News

1.  Construction work starts on Airport Link project

Work is officially underway on Brisbane’s $3.4 billion Airport Link project - the biggest road transport public-private partnership undertaken in Australia.

Queensland Premier, Anna Bligh, and Infrastructure Minister, Paul Lucas, took part in the sod-turning ceremony in the first week of November along with officials of the BrisConnection consortium.

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2.  Report calls for wider use of PPPs in defence procurement

The Defence Department will make greater use of public-private partnerships in procuring equipment if the Federal Government adopts the recommendations of a review of the department’s $100 million purchasing and maintenance program.

The government is presently considering its response to the review, which was carried out by David Mortimer, the Chairman of Leighton Holdings and Australia Post.

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3.  Work to begin soon on Royal North Shore Hospital redevelopment

Final contract negotiations for the $950 million Royal North Shore Hospital redevelopment in Sydney have been finalised between the NSW Government and the Infrashore Consortium.

Work on the redevelopment is expected to begin by the end of this year. The community health building to be built as part of the project is expected to be completed by mid 2011 and the new main hospital building by mid-2013.

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4.  Information session to be held on Victorian prison PPP

Consortia interested in entering a public-private partnership with the Victorian Government to construct a medium-security prison at Ararat can attend a market information presentation on November 25.

The private sector consortium chosen to develop the 350-bed facility adjacent to the existing Ararat Prison will design, build, finance and maintain the complex. Custodial services will be provided by Corrections Victoria.

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5.  Shortlist for Northern Link to be announced this month

Brisbane City Council will announce on November 28 the shortlist of consortia in the running to construct the Northern Link Tunnel project as a public-private partnership.

The Brislink M5 and the North-West Expressway consortia have submitted expressions of interest to the council to deliver the project.

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6.  Consortium for Vic schools PPP about to be named

The Victorian Government will soon announce the consortium it has chosen to build 11 schools across Victoria under a public-private partnership.

Recent media reports suggested the Axiom Education consortium was the successful tenderer, but a government spokesperson told Infrastructure and Privatisation Report the government was not in a position to make an announcement.

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7.  Victoria's Royal Children's Hospital taking shape

Work on the $946 million redevelopment of Victoria’s Royal Children’s Hospital is proceeding on time and on budget.

The public-private partnership project is the largest hospital redevelopment undertaken by the Victorian Government. The new hospital is being constructed by the Children’s Health Partnership Consortium, comprising Babcock & Brown (sponsors); Bovis Lend Lease (builder); the Spotless Group (facilities manager) and Billard Leece, Bates and HKS (architects).

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8.  Work starts on drawing up infrastructure priority list

More than 600 submissions have been lodged with Infrastructure Australia identifying infrastructure projects that potentially qualify for finance from the $20 billion Building Australia Fund.

Infrastructure Australia Coordinator, Michael Deegan, says a team of analysts is now assessing the merits of the projects put forward in the submissions to formulate a priority list of projects for funding.

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9.  Tenders for defence accommodation PPP still being assessed

The Federal Government is expected to make a decision by the end of 2008 on the preferred tenderer for the $1.2 billion second phase of a PPP project to provide accommodation for defence personnel.

Four consortia have been shortlisted for the Australian Defence Force’s Single Living Accommodation Project (Leap 2) which will be delivered as a public-private partnership.

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10.  Darebin council looks for partner in $140m development

Melbourne's Darebin City Council has called for expression of interest from developers interested in partnering with the council in a $140 million urban redevelopment project.

Darebin’s General Manager of City Development, Kevin Breen, says the project will completely transform the Preston Civic Precinct. Mr Breen says the council is looking for expressions of interest from groups and companies that have the qualifications to work on such a large-scale project.

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11.  Australian Road Engineering & Maintenance Conference 2009

• February 17 - 18, 2009
• The Sebel Albert Park, Melbourne

The 4th Australian Road Engineering & Maintenance Conference 2009 will see senior managers and leading practitioners and consultants in the road and pavements sector present up-to-the-minute, highly relevant and practical information to assist road managers and engineers to perform their roles in an increasingly complex road environment.

The conference program is very flexible with a choice of a speaking stream or workshops on each day. Delegates may freely swap between both streams.
Sustainable Practices and the Environment will feature strongly on the program. The conference will feature case studies and discussion about topics including major roads, local roads, traffic areas, residential streets, rural roads, footpaths and road reserves.

Key conference topics are:

• Achieving Sustainability on Road Infrastructure Projects.
• Road Practices for a Sustainable Future.
• Road Maintenance.
• Road Project Case Studies.
• Pavements and Good Paving Practices.
• Working Under Traffic.
• Bituminous Surfacings Workshop.
• Landscape Workshop (Landscape architects/outdoor staff).

For further infromation about this event, including how to register to attend, visit www.halledit.com.au/roads09 or contact Denise McQueen at Hallmark Conferences + Events by phoning (03) 8534 5021 or email denise.mcqueen@halledit.com.au.

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12.  Commonwealth must stay focused on infrastructure investment, says IPA

The Federal Government must maintain a strong focus on investing in critical infrastructure assets even with a significantly lower budget surplus than expected, according to Infrastructure Partnerships Australia.

IPA’s Executive Director, Brendan Lyon, says all sectors of the community need to be realistic about what can be achieved after such a dramatic shift in the global economy, but infrastructure investment provides short and long-term benefits in challenging economic times.

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13.  Economic benefits to flow from rail PPP

A maintenance facility that is being constructed as part of a public-private partnership project to deliver a new fleet of trains for Sydney will provide an estimated $300 million-plus in economic benefits for the city of Auburn, according to the local council.

The facility will maintain the 78, eight-car, double-deck trains being delivered by the Reliance Rail consortium which comprises Downer EDI, AMP Capital Investors, ABN AMRO and Babcock & Brown Public Partnerships.

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14.  New authority to oversee $2.5b Sydney redevelopment

The New South Wales Government has established a new authority to oversee and manage the redevelopment of a 22 hectare waterfront site in the heart of Sydney’s central business district.

The Barangaroo Delivery Authority will have responsibility for working across government and with the private sector to deliver the $2.5 billion Barangaroo project. The redevelopment comprises commercial space for about 15,000 workers, a residential component and a large Headland Park for the western side of Sydney Harbour.

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15.  Comment: Procurement must evolve for future challenges

The current turmoil in financial markets coupled with the historic shortfall in infrastructure across Australia is a profound problem for the nation's policy makers. The unavoidable fact is that money is now more expensive, and that means that many projects will in turn be more expensive. Governments are facing up to the reality that the way projects were structured yesterday is not the way they will be structured tomorrow.

Estimates of the levels of investment required over the next decade are as high as $800 billion, meaning that governments alone can't finance key national infrastructure; they will require a significant component of private investment too.

The uncertainties in global debt and equity markets demand that the infrastructure partnerships models evolve, so there's sustainable and stable investment in much-needed new projects and services. Otherwise we could find that projects simply will not attract a suitable level of interest in the much-changed global economy.

And there are positive pathways to follow. Australia has the fourth largest pool of superannuation savings in the world, so we have to finally create the kind of model that harnesses this money to build infrastructure for the future. This does not mean treating superannuation as a piggy bank to be raided for infrastructure purposes, because these funds must always be invested on commercial terms and for commercial purposes. But fund managers are looking for sustainable, safe and long-term investments - and large infrastructure projects will logically win attention if policy makers can offer a model that creates the "perfect match" between superannuation and nation-building infrastructure.

Transport projects like new highways will continue to be a focus, but the up-coming capital city road projects are of unprecedented scale and complexity, usually involving costly tunnelling. That will mean that in many cases, the public sector will have to look at a model where there is a greater contribution toward transport project costs, ensuring that tolls are kept to a sustainable level.

Another important area for review is the allocation of risk. Governments should give active consideration to fostering projects that involve a shadow toll or use an availability payment model. Under this framework, Government pays a certain fee to the private consortium each year if it meets pre-determined service outcomes. The private sector continues to shoulder construction and other project risks.

Availability payment models have been used with great success to deliver hospitals, schools and justice facilities; given the seismic change in global economic circumstances, we should be giving consideration to this model for economic infrastructure too. It would mean with highway projects, for instance, that consideration would be given to the shadow tolling option as well as to direct tolling.

An availability payment model could help governments to attract the billions in private capital that they need, allowing the efficient and timely delivery of infrastructure, while continuing to harness the significant improvements in innovation, design and cost that are delivered by Public Private Partnerships.

Infrastructure Partnerships Australia is working on a major submission to the Federal and State Governments on this issue. Given that the Federal reform agenda is a live process, we hope that our research will be factored into consideration of future procurement models.

For further information about Infrastructure Partnerships Australia please see HERE.

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Conferences & Events

16.  NSW Sustainable Development Conference

The NSW Sustainable Development Conference is being held on April 1 & 2, 2009 in Sydney.

The NSW Sustainable Development Conference 2009 will bring together decision-makers from the private and public sectors, industry leaders, local government, scientists, conservationists and others to discuss the current and future directions and frameworks for sustainability in NSW, and how it will affect NSW state and local government, business and the community.

The Conference will provide an opportunity to examine progress towards sustainable objectives in a range of key areas such as: NSW policy and progress, water, waste and resource recovery, energy efficiency, climate change response and planning and urban design.

The Conference will also feature best practice case studies in sustainable development, including supporting workplaces to become more sustainable, addressing challenges of sustainability, and provide advice on how state and local government and business can achieve their sustainable development goals in a cost-effective manner.

For further information, and to register interest in the Conference, please go to www.halledit.com.au/nswsdc

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17.  Melbourne Planning Summit

 

The Melbourne Planning Summit is being held on April 28-29th 2009 at Zinc in Federation Square, Melbourne.

The Summit will provide an opportunity for discussion and review of Melbourne’s metropolitan planning schemes, as well as facilitating the exchange of ideas on how to achieve sustainable planning objectives.

The conference will cover issues including:

• Melbourne 2030 Audit;
• Integrated transport;
• Housing affordability;
• Climate change;
• Population growth;
• Water management.

It will also feature sessions on innovative urban partnerships and planning best practice case studies.

To register interest in the Conference or for more information, go to http://www.halledit.com.au/mps

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18.  Best practice in Local Government OH&S strategies

• November 19 - 20, Dockside Convention Centre, Sydney
• Visit www.halledit.com.au/lgohs08

The Local Government Occupational Health and Safety Conference 2008 will deliver important insights into occupational health and safety strategies being adopted by local governments across the nation. It will focus on leading examples of councils’ strategies to increase the health and safety of their staff, and reduce the cost of occupational health and safety. The conference will also provide information on emerging legal issues in Occupational Health and Safety including occupational stress and workplace bullying.

Presentations at the Local Government Occupational Health & Safety Conference will include insights into the following topics:
• Emerging governance and legal issues in relation to OH&S
• Embracing OH&S and promoting a culture of safety
• Comparing AS/NZ 4801 to National Self-Insurer OHS Audit Tool
• Effective integration of OH&S in management systems
• Managing OHS for an ageing workforce
• Whole-of-organisation health and well-being programs
• Stress reduction initiatives
• Activity-specific OH&S
• Mitigating specific risks
• Externally monitored systemic approaches to OHS
• Strategic contractor management

Over 25 speakers will be presenting at the conference, including: Sue Pilkington, President, Victorian Division, Safety Institute of Australia; Gabrielle Carlton, National Safety Council of Australia; Andrew Newton, Chief Executive Officer, Glen Eira City Council; Janice Walsh, Group Manager, City Works Unit, Newcastle Council; Bernie Cronin, Director, Wyndham Services, Wyndham City Council; Scott Wilcox, Workplace Health and Safety Coordinator, Hobart City Council and Jill McCorkell,  Occupational Health and Safety Officer, Wollongong City Council.

For the full agenda and conference registration details, please go to www.halledit.com.au/lgohs08 or for further information contact Denise McQueen on (03) 8534 5021 or email denise.mcqueen@halledit.com.au

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Products and Services

19.  Anti-rollover technology makes the jobsite safer

Conplant’s new patented anti-rollover technology is part of a new wave of equipment taking the guesswork out of the job, making it simpler and safer, according to Conplant national marketing and sales manager Scott James.

“Business operators are becoming increasingly aware of the need for equipment that meets and exceeds stringent OHS requirements and keeps their operators safe,” Scott says. “There’s a national skills shortage making it tough for contractors to find experienced operators. Equipment that can automatically adjust itself is of real value in this working climate.”

Among Conplant’s offerings is its ROPS2 anti-rollover technology that can detect a potential rollover before it’s too late.

“Conplant’s ROPS2 technology (Roll Over Preventative System in 2 stages) is a patented system that helps avoid rollovers when operators are working near soft edges or on soft material,” Scott says.

The two-stage system first sounds an alarm, then shuts off the vibration if the drum reaches a pre-determined angle. “This system significantly reduces rollover risks, especially in situations where the operator is inexperienced. This technology is pretty revolutionary – it’s going to have a big impact on site safety.”

The ROPS2 system is complemented by other technological innovations from Conplant, like the Ammann Compaction Expert (ACE) which can automatically detect compaction levels.

“Conplant prides itself on offering the highest quality equipment and the latest safety innovations. ROPS2 and ACE are the latest of a host of developments helping our customers improve safety, productivity and profitability.”

For further information see Conplant website HERE.

 

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