Cebuano among influential engineers in Gulf

CEBU, Philippines — A Cebuano mechanical engineer was named one of the 100 Most Influential Filipino Engineers in the Gulf by the Gulf Cooperation Council.

The search covers six countries-- Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), Sultanate of Oman, State of Kuwait, State of Qatar, Kingdom of Bahrain and United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Headed by Filipino writer, Ulysses Espartero, the search started three years ago to roster the most competitive Filipino engineers working and living in the GCC countries who garnered multiple achievements in their respective engineering field of expertise.

They are selected based on their achievements and dedication to serve the Filipino communities and devoted their quality time to help and provide guidance to other Filipino engineers in the Gulf.

This year’s awardees include Engr. Arnold Tuico Beriawel, a multi-awarded professional and migrant leader based in Al Khobar, KSA. Beriawel is the lone Cebuano awardee.

He was born in 1978 in Daanbantayan, Cebu to spouses Lucresio Beriawel and Bernardita Tuico. He graduated in Pajo Elementary School in 1990 and Daanbantayan National High School in 1996.

He took up vocational course with full academic scholarship program from Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE) in 1999 with Honor and Certificate of Merit Award for obtaining General Weighted Average of 1.5 or better.

After he graduated his Diploma Course for Mechanical Technology in 1999, Beriawel was immediately employed at Mactan Export Processing Zone to earn a living for his parents and siblings to support their financial needs.

In 2003, he obtained his bachelor’s degree at Cebu Institute of Technology, now CIT-University.

In 2005, he married Junalyn Beriawel, a professional teacher. They have two children-- Arjun Therese, 12, and Jamillah Marie, 7.

He flew to Middle East in 2007 and had been working abroad for 11 years now. He first worked as Mechanical Designer in the Kingdom of Bahrain from 2007 to 2009.

“Going abroad is one of the ways to improve the quality of life and to relieve from poverty. Family is the most important thing in my life to sustain their needs and to raise them with quality education. Providing them with quality education will enhance their future to be competitive with their employment or build their own business entity,” Beriawel shared.

“As an OFW, always remember the purpose of going abroad and keep on exploring for further opportunities and invest on self-trainings and education to be more competitive with other nationalities. Aim to excel on your job in order to be recognized and continuous growth of your employment,” he further shared.

“My purpose of going abroad is to support the financial needs of my family and especially for the education of my siblings. I am so proud that all of my younger brothers and sisters are successful in their studies. They have graduated in their respective course and completed their bachelor’s degree. Apart from supporting my siblings, I completed my promise to my parents to provide them with a decent new house in our hometown,” Beriawel emphasized.

Beriawel is very active in various Philippine Professional Organizations such as Philippine Society of Mechanical Engineers – Central Region Saudi Arabia Chapter, Philippine Society of Mechanical Engineers – Saudi Arabia Chapter, and the National Master Plumber Associations of the Philippines – Saudi Arabia Chapter (NAMPAP-SA) where he held several positions.

“While staying abroad, I take this opportunity to nurture myself with state of the art learning experience in the field of consultancy. I make sure that I am competitive enough with the robust engineering technology available in the market industry,” he said.

Beriawel is also a devoted technical lecturer of PSME-SA and NAMPAP-SA. He is also continuously providing technical advises to fellow Architects and Engineers in the field of Code Consulting. He continues to provide legacy to his fellow OFW to help them uplift their technical knowledge to be more competitive in their field of specializations.

“I will also continue my legacy to share my knowledge to our fellow OFWs who are seeking assistance of technical skills. Apparently, I am giving way to organizations which ask my service free of charge to conduct Technical Seminars for Continuous Professional Development (CPD) requirement. As I experienced, the more I teach, the more I learn as well,” Bariawel said. (FREEMAN)