G Bruce Gore

Bruce Gore
(1927 - )

Bruce was born on 21st February 1927 at Bondi Road, Waverley. He had one brother (b. 1939). Both parents originated from the Quirindi region. His maternal grandfather was the foreman of a large sheep station, and his father was a policeman after returning for the first World War.

He attended Primary School at St Joseph’s School, Edgecliff. He gained his Intermediate Certificate in 1941 at Marist Brothers High, Darlinghurst. Although he completed his Leaving Certificate, he did not matriculate into engineering because he did not complete Maths I & II.

He was a founding member of the Australian Acoustical Society (c.1980). From 1972 he had a place on the Australian Standards Committee on performance of hearing aids, loop systems, hi-fidelity equipment. He was a member of the National Association of Testing Authorities from the late 1970s.

Bruce began playing musical instruments at the age of twelve, leading to his first job with Bondi Surf Life Saving Club where he played drums, bass and vibraphone. He also undertook a laboratory position with the New South Wales Forestry Commission while he went to Sydney Technical College, qualifying as a Wood Technologist.

His musical career continued as he completed an engineering draft course and learnt about radios and electronics at a friend’s radio shop in Double Bay. He married in 1949 and moved to Katoomba where he joined the Railways Department. He expressed interest in working for the Postmaster General’s Department (PMG) and in 1951 he was accepted into the telecommunications course at PMG Annandale Training School. They employed him in Lithgow, to where he had to travel daily. Through PMG he worked as a Technician’s Assistant, Acting Senior Technician at the shale oil workings at Glen Davis, then as he had to move to Sydney to enroll in a Radio Engineering course at Sydney College, his request for transfer led to him working at City East Exchange. Bruce finished his one-year course, thus allowing him to matriculate to university.

Bruce enrolled in the second year of his Radio Engineering course and as the year was almost completed, the course he desired was readvertised. He was accepted and was also appointed to Clerical Assistant, then Trainee Engineer at PMG. (He gained this position despite 34 appeals against his appointment.)

Bruce switched from his Radio Diploma course to a full time University Engineering Degree which was a four-year course at the University of New South Wales. After graduation as a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering (Communications and Electronics) in 1961 he was appointed to the Nepean division for two weeks, then transferred to the Daley Street exchange.

Led by his musical and acoustic interests Bruce joined the Commonwealth Acoustic Laboratory (CAL, later National Acoustic Laboratory). CAL advertised an Engineering class II position which he took in January 1963. He and a supervising technician did much of the work for ELSA (Extended Local Service Area) Test Network. Gore and his immediate boss were the only two engineers working for the Department of Health. He worked on noise standards and levels for naval ships, acting as a consultant and recommending changes.

In 1960 he was promoted to a senior Physicist (class III) which he reclassified in 1972 to Engineer class III. He also graduated in 1972 with his Master of Engineering Science (Communications and Electronics) from the University of New South Wales. In 1978 he was appointed RAAF Reserve as Squadron Leader Consultant on noise, where he was the only acoustic consultant in the entire armed forces.

Bruce was promoted to (Principal) Engineer class IV, in charge of National Acoustic Laboratories (NAL). In 1985/6 Bruce implemented changes to satisfy the government demand for commercialisation. He also implemented changes saving NAL over $3 million over five years. His aim with the production of hearing aids, in which he was very involved, was high efficiency and low cost. In 1987 he represented Australia in Kuala Lumpur at the World Health Organisation’s conference on noise issues and problems in the “East.” He retired from NAL in 1992 but continued to do some field and consultative work.

To access an oral history interview with Bruce Gore please use this link:'

https://heritage.engineersaustralia.org.au/wiki/Oral_Histories_Sydney