NEW ZEALAND’S CIVIL CONTRACTING INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
NEW BOBCAT UNDERPINS SMITH CRANE PROJECTS
INSIDE: Bridge re-piling: a classic lesson from Christchurch Mother and daughter: profiling women in industry Building a capital runway: the making of Wellington’s Airport Smart motorways: reducing congestion with new technology
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CONTENTS CONTRACTOR
26
INSIDE: Regulars
Highlights / Features
2 Editorial
14
4 Upfront
Harsh lesson with non payment
A CCNZ member has endured an 18 month struggle chasing a million dollar debt.
16 On the Cover 52 Technology
26
The piles on Christchurch’s Ferrymead Bridge would never survive a decent earthquake, the experts said – and then an earthquake arrived and proved them right.
56 Classic Machines 60 Motoring 62 Innovations & Contractors’ Diary 64 Civil Contractors NZ Comment
36
Replacing the killer bridge State Highway 3 Normanby realignment.
64 Advertisers’ Index
Profiles
A classic lesson in bridge repiling
40
Building a capital airport Richard Campbell looks at how Wellington demolished a whole suburb to build its new airport in 1953.
18 Gordon Stone Titan Group.
Brian Perry Civil.
Putting the smarts into an urban motorway
32 Bev and Erin Bowling
NZTA is building the country’s first ‘smart’ motorway in Wellington.
22 Malcolm McWhannell
ON THE COVER
46
There’s a new Bobcat in town and for Christchurch-based Smith Crane & Construction its doubly pleasing as it’s the first and only one of its type in the country. See page 16
Bowling Infrastructure Group.
Comment 53 Malcolm Abernethy Civil Contractors NZ
50
Pacific’s first $80 million flyover Hawkins Group has built PNG’s first four lane overpass.
54 Kensington Swan Helen Brown and Sam McCutcheon
55 Helmut Modlik Connexis
8
32
40 JULY 2015 1
CONTRACTOR EDITORIAL
PUBLISHER Contrafed Publishing Co Ltd Suite 2.1, 93 Dominion Road, Mt Eden, Auckland PO Box 112357, Penrose, Auckland 1642 Phone: +64 9 636 5715 Fax: +64 9 636 5716 www.contrafed.co.nz
“Insert sensationalist headline here” When you’re in the daily news business there are certain economic realities that must be met head-on. The competition is fierce, and advertising revenue which has traditionally paid for the whole merry-go-round, has declined to the point that checking facts – a mainstay of “old” media – sometimes becomes a luxury the shareholders are prepared to forego. So sensationalist headlines help attract eyeballs, which collectively attract advertisers, which keeps those shareholders happy (or at least less unhappy than they may otherwise be). The news is a commodity just like any other, but its shelf-life can now be measured in hours. Some mainstream media organisations have even dropped any pretence at proof-reading, with a “get it right first time” directive to reporters. As if they don’t try… There can be a cost to this, however. A recent example in the quarrying world illustrates the point, with the tragic death of a Canterbury quarry owner last month. After Pike River, the government targeted safety in mining as a key priority. Nobody could disagree with the intent. However, the Aggregate & Quarry Association (AQA) argued it was not realistic that the same rules should apply to quarrying. The operations and needs of each can’t be merged into one catch-all piece of legislation, and once it was pointed out, the government agreed that quarries should rightly be treated separately. The daily news media, however, didn’t have time to understand the distinction, and pilloried the AQA for being the organisation which had argued for quarries to be excluded from the safety legislation. Correcting a mistake isn’t the same thing as not accepting that safety should be the industry’s paramount consideration. Another example – once again from the quarry world. It was repeatedly reported that there had been a third quarry death this year. Not true. One of those “quoted” as being a quarry death was a truck-driver found on “… Quarry Road”. In the initial report the word road was omitted, and once in print, this error become fact. With limited resources, it’s an easy trap to fall into. For this reason, we urge readers to be discerning when following daily media reports. Often a story only becomes clear days and weeks after the event itself – too late once reader “fatigue” has set in. No doubt this will be a major item of discussion at this year’s round of conferences, which kicks off in earnest early this month. We hope to see many of you around the country – unless of course you’re all busy with post-flood repair work. Given the strain excessive rain-fall has put on the infrastructure of Dunedin and Taranaki recently, I’m sure there’s plenty of work to be done, and many councils will be checking their own maintenance programmes to ensure the same doesn’t happen to them. One of the first conferences we’ll be visiting will be the Crane Association’s, and we’ve two profiles this month of long-serving crane industry stalwarts, Malcolm Whannell and Gordon Stone. Writer Gavin Riley points out that between them the pair have put in a remarkable total of 83 years with their employers. Their companies have helped shape them, and they have helped shape their companies. Together they have contributed more than 25 years’ service to the Crane Association. “Their joint contribution to the crane industry is immense and we are unlikely to see this volume of input from succeeding generations,” says Gavin. Finally, I’d like to thank everyone who has visited our new website (see www.contractormag. co.nz), and those who enjoy our new free email newsletter (send me an email to have your name added).
GENERAL MANAGER & EDITOR Kevin Lawrence DDI: 09 636 5710 Mobile: 021 512 800 Email: kevin@contrafed.co.nz EDITORIAL MANAGER Alan Titchall DDI: 09 636 5712 Mobile: 027 405 0338 Email: alan@contrafed.co.nz REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS
Malcolm Abernethy, Richard Campbell, Hugh de Lacy, Peter Gill, Gavin Riley, Mary Searle Bell, Richard Silcock, Jeremy Sole. ADVERTISING / SALES Charles Fairbairn DDI: 09 636 5724 Mobile: 021 411 890 Email: charles@contrafed.co.nz ADMIN / SUBSCRIPTIONS DDI: 09 636 5715 Email: admin@contrafed.co.nz PRODUCTION Design: TMA Design, 09 636 5713 Printing: PMP MAXUM
Contributions welcome Please contact the editor before sending them in. Articles in Contractor are copyright and may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the permission of the publisher. Opinions expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the shareholding organisations.
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The official magazine of Civil Contractors NZ www.civilcontractors.co.nz The Aggregate & Quarry Association www.aqa.org.nz The New Zealand Heavy Haulage Association www.hha.org.nz The Crane Association of New Zealand www.cranes.org.nz Rural Contractors New Zealand www.ruralcontractors.org.nz The Ready Mixed Concrete Association www.nzrmca.org.nz Connexis www.connexis.org.nz
ISSN 0110-1382
Kevin Lawrence, editor
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CONTRACTOR UPFRONT
Record for 2015 Fieldays More than 126,000 visitors attended the 2015 Fieldays at Mystery Creek over four days, despite the up-and-down weather. Exhibitors on the whole have had a positive experience at Fieldays this year, with a consistent flow of business through their sites, says ANZ marketing manager Grant Andrews “We are thrilled with this year’s event,” says Lee Picken, Fieldays’ head of events. “The vibe has been fantastic and the four days have been seamless. We’re very happy with visitor turnout and feedback we’ve been receiving has been really positive.”
Harker eyes international Harker Underground Construction, part of Hawkins Group, launched its new look last month and has plans to launch its expertise and experience into international markets. “It’s an exciting time for Harker and for our industry,” says Rory Bishop, Harker’s general manager. “We’re known locally for our trenchless construction technology and, where the opportunities arise, plan to take this experience and capability offshore. “We know that we’re only as good as our last job and our current work, such as providing specialist support to the development of the City Rail Link Project, demonstrates the strength of the national expertise we’ve built up over 35 years. “Harker has the people, the experience, the partners and now a new brand. Through the quality of our work and our vision we’re ready to be the best in the tunnelling and underground construction market.”
New GM for Kennards Kennards Hire has a new general manager, Hamish Kibblewhite, who is now looking over the operations of the company’s 15 branches in the North and South Islands. The former CEO of BlueCo Communications, Hamish has over 15 years of experience working in industries such as telecommunications, IT, logistics and forestry. “Kennards has a unique and amazing culture,” he says. “It’s one of the very few organisations I’ve come across that really do ‘walk the talk’.” Kennards Hire says it has enjoyed great growth in its Kiwi branches over recent years, becoming a larger priority for the 67-year-old family operated business.
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Crossrail tunnels completed London authorities have celebrated the milestone completion of the new £14.8 billion east-west, CrossRail tunnels railway, in what is the most ambitious rail project the UK has seen for decades. So far, the project is being delivered on time and within budget, and is over 65 percent complete. The tunnelling started three years ago beneath the streets of London. The start of Crossrail construction began at Canary Wharf on 15 May 2009. The first giant tunnel boring machine broke ground in May 2012. All eight Crossrail tunnelling machines have now completed their drives and 42 kilometres of new train tunnels have been created under London. Another 13.5 kilometres of new passenger, platform and service tunnels have been constructed within the new Crossrail stations using shotcrete. “Crossrail is an incredible feat of engineering that will help to improve the lives of working people in London and beyond,” says UK Prime Minister, David Cameron. “The project is a vital part of our long-term plan to build a more resilient economy by helping businesses to grow, compete and create jobs right along the supply chain.” Crossrail tunnelling began in the summer of 2012 and ended at Farringdon with the break through of tunnelling machine Victoria. Eight 1000 tonne tunnelling machines have bored 42 kilometres of new 6.2 metre diameter rail tunnels under London. Construction is also advancing on the 10 new Crossrail stations and on works above ground west of Paddington and east of Stratford. Over 10,000 people are currently working on the project, including over 450 apprentices. With the arrival of Crossrail in 2018, Farringdon will become one of the UK’s busiest rail hubs with direct connections to London Underground and upgraded and expanded Thameslink services. This brand new interchange will transform the way passengers travel through London and the South East, and add 10 percent capacity to London’s rail network. It will serve 40 stations, connecting Reading and Heathrow in the west with Shenfield and Abbey Wood in the east. An estimated 200 million passengers will travel on Crossrail each year after it opens in December 2018. Crossrail is one part of the UK government’s commitment to invest record amounts in the rail network as part of its long-term economic plan. Between 2014 and 2019, more than £38 billion will be spent on improving and maintaining the UK’s railways. Over the course of the project, it is estimated that Crossrail and its supply chain will support the equivalent of 55,000 full time jobs across the country. More than 8000 people have completed training at Crossrail’s Tunnelling and Underground Construction Academy in Ilford, which opened in 2011. Crossrail is being delivered by Crossrail Limited (CRL). CRL is a wholly owned subsidiary of Transport for London. Crossrail is jointly sponsored by the Department for Transport and Transport for London.
AARON SMITH has been appointed general manager for the Gough Group’s NZ transport businesses. Based at the company’s Wiri site in Auckland, Aaron will be managing the Gough TWL and Gough Transpecs business units. Aaron has 26 years’ experience in the transport and trucking, heavy machinery and petroleum industries with his most recent tenure as National Business manager at the Gough Cat business unit managing the company’s mining, on-highway trucks and power systems divisions.
Costly project dumping The new state government of Victoria in Australia will pay the East West Connect consortium US$258 million to cancel construction of Melbourne’s East West Link road tunnel. The payoff is to cover the consortium’s bidding, design and pre-construction costs and draw a line under the deal that has been mired in financial controversy for years. The Aussie Federal government slammed Victoria’s decision to bail out of the project as “an obscenity” that will cost 7000 jobs, according to a report in The Australian newspaper. Another A$81 million in fees was also spent by the state government to set up a credit facility to borrow the project costs.
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CONTRACTOR UPFRONT
Housing estate opportunity looms The government has set up a $52.2 million capital contingency fund to facilitate housing development on Crown-owned land in Auckland, and identified four sites made up of 30 hectares of land for development. “The most advanced site is at the corner of Moire and Granville Roads in Massey East, consisting of 10 parcels of land totalling 9.5 hectares,” says Minister of Housing, Nick Smith. “The government has authorised my ministry to purchase it from the Ministry of Education and to gazette it for housing purposes under the Housing Act 1955. The land had originally been set aside for a new high school but a better site was subsequently found at Hobsonville. “This site has a capacity for about 200 homes.” Smith says he hopes to have a development agreement signed for this first parcel of land before the end of October, earthworks started over summer, and the first homes completed in late 2016. “I am also releasing the locations of three other sites with a potential for about 400 homes, involving NZTA-owned land, that are being considered for purchase and gazetting under the Housing Act.” It is estimated that the Crown, through various agencies, owns about 500 hectares of land in Auckland with the potential for residential development. The fund will allow the government to select vacant parcels of land from the relevant agency and make it available for development by a private sector partner through a competitive process. “Officials will continue to explore additional sites owned by the Crown that may be suitable for housing. We will be releasing further sites when investigations are concluded on their suitability,” says Smith.
6 www.contractormag.co.nz
Link project closer to construction The Transport Agency and Auckland Transport have picked their preferred route for Auckland’s East-West Connections project. The project has been brought forward as a result of its inclusion in the Auckland Accelerated Projects package, announced by the Government last year. The new link is designed to break transport congestion around the Onehunga-Penrose industrial hub, which is a significant contributor to our economy - generating $5 billion per year in GDP and employing over 64,000 people. More information: www.nzta.govt.nz/east-west.
Stormwater infrastructure rethink Last month many parts of the country couldn’t cope with a pounding by adverse weather, starting with Wellington and Dunedin, and then Taranaki and the lower North Island. Now the government is setting up a board to assess whether local government’s management of the risks from natural hazards to infrastructure and other assets can be strengthened. The Crown and Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ) will jointly fund the $1.6 million initiative. Local Government Minister Paula Bennett says this board will work closely with local authorities, LGNZ, and officials from the Department of Internal Affairs, the Ministry of Civil Defence & Emergency Management and The Treasury, to investigate the feasibility of a local government agency dedicated to risk management and insurance. If it considers the proposed agency should be set up, it will prepare a business case for the government to consider. “The board’s investigation of the feasibility of a dedicated local government risk management agency will make an important contribution towards achieving this,” says Bennett. A concurrent review will also look at the existing funding arrangement between central and local government to restore certain infrastructure after emergencies, such as for water, wastewater, stormwater and river flood control. Under this arrangement, the government reimburses councils up to 60 percent of certain restoration costs. “This arrangement was established more than 20 years ago, and much has changed since then,” says Civil Defence Minister Nikki Kaye. “We now know more about local government infrastructure, we have learned from major emergencies, and the insurance market is very different. “We have asked officials to consider what the best ways to respond to these changes are.” It is expected that the establishment board will provide a comprehensive report to ministers and LGNZ on the feasibility of the proposed agency by June 2016, or just in time for the next wet season. Despite a susceptibility to severe weather and a woeful record of storms and flooding since 1840, the country has built in flood prone areas. Now pumping systems and infrastructure design is under review, particularly after sewerage and stormwater pumping systems were overwhelmed in New Plymouth and Dunedin cities in the latest round of flooding. Labour MP for Dunedin South, Clare Curran wants more urgency after her constituency South Dunedin was swamped by a deluge of biblical portions. “South Dunedin has a high proportion of elderly, disabled and low income families who struggled to cope. Let’s get an urgent assessment done now and not take months or years to debate the changes required.” Dunedin City Council water and waste manager Laura McElhone says the city’s stormwater pumps simply weren’t designed to handle 175mm of rain within a 24-hour period. Others claim neglect and poor maintenance of infrastructure over past decades didn’t help the situation.
First use of micro-milling The road surface of the Auckland Habour Bridge was given a new lease of life and had its skid resistance improved through removing a very thin layer off the surface. The work was completed by the Auckland Motorway Alliance, led by the NZ Transport Agency, with Fulton Hogan, Opus, Beca, Resolve and Armitage. Set up in October 2008 with about 60 staff, and publically known as Auckland Motorways, the alliance partners have a 10-year agreement to operate and maintain the Auckland motorway network. Alliance director Steve Mutton says a special machine was used to micro mill minor grooves in the road and expose high friction surfaces of the existing stones in the pavement to improve its texture. “This improves the skid resistance and therefore the safety of the road surface and its the first time this particular micro milling machine has been used on the network. Until now the full depth of the road surface had to be replaced, which is a comparatively expensive exercise. Micro milling removes as little as 2mm from the surface to modify its properties.” One of the other benefits of the micro milling is that the lane markings will now be more clearly visible in wet weather and poor light conditions. “We have opted to leave the existing line marking and micro mill on either side of the lines, which creates a raised surface that will now be more visible when the road’s wet.” The previous surface had lasted approximately eight years before it fell below the safety threshold and it’s expected it’ll be another five years before it needs more work.
THE TEAM AT CCNZ IS PLEASED TO WELCOME PETER SILCOCK
“I have recently started as chief executive of CCNZ after working in leadership roles in the horticulture industry. I am looking forward to learning about and representing the interests of the civil contracting industry. CCNZ aims are clear; to create a safe, viable and progressive sector for its members. I look forward to building on existing relationships and meeting members at Conference in Taupo.”
JULY 2015 7
CONTRACTOR UPFRONT
Connexis takes over water qualifications
Free safety App for association members From next month most Civil Contractors New Zealand members will have free access to a new award-winning App for iPhone and Android to record incidents through the Zero Harm Reporting Hub. The NZTA, which paid for the App development, and industry representatives are working on developing minimum standards for different types of activities on the road network through the Zero Harm group. The idea is to increase the level of reporting of workplace accidents to improve overall saftey. With NZTA’s support and assistance the reporting hub is being modified to allow contractors to report on their projects irrespective of project type. The reporting hub will also carry the CCNZ logo and will be available free of charge to contractors that have less than 150 employees. This is part of NZTA’s Zero Harm philosophies of joined up thinking and knowledge sharing, says the association. Contractors will be able to access the reporting hub from early July 2015 by following a simple six step process. 1. A ccess the application dashboard from CCNZ website 2. Register the contracting company – login details will be provided by email 3. The Company sets up employees as users – company password established for the app 4. The company sets up projects they are working on 5. Employees can get the app from the store where they will need to register by entering the company password: Use the app for: Incidents, accidents, injury, near misses, causes, good practice and suggestions. CCNZ will provide more detailed information once the app has been made available to contractors. 8 www.contractormag.co.nz
Connexis is taking on responsibility for water-aligned qualifications and training from the agriculture-based Primary ITO. There are approximately 500 trainees undertaking qualifications in water treatment, wastewater treatment and water reticulation trades. Connexis was set up in 2013 with the merger of electricity supply industry training and civil construction. Chief executive Helmut Modlik says the addition of water is a logical move as it provides for synergies with the other infrastructure qualification areas. “The transfer will benefit existing water industry training customers by giving them an enhanced level of service and increased support from the Connexis nationwide field team. “We also believe that there are benefits for the wider infrastructure sector in that it enables most if not all training to be met by one organisation, rather than dealing with multiple ITOs.” Connexis says it has been undertaking preparatory work with its new customers to ensure a smooth transition for both trainees and employers. Modlik adds that across the infrastructure sector generally there is a shortage of skilled people and it is essential to focus on training and qualifications to fill the gap. “Better qualifications obviously benefit individual workers and their employers and also addresses the government’s goal of providing infrastructure to enable a thriving New Zealand economy.”
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CONTRACTOR UPFRONT
Second roading PPP concept approved The NZ Transport Agency has been given the go-ahead to finance, design, build, manage and maintain the Pūhoi to Warkworth motorway through a Public Private Partnership (PPP). NZTA chief Geoff Dangerfield says, “A PPP contract will likely see the PPP consortium manage and maintain the motorway for the 25 years that will follow the anticipated six-year period to build the motorway.” Using a PPP for key infrastructure projects will open the door for private sector innovations that are not always achievable under traditional public sector procurement methods, he adds. “An outcomes-based PPP for the Pūhoi to Warkworth project will also allow great flexibility within the designation to achieve optimised innovative outcomes.” NZTA will invite private sector companies to put forward proposals for financing, designing and constructing the highway, with a view to awarding a PPP contract in October 2016. A shortlist of PPP consortia is expected to be identified by the third quarter of 2015, which will be followed by the selection of a ‘preferred bidder’ by mid-2016, and the awarding of the PPP contract in October 2016. The NZTA says these timeframes are indicative only and may be subject to change and, tentatively, construction of the Pūhoi to Warkworth motorway, under a PPP arrangement, could possibly start in late 2016 with the road completed and open by 2022. Transport Minister Simon Bridges says, “If, however, the private sector can’t offer value for money, NZTA would instead revert to a more traditional procurement model. Construction without a PPP would likely begin around two years later than under a PPP.” Dangerfield says no decision has been made on tolling for the Puhoi to Warkworth route, but should the motorway be tolled, the Transport Agency would retain responsibility for tolling. The first state highway in New Zealand to be delivered through a PPP is the Transmission Gully (MacKays to Linden) project in Wellington. In July 2014, the Transport Agency signed a PPP contract with the Wellington Gateway Partnership (WGP). Work on Transmission Gully began in September last year, and the motorway will be open for traffic by 2020.
Wellington runway extension Wellington International Airport’s proposed $350 million runway extension is still up in the air, if you can excuse the pun. The airport, 66 percent owned by Infratil and 33 percent by Wellington City Council, wants to extend the single runway to attract more long-haul international Asian and North American routes, and the council has already approved the inclusion of a $90 million contribution to the extension in its long term plans. The airport company has indicated it expects public funding from central government to assist with the project cost. Before it sorts out funding issues, the airport and its supporters need to get the project through the resource consent process with the Environmental Protection Authority. The airport says it will begin public consultation in August and file its consent with the EPA in the last quarter of this year, assuming it is cleared for that process, for a hearing in the new year. That could lead to a decision some six to nine months later.
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Three districts – one roading contractor The Manawatu, Rangitikei, and Horowhenua District Councils are taking a collaborative regional approach to their road infrastructure and have approved a single contractor, Higgins Contractors, to provide road infrastructure services across their districts. Using a single contractor across the three districts will enable ratepayer contributions to be reinvested in maintaining and improving more of the road networks in each district. “Our roads are how rural districts stay connected, it’s how we get our raw materials and products to the market, so it is very important that every dollar we spend on our roads contributes as widely as possible to our continued growth,” says Manawatu District mayor Margaret Kouvelis. Horowhenua District mayor Brendan Duffy says the deal was a long-time coming. “This contract certainly gives Horowhenua District Council longevity with regard to meeting future roading needs in our own district, while Higgins is also introducing some management processes that that will bring added value to all three councils,” he says. “The advantages of this collaborative approach are as much around delivery efficiencies as financial benefits.” For Rangitikei and Horowhenua Districts the move meant a change of contractor, as Downer did their contact in the past. The contract with Higgins Contractors came into effect this month (July).
Equipment giant milestone Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI), the world’s biggest shipbuilder and a leading construction equipment manufacturer, says it recently handed over its 500,000th piece of construction equipment to a client, 28 years after the company introduced its first excavator in 1987. The company started business with 426 new excavators in 1987 and now has the broadest product range among Korean makers, including Korea’s largest 120 ton excavators. HHI has five overseas production factories in China, India and Brazil, and achieved US$2.7 billion in global sales in 2014. This year, the company says it is targeting US$3 billion in global sales.
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JULY 2015 11
CONTRACTOR UPFRONT
More women please
Auckland’s traffic is not as dense as many other cities such as Sydney and Beijing (pictured) but its traffic management leaves a lot to be desired.
Auckland – a congestion nightmare A number of associations and members of the Auckland Business Forum are supporting the initiative of government to seek a negotiation with Auckland Council on an agreed 30-year programme focusing on reducing congestion, and boosting public transport where that reduces congestion. They were responding to Transport Minister Simon Bridges and Finance Minister Bill English sending Auckland mayor Len Brown a letter proposing a negotiation and ruling out motorway charges in Auckland to help fund transport projects. Their views and suggestions were published in a transport supplement in The Business magazine of the Herald last month. “The Auckland business community overwhelmingly agrees that immediate action to address the city’s transport congestion is required,” says Michael Barnett, head of the Auckland Chamber. It is very clear that current plans are not making a significant difference to congestion, he says. A good outcome from government and Auckland Council working together would be a package of fast-tracked projects aimed at: Improving public transport services’ reliability and frequency; getting as much use as possible out of the current transportation system; removing parking from major arterial routes to create more usable road space; more high occupancy lanes to encourage a reduction of sole occupancy cars; strengthened integrated traffic management covering arterials and motorways; and expanding park and ride facilities at main trunk rail and busway stations. “Good leadership is about partnership,” says Barnett. “It is about understanding that we have limited resources, so we must learn to prioritise correctly.” An article in the supplement is written by Chris Burke, chairman of the Auckland branch of Civil Contractors NZ. He says congestion in Auckland is costing civil contractors millions of dollars of downtime and lost productivity, and a lack of coordination between construction clients, especially central and local government, means an opportunity is being missed to bundle procurement, provide continuity of work and speed up delivery through a joined up approach. “The carriage of aggregates from southern quarries to building and construction sites around Auckland has become a nightmare. “Likewise, the cartage of waste from construction sites, including major transport projects like Waterview, can vary from one to three hours.” 12 www.contractormag.co.nz
Fiona Doherty, the winner of the Australian Woman in Construction award and the person who was voted Professional of the Year by the Australian Quantity Surveying industry in October 2014, says the industry on both sides of the Tasman needs more women. A chartered quantity surveyor by profession and a director of Rider Levett Bucknall in Canberra, Doherty says females make up only about 16 percent of the profession in Australia with similar participation levels here, and contrasts that with Singapore, as an example, where a large proportion of people working in a quantity surveyors’ office are women. “We are talking about equal intellect here, so there’s no reason why more women can’t have rewarding careers in the construction industry and as quantity surveyors in particular.” Doherty addressed the New Zealand Institute of Quantity Surveyors’ conference on the issue of how to encourage more females into the industry. “The days are long gone when men and women have prescribed, traditional job roles. “These days, women have choices in determining their career and there’s absolutely nothing blokey about sitting in an office and providing clients with high level, strategic cost advice on their multimillion-dollar construction project. “Roles like that are not gender-specific, generally pay well and are rewarding. Looking at a cityscape and seeing the buildings and who has had a hand in developing them is pretty awesome!” Doherty acknowledges that quantity surveyors do need good skills in maths and science, and those subjects are still seen as a boys’ domain at school. “We need to encourage more girls to take those subjects from an early age so they broaden their career prospects in adulthood.”
IN BRIEF Budget spend on transport NEW ZE ALAN
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- July 2015 No 3 | June
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The opening of an extension of the bus shoulder along part of the Northern Highway is the final section of the NZ Transport Agency’s Upper Harbour Highway to Greville Road widening project. The government has advanced $375 million to help the NZTA push forward with more than $800 million worth of Auckland transport projects across the Northern Corridor, Southern Corridor and State Highway 20A. The bus lane is the first project to be completed under this accelerated programme of works to improve Auckland’s transport infrastructure. As well as widening SH1 northbound to three lanes, the project also includes an upgrade of the intersection at Greville Road, developing a new shared path for pedestrians and cyclists and a new bus shoulder.
$16 billion for Canterbury rebuild An additional $107.8 million operating funding over the next four years was provided in Budget 2015 for the Canterbury rebuild, taking the government’s total contribution to the Canterbury rebuild since 2010 to around $16.5 billion. Of the additional $107.8 million, $10 million is allocated for the removal of buildings that currently sit on land designated for anchor projects. More than four years after the first earthquake, Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee says, “With the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Act expiring next April we will need to transition to a new structure for continuation of recovery work, and soon we will have a better idea of what that will look like. This Budget enables recovery to progress with certainty.”
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The Waitangi Wharf on the Chatham Islands will be replaced in a three-year construction project costing up to $52 million sourced from the Future Investment Fund. The wharf is the only cargo-handling facility for essential supplies, including diesel for the electricity grid and fuel for the air services. The existing wharf is a structural risk and needs to be replaced within five years.
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Otago port rebuild Port Otago will undergo a $30 million upgrade over the next two years to service larger ships. The capital works programme includes: Deepening of the shipping channel to 14 metres by end-2016; deepening the berths and sheet piling to support the wharf; and warehouse expansion. The piling is being carried out by Daniel Smith from Christchurch, and the warehouse expansion by Calder Stewart.
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CONTRACTOR JULY 2015
The government is providing an additional $248.9 million for key transport projects over the next four years, bringing its total spending on transport in 2015/16 to $4.27 billion, including $3.01 billion from the National Land Transport Fund.
JULY 2015 13
CONTRACTOR FINANCE
Harsh lesson with non-payment A Civil Contractors NZ member has endured an 18-month struggle chasing just over $1 million owed it by a developer of a lifestyle subdivision. Read on and learn. This article is a sanitised version of the contractor’s extraordinary story, edited by CCNZ executive officer Malcolm Abernethy and CCNZ’s solicitors Kensington Swan (Stuart Robertson). For reasons of confidentiality under the Arbitration Act 1996, the names of the parties cannot be disclosed. It is not unusual for disputes to arise and payments not made at all or not on time, however, this dispute arose due to no fault of the contractor. The contractor experienced delays from the outset for which it claimed extensions of time. These were granted by the engineer in decisions under the contract (NZS3910). Nevertheless the legitimacy of the extensions of time granted and value of payment required were met in this case by the developer simply saying “I disagree” and then withholding payments. The contractor wanted to cease work until payment was made, but first took advice. As the contract was absent a clause allowing it to suspend work for non-payment, the contractor was bound to continue working. The solution, which our contractor pursued, was to structure its payment claims under the Construction Contracts Act 2002 (CCA). The developer failed to respond within time and/ or sufficiently with complying payment schedules. The CCNZ member then had a statutory right to give notice of suspension (and if not paid, suspend) and to pursue the $1 million as a debt due. As the contract works were all but finished, the former gave the contractor no benefit. The contractor pursued its debt due. In doing so the contractor was well aware that the likelihood of eventually getting paid by the developer was slim indeed. But its directors had already endured many sleepless nights and borrowed heavily to cover the debt. It was a matter of principle for the developer to pay. There are two aspects to this sad affair that need to be highlighted. The first is the legal system that effectively allows a developer to avoid payments by transferring money from one company to another during the legal proceedings. The second is ensuring that the contractor completes ‘due diligence’ on the client and his or her associated companies. Continuing the background of this dispute… Payments were not made and so the contractor sought payment by issuing statutory demands on the developer. The developer applied to the High Court to set them aside, and the long drawn out
legal proceedings commenced. The developer also ‘retaliated’ by instigating arbitration proceedings. The delays in the High Court were extraordinary, given the purpose of the CCA is to facilitate regular and timely payments and remedies to recover payments. To put this into context, from when the statutory demands were issued to when the court decision was released took six months. The time between the hearing and the decision took up three of those months. An unusually long time. The developer immediately appealed that decision to the Court of Appeal. A hearing was held promptly and decision issued, all within three months. A stark contrast to the High Court process. Nonetheless it had now been nine months to be told the same story – you are entitled to your $1 million. In fact it had been more than 12 months since the work was performed. The Court of Appeal went further and stated that while the parties could arbitrate their dispute (it was already underway), the developer must pay in the meantime. Armed with this decision the contractor went to the arbitrator. We pause to highlight another extraordinary event. Solvency of the developer was a key issue raised with the arbitrator. Such was its prominence that the arbitrator directed that a related, solvent company of the developer pay his fees. Our CCNZ member sought a stay of the arbitration until the developer paid the debt, as per the Court of Appeal’s decision. The arbitrator declined to do so. The contractor was left with the prospect of expensive and delaying steps of seeking leave of the High Court to appeal, and if successful then appealing the arbitrator’s decision. But never fear, having received the Court of Appeal’s decision the statutory demand debt was back in the High Court as the developer was now facing liquidation. But, the developer swore an affidavit saying it would have loads of money from the sale of the sections, to settle within a couple of months, to cover the contractor’s alleged debt. Its solicitor was handling the transactions and undertook to hold the surplus in its trust account. At this point the contractor’s case had been through three High Court Associate Judges, and again the court showed leniency to the developer. The director was to file an affidavit in three months’ time showing the exact surplus from the sales. Three months passed and the developer advised the court that its financier (a second tier funder) had, through a cross guarantee
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arrangement with other companies of the developer, taken all the surplus sale funds. A determined developer will always find a way of hiding money from the courts. After over 18 months of pursuing a debt of over $1 million owed to the contractor, the contractor’s experience was that the legal system is left severely wanting. With the assistance of its solicitors, the contractor settled the claims with the developer for a fraction of the debt, only leaving it with a minuscule amount after paying its heavily discounted legal costs. The developer continued the development, seamlessly undertaking the next stage using the money not paid to offload as many of the costs including the land purchase costs from the disputed development. The money simply disappeared into other entities owned by the developer and its friendly financier. What then are the lessons from this unfortunate saga? There are several. During the course of this dispute the contractor and legal team looked for records of the developer and its director/shareholder and started to ask questions as to its integrity and financial status. Searching the NZ Companies Office is a good place to start. Check for other companies (past and present) where the director or shareholder is the same. What this revealed was a string of companies over the last few years placed into liquidation by the developer. In all, they owed the IRD in excess of $2 million. Find out who really owns the construction site. This can be found at Land Information New Zealand, but you would need someone (a legal executive or solicitor) with a licence to get this information. It is very cheap. You can then easily discover the mortgagee’s details. The company details of the mortgagee were also very telling. This in turn allows you to search other assets (land) secured by the same mortgagee/financier. Finally, Google provides a wealth of information, even if its veracity may be less than 100 percent accurate. You should quickly get a feel for the creditworthiness of your potential client.
All of this was available to the contractor prior to tendering for or contracting with the developer. It should have been one of the first exercises undertaken when assessing the risk of contracting with the developer. While a generalisation, developers of subdivisions are structuring their affairs and projects just as they did prior to the GFC. Contractors are falling into the same traps as they did before the GFC. Early and correct use of the CCA is important. While here the claims for payment were submitted again as CCA claims, using the CCA payment claim procedures from day one, and correctly every time, is essential. A notice of intention to suspend could have been issued earlier, even one month earlier would have been enough, to create substantial leverage and lessen the likelihood of nonpayment. If you are unsure of the developer’s ability to pay, or you already know what the developer is like, then require an alternative payment structure. Either a tripartite agreement with the financier to ensure direct payment on the Engineer’s Certificates, or the money held by an independent third party (an escrow agent) and similarly paid out on the Engineer’s Certificates. Ensure your contract clearly defines who is responsible for obtaining council approvals and consents, and that they are to be in place before starting work. Act promptly with written notification of any variations or delay events. Ensure that they are fully developed and included in your payment claims. Ensure your payment claims are expressed ‘Less previously paid’, not ‘Less previously certified’. With the former, if the developer does not pay the full certified sum, your next payment claim does nothing to recoup it. Using the latter wording means in the next payment claim you go for all outstanding amounts. The contractor is battered and bruised, but like any CCNZ member with a few years under their belt, they are incredibly resilient. By telling their story (albeit a sanitised version) they hope lessons can be learnt by all contractors. Originally published www.contractormag.co.nz
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JULY 2015 15
CONTRACTOR ON THE COVER
New Bobcat
underpins Smith Crane projects There’s a new Bobcat in town and for Christchurch based Smith Crane & Construction its doubly pleasing as it’s the first and only one of its type in the country. THE BOBCAT T770 is one of a series of new generation models that
have been introduced to the range recently and is currently the largest operating track loader in New Zealand. The Bobcat T770 loader will complement a Bobcat T300 and T650 that are also part of the Smith Crane & Construction fleet. The Bobcat T770 tracked loader will be mainly used for breaking out foundations and clearing out after houses have been jacked in the air to reinstate the foundations so that they can comply with building code requirements. According to Smith Crane & Construction the speed, power and versatility of the Bobcat Track loaders allows the company to run four-in-one buckets, concrete drop hammers and pallet forks that converts this unit into a multi functioning tool, saving time and money and maximising productivity. What Smith Crane and Construction particularly likes about the Bobcat is their reliability and comfort. The nimbleness of the Bobcat loaders makes them highly attractive machines on their sites. When it comes to power meeting comfort there’s nothing better. Distributed in New Zealand by AB Equipment, the Bobcat T770 is the perfect choice when you want more digging force, more pushing power and more lifting capacity to keep moving in bad weather and lessthan-ideal ground conditions. With a 92hp engine and a 3475lb Rated Operating Capacity (ROC), strong lifting power (up to 11 feet of vertical lift) and added reach, you can place cargo, dig deeper and tackle most demanding tasks with less ground pressure. Like all M-Series models, the Bobcat T770 has an industry-leading cab design that offers improved comfort, visibility and operatorfriendly features.
These include a new fully adjustable suspension seat and optional joysticks integrated in the seat arms. Made for versatility the Bobcat T770 with its wide range of attachments is the perfect machine for construction, landscaping, demolition, forestry, agriculture and road applications.
50 years in the business A family business, Smith Crane & Construction was formed in 1992 but its history goes back over 50 years where it was initially founded to specialise in bridge building, pipe laying, water reservoir construction and other associated construction projects. Today Smith Crane & Construction has become the preferred supplier of crane hire services, heavy haulage, piling and civil construction activities to both the public and private sectors. Based in Christchurch the company has branches in Auckland, Nelson, Blenheim, Queenstown and Invercargill. As a result of demand the company has expanded into house relocation services and has recently built a state of the art precast construction facility operating from its Christchurch location. A member of the Hellaby Holdings Industrial Group of Companies, AB Equipment has its headquarters in East Tamaki, Auckland. From this location, the company operates a complete, fully owned network of 18 branches throughout New Zealand. AB Equipment sells new and used equipment and provides the all-important local area base for the provision of benchmark customer support programmes. For further information on the Bobcat Loaders range call 0800 303090 or contact your nearest AB Equipment branch. l
Distributed in New Zealand by AB Equipment, the Bobcat T770 is the perfect choice when you want more digging force, more pushing power and more lifting capacity to keep moving in bad weather and less-than-ideal ground conditions. 16 www.contractormag.co.nz
JULY 2015 17
CONTRACTOR PROFILE
Gordon Stone, 45 years working for one company
18 www.contractormag.co.nz
Veteran’s long stay with Titan Gordon Stone explains exactly why he has spent the past 45 years working for one company. BY GAVIN RILEY.
WHEN GORDON STONE travelled from his Christchurch base to speak at the Titan Group’s 50th birthday celebration in Wellington over Queen’s Birthday weekend, he had good reason to recall how he started work for the company as a fitter in 1970. For among the many friends he met at the celebration was 82-year-old Frank Wicksteed, the man who employed him after they had disagreed over what Gordon should be paid. “I was working night shift at Lever Bros across the road [in Petone] and during the day I was paua diving – there were no quotas back then,” Gordon recalls. “I started at Titan in my holidays and Frank, Max Whiley and I argued over $1.25 an hour. I started there at 22 in the engineering workshop. Max [founder of the company five years earlier] used to buy used machinery at all the Ministry of Works auctions, because of the import restrictions on machinery, and we used to overhaul them and Max would paint them up and sell them on.” Gordon had obtained his advanced trade certificate in fitting, turning and machining while working for the Ministry of Works at Gracefield. “I actually met Max there when he came to the machinery auctions, and I knew a few of the Titan boys there. The Ministry of Works was my first introduction to cranes – the old Allen cranes.” Gordon prospered under Frank Wicksteed and in less than 12 months was promoted to workshop foreman – “a wee bit difficult because I suddenly had a lot of older people who were underneath me. But we stuck with it.” In 1975 Titan Plant Services formed Titan Cranes and appointed Jimmy Tomlinson as manager of its new branch in New Plymouth. Gordon took over crane maintenance from Jimmy in Wellington and when the company bought Nuttall Cranes (part of the Ceramco group) in
Christchurch, he was despatched south in 1979 to be second in command “because Max wanted a presence there – he was very firm about that”. Gordon continued to carry out maintenance work in Christchurch, became increasingly interested in the day-to-day managing of cranes and in the erection of precast concrete components, and made many trips to Motunui to help assemble cranes for the Think Big energy construction projects. When the Christchurch manager retired in 1990 Gordon took over, and when Titan opened a branch in Dunedin he became South Island manager. By 1993 Titan had become the largest crane-hire company in the country. In 2008 he was appointed general manager of Titan Cranes, then in 2009 became chief executive. He retired from full-time work in 2013, and since then has remained Christchurchbased, working two to three days a week on special projects such as training and data loading. “I’m doing a bit of everything – for head office too.” In 1994 Gordon was elected to the Crane Association national executive, where he was to remain for the next decade. He served as the organisation’s president from 1999-2001 without having the learning-curve luxury of being vicepresident, spent two years as immediate past president, then stepped down from the executive only to return for a further two years as past president a short time later. Gordon says his Crane Association service was in no way due to pressure from Max Whiley, the organisation’s founder and first president in 1975, “though once it was suggested, Max was totally supportive because he saw the Crane Association as such an important part of the industry, particularly for lobbying government. My election was due to Peter Thompson [199092 president and head of Warkworth Crane
“Get to know the people in the regulatory bodies and get alongside them, because they don’t understand your business sometimes. If you can build relationshiops it’s much easier to get things done.”
JULY 2015 19
PHOTOS: WILLIAM HARRIS – TITAN CRANES NZ FACEBOOK PAGE
CONTRACTOR PROFILE
Driving into Christchurch at night is now a sparkling experience after the installation of a giant sculpture at the northern entrance to the city. Neil Dawson’s six-storey high sculpture ‘Fanfare’, was originally designed to dangle off the side of the Sydney Harbour Bridge for the 2005 New Year’s Eve celebrations. The sculpture is covered with 350 pinwheels that reflect light during the day and light up with different colours at night.
Titan’s AC250 on the job beside the main north motorway lifting the top section of ‘Fanfare’ into place last month.
“I think what’s also kept me here so long is the changing interest of the job and working with good people with a passion for the job. I was very fortunate because I had numerous roles.”
20 www.contractormag.co.nz
Hire], who suggested I go on the council because he had a good engineering background and we were on the same wavelength.” Asked about challenging experiences on the Crane Association executive, Gordon singles out helping form the Power Crane Association ITO, writing the first unit standards, and getting them accepted by the Qualifications Authority. Also important, to this day, is this: “Get to know the people in the regulatory bodies and get alongside them, because they don’t understand your business sometimes and you’ve got to run alongside them. If you can build relationships it’s much easier to get things done.” Now 67, Gordon says he plans to exit the industry soon. He has sold his house in Governor’s Bay, is about to sail a yacht from Auckland to Tonga, has a yacht of his own in the Marlborough Sounds, helps a friend race an Akaroa-based yacht, is considering driving a caravan around the North Island for a few months before buying another house, and wants to spend more time with second wife Rose and their children and grandchildren, as well as fishing, tramping, and restoring classic cars such as a Jaguar and an MG. “And I still have a real good interest in engineering and always poke my nose into workshops.” But it will be hard to tear himself away from Titan, his employer for the past 45 years. “The values and the culture Max had were exceptional,” Gordon says, explaining why he has remained with the company for so long.
“Even though we used to argue tooth and nail, everyone was pulling on the same bit of rope. Max was good to me – but we were good to him. When we had Titan Plant Services and then we had Titan Cranes, some might have seen Titan Cranes as a cash-flow for Max to buy more second-hand machinery. There was always a bit of friendly banter about that. “I think what’s also kept me here so long is the changing interest of the job and working with good people with a passion for the job. I was very fortunate because I had numerous roles. I alluded to it when I spoke at the 50th birthday celebration, and about Titan being such an interesting company to be in, in the crane business, where we’re involved in everything – forestry, government departments, civil, residential, commercial, oil and gas, and aviation.” After Max Whiley’s death at 76 in 2007, Titan went through a rough patch before righting itself, with Max’s daughter Jan now managing director and sons Bruce and Owen in key executive roles. “It’s still got a good culture, good values. We’re back to our roots. There’s definitely a bright future for Titan,” says Gordon, who spoke at Max’s funeral. “And as for staff retention, it’s not only me who’s been here a long time. I’ve got three or four staff who have been here since we moved to Christchurch. And right around the country we’ve got extremely good staff retention. And that’s almost unheard of these days. “It’s been an interesting ride.”
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CONTRACTOR PROFILE
Malcolm McWhannell
22 www.contractormag.co.nz
Labouring
for the benefit of others For many years, after the humblest of starts, Malcolm McWhannell has undertaken a formidable workload for the betterment of the crane industry. BY GAVIN RILEY.
WHEN A TEENAGE Malcolm McWhannell entered
the construction industry as a labourer 38 years ago, he had no idea what he wanted to achieve. He was attracted only by machinery and the great outdoors. Malcolm joined Brian Perry Civil in Hamilton straight from Hillcrest High. “I wanted to work outside and that was pretty much it. Being a labourer paid 30 cents an hour more than a mechanic apprenticeship I was offered. Back in those days that was a considerable amount. I didn’t have any vision as to where I wanted to go or be. I was a little bit lost.” Contrast that with the Malcolm McWhannell of today – Fletcher Construction technical adviser, Crane Association past president, tireless worker for the betterment of his industry – and it’s plain he wasn’t lost for long. He quickly progressed to operating cranes and all types of heavy plant. After about 10 years he took up a foreman’s role in general construction, moved into piling work, and when Brian Perry was taken over by Fletcher Infrastructure in 1985, he was transferred to the new branch in Auckland “where all the piling work was”. He remained a foreman for a number of years, though “for quite some years I jumped into cranes whenever we had a tricky situation or were short of operators, so I didn’t make a clean break from cranage. Even now I still keep my hand in, such as on a job in Tonga a couple of years ago when I spent a considerable time on a crane which had a clam shell.” Malcolm progressed from foreman to supervisor, then held a superintendent position on the Northport development and a number of wharf and construction projects around the country. About 10 years ago he was given the title of technical adviser. He describes the role this way: “I would
sit in on tendering processes to check that our measures, equipment and productivities assigned at tender time were correct. Then if I wasn’t involved in a particular project myself, I would get around the traps where people were having trouble, work through the methodology, and work out a way to fix the issue.” These days, he adds, he has a second business card. “In the past three or four years I’ve switched back into a major project senior superintendent role where I help set up jobs and either then step back or move onto the next one. I helped set Waterview up from the piling foundations perspective and I’ve been down to McKay’s Crossing at Peka Peka for the expressway there and assisted in getting that underway. “I’m now pulling out of there quietly and am in the process of setting up an $80 million wharf job in Vanuatu. I’ll go there for six to nine months to help get that off the ground. “I’ve spent seven or so years in the Islands. I’ve done a lot of work on wharves and bridges in Fiji, Tonga, the Solomon Islands, Western Samoa and American Samoa. I’ve been around a bit.” He sure has. Earlier major projects in his long career include the installation of twin gas lines at Marsden Point, the upgrade of the Cook Strait cable, building the new wharf for the 2000 America’s Cup challenge, and construction of the Tauranga Harbour Link. Despite being something of an ‘everywhere man’ in his work, Malcolm has found time to make an outstanding contribution to serving the crane industry. He was elected to the Crane Association executive in 2001, was president from 2007-2010, and although stepping down from the council in 2011, he continues to be of help, assisting with the rewriting of the crane safety manual, being involved with drafting
“I’ve spent seven or so years in the Islands. I’ve done a lot of work on wharves and bridges in Fiji, Tonga, the Solomon Islands, Western Samoa and American Samoa. I’ve been around a bit.”
JULY 2015 23
CONTRACTOR PROFILE
Malcolm was president of the Crane Association from 2007 to 2010. Here he is pictured with the 2009-10 National Council – from left, Tim Smith, Tony Wilson, immediate past president Robert Carden, CEO Ian Grooby, Ron Brown, president Malcolm McWhannell, Doug Sargeant, vice-president Tristan Williams, Dick Parson, Grant Moffat and Graeme Cowan.
“...If industry members united, the Crane Association would be one hell of an organisation and would pack a huge punch. It’s unfair that it’s just a few who keep battling away trying to assist the industry as a whole.”
24 www.contractormag.co.nz
codes of practice, and acting as a sounding board for the association. He was on the board of the old Opportunity Training ITO, has an assessor role in cranes and rigging with the Skills ITO, and is a national evaluator/moderator with Skills. Along with Crane Association representatives, he is a member of the systems review group which evaluates industry standards and national certificates and looks for opportunities for trainees to achieve recognition for their competencies. He is also on the crane leadership forum committee which considers with WorkSafe and industry leaders where the industry will be in five to 10 years’ time – which leads him to believe the sector will suffer from too many employers being prepared to carry out only the minimum compliance requirements in the areas of training and competence. Somehow, in addition to that workload, he found time to head Fletcher’s and Brian Perry’s crane and drill-rig training/assessing programme from 1995 till several years ago, and in 2013 he was judged by Skills and the Crane Association to be the Crane Trainer of the Year. Malcolm describes the Crane Association’s work as tireless but insufficiently appreciated. “I know the industry as a whole doesn’t appreciate what is going on behind the scenes and what the Crane Association is trying to do for the entire industry. If industry members united, the Crane Association would be one hell of an organisation
and would pack a huge punch. It’s unfair that it’s just a few who keep battling away trying to assist the industry as a whole.” Malcolm attributes his remaining with one employer for so many years to the strong culture existing within Brian Perry Civil and to the versatility and vast array of work which Perry and Fletcher offer all around the country. “There’s a huge amount of opportunities for individuals within the company. There are many doors you can kick open and head on a good career path. They actually encourage you to look for career paths. And they pay pretty reasonable money, too.” When he’s not on the road serving employer or industry, Malcolm, 54, lives in Auckland with his wife Julie and pursues his long-time hobbies of big-game and light-tackle fishing, and hunting. The couple have a daughter, who is going through the process of joining the Police, and a schoolboy son, who was in the Chiefs’ under-16 rugby team last year and is now hoping to make the under-17 side. Malcolm says his long-time striving to improve his sector of the construction industry is “still a passion of mine”. But there’s no deep philosophy behind it, simply this: “I like to see people come through. I was given the opportunity when I was a young fellow, so I like to ensure I can give other young jokers opportunity and advice where I can. I’ve got no fast and hard credentials to my name. It’s just all experience and opportunity.”
CONTRACTOR PROJECT
A CLASSIC LESSON IN BRIDGE RE-PILING
26 www.contractormag.co.nz
The piles on Christchurch’s Ferrymead Bridge would never survive a decent earthquake, the experts said – and then an earthquake arrived and proved them right. HUGH DE LACY reports on the re-build.
WORK WAS ABOUT a third complete on re-piling the Ferrymead Bridge, linking the Sumner and Port Hills suburbs to Christchurch, when the scenario that prompted the work in the first place came to pass on February 20, 2011. The previous August, national construction firm HEB Construction had begun strengthening and widening the existing Ferrymead Bridge in response to engineers’ concerns from as early as 1994 that the existing piles weren’t founded on bedrock, and the overburden on which they were sitting would liquefy in the event of a decent quake. In 2004 Christchurch City Council announced plans for the strengthening as part of a wider city bridge upgrade plan, though it took a further five years of complex design work before tenders could be called. As predicted, the quakes severely damaged the bridge and stopped HEB’s strengthening and widening work a third of the way down the track, as well as disrupting the 30,000 vehicle movements the bridge catered for every day. Traffic was still able to cross the old bridge
JULY 2015 27
CONTRACTOR PROJECT
“It required extensive geotechnical investigations up front, and then close monitoring during pile driving to make sure the piles were founded on the right layers as required by design.”
28 www.contractormag.co.nz
thanks to temporary emergency strengthening work, but HEB was directed to upgrade and reinstall the two damaged temporary bridges, one upstream and one downstream of the existing one, for it to be diverted over. The council then had to work out what it was going to do: continue with the upgrade HEB had already started, or demolish it and start again. In the desperate atmosphere that followed the main quakes, it understandably took the besieged council until the end of the following year to opt for demolition and replacement, and HEB was able to start work in earnest in February of 2013. While the traffic flowed past on the temporary structures on either side, HEB tackled the demolition of the old bridge in between, and, with extensive use of concrete nibblers and some highly specialised equipment supplied by subcontractor Ceres, had the job completed by April of that year. Notably the bridge was demolished around the existing telecommunications cable feeding the eastern peninsula communities, a critical element to the port of Lyttelton operations. Then the fun began in earnest. At 70 metres long, the new bridge was not a
particularly challenging build in itself, but the extraordinary geology beneath it presented immense challenges to the designers. For a start the bedrock was volcanic, the detritus of the two eruptions that formed Banks Peninsula about six million years ago, and it could vary hugely within a short distance. “In some cases you could drill an investigation borehole where you were standing, and two metres from it you could drill another that showed completely different geotechnical layer depths,” HEB project manager Werner du Plessis told Contractor. “It required extensive geotechnical investigations up front, and then close monitoring during pile driving to make sure the piles were founded on the right layers as required by design.” A total of 10 steel-cased piles had to be driven, the four supporting the pier in the middle of the river being 2.4 metres in diameter, 25 metres long and the casings alone weighing approximately 50 tonnes each. These four had to be driven first under a particular work sequence to minimise the danger of lateral spreading under the impact of the continuing aftershocks.
Once driven through the 13 metres of alluvial silt at the bottom of the river, and approximately seven metres into the bedrock, the piles were concrete filled using approximately 100 cubic metres of special concrete. Then a series of six 150mm diameter holes had to be drilled down the outside of each pile to the toe of the casing so that grout could be inserted to fill the void between the outside face of the casing and the rock to complete the rock socket.
Once complete, the four pier piles were used to provide propping to each of the six abutment piles through means of installing a temporary steel propping arrangement. Thereafter it was bridge-building as usual, though with a few twists unique to the Ferrymead project. Four 1.6 metre diameter columns were built on top of the four central piles, topped by a highly reinforced pier-cap. The bridge was also to resume its service as a
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CONTRACTOR PROJECT
Four years down the track, it’s difficult to see how the project could have been completed any sooner, given the immense design difficulties posed by the piling.
Costing $34.87 million, with $22.12 million contributed by the New Zealand Transport Agency, the Ferrymead Bridge is now functioning on all four lanes, and commuting times have settled back to what they were before the quakes.
30 www.contractormag.co.nz
conduit for water, sewerage, telecommunications and power to the 4450 households in the Sumner suburbs. These services were incorporated into the bridge’s 26 main Super T beams, pre-cast by HEB at the nearby Ferrymead Heritage Park and weighing approximately 50 tonnes each. By Christmas last year they were all in place with the services connected, and work was underway on the construction of the stormwater reticulation for the new road layout. It was a notable challenge to du Plessis and HEB that all this had to be coordinated with work being done in the near vicinity by other major contracting teams from the Stronger Christchurch Infrastructure Rebuild Team (SCIRT). For example while HEB was building the bridge, other contractors were working on projects directly adjacent to the Ferrymead Bridge project site boundary. This was particularly a challenge when coordinating traffic management between sites and ensuring all commuter traffic was catered for. On Monday, March 13 this year, the great day arrived and the bridge was opened to traffic for the first time since 2012. Four years down the
track, it’s difficult to see how the project could have been completed any sooner, given the immense design difficulties posed by the piling – not to mention the massive disruption to the city’s response capacity from the earthquakes themselves. Costing $34.87 million, with $22.12 million contributed by the New Zealand Transport Agency, the Ferrymead Bridge is now functioning on all four lanes, and commuting times have settled back to what they were before the quakes. Permanent approach work, including lighting, footpaths and retaining walls, will continue through this winter, along with removal of the site offices. Spring will see the start of the last phase of the project, landscaping and planting around the new bridge. For all the complexities and challenges it faced, HEB is approaching the completion of the project “on time and looking to meet budget”, du Plessis said, and the rattled and shaken citizens of Christchurch can tick off another major landmark in the reconstruction of their stricken city.
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CONTRACTOR PROFILE
LIKE MOTHER LIKE DAUGHTER Sons following fathers into the construction industry is a fairly common practice, so it’s refreshing to see a daughter doing the same. But then again, Erin Bowling is just following in her mother Bev’s footsteps – keeping the family business humming from the office. BY MARY SEARLE BELL
Mother and daughter, Bev and Erin Bowling
With business being conducted by their parents at one end of the dining table while they ate at the other, it was inevitable too that the children would also grow up to work for the company in one way or another.
32 www.contractormag.co.nz
You’d have to be blind and deaf to not realise
that women in the civil construction industry are few and far between. However, if you are looking for one, the odds of tracking one down increase considerably if you head for the office. Time and time again men who love building things start businesses, and the women they love keep those businesses running by taking care of the paperwork. The Bowling Infrastructure Group is no exception. Steve Bowling had been working at GHK Piling for seven years and was getting frustrated – he could see opportunities that the company was missing. The solution was to go into business for himself, and who better to partner with than his wife Bev. From day one Bev was involved with the wages and accounting, and the company was managed from the family lounge. With business being conducted by their parents at one end of the dining table while they ate at the other, it was inevitable too that the children would also grow up to work for the company in one way or another. The eldest, Darren, is an electrician and works for the company as an independent contractor. Ben and Guy are both carpenters within the group – Ben does pricing and runs jobs while
Guy works as a carpenter and runs gangs. The youngest, and only daughter, Erin, has followed her mother into the office. It must have been a very busy time for Bev, adding bookwork to her household chores and raising four children who ranged in age from a teen to a toddler. But she says she was fairly resilient. “When Steve was employed at GHK he worked away during the week – there are only so many bridges in the Whangarei District,” she says. “In a way it made things easier having him at home more often.” Working in your own business has many advantages: “I was able to go on school trips and the like – things you’d can’t easily do as an employee. So there were opportunities as well as challenges.” Bev now has “three and a bit grandchildren” and wants to have more time to spend with them, as well as indulging in more travel and tramping. As a result she is spending less time in the office. And much of her work is being taken up by daughter Erin. Erin, as the baby of the family, was only two when her parents started the business. And having grown up with staff meetings in the lounge it came as no surprise that she too chose
Bowling Infrastructure Group boasts a strong portfolio of impressive structures including the recently completed Kotuitui Whitinga footbridge which completes the Whangarei Hatea Loop Walkway.
JULY 2015 33
CONTRACTOR PROFILE
The completed Northland hockey turf is now a very popular sports venue.
After taking over from her mother, Erin held the role for the past four years. She’s just resigned as she’s getting rather busy now that Bev’s cut down her hours at work. However, she will continue to run the highly successful branch awards night.
34 www.contractormag.co.nz
to join the industry along with her three older brothers. She’s 23 now, and although still young, is making her mark in the industry. Not only is she responsible for the finance and HR within the group, she also was, until very recently, secretary of the Northland branch of Civil Contractors NZ, having taken over that role from her mother too. Bev held the post for seven years after her husband ‘volunteered’ her services during a meeting. Back then the branch meeting comprised “half a dozen men sitting round – like a gentlemen’s tea party”. It needed new members, younger people and more enthusiasm. That was achieved during Bev’s tenure and branch meetings now can have up to 40 attendees. After taking over from her mother, Erin held the role for the past four years. She’s just resigned as she’s getting rather busy now that Bev’s cut down her hours at work. However, she will continue to run the highly successful branch awards night. The awards were an initiative she organised for the first time last year – that inaugural event drew nine entries and sold 120 tickets to the dinner. This year the branch received 22 awards entries and the awards dinner (held on June 19) was a sell out at 180 seats with people begging for more. Erin says she organised the awards night to promote the industry: “We’re really proud
of what we do and we should celebrate our successes.” “There was a bit of apathy in the Northland branch for a while,” says Bev. “The recession meant everyone was just focusing on business and keeping their staff. Not so anymore. There’s a lot happening up here now and quite a few exciting things on the go. “There a positive vibe around Northland at the moment.” One of the key benefits of being secretary of the branch is that is has allowed Erin to really get to know the industry and the people who work in it. “It’s a great start,” she says. With her father saying he’s only got “five more years” in the business, Erin is wanting to get the skills and experience to help lead the company in the future. “I’ve still got more to learn and I’m looking at doing more training.” She readily admits she doesn’t have the necessary construction expertise to take over the management of the whole company but she’s passionate about finance and keen to share a management role in the future. “It’s not a standard office job – the industryspecific knowledge is vital.” To make matters more complicated the four companies within the Steve Bowling Group are in four different fields: engineering, construction, civil and piling. Erin needs to have current knowledge on the compliance and
health and safety regulations for all of them. “There’s a lot going on,” she says, “a lot to know, a lot to manage. “Compliance rules change all the time which makes it hard. You have to stay on top of that. Then there’s the things like drug testing, which are never-ending.” Unfortunately, there are no training courses for administration in the construction industry, so it really is no surprise that those who do it well married into the industry, grew up in it, or both.
Erin also has a business coach, who, helpfully, has a construction background, and the women in the industry in Northland, although competitors, are close, she says, so she has plenty of support. Also in her favour is her confidence. “Erin’s always been the one asking questions,” says her mother. “She’s very confident.’ “You do what you have to do,” says Erin. “Women shouldn’t be afraid to speak up or ask questions.”
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One of the key benefits of being secretary of the branch is that is has allowed Erin (pictured right), to really get to know the industry and the people who work in it.
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JULY 2015 35
CONTRACTOR PROJECT
REPLACING THE
KILLER BRIDGE One of the most important NZTA projects in the South Taranaki District for decades is the State Highway 3 Normanby realignment project, which includes the demolition of the old “killer overbridge” and its replacement, a “road under rail” underpass. NEIL RITCHIE explains.
36 www.contractormag.co.nz
THE NORMANBY REALIGNMENT project officially got underway several months ago when Transport Minister Simon Bridges turned the first sod of dirt in the two-year-plus programme that will see the 75-year-old overbridge and its substandard approaches replaced by the “road under rail” underpass and a new stock underpass. From mid-2017, this will see vehicles travelling underneath, rather than over, the existing New Plymouth to Marton railway line, as well as travelling along a straighter, smoother and shorter stretch of this important part of State Highway 3
(SH3). And eliminating the old substandard curved bridge and infrastructure should also see a marked reduction in the number of accidents in an area that has had an average of five each year over the past decade, including some fatalities. A car and van collided on the overbridge during 2005, with the van catching fire, resulting in three fatalities, three serious injuries and a minor injury. And two male motorcyclists in the annual children’s charity ride, Round the Mountain Toy Run, died as a result of another accident on the overbridge during 2012.
DIAGRAM: NZTA
Normanby Township
With the old bridge’s poor safety record, the Taranaki Regional Council has had the overbridge and its approaches in it sights for at least a decade as a key priority in its Regional Land Transport Programme. And this project, which has been identified as a problem part of SH3 in Taranaki, is also part of the Government’s 2014 Accelerated Roading Package. NZTA awarded Downer the main $10.2 million construction contract last December and project manager Iain Fletcher says Downer is utilising “a combination of Downer resources and
subcontracted resources and, where at all possible, using locally based subcontractors and suppliers in an effort to support the local community and economy”. Improved signage, road markings, road surfacing and a reduced speed limit (70 kilometres per hour), as well as a diversion around the existing overbridge, have been in place for several months now to improve road safety during the realignment project four kilometres north of Hawera. Iain says Downer is taking particular care with this four and a half kilometre
long project, given that work is happening adjacent to the existing railway line, “which is an historic site having been constructed over 100 years ago. “There are also records of early European activity, as well as potential Taranaki War skirmishes in the area … these factors have led to an active archaeological interest in earthworks activities. “And due to the length of this site, and the opportunity to re-allocate resources to other areas if necessary, we are able to continue works without delay if any area requires further investigation.” JULY 2015 37
CONTRACTOR PROJECT
Top: A grader works on the sub-grade improvement layer for the construction of the Normanby rail diversion with Mount Taranaki in the background. Above: Initial top soil stripping and trucking away. Above right: Base course being spread for the temporary road diversion.
38 www.contractormag.co.nz
Downer is also expecting to encounter ground water in some places – “as there are deep cuttings immediately to the north of the new bridge location for example”. “However, the more technically challenging section of the site will be the installation of the new four metre by four metre stock underpass through the rail corridor. “Trains run on this line from Monday morning through to Friday night and, in order to retain full control over our construction programme, we have opted to work under a ‘line impassable’ stopping operation rather than a full ‘block of line’. The key benefit of this approach is that it gives us greater flexibility in the programming of the works. “This has also led us to develop a methodology
that involves all materials and plant to be sourced and on site ahead of time, enough personnel to allow continuous around the clock shifts and thoroughly reviewing the work plan, including contingencies for all eventualities.” Downer has to divert the existing railway line at the northern end of the site before construction of the new bridge can begin and this involves constructing a diverted line to the west of the bridge site within a confined area, between local roads, new road construction and the existing live railway. “Strict safety measures are in place for this.” Materials for the project, consisting mainly of roading aggregates and concrete, are being sourced locally, with Downer’s “highly experienced pavement crews” ensuring top
quality roading and pavements. “The new road corridor also passes through several existing farms. And farm land must be regarded as part of a business, rather than just part of the countryside – this is where the farmer earns his living, in the same way as commerce is carried out in a city centre. “To this end, we have endeavoured to keep our impact on the overall footprint of the site to a minimum to ensure that grazing is as uninterrupted as possible and that we provide access to annexed land for grazing whenever we can. “And care is being taken throughout the duration of the works to ensure that we are not unduly interrupting the farmer’s operations, from dust nuisances through to temporary loss of farm races.” This section of SH3 is a key freight route for Taranaki, carrying 6000 vehicles or more a day, with 15 percent of those being heavy vehicles. The realigned highway will head north on the western side of the railway line, linking back via the underpass and providing a straighter, smoother and shorter (by about 500 metres) route across this stretch of highway, bringing
it up to current design speed standards (of 100 kilometres per hour) and eliminating five substandard curves. The “road under rail” underpass will also make the highway more resilient to closure and disruption arising from future crashes and natural events such as earthquakes. Iain adds that initial work is going well. This includes the temporary rail diversion, facilitating the construction of the new rail bridge on the current rail alignment; the new alignment of Te Roti Road at the northern extent of the project, which includes the new rail level crossing in that area; and bulk earthworks that are now finished for the winter due to weather conditions. Piling works for the new bridge started during June and are due to be completed about August and preparations are also underway for the construction of the new stock underpass, due to start in July. NZTA’s highway and network operations project team manager John Jones says: “We appreciate that this project has been a long time coming and we recognise and appreciate the efforts of the local community.”
...care is being taken throughout the duration of the works to ensure that we are not unduly interrupting the farmer’s operations, from dust nuisances through to temporary loss of farm races.”
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JULY 2015 39
CONTRACTOR HISTORY
Wellington circa 1952. A view from Evans Bay in the foreground to Lyall Bay at the top of the picture. Moa Point, where a lot of fill material was extracted is at the upper left and Rongotai Terrace, which was removed entirely along with all its houses, sits in the centre of the photo. The Wellington Aero Club’s hangar (with the circle painted on the roof) is just off right centre.
40 www.contractormag.co.nz
BUILDING A
CAPITAL AIRPORT
There has been an airport of one sort or another at Wellington since the late 1920s when sand dunes at what is now the southern end of the runway were levelled to allow for light aircraft movements. BY RICHARD CAMPBELL.
BEFORE WWII, Wellington airport, or more
correctly Rongotai Aerodrome as it was called then, was just a grass airstrip. During the war, the DeHavilland Aircraft Company set up shop at Rongotai and built its DH82A Tiger Moth aircraft (among others) which were supplied to the RNZAF as primary trainers. These were wheeled out and test flown at Rongotai before being delivered. Following the war, improvements were made to the airstrip and regular inter-island flights were made by several companies including Air New Zealand’s predecessor NAC, but the airstrip was closed down in 1947. Reason for the closure was the unpredictability of the landing surface when it was wet as several aircraft had come to grief when landing due to the boggy condition of the grass landing strip, especially during the winter months. At this point inter-island air operations were transferred to Paraparaumu which had an all weather runway (built just prior to WWII) but the drawback of this was that those people wishing to fly had a good hour’s journey out of Wellington before they even got to the airport. The national airline NAC was about to purchase new aircraft to replace its aging DC-3 types and TEAL, New Zealand’s international airline, was contemplating the purchase of new Lockheed Electra aircraft from the USA. Neither of these types could be used at Paraparaumu as the runway was too short and there was insufficient infrastructure to deal with them. So, the decision was made to build an upto-date airport at Wellington on the site of the old Rongotai airstrip and construction began in 1953. The chosen site sits on a narrow isthmus with Lyall Bay at the southern end and Miramar at the other. It involved massive amounts of earthworks, the largest ever seen in the capital at that stage. Some four million cubic yards of earth had to JULY 2015 41
CONTRACTOR HISTORY
Nearing completion, the full extent of the earthworks can be seen. Compare this photo with the one prior to earthworks commencing and the scale of the project really hits home. It was a very forward-thinking project and a credit to those designers and contractors who were involved.
42 www.contractormag.co.nz
be moved including the complete removal of a hill (Rongotai Terrace) which sat where the centre of the runway was sited. Material from this hill was to be used as fill and was used in the reclamation of 28 hectares of land to extend the runway out into Lyall Bay at the southern end, and into the Miramar peninsula at the northern end. Prime contractor for the job was the New Zealand Ministry of Works, which called on many outside contractors to assist in the work. The southern end of the main runway faces directly out into Cook Strait, a notoriously angry stretch of water in bad weather so measures were taken to prevent sea erosion of the runway at the Lyall Bay end. A contract was let to Wilkins & Davies to construct an 820-foot long breakwater at the southern end of the runway using eight and 15 ton rectangular blocks plus some unique concrete ‘tetrapods’ which had been developed in France. The tetrapods interlinked with each other and were found to be extremely successful in the construction of sea walls in Europe. These were all cast on site in steel moulds,
stored to cure and then placed by a 20-ton capacity portal crane which ran on rails out along the steadily growing breakwater. This crane had been imported from Holland specifically for this job. Houses on the hill known as Rongotai Terrace were either moved or demolished so the hill could be used as fill material. The majority of this hill went into the Miramar (Evans Bay) end of the runway. A locally constructed conveyor belt system (manufactured in Johnsonville) was used for a time but proved to be a little unreliable at times. However, when it was in full operation it could keep a fleet of trucks very busy. Fill for the southern end of the runway came from Moa point, and contained a good quantity of high quality fill. There were also large quantities of sand which had to be moved where the aircraft parking aprons and hangar buildings were to be located and this came out of what was the Miramar golf course, the golf club getting a high quality relocated course in return. The existing aircraft hangar which had been on
Top: 1955. Work has commenced at the southern end and the breakwater is making good progress. The crane imported from Holland is out along the breakwater placing blocks. A small causeway has been constructed to allow fill material into the area to be reclaimed at the right. Things appear to be quiet in the block casting yard. Far left: Magnificent photo of Taylor & Culley’s Euclid TS-24 coming off the hill at Rongotai Terrace with an overflowing load. This was all very good fill material taken from this part of the job. Photo dated 1957. Left: This photo was taken sometime late in 1956 and shows Ministry of Works Euclid SS-12s working in the sand at the site of what is now Miramar Golf Course. The Euclid SS-12s, and the Vickers Vigor dozer in the background were new to New Zealand at the time.
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CONTRACTOR HISTORY
Above: New Zealand Roadmakers Euclid 16TDT twin powered motor scraper at work alongside the Miramar Gas Works. This machine, the second of the type to be imported, had a long history in New Zealand. Imported in 1955, it has only recently gone into preservation. When working for Thames Valley Contractors it was known as ‘Brutus’. Right: Yes, it really is that steep. Ministry of Works Caterpillar D7 with No 70 scraper strips topsoil off Moa Point prior to bulk earthmoving operations. This was “goat country” and a dangerous part of the operation but very necessary as only clean fill could be used in the reclamation. PHOTO: RON NASH
Far right: The only one of its kind in New Zealand, a LeTourneau model C Tournacrane. It was purchased by Dryden Construction to deliver the finished eight and 15 ton concrete block sections to the breakwater for the rail mounted crane that would then place them in their final position. The machine was later sold on to Williamson’s and ended up in Auckland where it languished for a number of years in Panmure. It was last seen in New Plymouth as part of Goodman Construction in 1982. 44 www.contractormag.co.nz
site since 1939 was moved and relocated to the Lyall Bay side of the development. Many private contractors from all over the North Island supplied equipment for use in the project along with the Ministry of Works which also had a sizeable fleet of machines in operation, many of them new and bought specifically for the job. Contractors included New Zealand Roadmakers (Auckland), Taylor & Culley (Hamilton), Horowhenua Earthworks (Palmerston North), F&J Bognuda (Wellington), Dryden Construction (Auckland) and Earthmovers Waikato (Cambridge) to mention just a few. Along with all these contractors came a substantial amount of heavy earthmoving equipment, some of which had never been seen in New Zealand before and represented products from all the major manufacturers at the time. Despite some setbacks due to the foul weather at times, the project pushed ahead and major earthworks had all been completed by the end of 1958 with runway surfacing already underway at that point. The existing DeHavilland Aircraft assembly building was transformed into the new airport’s terminal and a large steel hangar building was
erected to house the new Vickers Viscount aircraft which were to be the main carriers between Auckland, Christchurch and Dunedin. Buildings were also constructed to house SAFE Air’s inter-island air freight operation and these were located just south of the main NAC hangar. Total cost of this major work came in at £5 million. The engineering studies for such an undertaking today would probably cost all of that so it was certainly value for money. The new airport was officially opened on 25th October 1959 with much fanfare and a spectacular airshow. There were examples of aircraft from the RNZAF plus all of New Zealand’s allies in the Pacific – Australia, Great Britain and the United States. This didn’t all entirely go to plan however as an RNZAF Sunderland flying boat made a pass a little too low over the main runway and damaged its hull plus an RAF Avro Vulcan bomber made a misjudgement with his approach and seriously damaged his left hand main undercarriage necessitating a forced landing at Ohakea. This latter incident could have resulted in a major tragedy to what otherwise was a very successful day.
Left: One of F&J Bognuda’s two LeTourneau-Westinghouse C Tournapulls parked along the main runway, next to an Allis-Chalmers BD-3 motor grader. Bognuda had a lot of trucks and earthmoving equipment on this job but got into a bit of strife with the authorities over some dodgy truck tally sheets.
ADDENDA With the advent of the ‘jet-age’ and the purchase of new Douglas DC-8 jet airliners to replace the Lockheed Electra’s, Wellington’s runway, which was not all that long to start with, was found wanting so an extension was added in 1971 with Moa Point once again providing the bulk of the fill material. As this article goes to press, the city planners are looking at yet another extension, this time at the northern end into Evans Bay.
Below left: Tetrapods in place. These ingenious concrete structures are the secret of the Lyall Bay breakwater’s strength. Cast on-site in bolt-together steel forms, each one was carefully placed by a 20-ton portal crane so that they interlocked and would not separate even with very strong wave action.
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CONTRACTOR TECHNOLOGY
Putting the smarts into an urban motorway
Work is progressing to plan on the NZ Transport Agency’s Ngauranga to Aotea Quay upgrade on Wellington’s urban motorway. The project will result in the country’s first ‘smart’ motorway. Copy provided by the NZTA.
46 www.contractormag.co.nz
THE NGAURANGA TO AOTEA QUAY upgrade is part of the transport agency’s ongoing programme to reduce congestion, make journey times more consistent and predictable, and improve safety on the most high-volume section of highway in the Wellington region. And by improving traffic flow on the motorway, local roads will also benefit as motorists switch routes, improving public transport and walking and cycling trips on nearby roads. Glen Prince is the Transport Agency’s
project manager on the job. “The project was set up using an Early Contractor Involvement (ECI) contract,” he says. “We’ve certainly seen the advantages of the ECI model on this project as lead contractor, Fletcher Construction, has brought their substantial experience to the table throughout the development and design phases of the project. “This has resulted in significant innovation and cost savings, such as re-using the Kaiwharawhara stub-bridge.
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“The main way we’ll reduce evening peak time congestion is by creating an extra (fourth) northbound lane from the Aotea on-ramp to Ngauranga,” says Glen. “The design is made up of a range of tactics to gain the space for the fourth lane. These include replacing three kilometres of central median safety barrier with a narrower concrete one, re-purposing the Kaiwharawhara stubbridge, and removing the northbound road shoulder. “The smart motorway system mitigates the potential risks of having no road shoulder and helps improve journeys during both morning and evening peak travel times.”
What exactly is a smart motorway? A smart motorway reduces congestion to help people get where they’re going sooner and more safely. It does this by controlling the flow of vehicles through a range of intelligent transport systems. They’re used effectively in several other countries, including England and the USA. The most critical time the system can influence the severity of congestion is as the traffic volume begins to build towards the peak period, ie during the ‘shoulder peak’ before the road becomes congested. Detectors under the road and radars count the number of vehicles in each lane, as well as the speed they’re travelling. The smart system automatically responds to changes in traffic volumes, based on continually updated traffic records and predictive modelling, and adjusts the speed limit to moderate the traffic flow and reduce the number of vehicles rushing to join the back of the queue. The three main parts of a smart motorway are: Smart technologies – 48 www.contractormag.co.nz
sensors, cameras, speed and lane control signs, and automated enforcement systems (the posted speed limit is the legal limit); smart monitoring and management; and smart drivers doing the right thing, that is sticking to the posted speed limit and minimising lane changes. When all the parts come together, the stop/start nature of congestion is reduced, traffic moves more smoothly, more vehicles get through a section of road, and everyone gets where they’re going sooner and more safely.
Building the smart motorway Along with upgrading the motorway’s existing Active Traffic Management System, the project’s physical work includes: Modifying the existing sign gantries and adding a number of new ones; adding another northbound lane between the Aotea on-ramp and the Ngauranga Gorge/State Highway 2 interchange; replacing three kilometres of central median safety barrier and reusing an old stub-bridge to gain space for the extra lane; building two northbound emergency stopping areas; installing Wellington’s first set of ramp metering signals; widening the State Highway 2 off-ramp at Ngauranga; and building a new southbound on-ramp for emergency services at Ngauranga.
Stuck in the middle Replacing the gravel-filled central median safety barrier with a narrower concrete extruded barrier is the longest job on the project. “Replacing the steel, gravel-filled barrier makes good sense for several reasons,” says Glen. “As well as providing valuable road space for the extra lane, after several decades of service, the old barrier is
getting close to its use-by date as it no longer meets today’s specifications and maintenance is becoming increasingly difficult with a shortage of spare parts.” Removing the barrier involves peeling away the steel lid, scooping out the gravel filling which is re-used as vertical subsoil drainage, and then demolishing and removing the steel sides. Its three metre wide concrete plinth is broken up and removed before the ground is prepared for the new barrier. “Exposing the ground beneath the old barrier has presented a few surprises,” says Glen. “Several un-mapped manholes have been revealed, and the team needed to further investigate the integrity of the pipes, what was in them and where they led. It also required relocating the manholes to provide for future access.” So far, one kilometre of the old barrier has been removed and 400 metres of concrete barrier has been extruded in its place.
The big push sideways “One of the most innovative ideas the ECI team came up with is to re-purpose the two-span, 300 tonne un-used Kaiwharawhara stub-bridge,” says Glen. Part of the Thorndon Overbridge structure, the stub-bridge was designed to be an off-ramp at Kaiwharawhara. But plans changed and it was never used. Instead of building a completely new structure, the ECI team came up with a cost-saving solution that sees the old stub-bridge lowered and pushed back into service as part of the fourth northbound lane. For this to occur, the existing foundations are demolished and each span is lifted and held on a temporary structure while new foundations are built. It’s then moved sideways, and lowered
onto its new foundations. It’s very technically challenging to lift and move a 300 tonne, two-piece bridge. To achieve the task, the team uses up to eight hydraulic jacks, each capable of lifting 100 tonnes. The jacks are linked and controlled by a computer which synchronises them to within a 1mm tolerance to ensure the bridge is lifted evenly and equally. Hundreds of steel tie-bars are inserted into the side of both the stub-bridge and the main
overbridge structure. At its widest point, the structure will be pushed 1.5 metres sideways, coming to rest approximately 800mm from the existing roadway on the Thorndon Overbridge. Concrete will then be poured into the gap, to ‘stich’ the two structures together and the new road surface is laid over the top. Wellington’s smart motorway is due to be operational in April 2016. Keep up to date with progress at nzta.govt.nz/ smartmotorway.
A smart motorway reduces congestion to help people get where they’re going sooner and more safely. It does this by controlling the flow of vehicles through a range of intelligent transport systems. They’re used effectively in several other countries, including England and the USA.
JULY 2015 49
CONTRACTOR INTERNATIONAL
PACIFIC’S FIRST
$80 MILLION FLYOVER The Pacific’s first four-lane overpass, the Kumul Flyover built by New Zealand’s Hawkins Group, was officially opened in May by the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, Peter O’Neill. THE KUMUL FLYOVER provides a faster travel
route from Jacksons International Airport into Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea’s capital, in time for the country’s hosting of the 2015 Pacific Games and the APEC Leaders Forum in 2018. Hawkins won the contract to build the $80 million structure in partnership with local subcontractors. Hawkins employed more than 800 local people including engineers, administrators and health and safety staff to work alongside their diverse international team. The 600-metre structure required 48,000 tonnes of concrete, enough to fill 32 standard (25 metre-long) swimming pools. It was designed in accordance with NZTA and Austroad standards and built with energy saving lighting and to withstand earth tremors. 50 www.contractormag.co.nz
“Hawkins developed close relationships with the community to combine international expertise with local knowledge and experience. We learnt a lot about the wider environment, achieving no lost time injury during the project’s 750,000 working hours,” says Hawkins chief executive, Geoff Hunt. “Hawkins was very impressed with the rigorous, transparent selection process led by the Central Supply and Tenders Board, National Executive Council and the National Capital District,” says Hunt. “The flyover is an example of the government’s vision of increased investment in essential infrastructure like roads, transport, health and education and we look forward to doing a lot more business in Papua New Guinea.”
Far left: Hawkins won the contract to build the $80 million structure in partnership with local subcontractors. Hawkins employed more than 800 local people including engineers, administrators and health and safety staff to work alongside their diverse international team. Left: Peter o’Neill Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea and Geoff Hunt, chief executive Hawkins at the official opening of the Kumul Flyover.
SHARP FACTS • The Kumul Flyover first flyover to be built in the Pacific • Cost was $80 million • The 600 metre-long concrete superstructure is four-lanes wide • Includes a new four-lane 2.2 kilometre road running from Independence Roundabout (Parliament) to the roundabout at Jacksons International Airport • Hawkins employed more than 800 local people from Papua New Guinea through various trades and sub-contractors including engineers and health and safety workers • A state-of-art concrete batching plant was built on-site and local employees were trained to run it
• T he flyover required more than 48,000 tonnes (20,000 cubic metres) of concrete • H awkins achieved zero lost time injury (LTI) during the project’s 750,000 working hours • T he Kumul Flyover was designed in New Zealand in accordance with New Zealand Transport Authority and Austroad standards • D esign features (amongst several other unique features) include: A Flyover to withstand earth tremors; and mechanised structural earth walls • It took 73 weeks to build.
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CONTRACTOR TECHNOLOGY
A concrete case for improvement Timing is critical during a big concrete pour. Virgin Concrete in Whangarei turned to Navman Wireless for help. DURING A BIG CONCRETE pour multiple concrete trucks have to arrive at carefully timed intervals. Too early and the truck idles and wastes fuel; too late and the previously poured concrete has started to harden. Virgin Concrete’s goal was to improve timing and efficiency. Installing a GPS tracking system gave it the information to do just that. Virgin Concrete was established in 2008 and services all of Northland from its base in Whangarei. With a fleet of 13 trucks, the company supplies concrete for both residential and commercial builds, and is fully certified by the NZ Ready Mixed Concrete Association.
Tracking the trucks Managing director Suzy Fisher says she doesn’t know how they managed without the Navman Wireless GPS tracking system. “We get concrete layers and builders ringing up saying ‘how far away is the truck?’ Previously we had to phone the driver, who would have to pull over to take the call, but now we just look it up on in the OnlineAVL2 software. We can tell our customers exactly where the truck is and when it will reach them. “The GPS tracking has allowed us to be very accurate in getting concrete trucks to sites exactly when they are needed, and that makes our customers happy. When the trucks are coming back empty, we can use the system to see exactly where they are so we can plan our next order even before they arrive back at base. As things are constantly changing throughout the day, this gives us the ability to make decisions on the fly. We get the concrete to our clients more quickly, and you can’t put a dollar value on that!” The initial installation was done in 2012 into five trucks. Once Virgin Concrete had tested the system, it gradually installed Navman Wireless Qubes (the tracking hardware) into the rest of the fleet. “We are getting another plant put in to manufacture more concrete, so we will be increasing the size of our fleet,” says Suzy. “The GPS tracking will then be even more important in helping us to manage our fleet efficiently.”
Keeping safe Safety and compliance are top of mind when running a fleet of big trucks. Office manager David Carr says that the local police know they have GPS tracking. “One of our drivers was stopped by the police and his logbook wasn’t up to date. This meant he couldn’t prove that he’d taken the half hour break that he is required by law to do. We were able to show the police, using OnlineAVL2, that the driver had spent over half an hour parked on our premises, so we could
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Suzy Fisher and David Carr of Virgin Concrete in Whangarei are using GPS tracking to get their trucks on site exactly when they’re needed.
prove he had taken that break. Once he saw that, the police officer was happy.” Suzy adds that they also use the GPS tracking to monitor the speed their drivers are doing. “It’s really important for us as employers to monitor their speed and make sure they are driving safely. We set up speed alerts within the system and noticed that one driver was regularly going over the set speed limit. We were able to talk to him to get him to change his behaviour.”
Decreasing taxes David says that before installing GPS tracking, they never claimed back the RUC. “In fact it was the Navman Wireless rep who advised us that we could use the system to claim it back! Previously it was just too difficult. We would have to prove the off-road component through log books and so forth. “The system works it out for us, then we send the claim to the LTSA. We found that our trucks are off road about 2.5 percent of the time, usually on new build sites. It all adds up, so it’s definitely worth claiming that back. In fact we were audited by the LTSA a while back, and they queried a couple of claims. We used the ‘replay a day’ function in the GPS tracking software and were able to prove that our trucks had been off road to deliver to a particular site. Once the inspector saw that, he was happy.”
Managing maintenance The GPS tracking has really improved maintenance scheduling, according to Suzy. “We can schedule all the servicing, COFs and regos for all our vehicles. So now we’re always up to date and don’t have to run round checking the individual trucks to see when they next need attention. It’s a huge time saver.” Overall Suzy says GPS tracking has helped them enormously. “We’re way more efficient and better at keeping our customers happy. The system has totally paid for itself. We can keep our customers informed about where our trucks are, and this helps our customers plan their days. We’re communicating all the time with our customers and Navman Wireless gives us the information we need to help them.”
Towards securing a future workforce MALCOLM ABERNETHY, EXECUTIVE OFFICER, CIVIL CONTRACTORS NZ I PARTICIPATED IN an Engineering Leadership Forum (ELF) meeting recently where we received a short presentation from Futureintech. ELF is made up of membership association leaders that have a direct relationship with engineering, and provides the opportunity to share knowledge and concerns and to work together to present submissions and views on issues affecting their associations. But this column relates to Futureintech which works to increase the number of young people choosing careers in technology, engineering and science. Run by the Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand (IPENZ) and funded by the government through Callaghan Innovation, Futureintech’s goals are to increase the proportion of technology, engineering and science enrolments in tertiary study; raise the profile of careers available; offer students realistic learning experiences; and establish cooperative relationships between industry and schools. Futureintech has an ambassador programme that brings industry people into schools to promote their work and create a spark and encourage an interest in the work they do. Ambassadors share their experiences of the work they do and how they followed a career path to success. Ambassadors inspire students to explore the opportunities available if they have the right attitude and skills that industry demands. Civil construction offers opportunities for innovation, provides communities with better facilities and infrastructure, and protects our environment – all necessary for our economy and sustainable future. With civil construction activities available and the projected growth in population and economy, we need more people with skills in areas such as digital technology, engineering and science. Many school leavers are missing out on satisfying and well-paid career opportunities because they don’t know what they are, or how to get into them. Students can even gain credits towards civil construction qualifications while they are still at school. Careers in civil construction encompassing technology, engineering and science are among the most exciting, varied and rewarding possible. They offer opportunities to travel, discover and create new things, work in teams and really make a difference. The Futureintech programme was created to provide information from people that work in their respective industries and change perceptions about careers that are available. Futureintech has facilitators based in the main population centres – Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch – and a team in Wellington that covers schools outside these areas. Facilitators work with teachers and careers advisers to identify
opportunities for ambassadors to enhance maths, science, technology and careers programmes. Futureintech publishes and distributes a range of flyers, leaflets and brochures, and we also provide information, tertiary study advice and share ambassadors’ stories via our student-focused website. All of this initiative is really good stuff, but there was a link missing relating to our civil construction industry where we require a skilled workforce that is made up of competent workers, supervisors, technicians and engineers. The Civil Trades regime is a step in the right direction, but we need to promote our industry more and at all levels as providing a satisfying and rewarding career. Perceptions are often greater than reality, and the civil infrastructure construction and maintenance industry is one that suffers from those ill-informed perceptions. The stop/ go paddle man on the roadwork site is an important role that ensures safety for our workers and safety for the road user. The plant operator is highly skilled demonstrating eye hand coordination, multi-tasking being the norm as machine controls are numerous. The earthmoving operator following the in-cab GPS screens while operating the controls to cut, fill and shape the ground. The drain layer in the trench using sophisticated materials and controlling alignment of the pipe with technically advanced electronic equipment. The problem is we don’t always convey the complexity, knowledge and skill required to construct and maintain our infrastructure. Even career advisors and teachers that are influencers of our school students when they are considering careers are not aware of our skills. A Wellington contractor laying a pipe line outside a school overheard a teacher standing with a group of students behind the barriers saying that if they didn’t study and do their school work they would end up like those workers in the trench. We are more and more moving to high technology, high skill requirements in the work we undertake on a regular basis. Careers in civil construction are among the most exciting, varied and rewarding. Contractors create new things, work in teams and really make a difference and can be well paid. (Notwithstanding that the rates contractors receive for their work are low and currently have very small margins despite the contracting opportunities that exist.) This column is really a call for contractors to become ambassadors of their industry, to get into the schools and dispel the myths and perceptions associated with Civil Infrastructure Construction. Being an ambassador may also help to secure a future workforce in our industry.
Postal Address: PO Box 12013, Thorndon, Wellington 6144 Physical Address: Margan House, 21 Fitzherbert Terrace, Thorndon, Wellington 6011 Phone 0800 692 376
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CONTRACTOR COMMENT
Expert determination HELEN BROWN, SAM McCUTCHEON, KENSINGTON SWAN LAWYERS IF AND WHEN a dispute arises parties are free to agree on how they will resolve it. One method of dispute resolution that can often be overlooked is expert determination. By Helen Brown, senior associate, and Sam McCutcheon, solicitor Kensington Swan’s Major Projects and Construction team.
Expert determination Expert determination has obvious advantages over a court or arbitration in resolving disputes. The expert determination process is intended to be more flexible, less costly, and result in a quicker decision. A further advantage is that the parties are free to appoint an agreed expert who has the required expertise to make a decision on the specific disputes referred. However, there are several issues that parties to a construction contract need to consider carefully when agreeing to expert determination, such as: • the nature of disputes that will be referred; • the appropriate person to appoint as the expert; and • the powers of the expert in being able to make a determination. There are two key stages at which parties may agree to refer any dispute to an expert; at the time of negotiating the contract, or once a specific dispute (or disputes) has arisen. The parties themselves control the process and if no procedure is specified the expert will determine how he or she will proceed. A recent case highlights the difficulties that can arise when an expert does not discharge their duties in determining disputes, or where the expert determination is seen to be more in the nature of an arbitration. The legal challenges that arise from the expert determination process demonstrates that although parties intend to implement a speedy and final and binding process, that process can still be challenged and parties may still be subjected to further litigation if the rules and procedures are not clearly understood. Disputes arose between the Lighter Quays Residents’ Society Incorporated and three of the four bodies corporate of the Lighter Quay development (LQ); and their property managers, Waterfront Properties Ltd (Waterfront), in relation to LQ’s purported termination of management agreements with Waterfront. The agreements required the parties to refer disputes to an expert for determination. The expert was to act as an expert not an arbitrator and their decision was to be final and binding. During the process, LQ sought to have its witnesses available for questioning at the hearing, but Waterfront opposed. The expert ruled that persons could attend the hearing who had given a written statement. However, at the hearing none of the witnesses were questioned or cross-examined. Ultimately the expert determined that he could not resolve the conflicting evidence between the parties because without cogent evidence, the LQ could not prove the ‘gross misconduct’ needed to lawfully terminate the agreements. As a result, the expert released an interim decision that LQ’s termination of the management agreements was unlawful and that he was unable to resolve the conflict of evidence. LQ 54 www.contractormag.co.nz
brought High Court proceedings seeking among other things a declaration that the termination was lawful. In response Waterfront applied to strike out or stay LQ’s claims on the basis that the dispute was being dealt with by the parties through the agreed dispute resolution process. The strike out application was unsuccessful in the High Court and that decision was upheld by the Court of Appeal. The dispute resolution provisions of the management agreements stated that the expert determination would be final and binding on the parties; and would be determined by a person nominated as an expert and not an arbitrator. Traditionally, where parties have agreed to final and binding determinations, courts have only intervened where the expert has departed from his mandate and/or failed to do what he or she has been appointed to do. In ‘Lighter Quays’ the High Court held that unless the expert had the power to determine his own procedure and require cross-examination, it was not possible for him to determine the question before him and therefore the determination could not be final and binding. The Court of Appeal agreed, finding that the difficulties in the factual evidence was key to the issue before him and the expert’s inability to resolve it resulted in a departure from what he was required to do – make a ruling. The expert was criticised as either being unaware of his powers (to require cross-examine) or decided not to exercise them. The court said that when he realised he couldn’t do what the parties had asked him to do he should have reconvened the hearing. Both the High Court and the Court of Appeal found that the expert had expressly said that he was unable to resolve central aspects of the dispute. His failure to question witnesses did not only mean it was ‘difficult’ to determine the dispute, but that he was ‘unable’ to. Without the parties setting out a procedure for the expert determination, it was the expert’s responsibility to have the necessary processes in place and without those he failed to exercise his inquisitorial powers. The High Court made a further point regarding the validity of the expert determination process and whether the process was an expert determination or in fact an arbitration. Despite the clause in the agreement expressly stating that the expert was not to act as an arbitrator, it was arguable that the substance of the parties’ appointment crossed the line between an expert determination and an arbitration as: it required the expert to be a lawyer; the nature of the dispute meant that matters of procedure and evidence would be issues; the set process was very similar to an arbitration; and an oral hearing was held.
Conclusion Several key issues that parties must be aware of to minimise the risk of challenges include the importance of ensuring that appropriate disputes are referred to an expert; the process and powers of the expert are clearly set out; and that the expert determination process does not morph into an arbitration.
‘Thinkers’ versus ‘doers’ HELMUT MODLIK, CHIEF EXECUTIVE, CONNEXIS JAMES MICHENER FAMOUSLY said, “Scientists dream about doing great things. Engineers do them.” While some might say that it’s actually tradesmen who “do them”, Michener’s statement perpetuates the erroneous idea that dreaming (thinking innovatively) and doing are separate and done by different ‘kinds’ of people. In today’s complex and ever-changing world, separating thinking innovatively and doing, just doesn’t make sense. Indeed, finding and developing people to do both isn’t just desirable – it’s essential to meet the future skill requirements of our industry. Historically in civil construction there has been strong division between thinkers (those with an academic background and working in a ‘professional’ role) and doers (trades and ‘hands on’ people and roles). This division is evident in the perceived value of the respective career pathways, levels of pay, professional esteem and even perceptions about the people employed in these jobs. My father-in-law is a classic example – an old-school builder (circa 1950s’ apprentice) who has often spoken negatively over the years about those “with degrees” working in his industry and their impractical designs and ideas. His view is that such men (and they were always men!) are too often detached from the “real world”, coming up with unworkable ideas which tradesmen have to somehow turn into reality. While we can understand where Michener and my father-inlaw are coming from, clearly thinking innovatively and doing can be done by the same person. Many ‘professionals’ are both thinkers and doers, and many ‘blokes on the tools’ are thinkers and dreamers too. The doers in our industry constantly have to problem solve, be innovative and creative, but always with a practical bias. Indeed, one could argue that innovative doers are more valuable than pure thinkers because there is no point in having great ideas if you can’t implement them! So what’s the problem? Such attitudes are inhibiting our efforts to attract and develop our ideal future workforce! We should be striving to harness the currently under-recognised and underdeveloped creative capacity of our ‘doers’, empowering them to become recognised (and rewarded) ‘thinkers’ too. On the other hand, we also need to encourage our ‘thinkers’ to consider
The NZDEP focuses on the concurrent development of theory and practice, enabling trainees to gain theoretical and practical skills from the get-go... the new approach means that graduates are work ready, with well-developed ‘thinking’ and ‘doing’ skills much earlier.
learning pathways that emphasise and develop their ‘doing’ or practical capabilities. Thankfully, industry is increasingly recognising the importance of combining theoretical knowledge with practical, work-based skills. The New Zealand Diploma in Engineering Practice (NZDEP) and Civil Trade Certification regime are two such examples which are breaking new ground by doing just this. The NZDEP, developed for engineering technicians, focuses on the concurrent development of theory and practice, enabling trainees to gain theoretical and practical skills from the get-go. This is significantly different from the traditional engineering pathway of university degree, job, and then practical experience. Although the traditional path has been successful and produced some fantastic engineers, the new approach means that graduates are work ready, with welldeveloped ‘thinking’ and ‘doing’ skills much earlier. In a similar vein, the Civil Trade Certification regime being implemented in 2015 combines the practical on-job element of traditional trade training with a robust theoretical component. The aim is to produce certified tradespeople with a well-rounded skill set – both theoretical and practical – who are able to have good ideas and implement them effectively and efficiently. I strongly believe that doers can (and should) dream or think innovatively too, and be enabled to act on those ideas. Our traditional professions should also be encouraged to include practical experience in their learning pathways. People who can do both are the future of our industry, and we need to ensure their potential contribution isn’t constrained by outdated attitudes or traditional practices. Providing people with the opportunity to develop both skill sets will benefit the individuals themselves and the wider industry. The steps to successfully achieving this are two-fold. Firstly we need to change our perception that thinking and doing are mutually exclusive. Secondly, we need to adapt our vocational training and learning to enable us to grow people who are able to have great ideas ‘and’ implement them. These should be our premium people! Encouragingly, workforce development in the civil construction sector is heading in this direction, let’s support it and make it the norm. JULY 2015 55
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The Terex S-23E This elevating scraper was a direct development of the company’s TS-18 twin powered conventional scraper and also used the same 33TOT series tractor unit – with a few modifications. BY RICHARD CAMPBELL
TEREX’S S-23E elevating scraper filled a very important gap in Terex’s product line. Missing was a mid-sized elevating scraper to complement the existing 11 cubic yard Terex S-11E and 35 cubic yard Terex S-35E elevating scrapers in the range. Field testing of prototypes began in 1970, (the same year in which the TS-18 was introduced) with the first production models released for sale in late 1971. Traditionally, Terex and its predecessor Euclid, had relied on Clark subsidiary Hancock for the supply of elevating scraper bowls. The S-7, S-12 and S-35 all used complete bowl assemblies manufactured by Hancock, and in the case of the S-11E scraper, the entire machine was manufactured by that company, suitably re-badged and repainted of course. The S-23E continued down this path with Hancock providing a very cleanly designed elevating scraper bowl with smooth sides which broke with normal Hancock design tradition. Visually the new bowl had a strong resemblance to that fitted to Wabco’s model 222H elevating scraper but the two bowls were not related. Terex had high hopes for this new 56 www.contractormag.co.nz
machine and promoted it heavily alongside the new twin-powered TS-18. Not surprisingly, there was considerable competition in the marketplace for this size class machine, which at 23 cubic yards capacity was not too small and not too large. Competition came from several quarters – Caterpillar’s 623B, Wabco’s 222H, Michigan’s 210H (another Clark product) and Fiat-Allis’ 261B. Of these, Cat and Wabco provided the most serious threat as both held big market percentages in terms of sales. Terex’s machine, which was a late entry into the mid-size elevating scraper arena, did not fare too well and suffered with low sales. Terex undertook a minor upgrade of the machine in 1980, changing the profile of the upper bowl to improve load retention and increasing the number of optional tyres that could be installed. All other physical characteristics of the machine remained unchanged. During this period Terex was sold to IBH Corporation, which was not particularly financially sound and its director even less so.
Without the financial stability that General Motors had provided the writing was on the wall for Terex and the company fell over in 1984 owing large amounts of money. It was rescued by Northwest Engineering and was diversified considerably with several of the product lines spun off to other manufacturers. Terex has had several new owners since. The Terex S-23E was discontinued in 1983 after a modest production run. Terex Scotland tried to resurrect the S-23E in early 2000 by introducing a scaleddown version of the machine called the S17E to compete with the Caterpillar 615 but low volume sales saw it lasting a scant three years before being discontinued. Terex no longer produces scrapers of any kind.
The Terex S-23E described Terex designated the S-23E the model 33TOT-H-93SH. The H stood for Hancock and referred to the fact that the machine used a much larger capacity hydraulic pump for powering the elevator motor and ancillary equipment. The chosen engine was the General Motors 8V-71T, turbocharged V8 diesel
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producing 310 flywheel horsepower in this application. An Allison VCLT4465 6-speed powershift transmission was used and this unit incorporated a variable input torque converter which assisted during the machine’s loading cycle by reducing power to the drive train thereby helping to avoid wheel slippage. In addition, an operator-controlled power-locking differential was standard to prevent unwanted wheel spin when loading. In operating trim, the S-23E could attain a top speed of just under 25 mph. Air operated shoe type brakes were employed on both tractor and scraper axles. Terex recommended 29.5x29 E3 tyres for the S-23E but other types were available. A steering system identical to that used on the TS-18 was employed and this allowed turns of 90° in each direction. The Hancock bowl was constructed
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from five oblong box sections and was an extremely strong fabrication. Elevator drive was full hydraulic and powered by a self-adjusting vane type motor. Hydraulic power for the two-speed vane type motor was supplied by a two-section hydraulic pump on the S-23E tractor unit. There were 18 flights on the elevator itself and it was capable of three speeds – low, high and reverse. Ejection was in the usual Hancock manner with a sliding floor and drop down strike off plate. A bulldozer-type ejector pushed out the last remnants of the load through the floor opening. Terex used a fixed three-piece cutting edge on the S-23E. This was at variance with usual Terex practice which normally employed a foursection edge. A total of six removable cutting edge teeth could be fitted to the centre edge
1. Factory photo of the first production Terex S-23E elevating scraper. Although it has no windscreen (optional extra) it’s fitted with the optional cutting edge teeth and rear mudguards. Hancock’s bowl is a very smooth and attractive looking fabrication. PHOTO: AUTHOR’S COLLECTION 2. This is what the last of the S-23Es looked like before the type was discontinued. The bowl sides have been raised slightly to decrease load spillage and the machine is fitted with an open ROPS and windscreen. The short-lived Terex-IBH badge can be seen on the gooseneck. PHOTO: AUTHOR’S COLLECTION
3. Shot on a land leveling job, this Terex S-23E has a full custom-built cab, rooftop air conditioner and carries a pole for laser leveling equipment. PHOTO: INTERNET
4. Another view of the S-23E seen on a land leveling jobsite. The owner has done a fine job of constructing a cab for this machine as it looks better than Terex’s original. Mountings for the laser equipment are plainly visible as is the broken step on the left side of the tractor unit. PHOTO: INTERNET
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1. Open ROPS equipped S-23E at work on an industrial site development. This is an earlier production version with the lower bowl sides. During 1981 these were raised slightly, almost completely covering the elevator ladder frame. The machine appears to be well looked after. Its TS-18 origins are obvious in this view. PHOTO: INTERNET 2. Sad looking derelict Terex S-23E awaits its fate. It is an earlier version with the lower bowl sides. The machine is fitted with a factory cab with external ROPS frame but appears to be being robbed of components, perhaps to keep another one going although the 8V-71 engine is still in place. The Terex-GM logo is still plainly visible on the bowl’s draft arms. PHOTO: INTERNET
3. Posing at a used equipment dealers lot is this Terex S-23E, devoid of any markings but unmistakably an S-23E. It is a later production machine and has a factory cab with external ROPS, the usual presentation for this option as Terex didn’t actually manufacture a ROPS cab as such.
3
PHOTO: INTERNET
BRIEF SPECIFICATION TEREX S-23E (1st year of production) Engine: General Motors 8V-71T turbocharged, V8 diesel rated at 310 flywheel horsepower at 2100 rpm Transmission: Allison VCLT4465 6-speed full powershift with variable input torque converter for loading Top speed:
Approx 25 mph
Brakes:
Full air operated shoe type on all wheels
Standard tyres:
29.5x29, 28 ply, E3
Steering: Dual hydraulic cylinders allowing 90° turns in each direction Turning circle:
36’ 10” (11.22m)
Capacity:
23 cubic yards (17.6m³)
Operation:
All hydraulic
Elevator drive:
2 speed vane-type motor
Flights:
18
Length:
40’ 9” (12.42m)
Width:
10’ 8” (3.25m)
Height:
12’ 6” (3.81m)
Operating weight: 25 tons (empty), 59.5 tons (loaded)
58 www.contractormag.co.nz
to assist in breaking up tightly compacted material making it easier for the elevator to load.
Optional extras Normal options included either open ROPS or a cab with external ROPS cover, air conditioning, heater, change from Milsco to Bostrom air suspension seat, downshift inhibitor and four variations of tyres, with or without rear fenders, plus the aforementioned cutting edge teeth.
The New Zealand connection To the best of your author’s knowledge, and despite New Zealand Terex dealer Clyde Engineering’s best efforts, no Terex S-23Es were ever imported into New Zealand. There were units sold in Australia, a couple of which are still in operation, but due to the low sales of the type worldwide, very few remain.
For the model collector Models of Euclid and Terex scrapers are very hard to come by and those few that are available are ridiculously expensive to the point of stupidity. Why this should be so I do not know as Euclid/Terex built some of the most iconic scrapers in earthmoving history and their omission in model form is nothing short of a crime. If available they would sell very well so what’s the problem – some form of licensing issue? It will then come as no surprise to the readership to know that there are no models of the Terex S-23E available in any scale. Wake up model manufacturers!
CONTRAFED M A RC H 2 0 1 5
NEW ZEALAND’S CIVIL CONTRACTING INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
A VERY VERSATILE DOZER
THE VOICE OF NEW ZEALAND INDUSTRY APRIL 2015
ENERGY NZ PERSPECTIVES 2015
NEW ZEALAND’S CIVIL CONTRACTING INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
PUBLISHING CO. LTD OIL & GAS IN FOCUS AUTUMN VOL.9 NO.2 2015
PERSPECTIVES 2015
GOING FOR THE HAT TRICK
CablePrice’s John Deere 700J LGP handles heavy work in a number of conditions, from rural earthmoving to forestry roading and civil work
Wirtgen New Zealand takes a multifaceted approach to construction hardware in conjunction with M2PP Alliance partner, Higgins.
Statoil’s Kiwi plans The Norwegian giant discusses ambitions
INSIDE:
INSIDE:
Ex Association chief executive Jeremy Sole reflects back Contracting innovations: Christchurch’s wastewater upgrade Ramping up housing supply through a highway interchange Investing in youth – a worthy school project in Northland
National Excavator Operator Competition highlights Heavy hauling one of the biggest loads ever through Northland ANZAC Memorial Park opens in time for 2015 commemoration Road cones – there’s more to them than you’d think
18/02/15 5:39 pm
Cover_Upfront.indd 1
Exploration – hope versus adversity
Vol.9 No.1
Two experts on finding the big one Vol.9 No.1
Cover_Upfront.indd 1
ENERGY NZ
20/03/15 7:51 pm
Geothermal – where to now Future proofing a great resource
1 eNZP COVER_15_withspine_NEW.indd 1
12/12/14 11:20 am
1_CoverEnergyNZ_Gas.indd 1
NZ LOCAL GOVERNMENT MAGAZINE
NZ LOCAL GOVERNMENT MAGAZINE
VOL 52 • MARCH 2015 • $8.95
VOL 52 • APRIL 2015 • $8.95
NEW ZEALAND QUARRYING & MINING Volume 12 - No 1 | February - March 2015 | $8.95
20/03/15 1:23 pm
Maximising the resource
NEW ZEALAND QUARRYING & MINING
GOING BACK FOR VALUE Amuri Lime “couldn’t be happier”
Volume 12 - No 2 | April - May 2015 | $8.95
Scalping lime and serpentine deep in the heart of the Waikato
with its second Hitachi wheeled loader from CablePrice
Seeing our cities in
A WHOLE
ON TRACK
NEW LIGHT
Geospatial experts map out walking paths & cycleways p16
GORE’S STEVE PARRY
On making every minute count p20
IN PRAISE OF GOOD WORK
The bare bones for smart cities p16
Local government’s fantastic EAs & PAs p24
GOING DIGITAL
New Plymouth District Council turns mobile-first p30
DOLLARS & SENSE
Stevenson Resources is redeveloping its Drury Quarry to get at new resources.
WHEN CONSENTING GETS TOO HARD
Bathurst Resources’ corporate manager talks about her job and the industry.
THE GOOD, THE BAD & THE UGLY Great consultation documents p14
EATING AWAY AT OUR ASSETS
The corrosively high cost of failing water infrastructure p34
A BROAD BAND OF OPPORTUNITY
A small Taranaki quarry under consenting pressure packs it in
LOOKING FOR THE GOD PARTICLE
TODD’S AUSSIE MINE INVESTMENT
Government’s $350 million pledge p28
Todd Corporation sets up a minerals arm to invest in Pilbara iron ore.
LEST WE FORGET
The search for the ideal skid resistant roading stone continues
Wellington City Council marks 100 years since Gallipoli p36
Q&M2015 Feb-Mar.indd 1
LG APRIL_1504.indd 1
VISIT OUR WEBSITE
One of the country’s oldest city quarries has started its rehabilitation
CHATTING WITH SAM AARONS
How should local government be funded? p12
LG March_1503.indd 1
TIME TO FILL IT UP
LOOKING 150 YEARS AHEAD
21/01/15 3:20 pm
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20/03/15 9:03 am
20/03/15 5:24 pm
18/02/15 4:38 pm
www.contractormag.co.nz
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EDITORIAL ENQUIRIES
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Contractor, Q&M and EnergyNZ Alan Titchall Email alan@contrafed.co.nz Phone +64 9 636 5712
Contractor and Q&M Charles Fairbairn Email charles@contrafed.co.nz Phone +64 9 636 5724 Mob +64 21 411 890
NZ Local Government Ruth Le Pla Email ruth@localgovernmentmag.co.nz Phone +64 21 266 3978
NZ Local Government and EnergyNZ Peter Corcoran Email peter@contrafed.co.nz Phone +64 7 825 7557 Mob +64 21 272 7227
CONTRACTOR MOTORING BY PETER GILL
AN OBESSION WITH HOOTERS
Sticking to bacon butties The American influence on everything swept through the 1950s, to the point that it even infiltrated British car design and styling. The 1951 Austin A90 Atlantic is an example. I saw a well restored one parked outside the fishing club rooms in Whangaroa, Northland, the other day. It’s just a derivative of the 1949 Austin A40, for goodness sake, that’s been heated up and put in a Wyoming wind tunnel and is straining for an American effect. They didn’t sell many. Brits didn’t get it, and they just carried on munching bacon butties, driving Morris 8s, and having sex only every third full moon.
HATS OFF TO CLASSIC CRANES I am the son of an Air Force senior NCO and every base we lived on the UK and NZ had a Coles crane. Coles began making cranes in Sunderland, England in the 1880s. The standard issue Coles crane that the air force had was mounted on a Thorneycroft truck and could lift up to six imperial tons. It was used to lift engines and propellers out of planes, even whole planes if they were not too big, and anything else that needed lifting in and around the base. Many were sold into civilian life, including here in New Zealand. A ritual in the air force was that an experienced Coles crane operator would have a cadet stand to attention with his cap on. The operator would drive up to the cadet, lower the boom, chain and hook, and deftly remove the man’s cap. 60 www.contractormag.co.nz
A news organisation for which I am a correspondent has recently reported that the American fast food chain HOOTERS is studying the New Zealand market to determine whether they’d like to have a presence here. Quite how the term Hooter came to stand for abundant mammary substance escapes me. I thought a Hooter was something that made a noise to warn people that a train or vehicle was coming. You can, however, see in American cars down the ages, the obsession of the men of that nation with the said piece of female equipage. Look for instance at our pictures of the 1940s Ford Single Spinner, which then morphed into the early 1950s Twin Spinner. Various car companies continued the theme. Some psychologists put it down to being taken off breast feeding too early. You can be sure that the HOOTERS restaurant chain will require the equipage to be on full beam, not dip. Fun though all this may be for some, I have lately seen five women in my circle of friends (fortunately not wife Anne) have mastectomies or partial mastectomies. When that happens, you look at the subject of breasts through an entirely different lens.
FORD’S UNFATHOMABLE EDGE
Some things are unfathomable. Such as why they sell baguettes in bags that leave a third of the loaf exposed to the world, its microbes and sneeze emissions. Why you can spend a resentful five minutes and many small shards of paper trying to unravel the beginning of a new loo roll. And why Toyota New Zealand has lost its 32 year dominance of the ute market to Ford. The Ford Ranger ute began to shove out the Hi Lux last year, and finished the year ahead. In this year’s sales figures to date, Ford are going to do it again. I can only
surmise the reason. The Ranger is a better looking vehicle with a visage that hints of serious purposefulness. The uglier and more aggressive a vehicle looks, the more the market likes it. And the Ranger ticks those boxes. If it were possible to ask my old acquaintance and champion of the Hi Lux, Barry Crump for his opinion on this development, I know what he’d say. “It’s a fair bastard, mate”. But alas I can’t ask him because he’s dead just at the moment.
How many seconds? Being recently appointed as ballet correspondent for Popular Mechanics Magazine made me take stock of my life. Forty years of columnising on cars and motoring, as well as many other subjects, made muse upon why I was now being assigned to report on what torque readings the braces in a tutu need to be wound up to for maximum flair effect. But those retrospective musings also reminded me that in all that time, the one super car I had never driven was a Lamborghini. So, I report blindly that there is a new and feisty version of the Lamborghini Adventador SV on the way to New Zealand. 6.5 litre. V12 . All wheel drive. $775,000. The importers expect to sell four or five here over the next couple of years. It can break 350km/hr and hit 100 km/hr in 2.8
www.bigblocks.co.nz
seconds. I can’t see how I could use that kind of performance in Karangahape Road. I am also greatly focused on getting off a speed camera ticket for exceeding the 50km limit by 5km/hr in a Nissan Maxima in Ellerslie.
INTERLOCKING PRECAST CONCRETE BLOCKS PH 0800300488 TODAY
JULY 2015 61
CONTRACTOR INNOVATIONS
3D laser scanning fills a void Innovative 3D laser scanning is increasingly becoming the go-to method for surveying complex civil infrastructure projects. A recent example is The Bridge of Remembrance over the Avon River in Christchurch which was severely structurally damaged in the earthquakes. Downers, the contractors engaged to facilitate its repair, appointed engineers, surveyors, and planners Woods to survey the bridge and capture its dimensions so that Southern Cross Engineering could do the structural design required for the repairs. The bridge’s Triumphal Arch had challenges that conventional survey techniques would have struggled to overcome, says Woods’ survey manager Rowan Hallam. “Each of the four arch columns contained voids, with voids also in the horizontal areas above the arches – a big ask for conventional surveying.” Using its Leica Scanstation P20, the team captured the external facades from 10 scanner locations around the arch. The internal voids were captured from 14 scanner locations, 10 of which were inverted scanner positions along the top of the arch. Access was obtained into the bottom of the inner voids so the remaining four scans could be completed. Back in the office the surveyors registered these 24 scans together to millimetre precision to produce an accurate point cloud representation of the complex shapes of the arch, its inner voids and the surrounding bridge. The team then modelled the bridge in Revit software and delivered a CAD model to the client.
Let there be light The new Mini Senator LED work lamp might be small in size, but it packs a powerful night-time punch. It’s the latest model to join NARVA’s popular Senator LED work lamp range, offering many of the features and benefits of larger variants, but in a more compact format. Suited to both professional and recreational use, the Mini Senator delivers a brilliant white light output, with the option of either Flood Beam or Hybrid Beam models. The Flood Beam model (No 72465) produces 1200 lumens from its 4x3W LEDs, while the Hybrid (No 72469) produces an even brighter 2000 lumens from 4x5W LEDs. A feature of the Hybrid is its beam performance, which produces a combination flood and spot beam for longer light penetration. LED technology also means these lights draw a fraction of the power consumed by ordinary work lamps. The Senator LED work lamps are available from leading automotive outlets are covered by NARVA’s five-year LED warranty.
Compact, yet very powerful, the new Mini Senator LED work lamps from NARVA come in Flood Beam or Hybrid Beam models.
CONTRACTORS’ DIARY Date Event
Venue
Contact
8-10 Jul Crane Assoc of NZ Conference 15-17 Jul QuarryNZ Conference 19-21 Jul LGNZ Conference 30 Jul - 1 Aug ACENZ Conference 2015 5-7 Aug Civil Contractors NZ 7 Aug Road Controlling Authorities Forum 12-14 Aug NZ Heavy Haulage Conference 15-18 Aug Coasts and Ports 2015 Conference 16-18 Sep Water New Zealand Conference
Trinity Wharf, Tauranga Claudelands, Hamilton Rotorua Energy Events Centre Hanmer Springs Wairakei Resort, Taupo Wellington International Airport Conference Centre James Cook Hotel, Wellington Pullman Hotel, Auckland Claudelands, Hamilton
www.cranes.org.nz www.quarrynz.com www.lgnz2015.co.nz/lgnz15 www.acenz.org.nz www.nzcontractors.co.nz www.rcaforum.org.nz/node/101 www.hha.org.nz www.coastsandports2015.com www.waternzconference.org.nz
29-30 Sep
NZ Coatings & Corrosion Conference Ellerslie Events Centre, Auckland
Please send any contributions for Contractors’ Diary to kevin@contrafed.co.nz, or phone 09 636 5710
62 www.contractormag.co.nz
www.conferenz.co.nz/conferences
Flood worker safety
Remote controlled excavators tackle hazardous demolition In what may well be a world first, New Zealand demolition contractor Protranz has set up three Komatsu excavators for remote control operation, allowing them to demolish badly damaged houses close to dangerously unstable cliffs resulting from Christchurch’s devastating February 2011 earthquake. Gerard Daldry, owner of Protranz, has three Komatsu excavators set up for remote control: a PC270LC-8, a PC138US-8 and a PC88MR-8. After four years of tests and trial and error, he now has a solution that allows the excavators to go between conventional manual operation and remote control with the flick of a switch. The remote controls are a “mirror image” of the joysticks in the digger itself, allowing Gerard and his team to use a number of processes for cliff-side remote operations. One involves using a helicopter hovering directly over a house being demolished, giving the operator a literal “birds-eye” view of the operation while the excavator does its work below, or having the operator located in a travel tower a safe distance from the work area. Another involves the PC270 operator controlling the larger machine from inside its cab, as well as remotely controlling one of the two smaller excavators as required. The larger machine carries out the bulk demolition work, then one of the smaller machines comes in and loads out the demolished material to a “safe” zone within reach of the PC270, which then picks up the material and loads it onto trucks. Protranz has also taken steps to minimise the chances of the machines working in the danger zones breaking down and being very difficult, if not impossible, to retrieve. “We have a separate person constantly monitoring the machines in the danger zone – fuel levels, oil pressures, temperatures, everything – who is in radio contact with the operator. Gerard can see multiple applications for this technology, including landmine fields, ammunition dumps, damaged nuclear reactors and mine rescue operations.
A new one-day course from Rescue 3 is designed to assist organisations whose employees may need to work around flood water – such as roading and stormwater contractors, flood engineers and vehicle breakdown services. Flood Water Safety has half a day in the classroom discussing safety planning, working safely around flood water, flood water features and hazards, vehicles in water safety and escape methods, personal protective equipment, special hazards (aqueducts, manholes etc), medical considerations, decontamination, communications and incident management. The second part of the day is spent in ‘moving’ water and covers how to use throwbags, wading/crossing techniques, and survival swimming. Taught by internationally qualified swiftwater rescue instructors, this course is a must for any employee or volunteer working near or in flood water. See www.rescue3nz.org/calendar/fws for more details.
JULY 2015 63
CONTRACTOR CIVIL CONTRACTORS NEW ZEALAND
Working for members News pages, covering the association’s latest news, views, activities and intentions. Health and Safety Reform Bill date change The Transport and Industrial Relations Select Committee’s report back date on the Health and Safety Reform Bill has changed from May 29 to July 24. Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Michael Woodhouse says the Select Committee has made “excellent progress” and he is confident the Bill is in good shape. Minister Woodhouse says it’s important to take the time to land the legislation in the right place, ensuring the reforms are “sensible, workable, and will make a real difference to improve New Zealand’s unacceptable safety record.” The Government remains absolutely committed to achieving its goal of at least a 25 per cent reduction in serious injuries and fatalities in the workplace by 2020.
New residential construction guide While a large amount of the materials included in this guide are not directly associated with Civil Contractors work there are sections in the guidance that are applicable, For example paving materials, retaining walls, concrete and stone work. MBIE released new technical guidance, the Guide to tolerances, materials and workmanship in new residential construction. This guidance is available for download from: www.building.govt.nz/guideto-tolerances.
Latest Transport Agency indexes The latest Cost Index Values for both Infrastructure and Public Transport for the March 2015 quarter are available via the links on the NZ Transport Agency’s ‘Procurement-tools’ web page: http://www.nzta.govt.nz/resources/procurement-manual/ procurement-tools.html.
Exemption of equipment capable of load-lifting The following is the NZ Gazette notice requiring the fitting of hose burst protection valves on excavators greater than seven tonne. Pursuant to Regulation 6 of the Health and Safety in Employment (Pressure Equipment, Cranes, and Passenger Ropeways) Regulations 1999, I, Richard Steel, Manager Technical Support Services, Ministry
of Business, Innovation and Employment, in exercise of the powers delegated to me by the Secretary of Labour, give notice of exemption from the requirements of these Regulations for the following equipment: Items of mobile plant (including earth-moving equipment), not originally designed as a crane, and used for load lifting incidental to their principal function are entirely exempt from the Health and Safety in Employment (Pressure Equipment, Cranes, and Passenger Ropeways) Regulations 1999 subject to the following conditions as applicable: 1. Lifting points and equipment used for rigging loads are to be certified by a Chartered Professional Engineer; and 2. in the case of new and used hydraulic excavators with an operating weight of 7 tonne or more, the following additional conditions apply: a) the equipment is not to be modified to make it operate as a crane other than the provision of a lifting point; and b) hose burst protection valves are required after 1 January 2016; and c) operators and ground support personnel are to be adequately trained; and d) operations are to be carried out in accordance with the Approved Code of Practice for Load-Lifting - Rigging; and e) the equipment is to have a loading chart available to operators.
Regulatory requirements for Forestry Mobile Plant There is a range of plant used in forestry harvesting to lift or carry suspended loads. Some of this equipment meets the definition of a crane under the Health and Safety Pressure Equipment, Cranes, and Passenger Ropeways regulations (PECPR), some of it is specifically excluded from these regulations and some is potentially captured by an exemption of equipment capable of load lifting gazetted by MBIE in 2013. All forestry equipment that meets the definition of a crane must meet the requirements of PECPR. For example a self-loader when loading logs onto a truck by means of a truck mounted crane. • For more detail contact Civil Contractors New Zealand, Malcolm Abernethy.
•
ADV ERT ISERS INDEX AB Equipment Allied Petroleum Bridon Cookes
OFC, 16, 17 49 4
Eroad 6
Road Science
Glenbrook Machinery
31
Rocktec 33
3
Ryco 63
Gough Cat
14
CablePrice OBC
Hirepool 21
Synergy Positioning
25
CCNZ
Hynds Pipe Systems
Taylor Built
15
7, IBC
39
Connexis 43
Hytools 51
Transdiesel IFC
Contractor subscription
13
Kubota (CB Norwood)
Youngman Richardson
Counties Ready Mix
61
OMC Power Equipment
DitchWitch NZ
9
ENZED 11
64 www.contractormag.co.nz
35 5
Power Equipment
45
Prime Pump
10
29
THE FUTURE TODAY
Civil Contractors New Zealand Inc. Conference, Wairakei Resort, Taupo. 5-7 August 2015
Registration Now Open... Have You Registered Yet?
For Registration Information and Programme Updates: www.ccnzconference.co.nz Conference Organisers: ForumPoint2 Limited, kathryn@fp2.co.nz, 07 838 1098
• Network opportunities to renew old relationships and build new ones • Learn the latest developments of the Health and Safety legislation and what it means for your contracting business • Participate in discussion forums • Learn about the opportunities for SME’s and discuss issues directly with NZTA • Celebrate success at the Z People Awards and Hirepool Civil Contractors NZ Construction Excellence Awards
www.ccnzconference.co.nz
// L I G H T C O N S T R U C T I O N E X C AVAT O R S With an extensive history of quality engineering and innovation, the new Hitachi mini excavators have evolved to deliver a new level of precision, power and productivity.
ZX17U-5 / ZX26U-5
ZX33U-5 / ZX38U-5 / ZX48U-5 / ZX55U-5 / ZX65USB-5
(New Models)
120315_Hitachi_Light_Excavators_V2
SPECIFICATIONS MAKE
MODEL
WEIGHT kg
WIDTH Blade mm
BUCKET m3
DIG DEPTH mm
BREAKOUT kgf
POWER hp @ rpm
FLOW L/min
Hitachi
ZAXIS 17U-5
1880
980/1280
0.044
2190
1630
14.4 @ 2400
2 x 19.2
Hitachi
ZAXIS 26U-5
2570
1500
0.06
2590
2300
19.7 @ 2200
2 x 35.2/ 1 x 17.6
Hitachi
ZAXIS 33U-5
3510
1550
0.11
3130
2770
28.4 @ 2400
2 x 38.4/ 1 x 22.8
Hitachi
ZAXIS 38U-5
3960
1740
0.11
3460
2760
28.4 @ 2400
2 x 38.4/ 1 x 22.8
Hitachi
ZAXIS 48U-5
4900
1960
0.13
3630
3270
37.8 @ 2400
120
Hitachi
ZAXIS 55U-5
5210
2000
0.13
3830
3760
37.8 @ 2400
120
Hitachi
ZAXIS 65USB-5
6470
2000
0.18
4120
4190
45.7 @ 2000
144
For more information please contact your local CablePrice branch or visit www.cableprice.co.nz. Models shown are for illustration purposes only and may or may not include options available in New Zealand. Weights noted are for cabin units. (Excludes ZX17U-5 and ZX26U-5)
0800 555 456 sales@cableprice.co.nz www.cableprice.co.nz