Infrastructure Magazine November 2018

ALAN

TUDGE TALKS POPULATION AND CONGESTION BUSTING

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AS AUSTRALIAN INFRASTRUCTURE PROGRESSES, WE’RE PROUD TO PARTNER WITH THE CONTRACTORS THAT ARE LEADING THE WAY FORWARD.

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AEDITOR’S WELCOME

ll states and territories recorded positive population growth in 2018 with Victoria recording the highest growth rate of 2.2 per cent. With this continued increase, it’s no surprise the sector’s had a lot of major project announcements lately (particularly in Victoria in the lead up to the state election), as well as contracts and funding awarded, to try to mange the strain on assets and consequences such as congestion.

There is a lot happening in the rail sector, from ongoing construction on the Sydney and Melbourne Metro’s, to several announcements in Melbourne including a rail link to the airport, and a suburban rail link connecting outer suburbs and bypassing the CBD. The Inland Rail Project also continues to ramp up and award contracts for different sections of the project.

What all of these major rail projects have in common is their goal to increase capacity, whether that is reducing the pressure of commuter growth in major cities, or allowing Australia’s freight network to meet demand. Aside from creating more rail lines and stations, the benefits of technologies are also being realised through initiatives like the ARA’s smart rail route map. There is always going to be a balance between building new assets and optimising existing infrastructure and it’s a line that the sector is still trying to perfect.

Regardless of the best way forward, these major projects are exciting and creating more opportunities for the industry. The challenge will be in making sure we have the capabilities and resources to meet this demand. I think technology is an important factor in this, and the benefits of new technologies and use of data featured prominently in discussions at the Asset Management for Critical Infrastructure 2018 Conference, which ran from 12–13 September in Sydney.

The event, created by Infrastructure Magazine, brought together asset owners and managers in the infrastructure and utility space for two days of debate about the most pressing challenges and opportunities in asset

management. We’re extremely proud of the delegate feedback we’ve received about the event, with attendees finding real value from the high level keynote presentations and dedicated streams including rail, corrosion, energy infrastructure and trenchless.

If you missed out on attending, you can see the coverage of the event throughout this issue and keep an eye out on our digital channels for announcements about the 2019 conference.

Another sector focusing on investment to keep up with increased demand is airports. While airports in our capital cities are getting a lot of attention, it’s important that funding also looks at regional airports to increase connections between our states.

I’m looking forward to meeting more of you and discussing these ideas at the Australian Airports Association National Conference, and several other industry shows before the end of the year including AusRail

Due to increasing demand, connectivity is key, not only connecting regional passengers to major cities, but connecting the overall sector – rail links between airports and city centres, freight lines from ports, improved roads surrounding airports. It’s important to create this interoperability as all these new projects can’t operate effectively in isolation.

Bringing together the various assets allows the industry to have a more holistic view of infrastructure and is key to the sector’s future success. We then need to be looking at what the industry can do in regards to maintenance, new technologies, or new projects to facilitate this.

Also, in this edition, we talk to Minister for Cities, Urban Infrastructure and Population, Alan Tudge, and delve a little deeper into issues such as population growth, increased congestion and some of the biggest projects currently impacting the sector.

I hope you enjoy this issue and we’ll see you again in the new year.

INDUSTRY INSIGHT

OPTIMISING THE INFRASTRUCTURE WE ALREADY HAVE

It would appear beyond dispute that infrastructure will be at the centre of almost all our major investments as a nation for a generation to come. Not only is the efcient use of infrastructure crucial to our economic growth, but it also lies at the heart of our day-to-day lives and quality of life in the form of transport, health, education, telecommunication, water and energy services.

ALAN TUDGE:

THE CONGESTION - BUSTING MINISTER

In late August, the Federal Government was turned upside down, with former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull ousted from the top job, and Scott Morrison taking over the leadership position. With a new Prime Minister came a fresh Cabinet, and Federal Member for Aston, Alan Tudge, became the new Minister for Cities, Urban Infrastructure and Population, with population a new addition to the portfolio. Here is Infrastructure Magazine’s exclusive interview with the new minister, finding out his vision for the sector, key projects and how the industry can overcome current challenges.

AUSRAIL

AIRPORT INVESTMENT DRIVING GROWTH AND COMMUNITY CONNECTION

Those of us who work in the infrastructure sector understand that, at its core, efective infrastructure must be about economic and community connection. For airports, the connection they provide is becoming an ever-growing part of how we live our lives — and how we support our economic growth.

IMPROVING ROADS BY DESIGN AT AUSTRALIA’S GATEWAY

$300 MILLION AIRPORT EXPANSION TAKES OFF IN THE NT

LAND CLEARING

KEEPING COSTS DOWN FOR SOLAR FARM DEVELOPMENT AND MAINTENANCE

Solar power is becoming an integral part of Australia’s energy mix, with the Australian PV Institute confirming that in mid-2018 there was 35GW of solar farms in the planning and development pipeline. As solar farms span across a vast area, land clearing activities need to take place to ensure the area is clear. Ongoing maintenance of the land is also important as uncontrolled undergrowth can cause the panels to be damaged. Both land clearing and regular maintenance activities are required with the right equipment. INDUSTRY

GPS AND 3D MACHINE CONTROL REDUCING DOWNTIME

Brendan Walsh and his team at Ground Technique have been working on a 20-lot Tran Civil development in Diamond Creek, Victoria. This project is on a large sloping block that is very undulating and requires a substantial amount of cut and fill. To complete this project, Mr Walsh installed the Topcon 3D GPS+ machine control from Position Partners on his Hitachi Zaxis 13-ton excavator.

CIVIL CONSTRUCTION TRENDS TO WATCH OUT FOR

THE AUSSIE INVENTION TRANSFORMING WORKSITE SAFETY

PROTECTING AGAINST BRIDGE CORROSION

The $620 million Darlington Upgrade Project in Adelaide went through a rigorous design and construction process to ensure it was protected against corrosion and degradation. Here, the Australasian Corrosion Association outlines some of the corrosion mitigation work that was undertaken for this project. WHY ALL PROJECT MANAGERS SHOULD BE DESIGNING AGAINST CORROSION

BUILDING DISASTER RESILIENCE INTO OUR CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE

NSW residents and businesses are set to benefit from a new strategy that will help keep the lights on, water running and transport moving, even when dealing with disasters. THE BIGGEST ISSUES IN ASSET MANAGEMENT IN

THE ARGUMENT FOR FULLY INTEGRATED CONNECTED MULTIMODAL TRANSPORT

Driverless vehicles seem like they could belong in a distant world, but in reality, there is no doubt that we are moving towards a future where vehicles will be self-driving.

I oT SENSOR NETWORKS CREATING SMART CITIES

Contributors

Alan Tudge

Minister for Cities, Urban Infrastructure and Population

Alan Tudge is the Federal Member for Aston in the Australian Parliament and the Minister for Cities, Urban Infrastructure and Population. He was first elected in 2010 and, prior to his present portfolio, was the Minister for Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs with responsibility for skilled migration, visa processing, pathways to citizenship and multicultural affairs; Minister for Human Services (where he introduced the cashless welfare card); and Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister.

Before entering parliament, Alan spent most of his career in business including with the Boston Consulting Group in Australia and the United States, and worked as a senior adviser to the Foreign Minister and Education Minister. He holds a law degree and arts degree from Melbourne University and an MBA from Harvard University.

Sue MCCarrey

Chief Executive, Office of the National Rail Safety Regulator (ONRSR)

Sue McCarrey has been in the position of Australia’s National Rail Safety Regulator since December 2014. In addition to guiding the ONRSR through a critical phase in its evolution, Sue oversees the nation’s standalone Rail Safety National Law, and works with industry to ensure a safe rail system for the community and to deliver the social and economic benefits flagged by the national transport reforms.

Prior to joining the ONRSR, Sue enjoyed a distinguished career in the Western Australian public sector where she led a review of port authority governance, metropolitan transport planning and the regional freight transport plan in her role as Deputy Director General – Policy Planning and Investment with the Western Australian Department of Transport. Sue established a framework for a statewide transport investment program in order to provide the government with a whole of transport view of investment priorities based on planning needs. Under her leadership, the ONRSR has matured into a fully-formed national operation that is continuing with its vision for a safe, efficient and prosperous Australian rail industry.

Dr John Stone

Senior Lecturer in Transport Planning, Urban Planning Program, Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning at University of Melbourne

John is a Senior Lecturer in Transport Planning at the University of Melbourne. He has been an active researcher, teacher and advocate in Australian urban transport politics for 30 years and has contributed to many government and community policy processes. His research focuses on comparative analysis of the political, institutional and technical dimensions of urban transport policy and system performance in cities in Australia, Canada and German-speaking Europe to understand how better decisions can be made in Australian cities.

Contributors

Caroline Wilkie CEO, Australian Airports Association

Caroline Wilkie has been CEO of the Australian Airports Association since 2011. The AAA represents all major regular passenger transport airports in Australia as well as council airports. The membership spans from councils with grass strip runways to Australia’s major gateways. The AAA also represents a further 140 corporate members. The AAA is engaged in research, developing industry publications, education, advocacy and major industry events. Caroline has a Masters of Public Affairs and more than 15 years’ experience in Association Management.

Philip Davies

Chairman, SMART Advisory Council, University of Wollongong

Philip Davies recently retired as the Chief Executive of Infrastructure Australia. He is a Partner with Deloitte and chairs both the SMART Advisory Council and the Australian Logistics Council.

He is a Chartered Professional Engineer and Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, with over 25 years of global infrastructure experience. His roles have involved shaping policy, delivering nationally significant infrastructure projects and leading reform.

Philip has also held various board positions in commercial and public life for more than three decades including as Deputy Chair of the Committee for Sydney and as a board member of Infrastructure Partnerships Australia.

During his time leading Infrastructure Australia, he provided independent expert advice to all levels of government on infrastructure, including advocating for reforms on key issues such as the means of funding, financing, delivering and operating infrastructure, and how to better plan and utilise infrastructure networks.

Danny Broad

CEO, Australasian Railway Association (ARA)

As Chief Executive Officer of the Australasian Railway Association (ARA) — the peak body for rail in Australia and New Zealand — Danny is responsible for all facets of the Association’s activities, including policy and advocacy, membership growth, and the implementation of the ARA’s strategic vision. Danny maintains strong professional relationships with key stakeholders and decision influencers while placing ARA members’ needs front and centre. Danny’s extensive knowledge and passion for the rail industry, coupled with his business acumen, provides the ARA with trusted and highly respected leadership.

During his career, Danny has advanced from behind the drawing board in a structural design capacity, through to project management and general management in the power, civil, construction and rail industries having worked on numerous major infrastructure projects across Australia.

GOVERNMENT ANNOUNCES

NEW FUTURE TRANSPO RT OFFICE

The Federal Government will establish a new Office of Future Transport Technologies to help prepare for the arrival of automated vehicles and other transport innovations.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development, Michael McCormack, said the initiative was made possible through a $9.7 million investment by the Liberals and Nationals Government.

Mr McCormack said the new office would enhance the Federal Government’s strategic leadership role to coordinate more cohesively with other governments and agencies to implement future transport technologies in Australia more successfully and responsibly.

He said the development and uptake of automated vehicle technologies and associated applications would also be managed with a continued focus on improving transport and road safety outcomes.

“Automated vehicles are on the verge of becoming commercially available here and the Australian Government is taking proactive steps to manage the associated challenges and opportunities within that evolving and future transport landscape,” Mr McCormack said.

Mr McCormack said Australian governments and industry needed to collaborate effectively in order to develop the right policy, regulation and infrastructure to adapt to future technology use.

“Getting Australians home sooner and safer is a core focus

of our government and the emergence of automated vehicles represents a significant opportunity to realise safety and productivity benefits while supporting Australian industry and innovation.

“The Australian future transport and mobility industry is expected to generate more than $16 billion in revenue by 2025.

“While representing an emerging business opportunity for the national economy, these technologies also have great potential to reduce the $27 billion cost of road crashes in Australia each year.

“These advances can also help to reduce the significant social impacts that road deaths and injuries have on families and the wider community.”

Mr McCormack said he wanted to ensure these new technologies are deployed in a manner which improves safety, productivity, accessibility and liveability for Australians in both urban and regional areas.

“This new Australian Government $9.7 million investment will ensure the regulatory settings are workable and nationally consistent, that they fit with emerging United Nations regulatory developments and are consistent with related Commonwealth policies and laws; including those relating to privacy and data use.

“While some of this work has already started, we will see the Office of Future Transport Technologies ramping up over the next few months to coordinate Australia’s responses to the challenges ahead.”

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The $1 billion Rail Infrastructure Alliance (RIA) works package will build two entrances at each end of the Metro Tunnel in Kensington and South Yarra, as well as a new platform at West Footscray.

A consortium comprising John Holland, CPB Contractors and AECOM will deliver the RIA Package, in partnership with Rail Projects Victoria and Metro Trains Melbourne.

Thousands of passengers on the Sunbury, Cranbourne and Pakenham lines will pass through the entrances each hour, before heading underground into twin nine-kilometre tunnels onboard High Capacity Metro Trains.

Victorian Minister for Public Transport, Jacinta Allan, said the Metro Tunnel will completely transform Melbourne’s rail network, delivering a turn-up-and-go train system that will compare favorably with the great cities of the world.

“The Metro Tunnel will see more trains running across Melbourne’s rail network – improving reliability and slashing travel times to some of the city’s key employment, education, health and tourism destinations.”

Turnbacks will be built at West

Footscray and Hawksburn stations, allowing services to start and end at these stations during timetabled peak periods for the first time, instead of travelling further down the line.

Public spaces near the eastern tunnel entrance, including South Yarra Siding Reserve, will also be rejuvenated as part of these works before being returned to the local community once tunnel entrance works are complete.

The Metro Tunnel will help reduce delays, cancellations, waiting times and overcrowding across the metropolitan network by giving Melbourne’s three busiest lines (Cranbourne, Pakenham, Sunbury) a new underground pathway through the city, thereby freeing up space in the City Loop for the benefit of other train lines.

The Metro Tunnel will create capacity for an additional 504,000 peak passengers each week across the network.

Around 1000 people will work on the RIA package, including almost 100 apprentices, trainees and engineering cadets. The majority of RIA works are expected to be finished in line with the completion of the tunnels and stations, ready for opening by the end of 2025.

RAIL ALLIANCE TO BUILD TWIN METRO TUNNEL ENTRANCES

ARTC SEEKS PARTNER FOR INLAND RAIL PROJECT

The ARTC has opened a Registration of Interest process and is seeking a Public Private Partnership (PPP) to build a section of the Inland Rail Project in Queensland.

Inland Rail Chief Executive Officer, Richard Wankmuller, said the ARTC is continuing to gauge market appetite for the once-in-a-generation opportunity to deliver the Inland Rail PPP section from Gowrie near Toowoomba to Kagaru near Brisbane.

This partner will deliver the most technically-challenging section of the Inland Rail comprising approximately 130km of dual gauge rail, significant earthworks and complicated tunnels and bridges through the Toowoomba, Little Liverpool and Teviot ranges.

“Private sector involvement in the design, build, finance and maintenance of the PPP section of the Inland Rail programme is critical,” Mr Wankmuller said.

“There is leadership in the private sector that will deliver

“The PPP enables ARTC to access major Australian and multi-national builders and engineers to harness innovative design solutions and more efficient construction methodologies."

Mr Wankmuller said the Registration of Interest process was

NEW CHAIR FOR PO RTS AUSTRALIA

Ports Australia’s Board of Directors have appointed a new chair, filling the vacancy left by previous chair, Paul Weedon.

The Board has elected Grant Gilfillan to the position.

Mr Gilfillan is the Chief Executive of the Port Authority of NSW and a previous President and Chair of the International Association of Ports and Harbours.

Mr Gilfillan said he was looking forward to leading the organisation during an exciting time for the industry.

“We have seen a lot of changes over the last couple of years and there are plenty more on the horizon for the Australian Port sector and for the nation’s freight and supply chain as a whole.

“A strong voice like Ports Australia is crucial during these times to achieve the best results for the country’s ports to optimise trade and efficiencies to and from the port gate.

“I look forward to working with the management team at Ports Australia to realise the current projects the organisation is working on and plan for the future of the sector.”

Ports Australia’s Chief Executive, Mike Gallacher, also said he was looking forward to working closer with Grant as the organisation achieved key milestones.

“As Deputy Chair and with his experience throughout the sector Grant has been a valuable resource for the organisation, I am looking forward to him exercising that experience further in his role as chair.

“This organisation has plenty to offer both our membership and wider Australia and we are working hard to realise this potential.”

Grant has previously worked in Africa, the Middle East and Europe as a Senior Vice President, Managing Director and General Manager for DP World. Prior to this he served as Director of Operations for P&O Ports, Australia and New Zealand and as Managing Director of CSX World Terminals in Australia.

Grant was appointed to the Chair of the Australian Cruise Association in September 2017 and is currently serving as a Director on the Board of Lyttelton Port Company in Christchurch, New Zealand.

Department of Agriculture and Water Resources

Call for tenders $1.5 billion for water efficiency projects

The Australian Government’s Murray–Darling Basin Water Infrastructure Program is funding projects across the Basin to recover water for the environment.

Projects

We’re seeking tenders for water efficiency projects over $1 million, including:

• urban e.g. upgrading urban water infrastructure

• industrial e.g. upgrading processing facilities

• off-farm e.g. channel lining

• metering e.g. installing or replacing water meters

• on-farm projects in Qld, SA and ACT.

Delivery Partners

We’re also seeking tenders from organisations that will work with water rights holders to develop and deliver water saving projects.

All projects under $1 million must apply through a Delivery Partner, including on-farm projects in Qld, SA and the ACT.

How it works

Successful funding recipients must transfer an agreed volume of saved water to the Commonwealth. Funding of up to 1 75 times the market value of the saved water will be available for each project.

How to apply

You can apply through a series of rolling tenders.

The next two tender rounds close at 3 pm on 10 December 2018 and 25 January 2019

For more information and to access the tender documents, visit agriculture.gov.au/waterefficiency

Email procurementhelpdesk@ agriculture.gov.au for assistance.

ADDITIONAL $5 BILLION FUNDING FOR MELBOURNE AIRPO RT RAIL LINK

The consortium AirRail Melbourne, consisting of IFM Investors, Melbourne Airport, Metro Trains Australia and Southern Cross Station, will contribute $5 billion to the Melbourne Airport Rail Link Project.

This funding matches the $5 billion provided by the State Government and $5 billion from the Federal Government, bringing the current total to $15 billion.

The Consortium will be ready to break ground two years earlier than currently planned, provide a 20-minute trip between the airport and city, and benefit regional Victorians.

Australasian Railway Association (ARA) CEO, Danny Broad, said the essential project has sat on the shelf for long enough and it’s time for it to proceed.

“The Victorian Government has said the door is open for private infrastructure funding and after debating for more than 50 years, AirRail Melbourne has a solution on the table that needs to go ahead,” Mr Broad said.

“Melbourne’s population is set to double and the city’s livability will only be maintained with continued investment in infrastructure projects like this.

“The consortium ticks all the boxes, financial security with IFM Investors, MTA’s local and international rail experience and is book-ended with the Melbourne Airport and Southern Cross Station.

“Rail is proven to have far-reaching benefits and AirRail Melbourne will be no different, benefitting regional Victoria with additional capacity for the regions and creating jobs during construction and operation.

“Rail in Australia is booming, with unprecedented investment nationally. The AirRail Melbourne super train will secure Melbourne’s future livability,” Mr Broad said.

27km of new track and twin rail tunnels will form AirRail Melbourne. The project will support 12,000 jobs each year during construction and stimulate 13,000 jobs in Melbourne’s west and Victoria’s regional areas. The service will operate 24 hours per day and reduce regional travel time into the city by ten minutes.

Registrations of Interest (ROI) are also open for providers to help deliver the project. The ROI process, led by Rail Projects Victoria, will help government assess which organisations have the experience and capability to help bring the project to fruition, as well as gauging potential interest from private sector investors and operators.

The search includes designers, engineers, rail systems providers, rolling stock providers, investors, financiers, developers and other rail infrastructure providers. The full Business Case is currently being developed in partnership with the Commonwealth Government.

NORTHCONNEX TUNNELLING COMPLETE

Tunnelling for the NorthConnex, Australia’s longest and deepest road tunnel, is now complete.

NSW Minister for Transport and Infrastructure, Andrew Constance, said tunnelling started back in mid-2016 when the project’s first road header entered the ground at West Pennant Hills.

“Fast forward two years, 14 breakthroughs, 2.4 million cubic metres of spoil and the twin nine-kilometre tunnels are ready to be paved,” Mr Constance said.

Federal Member for Berowra, Julian Leeser, said the project has been an enormous one.

“Around 2,550,000 cubic metres of spoil has been excavated across all sites almost 300,000 cubic metres of shotcrete and concrete has been poured,” Mr Leeser said.

Federal Minister for Cities, Urban Infrastructure and Population, Alan Tudge, said the $3 billion project would transform NSW, and boost the national and NSW economies.

“NorthConnex will bust congestion and provide more reliable and efficient journeys for freight,” Mr Tudge said.

NSW Premier, Gladys Berejiklian, said the NSW Government was investing record amounts in public transport projects and is delivering vital missing motorway links.

“For too long the clogged Pennant Hills Road has been a headache for locals and a bottleneck for trucks delivering goods around our State,” Ms Berejiklian said.

“NorthConnex will remove 5,000 trucks a day from Pennant Hills Road, bypass 21 sets of traffic lights and save drivers up to 15 minutes in travel time.”

A total of 9 roadheaders and one surface miner remain on site and over 900,000 cubic metres of spoil has been delivered to Hornsby Quarry. The average daily peak workforce is up to 1,700 workers on site, while 11,500 people have been inducted to the project; it is estimated 15,000 in total will be inducted. A total of $16 million has been spent to date with Indigenous businesses and 182 apprentices have completed Certificate III Civil Construction through the NCXHub.

INFRASTRUCTURE SUSTAINABILITY AWARD WINNERS

The Infrastructure Sustainability Council of Australia (ISCA) awarded six sustainability awards at its annual conference, recognising excellence in organisational, individual and project leadership in the industry.

Rebecca Miller, Climate Risk and Resilience consultant at AECOM, took out the IS Individual Leadership Award which recognises the individual who best exhibits the most outstanding performance, leadership and greatest contribution to advancing infrastructure sustainability in Australasia.

Rebecca’s extensive work to understand how the infrastructure sector can best address the diverse and challenging range of acute shocks and chronic stresses that threaten to undermine our cities and communities warranted her consideration for the ISCA Individual Leadership in Infrastructure Sustainability Award.

Sydney Metro’s Sustainability Engineer, Laura Pritchard, took home ISCA’s new award category, the IS Emerging Individual Leader – recognising potential

future leaders aged 30 years or younger. In her acceptance speech, Laura recognised the female leaders in the industry and encouraged them to keep on leading and mentoring as “the next generation of women and men benefit from them as role models.”

Laura was nominated because she goes above and beyond in driving innovation including partnership with Social Traders, research into low carbon concrete and research into modern slavery, which triggered a program gap analysis on sustainable procurement being undertaken.

For its championship of sustainability both internally and externally, to other infrastructure agencies, and being the first to register for an ISv2.0 planning rating, Main Roads WA was awarded the IS Organisational Leadership Award. This award recognises the organisation that exhibits the most outstanding performance, leadership and greatest contribution to advancing infrastructure sustainability in Australasia.

Level Crossing Removal Authority’s ‘Training for the Future’ program won the IS Innovation and Impact Award, which celebrates the infrastructure project demonstrating the most impressive implementation of innovation.

Training for The Future (TFTF) is an innovative Victorian Government skills and industry development program creating a sustainable and inclusive talent and supply chain pipeline for major rail infrastructure projects in Victoria. Capitalising on the infrastructure boom to maximise impact for prosperity, people and planet, the program was created in response to the impending labour requirements and opportunity for economic inclusion of our most disadvantaged communities.

The project awarded the highest design IS score in the past year, winning the IS Outstanding Achievement Award for Design, was Melbourne’s Metro Tunnel – Early Works.

Winning the IS Outstanding Achievement for As Built went to the Level Crossing Removal ProjectBayswater Alliance.

OTTA SEALS:

THE UNDERUTILISED TOOL IN PAVEMENT PRESERVATION?

Improving asset management can often come from new or improved technology not just enhanced processing and reporting of data sets.

One such instance where adopting and adapting technology has proved to be a winner, has been in the central NSW regional Shire of Narrandera.

Relatively unknown in Australia, otta seals are a low-volume, low-cost road treatment used predominantly in South Africa. Put simply, graded gravel/crushed rock is placed on a relatively thick film of soft bitumen, and then rolled.

They have become attractive to some Australian councils who seek greater sustainability, combined with a view that a number of current standards, if applied directly, would lead to excessive cost and overuse of scarce premium materials ultimately leading to inefficient asset management.

The Narrandera Shire Council has 300km of sealed roads and 800km

of unsealed roads, but the unsealed roads only serve about ten per cent of the population. The significance of the savings from introducing adapted technology is made clear by referencing against their annual rate revenue, where to reseal the sprayed seal network on a ten-year return cycle (as recommended by Austroads and ARRB) the annual reseal budget would be in the order of 20 per cent of the annual rate revenue. If they were to re-sheet the unsealed network at a five-year interval as recommended, the annual re-sheet budget would be about 90 per cent of the annual rate revenue.

Council has realised considerable lifecycle cost savings with otta seals for local roads with low traffic volumes due to the use of less-tightly specified materials and a longer period between maintenance interventions.

Narrandera Shire Council completed about 65km of otta seal in last four years, 20km of new otta seal in 2017/2018 alone. Importantly, they have customised the process of otta seals to suit the Australian environment, including amending gradation of stone, percentage of cutter and rolling regime and signage after application.

For more information contact the Manager of Works, Narrandera Shire Council, or Kym Neaylon, Executive Manager (Professional Development), CPEE at kym@pavementeducation.edu.au.

The Centre for Pavement Engineering Education (CPEE) is dedicated to road and pavement engineering education, and because of this dedication regularly provides training in regional centres and the more remote parts of Australia far from capital cities.

WHEN A ROAD TRAIN IS A SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANT

Treating sewage in remote locations requires robust systems that have little maintenance requirements and flexibility of fabrication.

Hydroflux has been reviewing customer feedback from one of its well-established products and finding comments such as “it’s robust”, “it never fails”, “it is simple and effective” and “it just keeps rolling along” made them reconsider how it is referred to.

Back in the 1960s, when the system was developed and when marketing was not quite as swanky as it is today, a methodical assortment of numbers and letters was often sufficient to identify a product.

With over 150 of these somewhat unbranded systems operating for many years in various remote areas worldwide, in 2017 Hydroflux Epco decided to establish the RoadTRAIN® brand.

EFFECTIVE SEWAGE TREATMENT FOR REMOTE AREAS

The Hydroflux Epco RoadTRAIN® is undeniably the most robust sewage treatment plant available in the market, as it is a prefabricated on-site sewage

treatment system specifically designed for use in remote locations where simplicity is essential.

It is designed to meet the demands of isolated communities, mining and construction camps, and even resorts for the complete purification of domestic sewage to a quality that allows discharge to local water courses, irrigation or reuse.

These plug and play micro sewage treatment plants are available in three different sewage treatment process options and two modes of fabrication.

OVERCOMING LOGISTICAL ISSUES

It is the flexibility of fabrication methods that continue to be a deciding factor when considering alternatives. Remote locations will often have accessibility problems and having any equipment delivered greater than the size of a shipping container can present challenges.

In these cases, the preference is to supply the “bolted and assemble

on site” design which is flat packed in 20 containers suitable for shipping anywhere in the world. Comprehensive assembly details are supplied along with all components down to nuts, bolts and washers. Installation can often be conducted inexpensively using local trades with everyday tools.

If logistics is not an issue, the RoadTRAIN® can be supplied as a completely welded and assembled system that requires minimal installation works.

The most commonly used RoadTRAIN® is based on the extended aeration activated sludge process, although rotating biological contactors are also popular. RoadTRAIN's® membrane bioreactors have been used in some of the most sensitive areas.

Whichever RoadTRAIN® process is preferred, the performance combined with the fact that they are so simple to operate and require very little maintenance make them ideal for treating sewage in any remote location.

OPTIMISING THE INFRASTRUCTURE WE ALREADY HAVE

It would appear beyond dispute that infrastructure will be at the centre of almost all our major investments as a nation for a generation to come. Not only is the efcient use of infrastructure crucial to our economic growth, but it also lies at the heart of our day-to-day lives and quality of life in the form of transport, health, education, telecommunication, water and energy services.

Earlier this year, Infrastructure Australia launched Future Cities: planning for our growing population, a report that identified the choices we have to make as we face very significant population growth.

In the next 30 years, Australia will be home to 36 million people, most of whom will be centred in our largest cities — Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth.

There are many obvious economic advantages to this, but the speed and magnitude of the coming change means we now need a smarter, and far more sophisticated, systematic and integrated approach to the way we plan our cities.

While Infrastructure Australia has identified a $55 billion pipeline of nationally significant priority projects, with an additional $25 billion now under delivery, the bigger opportunity — though often ignored — is how we optimise the use of our existing infrastructure.

USING DATA TO MAKE THE MOST OUT OF CURRENT INFRASTRUCTURE

Part of the problem here is political. Too much of our planning is project led and short term, dictated by political objectives rather than long-term need. New infrastructure projects win elections where finding ways to optimise infrastructure is hard to translate in media opportunities and political capital.

The irony here is that improving services and reliability, without the significant expense and inconvenience of building new infrastructure from scratch, is exactly what voters care about most.

So the question is, how do we optimise the infrastructure that we already have?

A decade ago, there may have been a good argument to say that this was a question too complex to address. These days, however, this is no longer the case.

We now have access to far more data and much more sophisticated analytical tools thanks to the

advances in sensors, the Internet of Things and the increasing use of data collection systems in the design and implementation of infrastructure.

Our ability to optimise infrastructure services through the use of data lies at the heart of the mission of the SMART Infrastructure Facility at the University of Wollongong, where I have recently taken up the role of advisory council chair.

Researchers at the facility are already pushing the boundaries of infrastructure optimisation and creating smart solutions to make our cities more liveable, despite the demands of increasing population.

APPLYING STRATEGIES IN AUSTRALIA AND OVERSEAS

One example of this is the work done with MTR, one of the world’s largest providers of mass transit systems in global cities including Melbourne, Hong Kong and Stockholm.

For the past two years, SMART has been helping devise information systems to support and enhance MTR’s “learning organisation” strategy.

The aim is to foster in-house innovation by promoting creative thinking amongst its employees, through knowledge sharing, as well as collective assessment and maturation of innovative ideas.

After an initial in-depth review of existing cultural and technological obstacles, SMART designed information systems aiming to enhance the effective implementation of the strategy. These tools include an online, crowd-sourced and automated assessment system of innovative ideas posted by MTR staff based on meta-moderation principles.

This system allows for a fast, fair and anonymous maturing and ranking process that doesn’t require the costly assignment of specific human resources to the task. This system can easily be transferred to a wide range of organisations that want to unleash the collective creativity of their staff.

Further away, SMART is collaborating with CSIRO-Chile and local partners to address acute water management issues in the Atacama Desert, one of the driest places on earth. SMART

has developed an interactive model of groundwater access and management in order to reach a consensual agreement on sustainable water rights allocation amongst farmers, mine operators and water companies.

Closer to home, SMART is currently collaborating with Liverpool City Council in Sydney to support its ambitious city centre renewal through the use of smart sensing technology. Researchers have already developed a ‘smart visual sensor’ using IoT technology as part of their Digital Living Lab that automatically processes street footage and sends only data points of pedestrian or vehicular mobility patterns, avoiding privacy issues usually associated with video surveillance of public spaces.

Furthermore, this technology can be easily retrofitted onto existing CCTV networks and complemented by other ubiquitous data sources such as mobile device connections.

SMART was established in 2011 and has ambitious plans for growth over the next five years, fuelled by a combination of a rapidly growing capability, and the growing needs of governments and infrastructure owners.

Never has the need been greater for smarter use of existing infrastructure to meet unprecedented population growth over the coming decades.

For more information on SMART and its projects, visit smart.uow.edu.au

ALAN TUDGE: THE CONGESTION - BUSTING MINISTER

In late August, the Federal Government was turned upside down, with former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull ousted from the top job, and Scott Morrison taking over the leadership position. With a new Prime Minister came a fresh Cabinet, and Federal Member for Aston, Alan Tudge, became the new Minister for Cities, Urban Infrastructure and Population, with population a new addition to the portfolio. Here is Infrastructure Magazine’s exclusive interview with the new minister, finding out his vision for the sector, key projects and how the industry can overcome current challenges.

FIRSTLY, CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR APPOINTMENT TO THE PORTFOLIO OF CITIES, URBAN INFRASTRUCTURE AND POPULATION; WHAT ARE YOUR MAIN GOALS FOR THIS PORTFOLIO IN THE FUTURE?

Thank you. Infrastructure investment has been a core priority of the Coalition Government over the last five years. With more than $75 billion in funding and financing committed to new and upgraded infrastructure over the next decade, the Coalition is a major player in public infrastructure investment. We have also been a policy leader. We have overhauled the way the Commonwealth invests in major infrastructure, including restructuring Infrastructure Australia to be a truly independent advisor to governments, implementing more innovative financing and project delivery structures which are driving greater efficiency. We have initiated the successful City Deal model and established a 10-year rolling pipeline of upcoming investments to provide certainty to the market and the community.

However, there is more work to be done in this space. In particular, all levels of government must work together to make our cities function better. Our cities are vibrant, cosmopolitan and economic powerhouses. I want to maintain this vibrancy and economic growth, and I will be working closely with my state and territory counterparts to deliver the investments and the reforms needed to support our urban centres. Our existing City Deals are already returning benefits to the people of Townsville, Launceston and Western Sydney. I am committed to building on the success of these deals to help Darwin, Geelong, Hobart and Perth capitalise on the opportunities created by the next round of City Deals. In our largest cities, the supply of transport infrastructure

has struggled to keep up with the demand of growing populations. It is well accepted that governments have been playing catch-up with their urban infrastructure programs over the last decade, particularly on our congested road and rail networks. Our existing urban infrastructure commitments, such as our $2.33 billion investment in Perth METRONET and our $1.255 billion commitment to upgrade the M1 between Gold Coast and Brisbane, are helping. Our challenge is to keep our focus on long-term solutions to our congestion crisis, including cleaning up pinch points to make existing networks more efficient, as well as improving connections to orbital and regional centres to help spread demand.

Finally, an important expansion of the portfolio has been taking on population policy, alongside cities and infrastructure policy. These three policy areas are inherently interconnected, and opportunities to further integrate the government’s policy settings will ensure we can make our cities even better places to live, work and play.

YOU MENTIONED THE AREA OF POPULATION HAS BEEN ADDED TO THIS PORTFOLIO; WHAT IS THE MAIN AIM OF THIS ADDITION AND HOW WILL POPULATION IMPACT FUTURE INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT AND PLANNING?

The Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, created the new portfolio which merged population policy with urban infrastructure and cities policy. It made a lot of sense to combine these three areas as they are so interconnected. Population growth, for example, is the major reason for building more infrastructure, while our big capitals are where most of the growth is occurring. If we get these three levers right, then our cities will be even better places to live.

In 2002, Australia’s population was projected to increase by 2.5 million by 2017. In reality, it increased by five million — double the projected growth. In Melbourne, the increase was more severe over the same period. The city increased by 1.2 million people, compared to the expected 400,000 – three times what was projected.

At the same time, smaller urban areas are hungry for more people to support local growth. High-quality public infrastructure is essential to support the ambitions of these cities and regional centres, and to attract the workers they need.

Our City Deals are already taking steps to better integrate our infrastructure investment decisions with local land use planning. Ultimately, our national population settings and how growth is distributed will be the key driver of Australia’s future public infrastructure needs. Integrating these policies into the portfolio recognises that population trends are at the heart of infrastructure investment decisions, particularly for our urban areas. Conversely, it also ensures that planning for appropriate levels of infrastructure investment is embedded into our population strategies.

WHAT DO YOU THINK ARE THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES CURRENTLY FACING THE INFRASTRUCTURE SECTOR?

Transport congestion is already costing the Australian economy up to $25 billion per year and this is estimated to rise to $40 billion by 2030. Every day commuters across the country are stuck in traffic, spending hours on the road each week, which they could be spending at home with their families. Many of the trains have reached crush capacity, if there is a train line at all.

While expenditure on public infrastructure has increased markedly — greatly assisted by the Federal Coalition in the last five years — due to the time it takes to deliver new projects, urban transport networks in our largest cities have simply not kept pace with the demand of a fast growing population. Solving the growing congestion crisis in our big cities will mean delivering the right urban infrastructure, ahead of need. This includes all levels of government identifying network deficiencies early, setting out long-term, predictable plans for investment, and working together to better integrate transport investment with urban and demographic planning.

At the same time, we also need to have sufficient capacity and skills in the market to build the infrastructure projects the country needs. The Australian Government’s 10 year, $75 billion infrastructure investment is supporting the construction market and sustaining Australian employment. Recent unemployment figures confirm this with Australia recording the lowest unemployment rate since 2011 at 5.0 per cent. More importantly, a pipeline of priority projects announced in the 2018–19 budget is responding to the call for greater certainty in the construction market, delivering long-term confidence and enabling forward planning. The pipeline includes programs and projects across all states

and territories, in urban and regional areas, and of varying scale and scope, thereby providing opportunities for industry participants of different size and capacity.

WHAT WOULD YOU SAY ARE SOME OF THESE MAIN INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS THAT WILL HAVE THE BIGGEST IMPACT ON THE INFRASTRUCTURE SECTOR AND AUSTRALIANS?

Our investment agenda is delivering the upgrades to transport networks that Australia needs. This means investing in packages of works which can reshape our cities and major transport corridors, such as the continuation of works on the Bruce and Pacific Highways that are modernising our key freight corridors. It also means combining our investments with reforms to help generate new economic and social opportunities, such as through our City Deal model. Nowhere is this approach more apparent than through our investment in the Western Sydney Airport and supporting infrastructure.

As the Prime Minister has said, Western Sydney Airport is the biggest game changer for Sydney since the Harbour Bridge. By itself, it is the largest civil engineering project underway in Australia but it’s also part of a wider package of infrastructure investment in the surrounding region — including the North-South Rail Link and the road upgrades through the Western Sydney Infrastructure Plan.

When it opens in 2026, this full-service airport will be well connected to Sydney’s transport network and to the world. The Australian and New South Wales Governments have jointly committed to deliver the first stage of a North-South Rail Link from St Marys to the Badgerys Creek Aerotropolis via the new airport with a joint objective of having rail connected to the airport in time for its opening. Work is already well underway on the jointly delivered business case for this rail line. In addition, our governments are investing $3.6 billion in roads near the airport as part of the Western Sydney Infrastructure Plan. A Development Authority is also being established under the Western Sydney City Deal to encourage development and jobs around the aerotropolis in knowledge intensive industries. Through this massive program of infrastructure investment, we are transforming the Western Sydney region into a new, third city for Sydney with the airport at its centre.

Western Sydney Airport will keep Sydney, New South Wales and Australia open for business. A key benefit is the jobs generation. Unlike many other types of infrastructure, the airport will support more jobs during operations than in construction. This means long-term job opportunities for the Western Sydney community — and the economic benefits of the airport will not only be felt locally. Western Sydney Airport will support tourism and high-value freight, while businesses located at the nearby aerotropolis will benefit from 24-hour access to global markets.

PRIME MINISTER, SCOTT MORRISON, CALLED YOU THE "MINISTER FOR CONGESTION BUSTING" – HOW ARE YOU PLANNING TO REDUCE THE LEVEL OF CONGESTION IN AUSTRALIA’S MAJOR CITIES?

There are three main points to our congestion-busting plan:

1. A massive boost in infrastructure expenditure to build the major intracity road and rail networks and address local congestion pinch-points

2. Easing the population pressure off the three big cities and more rapidly grow the smaller states and regions.

3. Building a better population planning framework. I outlined the Coalition direction in my speech to the Menzies Research Centre in early October:

The Congestion Challenge: More Infrastructure and Stronger Population Planning to get better Cities. Our plan will build on the work the Coalition has undertaken for the past five years.

The Coalition lifted expenditure as soon as we came to office, including funding to deliver key intracity spines over the next decade. We are already delivering major, city-shaping upgrades like WestConnex, which will allow commuters to bypass 52 traffic lights and cut travel times between Parramatta and the city by 40 minutes. But we are also investing in planning for the next round of intracity spines, such as the Western Sydney rail line and the North East Link in Victoria.

In particular, we recognise that passenger rail remains the most efficient way to move large numbers of people in peak periods and we have committed almost $9.4 billion to upgrade our passenger rail networks over the next decade. We are also investing in freight rail upgrades, such as our $400 million commitment to upgrade Port Botany rail line in Sydney, to help get freight vehicles off the roads in some of the most congested corridors.

In the immediate term, the government is also alleviating high-priority local pinch-points across our major cities. While getting major infrastructure links right is critical for our cities’ long-term sustainability, it is often local pinch-points that cause the greatest delays for commuters now.

The government has been investing in congestion-busting packages in Melbourne, Sydney and Perth, and at Budget 2018 we set aside a further billion dollars to address urban congestion. This additional allocation will focus on our most congested urban networks, with works identified through a robust, data-driven process to get the best value out

of our investments for commuters. We will make further announcements about these priority works early next year.

Beyond direct investment, I would also like to see pressure taken off our largest cities by supporting the growth and prosperity of our smaller states and our regions. Even as our largest cities face the challenges of rapid population growth, other areas are crying out for more people. Settling even a small proportion of new migrants to these smaller states and regional Australia can make a big difference to both these centres and to our crowded east coast capitals.

To help this transition, we are looking at our national population settings, including working on measures to have more new arrivals go to the smaller states and regions, and require them to be there for a least a few years. We are also supporting better transport connections between major urban centres and their regional orbitals.

WHAT TYPES OF INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT WOULD SUPPORT A VISION FOR MORE DECENTRALISED CITIES?

An important first step to decentralisation is to better link up orbital population centres near our major cities, such as Gold Coast or Geelong, as well as across our regional towns. Better transport links bring down the time and cost of getting from affordable secondary cities to the employment markets in larger cities. In turn, the greater dispersion of population to our orbitals helps drive local economic activity in these smaller cities, making them increasingly attractive places to live and work even aside from their connection to the nearby capital city.

Through Budget 2018, the government has committed funding to deliver the next round of connecting infrastructure to orbitals. For example, we have committed $1.225 billion towards four projects to upgrade the M1 Pacific Motorway to improve congestion, safety and travel times for the thousands of commuters who travel on the Pacific Motorway to major metropolitan employment centres in Brisbane. Beyond just looking at the closest orbital cities, we are also investing $1.75 billion through a Regional Rail Revival package to cut the travel times for thousands of people travelling daily from regional Victoria to Melbourne for work.

We are also working with the states and the private sector to plan for longer-term infrastructure upgrades to support interregional travel, including through our $20 million Fast Rail Business Case investment. Under this commitment, the

government is funding three business cases which look at long-term faster rail solutions to support urban, regional and rural development.

These business cases will look at options that would significantly reduce travel times and improve access to affordable housing and employment opportunities outside the major capitals. My department is working closely with successful proponents to progress the three business cases and it is expected that they will be delivered to the government by mid-2019. At this time, the government will review the outcomes in detail and explore opportunities to take forward the projects in partnership with state governments and the private sector.

HOW SHOULD THE GOVERNMENT AND INDUSTRY BALANCE THE CONSTRUCTION OF NEW INFRASTRUCTURE WITH THE OPTIMISATION AND MAINTENANCE OF CURRENT INFRASTRUCTURE?

While most road and rail infrastructure is owned by the states, and sometimes operated by the private sector, the government strongly supports optimising the use of existing infrastructure.

The government’s Infrastructure Investment Program funds projects involving technological enhancements and improved operational practices to avoid delaying the need to implement more expensive construction solutions. As part of our standard project assessment processes, we check the extent to which the proposal has considered non-construction options, such as the use of technology to improve safety and capacity before investing in new infrastructure projects.

For example, we have funded a number of projects to install Intelligent Transport Systems to improve traffic flow and reduce accidents on busy or dangerous roads, such as on the Bruce Highway corridor between Brisbane and Caboolture.

THERE HAVE BEEN REPORTS OF THE INTENTION TO UNVEIL A NATIONAL POPULATION POLICY WHAT WILL THIS POLICY ENTAIL AND HOW DOES THE GOVERNMENT PLAN ON DEALING WITH RAPID POPULATION GROWTH?

The Coalition will be unveiling our population policy in due course and as mentioned, I delivered a speech to the Menzies Research Centre that outlined our direction. Our plan is to continue to invest in major infrastructure, take pressure off the big cities through decentralisation, and develop a better

planning framework with the states which better matches population growth with infrastructure spend.

The challenge for Australia is that our population growth is not evenly distributed. As I have outlined, we have very fast population growth in Melbourne, Sydney and South East Queensland. While the overall population of Australia has been growing at the rapid rate of 1.6 per cent per annum, our three large population centres have been some of the fastest growing cities in the world. Melbourne last year grew by 2.7 per cent, Sydney by 2.1 per cent and South East Queensland by 2.3 per cent. At the same time, we have the smaller states and many regional areas that have barely grown and crying out for more people.

South Australia, for example, grew by just over 10,000 people last year. Melbourne grew by 10,000 every 28 days. South Australian Premier, Stephen Marshall, however, wants to grow South Australia by another 15,000 people each year.

The same pattern is mirrored in many of the smaller states and territories. For example, the Northern Territory Chief Minister wants to grow Darwin faster. The Tasmanian Premier has indicated his desire to more rapidly grow his state.

Further, there are regional areas across Australia that simply cannot get people to do the work available. Three hours from Melbourne, in the beautiful seaside town of Warrnambool, they have unemployment of 3.8 per cent and businesses struggling to get workers. The recent headline of their local paper was “Wanted: 1000 workers!”. Other regional parts of the country are the same.

We need a more even distribution of growth across the country to support the smaller states and regions, while taking pressure off Melbourne, Sydney and South East Queensland.

THERE HAVE ALSO BEEN REPORTS OF POSSIBLE MEASURES ENCOURAGING NEW MIGRANTS TO MOVE TO REGIONAL AREAS WILL THIS BE SOMETHING INCLUDED IN A POPULATION POLICY?

While the government is looking closely at opportunities to support greater migration directly to regional areas and to the smaller capitals, this is not a radical idea. There are already a number of visa programs that support regional migration.

The success to expanding this approach will be matching the skills of new migrants with the skill shortages in rural and regional Australia. Currently, net overseas migration is heavily skewed towards our largest centres. While it

accounted for 64 per cent of our overall population growth in 2016-17, the figure is around 73 per cent for our biggest two cities. Hence, settling even a slightly larger number of new migrants to the smaller states and regions can take significant pressure off our big cities.

There are some constraints on this, of course. For example, 25 per cent of our annual migration intake is directly related to an employer sponsoring a person for a job where they cannot get an Australian. We do not want to jeopardise the growth of those sponsoring businesses, and hence the wealth of our nation. A further 30 per cent concerns family reunion; typically, an Aussie marrying a foreigner. We cannot send a person’s spouse to a different state.

So taking areas of constraint into account, we are working on measures to have more new arrivals go to the smaller states and regions, and require them to be there for at least a few years. In that time, the evidence suggests that many will make it their home for the long term. This will require close cooperation across different agencies, including with Regional Development Minister, Bridget Mckenzie, to ensure we get the settings right so that those smaller states and regions can benefit economically from population growth.

A further method for supporting regional growth (and taking pressure off our big capitals) is to better connect and integrate our orbital cities. Fast rail is an effective means of doing this, as has been noted by the Federal Parliament’s Joint Standing Committee on Infrastructure, Transport and Cities, led by John Alexander MP. If a person in Ballarat, for example,

can commute to Melbourne in 45 minutes rather than the present 75, then the opportunities for Ballarat’s growth would accelerate markedly.

We are presently investigating the potential for faster rail links between our big capitals and surrounding regional centres. Three detailed business cases are already underway and will be finalised mid next year — Newcastle to Sydney; Sunshine Coast to Brisbane; and Shepparton to Melbourne. Victorian Opposition Leader, Matthew Guy’s $19 billion commitment to fast rail from Melbourne to Geelong (32 minutes), to Ballarat (<45 minutes), to Bendigo (70 minutes), and to Traralgon (62 minutes), is consistent with our agenda. We would be pleased to work with him on his decentralisation plans should he be elected.

We can also more generally develop and support the growth of our regional centres and smaller capitals. We are doing this through several initiatives:

♦ Our public service decentralisation agenda led by Minister McKenzie. In May 2018, the government announced positions from five Commonwealth entities are to be moved with more to come

♦ Our City Deals to support growth of key regional centres and smaller capitals

♦ The $272 million Regional Growth Fund and $641 million Building Better Regions Fund

♦ The funding of large-scale road, rail and defence projects outside of the big capitals

With the technological revolution surging around the globe, businesses need to ensure they are in the best position possible to maximise the benefits and opportunities aforded by new and emerging technologies. Inherent in this is understanding the risks and obstacles that are likely to emerge in the context of a changing technological paradigm.

Nowhere is this more evident than in rail where there is, and will continue to be, significant change. This includes changes to how we move customers and freight in cities becoming more congested, how we move trains safely and efficiently around the network, and how we modernise the management of rail assets.

It has become exceedingly important to ensure the Australasian rail industry does more to keep pace and prepare for these changes.

INDUSTRY DEVELOPING

SMART RAIL ROUTE MAP

DIGITAL FRAMEWORK

In response, the rail industry is working together to develop a long-term strategic framework for digital and communication technologies. This commitment is embodied by the Smart Rail initiative, which aims to drive a coordinated industry focus to the adoption and deployment of telecommunications and technology initiatives within the industry.

Australasian Railway Association CEO, Danny Broad, said the Smart Rail Route Map is an industry-owned and industry-driven initiative, spearheaded by the ARA and the Rail Manufacturing Cooperative Research Centre (CRC), and delivered by Deakin University.

“It will help our industry to realise the vision of a national approach to rail technology, bringing economies of scale, supporting interoperability and many other efficiencies,” Mr Broad said.

“Defining industry goals, mapping the key challenges for the rail sector over the next 30 years relating to technology

disruption, and identifying focus area objectives and initiatives is critically important to putting rail on a stronger, more sustainable footing in the future.”

The $550,000 project ($200,000 in cash funding from Rail Manufacturing CRC and ARA, and $350,000 in in-kind contributions) will identify a long-term industry program to improve the rail industry's ability to adopt and keep pace with telecommunication and information-based technologies.

Smart Rail will focus on standardisation, integration and harmonisation over the next 30 years through the establishment of a common view of priorities, themes, timelines and actions.

Importantly, it will provide a basis for defining the rail industry direction, development initiatives and research programs and in effect, provide a framework through which next generation rail technologies can be integrated and supported in the Australasian rail environment.

PRIORITIES OF A SMART RAIL SYSTEM

The Deakin University project team, led by Professor Douglas Creighton from Deakin’s Institute for Intelligent Systems Research and Innovation, is providing expertise in systems mapping when workshopping, developing and modelling this project’s outputs.

The underlying strength of the project lies in the level of industry engagement on the development of strategy initiatives.

To date, the ARA and Deakin have held nine workshops, attracting close to 200 participants.

Some of the Smart Rail priorities include:

♦ Passenger rail safety, timeliness, convenience and valueadded services

♦ Freight customer cost-effective services and on-time delivery

♦ Harmonised and integrated public transport systems that enable seamless end-to-end journeys

♦ Cost-effective and efficient customer centric operations

♦ Smart asset management and maintenance

♦ Workforce digital and technological skills and competencies

♦ A national versus an independent approach

♦ Implications on the future customer experience and considerations for innovation and technology strategy and implementation

One of the most important issues that the Smart Rail project is focusing on is its rail culture and pertinacity to customise, which can restrict the adoption and implementation of these systems in line with the normal technology lifecycles.

A RENAISSANCE IN RAIL

The ARA’s work in this area is against the backdrop of a renaissance in rail.

Billions of dollars’ worth of investment has been committed over the next decade. This investment is needed, with Australia’s passenger and freight tasks expected to grow by 19 per cent and 26 per cent respectively by 2026.

“With more densely populated cities, and increased numbers of people and freight to move around our cities and through regional areas, it is critical that we as an industry have a common view of priorities, themes, timelines and actions so we can meet these challenges head on,” Mr Broad said.

The Smart Rail Route Map will be technology neutral, and communicated in a non-technical manner. The project outputs will be owned by the Australian rail industry and will be used to support the introduction of new technologies and services efficiently and cost effectively.

The ARA Board, which shapes the priorities and sets the policy directions of the ARA, is strongly supportive of the Smart Rail project. It recently agreed to an executive committee to guide the project’s long-term implementation following the project’s completion in late 2018.

The Smart Rail Route Map will be finalised and presented to industry in late 2018.

Smart Rail will be one of the topics for discussion at AusRail 2018 in Canberra on 27-28 November 2018. The Smart Rail: Technology of the Future panel will feature Paul Harris, Public Transport Victoria; Doug Creighton, Deakin University; Mark Smith, Transport for NSW; Stuart Thomson, Rail Manufacturing CRC; and Bonnie Ryan, GS1 Australia who will discuss how the project will provide a long-term strategic framework for digital and communication technologies in Australia.

A NEW ERA FOR RAIL NETWORK ACCESS PITS

In rail, unrestricted access to associated underground network infrastructure during installation is a key factor in a project’s success. Delivery of the Canberra Light Rail Project saw the introduction of Australia's first high strength modular access pit system capable of overcoming challenging dimensional restrictions and a highly accelerated schedule.

Stage One of the Canberra Light Rail Project is nearing completion, and includes the design and construction of a 12km light rail route spanning between Gungahlin to the city centre.

During installation of the Canberra Light Rail Project, project teams had to overcome restricted site access and limitations of the specified underground network access infrastructure. Having modular products that can be customised on site and adapted to project needs as they develop can greatly improve the flexibility of installation, reduce associated labour and plant costs, and eliminate challenges which otherwise cause significant delays.

The Canberra Light Rail Project had extensive project HV service footprint constraints which were mitigated by Cubis Systems, whose in-house design team developed the STAKKAbox™ ULTIMA Hybrid, an industry-first modular access pit system designed to meet the unique requirements of Australian rail networks.

FLEXIBLE DESIGN

additional custom Hybrid solutions provided to suit the large scope of works and changing installation requirements between all three project zones.

REDUCTION IN TIME AND COSTS

Time and cost savings are two of the most important considerations in any rail project and by using the ULTIMA Hybrid there was no need for specialist builders or heavy machinery resulting in no extensive traffic management or disruption, saving both time and associated labour costs.

The lightweight sections were rapidly installed on site, enabling two or more large custom pits to be fully assembled, including all connections and backfill, within one day by a small work crew. Modifications to the pits which accommodated the HV electrical conduits were easily completed using standard battery powered tools with the option to customise further as required.

The entire ULTIMA Hybrid assembly acted as an exoskeleton, consisting of an in-situ concrete base, the ULTIMA Connect pit system, ULTIMA beams and a three-part precast concrete encasement.

The design of the beams were engineered to deliver amplified lateral strength capabilities particularly for large access pits measuring two meters and above. All components were flat-packed for delivery, reducing freight and unloading costs.

For the Canberra Metro project, the STAKKAbox™ system was customised to three standardised pit sizes, with multiple

Cubis Systems specialise in the design and manufacture of innovative access pit and cable protection solutions, including modular, precast concrete and rotationally-moulded plastics, used in rail projects across the country. Cubis continues to push design limitations with its CABLEprotect RAILduct™ product, a HDPE moulded cable trough system typically five times faster than traditional concrete units, reducing total cost of installation and improving health and safety.

Watch the Canberra Metro Project video showcasing the STAKKAbox™ ULTIMA Hybrid by scanning the QR code. To find out more about Cubis’ extensive range of modular network access solutions, visit www.cubis-systems.com/au.

SUBURBAN RAIL LOOP

— HOW REALISTIC IS THE VISION?

by Dr John Stone, Senior Lecturer in Transport Planning, Urban Planning Program, Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning at University of Melbourne, and Dr Crystal Legacy, Senior Lecturer in Urban Planning at the University of Melbourne

What should we make of the Andrews Government’s recent vision for a $50 billion suburban rail loop, which will link every major rail line in Melbourne and the new airport rail?

Clearly, the enthusiastic response from the public shows that the government has struck a chord. In fact, this new evidence showing that many people are desperate for an alternative to being stuck in traffic could be a game changer. Could we finally see an end to the accepted wisdom that the way to win an election is to promise a new road?

For infrastructure builders and planners, there is not yet much detail beyond the indicative budget and a timeline for construction of 30 years starting in 2022.

The government’s surprise announcement is backed by a short ‘strategic assessment’ and a video with a thumping soundtrack, both designed to set a vision ahead of more detailed planning work if the ALP is returned to government in November.

The basic project description was prepared by Development Victoria, supported by Rail Projects Victoria, with commercial and technical advice provided by PricewaterhouseCoopers and Aurecon.

The loop is proposed as a 90km arc with 13 stations from Cheltenham to Werribee, underground for the first stages from the Frankston Line to Box Hill, and Box Hill to the airport. Later stages envisage surface rail and tunnelling from the airport to Sunshine, and a final connection to Werribee. Travel time targets are 35 minutes from Broadmeadows to Monash, and 45 minutes from Cheltenham to the airport.

WHY IT’S NEEDED

The rail system was built in the 19th and 20th centuries so that people could work in the CBD and live in the suburbs. At first, people lived within walking distance of a station, but as the suburbs spread into the wedges between the radial lines, we have failed to develop networks of suburban buses and trams that cities like Toronto built to deliver people to the railway.

Now, in the 21st century, we need to catch up and give people in the suburbs an alternative that recognises public transport’s big challenge: crosstown travel.

Although most people live and work in the suburbs and come to the centre only occasionally, most travel is still within five to 10km of their homes. Local schools, health centres and shops need to be accessible by public transport. That’s the “20-minute city”, for which we need a good network of fast, direct buses that get us quickly to local destinations.

But we also need a mass transit system to connect good jobs, education and hospitals to the places where housing is affordable. Crosstown rail is a great way to provide the ‘mass transit’ part of the equation, because it will allow us to reach many more places without using so many valuable hours of the day.

The big challenge will be getting the stations in the right places and finding the best ways for people to get to the new trains.

DEVELOPMENTS CATERING FOR POPULATION GROWTH

No details have been given on the type of service that is likely to run on the new lines. So, we can expect debate on the relative merits of replicating the heavy rail system or adopting some form of ‘medium-capacity’ rail, perhaps modelled on a German U-Bahn, providing comparable capacity by running at shorter headways but at a lower infrastructure cost.

The pitch for an underground service clearly avoids any pre-election questions of land acquisition. However, the $50 billion price tag for such a huge undertaking is open to question and it is inevitable that options for some surface alignments, or even something like a Tokyo monorail, will need to be put on the table.

Further, the proposal begs many questions about the land use changes

(called urban renewal in the ‘strategic assessment’) that it will generate. What will voters think about intensification around the new stations? And, equally important, what types of development will be best suited to generating patronage and catering for population growth at the lowest environmental and social cost?

BALANCING RAIL AND ROAD PROJECTS

Beyond the details of this project, Daniel Andrews’ new approach to major infrastructure announcements is taking us into uncharted waters. What does it mean that the head of the government department which houses the publicsector’s key transport planning agencies did not know of this plan until the night before its launch?

At the very least, many planners and engineers at Transport for Victoria and VicRoads must be wondering about their purpose. And then, what if politicians decide that secret squads of planners and surprise announcements is the way of the future?

Of course, decisions about spending huge amounts of public money on transport projects will always be political. But, the cities that have the best infrastructure find a way to temper the politics with some degree of accountable, evidenced-based debate.

In Toronto, project business cases are written before investment

announcements are made. The business cases are then used in wider discussions about what kinds of infrastructure the region should invest in. While every urban region has its challenges, the controversy in Australian cities is now about the role of evidence. How can the evidence used to support big projects be made more accessible and transparent?

In the light of Suburban Loop announcement, we need a rational process to answer this question; why would we spend $50 billion to get people out of their cars at the same time as we are contemplating spending almost the same amount (on the Westgate Tunnel,

the North East Link, a 20-lane Eastern Freeway and, inevitably, the oncerejected East West Link) to encourage more driving?

The existence of competing road and rail projects is challenging for several reasons. At a strategic level, planners and citizens need a clear vision of the future we want to create. We also need to know broadly how much a transport system to support this vision will cost. And, for infrastructure designers and builders, the challenge is immediate and practical.

How can you possibly decide how many lanes you need on a ring road without a clear understanding of what sort of service the railway competitor might be offering? How can a rail planner know what capacity is needed without a good idea of where people will live and work?

Clearly, the government has given us a great idea. Now we need to think carefully about turning it into a reality that makes Melbourne a better place to live. This will need new ways for mature conversation between people, planners and politicians.

A breakdown — what is planned

The south east section will run underground between Cheltenham and Box Hill, with new rail tunnels linking the Frankston, Cranbourne–Pakenham, Glen Waverley and Belgrave–Lilydale Lines. This section could include six new underground stations — four underground interchanges with existing lines, and two potential new stations at the Monash Clayton and Deakin Burwood precincts.

The north east section will connect the Belgrave Lilydale Line to the Hurstbridge, Mernda, Upfield and Craigieburn Lines before heading to Melbourne Airport.

In addition to the four interchange stations on these lines, there will be potential new underground stations in Doncaster and the La Trobe university precinct in Bundoora.

The new Airport Rail Link will form the north west section, with construction also underway from 2022. The western section will connect to the Werribee Line via the new Sunshine super hub, with further technical investigations to determine the scope and route of this section.

There will be three new super hubs at Clayton, Broadmeadows and Sunshine providing better access to jobs, education and health outside the CBD.

Exact station locations, route alignment, rolling stock and staging will be confirmed through the full business case and technical work, including extensive consultation and environmental assessments.

OPPORTUNITIES IN RAIL TECHNOLOGY

The rapid speed of technological change in the rail industry is having a huge impact on the management of assets, with real-time monitoring, AI, machine learning, predictive maintenance and a huge amount of data all available to improve performance and network capacity.

The opportunities around data and technology in the rail industry was a key topic of conversation among panellists in the rail stream of the Asset Management for Critical Infrastructure 2018 Conference, which ran from 12–13 September in Sydney. Some of the biggest challenges facing the rail industry discussed by the panel revolved around capacity issues, the speed of technological change and cyber security. Panellists included Andrew Meier, Executive Director/Chief Executive Officer at the Australian Centre for Rail Innovation; Lucio

Favotto, A/Director Infrastructure Management at Transport for NSW; Bonnie Ryan, Senior Manager at GS1 Australia; and Dale Smith, Principal Engineer at Lycopodium Infrastructure.

The discussion was moderated by Helen Carroll, Manager Asset Management, Public Works Advisory, Department of Finance, Services and Innovation.

The panel talked about one of the biggest challenges of the industry being resources and providing access to the networks, especially as customers have lower tolerability for service disruptions on rail networks than roads as they can’t visualise the problem.

If a customer’s trip driving down a highway takes 40 minutes longer, they can accept that if they can visualize the works occurring, whereas in a signalling upgrade for example, all the customer can see is that they are being disrupted, but the station may look the same from the outside.

Lucio Favotto, A/Director Infrastructure Management at Transport for NSW thinks communication is one of the most important factors when temporarily disrupting customers in order to improve services.

“One of the things that we have done in the past when we looked at significant track upgrades is we’ve actually gone out

to do meet-the-customer type arrangements at stations. We actually sat down and explained to the customer in the next six to seven months we’re going to knock you around in travel. This is what you’re going to get out of it.”

Industry standards are also significant when looking at how the rail sector moves forward and embraces new opportunities. On standards, Bonnie Ryan, Senior Manager at GS1 Australia, said standards exist where there’s no gain from doing the same thing in a different way.

“In terms of data standards, where practical, they enable resources to be focused; rather than reinventing the wheel, they actually lift the opportunity for innovation because they release time, effort and resources into focusing on outcomes that are value-adding,” Ms Ryan said.

“The focus should be on how to use data, rather than on how to get data. From a technology perspective, data standards will release resources and have the opportunity to redirect those in more productive ways.”

SIGNIFICANT OPPORTUNITIES IN TECHNOLOGY

Ms Ryan said that, like other industries, digitalisation in rail will mean the assets themselves are going to be a part of the solution to current challenges.

“They’re going to give you feedback and they’re going to tell you when they’re potentially going to break. Looking ahead, you’re going to get that sort of feedback loop directly from the assets as we start to look at things like the Internet of Things, machine learning, etc.

“Trains will have all sorts of sensors embedded in all of the components, and it will be incumbent on the rail industry to effectively manage the amount of data that will be coming through from these new technologies.

“I think one of the trends is really going to be looking at the workforce, and the sorts of skills that are going to be required in the future to make sense of the data and technologies that are going to be utilised.”

Dale Smith, Principal Engineer at Lycopodium Infrastructure, agreed and said there is a lot of potential in things like big data and the Internet of Things.

“I think things like real-time monitoring, having information on hand to assess the asset, how it’s actually behaving out there, is important. To understand if it’s on a downward trend, or it’s at a plateau will become valuable tools in decisionmaking around what we do for our assets,” Mr Smith said.

RAIL’S FUTURE IS PREDICTIVE AND INTEGRATED

Ms Ryan said that one of the best ways to use this data is from a proactive standpoint, for asset managers to be able to predict when an asset might fail rather than a reactive approach to fix on failure.

“You want to be able to be a bit more intelligent about it, maybe a component or asset doesn’t need to be maintained every six months, we can do it every 12. But you need good analytics, good data and intelligence to make those proactive decisions.”

Mr Favotto said there are massive opportunities in technology, but it’s all about being smart with the data and knowing what to do with it.

“So we’re acquiring the data, we’ve just got to make sure how it works for us to make the right decisions at the right time.

“It comes down to what we’re going to do with that data. It’s got to drive the change in the standards,” Mr Favotto said.

CUSTOM DESIGNED 120VDC LED BULB FOR THE RAIL NETWORK AND TRAINS

FOR COMMUTERS INCREASING RAIL COMMUNICATION

tm stagetec systems (TMS) is a technology company with headquarters in Sydney. The company aims to provide seamlessly integrated digital PA systems and services tailored for the transport and infrastructure industries.

TMS’ digital PA systems offer the latest in digital audio technology — especially in public address, hearing loops and help points. Digital PA systems produce high-quality announcements with a focus on speech intelligibility and accessibility, with other key features including passenger information displays, mobile PA and centralised monitoring.

TMS is exhibiting at AusRail 2018 and will release a new Help Point series at the exhibition. Help Points offer commuters and other users the ability to contact the Network Operations Centre and talk with an operator or listen to automated information messages. These points can offer vital information, so quality audio and performance reliability are a top priority.

Help Point systems from TMS are completely configurable, for example they can include up to eight buttons that can be programmed to play announcements in different languages. Other customisable options include chassis type, size and

colour, screens, customised operating systems and video conferencing are also available.

The cornerstone of the Help Point’s design is speech intelligibility and the systems include high-quality digital SIP and noise cancelling microphones. They can feature an embedded IP PBX server for smaller installations and can also be remotely monitored via a CNMS.

Help Points are powered using Power over Ethernet (PoE) and can be integrated into DVA systems and updated with the latest information without any need for an operator to intervene. With the importance of accessibility in DVA systems, Help Points offer integrated Hearing Loops.

Help Points are scalable from small to large systems and are suitable for public locations where help or information points may be required, including transportation hubs, railway signal points, road assistance points, large venues, schools and many more places.

Visit TMS at AusRail booth #7 to see Help Points in action.

WA’s

Infrastructure Takes CENTRE STAGE

The WA Major Projects Conference is back in its 10th year and will be taking place on the 20th & 21st of March 2019 at the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre.

Attracting over 200 attendees annually from across Australia, the conference continues to be the premier infrastructure event in the State providing a platform to discuss infrastructure priorities, policies and plans for WA.

The theme for the 2019 event is “Shaping WA’s Infrastructure for the Future” and will feature the major infrastructure projects in the pipeline for the State alongside providing a high-level forum for discussion, debate and doing business.

Richard Sellers, Director General Transport WA will deliver a keynote address at the conference focusing on WA’s Transport Infrastructure Priorities. The conference will also profile the METRONET transport programme in Greater Perth and what it means for the state’s future transport needs. Alongside the METRONET, BHP’s South Flank Project in the Pilbara will also be highlighted at the event.

Westport is creating a strategy to deliver a sustainable and globally-responsive freight, trade and logistics network for the Fremantle, Kwinana and Bunbury regions that will be delivered at the end of 2019. Nicole Lockwood, Independent Chair of the Westport Taskforce, will give an insight into how the formation of the Westport strategy is progressing.

Other prominent topics and projects which will be discussed at the conference include the Precincts Project, Perth Airport’s New Runway Project, Establishment of Infrastructure WA, Lumsden Point General Cargo Facility, Cycling Infrastructure for Perth, to name a few.

Registration is now open for the 10th Annual WA Major Projects Conference 20-21 March 2019 at the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre. At the event, delegates will get the chance to network with other government policymakers and experts from the private sector, all while learning from over 25 industry speakers.

METRO TUNNEL — ARCHAEOLOGICAL FINDS AND LEARNING FROM GLOBAL PROJECTS

The $11 billion Metro Tunnel — the biggest public transport project in Victoria’s history — will take three of Melbourne’s busiest train lines through a new tunnel under the city, freeing up space in the City Loop to run more trains more often to and from the suburbs.

The Metro Tunnel will include five new underground stations: North Melbourne, Parkville, State Library, Town Hall and Anzac.

Sixty-Five High Capacity Metro Trains will operate on the new line from Sunbury in the west to Cranbourne/ Pakenham in the south-east.

Once completed, the Metro Tunnel will benefit thousands of passengers

travelling in and out of Melbourne’s CBD every day, and provide faster and easier access to key destinations including the Royal Melbourne Hospital and University of Melbourne in Parkville, and the St Kilda Road employment hub and Shrine of Remembrance at Anzac Station.

CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUES AND LEARNING FROM OTHER PROJECTS

A key focus of the Metro Tunnel Project is engaging with the community and stakeholders on the design and construction of the five new underground stations. The Metro Tunnel has undertaken an extensive and robust public planning process. Environmental Performance Requirements developed as part of the public Environment Effects Statement planning process require noise and vibration levels to be monitored and appropriately mitigated throughout construction.

Comprehensive property condition surveys of heritage listed buildings and other properties are also being undertaken prior to Metro Tunnel works starting nearby. Throughout works, ongoing modelling and monitoring of the potential impact of construction activity is being undertaken.

As part of piling works in Parkville, we are also using cutting-edge technology to break back the piles, minimising noise and vibration. This method involves

the use of an expanding grout to create a horizontal crack in the pile so that concrete can easily be removed by a crane, eliminating the need to use excavators and jack hammers during this phase of work. The Metro Tunnel Project has a track record of engaging with some of the largest transport infrastructure projects in the world, ensuring a best-practice design and construction approach is implemented.

We are learning from other major metro projects around the world, such as Crossrail in London, and implementing best-practice noise and vibration management.

The project also benefits from staff with a significant amount of overseas experience on rail projects in countries including Singapore, the UK, Hong Kong, India and Taiwan. Attracting this world–class experience to Victoria is not only shaping the Metro Tunnel but is helping to upskill the next generation of local rail experts to deliver future projects in Australia and around the world.

ARCHAEOLOGY AND HERITAGE

The Metro Tunnel Project is currently uncovering Melbourne’s rich history, with the largest archaeological digs in Victorian history over halfway complete and with more than half a million artefacts from the city’s past already unearthed.

A team of more than 100 archaeologists, students and community participants have painstakingly unearthed hundreds of thousands of artefacts from the heart of the CBD since the digs began in April, many dating back to the earliest days of Melbourne’s European settlement 180 years ago.

These digs are taking place across two historically significant Melbourne locations — near the corner of Flinders and Swanston streets, and the corner of La Trobe and Swanston streets — ahead of construction ramping up on the new underground Town Hall and State Library Stations.

At the dig site directly beside the iconic Young and Jackson Hotel, finds have included an opulent jet earring — likely to have fallen from the ear of a wealthy lady through the floorboards of the Gippsland Hotel 150 years earlier — as well as ivory dice potentially used in the city’s earliest gambling dens and more than 1000 century-old human teeth tossed into the yard by a well-known early Melbourne dentist.

The digs at the State Library Station site on the corner of Swanston and La Trobe streets have revealed archaeological remnants of Melbourne’s pre-European settlement woodland, personal items such as elaboratively decorated smoking pipes and several artefacts closely related to the area’s distinct commercial and light industrial past.

The public can get closer than ever before to some of the most intriguing discoveries, with a collection of artefacts on display at the project’s dedicated visitor centre, Metro Tunnel HQ (125-133 Swanston St, opposite Melbourne Town Hall). The artefacts will be on display until later this year.

Early plans are underway for a full-scale exhibition once the digs are complete, with all items of significance to be permanently stored by Heritage Victoria.

TRAFFIC CHANGES

A project of this size will create some unavoidable disruption. The Metro Tunnel Project and its construction contractors are working with local residents, businesses and the community to reduce impacts throughout construction. Work to build an entrance at Federation Square for the new underground Town Hall Station has commenced with relevant approvals in place and will result in changes to traffic conditions for an extended period.

Flinders Street, next to Federation Square, is being reduced by one traffic lane westbound between Russell and Swanston streets for up to four years from October. As Federation Square sits over a working railway, the deck cannot withstand the weight of the massive machinery needed to build the station. Closing one lane allows crews to safely operate heavy equipment while traffic continues to flow.

Drivers still have one left-turning lane from Flinders Street into St Kilda Road, and one lane towards Elizabeth Street. Motorists have been encouraged to plan ahead and allow up to an extra 15 minutes if travelling through this stretch of Flinders Street.

Pedestrian access around the intersection and to Federation Square’s businesses, restaurants, cafes and bars is maintained. Bicycle access is also maintained, with the St Kilda Road bike lane realigned.

All works at Federation Square are being undertaken with the relevant approvals. Town Hall Station will make it easier for people to reach some of Melbourne’s key tourist destinations including Federation Square, St Paul’s Cathedral, Southbank, the Arts Centre and CBD shopping. The station will have a direct underground connection to Flinders Street Station, so passengers can connect seamlessly with City Loop services.

For more information about the Metro Tunnel Project, visit metrotunnel.vic.gov.au.

THE POWER OF ONE

Development of a single source of reliable national rail safety information is a step closer following the release of a new data roadmap for the Australian rail industry.

It is often said amongst academics and analysts alike that if data is the answer, what is the question? It’s that very conundrum that has united Australia’s many varied rail safety stakeholders in pursuit of what they all agree is a missing piece in the safety puzzle – the development of a new Rail Safety Data Strategy.

“As an industry we’re no different to many others, new sources and uses of data are being identified almost every day,” Office of the National Rail Safety Regulator (ONRSR) Chief Executive and Australia’s National Rail Safety Regulator, Sue McCarrey, said.

“But if you’re not strategic in the way you adopt and apply the information then you will never capitalise on the opportunities it creates, and that’s the reason the rail safety community has put a lot of stock in the development of this strategy.

“As the document itself says, better focused national safety data will support good rail safety decision making.”

REFLECTING RAIL INDUSTRY CHANGES

The Rail Safety Data Strategy 2018-2022 is the first of its kind in more than a decade (the original was developed by the National Transport Commission in 2008) and reflects the many changes that have been made to Australia’s rail safety landscape over the subsequent 10 years.

More than six months in the making, the strategy’s development was overseen by a steering committee, co-chaired by ONRSR and the Australasian Railway Association (ARA) and comprising members from a range of industry bodies, and rail transport operators from all corners of the country.

It is underpinned by a refreshingly simple vision; to have consistent, quality and accurate rail safety data that is readily available to stakeholders when making decisions relating to rail safety. Importantly, the new strategy builds on the three overarching themes of the 2008 plan: better focused national data, better data quality, and better consistency and comparability.

Sue

McCarrey, Chief Executive, Ofce of the National Rail Safety Regulator (ONRSR) and Australia’s National Rail Safety Regulator

“So much has happened in the world of data and analytics in the last ten years and in many ways, this is the first real opportunity that we have had, as an industry, to develop a strategy like this,” ARA Chief Executive, Danny Broad, said.

“What we’ve tried to do is to recognise that many of the themes first identified in 2008 still have a great deal of currency today. But in developing the new strategy we have looked at these themes through the lens of the current issues or problems that our industry faces in relation to data, whether it be identification, reporting, collection or analysis.

“We’ve asked ourselves and our wider stakeholder groups a lot of questions, key among them being what data do we need holistically? Who should collect it? Are we sharing it effectively? And are we getting the balance right between what is reported by the industry versus what is required by law?

“All of these questions are fundamental to delivering on the vision we’ve developed within the strategy.”

PUTTING THE PLAN INTO ACTION

Delivery is anything but an afterthought where this project is concerned with the release of a comprehensive action plan accompanying the strategy itself. The action plan maps out how the needs of individual industry sectors (such as tourist and heritage, passenger and freight operators), safety authorities, industry bodies and governments will be recorded. It breaks down even further the overarching themes into itemised projects that are assigned to the relevant lead agency and scheduled over the next few years.

Among these projects, and arguably the most eagerly anticipated and highest value undertaking of the more than 30 individual initiatives listed in the action plan, is to identify a single national data set that can meet the needs of all of Australia’s rail safety stakeholders.

It is envisaged that the development of such a consolidated resource will provide not only significant administrative benefits but also greatly improve the access to, and quality of, data that could translate into game changing rail safety enterprises and practices.

“This is where the maximum benefit can be delivered, not only for the industry but most significantly for what is collectively our major stakeholder — the Australian public,” Ms McCarrey said.

“Not surprisingly though, identifying and documenting this single national data set is also where the really hard work lies in meeting the needs of a range of stakeholders, all with different interests, priorities and processes.

“There is no doubt it will be challenging but I know everyone is genuinely enthused by the opportunity we have here to clearly map out how data can play a part in making the Australian rail system as safe as it can possibly be.”

ASSIGNING RESPONSIBILITY

While identification of the single data set is seen by many as the panacea, it will only be as effective as the systems and processes that maintain it. In fact, just as important as developing this long-awaited single source of information will be establishing who is responsible for managing it. A key part of that process will be addressing the question of whether the national data set can be administered in parts or if it must be maintained at a holistic level.

Once again careful and considered teamwork will be crucial.

“We have worked really well as an industry to get to this point and I think everyone understands the broader benefits of overhauling rail safety data to ensure what is reported and in what timeframe meets the needs of the industry,” Mr Broad said.

“The consistent message from our members is ensuring that industry receives information in return for its data; industry trends, contributing factors or severity of occurrences and so the ARA will work with its members, ONRSR and other stakeholders to ensure we achieve this.

“The wider rail industry will work together over the next three years to deliver not only the national data set, and an effective management and maintenance structure but to actually execute all the elements of the action plan and the broader strategy.”

It is expected that the implementation of the National Rail Safety Data Strategy 2018-2022 will necessitate changes to Australia’s Rail Safety National Law and these will be the subject of widespread and timely consultation.

To download a copy of the National Rail Safety Data Strategy and Action Plan visit www.onrsr.com.au.

AIRPORT INVESTMENT

— DRIVING GROWTH AND COMMUNITY CONNECTION

Those of us who work in the infrastructure sector understand that, at its core, efective infrastructure must be about economic and community connection. For airports, the connection they provide is becoming an ever-growing part of how we live our lives — and how we support our economic growth.

Research commissioned by the AAA this year found airports add $34.6 billion in economic activity and $32.3 billion in tourism activity. That’s a huge contribution to our economy, and one that reflects a concerted effort by airports to invest to meet the very divergent needs of the millions of passengers they serve each year.

INVESTING IN A GROWING AND DYNAMIC INDUSTRY

It will come as no surprise that airports remain dynamic, ever-changing pieces of infrastructure. Airports must invest not just to keep pace with growing demand, but to meet the changing technology and infrastructure requirements of modern aviation. And they’re doing just that.

Airports have invested $15 billion since 2002 in airport improvements. This has included $10 billion in aeronautical improvements as airports have welcomed the introduction of larger aircraft and more airlines to the market, ensuring appropriate airside infrastructure to accommodate the rapid growth of air travel over that time. That rate of investment is

not slowing down, with a further $20.6 billion in investment planned in the next 10 years.

This significant level of investment is absolutely essential to ensuring airports continue to meet the needs of their communities — and perhaps gives an indication of how much air travel continues to grow and evolve. Security and technology has become more expensive, while rapid growth in passenger numbers has seen the need for bigger terminals, increased airside infrastructure and a greater focus on a passenger’s overall journey through the airport to deliver the most efficient outcomes.

Increasingly, airport investment has been better linked to airline needs, in addition to considering quality of service standards expected of their passengers. This has seen deeper discussions around airport investment and greater collaboration on improvements. And it’s showing results.

The Board of Airline Representatives

of Australia (BARA) commended Sydney Airport for its approach to air services agreements, which has seen the establishment of KPIs that are monitored and reported on as part of the airport’s ongoing engagement with airlines. In Perth, the airport recently announced a decrease in airport charges to airlines using its Terminal 2. These are good examples of how airports are working more closely with airlines to ensure the passenger is at the centre of discussions.

However, ensuring investment is both fit for purpose and prevents future congestion or bottlenecks remains complex. Airport investment plans must consider the needs of their communities many years in advance, ensuring redevelopments and upgrades cater for growing passenger numbers and changing demand for routes and services. Responsive design that can meet present day needs while delivering on future possibilities is therefore essential.

Technology has also had a significant impact on how airport processes are managed, with real-time, data driven decision making increasingly becoming the norm. While this is delivering significant efficiency and customer experience benefits, it also requires continued investment to ensure our airports remain at the forefront of technology.

Meanwhile, global events and a changing security environment have transformed the way we fly, leading to increased costs for airports. While adapting to this environment is absolutely essential to ensure the safety and security of the travelling public, this is a reality many of Australia’s airports are grappling with.

Investment in new security requirements for regional airports, for example, will come at a significant cost relative to their existing budgets. While the Federal Government has established funding for the purchase of new equipment, there will be ongoing

maintenance costs and resourcing needs that will have to be met over and above regional airport’s existing costs. This highlights the need for a long-term view of investment in Australian airports that fully considers the current and future needs of our infrastructure.

IMPROVING CONNECTION BY INCREASING CAPACITY

There are four airport runways under construction or planned across the country at the moment — and that doesn’t include the construction of the new Western Sydney Airport.

In Queensland, the nation’s biggest infrastructure project is well underway, with Brisbane Airport’s new runway now commencing construction works. It has been an incredible technical feat just to get to this point, with the new runway’s location presenting unique challenges requiring years of preparation. When complete, it will deliver increased capacity in the local market to support the city’s burgeoning growth, strengthen the east coast network between Brisbane and Sydney and Melbourne, and facilitate more direct international services.

Further north, the Sunshine Coast Airport runway project is underway. With Queensland positioned well to benefit from the use of A320 neos by airlines serving the Asia Pacific, this is an important development for the tourism hotspot.

Melbourne and Perth Airports also have runways planned, in projects that are intrinsically linked to the future economic health of their cities. In Melbourne, a third runway will be essential to support the almost doubling of passengers expected in the next 20 years. In Perth, the new runway will keep pace with demand as the city cements its position as the nation’s western gateway.

Individually, these are significant projects that will benefit their communities well into the future. Collectively, they represent a significant increase in capacity across our nation, ensuring our aviation network is best positioned to meet growing demand, facilitate new services for passengers and support growing connectivity for businesses with operations or trade relationships overseas.

BETTER CONNECTED JOURNEYS

More than ever before, airports are considering how passengers experience the airport from every stage of their journey. Unlike airlines or government agencies that deal with specific airport processes, airports themselves have a unique, big picture view of what the passenger may experience as they move through the airport. This has led to a great deal of innovation to smooth the journey through different processes and make it easier for passengers to make the trip from their homes to the aircraft.

Ground access improvements have seen passengers offered more choice in how to get to the airport, from the creation of dedicated ridesharing zones to the facilitation of more public transport offerings and an increasingly diverse range of parking products available.

The success of this focus has seen paid parking decrease as a preferred method of transport for visitors to some major airports as it becomes easier to use ridesharing, public transport or other services to get to the airport. With a direct rail service to Perth Airport now under construction and plans advancing for a Melbourne Airport rail, this trend is likely to continue as airports continue to support more choice for airport visitors.

Once passengers have arrived at the airport, investment in terminal improvements is also smoothing their way. Adelaide and Cairns Airports both have terminal redevelopments underway that will help move more people through the terminal more seamlessly. Airports have also considered the comfort and enjoyment of passengers in their terminal designs, with bathroom upgrades, seating improvements and new retail offerings also informing upgrades and redevelopments. New and emerging technology — such as biometrics — is also being trialled at some airports to deliver easier, more seamless airport experiences for passengers.

These improvements also make a bigger, unseen difference in many cases. Better designed, more enjoyable terminal spaces help passengers find their way easily and encourage them to get to the airport with plenty of time to spare, making sure they get to the gate on time. This, in turn, supports improved efficiency for both airports and airlines. And, with the millennial traveller

expecting unique experiences right from the start of their holiday when they travel, terminals that offer efficiency, ease of use and a genuine sense of place are an essential part of the airports of today — and the future.

CONNECTIONS TO OUR REGIONS MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER

While Australia’s major airports have overseen a period of significant growth, the same cannot be said for our regional airports. These airports encounter many of the same challenges as their city counterparts — such as the maintenance of expensive infrastructure and the need to meet a complex range of safety and security requirements — but they do not

have the revenue base to support it. In fact, many regional airports expect to record persistent budget deficits over the next 10 years, even as their costs rise by a further 38 per cent.

The cost pressures faced by regional airports remain difficult to address, with many airports only served by one airline. Some are fearful of increasing airport charges — in fact a quarter of 51 regional airports surveyed by the AAA last year said they’d been asked by airlines to reduce charges off the back of a threat to reduce services. This puts them — and their communities — in a precarious position as they face rising costs and have limited avenues for finding the money to pay for them.

These challenges will only become more complex as security and technology requirements change.

And while regional airports struggle to make ends meet today, they are simply unable to save for the future. This means investing in maintenance and upgrades will only get harder as communities across the country weigh up the increasing costs of their airport with the essential connection they provide. We must find a sustainable solution for regional airports to ensure they’re not left behind. The AAA continues to campaign for additional government funding for essential maintenance and upgrades. At the moment, the only dedicated regional airport funding falls

under the Remote Access Upgrade Program, which has been specifically designed for airports classified as remote. While this is a welcome contribution from government, it does not help small regional airports not considered remote with limited access to alternative funding sources.

The AAA is currently calling for funding for these airports as part of its Protect Regional Airports campaign to ensure they can continue to serve their communities in the years to come. It is vitally important we get behind this campaign to ensure our national infrastructure network continues to meet the needs of all Australians.

IMPROVING ROADS BY DESIGN

AT AUSTRALIA’S GATEWAY

Sydney Airport is one of Australia’s most important pieces of infrastructure and is a critical economic engine for Sydney, NSW and Australia. Directly and indirectly, the airport facilitates the equivalent of almost seven per cent of the state’s economic activity and 338,500 jobs. The passenger forecasts for the airport presented in the Master Plan 2039 indicate growth from 43.3 million passengers in 2017 to 65.6 million passengers in 2039.

In recent years, the need to address the growing volumes of traffic on major roads approaching Sydney Airport, as well as the traffic on roads within the airport’s international and domestic precincts, has become paramount.

Making it easier for motorists to travel to, from and past the airport by easing traffic flows and reducing congestion has been a key priority for Sydney Airport since at least the early part of the decade, as has the airport’s commitment to providing the widest possible range of transport options for travellers and farewellers.

In 2014, Sydney Airport received Federal and State Government approval to begin work on one of its most ambitious ground transport infrastructure projects to date, namely to design and construct a radically modified road network within the terminal precincts.

This involved a variety of major challenges; not least of these was the need to design and build new roads within the constraints of a comparatively small airport campus (Sydney Airport covers just 910 hectares) that is visited by 150,000 people every day; and to maintain the efficient ground transport operations of a major piece of infrastructure 24 hours a day.

This complex task involved both optimisation of existing infrastructure, and introducing improvements and upgrades by developing new infrastructure.

UPGRADING THE ROAD NETWORK

When work on the design of the new road network began in 2014, the airport’s T1 international precinct in particular was under increasing pressure from growing traffic volumes. Traffic entering T1 via Marsh Street (from the south and west) and via Airport Drive (from the north and east) was generally accessing three areas within the airport: the departure drop-off deck, the

arrivals area (hotel, office buildings and bus/coach parking) and the car parks (multi-level and open on grade).

With traffic entering the airport, one of the main challenges was that traffic coming from two directions (Marsh Street and Airport Drive) was converging into one road, and then diverging to the three main destinations within the airport (departures, arrivals and car park). This short section of single road was experiencing multiple, conflicting, vehicular weaving movements that, under increased traffic volumes, resulted in compromised road safety, congestion and delays.

Sydney Airport engaged Mott MacDonald to develop first the concept design and subsequently detailed design and construction support for an overall solution that untangled the conflicting movements, significantly increasing road safety and traffic capacity, and reducing congestion and delays.

Known as Project 2B and Project 3, the designs addressed the traffic entering from Marsh Street and Airport Drive respectively. The essence of the solution was to provide as direct access as possible for Marsh Street and Airport Drive traffic to each of the three destination areas within the airport by substantially decreasing or eliminating the conflicting and unsafe weaving movements.

Under Project 2B, Bridge Crescent (the entrance road from Marsh Street) was widened by an extra lane to provide extra capacity for three-way distribution, before conflicting with Airport Drive traffic. An important new connection was added to Centre Road to provide direct entry to the car park, which meant a significant reduction of weaving traffic. The function of the recirculation lane was fully maintained and improved in terms of sight distance and safety.

Project 3 provided another connection that bypassed the conflicting weaving area and enabled direct access for Airport Drive traffic connecting to the arrivals area.

Completed six months ahead of schedule in June 2018, these two new connections have largely eliminated traffic weaving movements and have substantially reduced the traffic on the existing road. As a result, increased vehicle capacity and a vastly improved flow of traffic along the entry system has led to a better customer experience for both private and commercial motorists, and ease traffic congestion along both Marsh Street and Airport Drive.

SPECIFIC DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS

Given the severe constraints of the program, the design of Projects 2B and 3 required the close collaboration of a large and specialist multidisciplinary team.

Sydney Airport and Mott MacDonald assembled a team of highly experienced project managers, engineers and designers — with expertise in road geometry, traffic engineering, stormwater drainage, structural engineering, geotechnical, pavement and utilities management — who produced the design that was used to construct the works.

Road geometry design was very constrained due to the limited space and existing roads and viaducts in the vicinity. The new connections on Project 2B and the new overpass on Project 3 were challenging as they stretched the design parameters in order to provide the required clearances, offsets and sightlines. Also, levels were optimised to preserve and utilise the existing pavement, while allowing for extra strengthening where required.

Stormwater drainage was constrained in terms of discharge levels due to the close proximity of the works to the bay. Therefore, the preference was to adjust the design (both in position and level), so the existing stormwater pit and pipe system was used wherever possible and this, in turn, influenced the road geometry.

From the structural design point of view, the new overpass viaduct design required a lot of attention to determine the most appropriate type of structure — the central span over Bridge Crescent was carefully selected to enable quick positioning and minimise the impact on traffic. There were also several low-height walls that were incorporated in safety barriers to optimise the limited space.

CHALLENGING CONSTRUCTION CONDITIONS

An overarching challenge on both projects was the difficult ground conditions, combined with the relatively high underground water table. The geotechnical team had to carefully consider treatments of the new viaduct supports and footings, including the abutments. The analysis of the ground conditions was also very important when designing the road pavement structure.

The work was made more complex by the presence of underground utilities. The design was coordinated in detail with the existing utilities including water mains, water tanks, high-voltage electricity lines, etc, to minimise impact and, where this was not possible, to determine the most effective and most optimal relocation.

With every new or rearranged traffic system, it is of high importance to develop new directional signposting (wayfinding) so motorists can be informed and directed. To this end, structures were designed to support several new and large digital VMS (variable message signs) that inform motorists of any changes in driving conditions and directions.

Sydney Airport and Mott MacDonald continued to work closely throughout the construction stages, with joint site inspections and site meetings, modifying and adjusting the design to respond to any construction challenges and issues.

$300 MILLION AIRPORT EXPANSION TAKES OFF IN THE NT

Renowned for its stunning scenery and fresh produce, the Northern Territory attracts tourists from far and wide, and exports its goods across the world. With a few small regional airports and just one international airport to keep up with demand, the recent announcement of a $300 million expansion of airport facilities in the Northern Territory is welcome news for several major industries.

The Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility (NAIF) recently approved finance for the $300 million expansion, which will see airport facilities upgraded in Darwin, Tennant Creek and Alice Springs.

Some of the project’s major infrastructure plans have already been outlined and are set to benefit from a $150 million loan from the NAIF — the NAIF’s largest investment to date. The loan will assist the Northern Territory Airports in upgrading storage and energy infrastructure, and in turn increase the state’s agricultural potential.

While it’s still early days since the announcement of the NAIF loan, and further project details and regulatory approval requirements are currently being worked through, it has been announced that the upgrades will include the construction of an airport freight and training hub, including a cold storage

facility at Darwin International Airport (DIA), as well as construction of solar energy farms at DIA, Alice Springs and Tennant Creek Airports.

Part of the loan will go towards the expansion of an existing 6MW solar farm in operation near DIA; the largest solar power station in the Northern Territory.

With the expansion, the Airport Development Group’s strategy includes the building of a 40MW solar power farm to export renewable power to the grid. An off-site multi-user battery will also be constructed to support the renewable energy infrastructure.

Alice Springs Airport will see the most significant upgrade to aircraft infrastructure, with the runway, taxiways and apron set to be resurfaced, and new runway and apron lighting to be installed.

INFRASTRUCTURE FOR TRADE AND TOURISM

With increased cold storage and energy resources, as well as improved runway infrastructure, the expansion is set to have a significant impact on both exports and tourism.

Construction of a Cold Storage Airport Freight and Education Hub at Darwin International Airport will allow exports to be processed through a Vapour Heat Treatment (VHT) plant and stored safely before being air freighted directly out of Darwin to international ports.

Airport Development Group CEO, Ian Kew, said that the investment would grow the Northern Territory’s reputation and capacity to attract bigger planes and bring more tourists to the state.

With the new infrastructure capable of handling and transporting more produce, some of the region’s most iconic products, such as mud crabs, barramundi, mangoes and melons, will be exported in greater numbers.

“These can be processed through the new VHT plant and stored in the new cold storage facility before being air

freighted straight out of Darwin, rather than being trucked to Queensland,” Mr Kew said.

Minister for Resources and Northern Australia, Matthew Canavan, told ABC Radio Darwin that the government wants to make the most of the economic opportunity.

“What we want to do is unlock these kind of economic game changing opportunities in infrastructure for businesses across northern Australia,” Mr Canavan said.

The infrastructure is expected to facilitate significant growth within trade and tourism, which is vital to the repayment of the NAIF’s loan.

IMPROVED EMPLOYMENT

The airport expansion project will have an undeniable benefit to Northern Territory employment, with the projects creating up to 1,500 jobs within the state.

Mr Canavan said that this rise in job opportunities is exactly what the Northern Territory needs in the current economic climate.

“The projects will create jobs, drive

new export opportunities into Asian markets, boost the Northern Territory’s tourism potential and support energy security for businesses and residents in the north,” Mr Canavan said.

“Up to 1,000 jobs are expected to be generated through the construction phase alone. In turn, those positions will support 500 indirect jobs through the supply chain and create more than 140 new ongoing positions.”

CLP Senator for the Northern Territory, Nigel Scullion, said that local businesses, including Indigenous organisations, would also benefit. He added that Northern Territory Airports has committed to an Indigenous employment target.

The Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility's approval is conditional on the conclusion of various management plans and additional consultation with stakeholders. The NAIF will work with Northern Territory Airports to meet these conditions as the project moves forward.

KEEPING COSTS DOWN FOR SOLAR FARM DEVELOPMENT AND MAINTENANCE

Solar power is becoming an integral part of Australia’s energy mix, with the Australian PV Institute confirming that in mid-2018 there was 35GW of solar farms in the planning and development pipeline. As solar farms span across a vast area, land clearing activities need to take place to ensure the area is clear. Ongoing maintenance of the land is also important, as uncontrolled undergrowth can cause the panels to be damaged. Both land clearing and regular maintenance activities are required with the right equipment.

Depending on the size and environment of the area to be cleared, land clearing and ongoing maintenance for a solar farms can involve the removal of bushes, stumps and trees to accommodate development and maintain the solar farm.

Vermeer Australia’s National Sales Manager for Environmental Equipment, Craig Baillie, said mechanical machine clearing is a popular method for large development areas. This reduces labour costs and increases productivity.

“There is a variety of land clearing equipment that is commonly used on large land clearing and maintenance projects in order to clear the ground quickly, including horizontal grinders, whole tree chippers and wood chippers.

“Hiring a contractor that has the right equipment can ensure land clearing is completed effectively and efficiently, while also causing minimal disruption to the natural environment and keeping projects on schedule.”

HORIZONTAL GRINDERS

Horizontal grinders are best utilised on larger jobs where an area of five acres or more needs to be cleared, such as for the development of solar farms, as they are able to process greater amounts of wood waste quickly and efficiently.

“Horizontal grinders have a long feed table and conveyer that guide material into the grinder so workers don’t need to waste time ensuring the correct placement of material in the grinder. This makes them ideal for processing the longer, bushier material that is typically required to be processed on land clearing projects,” Mr Baillie said.

“Solar farms also have a lot of pallets and waste to manage, as almost each solar panel will arrive on a separate pallet. The Vermeer HG6000TX will grind these waste products and can be used as ground cover for dust control or landscaping, or to simply reduce waste volumes.

“As solar farms often involve working around a tough job site, having a versatile machine is also important. The Vermeer HG6000TX has been designed for such sites.”

The HG6000TX has a number of other features that help increase productivity and efficiency, and reduce costs.

“The machine uses the Vermeer SmartGrind system, which increases productivity by automatically controlling grinding speed based on engine rpm levels, and its series II duplex drum system with reversible hammers improves cutting performance and cutter blocks to simplify maintenance while also increasing wear life by nearly double,” Mr Baillie said.

“The top-loading screens are designed to give operators easy access, job site safety is enhanced with a Thrown Object Deflector, which reduces the quantity and distance of thrown debris, and multifunction remote control units allow operators to operate the machine from inside the excavator.”

CHIPPERS

For development projects that are smaller than five acres or for ongoing maintenance work, whole tree chippers and wood chippers will be more productive and cost-efficient.

“In the past, wood chippers were limited to smaller projects, but larger models with the ability to process material up to 53cm (21 inches) in diameter are now available that have made it into the land clearing market. Whole tree chippers such as Vermeer’s WC2300XL start at a capacity of 58.4cm (23 inches), with the WC2500TX larger model able to process material up to 63.5cm (25 inches), ” Mr Baillie said.

“Vermeer’s WC2300XL whole tree chipper and range of wood chippers are ideal for land clearing and maintenance projects as they can be attached to a skidder or excavator, allowing the machine to be moved around the job site and process materials in one pass.

“This reduces labour costs and increases job efficiency, as the material to be processed doesn’t need to be cut into smaller, easier to handle pieces before being moved to the chipper.

“It also makes them easier to be used to maintain solar farms, as they can be moved around between the rows of panels to help clear undergrowth.”

Mr Baillie said it’s also important to look for equipment with features designed to increase productivity.

“All Vermeer whole tree chippers and wood chippers come with a SmartFeed feed-sensing control, which enhances productivity by stopping and reversing the feed roller to optimally process large, hardwood material,” Mr Baillie said.

“Select models are also available with a remote control, enabling workers to operate a loader/excavator while still maintaining control of the chipper.”

SELECTING A CONTRACTOR WITH THE RIGHT EQUIPMENT

With a variety of equipment that can be used for land clearing and maintenance services, it can be hard to know what will be the most cost-efficient while also providing high productivity.

“Along with assessing the size of the area to be cleared, knowing the type of work that needs to be undertaken and any end product requirements is also important,” Mr Baillie said.

“Selecting a contractor that has the equipment to handle 100 per cent of material that needs to be processed will provide the most efficiencies.”

GPS AND 3D MACHINE CONTROL REDUCING DOWNTIME

Brendan Walsh and his team at Ground Technique have been working on a 20-lot Tran Civil development in Diamond Creek, Victoria. This project is on a large sloping block that is very undulating and requires a substantial amount of cut and fill. To complete this project, Mr Walsh installed the Topcon 3D GPS+ machine control from Position Partners on his Hitachi Zaxis 13-ton excavator.

“The Topcon 3D GPS+ system has meant that we have no people on the ground for starters and I think we’ve saved ourselves up to maybe four blokes on the ground. It means we can use smaller excavators if required because we’re so much more efficient with what we do,” said Brendan Walsh, Director, Ground Technique.

“It also means there’s no human error. The only human error will come down to the surveyors and designers, and you’re always going to have surveyors and designers involved. There’s a lot less material coming out because you’re pulling out only the exact amount.”

Mr Walsh also pointed out that using the Topcon 3D GPS+ 3D machine control system increased safety on site because there were no workers around the machine.

“I believe it’s the way of the future and people who aren’t using it, I think, are really living in the past now,” Mr Walsh said.

For the Diamond Creek Project, the other option Mr Walsh had considered was a rover on the ground but he was concerned about downtime.

“Often blokes forget to charge batteries and what not on those things so there’s a lot of downtime,” Mr Walsh said.

“Number two, someone has to read the screen and interpret it, and in the meantime the operator is sitting there waiting on that bloke on the ground.”

The Topcon 3D GPS+ machine control system from Position Partners was appealing to Mr Walsh because it reduces downtime, and increases site safety and efficiency.

Mr Walsh was also interested in a 3D system over a 2D system because the Topcon 3D GPS+ machine control system meant that he and his team didn’t need to re-bench the equipment each time they moved the machine.

“The screen on the new system in particular is very big and easy to see, and because it is 3D it’s plug and play essentially once the machine’s loaded,” Mr Walsh said.

“There’s no recalibrating once the machine moves, with a conventional 2D system every single time you move the machine you have to re-bench the machine.”

Prior to implementing the Topcon 3D GPS+ 3D machine control system from Position Partners, Ground Technique would have used the string line, lots of spray paint, lots of pegs, a surveyor on the ground, more people and a lot of interpreting plans. Mr Walsh has found that implementing the Topcon 3D GPS+ 3D machine control system has increased efficiency and site safety.

“Obviously, efficiency being the main one, minimising the people on the ground so it keeps things safe as well. Safety is a big one on these job sites and the lack of human error,” Mr Walsh said.

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CIVIL CONSTRUCTION TRENDS TO WATCH OUT FOR

Uncertainty about future market conditions can deter even the bravest decision-makers from making new investments, often resulting in wasted time and missed opportunities. In the lead-up to his presentation at the 2018 National Construction Equipment Convention (NCEC), we spoke with Adrian Hart, Construction, Maintenance and Mining Associate Director at BIS Oxford Economics, about the outlook for the civil construction and mining industries and the specific factors that companies should pay attention to.

Adrian Hart is a Senior Economist with more than 15 years’ experience undertaking and overseeing research into Australian economic conditions.

During his role as Associate Director at BIS Oxford Economics, Mr Hart has scrutinised the infrastructure, building, maintenance and mining sectors to produce forecasts that industry leaders look to when planning investments.

In discussing challenges to prepare for, Mr Hart cited unpredictable market fluctuations driven by explosive growth in multiple sectors as an area of key concern.

“The biggest challenge is the high level of volatility we’re seeing in the market overall,” Mr Hart said.

“We’ve got very strong growth coming through in some parts of the civil construction industry, such as in roads and in rail. But we’ve also got a very strong increase in activity around the NBN and telecommunications, as well as electricity, particularly renewable energy generation – that has been simply booming.

“Going forward from here, I think the challenge will be to try and provide a more sustainable, smoother pipeline of work into the future. But I suspect we’re going to see a lot more cycles before this all plays out.”

One of the largest opportunities, meanwhile, lies in the recovery of the mining sector.

“Commodity prices are still underwriting significant mining activity, and there’s a strong case for reinvesting in mines. So we’re seeing a strong increase in mining-related civil construction over the next few years, particularly around iron ore in gold, in copper, in base metals, lithium.

“We’re also seeing a recovery in coal-related construction works as well in New South Wales and Queensland.”

GROWING PAINS

Besides mining, Mr Hart highlighted rail as the sector to watch — but it still remains to be seen whether the industry can effectively execute on the huge number of projects.

“There’s a large pipeline of rail projects moving ahead over the next decade. We don’t expect to see rail construction activity peak until the early 2020s. But that’s subject to the risk of whether we have the capacity and capability to deliver all this rail work in such a short space of time.”

In terms of equipment supply and demand projections, Mr Hart advised that construction companies should prepare for increased equipment demand, and the higher prices that come with it.

“Our evidence suggests that a lot of rebalancing took place after the mining bust, and we saw a lot of equipment move from west to east in Australia, as well as move offshore. But now our discussions indicate that we’re having to increase our equipment supply to meet growing demand, and it’s going to be a challenge to meet that.

“With that, there’s going to be a challenge in certain markets where we may not have the equipment that we need, when we need it. So we’ll be paying probably a bit more for it.”

DECODING MARKET INDICATORS

Digging deeper into skilled labour availability, an aging population will carry the risk of workers staying in roles longer, and therefore becoming harder to replace when they eventually leave.

“The population aging story is one that will continue to impact on the industry over the next 10 years, and we’re going to need people not just to meet growing demand, but also to replace those that have had many years of experience leave the industry,” Mr Hart said.

“So that will be a challenge. I believe we’ll get through it, but it may mean risks to quality and often putting people into positions that might have been held by people with many, many more years of experience.”

According to Mr Hart, a less intuitive but nonetheless important measure to keep track of is the Australian dollar. Minor fluctuations in the dollar and interest rates can compound significantly over time and should be carefully

factored in when planning investments — especially for equipment suppliers.

“While we’re saying the dollar will probably ease a little bit, the Australian dollar can also be highly volatile...it’s definitely something that the civil construction industry, and particularly equipment suppliers, should keep an eye on.

“That means working out how they’re structuring their finance, and how they’re purchasing equipment or other construction inputs from overseas, so that they’re not caught out by probably a weaker dollar over the next one to two years.”

“I’m a great believer that industry, given enough forewarning and planning and thinking, can meet all the challenges that we throw at it. Often it just requires a more collaborative approach.

COLLABORATE AND CONQUER

Failing to take heed of industry trends and economic indicators can lead to avoidable mistakes in construction planning. Some of the most common mistakes ultimately come down to communication issues and unrealistic demands put on equipment suppliers.

“I think the biggest mistakes we’ve been making is just assuming that governments can get whatever they want, whenever they want it. It’s a real challenge to supply the market at the moment,” Mr Hart said.

“What we’re starting to see is more engagement of governments with the construction industry, so that they plan out their pipeline of projects better, but also that they procure them better. So it’s a more collaborative approach where risk is allocated effectively.”

Mr Hart emphasised that collaboration is a two-way street — equipment suppliers have an equal responsibility to engage with government and share potential issues that could create deployment challenges.

Fortunately, all sides are beginning to realise the substantial benefit of such dialogue.

“You probably won’t find a better time where governments are actually quite receptive at the moment to hearing about challenges from industry, and how best to overcome it.”

Adrian Hart will be discussing these issues and more in his presentation at the National Construction Equipment Convention (NCEC). This must-see industry event will run from 15-17 November in Sydney, featuring an expert speaker lineup and leading companies showcasing new equipment. For more information, visit www.ncecaustralia.com.au/ncec.

THE AUSSIE INVENTION TRANSFORMING WORKSITE SAFETY

An Australian business has revolutionised the way that machinery owners and operators manage the process of ensuring equipment is safe to use.

Managing the potential risks associated with using plant and equipment is extremely important because the wellbeing of every operator, workmate and visitor on a worksite depends on it. It also ensures business continuity which is important for owners, shareholders and suppliers.

What started as a SQL database with an access frontend used to identify faults and compile risk assessments on plant and equipment being auctioned in Wagga Wagga, NSW, has now grown to become the world’s largest plant and equipment safety platform.

This cloud-based platform was a world first when launched in 2004 and has evolved to become the leading product of its type, now holding detailed safety and compliance data for more than 105,000 makes and models of plant and equipment.

MASSIVE UPTAKE IN CONSTRUCTION

Plant Assessor is used by over 2000 businesses including machinery owners, hire companies, importers, distributors, dealers and auctioneers.

The construction industry has recently been increasing its adoption of technology at an exponential rate. It is also one of the largest users of machinery, with a large proportion of this machinery hired or provided by subcontractors and other third parties. When it comes to major projects, the construction industry is also home to some of the most intense and demanding safety systems of any industry.

Plant Assessor delivers transparency around machine hours and condition, safety information, service status, pre-start history and more. It also allows for easy sharing of this information with others, which considerably reduces compliance costs whilst improving the quality of the information available.

As a result, Plant Assessor has seen a massive uptake by contractors across all tiers of the sector including larger subcontractors and sole traders. Major principal contractors using Plant Assessor include CPB, LendLease, John Holland, BMD, Downer Group, BGC, Watpac and Fulton Hogan.

WHY IT’S SO WIDELY USED

Plant Assessor has proven to be extremely popular because it has set the benchmark for managing plant and machinery safety, while making it simple and easy to manage. The machinery database is enormous, the software features are useful, and the user interface is clean and simple so people find it extremely easy to use.

Plant Assessor is constantly updated with new machines, specifications, legislative and other requirements, so you are always up to date.

MAKING CONTRACTOR MANAGEMENT EASIER

Over the past few years, Plant Assessor has been heavily focused on making it easier for organisations to manage contractors, whilst also saving contractors time and money on compliance and fleet management.

This is done by sharing plant and other records between contractors and principals using the sophisticated but easy to use site and subcontractor management functions.

Combine this with the recent introduction of a low-cost pay-asyou-go style membership, and it is now practical and cost-effective for contractors of any size to invite their subcontractors to set up a Plant Assessor membership, and add and share their machines and information.

The contractor benefits in a variety of ways, including free digital pre-starts for all their machines and operators, built-in maintenance scheduling and record keeping, and a reduction in admin time in providing compliance information to any of their clients.

Pay as you go means that contractors can pay by machine for the features that are valuable to them — there are no large, long-term subscription commitments required.

The principal contractor benefits as the collection and review of compliance and other information is simpler and easier, and the principal contractor is quickly and simply able to make sure that every contractor has immediate and continuous access to the critical policy, procedure and site information that contractors are required to understand and comply with.

If you’d like to know more about how Plant Assessor can help you manage machinery safety in your business and make your life easier, call 1300 728 852 or visit assessor.com.au.

PROTECTING AGAINST BRIDGE CORROSION

The $620 million Darlington Upgrade Project in Adelaide went through a rigorous design and construction process to ensure it was protected against corrosion and degradation. Here, the Australasian Corrosion Association outlines some of the corrosion mitigation work that was undertaken for this project.

The Darlington Upgrade Project is another important stage in the delivery of Adelaide's North-South Corridor and will deliver an upgrade of approximately 3.3km of the existing Main South Road, including:

♦ A non-stop motorway between the Southern Expressway and Tonsley Boulevard

♦ A lowered, non-stop motorway passing underneath Flinders Drive, Sturt Road, Sutton Road/Mimosa Terrace and Tonsley Boulevard

♦ Grade separation of the Main South Road/Ayliffes Road/Shepherds Hill Road intersection

♦ Main South Road (at grade) surface roads along both sides of the lowered motorway to provide connections to Flinders Drive, Sturt Road and most local roads

♦ Full free flow interchange at the Southern Expressway/Main South Road with dedicated ramps providing direct access to the new motorway and Main South Road

The $620 million project is jointly funded by Australian and State Governments ($496 million federally funded and $124 million state funded) and is due to be completed in 2019. This landmark Australian owned and built project is focusing on using Australian approved and manufactured components.

MINIMISING THE IMPACT OF CORROSION ON BRIDGES

Roads and bridges are threatened by corrosion and degradation as they are continuously exposed to climatic elements and vibration from vehicle movements. The cost of corrosion mitigation to national economies around the world is estimated to be billions of dollars every year. The impact can be both economic through the cost of repairs and maintenance, as well as a physical threat to workers, the public and even other nearby structures.

One of the two main ways to protect an asset from corrosion is to physically isolate a structure from the environment by applying a protective coating. Protection of the various structural elements was integral to the design of the Darlington Upgrade Project.

Three of the eight bridges constructed for the project consisted of a steel box girder design with reinforced concrete decks. Half of the girder sections for these three structures were constructed by Haywards Engineering in Tasmania, with McElligott’s then responsible for applying a protective corrosion resistant coating to the girders.

The other half of the girders were constructed and coated by Bowhill Engineering in South Australia. The 22 bridge girder sections coated by McElligotts weighed more than 1300 tonnes in total.

WEATHER AND MATERIAL CHALLENGES

According to Ivan Berry, General Manager at McElligotts, each girder was manufactured and delivered to the company's workshop.

“Our facility is a continuous covered line where structures to be coated are profiled, primed and coated,” Mr Berry said.

Each girder section was abrasive blasted to Class Sa2½. Profiling a substrate produces an even textured surface that increases the adhesion of a coating. Once profiled, the girders moved down the line where they were primed and then had two layers of top coat applied.

Jeremy Hawkes, Managing Director of Bowhill Engineering, concurred that moving the 48m by four metre-high units of open top box girder within their facility was a challenge. Abrasive blasting and painting in the same facility produced its own difficulties.

“For that size structure, we used a lot of abrasive garnet to profile the steel. The used garnet had to be collected and cleaned for reuse,” Mr Hawkes said.

“We began using shovels and brooms to collect the material but a short while into the project we managed to acquire a surplus three stage vacuum system that automatically separates the material and prepares it for reuse.”

Mr Hawkes said that the weather was also a challenge.

“There was often only a small window of opportunity when the temperature was the correct level above the dew point allowing us to work within the manufacturer's specifications.”

Bowhill upgraded its workshops to install ducted gas fired heating which allowed them to get the girder sections to an overall even surface temperature.

“It was important to heat the girder sections so that the coating materials adhered to the substrate and cured effectively, but the size made it difficult to evenly heat the girders,” Mr Hawkes said.

The duration of the project meant that some of the coating work took place during the Tasmanian winter, requiring McElligotts to adjust its work schedule.

“To meet overall deadlines, abrasive profiling was conducted overnight and painting took place during the day in order to reduce the amount of extra heating required,” Mr Berry said.

The coating system was a Zinc Rich Epoxy, followed by an Aluminium Pigmented Epoxy and the final coat was Hardtop AS, manufactured by Jotun. The total surface area coated by each coating company was approximately six and a half thousand square metres of exterior surface and nine thousand square metres of internal surfaces.

Rob Butcher, State Manager –Protective Coatings (SA and Victoria) at Jotun, said the company's challenge was to specify a material that could be used by two separate companies located in quite different climatic environments.

“One company is 200km inland in South Australia where it can get very hot and dry, whereas the other is on the northern coast of Tasmania where there can be days when the temperature is close to zero. The specification of the coating material had to accommodate its application in both places,” Mr Butcher said.

It was essential that the finished coatings from both applicators matched as much as practical.

“We were able to use the Australian Standard 2312.1. This standard has been tried and tested in our industry for many years and is well accepted,” Mr Butcher said.

CORROSION MANAGEMENT BEST PRACTICE

The Australasian Corrosion Association has been a part of the research into the performance of coatings in Australia for many decades. It was involved in the report that led to removal of lead paints from Australia in the 1990s and continued this by contributing to international standards relating to coatings safety.

“When applying the coating, the big sections made it challenging to maintain a 'wet edge'. We had to continually adjust the hardeners and thinners in order to extend the drying time of each coating layer,” Mr Berry said.

A 'wet edge' refers to the process of avoiding obvious join lines between sections of coating. They also applied a 'stripe coat' over welds and other joints.

Mr Berry said that the massive girders—the heaviest weighed 86 tonnes—were the largest components that his company has been involved with. Scissor lift platforms were required to allow the applicators to safely reach the highest areas on the outside and scaffolding for those on the inside.

“These girder sections were huge and comprised 20 individual sections each. The Ayliffes Road Bridge will be a total length of 390m long, which is a pretty decent bridge in anyone's terms— especially when you have to move it,” Mr Hawkes said.

The three steel box girder structures for the project were constructed using an innovative method whereby the structures were built off-site, transported and precisely manoeuvred into place using Self Propelled Modular Transports (SPMTs).

This method of bridge construction is common place throughout Europe and the Americas. However, this was the first time SPMT’s have been used in Australia by the infrastructure sector to install a fully completed structure, which was an amazing achievement.

When a coating is properly applied, inspected and qualified it should easily provide 25 years or more of protection, although many projects today are even specifying 50 and 100-year life expectancy.

New capital investment in some areas may be slowing down, but governments around the country have recently announced plans for large-scale road and rail projects which will provide many opportunities for corrosion control and prevention companies.

The ACA works with industry and academia to research all aspects of corrosion in order to provide an extensive knowledge base that supports best practice in corrosion management, thereby ensuring all impacts of corrosion are responsibly managed, the environment is protected, public safety enhanced and economies improved.

Corrosion & Prevention 2018, the largest corrosion conference and exhibition in the southern hemisphere will take place in Adelaide from 11–14 November. For more information and to register go to conference.corrosion. com.au.

About the Australasian Corrosion Association

The Australasian Corrosion Association Incorporated (ACA) is a not-for-profit, membership association that disseminates information on corrosion and its prevention through the provision of training courses, seminars, conferences, publications and other activities. The vision of the ACA is that corrosion is managed sustainably and cost effectively to ensure the health and safety of the community and protection of the environment. For further information, please visit www.corrosion.com.au or www.membership.corrosion.com.au

WHY ALL PROJECT MANAGERS

SHOULD BE DESIGNING AGAINST CORROSION

Corrosion can have significant economic, structural and performance impacts on critical infrastructure across numerous sectors. Understanding its impact and knowing how to prevent it is an essential part of an organisation’s asset management strategy. A panel discussion at the recent Asset Management for Critical Infrastructure 2018 Conference in Sydney, looked at the importance of design criteria and material selection in preventing corrosion.

One of the highlights from the conference was a dedicated stream on corrosion featuring a panel of Australasian Corrosion Association (ACA) experts. Much of the dialogue from this panel centred around the need to build corrosion protection and management into a project at the design stage.

“We need to get it right at the design stage. So once the design has considered the effects of corrosion, then the asset management plan can implement the directions of what’s in the design,” Jim Hickey, Electrolysis Engineering Officer, Network Test and Measurement at Ausgrid, said.

“We also need to make sure we use

qualified, competent staff to carry out the maintenance. If we try to outsource and contract out the responsibility of the maintenance, then without that control I think it can lead to unsatisfactory outcomes.”

Andrew Jones, Senior Asset Integrity Engineer at CNC Project Management, said that the other key thing was to make sure that you actually got what you had designed.

“I know that in some instances, on projects, the project team will go and try to save money by using some inferior product, which does not deliver the required outcome, causes long-term operations and maintenance issues, and has the potential to cost more money over time.

“So, they’ll think, ‘Oh, I’ve got this cheaper product, it does the same job,’ but it doesn’t at the end of the day. So, you create this massive problem for yourself if you don’t do it right.”

ENSURING QUALITY CONTROL

Brad Dockrill, Director of Vinsi Partners Consulting Engineers, added that sometimes Project Managers will be working on some sort of KPI system, where there are bonuses related to money and the saving of money, which can negatively impact the project in terms of quality.

“Don’t just accept that what’s been put on the specification and drawings is what you’ve been provided with. You really need to understand the materials

you’re playing with, and not just materials, but the quality of the material. Then you’ve at least got a chance to try to manage your asset appropriately within a budget.”

Simon Krismer, Principal Consultant at Krismer Consulting, also agreed that a key step in managing corrosion is quality control, something that he feels is often overlooked during that design/ manufacture stage.

“The problem with corrosion is that if it happens, it doesn’t happen overnight. People see a bit of flaking paint, a little bit of rust and say ‘it’s not important, we’ve got other things to spend the budget on’.

“A spot repair at the time is going to be cheaper than letting it rust, letting that damage develop, letting it stand and then have a bigger issue to deal with down the track,” Mr Krismer said.

SOURCING THE CORRECT MATERIALS FOR THE JOB

Concerns around the quality of materials available and holding suppliers accountable also featured prominently in the discussion.

“If we look at stainless steel, say 316 for example, it should contain at least two per cent molybdenum, which gives you that pitting resistance and extra corrosion resistance. But let’s say you want to save costs by reducing the amount of

molybdenum, because molybdenum is expensive, so you put in the absolute bare minimum. Maybe now you’re not quite getting the corrosion performance that you need,” Mr Krismer said.

“You can also have slight variations where sulphur and so on is a bit higher than it should be, on a real analysis. So there’s definite problems with the quality of materials, and traceability as well.”

Buying from overseas manufacturers can also come with its own set of problems.

“You might order a widget and you get something that has been cast to look exactly like that widget, but then you find out that it hasn’t been heat treated,” Mr Krismer said.

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“It’s important to know what you’re getting and, from a design perspective, being very clear about what you’re ordering.

“So for example, you might need more than the right chemical composition, you might also need specific thermomechanical processing properties, heat treatment conditions or mechanical property criteria. It’s important to get to that granular level of detail, otherwise you don’t have a comeback.”

IMPROVING THE WAY ASSETS ARE MANAGED

Mr Dockrill also touched on the use of ongoing preventative work to help prevent corrosion in older assets.

“I think there’s a short-term and a long-term approach, depending on your budgetary constraints. One short-term option would be using potable water to wash down your exposed steel structure to remove (or at least minimise) the salts.

“Afterwards, you can go and test for salts to establish when the next washing cycle is required, and you’re prolonging the life of the structure as is without

spending a great deal of money. The long-term solution would be looking at protective coatings.”

For some organisations, engaging a corrosion expert to carry out a risk assessment and develop a management plan can offer them access to expertise and untapped resources that they might not have internally. A list of credible corrosion experts can be found through the Australasian Corrosion Association (ACA).

Mr Dockrill commented that while the development of new technologies and materials is essential to ensure continuous improvement in the way assets are managed, there is no ‘silver bullet’ solution.

“I think everyone wants the latest, greatest, iPhone type, new material, thinking it’s going to be the silver bullet solution, and it’s not. It’s not viable to build all our assets out of carbon fibre or graphene, or whatever the latest wonder material is, you need to look at what materials are best suited to your design purpose, the specific environmental conditions and your operational constraints.”

Reducing humidity below critical levels prevents corrosion.

GETTING IT RIGHT AT THE START

Mr Krismer said organisations who are aware of the potential for corrosion and the effect it’ll have on their asset management and maintenance costs understand that the cheapest option isn’t always the best option.

“Sometimes spending a few extra dollars on the right paint specification, the right preparation, quality control, etc will prevent so many issues down the track, and then you actually know that your asset is going to be pretty much trouble free for a known period of time. Then you need appropriate maintenance strategies and inspection plans, and to be able to tie it into the overarching asset management plan.

“Corrosion is one of those things which just flies under the radar, and no one really gives it due consideration, except in exceedingly high-risk industries like pipelines where you make front page news when it does go wrong. Corrosion does permeate all aspects though, and I don’t really know any infrastructure which is not susceptible to corrosion in one way or another.”

BUILDING DISASTER RESILIENCE INTO OUR CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE

NSW residents and businesses are set to benefit from a new strategy that will help keep the lights on, water running and transport moving, even when dealing with disasters.

The NSW Government has released the inaugural NSW Critical Infrastructure Resilience Strategy (CIRS) which seeks to improve the resilience of the essential services that our communities rely so heavily on.

Critical infrastructure is increasingly recognised for its interconnectedness with the social wellbeing, economic prosperity and environmental values of the people of NSW. This strategy is the result of a collaborative partnership between government, the NSW community, and infrastructure owners and operators.

Nationally, Australia will spend over $1 trillion on infrastructure before 2050. The Australian Business Roundtable has shown us that on average natural disasters cost NSW $3.6 billion per year ($13.2 billion nationally), and that cost is likely to increase to $10.6 billion per year by 2050 ($39.3 billion nationally).

These financial costs are just one reason the CIRS is encouraging leaders in business and government to support the NSW community by improving critical infrastructure resilience across the state.

Almost all major infrastructure is a multi-decade investment and most infrastructure will be exposed to many hazards during its life.

NSW Minister for Police and Emergency Services, Hon Troy Grant MP, said risks to our critical infrastructure come from natural disasters such as bushfires, storms and floods, but increasingly also from threats of cyberattack and terrorism.

“These threats must be managed through an all-hazard, collaborative approach to ensure the safety, security and resilience of our community,” Mr Grant said.

Embedding resilience in NSW infrastructure creates a “double dividend” of avoided costs from disasters, but also improvements to economic growth and social well-being that arise even in the absence of a disaster.

Additionally, resilience improvements can improve our understanding around the interconnectedness of complex infrastructure systems, reducing the likelihood of cascading failures in multiple essential services.

CREATING A CLEAR PLAN

The Critical Infrastructure Resilience Strategy aims to enhance resilience across three key areas:

1. Improved Infrastructure Resilience: focuses on the resilience planned for, designed and built in to assets, networks and systems

2. Improved Organisational Resilience: focused on the resilience of the organisations, personnel and processes supporting the infrastructure to supply the service

3. Improved Community Resilience: focused on the role the community plays not only in building and maintaining its own resilience, but in assisting infrastructure providers to maintain their services

To achieve these outcomes, priority is given to:

♦ Partnering for shared responsibility around critical infrastructure resilience. This is best achieved when all infrastructure providers partner together and with all levels of government

♦ Preparing for all hazards, not just the ones we can foresee. All threats, all hazards, acute shocks and long-term stresses need to be considered and exercised. An all-hazards approach to building resilience is needed so that we are ready for the expected threats and hazards, but also the ones that are less easy to predict

♦ Providing critical infrastructure services with minimal disruption. Embedding resilience in the planning and design of services pays back during operation and maintenance of services

RESOURCES FOR USERS

The NSW Government and the NSW Office of Emergency Management are looking to encourage and support tangible improvements in infrastructure resilience. A series of user resources to support the implementation of the strategy is under development. These practical guides will contain tools, resources, links to best practice and case studies to assist infrastructure providers to build infrastructure, organisational and community resilience.

User resources will be split into sector specific information and will not only reflect sectors represented on the federal Trusted Information Sharing Network (TISN) — energy, banking and finance, communications, food and grocery, transport, water and health — but also include education and local government.

A number of shared resources will address the specific topics of infrastructure resilience, organisational resilience, community resilience, infrastructure planning, criticality, and infrastructure design, operations and maintenance and cyber security.

The development of the NSW CIRS is a proactive step by the NSW Government to support communities to prepare for, respond to and recover from disasters.

The NSW Office of Emergency Management is looking for more case studies to include in the user resources. If you believe your organisation already demonstrates or embraces resilience in planning, design or operations of your assets and would like to be shown as a leader in the field, please get in contact with Darren.boulet@ justice.nsw.gov.au.

“The work we all do before an emergency or disaster helps save lives, protects property and prepares communities for those challenging times during and immediately after a disaster,”

Mr Grant said.

The NSW CIRS will help move the state closer to a safer, more secure and more disaster resilient NSW.

THE BIGGEST ISSUES IN ASSET MANAGEMENT IN 2018

The second Asset Management for Critical Infrastructure Conference, created by Monkey Media, the publishers of Infrastructure Magazine, ran in September in Sydney and brought together leaders in the utility and infrastructure sectors to discuss current challenges and opportunities in asset management.

At the beginning of the conference’s second day, MC Steve Doran, Director of Infrastream, and Chair of the Sydney Chapter of the Asset Management Council, asked attendees to add to a word map that showed the key themes from the event discussions. Words like collaboration, value, risk, data, culture and capability stood out as the most important, and in a way encapsulate the main ideas from the event.

This was the second year of the Asset Management for Critical Infrastructure Conference and in only 12 months, the event had doubled in size, in both speakers and attendees, and added an exhibition which showcased some of the latest technology in the sector.

Attendees came from water and power utilities, consultancies, government agencies, rail and other asset owners to hear discussions about skills of the future, ISO 55000, value driven maintenance, reducing risk, strategic asset management plans, stakeholder engagement and more.

This year’s event also saw the addition of an exhibition, featuring companies in the space with new technologies and services that make asset management operations easier and more efficient.

The positive feedback from attendees emphasised the high-quality speakers and topics which gave delegates tools they could take back to their organisation and implement in their own asset management strategies.

DeployPartners was this year’s Event Partner, supporting the conference and exhibition to deliver essential information to delegates. DeployPartners delivers highquality service assurance solutions expertise, specialising in sales, design, delivery, training and support of IBM Cloud

and smarter infrastructure service assurance products and solutions. It is the network and service management solutions provider of choice for many of Australia’s utilities, telcos, banks and government departments.

Greg Southam, Technical Account Manager at DeployPartners, talked to delegates about how utilities can build efficiencies and implement some of the sector’s disruptive technologies. They also held a special Leaders Lunch, bringing together key industry players to discuss and debate pressing issues in a more informal setting.

Damien Moriarty – Industry Solutions Consultant from ABB Enterprise Software, this year’s Major Sponsor, also delivered a presentation, teaching delegates how they can improve their asset maintenance efficiency through timely and targeted activities.

THE BIGGEST NAMES IN ASSET MANAGEMENT

Day one keynote Rami Affan, Executive Director, Infrastructure Australia, opened the conference with a look into the NSW State Infrastructure strategy and how it’s strengthening asset management and utilisation in the state. Rami spoke about the current challenges in Australia’s asset management capability and the path to improving practices across Australia.

Day two keynote Kerry Brown, Professor of Employment and Industry at Edith Cowan University, is a well-known voice in the asset management space and was on hand to discuss how to

develop strategic asset management plans and how to overcome current industry challenges to do this.

A valuable presentation was delivered by Mina Gerguis, Manager, Asset Portfolio, Victorian Health and Human Services Building Authority, who looked at the cultural side to asset management and the skills asset managers need to thrive in a rapidly evolving industry.

Mina talked about some of the most valued skills needed including: problem solving, critical thinking, communication and engagement, and the ability to draw on math, science and technology knowledge, and drew a roadmap for how organisations can create a high-quality team.

Kirsty Bauer, Case Manager, Infrastructure Sustainability Council of Australia, provided delegates with information into how to incorporate sustainability into asset management systems to benefit the quadruple bottom line, and detailed case studies across treatment plants and road infrastructure to show how they increased their sustainability.

With the ISO 55000 standard continuing to dominate asset management discussion across all types of critical infrastructure, many organisations are at different points in the ISO 55000 journey. Paul Higham, Head of Service Planning

and Asset Strategy at Sydney Water, gave a great overview of Sydney Water’s journey so far and some of the key learnings and pitfalls that other organisations can watch out for. It was an interactive and practical discussion featuring tips for others getting started that provided significant benefits to delegates.

Another highly interactive presentation was delivered by Dr Lutfiye Manli, Senior Asset Management Strategy Advisor, Powerlink Queensland, that took a look at how the electricity industry is dealing with current changes and how Value Driven Maintenance (VDM) has supported Powerlink in its asset management operations. Lutfiye included a computer game that got delegates involved and demonstrated the concepts she was exploring.

KPMG Partner Engineering and Asset Management, Andrew O’Connor, took an in-depth look into risk, and the balance between performance, cost and risk across all critical infrastructure assets. A highly informative presentation, Andrew had delegates scribbling down notes and ideas to take back to their own asset management teams to reduce risk.

MC Steve Doran wrapped up day one of the conference with a presentation on influencing internal stakeholders for better asset management outcomes. This is an important topic that is not discussed as much as it should be as the individual/ intangible influence space is powerful and a gap for most asset management practitioners.

INDUSTRY PANELS AND DEDICATED KNOWLEDGE

The conference also offered dedicated streams on day two covering rail asset management, corrosion mitigation, renewable energy assets and trenchless technologies. This gave delegates a deeper look into their field, as well as a chance for people from different industries to learn how other sectors are approaching their asset management.

The rail panel was sponsored by Lycopodium Infrastructure and chaired by Helen Carroll, Manager Asset Management, Public Works Advisory, Department of Finance, Services and Innovation.

Panellists included Andrew Meier, Executive Director/CEO,

Australian Centre for Rail Innovation, Lucio Favotto, Director Infrastructure Management, Transport for NSW; Bonnie Ryan, Senior Manager at GS1 Australia; and Dale Smith, Operations Manager East at Lycopodium Infrastructure.

With rail infrastructure projects ramping up significantly over the next few years, the panel talked about some of the biggest challenges in ensuring the rail network, both freight and passenger, operates at its highest standard. Some of the main issues were capacity, cyber security, collaboration and interoperability in rail, and the biggest — technology and data use in networks such as for real-time monitoring.

The corrosion panel, chaired by Steve Doran, featured Jim Hickey, Electrolysis Engineering Officer, Network Test and Measurement, Ausgrid; Andrew Jones, Senior Asset Integrity Engineer, CNC Project Management; Simon Krismer, Principal Consultant, Krismer Consulting; and Brad Dockrill, Partner/ Director, Vinsi.

Much of the dialogue from this panel centred around the need to build corrosion protection and management into a project at the design stage. Panellists also touched on the use of ongoing preventative work to help prevent corrosion in older assets, sourcing the correct materials for the job and how to ensure quality control.

One of the most popular streams was ‘The unique challenges of managing renewables energy assets’ and featured Gerard Reiter, Executive Manager, Network Planning & Operations, TransGrid; Darren Davis, General Manager Asset Management & Engineering, Snowy Hydro Limited; and Iain Pople, Head of Asset Management, Edify Energy.

The panel, sponsored by ABB Australia and chaired by Andrew O’Connor, attracted delegates not only from the energy sector, but from across different disciplines to learn how the energy industry is dealing with current challenges and how that’s impacting asset management.

While the trenchless stream gathered representatives from the biggest water utilities across Australia to explore what is occurring in the trenchless space and what attendees need to know about trenchless to benefit their operations.

Mark Simister, Head of Delivery Management, Sydney Water joined Scott Stevens, Principal Civil Engineer, Operations & Service Delivery, Queensland Urban Utilities; Martin Marerwa, Senior Asset Investment Planner, Asset Investment Planning Metro, Water Corporation; and Louis de Groot, Project Manager, Sustainable Infrastructure Solutions, Unitywater for this interesting discussion.

NETWORKING WITH KEY UTILITY AND INFRASTRUCTURE PLAYERS

One of the main differences of Asset Management for Critical Infrastructure compared to other industry events, was the emphasis placed on facilitating networking as the atmosphere and structure of the event guaranteed introductions to other relevant asset management professionals.

“The broad range of topics presented extremely well by knowledgeable people; the speed networking was a great idea

Both days of the conference featured a speed networking session, a fun activity that gets delegates mingling and facilitates real connections. These relationships were continually fostered through networking breaks and drinks, and ensured everyone that attended made some new contacts that could help them in their asset management journeys moving forward.

Asset Management for Critical Infrastructure will return in 2019. Register for updates at assetmanagementevent.com.au.

THE ARGUMENT FOR FULLY INTEGRATED CONNECTED MULTIMODAL TRANSPORT

"By using the latest technology such as smart sensors to better understand the trafc on our roads, we are able to work towards creating a safer and more sustainable environment for all road users.

Driverless vehicles seem like they could belong in a distant world, but in reality, there is no doubt that we are moving towards a future where vehicles will be self-driving.

We know that our roads are congested and dangerous, and many would argue that the burgeoning industry around autonomous vehicles is the way forward. By taking out human error and recklessness, these vehicles have the potential to make our roads safer than they have been since automobiles first appeared in the early 20th century.

However, autonomous vehicles in and of themselves are not the only answer. To truly mitigate the risks of driverless cars and to seize the opportunities offered by these new technologies, we need to implement systems where all elements of the environment are communicating and reacting to one another.

This is what the University of Melbourne Transport Technologies program aims to do. We bring together the whole network, creating an ecosystem that will enable cities to deliver a smarter, safer, more efficient and more sustainable transport future.

Our key demonstration of this aim is Australian Integrated Multimodal EcoSystem (AIMES), which I founded in 2016 to bring together public and private sector domestic and international partners.

A CONNECTED ENVIRONMENT

through AIMES, is working to address this challenge with a world-first solution. By integrating sensors into the CBDadjacent AIMES ecosystem environment and into autonomous vehicles themselves, we are monitoring in real time the flow of vehicles, cyclists, pedestrians and public transport through the grid.

This world-first sees the largest ever inner-city grid of streets mapped with smart sensors. We have recently completed phase one of testing and will be using results to implement further changes to the ecosystem, including enhancing the technology and expanding the grid.

Using sensors across all elements of the built environment, we can connect everything from public transport, to cars, bikes, traffic lights, intersections, pedestrian movement and even footpaths. This allows us to see all road users, not just those in vehicles. We are no longer privileging cars alone, but looking at how all transport system users interact with one another.

Connected technology trial in Carlton with the AIMES automated bus. Image credit: University of Melbourne.

The benefits extend beyond safety, to allow congestion minimisation and more sustainable practices. By better integrating and connecting our road systems, traffic can be diverted down different routes, allowing for more efficient use of our current road infrastructure. This integrated, connected and multimodal approach is particularly important as we compete with burgeoning population growth and increased pressure on city mobility. An integrated system doesn’t have to solely monitor road users. It can also incorporate environmental conditions, including air quality information. Smart sensors will be able to feed information to drivers to alert them when conditions change. This could mean alerting a car to slow down during wet or windy weather. Given Melbourne’s infamously unpredictable weather, this is another important factor to consider when looking for ways to create a safer driving environment.

CONNECTED INTERSECTION TRIAL

Through distributed cooperation, we have the ability to monitor traffic congestion, weather conditions and hazards in real time, and to adjust accordingly. This has the potential to save time by diverting traffic away from congested spots and also to save lives. Such monitoring not only provides a picture of what is happening, but when used in conjunction with autonomous vehicles, can allow for machine intervention. What also makes this exciting, is that this type of technology has the ability to evolve. It is ‘intelligent connectivity’ that has great potential to adapt as our cities grow and our infrastructure changes.

So far, we have seen enormous advancements in autonomous vehicles. But these work well in controlled test environments, and are less able to navigate the constantly changing and variable conditions of real-world traffic. This makes the argument for integrated transport all the more compelling.

The University of Melbourne, along with its 50 partners

We recently trialled four different scenarios at our ecosystem in Carlton, Melbourne. Aiming to improve the response times between road sensors and a connected autonomous vehicle (CAV), our real-world test showed the potential that comes with leveraging edge computing infrastructure along with CAV capabilities.

The tests involved real-life use cases including speed management, intersection collision avoidance and vulnerable road user protection. Without relying on human intervention, sensors in the ecosystem were able to prevent potential accidents by issuing early warnings. Delivering this information at speed is vital, with a two-second delay to a vehicle moving at 50km/h (urban speed limit) equating to an extra 48m of travel.

The trial was conducted in association with key AIMES partners including Cisco, VicRoads, Cohda Wireless, WSP and the Victorian Government.

It was the first time globally an Internet of Things (IoT) edge and fog computing solution ran on a roadside intersection, using analytics technology from Cohda Wireless over which Cisco Kinetic IoT Data Fabric had been built.

The test environment in innersuburban Drummond St, Carlton, is known for its popularity with pedestrian and cyclists. It offers a complex urban environment and also the ideal ecosystem for a living laboratory, just a five-minute walk from the University of Melbourne’s Parkville campus.

THE AIMES BUS

In March 2018, we launched a partnership with EasyMile and now have our first autonomous bus on campus. This mini bus is ideal for the low-speed testbed environment and is fitted with open-platform technology, meaning that it can be updated as software progresses.

As researchers, the most important thing is investigating the transport ecosystem and using the insights to understand how every passenger, pedestrian or cyclist moves through a city. Our work is about efficiency, safety and sustainability, not about privileging one form of user over another.

As everyday objects are becoming increasingly sophisticated, and with the IoT, objects that can perceive and respond to their surroundings will become the norm. Not only will AIMES help achieve communication and eventually cooperation between road users, it will help us as researchers to learn, reshape and ultimately influence the lives of every day road users.

IOT SENSOR NETWORKS

CREATING SMART

A rapidly growing population has led a council in Melbourne’s west to use new real-time data and smart devices to respond to challenges on services and infrastructure. Wyndham City Council has taken the next step in its commitment to being a ‘smart city’, launching a new Internet of Things (IoT) sensor network.

The network, which involves the installation of sensors across council buildings, enables the council to access real-time data across a range of areas, leading to the transformation of processes, improved efficiency and lowered costs.

The Council has launched a partnership with Thinxtra — the Australian network operator for Sigfox — to implement the city-wide network.

Wyndham City Council’s Smart City Portfolio Holder, Councillor Aaron An, said the launch of the network would work as the backbone of the city’s future, making Wyndham a better place to live, work and visit.

“This network better positions Council in a number of areas. Initially, we will be using the technology to roll out smart devices for asset tracking, environmental monitoring and water management,” Cr An said.

“We’ll be able to access data in real time, allowing us to better understand the municipality and to more easily make decisions backed up by data.”

IOT

AND MIXED REALITY

Cr An said looking to the future, the network has scope to provide information to respond to other issues across the municipality.

“The data can be used to address parking issues such as assessing usage and locating available parking spots.

“It also has the capacity to optimise our waste collection routes, with connected bins, saving time, energy and money, by allowing Council to gain an understanding of the level of waste in bins across Wyndham.

“Advances in technology and data analysis provide us with the tools to better understand the functioning of our city, and to plan and deliver services more effectively.

“The challenge is more than just how we improve our services, though. Technology development impacts the economy, the design of the built environment and even the relationship between residents and council.”

The IoT network is not Wyndham City’s first foray into the smart city space, last year it received international acclaim for its CityLens mixed reality application.

The project was a first for any government in Australia, using Microsoft HoloLens to allow users to view holographic plans of future developments.

CityLens, the mixed reality technology.

NETWORKS

SMART CITIES

Cr An said the technology allowed users to walk through plans and even view them in their future locations, helping to paint a much more realistic impression than traditional artist impressions.

“By using mixed reality and giving people a view of what buildings will look like in real settings, we can drive investment into our municipality and help residents better understand development plans,” Cr An said.

“CityLens has proven to be a game changer, picking up the 2017 National Award for Excellence in Local Government. Wyndham City also

presented this project last year at the 2017 Smart City Expo World Congress in Barcelona where it was very well received.”

The team at Wyndham City is now moving forward to the next stage of CityLens.

“CityLens will be further developed, allowing it to be used to view live data such as pedestrian and vehicle traffic, air quality, water usage and other sensor-derived information. It will also be possible to use with other headsets like the HTC Vive, making it a truly revolutionary tool in local government,” Cr An said.

FUTURE CITY STRATEGY

The Council is taking its community on the journey with them into the smart city space, hosting a number of events in recent months that included members of the community. In October, the Smarter Wyndham Community Challenge saw students and residents with an interest in science, technology, engineering and maths come together and form teams to solve challenges faced in the community by employing emerging smart technologies as solutions.

The Council is also developing its Future City Strategy to further harness the opportunities provided by digital technology, data and analytics. Cr An described the city-centric approach to create this key strategic work.

“This strategy will ensure technology, data and partnerships innovatively address our growth and infrastructure challenges,” Cr An said.

“As more city objects are cognified, the possibility of reduced traffic congestion, improved energy management and transformed organisational processes become a reality.

“But at the centre of this strategy is the citizen. Who they are, what do they want and what type of environment do they exist in.”

For more information on Wyndham City and its Smart City projects, visit, www.wyndham.vic.gov.au/services/ smart-wyndham

FEATURES SCHEDULE

March

Bridges Signalling, tracking and control systems

Rail Condition monitoring and maintenance

Urban transport corridors

Spatial & GIS

Public private partnerships

and design

Sustainability

Mobility Earthmoving outlook

Noise and vibration Investment and financing

Asset inspection and drones/UAVS

EXPECT 2 DAYS OF INDUSTRY ENGAGEMENT AND

ARE YOU AN ARA MEMBER?

ARA Members receive a 20% discount on conference attendance, sponsorship and exhibition bookings.

YOUNG RAIL PROFESSIONALS – AUSRAIL SHINES A SPOTLIGHT ON TOMORROW’S LEADERS

• Next Generation Scholarship (Available to sponsor)

• Young Rail Professionals Pitching Competition – Finalists Announced! (Available to sponsor)

• NEW FOR 2018 – Mentor rate discount available for those 30 years and under (conditions apply)

Visit www.ausrail.com