Judges comments on the winners and highly commended entrants in the CCNZ Hirepool Construction Excellence Awards categories 1-6.

WINNERS

Celebrating construction excellence in 2021

We thank the awards judges: Category 1, 2 and 5, Dave Macdonald and Paul Bishop; Category 4 and 5, Alan Powell. Their comments on the winning entries are summarised below.

CATEGORY 1 WINNER Isaac Construction – Peninsula Connection 7

PROJECTS WITH A VALUE OF BETWEEN $2M AND $5M

This slip repair, wall construction and road upgrade with walking and cycling facilities was a technically challenging project. Isaac’s kept the road open to traffic during the works while an alternative route was available that was much longer and inconvenient to locals. The start-up involved detailed planning including material supply issues that lead to construction phasing that advanced the jobs completion.

The project was resourced by Isaac’s Christchurch based team that enabled work schedules with a fortnightly return to homes and families. Isaac’s high health and safety standards were paramount and the outcome in this regard was excellent for a project involving a live traffic lane, working at heights and adjacent to a tidal zone.

Isaac completed the work to a high quality and to the satisfaction of the client and the local residents affected. Due to the project outcome, relationships developed in the area and positive feedback Isaac’s are establishing a greater presence in the area. At least four of the work crew on this job have indicated a desire to move to Dunedin with their families.

CATEGORY 1 HIGHLY COMMENDED JCL Asphalts – Rodin Cars Test Track Resurfacing

PROJECTS WITH A VALUE OF BETWEEN $2M AND $5M

Rodin Cars mission is to build the fastest track cars in the world.

This job was one of precision planning, equipment provision and maintenance, controlled supply of asphalt and quality construction to deliver a track surface to enable test cars at speeds up to and over 300 kph.

The site north of Waiau is 120 km from the asphalt supply required a truck to arrive every 15 minutes during each 8 hour days continuous paver laying. Zero longitudinal joints are managed by having hot asphalt laid side by side by two pavers for the 9 to 13 metre width track.

A job very well done by JCL’s 35 staff from Christchurch and Queenstown working and living locally for the extent of the works and successfully achieving the client’s requirements.

CATEGORY 2 WINNER Brian Perry Civil – Days Bay Wharf Repair and Refurbishment

PROJECTS WITH A VALUE OF BETWEEN $5M AND $20M

Brian Perry Civil and the Hutt City Council completely refurbished the popular, 125-year-old Days Bay Wharf in such a way that not a single ferry movement was disrupted over the two-year construction period.

The contract period for this environmentally challenging project more than doubled to 423 days after significant deterioration, initially hidden, was discovered once the wharf deck was removed.

Brian Perry Civil provided an alternative decking system that was lighter, and eliminated the environmental risk associated with placing concrete over water. All timber and concrete removed from the job was recycled in various ways.

Hutt City Council were very happy with the result and the general public now has an amenity that should endure for another 100 years.

CATEGORY 2 HIGHLY COMMENDED Marina Terrace Apartments Ground Anchors

PROJECTS WITH A VALUE OF BETWEEN $5M AND $20M

Faced with incredibly difficult ground conditions for establishing self-drilling ground anchors Brian Perry Civil delivered an alternative solution for a design that other contractors considered impossible to construct.

Bringing in a new designer BPC developed an accelerated, buildable solution to solve the developer’s problems allowing the project to proceed.

CATEGORY 3 WINNER Downer NZ – Tekapo A New Intake Gate

PROJECTS WITH A VALUE OF BETWEEN $20M AND $100M

This very complex project installed an intake gate and operating equipment into an existing 6m tunnel built in the 1940’s that carries 130 cumecs of water to power Tekapo A. This involved preliminary earth works and walling to establish the flat area, excavating and constructing a 14m diameter vertical shaft to enable the installation of the gate and operating equipment some 22 m below ground to a level 15 below lake level.

The work included breaking into the existing 6 m tunnel, installing a stent in two halves, welding these halves together and sealing the stent into the tunnel. Within the vertical shaft supporting structure was installed and the 49 tonne gate positioned with its hydraulic operating ram. The shaft was enclosed at the surface with reinforced concrete and the mechanical and electrical equipment housed above.

The shaft excavation works were carried out under the Mining and Quarrying operations of the H&S requirements. It is credit to Downer and the team that with some 56000 hours worked there were no LTI’s or MTI’s. Access to the existing tunnel to Tekapo A was restricted by Genesis stopping generation for 8 and 14 week during the 18 month construction period. These fixed times were integrated into the construction programme and all inline works completed with no generation loss.

Genesis are very satisfied with the outcome which was completed on time and below budget and solves one of their high risk aspects within their portfolio of power sites.

CATEGORY 3 HIGHLY COMMENDED Brian Perry Civil – Mt Albert Sludge Pipeline Repair

PROJECTS WITH A VALUE OF BETWEEN $20M AND $100M

This project for Wellington Water repaired the failure in the 180mm diameter pressure sludge pipes between the Moa Point treatment plant and the Wellington Landfill.

The solution used expanding stents at the failures and then lined the full 1.85 km length of each pipe. There was a need to repair concrete benching around the pipes in the tunnel while the tunnel pumped raw sewerage from Island Bay to Moa Point. This required working at nights in the tunnel as there was a 90 minute window to be in the tunnel between sewage flows. This risk was successfully managed through an isolation plan at the Island Bay Pump Station.

The client was very satisfied with the solution and BPC’s ability to carry out this difficult project.

CATEGORY 4 WINNER McConnell Dowell Constructors – Lyttelton Tunnel Deluge & Associated Systems Upgrade

PROJECTS WITH A VALUE OF BETWEEN $20M AND $100M

Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency’s Lyttelton Tunnel Deluge & Associated Systems Upgrade, provides a very significant improvement and modernisation of the 50 year old tunnels systems and also new potable water and sewage pipelines to service Lyttelton and surrounding communities on behalf of Christchurch City Council.

The project to bring the safety and communications systems of the country’s second longest tunnel up to current day standards required the team to undertake much of the work using manual handling solutions in the confined space of the 2 km long tunnel inlet and exhaust air ducts. Included in the works were a replacement watermain to Lyttelton and a new sewage pipeline from that community to CCC’s main treatment facility in the city.

The judges were very impressed by the range of activities undertaken in this Lump Sum contract, both inside and outside the tunnel and the innovation McConnell Dowell Constructors used to ensure compliance with the loading limits on the ventilation duct floor in which many of the new services were installed above the live traffic lanes inside the tunnel.

Other impressive achievements were:

- 160,000 manhours worked, much of it in a confined space, without incident - Development and construction of a guide rail mounted drill trolley which allowed overhead work to be undertaken by workers installing GRP sewer pipe hangers in the tunnel roof, without working above heart height - Innovative redesign to the new deluge system piping to reduce the amount of work in the tunnel exhaust duct, where workers required breathing apparatus and; - Hydrotesting and commissioning the same system to pass test and certification requirements first time and; - Reducing the expected number of full tunnel closures and associated disruption to traffic - Outside the tunnel, developing a novel method of access to an area above the western tunnel portal to create a platform on which to construct a new precast water tank This project, completed on time and to budget was achieved to a very high standard, without incident and is a tribute to the benefits to be achieved by cooperation between Client and Contractor, despite the conditions of contract The judges congratulate McConnell Dowell Constructors – Christchurch, and their clients Waka Kotahi and Christchurch City Council, on completing this complex, multi discipline project and winning the Category 4 Hirepool Construction Excellence award.

CATEGORY 4 HIGHLY COMMENDED Joint Venture HEB Construction & McConnell Dowell – Pukekohe Wastewater Treatment Plant

PROJECTS WITH A VALUE OF BETWEEN $20M AND $100M

The Pukekohe Wastewater Treatment Plant upgrade for Watercare services Ltd, represents a very significant milestone in the treatment of wastewater, to meet new consent requirements aimed at eventually restoring the Waikato River to being fishable, swimmable and drinkable, while at the same time servicing an area that is currently undergoing significant growth - a process expected to continue well into the future.

The reconsenting which started in 2014 faced early challenges, was discontinued for a period which resulted in WSL and affected iwi, after a number of huis, forming Te Taniwha O Waikato, a formal entity with the aim of restoring the Waikato River to again being fishable, swimmable and drinkable. Agreed, new consent requirements had to be met by October 2021, required: • A redesign of the proposed treatment plant • Significantly reduced nutrient in the discharge • Application of higher treatment technology to the effluent, prior to discharge to the Parker Stream, a degraded tributary of the Waikato River • No outfall and diffuser structure on the Waikato riverbed • Involvement of a trusted contractor at an early stage to allow the new requirements to be achieved on time The judges were impressed by the way in which Client, their operations team, the designer and contractor then worked together to: • Sequence construction to incorporate the new plant into the existing plant while maintaining operations • Provide significant upgrade to the operating systems and progressively modify the design of the plant to make its operation simpler and safer • Reuse membranes from Watercare’s nearby Waikato

Water Treatment Plant, for the reduced duty required to treat wastewater • Established pipe fabrication facilities onsite to facilitate modification to the design • Shared resources to assist Watercare with the upgrade and capacity increase of it’s water treatment plant during Auckland’s recent water crisis • Make an NZS 3910 construct only contract work to produce the clients evolving requirements

The new plant was completed on time, without accident or incident, and achieved or bettered the consent requirements allowing the existing plant to be decommissioned and modified in stage 2 of the contract - to increase capacity for this expanding catchment The judges congratulate the McConnell Dowell and HEB Joint Venture, their client and Designer on the recognition of their Pukekohe Wastewater Treatment Plant project

The judges commented that Category 4 was very competitive this year with several outstanding projects.

CATEGORY 5 WINNER Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency – North Canterbury Transport Infrastructure Recovery

PROJECTS WITH A VALUE OF GREATER THAN $100 MILLION

The Moving Mountains to Reconnect Communities Project was a monumental task and showed what can be achieved when multiple Contractors, Designers and two Clients successfully work together in a collaborative manner.

There were 3,300 things to repair, spread over 100km of road and railway line, requiring 250 different projects with up to 1,700 staff at its peak. Works included removal of 1 million cubic metres of rockfall, rock bolting and debris nets on cliff faces, construction of seawalls, tunnels, bridges, retaining walls in the shadow of unstable cliffs and kilometres of pavements. This provided the team with significant technical and logistical challenges, which were overcome with the selection of the right resources, good leadership and building a strong team culture. The outcome of completion on time and under budget was an outstanding result.

The destruction of the Kaikoura earthquake was impressive but re-opening the rail in 10 months, the Kaikoura Harbour in 12 months and State Highway 1 in 13 months was more impressive. Following these achievements, significant further works were undertaken to improve the resilience of the road and rail network to minimise future disruptions to the Kaikoura communities.

An excellent health and safety record from 6.5 million hours worked, often in remote and challenging locations, was also impressive.

Other outstanding achievements for this project were:

• Establishment of accommodation for the large work force without overuse of the local tourist accommodation, • Protection and enhancement of the environment.

In large part thanks to engagement of the whole work force in this outcome, • Significant and meaningful engagement with local iwi, • Communicating with and working with the local community who were suffering from the earthquake damage,

The judges congratulate the North Canterbury Transport Infrastructure Recovery Alliance on a job well done and winning the Category 5 Hirepool Construction Excellence award.

CATEGORY 5 HIGHLY COMMENDED Wynyard Edge Alliance – America’s Cup 36

PROJECTS WITH A VALUE OF GREATER THAN $100 MILLION

The America’s Cup 36 infrastructure project was an important project for New Zealand. The challenges were many: • Limited timeframe, America’s Cup sailing dates were fixed in time, • Relocation of existing users prior to commencing build works, • Limited budget, • Constrained workspace, • Congested inner city location making material delivery times unreliable, • Health and safety in a marine environment

The judges were impressed with the attention to detail in planning and design phase which was clearly a critical element in the successful delivery of the construction works.

Examples included:

• Strong leadership building a collaborative team that clearly enjoyed being on the project. • A whole of project focus on right the first time which resulted minimal rework, • Wave protection structure design that eliminated the need for divers, • Extensive use of barges to provide surety of access to the works, • Use of precast to allow offsite fabrication,

The project was completed on time, despite the inclusion of two major additional work packages and a Covid 19 lockdown and, completed under budget. With over 1 million hours of work over 2 years, this project was delivered with zero harm, an outstanding achievement in this challenging environment.

The judges congratulate the Wynyard Edge Alliance on the recognition of their America’s Cup 36 project.

The judges commented that Category 5 was very competitive this year with several outstanding projects.

CATEGORY 6 WINNER Downer NZ – New Plymouth District Council Road Maintenance Contract

MAINTENANCE & MANAGEMENT OF ASSETS

In 2019 Downer NZ and New Plymouth District Council entered into the first NEC4 Term Service Contract to maintain the roading network and other Council assets.

Worth around $16million annually, NPDC has seen savings of $700k in the first year of operation, with the Council and Downer working closely to achieve the best possible outcomes for the district.

A great example of collaborative contracting with government procurement driving better business practices. This new way of thinking is resulting in social benefits, improved competencies, workforce development and community involvement together with sustainable environmental outcomes.

The contract is an excellent example of what can be achieved with true collaboration between the client and the contractor.

CATEGORY 6 HIGHLY COMMENDED Fulton Hogan Ltd – West Coast Network Outcomes Contract

MAINTENANCE & MANAGEMENT OF ASSETS

The West Coast road maintenance contract has achieved a high standard of delivery under challenging circumstances. Utilising a large proportion of local inputs Fulton Hogan has melded these together, upskilling local contractors, to produce a cohesive workforce that operates well in difficult situations.