NEW ZEALAND’S CIVIL CONTRACTING INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
Hirepool
pleased to continue CCNZ partnership INSIDE: The ConstructSafe champ – Roger McRae Huntly’s progress – Waikato Expressway Top of its game – Britton House Movers Fiji roading upgrade – a Higgins project
AUGUST 2017
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CONTENTS CONTRACTOR
30
INSIDE: Regulars 6 Editorial 8 Upfront 10 Contractors’ Diary 18 On the cover 66 Classic Machines 70 Motoring 72 Innovations 74 Civil Contractors NZ update 74 Advertisers index
Highlights / Features 20 Profile: The ConstructSafe champion Interview with Roger McRae.
24 The new face of public works engineering Samantha Gain, IPWEA NZ’s first female president.
26 IPWEA NZ Excellence Awards
A few of the winning and commended entries related to Civil Contracting.
28 Blurring the lines
Hynds Pipe Systems IPWEA NZ’s paper of the year.
Hirepool’s continued support for CCNZ is an opportunity for the company to recognise the construction sector’s value to its business.
32 Profile: Working the dream
Profiling Paul Herbison from Boss Attachments.
Comment 60 Peter Silcock CCNZ 61 Jonathan Bhana-Thomson Heavy Haulage Association 62 Regan Burke ICB 63 David Worsnop Connexis 64 Kent Perry
Heaney & Partners
34 Engaging with the environment
ON THE COVER
The Huntly section of the Waikato Expressway in progress
See page 18
40 On top of their game
Family owned Britton house movers in action.
46 Fijian assignment
H iggins’ four year, $66 million upgrade of a section of the Queens Road.
52 Technical: Buyers guide
For on-board scales and weighing systems.
56 Heritage trails
A concise history of Kiwing roading.
p 66 Forgotten machines AUGUST 2017 5
CONTRACTOR EDITORIAL
Southern hospitality beckons At the CCNZ conference this month Teletrac Navman will make a 15-minute presentation on the results of an industry survey it initiated last month. Sponsored by CCNZ and Contractor magazine, and executed by Colmar Brunton, 150 participants answered 26 questions on a number of industry issues ranging from health and safety to the cost of regulations. Included were questions relating to this magazine. They were asked what they liked about it and what they would like to see more of. I am glad to say the responses were mostly very complimentary, thank you, and the suggestions very sensible. A common request was for more focus on smaller contractors and articles on how best to operate machinery. We are now working on adding these two subjects to the magazine’s future content. We will also publish some of the results from the rest of the survey in the September issue of Contractor. The CCNZ conference in Dunedin beckons this month and we hope you will visit our stand (number 19). Our new general manager David Penny will also be there for a short time. I always look forward to visiting this southern city to relive fond memories of my student days when I hung around with a few ‘characters’ from the mining school. A few years ago I was invited back to visit my old hall of residence – Arana Hall. Boy, times have changed. I had my pronunciation corrected – they don’t call it A-rana anymore, it’s pronounced Ara-na (Alan in Maori). And the young co-ed student residents looked studiously sober. The university has bought up every pub near its campus it can get its hands on – to thwart the notorious drinking standards I recall. The infamous Captain Cook is the last pub near the campus. It closed in 2013 after 160 years and opened again last year after an extensive rennovation by investors who include Ollie Turner (CCNZ Southern regional manager). It is now an upmarket pub and up for lease, if you want to change your career. When I was a student, a long time ago, Ollie was a barman at the old Cook, which was still serving free ‘counter lunches’. These were the days when workers preferred a liquid lunch, and students proved their mettle in ‘chunder’ races after consuming numerous jugs of stout flavoured with raspberry cordial. If you can stand the bitter easterlies that sweep over this city, then Dunedin is a swell place to live, and very easy to motor around. It’s also a ‘character’ city whose Victorian and Edwardian architecture was spared the sort of ‘modernisation’ that turned Auckland into a ubiquitous metropolis. And let’s not forget – this was the birthplace of Fulton Hogan, founded by Julius Fulton and Robert Hogan in Dunedin in 1933, and Fletcher Construction. Scottish immigrant James Fletcher arrived in Dunedin in 1908 with a bag of carpentry tools and set up a company that by the 1930s was one of the biggest construction companies in this country. The very first home he built for a client in 1909 was restored by Fletcher Challenge and is open to the public as a tourist attraction. One of James’ own homes (built in 1924) in the centre of Dunedin is a luxury boutique hotel called Fletcher Lodge. If you are wandering the campus of Otago Unversity the magnificant Allen Hall was built by him in 1914 as the university’s first Student Union building. Meantime, please read on. There is a lot of content variety in this 78-page-issue, from a catch-up with veteran house mover Paul Britton, to a Higgins’ roading project in Fiji, and a buyers’ guide to on-board scales and weighing systems. Alan Titchall Editorial Manager
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 EDITORIAL MANAGER Alan Titchall DDI: 09 636 5712 Mobile: 027 405 0338 Email: alan@contrafed.co.nz REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS Mary Searle Bell, Richard Campbell, Hugh de Lacy, Cameron Officer, Richard Silcock. 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.
www.linkedin.com/NZcontractor @NZContractormag nz contractor magazine nz contractor magazine 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
6 www.contractormag.co.nz
Kobelco Sales, Parts and Service - Nationwide The Kobelco range includes excavators featuring advanced power plants that reduce fuel consumption, new hydraulic circuitry to minimise pressure loss, and highly efficient electronically controlled common-rail fuel injection engines. Kobelco excavators provide greater performance and improved cost efficiency when compared to competitors’ machines. With an international reputation for quality and reliability, the Kobelco range provides a quality excavator for every New Zealand application.
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CONTRACTOR UPFRONT
Fijian ingenuity Contrafed Publishing sales manager Charles Fairbairn took these snaps while on holiday on Vomo Island, Fiji, last month. When you haven’t got a dry dock to fix your engine just haul it up on the beach with an excavator, then dig a trench for access, then
use the bucket as a gantry crane. Our machinery expert Richard Campbell says the machine is “a badly neglected Komatsu PC120-6, which would date from the mid-1990s”.
Health and safety awards You are invited to share your success with the industry by entering the Site Safe Construction Health and Safety Awards in construction. The awards are now open for entries from businesses and individuals who have demonstrated leadership, innovation and commitment to health and safety. They are free to enter and winners receive a trophy, certificate, $1000 gift from the sponsor and a feature article in the Site Safe newsletter. Site Safe chief Alison Molloy says: “Celebrating and rewarding success, whether it be through leadership or innovation, helps the industry as a whole to lift the standard of health and safety. “Sharing the stories of companies who are champions of health and safety excellence encourages best practice and provides an opportunity for others to learn from their success.” The awards are open to both Site Safe member and non-member companies. Categories are: The Safety Innovation Award – small to medium business (up to 50 employees); The Safety Innovation Award – large business (over 50 employees); The Safety Leadership Award (small, 8 www.contractormag.co.nz
medium or large business); and The Safety Contribution Award (individual or small team). The awards will be presented at Site Safe’s Evening of Celebration on November 8 at Alexandra Park in Auckland. The evening also celebrates the graduation of students who have completed the Site Safe Certificate in Construction Site Safety. Applications for both the awards and the Certificate in Construction Site Safety scholarships are open now until September 1. You can download an application form from the Safe Site website www.sitesafe.org.nz.
FH appointments Fulton Hogan has appointed Graeme Johnson to the position of CEO – NZ Regional Business and Domenic De-Fazio to the position of CEO – NZ Construction. Both are respected Fulton Hogan leaders who have nearly 30 years’ collective experience within the company. They take over from Robert Jones who stepped down at the end of June 2017 after serving as the New Zealand CEO for two years. Fulton Hogan has realigned its New Zealand leadership into two streams – Regional Business, and Construction. And, working closely together, Johnson and De-Fazio will deliver an integrated end-to-end service and innovative technologies that meet the needs of customers today and in the future, says the company. Graeme Johnson has held several senior management roles within Fulton Hogan, most recently as general manager – South Island responsible for six South Island regional businesses and a staff of over 1600. Domenic De-Fazio was most recently general manager – Southern Construction (Victoria and Tasmania) where he led the business’ diversification into rail, water and airports.
QuarryNZ CoC rewards lifted Afer discussions between IOQ NZ, AQA and WorkSafe, changes were agreed to the claimable CPD hours for the QuarryNZ conference held in Auckland last month. Any CoC holders attending the conference had the opportunity to attain up to 12 hours formal CPD through three special workshops. At last year’s conference they were only able to claim six hours formal CPD in total. Each workshop was of a two-hour duration and this will allow the CoC holder attending a workshop to claim two hours formal CPD. CoC holders also earned four hours just for attending the conference and another two if they attended the two AGMs.
Domenic De-Fazio
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CONTRACTOR UPFRONT
Queenstown’s biggest projects The Kawarau Falls Bridge project was featured in the June issue of Contractor and while it is an essential upgrade for the expanding tourism town of Queenstown, it has also created major traffic disruption. The Transport Agency and McConnell Dowell have agreed on a traffic management plan for the busy Christmas break that will see two-way traffic using the old Kawarau Falls bridge and one lane of the new bridge. The project had a completion date of December 2017, however the work programme has been adjusted to include the two QueenstownLakes District Council (QLDC) water pipelines. The new bridge will open to two-lane traffic by late March next year.
QLDC chief Mike Theelen says the pipes are an important piece of infrastructure to future proof the town’s wastewater network. The pipelines are part of QLDC’s infrastructure development to support the subdivisions south of the Kawarau River. They will service, Hanley Downs, Jack’s Point and Kelvin Heights. “While this work will impact on the final completion date for the project, doing it now will be less disruptive than digging up the road in a few years’ time to lay them then.” The inclusion of the pipelines in the bridge contract will see a rise in QLDC’s costs from a total budget of $5.3 million to $7.2 million, funded by the council.
RIMS – showcasing ingenuity
UPNEXT with Pacifecon Name Location
Estimated $$ value
Estimated start date
Subdivision Civil Works – 500 lots
Northland
$50m
Mid 2018
Subdivision Civil Works – 250 lots
Upper South Island
$25m
Early 2018
Wastewater plant
Lower North Island
$9m
Late 2017
Subdivision Civil Works – 80 lots
Auckland
$8m
Early 2018
Subdivision Civil Works – 40 lots
Canterbury
$4m
Early 2018
Inclusion of a project does not mean it will proceed to the scale and timeframe indicated above. It is, however, the best available picture at this point in time. Pacifecon’s building and construction information is constantly updated.
www.pacifecon.co.nz
RIMS Forum 2018 is to be held March 21 and 22 in the Palmerston North Convention Centre. Following the success of the Road Infrastructure Management Forum earlier this year RIMS, IDS and NZUAG are now calling for abstracts for next year’s event. The forum will be showcasing ‘ingenuity’, with examples of leading best practice and thinking around adapting to current issues, innovating and managing better with what we have. Wednesday 21st will involve plenary presentations aimed at the broad roading infrastructure management industry. It will have a strong focus on sharing asset management good practice examples, data collection, works management, transforming data into intelligence and the use of systems and data in optimised decision making and the management of assets. Thursday 22nd will consist of three concurrent, focused theme streams that will go into more detail on roading-optimised decision making, corridor access management, and procurement and performance monitoring. An important goal of day two is to provide a forum for professionals in the sectors of the industry that do not often get the opportunity to meet as a community to come together and make contacts/network. Submissions close Monday October 9, and those that are accepted will be notified by Friday November 3.
CONTRACTORS’ DIARY 2017 Date
Event & Venue
Contact
2-5 Aug
CCNZ Annual Conference and AGM, Dunedin Events Centre
www.ccnzconference.co.nz
16-19 Aug
NZ Heavy Haulage Association, Napier Conference Centre, Marine Parade
www.hha.org.nz
23-24 Aug
NZ Roadmarkers Conference Distinction Hotel, Hamilton
www.nzrf.co.nz
8-9 Sep
EVWorldNZ. Vodafone Events Centre, Auckland
www.conferenz.co.nz/events/evworld-nz
13-15 Sep
Low Volume Roads Workshop. Trinity Wharf, Tauranga
bit.ly/REAAA_LowVolumeRoads
27-28 Sep
Facilities Integrate 2017, ASB Showgrounds Auckland
www.facilitiesintegrate.nz/
6-8 Nov
NZ Transport Agency & NZIHT 18th Annual Conf. Trinity Wharf, Tauranga
bit.ly/NZIHT_NZTA_Conference2017
Bauma China 2018 The Shanghai New International Expo Center (SNIEC)
www.bauma-china.com/
2018 27-30 Nov
Please send any contributions for Contractors’ Diary to kevin@contrafed.co.nz, or phone 09 636 5710
10 www.contractormag.co.nz
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CONTRACTOR UPFRONT
Charges brought over quality of steel mesh
Gough Group CEO to step down Karl Smith, CEO of the Gough Group for the past nine years, will retire at the end of 2017 to take up new opportunities as an independent director and with projects for private, public and councilowned companies. He has led the company of more than 850 employees and its network of over 50 locations in Australia and New Zealand through challenging times such as the Global Financial Crisis and the 2010/11 Christchurch earthquakes, and leaves it in a sound financial situation. Board chair Keith Taylor describes him as a “tenacious and resilient leader” who has made a “tremendous contribution” to the Gough Group. “He leaves an excellent foundation for the Group to continue to grow in both New Zealand and Australia,” says Taylor. “Karl has been an inspirational leader of the Group across our New Zealand and Australian businesses and has built a great culture with our team, our customers, and our major original equipment manufacturers such as Caterpillar, Palfinger, Hyster-Yale, SAFHolland and Wabco.” Deputy chairman and majority owner Ben Gough says, “The past few months have seen the highest monthly sales for the Group in our 85-year history and we now have the strongest order bank we have seen for over 10 years under Karl’s leadership. We will sorely miss him.” Smith was appointed CEO in 2008 just before the GFC, which resulted in a very difficult period of trading for the Group. He effected a significant turnaround resulting in some of the strongest growth in the business’ trading history. Highlights of his time with the Gough Group include the acquisition and integration of Palfinger Australia. 12 www.contractormag.co.nz
The Commerce Commission filed 29 charges against Steel & Tube Holdings for allegedly making false and misleading representations about the company’s steel mesh product – SE62. The commission filed these charges under the Fair Trading Act 1986 at the Auckland District Court during early June as part of the commission’s overall investigation into alleged steel mesh infringements by Steel & Tube and several other companies during the past five-plus years. The charges relate to alleged conduct between March 2012 and April 2016 and allege Steel & Tube made misleading representations on its batch tags, batch test certificates, advertising collateral and website that SE62 was 500E grade steel, when it was not. The charges also allege Steel & Tube made false and misleading representations that the SE62 steel mesh had been independently tested and certified, when it had not. This included using the logo of an independent testing laboratory on SE62 test certificates when the product had not been tested by the laboratory. The commission also filed charges earlier this year against Timber King and NZ Steel Distributor in relation to making false and misleading representations about 500E steel mesh. However, these companies entered guilty pleas and are due to be sentenced by the court during August. Further, the commission expects to lay charges against one other company and investigations are continuing into an additional company. Chief executive of the NZX-listed Steel & Tube, Dave Taylor, said in early June that the commission’s charges against his company were “in regards to compliance with the testing standard relating to the application of testing methodologies only, not to the performance characteristics of the seismic mesh”. “Steel & Tube has been cooperating with the commission throughout its investigation and was aware of the commission’s decision to file charges … [and] Steel & Tube is working with the Commerce Commission to reach an appropriate resolution of the charges.” Taylor added that Steel & Tube, “continues to stand behind its products, and, since April 2016, all of the company’s seismic mesh has been tested externally by accredited laboratories”. Neither the commission nor Steel & Tube will be commenting further at this time as the matter is now before the court. By Neil Ritchie
Christchurch’s memorial arches cap in place The final piece of Christchurch’s architecturally designed ‘gateway arches’ went in place last month with the help of a 180 tonne crane, signalling how close another of the city’s multimillion-dollar roading projects is to completion. The project is a joint venture between McConnell Dowell and Downer. The arches and a major interchange are being constructed at the intersection of Russley Road and Memorial Avenue, near Christchurch Airport, as part of the $112 million State Highway 1 Russley Road Upgrade. The top piece (or arch cap) weighs in at 13.5 tonnes and connects the gateway arches, which now stand 27 metres above Memorial Avenue.
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Pro-active safety for lone workers on the move The corporate version of Get Home Safe is a cloud based safety solution designed for monitoring the safety of staff working alone or while travelling.
Lone worker monitoring When staff travel for work there is always an element of risk that if something unforeseen happens they cannot call for help themselves. Get Home Safe (GHS) offers a fail-safe system alerting management if something is not right with one of their team; an orange flag that something needs attention with enough information to make an informed and measured decision about what to do. GHS allows staff to log task or travel plans on the go, supported by a web portal for real time situational awareness, tracking logs, account management, acknowledging alerts and downloading data. “The pro-active alerting system, GPS tracking, check-in prompts, and journey management is one of the most popular uses of Get Home Safe – Corporate,” says director and founder Boyd Peacock. Staff use the app to log their journey management plans before they leave, including intended destination, ETA, road conditions and job number. A “favourites” feature enables regular journeys and jobs to be saved. Once tracking is started, information is displayed in real time on the team leader’s dashboards for reference. GPS location, remaining battery, check-in notes and remaining job time are updated from the app to the dashboard every two minutes. In an area with no coverage the app will store GPS tracking and update the server when coverage is regained. As the journey nears completion and an ETA approaches, the employee is automatically reminded to check-in up to five times via a notification on their phone. Staff check-in as home safe or extend the timer to give them more time. If a user fails to check-in and acknowledge the safe completion of the journey before their timer expires, the Get Home Safe alert system kicks in and team leaders are alerted by email and SMS.
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Self-monitoring for staff Get Home Safe is also a pro-active self-monitoring solution for lone workers to keep themselves safe on the job, via their smartphone. Staff simply set themselves a check-in time via the app and off they go, safe in the knowledge the information is shared in real time back to a dashboard, including GPS location and task details. Once staff have safely completed their task or reached their
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CONTRACTOR UPFRONT
Keeping rural contractors healthy and informed This year’s Rural Contractors (RCNZ) annual conference, from June 19-22, attracted over 200 people to Rydges Resort in Queenstown, the largest number of contractors ever to attend the event. The previous record was 153 contractors at the 2016 conference held in the Bay of Islands. Roger Parton, chief executive officer of the organisation, says he was not surprised at the large representation in Queenstown. Major factors in this increase of attendance have been an improvement in the rural economic situation and the magnificent venue for the conference, he says. This year’s theme for the conference was “Keep Healthy and Informed” and over the three days of the conference delegates listened to presentations on matters relevant to health and safety including men’s health generally; stress management in the workplace; and safeguarding the health of workers. There were also
presentations on the law relating to employment of workers and on planning succession to the contractors’ business and personal assets. On the social side most delegates agreed that the address by internationally-acclaimed helicopter pilot Sir Richard (Hannibal) Hayes was the highlight of the conference. This was delivered at a dinner at the Skyline Restaurant on Bob’s Peak above Queenstown. Other entertainment included a boat trip across the lake to have lunch at Walter Peak Station and also a dinner address by former international rugby referee, Paddy O’Brien, who is a most accomplished after-dinner speaker. Steve Levet, the current national president of RCNZ, paid a wholesome tribute to the southerners of Zone 4 of the organisation who organised the conference at the RCNZ Annual Awards Dinner and his remarks were endorsed with acclamation. By Peter Owens.
Kiwi art wins international roundabout of the year The UK Roundabout Appreciation Society has voted the decorative Titirangi roundabout the international roundabout of the year. The West Auckland landmark, with its fungus-inspired sculptures and flower gardens, will be featured in the society’s annual calendar next year, as the ‘December’ cover. The UK-based society has been around since 2003 and is made up of folks with a fascination with circular junctions, which first appeared in the US in the early 1900s. The Titirangi roundabout features three large fungus-inspired sculptures designed in 1993 by then art student Lisa Higgins. They were meant to be temporary, but became fixtures where locals have advertised their businesses, held the odd garage sale and staged protests. The society’s Roundabouts of the World calendars are very popular and are ordered from people all around the globe. Last year’s international roundabout of the year accolade was awarded to one in Carmel, Indiana. In addtion to the latest accolade, we can also claim the largest roundabout in the Southern Hemisphere – Wellington’s Basin Reserve. 14 www.contractormag.co.nz
Titirangi Roundabout featuring the ANZAC Peace Poppy Project installation by Laingholm artist Cristina Beth.
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CONTRACTOR UPFRONT
A group of Franklin women sampled a day’s work in the electricity supply industry at Counties Power.
Campaign to recruit more women The infrastructure industry is in dire need of more quality staff with a predicted 25,000 more workers required to meet industry demand over the next three years and Connexis sees women as the answer. Connexis, the Infrastructure Industry Training Organisation, is working to fill this void by attracting women to the industry via its annual ‘Girls with Hi-Vis’ initiative, which sees high school students and the sisters, daughters, friends, cousins and wives of staff already working in the infrastructure industry invited to work for a day for a ‘hands on experience’ to showcase the many career options. This year’s Girls with Hi-Vis ran throughout June. The initiative is very timely following the government’s $11 billion investment into infrastructure, which highlights the need to recruit
Celebrating 75 years With half of all the articulated haulers ever made bearing the Volvo brand, the company has just passed another landmark – the production of its 75,000th hauler. More than half a century after it invented the concept, Volvo Construction Equipment recently celebrated the production of the milestone hauler and says a staggering 50,000 Volvo haulers are still in regular use around the world. The latest machine – one of the new generation A45G full suspension models – rolled off the production line in late June at the factory where the first machine – the DDR631 or ‘Gravel Charlie’ – was made, in Braas, Sweden. The first 15 tonne capacity machine built in 1966 can fit into the haul body of the A60H – Volvo flagship 55 tonne articulated hauler. And although Volvo articulated haulers can be found all over the world, the latest machine is staying relatively local, going to Norwegian customer Leonhard Nilsen & Sonner AS. In typically Swedish style, the landmark 75,000th articulated hauler was marked modestly – with factory workers celebrating the achievement with ice creams. Then it was back to work, to meet the demand that is seeing Volvo take a bigger lick of the articulated hauler market. 16 www.contractormag.co.nz
more quality workers. “Connexis sees diversity as key to filling these roles and Girls with Hi-Vis is one of our key strategies to increase diversity by encouraging women to consider a career in the infrastructure industry,” says Connexis interim-chief executive David Worsnop. “While women make up 50 percent of the country’s population, less than four percent of women are trade and technical trainees with Connexis. “A ‘hands on’ taste of the job and hearing from women who have successful infrastructure careers is a perfect way to show women exactly what a usual day’s work entails and hopefully it will inspire them to join a growing infrastructure industry that offers a wide variety of roles with good pay and a new career.”
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CONTRACTOR ON THE COVER
L-R: Gary Richardson, GM of Sales & Marketing Hirepool, CEO Hirepool, Brian Stephen, Brian Warren, CCNZ president and Peter Silcock, CCNZ CEO.
Hirepool
pleased to continue partnership Hirepool’s continued support for CCNZ is an opportunity for the company to recognise the construction sector’s value to its business – but it’s not just about the money, says Hirepool CEO Brian Stephen.
“WE DON’T JUST write a cheque and then forget about it for the
next 12 months,” says Brian. “Hirepool people are actively involved in the association across the country, sitting on regional and national committees, getting in behind industry initiatives and so forth, and we as a company really encourage that involvement.” Brian says working as part of CCNZ is like having continuous access to a series of customer focus groups. “It puts us alongside our customers and gives us up-to-theminute information on where they see their business opportunities and how they want us to help them. “It is a genuine partnership.” Brian says the prospects for the construction sector continue to look positive, with a backlog of significant projects around the country and a broad recognition that New Zealand needs to continue to invest in developing transport, communications, and other infrastructure. 18 www.contractormag.co.nz
In line with that, Hirepool is continuing to invest over and above depreciation levels, and is readying itself for a fast start to the construction season this coming spring. “Global demand for plant and equipment has increased the lead times for manufacturers, but we have anticipated that and expect to have plenty of new fleet ready to roll out come September,” says Brian. The company is also looking to expand its branch network, adds Brian, with new branches planned for early next year and a willingness to consider opportunities to grow by acquisition. Making life easy for customers is Hirepool’s other main objective, he says. “We’ve improved how we store and manage our customer data, which means our team can provide a more effective service, but we still want to do more to help our customers manage their equipment needs online and on the move.” Hirepool’s GM of Sales and Marketing, Gary Richardson, also puts
“...working as part of CCNZ is like having continuous access to a series of customer focus groups. It puts us alongside our customers and gives us up-to-the-minute information on where they see their business opportunities and how they want us to help them. It is a genuine partnership” improving the experience for Hirepool’s customers high on his list of priorities for the coming year. “We’ve done a lot of research – formal and informal – on what our customers want and how we can best deliver that. We’ve come up with several initiatives that will help us achieve those goals: now it’s time to deliver.” Gary says that, along with managing capital, convenience is the major reason contractors will prefer to work with Hirepool rather than own and operate their own fleet. “Compliance requirements and maintenance schedules are a constantly moving target. We’ve got the resources, the expertise and the scale to meet these requirements on behalf of our customers. “They in turn can be sure they have ready access to the latest equipment, gear that is fit for purpose, meets all applicable standards, and are the right tools for the job at hand.” Gary is also expecting a good year for the construction sector and for Hirepool. “While the Christchurch rebuild has levelled off, there is still a fair bit going on in the South Island – and of course there is work to be done to repair the damage from last November’s earthquake. “At the same time, the Roads of National Significance programme is ongoing, as is the broadband rollout and maintenance work, then
there are projects like the City Rail Link and the Puhoi to Warkworth motorway job north of Auckland.” Gary says the scope and scale of these projects has led to an increase in the number of JVs and alliances operating, and these models are a good fit with Hirepool. Hirepool worked closely with the Well-Connected Alliance throughout construction of the NZ Transport Agency’s recentlyopened Waterview tunnel and interchange linking Auckland’s Northwestern and Southwestern Motorways. Waterview Alliance Project manager Iain Simmons says Hirepool’s scale meant the project team had ready access to the equipment they needed when they needed it, and any issues were quickly resolved. “They were also strongly committed to the success of the project, and functioned as part of the team.” Gary says it’s logical that Hirepool works well in that type of structure. “The reasons for using an alliance model or JV include providing expertise, reducing uncertainty around cost and availability of resources, finding ways to start work as quickly as possible, sharing risk, and promoting collaborative approaches,” he says. “When you look at it, that’s what we do with all our customers – from DIYers through to the industry heavyweights.”
•
AUGUST 2017 19
CONTRACTOR PROFILE
20 www.contractormag.co.nz
The ConstructSafe CHAMPION The Construction Safety Council is ramping up its activities, especially the ConstructSafe programme, under its new chairman Roger McRae. HUGH DE LACY catches up with him on the eve of his departure from McConnell Dowell after three decades. AS THE KEY LINK in the tightening chain
around construction site health and safety, ConstructSafe will be the primary focus of Roger McRae’s role as newly appointed chairman of the governance board of the Construction Safety Council of New Zealand (CSCNZ). Roger is the departing managing director of industry heavyweight McConnell Dowell – he’s been with the company for 30 years – and he views his new responsibilities as a further extension of his long-held commitment to workplace safety. He had no specific plans following his departure from McConnell Dowell on June 30 this year, when he was replaced as head of the company’s New Zealand and Pacific Island operations by Fraser Wyllie, former executive general manager for projects at Downer. Roger, 61, tells Contractor that, apart from his chairmanship of the CSCNZ, he’ll be sitting on his hands for a while, taking time to consider what his next role might involve. His record at McConnell Dowell, no less than his extramural service on a range of industrygood organisations, reflects a career that began with the company as a site engineer in 1983, working his way up to become project manager in 1986. After a four-year spell away from the company, he rejoined as project manager in Samoa in 1991, becoming operations manager in 1996. He spent nine years in that role in New Zealand and the Pacific Islands for a company that, founded by Malcolm McConnell and Jim Dowell in 1961, was continuing to extend its overseas reach. Roger found himself appointed managing director for the New Zealand and Pacific businesses in October 2000. At the time, the company had a turnover of around $30 million a year and a permanent workforce of fewer than 50, but under his watch it grew to $350 million and 1200 staff. It achieved this by pursuing the founders’
appetite for what Roger describes as “high-risk and technically difficult projects”, including the Hobson Bay tunnel ($118 million), the Christchurch Ocean Outfall ($61 million), the Te Mihi geothermal power station ($450 million), the Stronger Christchurch Infrastructure Rebuild Team (SCIRT) project of $2.2 billion, and the $1.2 billion Waterview Connection. Roger’s notion of health and safety as part of a system of corporate values began to extend beyond the company when in 2008 he became a member of the Business Leaders Health and Safety Forum with its ZeroHarm initiative. The idea of ZeroHarm, by which leadership, influence and shared learning were brought together to develop a new health and safety culture in New Zealand business, arose from the growing awareness that Kiwi workers, perhaps especially those in the construction industry, did not have an enviable safety record. According to WorkSafe, this country suffers three times the number of workplace fatalities as Britain, and twice as many as Australia, the product of a she’ll-be-right attitude that scorned even such basic safety initiatives as steel-capped boots, hard hats and highvisibility vests. International OSH studies have to be interpreted with a grain of salt, as nations and states collect their data differently, but it has to be conceded that the large number of small Kiwi businesses, rugged terrain, and ‘have a go’ attitude do present a more challenging working environs. It would be fair to say that, outside the big construction companies that joined, the forum was pushing snowballs uphill, and it wasn’t until the Pike River coalmine disaster of 2010 and the Canterbury earthquakes of 2010-2011 that workplace safety culture penetrated the minds of Kiwi workers, or at least their managers and directors. And indeed it was a shock for small-tomid-sized companies to encounter the sophisticated workplace health and safety measures that the likes of McConnell Dowell,
Opposite page: Roger McRae is the departing managing director of industry heavyweight McConnell Dowell – he’s been with the company for 30 years – and he views his new responsibilities, (chairman of the governance board of the Construction Safety Council of New Zealand), as a further extension of his long-held commitment to workplace safety.
AUGUST 2017 21
CONTRACTOR PROFILE
Roger and the council’s answer under ConstructSafe is for every person on a work site to be assessed for competency to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of workplace hazards.
22 www.contractormag.co.nz
and especially Fletcher Earthquake Recovery brought to Canterbury. Pike River highlighted the parlous and neglected state of workplace safety in this country, and the subsequent legislative changes gave momentum to a heightening nationwide safety consciousness. In 2014 Roger became a member of the ZeroHarm leaders group, and the same year became a member of the CSCNZ, which had been founded in 2009 by Civil Contractors NZ (then the Contractors’ Federation), Registered Master Builders, Certified Builders, SiteSafe, WorkSafe, NZTA, ACC and the Specialist Trade Contractors Federation. In the aftermath of Pike River and the Canterbury quakes, as health and safety training providers proliferated and a new culture began to permeate the nation’s workforce, the Construction Safety Council realised there was a need for something that allowed clients, employers and employees to have confidence that all those working on-site were competent and safe to do so. So was born ConstructSafe, and it is today the council’s core initiative, bolstered not only by the chairmanship of Roger, but with a newlyappointed executive officer in Jon HarperSlade, who took up the new role in May this year. Roger McRae is confident the drive for greater construction health and safety is on the right track. He dismisses the notion that the 2015 H&S Act flies in the face of the Accident
Compensation Corporation’s (ACC’s) ‘no-blame principle’ for injuries and accidents. “The [2015] Act doesn’t necessarily attribute blame, even though it may hold a person or organisation accountable,” he says. “What ACC does is provide support for people who are injured, and it does so on a no-blame basis, but that’s not necessarily in conflict with the H&S Act.” That Act’s job is to reduce accidents and injuries by making people and organisations on the worksite more accountable, he iterates. The underlying challenge to health and safety is that the construction industry currently has few barriers to entry, and “anybody can walk in off the street and start work as a labourer on what potentially could be a hazardous work site”. Roger and the council’s answer under ConstructSafe is for every person on a work site to be assessed for competency to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of workplace hazards. Provided this is applied across all construction sites, it will lead to a consistency in safety expectations that will enable the safety bar to be lifted across the industry, he says. ConstructSafe competency testing came into place on all major projects on July 1, and in his new role as CSCNZ chairman Roger is committed to offering “greater leadership and accountability for safety at all levels of the industry”.
CONTRACTOR IPWEA CONFERENCE
The new face of public works Samantha Gain is the newly elected president of IPWEA NZ, who is also the manager, legal and procurement at the Greater Wellington Regional Council. She talks with RUTH LE PLA about her priorities for her new role, how IPWEA NZ is evolving, and the significance of being the first female president in the group’s 108-year history.
What’s IPWEA NZ’s role and purpose? First and foremost, we’re a membership organisation. Our vision and mission relate to improving the quality of life for communities through public works. Traditionally our membership has been people from local government involved in infrastructure. The words “public works engineering” are part of the IPWEA name. Traditionally, members have been engineers but increasingly we’re diversifying to include asset managers and planners. We see that as really positive. It’s about taking a much longer-term view about infrastructure to include planning for infrastructure and the various ways of investing in it. The organisation has always had a focus on asset management which is where the NAMS group came from. Increasingly, over the years that whole-oflife asset management approach has become more common and people have realised that it’s not just the engineers that need to be involved – it’s the planners and the finance people as well. One of the traditional issues we’ve had is how to get the asset management message to CEs and councillors. How do we articulate that when they seem to be interested in any possible impact on rates increase but not necessarily the whole picture around that? So we’re often talking about how we communicate that big picture message. It’s happening more and more. We’ve had some good forums recently combined with SOLGM (NZ Society of Local Government Managers) – particularly the infrastructure strategies forum we had, which was really great. Infrastructure strategies – which councils have to do as part of their long-term planning – are really a melding of infrastructure asset management and finance work. You’ve got to be together developing that.
How many members do you have? We’ve just done an audit of our membership. We have about 750 members in New Zealand. But when we join IPWEA [Australasia] as a special division we’re by far the biggest division. Across all of Australasia there are 4000 members and we’ve got 750 of them. Members are divided between people who work in councils, contractors, consultants and some people in central government.
What are your priorities as president? I’ve got several main themes. The obvious one is that as I’m the first woman president there’s a theme around diversity. Not just gender diversity – although gender is an easy way into diversity – but it’s more about diversity of thought and approach. I’m really pleased that five of our 12 board 24 www.contractormag.co.nz
members this time are women. I’m also really keen that we have diversity on our committees. I’m not an engineer, either, which is quite good from a diversity point of view. There are other groups of people from other professions and backgrounds which it would be good for us to bring in. In the past we’ve had people with business development backgrounds on our board, which has been really good to have that different focus. My second theme is about relevance to our members. Our members are the lifeblood of our organisation – the reason we exist. Most of our engagement with our members is through our five branches which are geographically based. We want to do a lot more with our branch meetings. They’re great opportunities for people to network, share stories and get help with projects. Also in relation to having relevant offerings: we do a lot of training – are we doing the right things? We probably need to be a lot more agile when new topics and issues come up. We need to think about whether we can do something to assist or are we just doing what we’ve always done? A lot of people are already working in that space so we need to make sure we are working with other groups, not against them. SOLGM is an obvious example of that and Local Government New Zealand too. My third theme is to maintain the financial stability of the organisation. We’ve been through a bit of a rough time in the past 12 to 18 months. We’ve turned it around. Peter [Higgs, the previous president] has done a fantastic job but we still need to make sure our core business is funded in a sustainable manner. We’ve got some embedding of that to do.
What is the significance of your background to the role as president? I’m the first lawyer to be president of IPWEA. I first joined
the board five years ago and it was interesting for me to be around a board table with a whole load of engineers. It was so apparent to me that my thought process was always so different. I was working in a law firm at the time and it also made me think about how I was surrounded by lawyers and we all thought in the same way. It was a very interesting reflection. Sometimes I’ve struggled with not being as across the detailed subject matter that we have discussed. But that’s been beneficial in conversations because it means I try to bring it up above the details and into the strategic level. That’s all I can do. I can’t do the other. I think that’s been quite beneficial. It’s useful to have the kind of more objective view, in a way. One of the other things that we have in our constitution is that the president or vice president must hold a senior position in a local authority. And from time to time when we’ve been talking about succession planning some people have commented ‘well, what about a consultant in the role? Would it matter?’ And when I first joined the Australasian board – our [ie the NZ] president and vice president sit on the Australasian board – there was a consultant in the president’s role in Australasia – and there was quite some discomfort around that at the time. That’s just another thing that’s different and was brought to the table. It’s quite a significant thing for IPWEA NZ to have its first female president. I hadn’t really thought about it much myself but certainly 20 years ago it never would have happened. I think about the conversations I have with my children who are primary school age. If I say something about needing to protect the position of women they look at me like ‘why would I even be saying that?’ It’s very interesting how times have changed.
AUGUST 2017 25
PHOTO COURTESY OF BILL HEDGES gotyaphoto@icloud.com
engineering
CONTRACTOR IPWEA NZ CONFERENCE
IPWEA NZ Excellence Awards The 12th IPWEA NZ Excellence Awards were presented at the Fulton Hogan conference dinner at the IPWEA NZ Conference in Dunedin recently. These are a few of the winning or commended entries related to civil contracting.
BEST PUBLIC WORKS PROJECT UNDER $5 MILLION WINNER: Mangawhai Water Treatment Plant. Kaipara District Council and Opus International Consultants
The Mangawhai water supply system serves a permanent population of 200 which dramatically increases to 900 as visitors flock to the area over Christmas. Kaipara District Council engaged Opus International Consultants in September 2016 to design and implement a new Water Treatment Plant for the Mangawhai bore water supply that complied with Drinking Water Standards. Halving the original project schedule so that the new facility would be operating in time for the 2016/17 Christmas holidays, led to an innovative tailored procurement method coined “design-collaborate-refine-build”. Specialist contractors with a past working history with the council or Opus were engaged to complete components of the project. Agility in project delivery was the crux of the innovation, which, coupled with a huge commitment to collaboration between all parties, ensured the construction schedule and
Samantha Gain (IPWEA NZ), Eros Foschieri (Opus International Consultants), Chandra Dissanayake (Kaipara District Council) & Peter Higgs (IPWEA NZ).
milestone dates were achieved. This synergy led to the project being under budget, and achieving commissioning ahead of the ambitious schedule.
BEST PUBLIC WORKS PROJECT OVER $5 MILLION WINNER: Takaro a Poi / Margaret Mahy Family Playground. CERA and Opus International Consultants
From its inception, the Margaret Mahy Family Playground was never going to be ordinary. The 1.5 hectare park, set on a site laid bare by earthquakes, occupies almost a full inner-city block, taking public recreational infrastructure to a new level. It is the largest project in New Zealand created for the primary purpose of play. In a competition to design the “world’s best playground”, 6000 children contributed to the design. Inspired elements such as giant forest towers, climbing nets and construction of a brand new topography to embrace the four-metre high slide were made possible through engineering innovation and collaboration with over 100 technical specialists. In the first three weeks after opening the park received over 100,000 visitors. Surrounding businesses have experienced an upsurge in trade. People are travelling from far and wide and, most importantly, a broken part of the city is now filled with the healing sounds of laughter. For this project, CERA collaborated with its partners, Te Runanga o Ngai Tahu and Christchurch City Council. The consultant was Opus International Consultants and the contractor was City Care. 26 www.contractormag.co.nz
Samantha Gain (IPWEA NZ), John Fitzgerald (City Care), Catherine Hamilton (Opus International Consultants) & Peter Higgs (IPWEA NZ).
PHOTOS COURTESY OF BILL HEDGES gotyaphoto@icloud.com
HIGHLY COMMENDED: Kaimataara o Wai Manawa (or Le Roy’s Lookout). Auckland Council and Downer. (Pictured above) This project involved the design and construction of a new public open space, and adjacent café, overlooking the stunning Le Roy’s Bush in Birkenhead. Kaimataara o Wai Manawa translates as “The Lookout of Wai Manawa”. Kaimataara o Wai Manawa was the name gifted by mana whenua for this special place. Mana whenua artist Reuben Kirkwood worked with the project team to interpret and reflect the meaning of Wai Manawa, drawing on inspiration from the natural local environment.
A motif was created for application at several sites across the project. This design relates to the ecological richness of the site, in particular referencing water, seeds and balance in nature. Constructed on a steep, narrow site and located in the heart of Birkenhead town centre, the two-level deck structure was built to extend out over the bush canopy to provide visitors with awe-inspiring and uninterrupted views over Le Roy’s Bush and beyond over Auckland Harbour.
AUGUST 2017 27
CONTRACTOR IPWEA NZ CONFERENCE – TECHNICAL BRIEFINGS David Langford won the Hynds Pipe Systems Paper of the Year for his presentation of this paper at the IPWEA NZ 2017 Annual Conference in Dunedin recently. David acknowledges co-author Luke Meys from Opus International Consultants.
Blurring the lines
WITH THE NEW PLYMOUTH DISTRICT COUNCIL PROFESSIONAL SERVICES COLLABORATIVE CONTRACT David Langford (infrastructure manager, New Plymouth District Council) & Luke Meys (market director – water environmental & local government, Opus International Consultants).
Abstract The New Plymouth District Council (NPDC) Infrastructure Professional Services Collaborative Contract is a perfect illustration of the theme of the IPWEA NZ 2017 Annual Conference – Blurring the lines: Integrating our efforts. The contract is a hybrid model – blending the best of traditional, performance and alliance contracting models. Teams have been combined in new ways aligned with the NEC3 principle of working together in a spirit of mutual trust and cooperation. This collaborative relationship began with an innovative approach to the consulting market and has continued to develop throughout the procurement and delivery phases. The full paper (see link below) by NPDC and Opus, the successful consultancy, brings together their individual and collective perspectives on this best-practice delivery model. Key aspects of this collaborative approach include: • A target price and pain / gain payment mechanism used to create shared ownership of objectives, including traditionally unilateral objectives such as profitability and cost control; • KPIs have been developed so that they can only be delivered by both parties contributing equally; • A strong focus on health and safety that is designed to ensure a consistent and common culture and values; • Colocation integrates the teams and improves communication; • Project briefs are jointly developed so they deliver clarity and early discussions around cost control and risk; • The NEC3 early warning mechanism is used to collaboratively mitigate emerging risks; and • The contract price schedule includes a risk premium that reduces with time to encourage innovation and derisking the contract.
Introduction In June 2016 NPDC’s roading engineering and professional services contract had reached its full term. The council then entered into a new seven-year contract for engineering and infrastructure professional services called the Infrastructure 28 www.contractormag.co.nz
Professional Services Collaborative Contract (IPSCC). This aimed to address a number of issues that had emerged from the previous contract. These issues had materialised in a poor working relationship between NPDC and the incumbent consultant, Opus. Underlying issues included a: • perception by Opus staff of a master / servant relationship rather than one of equal partners; • perception by NPDC staff of poor value for money; • perception by NPDC staff of poor quality outputs; and • lack of supply chain leadership as Opus acted as the management agent, supervising many of NPDC’s engineering and maintenance contractors. It was considered that these underlying issues had developed over time due to the form and nature of the existing contract. This contract was based on the Conditions of Contract for Consulting Services (CCCS) standard form of contract with a basis of payment that predominantly used lump sum payments that transferred most of the risk to the consultant.
Conclusion By applying the smart buyer principles to the design of the IPSCC the NPDC has made a step change from being a passive client to becoming an active supply chain leader. The IPSCC has created the conditions for a collaborative business relationship between two equal partners to develop. This relationship is already providing mutual benefits, including efficiency gains, improved value for money, enhanced quality outputs, and a transformed and positive working relationship. This change has not been without its challenges. It has necessitated, and will continue to require, sustained leadership effort and the courage to invite constructive challenge from partners. We welcome any interest from other councils that wish to know more about how this contract is set up and working, and how they can apply its principles to their own activities. Go to our website for the full paper by David Langford and Luke Meys. bit.ly/NPDC_IPSCC
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CONTRACTOR PROFILE
Working the dream
Paul Herbison
When your childhood passion is making things, the choice between following your father into a career in accountancy, or opting for an engineering degree is an easy one. BY MARY SEARLE BELL.
AFTER COMPLETING HIGH school, Paul Herbison left his hometown of Whakatane and headed north to begin a Bachelor of Engineering degree at the University of Auckland, but later transferred to Carrington Polytechnic to complete a NZCE Civil instead. “When I graduated, there weren’t many engineering jobs to be had, so my friend and I set up a business painting boats and doing underwater hull cleaning until I landed a cadetship as a surveying assistant with Harrison Grierson,” he says. “My introduction to the world of engineering was at the Glenbrook Steel Mill on the stage two extension project setting out piles for the pile drivers – all 2200 of them. “We had five, five-tonne diesel hammers banging away for three months. After that came the basement and bed foundations, which had to be constructed to millimetre accuracy.” Then it was back to the design office for 18 months, working on plans for retirement villages, but with his engineering certificate finalised, Paul headed over the ditch to Australia. His first Australian job was surveying and project engineering on a 16 kilometre stretch of road for the state roading authority in the tiny settlement of Elliot, 770 kilometres south of Darwin. More importantly, while in Australia, he met wife-to-be Angela. Together they headed to the UK to work and travel. From a base in London Paul undertook a range of freelance 32 www.contractormag.co.nz
work, including tunnelling, work on the British Library, and as site agent on an extension of a sewage treatment plant. In 1990 the pair returned to New Zealand to get married and start a family. Paul got a job as project manager with Works Civil in Auckland, working on the Patiki to Te Atatu widening of State Highway 16 and the State Highway 1 extension at Bombay. This was followed by various project management roles with Works Civil, including three years as the branch manager for Kaipara. In need of a change, in 1998 Paul took the role of general manager for Forest Roading Services – a joint venture between Highway Stabilizers and Smith & Davies. The contract was a key one for Carter Holt Harvey, building and upgrading 220 kilometres of unsealed roads in 52 forests, from Tairua to North Cape. From a staff of three, the business grew rapidly to a staff of 20, plus another 100 or so indirect reports. When that contract ended four years later, Paul moved into Highway Stabilizers and was seconded out to Downer for a few months, undertaking slip repairs in Northland. In 2003 he transitioned into freelance engineering mode, continuing to work for Downer at the Ardmore and Huia wastewater treatment plant projects, a project he describes as “very complex”. “Then I got a call from a friend saying he might need a hand
The Walk ‘n’ Roll being put through its paces.
on a project – that was the Springhill Prison earthworks, and we had 1.5 million cubic metres of dirt to move in five months. “There were lots of challenges – soft soils and sediments. As well we had to construct access roads, a culvert and 20 kilometres of sub-surface drainage. It was about $45 million of work in seven months.” The project was built by an alliance, and Paul was contracted to Henry Walker Elton. However, the company went into receivership during the project, and the work was taken over by Multiplex. Once the earthworks were complete at Springhill, Paul went across to the Multiplex tendering team where he was involved in a number of tenders on both sides of the Tasman. A few of the notable Australian tenders included the $500 million Alkimos wastewater treatment plant in Perth, the 3500 kilometre-long, $2.5 billion-plus Papua New Guinea to Queensland gas pipeline, and the site works proposal for the $2 billion Gunns pulp mill in Tasmania. In New Zealand, the company won the Mangatawhiri Deviation project – seven kilometres of greenfield highway construction – and Paul went down to Waikato to help build it in 2006. Around that time, he also took a trip to the USA where he scoped a piece of kit for the project – a Walk’n’Roll – a roller that is mounted on a grader. He told the salesman, Gerry Lyngby, he was thinking of buying one, to which Gerry replied, “Why don’t you sell them?” “I gave him a short sharp response – those who know me will know what I said. “I said I’m not a [bleeping] salesman, to which he said, ‘but
you can talk…’.” Intrigued, Paul returned home to think about it. He thought that New Zealand – even the whole of the Southern Hemisphere – was too small a territory to bother with, so he said to Gerry, “What about the rest of the world – everywhere except the USA and Canada?”, to which Gerry agreed. So, in 2007, Walk’n’Roll International was established and the brand is now well established throughout the country, Australia and the Pacific. Not one to say no to an opportunity, Paul soon followed this venture with a second business, Bison Industries, established in 2010, which trades commodities between China and the USA. In 2014, following a meeting with Livio Pace, the owner of Boss Attachments Australia, the pair decided to combine resources. Today the two companies, operating as Boss Attachments, supply earthmoving, demolition and other attachments to the contracting, recycling, forestry and mining markets throughout New Zealand, Australia and the South Pacific and have a combined staff of more than 20. Paul’s work with Boss Attachments has come in addition to his fulltime freelance engineering work. In the past few years he’s been involved with several significant projects, including Transmission Gully, Huntly Bypass, Hamilton Motorway, and Puhoi to Warkworth. But it’s time for a change and Paul has recently made the strategic decision to focus on Boss Attachments and relinquish his freelance hard hat. “It’s been really great, and has fulfilled my childhood dream, but there are only so many hours in the day,” he says. “Also, my boat has only done two hours this year – so I’ve got to correct that.” AUGUST 2017 33
CONTRACTOR PROJECT
Engaging with the environment The Huntly section of the Transport Agency’s Waikato Expressway project had a couple of interesting challenges that have been overcome with great success. Engagement with concerned parties has ensured the road could be built through an area sacred to local Maori and land administered by the Department of Conservation. BY MARY SEARLE BELL.
STRETCHING FOR 15.2 KILOMETRES, this piece of the project is moving a busy part of State Highway 1 away from the township of Huntly. A key geographical feature of the area is Taupiri Range, land sacred to the Waikato-Tainui iwi. At the designation hearing the iwi objected to the project. However, an innovative and award-winning solution was achieved with the NZTA forming a ‘tangata whenua’ working group. This group was made up of a representative from each of the 25 local marae. Together, they worked through the objections – finding ways to mitigate the issues. In return, the tribe withdrew their submission of objection and the project was able to proceed without having to go through the Environment Court. The first of its kind, the Huntly section has a kaiarahi – or cultural guide – embedded in the project team. She provides 34 www.contractormag.co.nz
the necessary information on the correct protocols to follow for various scenarios. For example, when earthworks uncovered ancient bones of a young male, the contractors turned to the kaiarahi for guidance on how to deal with them appropriately. Liaising with the tangata whenua working group, she arranged for a spirit guide to sit with the bones, as per Maori protocol, until they were removed by an archaeologist for examination, ensured the history was recorded and the bones reburied, and had the site blessed by the local iwi before returning it to the contractors to continue their work. Thanks to this close working arrangement, the contractors were back at work in less than a week. The project has also discovered ancient kumara gardens. There are also two pa sites in the construction zone, which are
Johnson Valley south to Taupiri Pass
protected by the Historic Places Trust. The kaiarahi provided guidance around the reconstruction of the timber palisades and planting on the pa. Project director Tony Dickens, from the Fulton Hogan-HEB joint venture, says the involvement of iwi is a very big feature of the project. “The Waikato-Tainui consider the Taupiri Range precious,” he says. “It’s a step forward for them and the NZTA to agree for a road to be built here.” Working with the kaiarahi on the project team are nine kaitiaki – or guardians. It is their job to watch over work, ensuring the environment is treated with respect. These cultural observers are based on site – they go through the safety briefings each day with the site supervisors and head out to watch certain jobs, like topsoil stripping, tree
felling, swamps being mucked out or streams diverted. They also provide the necessary cultural services – such as saying a blessing before trees are felled. “They ensure we do everything right in areas we are unfamiliar with,” says Tony. “Wherever we have interactions with flora and fauna, they are there to make sure it’s treated well.” Fulton Hogan-HEB and the NZTA also meet monthly on site with the tangata whenua working group. Tony gives a presentation on where the project is at, and the working group is then able to raise any concerns they have. “We figure out a plan together, and I always do what I say I’m going to do,” says Tony. “We have a good relationship, which comes down to meeting often.” Several Waikato projects have benefitted from this kind of iwi involvement, and Tony says we will only see more of AUGUST 2017 35
CONTRACTOR PROJECT
Above: A blessing ceremony is performed before a tuupuna (significant) tree is felled.
Right: Koiwi (human skeletal remains) were found on site. At the time, the current kaiarahi, Kawe Nikora, was one of the project’s kaitiaki and is pictured sitting as the spirit guide. On the right is project director Tony Dickens.
36 www.contractormag.co.nz
it. The Hamilton section of the project has already followed suit, and the NZTA project in Warkworth is also adopting the arrangement. The Huntly section has a significant amount of earthworks. The biggest is a 57-metre cut at Taupiri Pass, which is removing 1.2 million cubic metres of earth from the mountain range. Elsewhere, there are lots of ground improvement works underway. “The very soft ground is a big challenge,”
Tony explains. “At the bridge sites, we’ve being driving telephone poles into the ground to improve it – they prevent liquefaction from happening.” Wick drains are being used to firm up the ground where the old Huntly East coalmine dumped its tailings back in the 1940s, and there are “heaps and heaps of gullies – up to five metres deep – in the swamp that we are having to dig out and fill”. A number of streams
The Huntly section has a significant amount of earthworks. The biggest is a 57-metre cut at Taupiri Pass (above), which is removing 1.2 million cubic metres of earth from the mountain range.
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CONTRACTOR PROJECT
Above: Northern Huntly interchange. Wick drains are being used to firm up the ground where the old Huntly East coalmine dumped its tailings back in the 1940s, and there are “heaps and heaps of gullies – up to five metres deep – in the swamp that we are having to dig out and fill”. A number of streams are being diverted too.
38 www.contractormag.co.nz
are being diverted too. The earthworks also cut through a corner of the Taupiri Scientific Reserve, which is administered by the Department of Conservation. The project is removing one hectare from the 620-hectare block, and the agreement with DOC has seen Fulton HoganHEB undertake wide-scale pest extermination. “We had to kill all the stoats, rats and possums in the entire reserve,” says Tony. “Thousands of bait stations were established all over the 620-hectare block by professional pest eradicators and we achieved a 99 percent strike rate on the first poisoning. Professional hunters were also engaged to shoot over 700 feral goats. “I feel quite good about it,” Tony told Contractor. “It’s the first time I’ve been involved in pest eradication. The bird population has shown an increase in just one breeding season.” As part of the arrangement with DOC, Fulton Hogan-HEB has to keep the reserve pest free for the next 10 years – a task they will subcontract out. As you would expect, there were stringent requirements to meet to ensure the preservation of native wildlife when it came to clearing the one-hectare corner where the road will be built.
“We rescued 23 lizards and geckos,” says Tony. “And every day before cutting down a tree we had to look for bats.” With the summer earthworks season over, things are relatively quiet on site at the moment. Fulton Hogan-HEB has in fact diverted several men and machines down to Kaikoura to help out in the quake recovery work. Things will get going again on October 1, and there’s a bit of catching up to do then. The target was to move two million cubic metres of material over the earthworks season to May 1 2017, and the team was on target until four major rain events hit them and only 1.7 million cubic metres were shifted. “We had a wet, horrible, miserable summer,” says Tony. “We were tracking well going into the end of March, then it started raining. It just got wetter and wetter and wetter. We ended up with 90 earthworks days when we needed 110 or 120.” Nevertheless Tony is pleased with the progress they’ve made and, although they missed their targets for the past summer, they’re still on programme. “We can’t work miracles when it’s raining,” he says. “I’m happy – we’re set up for next summer.”
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CONTRACTOR HEAVY HAULAGE
ON TOP
OF THEIR
GAME
Family owned Britton House Movers is a big player when it comes to building relocations, employing over 45 staff and running a fleet of 10 haulage units. RICHARD SILCOCK caught up with Paul Britton in between moves to profile the 60-year-old business, his role and his views for the future.
40 www.contractormag.co.nz
WHEN I CATCH up with Paul Britton he and his team have just finished relocating a house from their two-hectare yard at Haywards on SH58 to Titahi Bay, a job that took several hours and saw them on the job at 4am. The yard is full of relocatable houses, vehicles were coming and going, the phone was ringing and Paul is smiling – he should be as the company has experienced a growth in business of 80 percent in recent years. He’s busy organising a relocation for the following night, a job which he says “could be a bit tricky as the access is over sloping, wet, muddy ground and the neighbours aren’t that cooperative about us encroaching on their property!
A house in Gisborne being extracted from a wet, heavy clay site with an excavator providing extra traction.
“Planning is essential in this game but you have to retain a degree of flexibility and adapt to the conditions and regulations,” he says. Paul is the third generation Britton to run this family owned business and is both general manager of the Britton House Movers Group and manager of the Wellington operation. With a permanent staff of 45 and three branches in Wellington, Bulls/Wanganui and Hastings, he is kept busy. “We did over 350 relocations last year, 95 percent of which were buildings,” he says. “We are one of the biggest building relocators in the country and are regarded as number one in the lower half of the North Island for relocating large buildings from, or to, difficult sites.”
In addition to 10 Mack, Western Star and International units, they have nine house moving trailers, a number of utes and pilot vehicles and an array of hydraulic lifting equipment. “By comparison to our competitors we are able to pool our equipment and resources,” he says. “For example, here in Wellington our units are smaller and suited to the often narrow streets; whereas the Bulls/Wanganui operation has some big units able to handle 90-ton loads, so if we need that capability here we can bring a unit down.” The business was started in 1957 by Paul’s grandfather, Ted Britton, with an old GMC truck. “He got into building relocations by chance,” says Paul. “He was involved in demolition work
Above: To reach a back section, this single storey house was hydraulically elevated 2.5 metres to avoid houses and a fence either side of a narrow driveway before it was carefully backed into position. Top: The Britton House Movers management team: (from left) Elwyn Fryer, Paul Hackett and Paul Britton.
AUGUST 2017 41
CONTRACTOR HEAVY HAULAGE
Top: The landmark, two-storey Tinui Country Hotel in the Wairarapa was moved in two sections to Greytown, a distance of 120 kilometres along a narrow country road. Above: These three new houses constructed by students completing a trade certificate at Weltec, Petone, were transported to Britton’s yard at Haywards where they were marketed and on-sold.
42 www.contractormag.co.nz
in Wanganui and was asked if he could relocate a building instead of demolishing it and the business grew from there.” In 1985 the firm merged with Southcombes Building Removals and opened a branch on the Kapiti Coast before moving to the present site on SH58 a few years later when they secured a contract to relocate a number of buildings from the Haywards sub-station. Ted’s three sons, Graham, John and Arthur took over the business when Ted retired in the mid-80s and they remain as directors of the company. Paul (Graham’s son) became GM after spending some 30 odd years on staff doing a range of jobs. Arthur’s son, Adam, is employed as a piling foreman at the Bulls/Wanganui branch. Paul Hackett manages the Bulls/Wanganui branch, while the Hastings operation is managed by Elwyn Fryer.
“They both have a ton of experience,” says Paul (Britton). “They’re regarded as being a part of the family with Paul having clocked up 44 years with us. “Like my grandfather I also got into this business by chance. I was thinking of joining the navy when I left school at the end of 1987, but dad asked me to give him a hand over the Christmas holidays and the rest as they say is history. “I guess there are some what-ifs, but I don’t have any regrets and have a passion for this business and the industry as a whole. No two jobs are ever the same, you get to meet some interesting people and go to places that are pretty much unheard of outside the immediate vicinity. The hours are long, often at night and in all kinds of weather, but the rewards are there.” Paul says that while they are house movers,
the cream lies in the on-selling of houses and he unashamedly admits that is where extra profit now lies. “In correlation with relocations we often act as house brokers, buying and selling on behalf of owners, or purchasing outright from an owner or developer who may be rebuilding or needs to make way for other redevelopment. We bring houses back to the yard; do some renovations and on-sell to a new owner, with the move and the foundations provided as a complete package. “I like to think we are in effect recyclers, able to offer people affordable houses which have plenty of life left in them. We also build modest spec houses from scratch, then sell and relocate them. “However we are essentially about shifting houses, we are good at it and really just want to focus on shifting houses,” he says. Completing heaps of paper work has unfortunately become part and parcel of the job according to Paul. “There can be a raft of permits and authorisations to obtain from the likes of NZTA and local councils for overweight/
over-dimension loads and where applicable from power, phone, police and rail authorities. Relocation and building permits are also required along with safety and insurance agreements.” Asked to recall some of the more spectacular relocations, Paul is hard pressed to come up with any one in particular, for he says they all presented different challenges often with obstacles such as other houses or high sided bridges to be negotiated. “Perhaps one of the most interesting was the relocation of a 2500 square metre former rest- home from Upper Hutt. We transported it in 21 sections over a period of five weeks to its new location where it is now used as offices by Te Wananga-oRaukawa. “We’ve also done triple unit moves, such as the Kapiti Aero Club hangar, and the Boat Shed complex on Wellington’s waterfront which was moved 300 metres on four trailer units and rotated 180 degrees. That required some careful coordination and planning. “Moving some of the big props for some of Peter Jackson’s movies from Weta
Workshops to various filming locations is also memorable as it was a bit different,” he says. On replying to a question on the challenges currently facing the industry Paul says the increasing number of constraints being put in place by local authorities, the delays around the issuing of resource and building consents, the new health and safety requirements and getting good staff are the main ones. “These days it is difficult to secure young people for this industry who have the right aptitude, who are prepared to work long hours often at night and be away from home frequently,” he says. “However if they’re willing, have the right attitude and want a job with variety they stand a good chance of going the distance and learning heaps. “I attribute our success to recruiting the right people and having an experienced team, whether it be the guys doing the move, our in-house builders, our mechanics, or the people in the office – they all do a fantastic job,” says Paul. “Collectively there is a pool of experience and we all operate as a close knit family.
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AUGUST 2017 43
CONTRACTOR HEAVY HAULAGE
Clockwise from top left: A high gabled house being removed from a suburban site in Picton in one piece; Hauling the 300-tonne ‘Milford Wanderer’ tourist excursion vessel from the Quay West Boat Builders facility at Wanganui. The double-storey, historic Holly Lodge guest house at Wanganui was extracted from an orchard site and required some additional traction from continuous-tracked heavy earthmovers. Moving the 37-metre Kapiti Aero Club hangar and office in one piece required three units when it was moved in one piece.
44 www.contractormag.co.nz
“While it is a family business, we give staff every opportunity to progress and to take on supervisory and leadership roles, and looking ahead move into management as people retire.” Paul says the recent changes to the Health and Safety Act have left some operators running scared – scared they have missed something in the paper work, or that staff are being noncompliant on site. “We take the view that health and safety is paramount so we put all our people through a ‘Site-Safe’ course and asbestos awareness training. We encourage team work, looking out for each other, checking equipment and mitigating risk. Given our size we also employ a safety audit manager to supervise safety training and monitor safety procedures.” Up until last year Paul was chairperson for the NZ Heavy Haulage Association, a role he held for six years (he’s been a board member for 15 years). “It’s been both an interesting and challenging time,” he says. “The association plays a very important role in our industry, advocating for members and seeking changes from authorities and government. For instance, we brought
about a review of the VDAM rule, changed the regulations around constructing foundations, and [we] get to discuss with NZTA plans for new road infrastructure such as roundabouts, bridges etc – providing our perspective. “I firmly believe any operator involved in our industry should be a member of the association, for a strong membership is our collective strength,” says Paul. “As a member you will get more out of it if you take an active part at branch or national level. You will learn heaps, get to mix with likeminded people and hear their story and viewpoints – I certainly did and it did wonders for my personal growth for due to the nature of the business we can often work in isolation.” While Britton’s is a 24/7 operation, in his spare time Paul and his wife Tiffany head for their beach cottage up the coast and indulge in some beach roaming or long walks. “I am passionate about this business for it is both my life and my hobby. However it is important to take time out and have an understanding wife who is tolerant of the time I spend away, so I guard my time off – no phones and no trucks!”
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CONTRACTOR PROJECT
46 www.contractormag.co.nz
FIJI – SOUTH PACIFIC N
QUEENS ROAD
FIJIAN assignment Contracting company, Higgins, has been involved in infrastructure projects in Fiji for the past four years. Currently, it is involved in upgrading a section of the Queens Road on the south-western side of the main island of Viti Levu. RICHARD SILCOCK profiles the $66 million project.
AUGUST 2017 47
CONTRACTOR PROJECT
Over-congested part of the old Queens Rd near Nadi township, and preparatory work prior to widening. The N2 Queens Road Contract is a significant road infrastructure project for Fiji. At a cost of $66 million it has involved over 100 people in the construction.
ALTHOUGH A MAIN arterial for tourist and commercial vehicles alike, Queens Road, which runs some 197 kilometres from Lautoka to Suva, was in a poor state and due to it being only two lanes was severely congested at times. The road provides the primary access to Nadi International Airport and the numerous tourist resorts along the palm-fringed, white sand southwestern coastline known as the Coral Coast. It is also an important route for the transportation of produce such as sugar that is grown around Lautoka, Fiji’s second largest town. Around 15,000 vehicles currently travel the road each day. Higgins won the contract for the redevelopment of a six-kilometre section of the road, from the airport to the intersection with the two-lane Denarau Resort bypass. Known as the N2 Queens Road Contract it is being carried out for the Fiji Roads Authority. The project has involved realigning parts of the road, constructing a four-lane highway with six signalised intersections and a major roundabout. It has also included upgrading and managing the relocation and installation of underground services such as power cables, telecommunication
48 www.contractormag.co.nz
cables, sewer lines, a number of water mains and stormwater pipes. In addition, footpaths, street lighting, landscaping and new bus stops are being installed. At the same time the Fiji Electricity Authority is relocating overhead power lines to allow for the road upgrade widening. Project manager for the redevelopment, James Walsh, who has overseen the project since it commenced in late 2014, says the main reason for the upgrade was the need to widen it to relieve traffic congestion especially around the airport entrance, put down new paving and provide a much safer road. “As the main road to and from the airport, the resorts and Lautoka [the departure point for tourists travelling to the outer islands], Queens Road is regarded as the ‘Gateway to Fiji’,” says James. “It was originally built prior to the Second World War as an unsealed road to the capital Suva, which is on the other side of the island. Parts of it had been sealed since but due to the amount of traffic, heavy rainfall and at times severe flooding, the road had deteriorated considerably and became badly pot holed,” he says. “In April this year a section of the
road had to be closed so that a stormwater pipe which had collapsed could be repaired.” The N2 Queens Road Contract is a significant road infrastructure project for Fiji. At a cost of $66 million it has involved over 100 people in the construction. One hundred and twenty thousand cubic metres of foamed bitumen pavement, 113,000 cubic metres of asphalt, 18 kilometres of concrete culverts, 22,241 metres of kerbing, and 31,500 cubic metres of concrete for the footpaths have been used in the project. “As there was an existing road, the amount of
earthworks has been minimal,” says James. “However we’ve had to replace over 12,000 cubic metres of the existing pavement.” Equipment for the project was supplied from New Zealand and shipped over. It includes a number of 5-20 tonne Caterpillar excavators, several graders, seven 4-10 tonne rollers, two Bitelli paving machines and an asphalt spreader, along with several Hino crew cabs and a watercart. A major weather event in February last year interrupted the project. Tropical Cyclone Winston, the worst ever to hit Fiji and the Pacific
Part of the upgraded four lane Queens Road with kerbing being completed. One hundred and twenty thousand cubic metres of foamed bitumen pavement, 113,000 cubic metres of asphalt, 18 kilometres of concrete culverts, 22,241 metres of kerbing, and 31,500 cubic metres of concrete for the footpaths have been used in the project.
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AUGUST 2017 49
CONTRACTOR PROJECT
Top: Excavation work for utility services on a widened section of road at Nadi. Above: A section of the finished road. Higgins expects to complete this section of the upgrade in April next year. The company is also working on a road maintenance programme and with more infrastructure work coming up in the future is expected to have a presence in Fiji for some time yet.
50 www.contractormag.co.nz
Basin destroyed or damaged over 40,000 homes in Fiji resulting in some 350,000 people being impacted. Work was curtailed for two weeks due to severe flooding, fallen trees and downed power lines. “Apart from that event, the weather has been generally pretty good for road construction purposes as the ground dries up quickly after a rainfall, even in winter when the temperature can still reach 25-30 odd degrees,” says James. In addition to the Higgins team, 10 local subcontracting companies are involved to work on specific infrastructure including two 4.5-metre-high concrete and steel retaining walls, drainage, kerbing, bus shelters, street lighting, signage and landscaping. “By utilising local subcontractors, it has allowed us to extend the skills of the local people through a formal training programme,” says James. “This training is a key focus for Higgins as it forms a part of the contract we have with Fiji Roads so it is taken very seriously and we take every
opportunity to include locals where feasible. “The training is done to NZTA certified level and has resulted in 10 traffic controllers and five site management supervisors gaining qualification. In addition, training modules are provided for the local staff on earthworks, pavement construction, bitumen paving and sealing, first aid and critical safety rules. Training is also provided for a number of other skills including truck driving and for operators of machinery so that they can gain a licence.” Higgins expects to complete this section of the upgrade in April next year. The company is also working on a road maintenance programme and with more infrastructure work coming up in the future is expected to have a presence in Fiji for some time yet. “In the three years that I have been here leading this project, I’ve got to meet a lot of the local people,” says James. “The Fijians are awesome, really friendly, so I have enjoyed interacting with them and am enjoying life in this tropical slice of paradise.”
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CONTRACTOR TECHNICAL
Buyers’ Guide
for on-board scales and weighing systems Onboard loader scales have long been a cornerstone of measuring equipment for quarry operators and other load-haul operations in construction, mining, waste management/recycling, logging and more. Article supplied by TRIMBLE. RECENTLY, LOADER SCALES have evolved dramatically to not
only provide highly accurate payload weighing but also load location via GPS, WiFi connectivity, colour touchscreen displays and more. Today’s modern onboard scales empower site managers and operators to be more productive with faster and more accurate loading workflows. This includes loading cycles for all operations, from pit-loading, construction, truck load-out, crusher feeding to material handling. Sophisticated onboard scales let operators and managers track production data, optimise truck loading and eliminate overloads that can lead to costly fines. Not only that, fleet and site managers have greater visibility into overall site operations with real-time access to reliable and consistent payload data.
Loader scale evaluation and adoption LIKE MOST TECHNOLOGY, wheel loader scales and weighing
systems are evolving to become simpler, easier to use, and 52 www.contractormag.co.nz
less costly. Part of that progression has been shaped by the proliferation of connected solutions and mobile applications used in all aspects of work and play, including smartphones, tablets, GPS devices and more. In essence, people and enterprises are getting more comfortable and confident in leveraging technology as it delivers on key promises of convenience, increased accuracy, reliability and automation. Organisations looking to install or replace payload measurement systems for next-generation, onboard scales to maximise payload optimisation should think through the following three considerations before moving forward: • Evaluate and prioritise requirements Organisations looking to evaluate onboard scales and weighing systems should first prioritise the needs of key stakeholders. This might include looking at requirements for operators, site and fleet managers, or customer reporting or billing needs. Evaluate how each group will interact with the weighing and
reporting system. For example, some scales for wheel loaders may give managers access to reports and data about tons moved per day, but operators receive these reports hours or days later. Other onboard weighing systems provide real-time visibility with payload data that is continuously displayed in-cab. This allows users to access reports instantly and track real-time product tonnage, customer information, and date and time stamps. • Focus on the biggest impact for ROI When evaluating loader scales, be sure to assess areas that offer the biggest opportunity for Return on Investment (ROI) in operations. For instance, many operations might first focus on using onboard scales to accurately track the amount of material moved per hour or per day. This capability would allow site managers to collaborate with operators and set benchmarks to optimise productivity. Once users are comfortable with wheel loader scales, they might add scales to additional machines for a big-picture view. They may also opt to capture a wider range of metrics, such as looking at machine utilisation or cycle times to identify possible inefficiencies or process bottlenecks that are handcuffing productivity. This iterative approach will help quarry operators to better understand the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) and ROI of
onboard scales based on actual predictions for increased productivity and material moved. • Consider the interoperability of equipment It’s also important to consider the lifecycle of onboard scales in the organisation as well as other equipment and technology components used. The organisation’s technology infrastructure should be vendor-neutral and allow for easy data exchange between scales and machines, as well as the information flow between site managers and machine operators. When information can be shared freely across the job site in real time, project workflow is streamlined and productivity gains grow considerably. Another factor to consider is the longterm goals of the organisation. Evaluate the technology ecosystem that can grow and adapt as the business expands, adds equipment, or requirements change. Incremental adoption of technology and equipment is smart when each component can build on each other, works well together and meets the immediate and future needs of the organisation. For example, the loader scale should be an integral part of the ecosystem. With the ability to capture data from other loaders, excavators, conveyor belts and haul trucks, the ecosystem will become a powerful, yet essential management tool in the future. AUGUST 2017 53
CONTRACTOR TECHNICAL
Evaluation criteria Once an organisation has determined its requirements, identified where the greatest ROI can be recognised, and evaluated its technology infrastructure, the next step is to find a technology solution that best meets the unique needs of the operation. Keep in mind the following considerations when evaluating the options available:
Accuracy Accuracy is typically the most important consideration when it comes to evaluating wheel loader scales. Operators need accurate weight measurements to optimise payload operations. Today, most loader scales will achieve ±1 percent margin of error accuracy or better, excavators at better than three percent margin of error, and conveyor scales better than 0.5 percent. With a quarry operation that moves 2000 tonnes per day, a one percent change in accuracy quickly adds up to increased profitability. This could translate into tens of thousands of dollars of extra revenue for a busy quarry over the course of a year. When evaluating accuracy, look for wheel loader scales that offer: – Consistent weighing over a range of environmental conditions, such as temperatures changes through the day, rough terrain and weighing on the move. – Premium sensor technology and multi-point weighing technology that provides a larger scale ‘sweet spot’ for weighing. Be careful of technology that measures outside this sweet spot during lift phases where material is dropping from the bucket. – Slope compensation technology is essential because the stockpiles yard may not be on a perfectly flat surface. In addition, when feeding the hopper, the loader will likely go up a ramp. It’s also important to keep in mind that highly accurate, quality scales systems can help operators at all experience levels maximise productivity. This can mean savings in hiring and staffing for example.
Look for smartscales that go beyond weighing Modern smartscales go beyond accurate weighing to deliver simplified, machine-to-machine connectivity. This results in streamlined data collection and efficient data exchange. Better connectivity options and information sharing is significant because the key to making effective decisions is having the right data and information available at the right time. Smartscales with embedded connectivity solutions and robust reporting and data management capabilities make this possible by breaking down barriers to streamlined data flow and by providing a holistic view of operations. Smartscales also empower operators to be more selfsufficient, with the ability to set personal benchmarks and focus on loadout efficiency and pit productivity directly from inside the cab. They can track who, what, where, and how much material is moved at any given time. Specific options to look for include: – Reports that give real-time access to data by customer, product, machine or productivity. Does the weighing system 54 www.contractormag.co.nz
let site managers total performance across multiple machines or identify the high performing operators each day? Look for reports that can show multiple scales, across quarry operations, on one report. – Dynamic visualisation capabilities – real-time data is good, but only if the team can leverage it to quickly see key performance indicators, analyse trends and highlight any bottlenecks or issues. Look for colour-coded graph tools, table options, and heatmap capabilities. – Electronic tickets are the new industry trend towards paperless workflows. In-cab mounted printer options are also useful. Operators can immediately print a load ticket to track individual trucks, daily or weekly load-out, and more.
GPS and connectivity options As mentioned earlier, connectivity options are a critical component of modern smartscales. Bringing loader operations from the field back to the office is much more streamlined − not to mention less costly − when WiFi and other connectivity options are pre-built into the onboard scale. This allows managers and operators to have a shared view of the production status. Operators can also receive orders directly in the cab and capture electronic Ticket IDs that include time stamped and dated payload information, and send directly to customers. Look for scales that include: – Built-in WiFi connectivity options, which allow for faster and cheaper communications networks. This will allow operators to cache and sync data via WiFi or they can use existing radio communications networks when needed. – Embedded-GPS systems, which allow managers to precisely track inventory, monitor machine stress and schedule maintenance, or identify equipment with unused capacity. All of this is used to build reports and metrics that drive operations and optimise production throughout the operation.
Convenience and usability With increased exposure to technology also comes increased expectations around technology convenience and usability. When it comes to loader scales, operators need onboard scale systems and displays an uncluttered and easy to use so they can focus on the job at hand. A dedicated display for payload data means that this information is always available, rather than sharing the screen with other information that may be a distraction. This can include: – Touch-screen and larger displays – Loader scales that offer simple ‘smartphone quality’ touch-screens means the learning curve for the scale systems is next to zero. Also, look for larger displays that that allow for larger text, which provides for easy reading and a better operator experience.
Installation and support When shopping for an onboard scale or weighing system, look for partners that specialise in product knowledge and onsite support to prevent any slowdowns in operations. The right partner will ensure installation, calibration, training, regular scale maintenance and ongoing support are a top priority. When choosing a partner, look for one that provides: – Local, trusted support.
Today’s hauling, mining and aggregate operators require advancements in onboard scales and weighing systems that offer simplified scale installation, touch-screen displays, WiFi connectivity and embedded GPS positioning.
– Global coverage to support enterprise-wide rollouts. – Simple installation with no welding or no cutting required – this helps maintain machine integrity and machine resale. – Support for your future growth, by offering technology beyond your current needs and across your operations (eg, excavator, conveyor, loader, etc)
Preparing for what’s next Today’s hauling, mining and aggregate operators require advancements in onboard scales and weighing systems that offer simplified scale installation, touch-screen displays, WiFi
connectivity and embedded GPS positioning. These smart scales are supporting improved productivity and communication across the jobsite and enabling simplified data collection and data exchange. Looking ahead, advancements in smart scales and weighing systems will continue to help maximise payload optimisation and empower operators to be self-reliant with information and confidence to identify bottlenecks and make smarter decisions about productivity and customer service. By focusing on the adoption strategies and evaluation criteria covered in this guide, organisations will be more informed, and therefore more competitive.
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CONTRACTOR HERITAGE TRAILS
HE
RI TAGE
PHOTO: HOCKEN LIBRARY
TRAILS
PHOTO: ALEXANDER TURNBULL LIBRARY, WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND
There were wild pigs aplenty up the top of the Shag Valley, but it was the mud that gave Otago’s SH85 the nickname by which it is known today: The Pigroot.
56 www.contractormag.co.nz
A CONCISE HISTORY of KIWI ROADING Richard Silcock explores the development and construction of the country’s first roads. WHEN THE FIRST Europeans settled in New Zealand their
The Riwaka to Takaka road, which still follows the course of the one completed in 1900, still takes a good hour to drive over the winding and precipitous route.
Great South Road, nine metres wide, was pushed out to the Mangatawhiri River where a 100 square metre camp initially for 500 men, but later greatly expanded, was built of 100,000 linear feet (30,500 metres) of sawn timber and called the Queen’s Redoubt.
attention was largely given to creating towns, with harbours and ports to service them. Apart from the dirt roads in towns, travel to inland areas was mainly via horse drawn wagon along beaches, or via canoe or paddle steamer up rivers such as the Waikato and Wanganui, or via tracks originated by Maori. Railways were given precedence in the mid-1800s over roads as they were seen as the most cost-effective way of ‘opening up’ the country and providing links between towns. As ‘roads’ were slowly established, most were nothing more than widened bridle tracks and after heavy rain were subject to turning into muddy, rutted quagmires making travel extremely difficult. As time progressed, crushed stones and shells were spread as a top layer which helped to minimise wagons and carriages getting bogged down. By the later part of the 1800s more roads were being constructed around New Zealand particularly near blossoming towns and ports and in Otago following the discovery of gold. While some rudimentary stone roads were laid on private land, most road building was directly related to the prosperity of the district, as initially there was no central control. Otago was one of the first regions to see the creation of paved macadam style roads, with the Dunedin to Queenstown road being one of the first built. The Great South Road in Auckland (then the capital) was constructed for the ‘rapid’ transportation of troops to the Waikato region to face the hostilities during the Waikato Land Wars, while in the Wellington area, roads that could cater for horse or bullock drawn wagons began to be built with the Paekakariki and the Rimutaka ‘tracks’ being built for the purpose of opening up new areas of land for farming. However, it still took a bullock drawn and fully laden wagon a week to travel between Wellington and Greytown in the Wairarapa, a trip that today takes just an hour by car. Julius Vogel is regarded as one of the first prime movers for getting roads built here, and during his time as colonial treasurer he was instrumental in setting up the Public Works Department (PWD), to administer the construction of roads, railways and other infrastructure on a national level. Despite financial setbacks and poor administration, most roads were constructed using hard labour, barrows, pick and shovel, and in some cases explosives to loosen hillsides. A lot of the work was done by contractors who employed unskilled foreign and local labour on low hourly rates. However, as there was a shortage of qualified and experienced engineers and due to the rugged topography of the country, progress was extremely slow. There were also numerous cases AUGUST 2017 57
PHOTOS COURTESY OF BRIAN BAXTER, COBBLESTONES MUSEUM, GREYTOWN
CONTRACTOR PROJECT
Above left: The Featherston County Council purchased this tar-sealing machine in 1929 for sealing roads in the district. The first trial strip was laid on what is now known as SH53. Above right: The ‘bucket’ of a road scope that was used to lift stones, gravel and earth.
where cavalier contractors often made huge profits at the expense of the subcontractors, suppliers and workmen who were often left unpaid. Some ‘entrepreneurial’ road builders invented equipment to assist in road construction. One such piece of equipment was the road scoop. Harnessed to bullocks or draft horses (and later steam-driven machines), road scoops were used like an excavator is today for earthworks and the formation of road alignments. Scoops were also used to load crushed river stones onto bullock drawn wagons which would transport the load to a construction site. The scoop would remove the top layers of earth along an alignment and then place the metal to form the road. When Richard Seddon became Minister of Public Works in 1891 he transformed the PWD from an administrative, planning and advisory body to what was to become the country’s largest construction agency with hundreds of workmen employed, resulting in roadbuilding being accelerated, rates of pay guaranteed and construction standards lifted. Tar did not come into use in New Zealand until the late 1890s and early 1900s, but as road building methods improved it was used in conjunction with crushed stones, much the same way as bitumen and chip is today. Rudimentary tar-sealing machines were ‘invented’ locally to spread the tar and there were a number of cases where the hot tar would often catch fire sending operators scurrying for safety. Hand-in-hand with early road-building improvements came improvements in forms of travel, with carriages fitted with better springs and larger, wider wheels to give a smoother ride for passengers. Iron hoops were fitted around wooden wheels, like a tyre, to minimise wear and provide a better ‘connection’ with the road. Cast iron ring plates, also known as hooping plates, were used 58 www.contractormag.co.nz
by wheelwrights to shape the circular hoops, which were made slightly smaller than the circumference of the carriage/wagon wheel. To fit it, the wheelwright would first heat the hoop in a furnace to expand it before placing it around the wheel. It would then be doused with cold water to cool it, causing the ‘tyre’ to shrink and create a tight fit around the wheel, a process known as ‘shrink fitting’. With the introduction of the motorcar to New Zealand in 19101920, roads were gradually improved. Whereas roads had been constructed to cater for bullock and horse-drawn traffic and generally followed the land contour, cars and trucks required wider, better surfaced roads. While many roads remained unsealed and prone to becoming muddy, resulting in cars becoming stuck, some regions were more inclined than others to seal ‘their’ roads. Taranaki was one of the first provinces to adopt a tar/bitumen sealing policy throughout the region, largely paid for by user tolls. The government also took over the responsibility for the construction and maintenance of all main roads, with the introduction of a Main Highways Board, the prime responsibility of which was the allocation of funding. A ‘highway’ from Auckland to Wellington was completed around this time, which, with the exception of the Central Plateau and some other areas, was laid entirely with a bituminous pavement. At the time of the 1930s Depression unemployed men were put to work to assist in the building of roads around the country. Conditions were tough with temporary work camps set up often in very remote places with very little other than basic food supplies and primitive accommodation facilities. Some extraordinary feats of engineering and back-breaking labouring took place during this time with perhaps the most significant being the creation of the road through the Haast Pass to the West Coast and from Te Anau to Milford Sound, which included the construction of the Homer Tunnel.
Auckland (1965) and the Wellington Motorway (1969). This evolution of roads has continued throughout the country since the 1970s with all main highways and most roads sealed, and four lane motorways and expressways being built to meet the demand of increasing traffic and associated safety. The MoW was sold or dissolved in 1988 with private enterprise stepping in to design and construct roads, and the government, through its transport arm Transit (now NZTA) administering planning, development and funding. www.IPENZ.org.nz
As the economy improved so did the level of road making machinery, and in 1935 the PWD designed and built its own graders rather than import them from the US. This introduction of machinery such as the steam-driven excavator mounted on caterpillar tracks caused a dramatic reduction in the time taken to complete a project and in the cost. With the outbreak of WW2, most road building was curtailed with work diverted to the building of military aerodromes both in NZ and several Pacific Islands. It wasn’t until 1943 during Bob Semple’s term as minister and the formation of the Ministry of Works (MoW) that planning took place on the future infrastructure needs of the country post war. A Bill was passed in Parliament for the Ministry to “establish control for the execution of all major construction works”, under Commissioner of Works, Sir James Fletcher. With a change of government in 1949 and the need for the urgent maintenance of roads that had been neglected during the war years, these controls were relaxed and local authorities were given once again responsibility for their local roads. Opportunities again developed for private enterprise and the emergence of fledgling civil contracting companies. By the 50s and 60s, many of these contracting firms were obtaining work from MoW often for considerably large projects. The allocation of the Ministry’s road funding increased from 14 percent to 21.5 percent of its budget and a roads division was set up. Some significant sections of road were built during this time and the 60s saw the completion of the original Southern Motorway and construction of the Newmarket Viaduct in
Men at work on the Homer Tunnel, Southland. Raine, William Hall, 1892-1955 :Negatives of New Zealand towns and scenery, and Fiji. Ref: 1/2-024836-F. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. http://beta.natlib.govt.nz/records/22346543
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CONTRACTOR COMMENT
Business certainty vs clawbacks PETER SILCOCK, CHIEF EXECUTIVE, CIVIL CONTRACTORS NEW ZEALAND
OVER THE PAST few months CCNZ has been doing work on the
thorny issue of voidable transactions. The term “voidable transactions” seems to me to be a very polite phase. Personally, I prefer the term “clawback”, it may not be technically correct but it embodies the feeling of injustice and indignation contractors caught up in a voidable transaction process experience. A “clawback” is where the liquidator can compel a creditor who has received a payment, while the liquidated company was insolvent, to pay it back. The law is intended to protect the interests of unsecured creditors and enables liquidators to reach back up to two years. In principle, the liquidator claws back a payment made to one creditor and distributes the funds to all unsecured creditors. The insolvency of a principal or head contractor can be devastating. Not only can contractors lose the money they are still owed they can also have a liquidator looking to clawback payments they received up to two years before! I was recently asked how many of our members had been impacted by “clawbacks”. I responded by saying that all contractors are impacted because of the uncertainty the system creates. Contractors get paid and with money in the bank they in turn pay wages, salaries, subcontractors and suppliers. Put simply, this is how commerce and the business world works. The nature of the construction industry with multiple levels of contracts exposes all participants to insolvency risks. Although it needs to be said that some parts of the civil construction industry are less exposed because of the volume of work done for government agencies. The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) review of Report No 2 of the Insolvency Working Group (IWG) on “clawbacks” has given CCNZ the opportunity to support some positive suggestions that the IWG has made and promote further changes for the benefit of all CCNZ members.
Business certainty The biggest point of debate is how to balance the interests all creditors with the need to provide certainty to businesses that they can rely on the validity of a payment they receive in the normal course of their business. CCNZ is advocating for more weight to be given to business certainty by reducing the “clawback” period to 6 months and providing a clear and fair legal basis on which businesses can resist “clawback” claims.
Regulating liquidators The second issue that needs attention that has not been addressed by the IWG is ensuring that liquidators act fairly and in the interests of creditors. In some cases, the lion’s share of “clawed back” money has ended up being absorbed by the liquidator’s fees and costs rather than being distributed to creditors. Liquidators sometimes also seem to target “clawbacks” to creditors they see as easy prey. For example, smaller companies that will not have the resources to legally challenge the clawback. CCNZ is supporting the plans to regulate the profession of liquidators and has proposed additional changes including establishing a materiality threshold of no “clawbacks” for amounts less than $10,000 and rules that would require a minimum of 50% of any “clawback” to be distributed to unsecured creditors. If you want to see CCNZ’s full submission on the review, which was prepared by Kensington Swan with assistance from Don Tilbrook, go to our website, www. civilcontractors.co.nz, or give us a call 0800 692 376.
Direct payments CCNZ has also taken an interest in a recent Court of Appeal case which found that payments made under a direct agreement by a financier to a builder are not transactions that can be “clawed back” by the liquidator. In doing so, the Court of Appeal has overruled the High Court’s earlier decision. A ‘direct agreement’ is a three-way arrangement between a developer, builder or contractor, and a financier. Under the agreement, the financier can ‘step in’ and complete the project if the developer defaults. The financier can also make direct payment to the builder or contractor. The Court or Appeal ruling is very sensible. But, the fact that it needed to be taken all the way to the Court of Appeal indicates that our insolvency laws around “clawbacks” are not as clear as they should be. This should all be simple stuff. We need to ensure our law makers get it right. Security of payment must be paramount as it inspires business confidence, commerce, investment, development and employment.
Postal Address: PO Box 12013, Thorndon, Wellington 6144 Physical Address: Margan House, 21 Fitzherbert Terrace, Thorndon, Wellington 6011 Phone 0800 692 376
60 www.contractormag.co.nz
COMMENT CONTRACTOR
Oversize on motorways and tolled roads JONATHAN BHANA-THOMSON, CHIEF EXECUTIVE, NZ HEAVY HAULAGE ASSOCIATION.
I WANT TO PUT the case for allowing oversize loads onto
2. Reduced restrictive infrastructure
the motorways and toll roads around New Zealand. The use of the most well-designed roads, with the best alignments, increased safety features, and the least vulnerable users has restricted use by loads that are overdimension and/or overweight. From the NZ Heavy Haulage Association’s perspective there are a number of reasons why new and existing roads should be opened up further to the biggest loads on the nation’s roads. The rationale for transporting large freight loads is clear. Bigger is better Being able to use large plant and equipment on construction, manufacturing or development sites simply enables scales of efficiency and advanced timelines for getting the job underway or completed more quickly. Pre-fabrication enables Just in Time efficiency The construction of large items off-site and delivery at the time required enables more efficient use of resources and advanced construction techniques. Relocation is beneficial Whether it is the re-use of existing homes, new transportable homes built off-site, emergency housing in times of crisis, or the expansion of schools with relocatable classrooms, the movement of buildings is an efficient use of resources. The use of motorways and toll roads is restricted under the current transportation rules. The association would like to see more regular and effective use of the roads for the transport of large loads.
Motorways have to meet certain criteria in order to qualify as such. They need to allow certain speeds to be travelled, do not have traffic signals or other design features that hold up the movement of traffic, and need to meet certain design envelope criteria that allow for the transport of oversize loads. One of the Association’s key lobbying areas is the design of these major roads, and we have been successful in ensuring that motorways built in recent years do not have restrictive dimension envelopes. Often local alternative roads have restrictive roading infrastructure such as light poles, traffic signals, pedestrian islands, and other signage. This means that oversize loads have to travel slowly or stop while infrastructure is removed (and replaced) to allow oversize loads through the area. Management of other road users while loads are slowly negotiating through restrictive areas is a key focus for loads pilots that accompany the load, but this would be far less of an issue on motorways and toll roads.
1. Divided roadways
The association is keen reduce the exposure risk of large loads on the road. This means that the shorter the period that oversize loads are on the road, the lower the risk profile. Invariably a transporter will be able to move along a motorway or toll road at a more efficient speed than along a more restrictive alternative route.
All motorways, expressways and toll roads have a barrier down the middle that divides traffic travelling in opposite directions. For oversize loads that regularly take up more than their own lane, and often take up the whole road, being able to travel on roads that do not have oncoming traffic, is quite simply safer. Often with motorways, and definitely with toll roads, that have to provide a ‘free’ alternative route, the road that oversize loads have to travel one is not divided, is often through built up areas, can have significant flows of oncoming traffic, and has traffic merging from side roads. While oversize loads have to travel at off-peak times for areas they are travelling through, there are increasing numbers of the travelling public whose safety needs to be managed by the load pilots and load drivers. When on a divided road there is only minor risk to traffic travelling in the same direction, and the load pilots employ specific traffic management procedures to ensure that the following traffic is not put at risk and allowed to pass the wide load when it is safe to do so.
3. Lack of vulnerable road users Motorways are for the transport of large numbers of cars and commercial vehicles and as such vulnerable roads users such as cyclists and pedestrians are required to use other routes. The association supports the construction of proper alternative facilities for these road users as it isolates these roads users from risk. Using motorways – rather than local roads – for oversize loads helps to access this safety benefit.
4. Enables travel at good road speed
Targeting toll roads The association is targeting toll roads for oversize loads and specifically the Tauranga Eastern Link (TEL) and the Northern Gateway Motorway, including the Johnstone Hill Tunnels north of Auckland. The current rules only allow for transport of oversize loads with special permission and at times applications have been turned down if the load can fit along the alternative free route. In the case of the TEL the alternative route through Te Puke normally takes 35 minutes, whereas along the TEL, it is less than 15 minutes on a much safer route. The association says – Come-on NZTA, make it easier and safer for oversize load transport companies and free up the over-zealous bureaucracy around the use of current (and future) motorways and toll roads. AUGUST 2017 61
CONTRACTOR COMMENT
Bringing the market together REGAN BURKE, OPERATIONS MANAGER, ICB
WE WORK IN AN industry that’s under the pump, especially now.
Additional infrastructure and housing is urgently needed, there’s a shortage of labour, a strain on resources and we’re incredibly time poor. I reckon as an industry we need to make better use of the resources that are available to us. Too frequently equipment lies idle or material is wasted or unused. I also know this is real tough to solve when there isn’t an easy way to do it. There’s not only a financial cost to all this, but environmental issues also come into play. That’s why we created CivilShare, a new app for any and all workers in the construction industry, because we live in a society that has vast knowledge and experience but no real platform or area to be able to share those resources or ideas. We connect people. CivilShare brings people together who normally wouldn’t have the opportunity to talk to each other. We believe this is because people in our industry enjoy the opportunity to meet and exchange ideas. It is a marketplace that puts people directly in touch with each other without anything or anyone else getting in the way. Let’s face it, we’re our most scarce resource. We all have too many demands and too little time. This app is designed to make things happen quickly. And you only need to go to one place for a sale, a purchase or an answer to a question. It is also easy to use. Making it easy to use meant reducing the number of steps to do anything, removing complexity and making the best use of technology. CivilShare is uncomplicated and intuitive. Downloading the app and registering takes two minutes. And then three minutes to add a listing and upload some images. The examples of when people could use it vary in scale and type, but what’s common is the opportunity to make a transaction quickly and simply, while bearing in mind that some will be more urgent than others.
Here are some typical examples. You’re on-site and two cubic metres of reinforcing steel is left over and needs to be gone by the end of the next week. Simply open the app, hit ‘Create Listing’ and fill in the blanks, take a photo and hit ‘Post’ – all on your phone, right then and there. Maybe you require a specialist excavator for tomorrow – jump onto the app and search ‘excavator’. All excavators and/or excavator operators will appear showing what’s close by. Simply hit ‘enquire’ or ‘shake’ and your done! You may have an urgent cancellation – post it on the site and anyone who has been asked to be notified about that type of sale will get an instant push notification. Easy advertising. Using CivilShare will lower costs, enable more efficient deployment of internal resources and will have a positive impact 62 www.contractormag.co.nz
on the environment. This app is open to everyone in the civil construction industry. It provides a platform for people to talk and trade. It gives members choice, immediacy and transparency. The impact of CivilShare will grow exponentially as new members join. It will create a broader marketplace, more opportunities to talk and trade, and an increase in the benefits to the industry and it is free to use.
How to download it Shoot to your app store (Apple or Android) and search CivilShare. It’ll pop straight up. Download. If you want to use it on your computer, just go to http://app.civilshare.co.nz. After logging in users register their contact details and list areas of interest, whether they’re buyers or sellers. Sellers can add a listing and buyers can browse and search for materials and equipment. Then CivilShare connects the buyers with sellers so they can make the transaction. If a buyer can’t find what they want immediately, CivilShare will register their interest and then send a location-based alert when the item becomes available. For more information go to www.civilshare.co.nz or email us on civilshare@civilshare.co.nz. .
COMMENT CONTRACTOR
Pressure on procurement practices DAVID WORSNOP, CONNEXIS INTERIM CHIEF EXECUTIVE POOR PROCUREMENT PRACTICES are making headlines, with
contracts being won by unsuitable companies due to inaccurate evaluation processes. This has seen councils increasing the focus in this area to meet the pressure to not only gain a solid return on investment for ratepayer money, but ensure secondary benefits are realised. With large projects mounting up due to increased infrastructure investment at a national level, contractors will need to review their own tender processes and contract management to meet this increased focus. Companies need to be strengthening their tender attributes by showing that qualified tradespeople will be working on assets – along with plans that include upskilling the local workforce, in turn investing in the community. The civil construction Industry needs to be commended for leading the way in the professionalism of their industry through the development of apprenticeship packages and the Civil Trades Certification regime. This new regime provides a framework for contractors to invest in their greatest asset, their people. It also ensures the industry is able to respond to the new requirements of local councils in awarding contracts to qualified and competent people and upskilling of local communities. However, the real hold up in awarding contractors with projects is putting together a tender that simply and succinctly outlines how they will meet the requirements, and the costs, resources and experience needed to undertake the work.
Improved contract management As local government bodies become more sophisticated in their approach to procurement and the evaluation processes, civil contractors will need to ensure their contract managers are qualified in the most up-to-date contract practices, and are able to ensure the company can deliver on their tenders. Contractors get only one opportunity to put forward a tender
showing that they will be able to meet the requirements of the project. Any misunderstanding at this contract stage results in wasted time and money in developing a tender that is mismatched to the project. Contractors need to ensure their tender process clearly illustrates their ability to understand and deliver on the project requirements to have the best chance of being accepted and avoid this inefficiency. There are some key elements of the contract design that are crucial for contract managers to be aware of, from the the types of contracts used for infrastructure works and the components that make up the contract, to the planning, negotiation with subcontractors and client communication for the final document. Understanding the difference between the three types of infrastructure contracts that are most commonly used, and using the correct payment claims and payment schedules, are critical to avoid frustration and misunderstanding resulting in payment disputes and halted work and overall under-delivery. The indications we have received from local bodies have shown that the increased focus in the procurement area is only going to continue, so the onus is on contractors to ensure they have skilled contract management staff to meet the requirements. It is critical that contract managers remain competent through not only being qualified and experienced but also current. The New Zealand Certificate in Infrastructure Works (Contract Management) Qualification has been reviewed by industry and updated to include the new contract requirements. Connexis continues to support the industry and work with companies to ensure their staff are trained to current best practice for the benefit of our infrastructure. If you are looking to upskill your existing staff then we can help. We look forward to working with you.
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AUGUST 2017 63
CONTRACTOR COMMENT
Risk management in construction How to avoid things going wrong KENT PERRY, ASSOCIATE, HEANEY & PARTNERS
THOUSANDS OF PROJECTS involving thousands of contractors
are ‘on the go’ in New Zealand every day. These projects range from small, relatively simple and inexpensive construction jobs through to complex, labour-intensive and costly projects that sometimes take years to complete. However, whether your construction project is large or small, expensive or inexpensive, time-consuming or not, the considerations about how to manage risk in construction should remain the same. As litigators, we often get involved when something goes wrong, or has gone wrong, during a construction project. The types of issues can be simple fee disputes during the course of construction or claims alleging widespread, systemic failure of building elements, years after the construction has completed. Therefore, it is important for those involved in the industry to ensure they take steps early in construction projects to manage any risk but also protect themselves from any future issues that may arise.
What are risks? The construction industry, compared to other industries, is probably subject to more risks given the often complex contractual arrangements between contractors, the length of construction projects and the potentially unpredictable environment. What is considered to be a ‘risk’ is open to interpretation and has many meanings from many different sources. It is probably best that ‘risk’ is defined broadly so that there is a wider appreciation of issues that may arise during construction. A broad definition of ‘risk’ has been adopted by the European Commission which suggests a “risk is any factor, event or influence that threatens the successful completion of a project in terms of time, cost of quality”. A ‘risk’ in the construction context could be any or all or a combination of the following: 1. Performance risks: for example, contractor productivity, suitability of equipment and staff and defective workmanship;
64 www.contractormag.co.nz
2. Construction risks: for example, changes in the scope of work, site access, workplace accidents, availability of resources (labour and materials) and delay in completion of work; 3. Legal risks: for example, solvency of contractors/ subcontractors, dispute resolution or delayed payment to contractors; 4. Financial risks: for example, project funding; 5. Physical risks: for example, natural disasters, changes to the geology and topography of the site.
How to manage risks? Some of the identified risks above (eg, physical risks) are difficult to plan for given their unpredictable and unforeseen nature. However, in most cases, the other identified risks can be avoided or mitigated if proper risk management tools are put in place early during a construction project. One way in which you can manage risk, and limit any potential future issues that might occur, is ensuring that you have the right contractors for the right jobs. This could be anything from the most skilled subcontractors for discrete pieces of work to experienced project managers to adequate site foremen to registered builders. For example, to avoid any risks regarding project delays, ensure that all contractors engaged are properly solvent and experienced in their respective area and ensure that clear contractual terms are agreed confirming timelines for completion of work and in return, the payment of fees. Once the right people are appointed on site for the right jobs, it will then be easier to allocate any potential foreseeable project risks to the person/contractor that is best placed to control and manage that particular risk. For example, to minimise potential defective workmanship, it would be helpful to ensure that fully qualified and experienced contractors are hired or where inexperienced contractors are engaged, ensuring that these contractors are being properly managed and supervised by experienced senior staff with their work quality tested. Another way to prevent potential risks is to ensure that you are adequately protected in the event that things do go wrong. Arranging adequate insurance cover is important not only for issues that may arise during the construction project but also after the project has ended (in some circumstances up to 10 to 15 years after project completion). It is important to remember that just because your involvement may have ended on a particular construction project the liability you have for the work you undertook on the construction site will be ongoing and adequate run-off insurance should be put in place.
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Forgotten companies – Isaacson Back in time when the track type tractor was considered a new tool for earthmoving, there were dozens of companies offering attachments to outfit these machines for work. Isaacson was one of them. By RICHARD CAMPBELL. With the end of the Great Depression in the early 1930s, those tractor manufacturers that had survived the financial turmoil began to build new tractors and expand their businesses. Without exception, none of these tractor manufacturers built their own attachments. That task was left to a multitude of ancillary manufacturers, some of which lasted a few years and others that went on to become legendary. There was also a certain degree of specialisation among these smaller attachment builders. Taking a look at some of the participants, at the top were LeTourneau, LaPlant-Choate and Bucyrus-Erie which built practically everything imaginable that could be fitted to, or towed behind a track type tractor. LeTourneau’s equipment was all cable66 www.contractormag.co.nz
controlled, while both LaPlant-Choate and Bucyrus-Erie also built hydraulically powered equipment, LaPlant-Choate in particular being a pioneer in this field. Then there was a second line of attachment builders including GarWood, Baker, Heil, Slusser-McLean, BeGe, Austin-Western, Kay-Brunner, Wooldridge, Ateco, Adams, and the subject of our story, Isaacson. The third line was made up of the really specialist builders such as Hyster and Carco which built mostly forestryoriented attachments and built them well. The Isaacson Iron Works was established in Seattle Washington by exSwede John Isaacson in 1906. Initially providing steam boilers and logging accessories such as chokers, grapples and other cast implements for the logging industry in the Pacific
Northwest, it branched out into tractor attachments after continual advancements and mechanisation in the forest industry made some of its key money earners obsolete. Its first product was a rudimentary bulldozer blade for cutting in logging trails and soon after that its first scraper, a hydraulically operated machine, was introduced. During WWII Isaacson made propeller shafts and rudder posts for US Navy ‘Liberty Ships’ and was recognised by the US government for its high-quality work. During the 1940s, many of the attachment companies formed partnerships with the track type tractor manufacturers for preferential supply of their equipment. And so it was that LeTourneau and LaPlant-Choate were most often seen on Caterpillar tractors, GarWood and
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1. (opposite page): Hydraulically operated Isaacson grubbing and stumping dozer mounted on a Caterpillar D7-9G. This was a particularly heavy-duty attachment. Isaacson manufactured all its own hydraulics. Although the blade mounting looks somewhat like the Bucyrus-Erie designs of the period, Isaacson used much straighter lift linkages than Bucyrus. (PHOTO: AUTHORS COLLECTION)
2. Isaacson factory photo of a 16-cubic-yard Karry-Skraper behind an International TD-18. The tractor is fitted with an Isaacson model HL rear PCU. Isaacson utilised roll out ejection on this particular series of scrapers, the scraper floor being pulled up and over by the cables visible above the load. (PHOTO: AUTHORS COLLECTION)
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3. Heavy duty rooter (ripper) meant just that! This Isaacson cable-controlled model drew very much on LeTourneau designs but was even heavier. Isaacson used smaller diameter wheels than LeTourneau. (PHOTO: AUTHORS COLLECTION)
Baker equipment on Allis-Chalmers tractors and Heil and Bucyrus-Erie equipment on International Harvester machines. Isaacson had an affiliation with Cletrac, and to a lesser extent, International Harvester, although its blades could be found on any brand of tractor if the user had a preference for them. Most of the attachment companies had their own trademark names for equipment and Isaacson was no exception. Its bulldozer and angle dozer blades were known as “Klearing Dozers” while its towed scrapers were known as “Karry-Skrapers”. Isaacson’s most popular products were its bulldozers, widely used in the forest industry where their cable-operated bulldozer blades were preferred because of their high lift ability, which enabled them to get better leverage on stumps and allowed them to stack logs at the skid without them hanging up under the blade.
It also manufactured a range of logging arches to cruise logs to the skid known as “Karry-Arches”. These were very similar to Carco and Hyster arches of the period and can be difficult to identify in photographs. To its credit, Isaacson manufactured everything it sold ‘in-house’ and was not reliant on other manufacturers for hydraulic pumps or PCUs (power control units). Thus the company had total control over the quality of its finished products. In the earthmoving sphere, Isaacson had a range of cable-controlled scrapers and matching PCUs plus towed rippers which were loosely based on LeTourneau’s designs of the period. There was a difference however in that Isaacson offered hydraulically-operated as well as cable-operated rippers. As the motor scraper had become very popular following the introduction of the LeTourneau Tournapull, Isaacson decided to
4. Preserved Cletrac FDE track type tractor fitted with Isaacson Klearing Dozer blade gear and a model HHL front PCU. The high-mounted lift sheaves gave this type of dozer an advantage in the bush as it was much harder to hang up on obstructions. (PHOTO: AUTHORS COLLECTION)
5. Isaacson hydraulic Klearing Dozer mounted on what appears to be an early International TD-18 with a Carco winch on the rear. With a history of supplying loggers with rugged and dependable equipment, Isaacson was a preferred brand amongst Pacific Northwest loggers. (PHOTO: AUTHORS COLLECTION)
AUGUST 2017 67
CONTRACTOR CLASSIC MACHINES
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1. P reserved International-Harvester TD-24 with an Isaacson angle bulldozer and model HHL front PCU. The high lift capability of the blade can be seen in this picture as the blade lift sheave block is much higher mounted than on other contemporary blade suppliers. A veteran of many tough encounters, the scars of conflict are well apparent on the dozer blade. (PHOTO: INTERNET)
2. A very rare photo of a Pullman Standard KS-800 scraper with a fine tree growing out of the bowl! Pullman Standard did very little with the Isaacson brand once it had acquired the company in 1955, other than set up the Allied Tractor Equipment Co to market them. It only really concentrated on Isaacson’s towed scrapers before selling the whole kit and caboodle to Young Tractor Equipment in 1967. (PHOTO: INTERNET)
3. In our overly PC world, here is an unfortunately named “Isaacson Super Rooter”! Isaacson was one of the few attachment manufacturers offering hydraulically operated towed rippers. This example was built like a block outhouse and weighed over 3.5 tons. (PHOTO: AUTHORS COLLECTION)
4. In a very rare scene, one of the prototype Isaacson “Wheel-Tor” motor scrapers goes about field testing in 1946. The tractor is a modified International TD-18 with radiator mounted PCU while the scraper is a model KS-700 Karry-Skraper. A very, very unusual setup that did not proceed further than the prototype stage. (PHOTO: AUTHOR’S COLLECTION)
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have a go at creating one of its own. As R&D costs were very high for such a project, Isaacson improvised by adapting an existing International Harvester TD-18 tractor from tracks to wheels and attaching one of its KS700 Karry-Skrapers semi-permanently to the drawbar. A double drum PCU was driven off the tractor’s front crankshaft pulley and the cables fed back to the scraper via tubing. Isaacson called the resulting hybrid the “Wheel-Tor” and examples were tested in 1946. Trials were not very successful due manoeuvrability problems and the project was subsequently shelved, but the machine remains an interesting curiosity. As mentioned previously, the tractor attachments market was very heavily populated in the 1940s and 1950s and a lot of companies fell on hard times when the tractor manufacturers began to build their own attachments. Some, such as LeTourneau, were large enough to stand on their own while others went down the merger path like International Harvester and Bucyrus, and Allis-Chalmers and Baker, thus assuring their long-term survival. It was no different for Isaacson,
especially after the Cletrac company was bought by Oliver Corp, and two thirds of its end-product market vanished overnight. So it was that in 1955, Isaacson’s forestry and earthmoving equipment division was sold to the Pullman Standard company, manufacturers of railroad carriages and rolling stock. It must be said that this was a very unusual marriage, given the two companies’ dissimilar backgrounds. Pullman Standard did very little with the brand other than re-marketing the cable-control scrapers under the Allied Tractor Equipment brand name, and discontinued production of just about everything else. Earthmoving and forestry it seems were not high on the company’s list of priorities. What remained of Isaacson’s designs and patents were eventually sold by Pullman Standard in 1967 to the Young Corporation of Seattle, Washington, which remain the owners to this day. Young has a very long history in the forest equipment industry and the acquisition of the Isaacson line merely bolstered its presence further. Interestingly, you can still buy an Isaacson Karry-Skraper – built strictly to order and wearing Young branding!
pec Cast’s fine 1:25 scale model of an S International Harvester TD-24 fitted with an Isaacson Klearing Dozer, cable frame, front model H PCU and towing an Isaacson Karry-Arch. This model is still readily available and is also made in 1:50 scale as well. Definitely worth acquiring if you find one. (PHOTO: AUTHOR’S COLLECTION)
The New Zealand connection Your author has seen very few Isaacson products in this country and certainly no scrapers. However, there are examples of its arches, blades and PCUs to be found. They are very, very rare in New Zealand (and Australia too), as it would appear that those examples that arrived here came already fitted to machines, most of them Cletrac and IH. There does not appear to have been any authorised distributor in the South
Pacific for Isaacson products, which would account for their scarcity.
For the model collector Well goodness me, for such an obscure brand there are two models available, one in 1:50 and the other to 1:25 scale. Both are manufactured by Spec Cast of the US, and represent an International Harvester TD-24 with an Isaacson front cable bulldozer frame with straight bulldozer blade, and towing an Isaacson Karry-Arch.
These are both good models with better than usual detail, metal tracks on the dozer and arch, and can still be obtained reasonably cheaply. There is also another item for the serious collector – an add-on front PCU, blade and frame to fit the long-out-ofproduction NZG Caterpillar Sixty. This is exceptionally well made but extremely rare and does involve some surgery to fit. The end result is very impressive though.
KEEP YOUR SITE MOVING By investing heavily in research and development, and utilising the very best manufacturing technologies, Triangle loader and earthmoving tyres provide the precision you need to get the job done.
Get in touch today:
CHRISTCHURCH 03 343 4310 AUCKLAND 09 368 7830 SUPERTYRE.CO.NZ
AUGUST 2017 69
CONTRACTOR MOTORING
Upgrades aplenty for Ford’s perennial Transit It's a commercial nameplate that has been in existence for decades, but in one respect, Ford’s Transit van has resisted change. By CAMERON OFFICER.
AMAZINGLY, THE Transit line-up hasn’t been available in New Zealand with an automatic transmission up until now. But the rapid demise of the self-shifter is being keenly felt in every sector, and light commercials aren’t immune. While the decline of the manual transmission is a sad thing for more enthusiastic drivers, Ford New Zealand will no doubt be rather happy about the arrival of an auto ‘box, as it will no doubt see a surge in van sales for the Blue Oval brand. The Transit has plenty of competition in the Kiwi market, from Hyundai, Toyota, Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz, as well as Renault, which has broadened its van offering in recent months. A new six-speed automatic is now available, along with an upgraded 2.0-litre EcoBlue engine, boasting 125kW peak power and 405Nm of torque. Ford says the new engine is also more fuel efficient than the 2.2-litre power pack it replaces. The under-the-skin upgrades don’t end here though. New 2.0-litre Transit and Transit Custom models also feature some trick driver assistance technology, in the form of a Side Wind Stabilisation system. This feature helps to reduce the effect on the van of side gusts of wind, by progressively applying the 70 www.contractormag.co.nz
brakes on one side of the vehicle to help correct its line. At vehicle speeds of more than 80 kilometres per hour, the Side Wind Stabilisation system sensors monitor overall vehicle stability 100 times per second. If a gust of wind is detected, the braking system engages in less than 200 milliseconds. The development team that came up with the technology utilised six powerful fans at a test facility to mimic sudden wind surges. In a way, the technology is an adaptation of Trailer Sway Mitigation systems – now a common feature in many utes and large SUVs – which brake individual wheels in order to bring an errant trailer into line at speed. Inside the cab, there are more toys for new Transit and Transit Custom drivers too. The touchscreen in the centre stack has been upsized and now includes ‘pinch and swipe’ interactivity. Also, in one select model – the Transit 350L FWD Auto – Ford’s voice-activated SYNC 3 infotainment system will be offered too (the first time the technology has been available in the Transit). SYNC is a communications and entertainment platform that features in Ford’s passenger vehicles and allows drivers to connect
Holden reaffirms Isuzu link at Fieldays
their Apple or Android smart phone to the screen, providing access to address books, music and podcast libraries and third-party GPS information, such as Google Maps. One thing that remains consistent with the Ford Transit line-up is its extensive nature. There are over 15 different models in a variety of formats, with medium and high roof options, load-door placement changes to suit various applications. Not a popular option in the construction market, but 12- and 17-seater bus versions are also available. Overall, the Transit does remain a popular option though. Ford New Zealand sold out of its first consignment of upgraded vans, as supply in our part of the globe was hampered by sales demand in bigger right-hand drive markets. The perennial Transit, it would seem, just keeps rolling on. Isuzu has produced a comprehensive truck in the D-Max. Of course, it has been a consistently solid ute for several years now. But it’s good to see buyers in the light commercial segment are clicking to this fact in ever-bigger numbers.
THERE WERE PLENTY of utes on show at Fieldays this year, but Holden also had some trucks up its sleeve. The brand’s continuing tie-up with Isuzu Trucks meant that, technically speaking, Holden was the only manufacturer exhibiting its wares at Fieldays that could also boast vehicles in its stable from the 6000 kilogram to 7500 kilogram GVM weight bracket. While Isuzu utes and General Motors severed ties four or five years ago, Holden says its relationship with the Japanese manufacturer’s trucks division remains integral to the company’s overall performance in New Zealand. Isuzu trucks were assembled at Holden’s Wellington facility until the mid-1990s, and today, Isuzu New Zealand remains an operational component of Holden New Zealand, with seven dedicated staff and another 22 shared personnel. Isuzu currently boasts 12 dealers nationwide, augmented by a further 13 authorised service centres. On the Isuzu stand at Fieldays was the Isuzu NP450 4X4 – New Zealand’s best-selling tipper truck for the past three years, outselling its nearest rival two-to-one. Interestingly, Isuzu puts the model’s recent chart-topping successes down to the New Zealand honey industry, which loves the load-carrying and off-road abilities of the truck. Isuzu’s current reign as truck champion extends further than this plucky short-wheelbase hauler. In the heavy-duty (23 tonne) bracket, the Japanese manufacturer enjoys the most market share; important when heavy trucks account for 50 percent of the market overall. It might only be a dotted line but outside the buoyant ute market, there remains plenty of truck life left for Holden yet.
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CONTRACTOR INNOVATIONS
Kiwi Loadscan enters Australia
New shotcrete system The recently introduced Tytro shotcrete system from GCP Applied Technologies is said to be a stronger, more durable shotcrete which can increase efficiency and lower costs. There have been some significant advances in shotcrete admixtures in recent years and this has led to improvements in the speed, efficiency and cost of using shotcrete. Tytro was introduced to Australia and New Zealand in 2014 and over the past two years has grown its geographical and industrial user base. The system is now offered through over 40 premix plants across Australasia and has featured in some of Australia’s largest infrastructure projects of recent times, and is also been used by some of the region’s largest mine operators. In terms of soft rock mining, there is still a preference for mesh and rock bolts, but shotcrete offers a number of benefits here too. In particular, there’s increasing interest in using it around installed pillars, to get extra strength into these structures that are typically exposed to very high forces. Tytro is said to be a complete state-of-the-art admixture solution that is faster to apply and less expensive than other systems, while offering higher quality. It includes a number of innovations including a nanotechnology-based rheology control and modifying agent and patented macro synthetic fibres. In addition, the system has other new admixtures that enhance productivity during spraying and deliver stronger performance on application. GCP claims savings come in around 10 percent lower than alternatives and there’s less wear and tear on spraying equipment.
Last year Aeris Resources’ Tritton copper mine operation in Nyngan NSW took a leap of faith and became the first underground mining company in Australia to purchase and install a Load Volume Scanner (LVS) payload measurement system from Loadscan in New Zealand. The reason to install the LVS system came about due to consistent inaccuracies with its current payload measurement system used to track daily ore production. The mine used a combination of paper records along with load weight information. There have been two major benefits gained from installing the LVS system, one being that immediate, accurate load volume has allowed for real time feedback to underground loader operators, allowing for informal coaching from the supervisors using the 3D load profiling software. This has resulted in the trucks being loaded to capacity and has increased trucking factors by 9.7 percent, ultimately resulting in a lower cost per tonne hauled. The second benefit is the data tracking software. Cycle time is easy to track and a simple interface allows supervisors to understand loads per shift or day. Training the supervisors how to use this data has meant 10 to 20 minutes per shift has been saved from reading back through plods and tallying up tonnes moved.
Introducing Alta New specialist construction consultancy, Alta Consulting, has been set up by Rory Bishop, Tim Lancaster and Daniel Williams. The trio have previously held senior roles at McConnell Dowell and Hawkins. They have worked together on many diverse, major projects in the UK and New Zealand. They says they saw an opportunity to combine their strengths to offer specialist construction advice to asset owners, their designers and other consultants. 72 www.contractormag.co.nz
“We occupy a unique space in the infrastructure market and the time was right to set up a consultancy that provides independent construction insights to clients early in the project cycle,” says Rory Bishop. “Our experience as senior decision makers on projects makes our analysis insightful, our advice robust and our approach efficient and cost effective.” More information: www.altacon.co.nz.
INNOVATIONS CONTRACTOR
New series of hydraulic breakers for excavators The new series of hydraulic breakers for compact equipment is durable enough for a wide range of applications and provides consistent impact frequency and power for greater productivity. Able to penetrate a variety of materials and built to withstand harsh conditions and the toughest construction jobs, the six breakers in Volvo Construction Equipment’s HB02 to HB08 series perfectly complement any compact excavator weighing under 10 tonnes. Ranging in operating weight from 130 kilograms to 512 kilograms, Volvo HB02 to HB08 breakers are well-matched to any compact machine and are optimised to their specific weights and hydraulic technology. Tailored to Volvo quick couplers, the HB Series makes attachment changes quick, simple and safe, allowing operators to switch between applications with the minimum effort. The HB Series breakers for medium and large size machines have operating weights of 909 to 6031 kilograms. The 11 breakers in Volvo’s HB14 to HB70 series work together in perfect harmony with Volvo’s excavators, from the EC140 up to the EC700, delivering consistent power and breaking force. The HB14 to HB70 breakers are self-greasing and encased in a fully sealed housing, which protects the power cell, prolongs their lifespan and reduces noise. Their hydraulic systems are protected from pressure spikes by large capacity accumulators, which also serve to increase impact power. Anti-blank firing prevents the breaker from continuing to strike once material has been completely penetrated. Contact Transdiesel for further information: 0800 848 267 or visit www.transdiesel.com.
Cat online Gough Cat’s Building Construction Products (BCP) online sales site is now live, providing the ability to ‘build your own’ customised machine. Cat equipment available online includes mini excavators, skid steer, compact track and multi terrain loaders, and compact wheel loaders. Finance can be arranged and approved within 24 hours and a finance calculator provides anyone using the site with the chance to work on a package that best suits them. This foray into this type of digital platform is a first in the Caterpillar world. There are no other Cat dealers with this functionality nor is it offered by Caterpillar. Check it out: www.buycat.co.nz/
Modelling technology from Recon A new name in spatial data capture has been launched in the form of New Zealand-owned Recon, which has a focus on surveying, UAV mapping, 3D scanning and data capture for modelling, bringing field experience and a toolbox of the latest technology to client projects. “We have seen unprecedented change in the construction sector over the last five years in terms of the depth of accurate spatial data available to engineers, civil contractors and survey professionals,” says Recon general manager, Jeremy Neilson. “The accuracy and ease with which spatial data can be captured and how this can provide for a complete 360 degree view of any project regardless of scale, is extremely impressive. Thanks to the sort of technology being introduced to the local industry, the boundaries of what can be achieved for any survey professional or entity seeking spatial information have been pushed forward significantly. “We really are seeing future-tech solutions being used to solve problems and provide spatial data in New Zealand every single day,” he says. Surveying provides the basis of accurately capturing and collating spatial data from one or more sources. Once captured, accurate and current spatial data enables intelligent decision making based on information gathered in real-time. This in turn means project managers have the ability to make more informed decisions and improve both project design and forecasting. Recon’s in-house survey specialist will service the civil construction and surveying industries, while the consultancy’s specialised end-to-end UAV service will enable surveyors, developers, local councils and other entities to gather detailed terrain information in a quick and safe manner. Another service offered by Recon is accurate and portable 3D laser scanning. When a large amount of detail is required within a timeframe much shorter than that which traditional surveying can provide, Recon’s 3D laser scanning service offers another complete package for the data end-user. More information: www.recon.nz. AUGUST 2017 73
CONTRACTOR CIVIL CONTRACTORS NEW ZEALAND
CCNZ update New Major Associate Members • NZ Institute of Highway Technology (NZIHT) • Argyle Performance Workwear • beforeUdig
New Contracting Members Scarlett Contracting, Canterbury/Westland Branch Siteworx Northland, Northland Branch
Returning Core Associate Member for the 2017/18 year •CablePrice
consideration in reviewing the Voidable Transactions Regime. CCNZ made that point very strongly in its submissions on the government review of recommendations made in Report No 2 of the Insolvency Working Group See Peter Silcock’s column on “Clawbacks” on page 60 of Contractor for further details. To see a full copy of CCNZ’s submissions go to our website www.civilcontractors.co.nz.
Do you want an onsite ConstructSafe demonstration? CCNZ regional managers have been demonstrating ConstructSafe to members and clients. If you or your clients would like a demonstration then contact:
Returning Major Associate Membership for the 2017/18 year
James Corlett, Northern Regional Manager, james@civilcontractors.co.nz or 027 443 3591
• AB Equipment • Mimico • BNZ • SITECH • Doherty Engineered Attachments • Winstones
Stu Gardner, Central Regional Manager, stu@civilcontractors.co.nz or 027 588 1554
New CCNZ Subcontract Agreement available The reviewed and updated CCNZ Subcontract Agreement is now available to members. We have worked with contractor members and Kensington Swan to produce the subcontract to satisfy the significant demand from members for a balanced and fair subcontract that can be employed over a range of civil construction projects. The CCNZ subcontract covers the main contractual areas of a project whilst seeking to remain as concise as possible. The subcontract follows a similar structure to NZS 3910:2013 for ease of reference because most construction projects in New Zealand use NZS 3910:2013 Conditions of Contract. However, the CCNZ subcontract has been drafted in general terms and can be used for any form of Head Contract. CCNZ encourages all contractors and subcontractors to use the CCNZ Subcontract Agreement. To obtain a copy of the CCNZ Subcontract Agreement, email tricia@civilcontractors.co.nz or call 0800 692 376.
Business certainty critical in Voidable Transactions Review Providing certainty to a business that it can rely on the validity of a payment in the normal course of business should be the overriding
Ollie Turner, Southern Regional Manager, ollie@civilcontractors.co.nz or 027 493 3535. As at 5 July almost 25,000 ConstructSafe Tier 1 tests have been completed with a candidate pass rate of 73 percent. The massive uptake of ConstructSafe Tier 1 has been driven by NZTA, which requires anyone working for it as a contractor or subcontractor on the state highways network to hold ConstructSafe Tier 1 (the deadline was 1 July 2017).
Direct agreement payments not voidable The Court of Appeal has found that payments made under a direct agreement by a financier to a builder are not voidable transactions recoverable by a liquidator. In doing so, the Court of Appeal has overruled the High Court’s earlier decision. A ‘direct agreement’ is a three-way arrangement between a developer, builder, and a financier. Under the agreement, the financier can ‘step in’ and complete the project if the developer defaults. CCNZ has welcomed the decision as sensible, fair and workable. • I nformation provided by CCNZ Core Associate Member Kensington Swan.
A DV E RTI S ERS IND EX 3M 49 Boss Attachments 51 CCNZ 60, IBC Connexis 43 Ditch Witch 65 Get Home Safe 13 Gough Cat 4 Hirepool OFC, IFC, 3, 18, 19 Hynds 27
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Hytools NZ 55 Mimico 7 Oil Intel 45 OMC Power Equipment 63 Prime Pump 30, 31 Power & Earth 23 Power Equipment 59 Powerpac OBC Robur Attachments 39
Smart-Dig 9 Super Tyre Warehouse 69 Synergy Positioning 25 3M 49 Teletrac Navman 15 Tidd Ross Todd 17 TransDiesel 11 TRS Tyre & Wheel 29 Youngman Richardson
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