will send Andy contact details and Andy will liaise with Icom.
JOTA-JOTI Badges
- We have received orders to date of 270 badges. Scout Shop is experiencing delays receiving these badges and the ETA is the week after JOTA. We will order a suitable remainder after the event.
- Registrations and badge/callsign orders are open at vkjotijota.com
- Update on registrations
- 10 sites registered on VKJOTA, aware of some others around the state
Hamfests
- Revisit in February 2023
- Sell old surplus equipment
- Moorabbin - 6th May 2023
Additional Business
- Mark: it would be good to do some team training. A contest weekend could be a good oppurtunity to do this.
- Karl: Positive feedback on Star Trek: Survival and radio at a patrol camp at Treetops
- Glenn: Core Electronics have published an article about the Borg Cube Murray built for Star Trek: Survival. See https://core-electronics.com.au/projects/borg-cube
- Murray: SARCNET
- Murray: Article about VicJam that wasn't published in AR Magazine: https://mdrc.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/VicJam-mdrcnews3.pdf
- Daniel: It would be good to have a stall at the Monash Maker Faire in early December.
- Matt: Looking to adjust meeting processes to accommodate online participants better.
- Neil: ACMA consultation - if no EOIs received by 31 Oct SRV is unlikely to pursue a response.
- Luke: The next Star Trek: Survival will be held over the long weekend in March 2024.
Meeting Closed: 9.56pm
Next Meeting: Tuesday 8th November 2022, 7.30pm
Appendix 1
Scout Radio Victoria - Finance Report
September 2022 Meeting
Prepared Tuesday 13 September 2022
Account Balances
| Account | Balance on Tuesday 13th September 2022 |
|---|---|
| STEM - State Radio (Bendigo Bank) | $8,871.28 |
| Cheque Account (ANZ) | $0.00 |
| Savings Account (ANZ) | $0.00 |
| Total | $8,871.28 |
Outstanding Items
Outstanding Invoices:
- Mafeking Amateur Radio Group - VK3SCM Callsign
- Mafeking Rover Park - VK3RMP Callsign
- Sandringham Cub Unit - Activity Night
- Sandringham Scout Unit - Activity Night
- VicRovers - Works on Trailer
- Douglas Ahearn - Amateur Course
- Mafeking Amateur Radio Group - Amateur Course Contribution
Savings Account (013599 268169069) - ANZ
| Date | Description | Debit | Credit | Balance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 Sep '22 | Opening Balance | $0.00 | ||
| 10 Oct '22 | Closing Balance | $0.00 |
Cheque Account (013599 268166933) - ANZ
| Date | Description | Debit | Credit | Balance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 Sep '22 | Opening Balance | $0.00 | ||
| 10 Oct '22 | Closing Balance | $0.00 |
Scouts Victoria STEM - State Radio (633000 190363002) - Bendigo Bank
| Date | Description | Debit | Credit | Balance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 Sep '22 | Opening Balance | $8,871.28 | ||
| 13 Sep '22 | ACMA Callsign VK3CUB |
$55.00 | $8,816.28 | |
| 13 Sep '22 | ACMA Callsign VK3SBP |
$55.00 | $8,761.28 | |
| 13 Sep '22 | ACMA Callsigns Various |
$1,840.00 | $6,921.28 | |
| 13 Sep '22 | INV-1059 | $55.00 | $6,976.28 | |
| 13 Sep '22 | Philip Adams Reimburse Marine Exams |
$534.00 | $6,442.28 | |
| 13 Sep '22 | Scouts Victoria Kangaree 2022 - Andy King |
$95.00 | $6,347.28 | |
| 13 Sep '22 | Jess Hay Amateur Course |
$220.00 | $6,567.28 | |
| 13 Sep '22 | Transfer to STEM Purchases Amateur Foundation Books |
$650.00 | $5,917.28 | |
| 13 Sep '22 | Scouts Victoria Census 2023 |
$50.00 | $5,867.28 | |
| 13 Sep '22 | Steven Munro JOTA Badges |
$58.00 | $5,925.28 | |
| 13 Sep '22 | 1st Bannockburn JOTA Badges |
$108.00 | $6,033.28 | |
| 13 Sep '22 | Transfer to STEM Purchases Postage for Foundation Book |
$9.60 | $6,023.68 | |
| 13 Sep '22 | David Farrell JOTA Badges & Callsign |
$303.00 | $6,326.68 | |
| 13 Sep '22 | Interest | $0.07 | $6,326.75 | |
| 13 Sep '22 | Black Flats Rover Unit Fox Hunting Hire |
$50.00 | $6,376.75 | |
| 13 Sep '22 | Transfer to STEM Purchases Materials for peg/rope tube for gazebo |
$20.00 | $6,356.75 | |
| 13 Sep '22 | Transfer to STEM Purchases Materials for peg/rope tube for gazebo |
$1.67 | $6,355.08 | |
| 13 Sep '22 | Val Paton Amateur Course Catering |
$360.00 | $5,995.08 | |
| 10 Oct '22 | Closing Balance | $5,995.08 |
Appendix 2
Outstanding Program Requests
| Formation | Moreland Darebin District Joeys Day/1st Reservoir |
|---|---|
| Section | Joeys Cubs |
| Date | |
| Location | |
| Lead | |
| Assist | Andy, Alli, Luke, Kevin, Neil |
| Contact | Alison (District Leader) |
| Overview | Activity day for 12 Joey Units in Moreland Darebin District. |
- Andy will touch base to gauge interest in revisiting this activity request, and to see if they are on board to assist with organising the day.
| Formation | Pascoe Vale |
|---|---|
| Section | Cubs |
| Date | Monday nights |
| Location | Cumberland Road, Pascoe Vale |
| Lead | |
| Assist | Kent |
| Contact | Wu Phie |
| Overview | "I would like to introduce our Cubs to the world of amateur radio, its potential and how it fits in with Scouts and the wider world. Do you have activities/ services which fit this? How do book some of SRESU time and resources? When is the earliest time I can book in? What is required on our end? I look forward to discussing with you." |
| Formation | 1st Glen Iris |
|---|---|
| Section | Scouts |
| Date | Wednesday evenings |
| Location | |
| Lead | Luke |
| Assist | Murray? |
| Contact | Mike Lukins |
| Overview | 50 scouts. "What do you offer that would be interesting / fun for a scout troop such as ours?" |
| Formation | 4th Brunswick Scouts |
|---|---|
| Section | Scouts |
| Date | Monday evenings, 7pm - 9pm |
| Location | |
| Lead | |
| Assist | |
| Contact | Kim Anderson |
| Overview | 30 - 40 scouts. "We'd love to run a fox hunting night or electronics kit building night." |
| Formation | 1st Wheelers Hill Scouts |
|---|---|
| Section | Scouts |
| Date | |
| Location | |
| Lead | |
| Assist | |
| Contact | Brooke Whiteside |
| Overview | Looking for "a few radio activities" on a Saturday. "How long do these activities take?" |
| Formation | 1st Alfredton |
|---|---|
| Section | Scouts |
| Date | Term 4? |
| Location | Ballarat District |
| Lead | TBA |
| Assist | |
| Contact | Sarah Brackenridge, AGL/SL |
| Overview | Request for Radio Team visit to a Scout night, details to follow |
- Ideally we would aim for an activity pre-JOTA with involvement from the Ballarat Amateur Radio Group to build on this relationship.