Winter 2012 Consulting Matters

Winter 2012

Future of the industry Making our

cities and communities more sustainable

The gender challenge Getting more women into the industry

Illuminating the creative economy

Gaining and maintaining social licence to operate PTW Architects Managing Director

John Bilmon

talks design

It’s always good to be first.

BST ENTERPRISE MOBILE for your Smartphone.

BST ENTERPRISE for Outlook®.

The first to introduce a timesheet solution for your Smartphone specifically designed for Architects, Engineers and Environmental Consultancies.

The world’s first business management software 100% based within Microsoft Outlook® specifically designed for Architects, Engineers and Environmental Consultancies.

BST ENTERPRISE Sync for Outlook® Calendars & Contacts.

The first business management software to seamlessly integrate with Microsoft Outlook® Contacts and Calendars streamlining your client relationship and timesheet entry processes.

Visit BSTGlobal.com today, or call: 0243 859 660

© BST Consultants, Inc. All rights reserved. BST Global logo is a trademark of BST Consultants, Inc. All other marks contained herein are the property of other respective owners.

Consulting Matters

CONTENTS Cities and communities: Sustainable planning and development

Protecting your business Vacancy: Generational Manager required

52

page 32

Systematic innovation capability: the ultimate competitive weapon

54

Proposed reforms to the skilled migration program from 1 July

55

Clash detection – is BIM incompatible with PI insurance?

56

Illuminating the creative economy page 42

Sensitive refurbishment a salute to Melbourne’s rich history page 60

Industry updates 2

What’s on in our industry

4

Cities and communities: Sustainable planning and development

QA &

What’s happening in Consult Australia From the President

6

From the CEO

8

The path less travelled

58

Supporting the communities in which we work

59

Our industry

Features

Industry updates

Corporate social responsibility

with

32

Meet the new Consult Australia Board 10 Leading on workforce diversity

13

The engineering skills shortage

13

The great challenge – and opportunity – for Australia

Consult Australia 60 th anniversary

14

Illuminating the creative economy

42

Living Away From Home Allowance

16

Stars align for a green future

46

2012 policy wins

20

State updates

22

Building the livable cities of the future

48

FutureNet updates

27

The business of sustainability

31

Marita Cheng 2012 Young Australian of the Year

Make My City Work.... make my infrastructure better!

64

Advancing collaborative contracting - Consult Australia and Department of Defence

66

Gaining and maintaining social licence to operate

68

International trends in contracting

69

Industry comment

PTW Architects Managing Director

with

60

34

John Bilmon

15 minutes

Sensitive refurbishment a salute to Melbourne’s rich history

Business dubbed by lost compensation for new tax

70

Carbon price claims caution

71

A dentist’s budget

72

41

50

Cover: Museum of Contemporary Arts (MCA), Sydney Photo courtesy of Vivid Sydney

1

2

Consulting Matters

Industry Updates

Industry updates NEW APPOINTMENTS Hyder appoints new Sector Managing Directors Hyder Consulting has appointed Paul Davis as the Sector Managing Director for Resources, a newly created position within Hyder’s Australian Regional Executive Team.

Joining the team is Peter Morgan who has been appointed as Sector Managing Director Environment and Water.

Australian Institute of Architects Melbourne-based, sole practitioner Shelley Penn (left) was inaugurated as the 73rd National President of the Australian Institute of Architects at the Association’s Annual General Meeting on 30 May.

Commonwealth Business Women initiative appoints Parsons Brinckerhoff sustainability executive to steering committee Parsons Brinckerhoff sustainability executive, Caroline Holmstrom has been appointed to the Commonwealth Business Council Commonwealth Business Women (CBW) Australia steering committee.

Hyder welcomes Lochlan Gibson to lead energy, water, environment Hyder Consulting is pleased to welcome Lochlan Gibson as the new Business Director for Energy, Water and Environment. Gibson has over 17 years experience, and has led numerous environmental projects in the oil and gas and mining sectors.

URS appointed National ITS Manager Golder Associates announces new Managing Director Adam Kilsby (left) has been appointed as Managing Director for Golder Associates Australia and Regional Vice-President for Australasia – a key position for the expanding company. Kilsby joined Golder in 1997 and has since led the company’s environmental services team and managed the Adelaide office before being appointed as National Operations Manager in 2008.

Australian Green Infrastructure Council (AGIC) appoints interim CEO With the retirement of AGIC’s CEO, Doug Harland in late March, AGIC has appointed Antony Sprigg of SLR Consulting as its interim CEO. Antony is well known in Australian infrastructure sustainability circles and has been involved with AGIC since 2008.

URS has appointed Martha Morecock Eddy as National ITS Manager. With 25 years in transportation and ITS program and project management, Martha is a recognised leader in the ITS industry.

MAJOR WINS Consult Australia firms - leaders in diversity Consult Australia congratulates member firms AECOM; Arup; and Sinclair Knight Merz for being awarded with the Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency (EOWA), national EOWA Employer of Choice for Women (EOCFW) citation earlier this year. A fantastic achievement and well deserved recognition for these truly diverse workplaces.

Full steam ahead as Aurecon and Hyder Consulting win lead designer role for the Regional Rail Link Project Aurecon and Hyder Consulting have been appointed as lead designers for the Deer Park

Chatswood Chase Photo by Michael Nicholson courtesy of NDY

– West Werribee Junction package of the multi-billion dollar Regional Rail Link Project.

The package, awarded to the Baulderstone Leighton Joint Venture, involves an integrated design team comprising Aurecon and Hyder Consulting.

NDY contributes to award winning Chatswood Chase (top) Norman Disney & Young (NDY) has won the NSW Development of the Year category at this year’s Property Council of Australia/Rider Levell Bucknall Innovation and Excellence Awards, held in May.

AU$30M+ Contracts in Six Months for GMC Global GMC Global, a wholly owned subsidiary of SMEC Holdings, has been awarded new contracts in excess of AU$30M since joining the SMEC Group. GMC will start the new financial year on a high, with several long-term client engagements in all operating regions, providing GMC’s dedicated team of consultants with exciting work opportunities across the globe.

Industry Updates

Consulting Matters

Telework update The Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy is launching www.telework.gov.au at the end of June. Visit the site to download resources and case studies on telework best practice, find out about Telework Partners and sign up to participate in National Telework Week 12-16 November.

Editor

Green Star - Communities The GBCA Green Star - Communities rating tool was released as a pilot in June 2012.

It is one of the world’s first national schemes able to assess and certify the sustainability of community-level projects.

Cathy Mitchell

Editorial Coordinator Gillian O’Young

President Jamie Shelton

Chief Executive Megan Motto

Chief Operating Officer

AGIC IS Rating Scheme

INDUSTRY ANNOUNCEMENTS

On 29 February 2012, the Australian Green Infrastructure Council (AGIC) launched the Infrastructure Sustainability (IS) Rating Scheme to deliver social, economic and environmental improvements across the design construction and operation of Australia’s infrastructure.

Consult Australia signs MoU with AIA

Romilly Madew – Green Building Council of Australia

Consult Australia is pleased to have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Australian Institute of Architects (AIA) which recognises ongoing cooperation and identifies synergies and a non exhaustive list of shared objectives between the two organisations.

David Singleton – Australian Green Infrastructure Council Dr Tim Williams – Arup Jamie Shelton | Vessi Ivanova | Kate Lainson – Northrop Engineers Tony Arnel – Norman Disney & Young Peter Fagan – MWH Kaia Hodge – Sydney Water

The Department of Infrastructure and Transport has launched the NICS website to house details for all economic and social projects valued at $50 million or more being planned or delivered by governments at federal, state or local level. NICS can be viewed at www.nics.gov.au.

Director of Policy Jonathan Cartledge

Senior Policy Advisor Jonathan Russell

Senior Legal Policy Advisor Robin Schuck

Director of Marketing & Membership Cathy Mitchell

INDUSTRY CONTRIBUTORS

National Infrastructure Construction Schedule (NICS)

Julia Lemercier

Martin Keetels – Konica Minolta Daniel Samson – University of Melbourne Wendy Poulton – Planned Professional Risk Services Steve Brown – Norman Disney & Young Kylie Cochrane – Sinclair Knight Merz Peter Anderson – Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry

National Events Manager Alexandra Hopper

Designer Voltaire Corpuz

Education & Training Coordinator Daniel Condon

Finance Yingying Lin

Executive Assistant Kerri Clifford

Operations Coordinator Sheena Nelson

Administration Assitant Amber Bryant

Immigration Officer Sarah Gowing

Editorial Submissions gillian@consultaustralia.com.au

Advertising Enquiries gillian@consultaustralia.com.au Consulting Matters is produced by Consult Australia.

Phone: (02) 9922 4711.

Website: www.consultaustralia.com.au

3

4

Consulting Matters

Industry Updates

What’s on in our industry?

Global

Victoria July 30-31, Melbourne 4th Annual Victorian Infrastructure Summit 2012 http://www.iir.com.au

July 26-28, New Zealand Structuring the Future Conference 2012 http://www.acenz.org.nz/

August, Melbourne Consult Australia VIC Division: Business Tools Seminar www.consultaustralia.com.au

August 16-17, Brisbane Consult Australia: Safety in Design www.consultaustralia.com.au November 1-3, Brisbane Consult Australia: Contracts for Consultants www.consultaustralia.com.au December 7, Brisbane 2012 Consult Australia Awards for Excellence www.consultaustralia.com.au

Northern Territory

September 9-12, Seoul FIDIC World Conference 2012 http://www.fidic.org/ September 15-18, Barcelona FIDIC World Consulting Engineers Conference Centenary Conference http://www1.fidic.org/events/ October 15-November 3, Tokyo Consult Australia Young Professional Exchange Program (YPEP) www.consultaustralia.com.au

National July 5 - August 7, Australia-wide AIIA and Australian Services Roundtable Telework Seminars http://servicesaustralia.co

September 25-October 4, Australia-wide Australian Institute of Architects International Speakers Series http://www.architecture.com.au November 12-16, Australia-wide National Telework week www.telework.gov.au

July 25, Darwin Consult Australia NT Division: Responding to Risk www.consultaustralia.com.au August 15-17, Melbourne Australian Chambers Business Congress http://businesscongress.com.au/ September, Melbourne Consult Australia VIC Division: The Future of Infrastructure in Victoria www.consultaustralia.com.au

South Australia August 7, Adelaide Consult Australia SA Division: Client Relationships 101 www.consultaustralia.com.au

September 10-12, Melbourne Consult Australia Professional Services Excellence Course www.consultaustralia.com.au

September 13-14, Adelaide Consult Australia: Safety in Design www.consultaustralia.com.au

September 19-22, Melbourne Construction Materials Industry Conference (CMIC) 2012 http://www.iceaustralia.com/cmic12/

New South Wales

September 27-29, Melbourne Consult Australia: Contracts for Consultants www.consultaustralia.com.au October 15-19, Melbourne 2nd National Conference of the Stormwater Industry Association http://www.gemsevents.com.au/ stormwater2012/

Queensland July 25, Maroochydore SLSC Dinner on Digital Futures for Small Business, http://www.rdasunshinecoast.org.au/

August 9-10, Sydney Australasian College of Road Safety National Conference http://acrs.org.au/events/2012-acrs-conference/ August 30-September 1, Sydney Consult Australia: Contracts for Consultants www.consultaustralia.com.au October 25-25, Sydney Consult Australia: Safety in Design www.consultaustralia.com.au

Industry Updates

Consulting Matters

5

have your say...

Western Australia

Letters to the editor

August 10, Perth Energy Futures Series, Part 1: Australia’s Energy Future http://www.ceda.com.au

Agree or disagree with something you’ve read in this edition of the Consulting Matters? Want your comment heard on the issue? Send a letter to our editor (max 200 words) at cathy@consultaustralia.com.au.

September 6-8, Perth Consult Australia: Contracts for Consultants www.consultaustralia.com.au

Letters to Consulting Matters must carry the sender’s name and firm.

We do not acknowledge the receipt of unpublished letters.

When submitting your letter for publication you agree that we may edit it for legal, space or other reasons.

September 23, Perth 25th ARRB Conference: Shaping the Future http://www.arrb.com.au

Australian Capital Territory

Industry comments What do you think is the most pressing issue our industry is today facing? Submit an Industry Comment to Consulting Matters by emailing our editorial coordinator at gillian@consultaustralia.com.au. You can speak about any subject matter you wish.

Write about issues you feel are important to the consulting industry - government policy, business issues, opinions on consulting related topics, changes you feel the industry should make or anything in between!

November 15-17, Canberra Consult Australia: Safety in Design www.consultaustralia.com.au

SAVE THE DATE 7 December 6:30pm till late Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre

Consult Australia 2012 Awards for Excellence This year, Consult Australia has revamped its annual Awards to recognise and celebrate business excellence and give firms a greater chance to shine a spotlight on the fantastic corporate initiatives they’re delivering on a daily basis.

Tickets to this year's event will be available to purchase from 1 August 2012 so mark the date in your diary and look out for more information on your email soon.

Diamonds are forever

6

Consulting Matters

What’s happening at Consult Australia

From the President Consult Australia’s member firms are not in the game to scrape by and remain on par with their competition.

We are an industry whose future lies in excelling as market leaders and being ahead of the game.

By their very nature, professional service firms are reactionary in that they work more in servicing the needs of society rather than setting the agenda and determining its direction. I know this is a narrow viewpoint, some might even say it’s somewhat outdated, but it helps to understand why an appreciation of the future is so important to our industry.

The competitive advantage of any firm, and its success in a free market economy, hinges on being ahead of the game in its ability to foresee and adjust to the changing needs of society.

It has long been understood that adaptability is a key element to enduring success, and so this in itself is not a new concept. However as the scale and speed of change increases, so too does the pressure on organisations to keep pace. It is the ability to withstand these pressures – the ability of our industry to increase the speed by which it can adapt and respond to the future needs of society - that will ensure its longevity. Furthermore, it is critical that our industry more broadly is collaborative and supportive of one another in this aim.

To illustrate this point we only need to consider the difficulties Australia’s major cities are experiencing when it comes to providing much need infrastructure. A great deal has been written and said about this issue and so I won’t go into detail, but I do want to make the point that it’s the failure of our political institutions and funding

mechanisms to adapt that has exacerbated, or even caused the difficulties our industry is experiencing. The population and demographic change that has led to this need for increased and improved infrastructure was not unexpected. In actual fact, today’s digital age has afforded us an even greater understanding of what society’s future needs, and external constraints on industry, are likely to be. It has been an inability to both foresee and adapt that has caused this challenge.

In Australia today, there are two issues high on the national agenda which reflect the importance of adaptability: productivity; and innovation.

Sure signs of a successful industry are when it can efficiently respond to change without loss of productivity and when economic benefits can be leveraged from innovation.

Today, it seems only logical that strategic planning must focus not just on a firm’s products or process, but on improving its ability to respond to either forecast or unforeseen change and ensure it remains competitive. To do this, decreased dependence on lengthy process to enact change; and the ability to adapt to external influencers such as skills shortages, funding restrictions and legislation will ultimately determine success.

Consult Australia’s member firms are not in the game to scrape by and remain on par with their competition. We are an industry

whose future lies in excelling as market leaders and being ahead of the game.

We must all strive to be truly integral parts of an adaptable industry that welcomes a future full of change. It must be the case that the more things change, and the faster pace this occurs; the greater our competitive advantage.

Jamie Shelton Consult Australia

MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE

Consulting Matters

Factor this into the equation! As a proven manufacturer and supplier of quality concrete construction systems, Reid also provides the complete engineering solutions package. We offer assistance with design, engineering expertise and technical support from onsite engineers, right through to a National Customer Service Centre providing order placement and delivery coordination. Reid supports you through a network of offices and warehouses in all major centres. Reid…engineered solutions for Australian construction.

E n g i n E E r E d

S o l u t i o n S

f o r

C o n C r E t E

Contact the Reid Customer Service Centre 1300 780 250 or visit www.reid.com.au Reid Construction Systems. A division of ITW Australia Pty. Ltd. ABN 63 004 235 063. MDG 18483 5/12

7

8

Consulting Matters

What’s happening at Consult Australia

From the CEO The history of Consult Australia clearly demonstrates that this is an organisation that, very much like the professionals and companies it represents, has embraced change to stay relevant in an evolving market sector and economy. these uncertain times and a competitive marketplace. Thank you to you all.

In preparing for our 4th annual Symposium and very special 60th Anniversary Gala Dinner, I have been taking the opportunity to reflect on how much the Association has changed since I joined in September 2000, and how much we have achieved in the last decade in particular. More broadly though, it has been a fun time to reflect on the past, going right back to the origins of ACSE (the Association of Consulting Structural Engineers of Australia) and ACEA. The history of Consult Australia clearly demonstrates that this is an organisation that, very much like the professionals and companies it represents, has embraced change to stay relevant in an evolving market sector and economy.

What has inspired me is not only the great accomplishments of Consult Australia over the past 60 years, but also the people who have made it all happen. It is incredibly important during this time of celebration that we pay tribute to the inspirational members who have so generously given their time and intellect to build Consult Australia into the organisation it is today. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the Past Presidents, Life Members, State and National Committee and Roundtable members and other volunteers who have dedicated large portions of their professional lives to ensuring that our built environment consulting industry is strong, vibrant, focussed and sustainable. The foundations they built stand our Association in good stead through

This period of reflection is as much about the changing Australian political and economic environment as it is the organisation.

Perhaps largely due to outsourcing over the last 20 years, and thus the transfer of a significant proportion of expertise in the built environment professions to the private sector, there is no longer an innate sense of the importance of the built environment in the political arena. Despite the Federal Government’s welcome interest in and commitment to infrastructure and cities, we face a world where the policy agenda is cluttered with special interest issues and economic complexity compounded by shortened but sensationalist media cycles.

Today, the built environment professions have to stand up in a crowded marketplace in order to be seen and heard.

It has also been interesting to study how our industry has matured over the years. This maturity has come in the shape of shifting attitudes towards change, an increased appetite for transformation and enthusiasm to keep up with evolving technologies. With these new technologies, we have seen an increase in the speed with which change can be conceptualised, initiated, communicated and actualised and has allowed businesses to take advantage of new opportunities and respond quickly to challenges. This is particularly true in our built environment sector (including our rapidly evolving mining and resources sectors), where members who have been the most resilient during and since the GFC have been those who are able to use the data available to them to identify new work opportunities.

It is in this vein that I am very happy to announce that we will shortly be revamping our Practice Performance Survey (PPS) to ensure that it remains a relevant tool that

enables members to benchmark themselves, in real time, against their competitors. The new tool will be delivered in conjunction with our new sponsor, Deloitte Private, and will be significantly enhanced in terms of both data input and reporting functionality. More information will be forthcoming on this great service over the coming months.

This inaugural edition of Consulting Matters, the new look/name for our long standing National Outlook magazine heralds in yet another major step in your Association’s transformation. Renamed to give a better sense of the magazine’s connection to Consult Australia, the new look publication will contain all the usual high quality content whilst continuing to reflect our broader audience and reach. I hope you enjoy both the magazine and the celebrations ahead in 2012!

Megan Motto Consult Australia

Consulting Matters

9

Minimise Risk, Increase Commercial Acumen, Maximise Profitability IS A LACK OF COMMERCIAL ACUMEN ADDING COST AND PRESENTING RISK TO YOUR PROJECTS AND ORGANISATION? If the people who are designing, negotiating, managing and administering commercial proposals, contracts and projects for your organisation don’t have a solid understanding of the commercial practices that drive performance, it could be costing more than you think!

It is critical to formalise your commercial pricing strategies, qualifiers and assumptions and ensure that everyone in your organisation understands and can apply them.

We provide in-house commercial solutions in the form of custom designed training programs, pricing strategies and workbooks to support consulting organisations that employ project managers, technical staff, and consultants. Training packages include a range of valuable Case Studies, Templates and Tools developed for your organisation.

Call BRS to explore commercial solutions that will minimise risk and maximise profitability!

Invest in commercial solutions that delivers a measurable ROI

Phone +61 8 8215 0332 www.brsresults.com

10

Consulting Matters What’s happening at Consult Australia

Meet the new Consult Australia Board CONSULT AUSTRALIA IS PLEASED TO WELCOME THE FOLLOWING INDIVIDUALS WHO HAVE BEEN ELECTED TO JOIN CONSULT AUSTRALIA PRESIDENT, JAMIE SHELTON, ON THE CONSULT AUSTRALIA BOARD OF DIRECTORS.

THE NEW CONSULT AUSTRALIA BOARD OF DIRECTORS REPRESENTS A NEW ERA FOR OUR ASSOCIATION: ONE OF DIVERSITY; OF VISION AND DRIVE. I LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH THIS NEW BOARD TO CONTINUE TO DELIVER THE STRENGTH OF SERVICES AND REPRESENTATION MEMBERS ARE COMING TO EXPECT OF CONSULT AUSTRALIA.

Jamie Shelton Director and Regional Manager Northrop Consulting Engineers Jamie is a director of Northrop and its Sydney Regional Manager. He commenced his career with Northrop Engineers in 1988 as a graduate engineer in the Canberra office and to this day continues to be involved in projects as a senior structural engineer. Jamie has over 20 years experience in servicing clients and managing engineering design teams, and is valued for his innovative and pragmatic approach to building design. As a manager, he has been instrumental in growing Northrop and building its reputation through a focus on developing it’s people and responding to the needs of the market.

CONSULT AUSTRALIA PLAYS AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN BEING A UNIQUE VOICE FOR ITS MEMBERS. MY FOCUS AS A DIRECTOR WILL BE TO ENSURE CONSULT AUSTRALIA IS A MORE INFLUENTIAL VOICE AND A STRONGER FORCE IN ESTABLISHING A MORE ‘RISK APPROPRIATE’ AND CONSISTENT PLAYING FIELD FOR CONSULTANTS IN DOING BUSINESS IN BOTH PRIVATE AND GOVERNMENT SECTORS.

Amy Carr Asia Pacific Legal Counsel URS Amy is Legal Counsel, Asia Pacific at URS. Prior to joining URS she was in private practice in environmental law, litigation and employment/IR for more than five years.

Amy has a Bachelor of Environmental Science and a Masters of Law and Legal Practice and is admitted to practice law in Australia and New Zealand. She advises and represents URS in managing commercial risks in its day to day business and operations and handles various front-end negotiations and projects in the Asia Pacific region in consulting, construction, engineering, environmental services and international development projects.

I AM COMMITTED AND EXCITED ABOUT THE OPPORTUNITY TO ASSIST CONSULT AUSTRALIA. I RECOGNISE THE IMPORTANCE AND RESPONSIBILITY OF BEING ASSOCIATED WITH A BOARD OF THIS NATURE, NOT ONLY IN THE ABILITY TO INTERACT AT BOARD LEVEL BUT ALSO THE ACCOUNTABILITY TO THE CEO, THE CONSULT STAFF AND THE MEMBERS AT LARGE. I BELIEVE I WILL ADD A HOLISTIC, HIGHLY INFORMED VOICE AND A POSITIVE CONTRIBUTION TO CONSULT AUSTRALIA’S NEW DIRECTION AND AIM TO ACHIEVE A WIDER REPRESENTATION FROM OUR SECTOR.

Matthew Harris Director of Infrastructure Rider Levett Bucknall (RLB) Matthew has worked in professional practice as a quantity surveyor for some 20 years, including eight years as a Company Director of the international consultancy group Rider Levett Bucknall (RLB). Matthew has a strong finance, business development and management background, most recently developing an infrastructure business for RLB in NSW. Outside of his roles with RLB, Matthew takes an active involvement in the Property Council of Australia and is an Associate Member of the Australian Institute of Quantity Surveyors and a Member of the Australia Institute of Company Directors.

What’s happening at Consult Australia Consulting Matters

CONSULT AUSTRALIA SEEKS TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE SUCCESS OF PROFESSIONAL SERVICES PROVIDERS TO THE BUILT AND NATURAL ENVIRONMENT. AS A MEMBER OF THE BOARD OF CONSULT AUSTRALIA, I WILL BE WORKING TO PROVIDE GUIDANCE TO THE EXECUTIVE OF THE ORGANISATION AS THEY CONTINUE TO BUILD CONSULT AUSTRALIA’S INFLUENCE ACROSS THE COUNTRY AND PROVIDE SERVICES THAT SUPPORT THE MEMBER’S GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT OF THEIR OWN PRACTICES.

I AM PASSIONATE ABOUT ISSUES AFFECTING THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT AND COMMITTED TO HELPING CONSULT AUSTRALIA CREATE A BETTER BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT FOR CONSULTING PROFESSIONALS.

Ian Hopkins CEO Norman Disney & Young (NDY)

Jo Metcalfe is the Business Group Manager for GHD ACT and Southern New South Wales.

She is passionate about issues affecting consulting professionals including sensible procurement, fair contracting conditions for consultants, professional standards, safety and professional indemnity insurance. Jo has a strong consulting, professional services management and industry peak body employment history. She makes significant contributions to the organisations for which she plays committee, council and board roles, a commitment that she is eager to continue with Consult Australia.

Ian Hopkins graduated from UNSW with BE (Hons) in Aeronautical Engineering in 1971 and completed a Master of Engineering Science at UNSW in 1977. After working briefly for Qantas, he joined Norman Disney & Young in 1972 and then spent three years in Adelaide with Carrington Air Conditioning in the late 1970’s. He rejoined NDY as head of their Melbourne office in 1979, was appointed Managing Director in 1991 and took over as CEO in 1996 on the retirement of founder David Norman.

His career focus has been on the design of energy efficient air conditioning systems for a variety of buildings and Ian is now responsible for the international operations of NDY across 11 offices in Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.

Joanne Metcalfe Business Group Manager, Property and Buildings GHD

11

MY INVOLVEMENT WITH CONSULT AUSTRALIA BEGAN AS AN ACTIVE MEMBER OF MY LOCAL QUEENSLAND DIVISION, AND RECENTLY I HAVE ALSO JOINED THE NATIONAL BOARD OF DIRECTORS, WHERE I HOPE TO PROACTIVELY CONTRIBUTE TO THE SUCCESS OF CONSULT AUSTRALIA IN RAISING OUR PROFILE AND OFFERING A GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE TO OUR TEAM.

Veréna Preston Director - Global Consulting Practices WorleyParsons Veréna Preston is the Director – Global Consulting Practices for WorleyParsons and is responsible for the strategic development, operational implementation and growth of this business avenue. With over 20 years of international experience in the oil and gas, refining, chemicals and minerals processing industry, Veréna has seen WorleyParsons grow to a workforce of over 36,000 personnel today and she has managed mergers and acquisitions for the Australia/ New Zealand region within the group.

12

Consulting Matters What’s happening at Consult Australia

Consult Australia welcomes new member firms: • Peracon • Engineering and Project Management Services • NP Bonner, Consulting Engineer • QLD Formwork Engineer • Ryacon Engineers • Urban Concepts • CKE Australia • Cantilever Consulting Engineers OUR INDUSTRY IS CURRENTLY FACING MANY CHALLENGES, WITH INCREASING GLOBALISATION, ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES, AND RAPID TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE. IN AUSTRALIA, THE RESOURCES SECTORS ARE BOOMING WHILE SOME OTHERS ARE UNDERGOING SIGNIFICANT REBALANCES. CONSULT AUSTRALIA’S REPOSITIONING AS THE INDUSTRY’S LEADING VOICE IS CRITICAL TO HELP US MEET THESE CHALLENGES, AND I’M PLEASED TO JOIN THE BOARD AT THIS CRUCIAL TIME.

James Wright Director, Business Operations, APAC KBR James Wright is the Director of Business Operations, Asia Pacific, for KBR’s infrastructure business. Over the past 18 years with KBR, James has held several senior leadership roles, including as General Manager of the Queensland office and Operations Manager of the NSW office. He has led significant organisational change programs and has represented KBR on the leadership teams for several major project alliances, including Queensland’s Darra to Springfield Road and Rail Horizon Alliance.

He brings to the Consult Australia Board a large business perspective, challenging thinking, energy and knowledge of the AsiaPacific region. James holds a Bachelor of Engineering(Hons) (Mech) and an MBA, and is a trustee of the Committee for Economic Development of Australia.

MY POSITION ON THE BOARD ASSIGNS A RESPONSIBILITY TO OBJECTIVELY REPRESENT AND PROMOTE THE INTEREST OF SMALL AND MEDIUM FIRMS. AS A DIRECTOR AND A PRACTICING ENGINEER IN SUCH A FIRM, I AM ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT ENSURING THAT THE BEST INTERESTS OF SMALL AND MEDIUM FIRMS ARE CONSIDERED IN THE GOVERNANCE OF CONSULT AUSTRALIA AND IN THE FORMULATION OF STRATEGIC DIRECTIONS.

Nicholas Murphy Managing Director MLEI Consulting Engineers Nicholas Murphy is a Chartered Professional Engineer with experience in both consulting and construction. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from the University of Adelaide and has been actively involved with Consult Australia as the Chair of the Executive Committee of South Australia. Nicholas has also chaired the Small and Regional Firms Roundtable since its inauguration.

A founding Director of civil and structural engineering firm, MLEI Consulting Engineers, Nicholas possesses a good understating of establishing, growing and running a consulting firm and is pleased with his recent appointment to the Board to represent the interests of small and medium sized firms at a corporate level.

Consult Australia welcomes new Affiliate member: • Department of Construction and Infrastructure (DCI), Northern Territory

What’s happening at Consult Australia Consulting Matters

13

Leading on workforce diversity THE TRADITIONAL HOMOGENIETY OF CONSULT AUSTRALIA MEMBER FIRMS COULD MAKE IT EASY TO DO NOTHING TO IMPROVE WORKFORCE DIVERSITY, INSTEAD WE ARE LEADING THE WAY TO BREAK DOWN BARRIERS AND CHANGE THE FUTURE OF CONSULTING. Our leadership in this field was acknowledged recently when The Institute of Chartered Accountants Australia invited Consult Australia to speak at an event in May, to share the lessons learned for making workforce diversity a reality.

performance. Against other companies in their sectors, they enjoyed higher returns on equity, a better operating result and better stock price growth. More detail on this study can be found in the Consult Australia report, Diverse Approaches.

The opportunity to promote the good work of Consult Australia members was taken by SMEC Workforce Planning and Engagement Manager and Chair of the Consult Australia Workforce Diversity Roundtable, Marianne Matin and Consult Australia Senior Policy Advisor for the workforce diversity portfolio, Jonathan Russell.

When quoting statistics that demonstrate success is coupled with diversity, the accountants were encouraged to acknowledge that it isn’t because old white men are bad at business!

The primary lesson that Consult Australia shared with the accountants was the importance of having CEO buy-in to, and visible leadership of workforce diversity.

In order to do that, it is important to demonstrate the business case for diversity, which includes things like being able to recruit (and retain) the best team with the best skills, who remain engaged and happy, and are thus better performing. This also results in lower staff turnover and associated costs.

There are many studies that prove the business benefits of a diverse workforce.

Most notable is a 2007 study by McKinsey & Co that found companies with a higher proportion of women in their top management have better financial

Rather, they were told that it is because the high performing companies are the ones prepared to draw on a bigger pool of talent and listen to different ways of thinking.

For CEOs who champion workforce diversity, one of the most important actions to take to achieve success is training. Specifically, training for line managers.

While the needs of employees to have access to flexible working arrangements are increasingly being met, line managers are often overlooked. They need to be given the skills to manage diverse teams. This very often means managing teams that operate in non-traditional ways, most notably with nonstandard hours or by working remotely.

‘Working from home’ is often interpreted as a pseudonym for ‘not working at all’. But it should not be considered to be any different

from working from an iPad at the airport, or logging in from a client’s office, or making calls on the road between meetings. These are all examples of ‘working remotely’. This article is being written while ‘working remotely’!

The key messages shared with The Institute of Chartered Accountants were to secure leadership buy-in with a sound business case for workforce diversity, and to then give line managers the tools they need to manage teams of the future.

Jonathan Russell Consult Australia

Jargon buster:

working remotely Someone who is ‘working remotely’ is not working from their usual office desk. They may be wearing pyjamas in their home office, wearing a hard hat at a client site, or wearing a weary look after travelling inter-state for yet another meeting. The one thing that they all have in common is that they are working to achieve outcomes for their company, but doing it away from their usual office desk.

The engineering skills shortage CONSULT AUSTRALIA DROVE HOME ITS MESSAGE ABOUT THE ENGINEERING SKILLS SHORTAGE AT A SENATE HEARING IN MARCH. In the Autumn 2012 edition of National Outlook, Consult Australia reported on the wide range of recommendations made in its submission to the federal Senate Education, Employment and Workplace Relations References Committee inquiry into the engineering skills shortage.

Public hearings are used by senate inquiries to hear more from industry and other experts such as academia and employee representatives.

Consult Australia has used this process to drive home its messages for change.

As part of this advocacy, Consult Australia CEO, Megan Motto gave evidence in Brisbane in March. She was supported by WorleyParsons Director of Global Consulting Practices and

Consult Australia Board member, Veréna Preston and Consult Australia Senior Policy Advisor for the skills portfolio, Jonathan Russell.

The depth of the Consult Australia submission was complimented by the Senate Committee Chair, Senator Chris Back, who said that he did not think that he had ‘ever seen a submission with so many recommendations...’

The central recommendation of Consult Australia’s advocacy is to reform public procurement practices to enable the private sector to invest in training and development of its engineering staff—something that has been made difficult by what is often seen as a push by government for ever cheaper services.

Senator Back agreed that the shift from public sector to private sector provision of engineering services ‘is probably the most significant impact’. This acknowledgment demonstrates the success Consult Australia has had in getting its message through.

The Committee will submit its report to the Government by 30 June 2012. Government plans to strengthen the future of engineering skills will become apparent soon after.

For a Hansard transcript of the Consult Australia hearing, visit the Parliament of Australia website.

Jonathan Russell Consult Australia

14

Consulting Matters What’s happening at Consult Australia

Consult Australia 60th anniversary This year marks the 60th Anniversary of Consult Australia, formerly known as the Association of Consulting Engineers Australia (ACEA).

Consult Australia is the association for professional services firms within the built and natural environment; influencing policy, creating value and promoting excellence.

1

Since its inception in 1952, the Association has grown to now represent more than 260 member firms across a range of disciplines.

Member services have expanded to include some of the industry’s most valuable benchmarking reports.

Consult Australia Chief Executive Officer, Megan Motto is proud to head up such a progressive organisation.

“Consult Australia and its members have been on an incredible journey over the last 60 years. There has been a significant amount of change over the last 15 years in particular.

“It is such an honour to be part of an industry association that has achieved so much in its past, whilst being so keenly tuned in to the trends for the industry in the future. It is this trait that will ensure Consult Australia remains focused and relevant for the next 60 years!”

3

2

5

4

1962 1953

1959

First recorded meeting of the ACEA took place under the Chairmanship of Awdry Julius.

ACEA joined The International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC).

A redraft of the Association’s rules took place in order to provide for the changing national character of the Association and to accommodate state-based Chapters (which formed through 1963).

1964

1953

1959

1962

1977 1969 ACEA released its first newsletter.

ACEA released Consulting Engineers’ Quarterly.

Jubilee Conference and Annual General Meeting held at the Sydney Opera House.

1964

1969

1977

1951

1960

1963

1968

1974

1951

1960

1963

1968

1974

Institute of Engineers Australia (IE Aust) Sydney Consulting Engineers met to discuss the formation of an Australia-wide employer association of consulting engineers.

ACEA adopted the Consulting Engineers Code of the IE Aust as the basis for professional fees for members’ consulting engineering services.

ACEA reached 100 members.

ACEA Engineering Awards competition was launched.

The new Trade Practices Act became law that prohibited any bans on members competing against each other on the basis of price - such a ban had been at the cornerstone of the Association’s professionalism, and the Association fought long to maintain it, in principle at least.

Association of Consulting Engineers Australia (ACEA) was formed & officially established in 1952.

What’s happening at Consult Australia Consulting Matters

6

15

7 8

11

12

9

10

1. W.A. Premier, Sir Charles Court addresses the ACEA 1980 Federal Conference in Perth.

2. ACEA’s National Magazine The Consulting Engineer (1994) 3. ACEA’s 1990/91 Annual Report 4. ACEA Quarterly 5. Hazel Hawke is Guest of Honour at the 1988 ACEA Engineering Excellence Awards: (from left to right) Ken Quince (Darling Harbour Authority); Peter Thompson (Ove Arup & Partners); Mrs Hazel Hawke and Roy T. Hardcastle (ACEA President)

6. Current Consult Australia CEO Megan Motto 7. Demonstration of the prototype power-linked parking meter in Melbourne in 1977. John Brookman checks the meter watched by ACEA President Harold Richards, right centre 8. Awdry Julius, first President of the ACEA 9. National Outlook (2005) 10. ACEA CEO 1998-2005, Therese Charles 11. YPEP exchange program with ACEA and AJCE (Japan) 12. Design your World DVD

2011 1998

1989 Eva Tihanyi became the first female member of the ACEA.

The ACEA Board decided to amend the membership criteria so it covered companies or organisations rather than individual members.

1989

1998

1982

Consult Australia released its redesigned, modern website.

ACEA released its new website, Way Forward.

1995

Megan Motto became CEO.

Release of Design your World DVD.

Consult Australia undertook a member consultation process and successfully redrafted the Constitution.

2005

2007

2011

2007 2005

2001

2006

2010

2012

1982

1995

2001

2006

2010

2012

Approval was received to hold an annual exchange between Australian and Japanese consulting practices (now known as YPEP).

First edition of Innovate was released and the first Small Firms Group was formed.

ACEA membership base changed to become an association of business firms.

Consult Australia launched its FutureNet Business Leaders Program in NSW, and subsequently to Queensland and Victoria.

Our name was changed from the Association of Consulting Engineers Australia to Consult Australia.

Consult Australia welcomed a diverse new Board of Directors.

Consult Australia launched FutureNet WA, and subsequently Australia-wide.

PI Pathway partnership commenced.

16

Consulting Matters What’s happening at Consult Australia

Living Away From Home Allowance ON 28 JUNE 2012, THE AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENT ANNOUNCED THAT REFORMS TO THE LIVING AWAY FROM HOME ALLOWANCE (LAFHA) WILL BE DELAYED BY THREE MONTHS TO 1 OCTOBER 2012. THIS WAS A MAJOR WIN FOR CONSULT AUSTRALIA FOLLOWING OUR INTENSIVE AND LENGTHY ADVOCACY WORK AROUND THESE REFORMS. The federal Government displayed a bullish attitude when it announced reforms to LAFHA legislation which will have a huge impact on our consulting industry.

Since the proposed reforms were first announced in late 2011, Consult Australia has, at the request of members firms, been lobbying the Government to ensure the reforms are implemented in a way in which the impact on workers and employers alike will be softened.

As the issue progressed and our lobbying efforts continued, we became widely-recognised as leaders in this effort. Whilst our advocacy remained focused on our member firms, workers from across the spectrum of the Australian economy – from IT, to media, to marketing - called and emailed to pledge support for our work and offered any information they could to assist.

In a huge win for Consult Australia, our members, and ultimately the wider Australian economy, on 28 June 2012 the Government announced that the reforms will be delayed by three months to 1 October 2012.

WHAT ARE THE CHANGES? Tax Laws Amendment (2012 Measures No. 4) Bill 2012 was introduced to Parliament in the last week of the winter sitting period and is expected to be passed by Parliament and become law in August or September 2012.

The Bill amends the Fringe Benefits Tax Assessment Act 1986 and the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 to reform the taxation treatment of LAFHA allowances and benefits to generally treat LAFHA as part of an employee’s assessable income rather than as a fringe benefit.

Road to reform: 29 November 2011: Government announced LAFHA reforms

3 February 2012: First round of Treasury public consultation closed

8 May 2012: LAFHA reforms expanded in federal Budget

29 May 2012: Second round of Treasury public consultation closed

The Bill will also change the rules so that an income tax deduction is only allowed: • For reasonable expenses incurred and substantiated for accommodation and food and drink; • For employees who maintain a home in Australia for their own personal and immediate use and enjoyment at all times while required to live away from home for their work; and • For a maximum period of 12 months in respect of an individual employee for a particular work location.

THE REFORMS WILL ALSO TAX EMPLOYERS ON: • L AFH allowances to the extent they relate to ‘ordinary weekly food and drink expenses’ of employees who satisfy the requirements to claim an income tax deduction and have provided their employer with a declaration; and

28 June 2012: Bill to implement reforms introduced to parliament and the government announced delayed start date of 1 October 2012

1 October 2012: New LAFHA laws expected to commence

Consulting Matters

17

A three-day residential management course focused on business excellence for technical professionals

Professional Services Excellence: Driving Business Success

FEATURING: Business management, professional service and value creation, leadership and new key topics, including ‘cutting edge’ topics of business models, marketing and business development, systematic innovation capability, operational & service excellence Bookings or enquiries can be made in the first instance via phone or email to Danny Samson, Telephone 0438 782 866. or send an email to leadership.engineers@gmail.com.

Consult Australia members save $150 by booking and paying one month before the program start date.

Danny Samson University of Melbourne

Course Director: Professor Danny Samson When: 10 - 12 September 2012 Where: Melbourne University Business School Carlton, Melbourne Victoria

18

Consulting Matters What’s happening at Consult Australia

• L AFH benefits (that is, the provision of accommodation, food and expense payments) provided to employees who would not be eligible to claim an income tax deduction had they incurred the expenses directly.

For more details, visit the Parliament House website at www.aph.gov.au and read the ’explanatory memorandum’ for the Bill.

SO WHAT’S THE PROBLEM? Whilst many lobbying efforts, and certainly the media portrayal of the issue, has focused on the employees themselves, another major impact of the reforms is on employers who were given next to no time to prepare.

With any taxation law amendments, HR and payroll teams have to mobilise to change the mechanics of how employees are paid. A relatively simple task for small companies, but a gargantuan task for large firms with workforces spread across the country and engaged on a myriad of contract arrangements.

The three month delay to the reform implementation is great news for employers who now have a longer time to put systems in place to deal with the changes.

The impact that has received more publicity will be on the take-home pay of people currently receiving the LAFHA benefit, but who would lose it under the new system. The recurrent example of this is people working in Australia on a 457 temporary migrant visa who are receiving LAFHA based on living away from a home in another country.

The Bill includes a transitional period so that the requirement to maintain a residence in Australia does not apply until 30 June 2014 (or until the recipient’s employment contract ends, is varied or renewed).

The three month delay to the reform implementation is great news for employers who now have a longer time to put systems in place to deal with the changes.

The more well-publicised impact will be on the take-home pay of people currently receiving the LAFHA benefit, but who would lose it under the new system. The recurrent example of this is people working in Australia on a 457 temporary migrant visa who are receiving LAFHA based on living away from a home in another country.

THE PROCESS FROM HERE

However, this transitional period is not available to temporary or foreign residents.

The Tax Laws Amendment (2012 Measures No. 4) Bill 2012 has been sent to the House Economics Committee for review. This provides a final opportunity to lobby for the transitional period provided in the draft legislation to be expanded to include temporary skilled migrants.

THE POTENTIAL IMPACT

The Committee report to government could include recommendations for changes to the Bill, and the government may agree to such changes, but employers and employees are advised to plan for the reforms to take effect on 1 October 2012 in their current form.

The LAFHA benefits have made Australia an attractive destination for skilled migrants. Its removal could inhibit employers’ abilities to recruit new skilled migrants and may cause existing workers to leave Australia.

The sudden implementation of the LAFH reforms may have a significant impact on the industry: • Highly skilled professionals who leave Australia because of the reforms create vacancies that are hard to fill, thus harming industry’s abilities to deliver projects on time. The Consult Australia 2011 Skills Survey shows that 50 per cent of senior roles take between seven and 11 months to fill.

• The cost of ‘filling the gap’ left by changes to LAFH benefits may drive up employment costs. If this occurs, this is money that cannot be spent on training, for example, or the cost will flow on to clients and slow down projects.

• Widespread wage inflation would occur if the level of wages sufficient to attract the skilled migrants increases.

Jonathan Russell Consult Australia

Consulting Matters

19

Thank you to all our partner organisations who helped make this year’s Symposium possible.

Platinum Sponsor:

Gold Sponsors:

Silver Sponsors:

A very special thank you to the co-hosts of the Consult Australia 60th Anniversary Gala Dinner

Special event sponsor:

These events could not have been held without the generous support of the above organisations.

20

Consulting Matters What’s happening at Consult Australia

CONSULT AUSTRALIA'S 2012 POLICY WINS (JANUARY - JUNE) INFRASTRUCTURE & URBAN DEVELOPMENT  L aunched Tomorrow’s Cities Today in March 2012 with Lucy Turnbull AO; City of Sydney Chief Executive, Monica Barone; and Australian Government Major Cities Unit Executive Director, Dorte Ekelund.  M et with Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, the Hon. Anthony Albanese MP who commended Tomorrow’s Cities Today as a valuable contribution to the policy agenda supporting cities reform.  A ccepted an invitation from Minister Albanese to join the Government’s new National Urban Policy Forum established to help implement the Government’s National Urban Policy and advise the Government on the reform agenda for cities.  C ontinued advocacy focused on infrastructure financing and became a founding member of the Transport Reform Network: providing the next step to continue to advance the agenda for widespread transport infrastructure funding reform.  S igned a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Infrastructure Partnerships Australia (IPA) providing a platform for joint co-operation and representation.  M et with representatives from the Australian Government Department of Infrastructure and Transport outlining industry requirements for the National Infrastructure Construction Schedule (NICS).  L aunched a comprehensive policy agenda promoting excellence in the built environment in Victoria. Recommendations for reform supporting better governance and procurement are being advanced through the Victorian Government.

SUSTAINABILITY  S upported and facilitated the development of the ASBEC Climate Change Task Group Policy Framework for Climate Change Adaptation in the Built Environment, launched in June 2012 at Built Environment Meets Parliament (BEMP).

Diverse Approaches launch 2012 from left: Elizabeth Broderick (Australian Human Rights Commission), Catherine Livingstone (Worley Parsons), Megan Motto (Consult Australia) and Peter Bailey (Arup)

WORKPLACE DIVERSITY  L aunched Diverse Approaches, a best practice benchmarking report for workforce diversity initiatives. The report was launched with Australian Sex Discrimination Commissioner, Elizabeth Broderick; Telstra Chairwoman, Catherine Livingstone; and Arup Director for Australasia, Peter Bailey.

 A dvocating strongly, alongside the Australian Sustainable Built Environment Council (ASBEC), for built environment concerns to be addressed through the Productivity Commission Inquiry into Barriers to Climate Change Adaptation rolling out through 2012.

 R eceived expressions of interest to develop a Workforce Diversity Toolkit overseen by Consult Australia’s Workforce Diversity Roundtable.

SMALLER AND REGIONAL FIRMS

 M et with the office of the Minister for the Status of Women, the Hon. Julie Collins MP highlighting Consult Australia’s contribution to improving workforce diversity.

 S maller and Regional Firms Roundtable addressing the interests of smaller and regional firms, supporting improved networking opportunities, and providing avenues for these firms to inform the policies and activities of Consult Australia.  P roduced a promotional brochure tailored to the services of smaller and regional member firms. The brochure is an effective advertising tool, broadens awareness of Consult Australia members, and builds a betterinformed client base.  R eleased a new Practice Note to help company owners collect debts on time and reduce debtor days.

WORKPLACE HEALTH & SAFETY  C ontinuing to push for safer, simpler and more consistent regulation of workplace health and safety around Australia through clear advocacy across state and territory governments, for example through submissions to the Victorian Government as they consider the merits of harmonisation.  A dvocating for clear roles and responsibilities for all those with an influence over the design process. Recent drafts of the various codes of practice have been amended in response to our representations to Safe Work Australia.

What’s happening at Consult Australia Consulting Matters

SKI LLS  G ave evidence to the Senate Education, Employment and Workplace Relations Committee in their investigation into the shortage of engineering and related skills and its impact on infrastructure delivery.

Lobbied the Federal Government to utilise a phased introduction of fringe benefits tax reforms to limit the risk of wage inflation.  A dvocacy across the political spectrum (including with: Assistant Treasurer, the Hon. David Bradbury MP; Leader of the Opposition, the Hon. Tony Abbot MP; Deputy Leader of the Opposition, the Hon. Julie Bishop MP; Leader of the Australian Greens, Senator Christine Milne and major independents) saw the Government delay reforms to Living Away From Home Allowance (LAFHA) that were announced in the federal budget.  A s part of the National Engineering Registration Board (NERB) advocated the benefits of registration including with NSW Parliamentary Secretary for Regional Planning, Mr Craig Baumann MP; and NSW Minister for Fair Trading, the Hon. Anthony Roberts MP.  P rovided evidence to the Coalition Deregulation Taskforce led

by Senator Arthur Sinodinos, Ms Kelly O’Dwyer MP, and Senator David Bushby supporting national engineering registration and procurement reform across all levels of government.  P articipated in the Australian Government Department of Resources Energy and Tourism workshops on the green skills needs of industry.  A dvocated with the office of the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, the Hon. Chris Bowen for ongoing support by the Government for Consult Australia’s in-house Immigration Outreach Officer (IOO); and a review of visa subclass 476, exploring its expansion to a wider range of accredited engineering graduates.

21

CONTRACTS LIABILITY & PROCUREMENT  AS4122-2010 General Conditions of Contract for Consultants continues to be rolled out as our preferred agreement between consultants and their clients, providing fair, reasonable, clear and concise contract conditions for all parties. Consult Australia has held detailed discussions regarding the use of AS4122-2010 with QLD Department of Transport and Main Roads, QLD Department of Public Works, the NSW Department of Finance and Services (as part of a cross-agency working group), the Western Australian Local Government Association, the South Australian Local Government Association, the SA Department of Planning, Transport & Infrastructure and the NT Department of Employment and Business.  M et with the office of Attorney-General, the Hon. Nicola Roxon MP to advocate proportionate liability reform, including the express prohibition of ‘opt-out’ provisions across jurisdictions.  F acilitated a high-level forum on collaborative contracting between the Department of Defence, Consult Australia representatives and a range of state agency representatives from across Australia.  C ontinued to advocate for procurement reform through ongoing representation and submissions, for example as part of the Australian Government Procurement Consultation Committee; as an industry representative as part of the NSW Procurement Review and through representation on the ACT Shared Services Roundtable.  R eceived invitation to join QLD Department of Transport and Main Roads working group to review and update their pre-qualification of consultants system.

“Northrop is a multi disciplinary engineering consultancy, owned by our Senior Engineers. You and your projects will benefit from the personal attention that comes when you work with engineers that own the business.”

Jamie Shelton Principal, Northrop Engineers Named in Australia’s top 100 most influential engineers, 2012 & 2011

Our best people working on your projects

www.northrop.com.au | CANBERRA | SYDNEY | NEWCASTLE | WOLLONGONG | CENTRAL COAST | WESTERN SYDNEY | BRISBANE

22

Consulting Matters What’s happening at Consult Australia

NSW POLICY UPDATE Amy Lowe State Manager – NSW & ACT Phone: (02) 9922 4711 Adrress: Level 6, 50 Clarence Street Sydney NSW 2000 Email: amy@consultaustralia.com.au

The NSW Division has now formalised the new Policy and Advocacy Committee with the help of Defire Managing Director, Jason Jeffress, who is sourcing the assistance of professionals interested in this area. The Committee has commenced discussions with the Building Professionals Board on the review of the NSW Building Certification System. This is an important issue that will affect many members so please contact NSW State Manager, Amy Lowe if you would like to be involved.

The NSW Division recently submitted a response to the NSW Transport Master Plan which addresses many of the real issues associated with transport in NSW and provides recommendations to government on how these issues may be addressed.

The Division also released a paper on the NSW Professional Services Industry Action Plan which identified three main areas of challenge in the sector: engineering skills shortages; government procurement of consulting services; and infrastructure funding and development. The paper provides a number of recommendations we believe will assist in addressing these issues.

All policy papers can be found on our website, or by contacting the NSW Division State Manager, Amy Lowe.

Changes to skilled migration seminar: The Department of Immigration and Citizenship has recently undertaken significant reforms and development across the skilled migration program. Industry Outreach Officer to Consult Australia, Sarah Gowing conducted a free seminar at GHD on Wednesday, 6 June to provide an overview of the changes.

NSW OTHER NEWS Nominations are still open for a number of NSW Division sub-committees. If you are interested in any of the following areas please contact NSW State Manager, Amy Lowe for further information: • Membership • Policy and advocacy • Continuing professional development • Education Opportunities also exist for Division sponsorship – further information can be obtained by contacting NSW State Manager, Amy Lowe.

The NSW Division would like to welcome Shana Ludwell who has started in the NSW & ACT Event Coordinator role.

NSW DIVISION GOLD SPONSORS:

NSW RECENT EVENTS June breakfast: Over 25 consultants joined former BHP Chief Economist, Geoffrey Bills at the NSW Division’s annual Economic Forecast (previously called Outlook) breakfast seminar on Monday, 4 June at The Grace Hotel in Sydney.

ACT POLICY UPDATE

within the built and natural environment. Copies are still available to purchase under the Bookshop section of the Consult Australia website.

Consult Australia’s ACT Division has been working closely with ACT Government Shared Services on a range of issues including unlimited liability and consultant performance evaluation.

ACT OTHER NEWS

ACT RECENT EVENTS Member’s luncheon: A member’s luncheon was held in Canberra on Tuesday, 8 May with Consult Australia CEO, Megan Motto, Director of Policy, Jonathan Cartledge, and ACT State Manager, Amy Lowe. Members enjoyed a lovely meal at Hotel Realm and discussion around membership and the history of Consult Australia.

June breakfast: The ACT Division held its annual Economic Forecast breakfast seminar on Wednesday, 20 June at Hotel Realm. The seminar was used to launch Consult Australia’s 2012 Economic Forecast report, which is an essential tool for any Australian consulting firm operating

The Division welcomes new team member, Shana Ludwell (below) as NSW & ACT Events Coordinator.

ACT DIVISION GOLD SPONSORS:

What’s happening at Consult Australia Consulting Matters

QLD POLICY UPDATE Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR): A joint workshop was held on Thursday, 1 March to address planning of the new version of the TMR Consultant Prequalification System. This workshop brought together approximately 100 participants (including consultants from Consult Australia member firms, other pre-qualified consultants and the TMR staff), to discuss the current system and a proposed model new system. Some of the outcomes of the workshop include the formation of a working party to continue developing the new version.

An advisory panel has also been formed to work with TMR in finalising their Principal Arranged Insurance Project. The first meeting of this panel took place in late May. Department of Public Works (DPW): A follow up meeting was held on Monday, 16 April with DPW legal services to discuss our feedback on their draft special conditions for AS4122-2010. DPW will now table our written response and further recommendations to their Contracts Committee at their next meeting.

Local Buy: Following meetings held last year with Local Buy, industry was asked to provide comments on the upcoming Engineering and Environmental Consultancy Services Contracts. Feedback was received from a number of member firms and a collated response was provided to Local Buy. The new version has now been released to industry with many of Consult Australia’s recommendations incorporated. We would be interested in receiving any further feedback from members on the new contract.

WA POLICY UPDATE On 30 April, a team from the National Infrastructure Construction Schedule (NICS) met with Consult Australia members and other industry stakeholders to provide an update on the NICS initiative.

Led by the Commonwealth Department of Infrastructure and Transport, NICS will be a publicly accessible website containing information on planned and tendered infrastructure projects with a capital value over $50 million that are funded in whole or in part by the government sector across Australia.

23

QLD RECENT EVENTS March breakfast: The Division’s recent event, QLD Economy: What does the future hold? with QIC Chief Executive, Dr Doug McTaggart provided guests with an overview of the threats and opportunities for Queensland and how foreign economies affect our region.

April breakfast: Queensland Port Capacity brought together almost 200 members and their guests to hear from Gladstone Port Corporation CEO, Leo Zussino and North Queensland Bulk Ports Corporation CEO, Brad Fish. Both presentations were engaging and provided great insight into the upcoming growth in both areas.

Copies of presentations from both the March and April breakfasts can be found on the Consult Australia website.

May breakfast: Consult Australia’s Economic Forecast report was launched in May by author and former BHP Chief Economist, Geoff Bills. Forecast identifies opportunities, threats and important trends that are critical to the development of a sustainable, robust and achievable strategy. Copies of the report are still available for purchase on the Consult Australia website.

Stacey Rawlings State Manager – QLD Phone: (07) 3020 3403

Address: Level 2, 143 Coronatin Drive Milton QLD 4064

Email: stacey@consultaustralia.com.au

QLD DIVISION PLATINUM SPONSOR:

QLD DIVISION GOLD SPONSOR:

WA RECENT EVENTS Woodside breakfast: On Friday, 20 March, Consult Australia organised a successful breakfast event with Woodside Chief Executive Officer, Peter Coleman. Our members enjoyed learning about Woodside’s values and vision for the future, and some of the key decisions being made over the next 18 months. Following the presentation, WA Business News Editor, Mark Pownall chaired an open discussion forum with all attendees.

Josephine Howlett State Manager – WA Phone: (08) 9324 3383

WA DIVISION PLATINUM SPONSOR:

Address: Old Swan Brewery 173 Mounts Bay Road Perth WA 6000

Email: josephine@consultaustralia.com.au

WA DIVISION GOLD SPONSOR: Woodside Breakfast event from left: Javier Baldor (BST Global), Peter Coleman (Woodside), Megan Motto (Consult Australia), and Basil Georgiou (Jackson McDonald)

24

Consulting Matters What’s happening at Consult Australia

SA POLICY UPDATE

Jan Irvine State Manager – SA & NT Phone: (08) 8216 1177 Adrress: Level 3, 70 Light Square Adelaide SA 5000 Email: jan@consultaustralia.com.au

Mining: South Australia member firm representatives met with Olympic Dam Taskforce Deputy Chief Executive, Resources and Energy and Chief Executive, Dr Paul Heithersay on 9 May for a discussion on the state of play for South Australia’s future regarding mining. SA Chamber of Mines and energy (SACOME) Chief Executive, Mr Jason Kuchel also joined us in the conversation which covered the future infrastructure needs subsequent to mining expansions, possible funding models for these infrastructure projects and the procurement process. The group found much to discuss and the SA Division anticipates further engagement with representatives of the Department of Manufacturing, Innovation, Trade, Resources and Energy (DMITRE).

AS4122: Meetings were held in June between Consult Australia and the Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure (DPTI) to discuss procurement processes and the use of AS 4122.

SA RECENT EVENTS April breakfast: The South Australian Government has commenced a process to update the Strategic Infrastructure Plan for South Australia 2004/5 – 2014/15 to map out infrastructure priorities for the next 10-15 years.

The April industry breakfast saw guest speaker, Department for Planning, Transport & Infrastructure (DPTI) Deputy Chief Executive, Mr John Hanlon provide an update on: • The changes - how the updated version may affect firms in South Australia; • Infrastructure funding; and

Annual diversity lunch: On 29 June the Division held the inaugural annual lunch, Workforce Diversity – the Key to Business Success with special guest speaker, Diversity Partners CEO and founder, Katie Spearritt. Katie explored innovative business practices, retention strategies and other changes easily incorporated into business practice for effective management of workplace diversity.

SA OTHER NEWS On 19 April, MLEI Consulting Engineers Managing Director and South Australian Committee Chair, Nicholas Murphy was appointed to the new Consult Australia Board of Directors to represent the interests of the industry’s smaller and regional firms. Mr Murphy has made a significant contribution to the Association’s work in his position on the South Australian Committee and his ongoing role as National Chair on the Association’s Small and Regional Firms Roundtable. He is looking forward to increasing his involvement even further.

We would like to thank URS for their continued support and generosity in providing an office for Consult Australia in South Australia.

SA DIVISION GOLD SPONSORS:

SA DIVISION SILVER SPONSORS:

• The probable pipeline of projects and the impact the updated version is envisaged to have regionally.

A Q&A session completed this event with Mr Hanlon fielding questions from the audience including ‘do consultants fit into the picture? ‘what needs to be done to position business well for inclusion in future projects and opportunities?’ We anticipate further discussions will take place between Consult Australia and DPTI following this meeting.

Best practice series: The SA Division held the first in a series of Best Business Practice Seminars on Thursday, 7 June. The series is geared to deliver powerful business strategies to small and medium firms and mid level management staff providing professional services to the built and natural environment, so that business improvement and innovation initiatives can be identified and implemented to take practices to the head of the pack. Seminar No 1, Developing Commercial Acumen looked at how to drive profitability, minimise risk, improve commercial performance and develop staff, fundamentals of PI insurance, recent trends in professional indemnity litigation and understanding the nature of cover provided

by PI insurance policies. A networking hour followed the presentations, allowing discussion between attendees, their business peers and the presenters.

SA DIVISION BRONZE SPONSORS:

What’s happening at Consult Australia Consulting Matters

NT RECENT EVENT May breakfast: The NT Division has continued to offer opportunities for members to meet with high profile industry stakeholders. At the last member breakfast in May, we were scheduled to meet with Minister for Lands and Planning, Transport and Construction, The Hon Gerald McCarthy MLA. Unfortunately the Minister was unable to attend at the last minute due to a visit to Tennant Creek, so Department of Construction and Infrastructure (DCI) Departmental Liaison Officer, Tegan Berh met with us on his behalf. The group discussed how Consult Australia member firms can work with the DCI and collaborate with other industry stakeholders to ensure a depth of resources to keep abreast of demand within the industry in the near future and beyond.

2012 Economic

Forecast for consultants in the built and natural environment

We hope to reschedule a meeting with the Minister in the near future.

The Division encourages members to attend these meetings and become involved in the discussions.

NT UPCOMING EVENT Networking event: The Division is holding an industry networking cocktail event on Wednesday, 25 July. Presentations on work health and safety – safety in design and the new AS4122 will be delivered to enable a better understanding of both of these issues and a way forward to better manage future project delivery in the Top End. A networking cocktail hour will follow the presentations and allow attendees from all sectors of the industry to discuss these topics. Contact NT State Manager, Jan Irvine for more information.

NT OTHER NEWS The Division welcomes the NT Department of Construction and Infrastructure as a Consult Australia Affiliate member. We look forward to developing a productive working relationship between the department, industry and our members.

NT DIVISION GOLD SPONSORS:

Get the latest Economic Forecast for the built and natural environment Consult Australia’s 2012 Economic Forecast (previously called Outlook) provides a detailed profile of the industry and an analysis of the market for consulting firms operating in the built and natural environment. The report is now available to purchase at a special members-only rate under the bookshop tab on the Consult Australia website.

Written by former BHP Chief Economist, Geoffrey Bills, Forecast is considered one of the most valuable economic predictors and is used by many of Australia’s largest firms.

To purchase the report visit the Bookshop section of the Consult Australia website or call (02) 9922 4711.

25

26

Consulting Matters What’s happening at Consult Australia

VIC POLICY UPDATE

Zeina Nehme State Manager – VIC & TAS Phone: (03) 8699 7700 Adrress: Level 6, 1 Southbank Boulevarde Soutbank VIC 3006 Email: zeina@consultaustralia.com.au

Tomorrow’s Cities Today launch attendees

The Victorian Division Committee released their report on the Victorian Centre of Excellence for Infrastructure Delivery at the Consult Australia event, Melbourne Beyond 5 Million. The panel event, which attracted a crowd of over 95, drew upon Consult Australia’s report, Tomorrow’s Cities Today. Growth Areas Authority, Peter Seamer; Urban Development Institute of Australia’s Tony De Domenico; and Arup’s Andrew Wisdom joined Consult Australia Director of Policy, Jonathan Cartledge to share their perspectives on Melbourne’s future. The Victorian Committee has held a successful meeting with VIC Roads and is looking forward to a more engaged relationship with ongoing meetings.

VIC RECENT EVENTS May breakfast: On Tuesday, 29 May, Consult Australia Economist, Geoff Bills joined Victorian members at a breakfast forum held to discuss the annual, Economic Forecast report. The report identifies opportunities, threats and important trends that are critical to the development of a sustainable, robust and achievable strategy.

Members had the opportunity to ask questions and hear Geoff’s overview of the construction industry and built environment as a whole and also details into what the future looks like for consulting firms specifically. Copies of the report are still available to purchase on the Consult Australia website.

Diverse Approaches: On 4 July, the Victorian Division Committee held an event to support the recent launch of Consult Australia’s policy report, Diverse Approaches.

The event focused on workforce diversity and also provided members with an update on skilled migration from DIAC Industry Outreach Officer, Sarah Gowing.

Sarah provided an update on the recent changes and trends in skilled migration and the challenges in different working cultures.

TAS POLICY UPDATE The Tasmania Division recently held a roundtable luncheon with Tasmanian Minerals Council CEO, Terry Long. Tasmanian member representatives gathered together to discuss what projects are in the pipeline for Tasmania and the future directions into mining.

TAS DIVISION GOLD SPONSORS:

VIC DIVISION PLATINUM SPONSOR:

VIC DIVISION GOLD SPONSORS:

TAS RECENT EVENTS Cocktail event: On Thursday, 14 June Consult Australia CEO, Megan Motto joined our Tasmanian members for an end of financial year cocktail event. The evening provided a relaxed atmosphere for members to network with their peers.

The Tasmanian Division encourages members to put forward suggestions around which ministers they would like to meet with and any local issues or initiatives that Consult Australia could be more actively involved in.

Please contact VIC & TAS State Manager, Zeina Nehme to lodge your suggestions.

What’s happening at Consult Australia Consulting Matters

QLD FUTURENET NEWS The Complete Professional: With over 200 attendees, QLD FutureNet’s first event of the year was a great success.

Held at the Marriott on Thursday, 8 March, The Complete Professional was designed to introduce this year’s theme, expand professionalism and ‘work outside the box’.

A group exercise on the night asked the audience to consider what non-technical skills will enable them to achieve their potential as a professional in 10 year’s time. From the full range of non-technical skills a young professional may have, the audience identified the three most powerful in achieving professional development to be: • Being adaptive to change; • Having strong communication skills; and • Demonstrating initiative.

The night was thoroughly enjoyed by all and we’re sure many left considering the non-technical skills they have as a professional and what skills to work on in the future.

Professionalism: It’s not Trivial Pursuit: This event brought together over 220 young professionals to compete for the FutureNet Annual Trivia prize. The night included five rounds of questions, each with a theme: leaders; teamwork; inventors; pioneers; and pushing the boundaries. Savills Project Management QLD General Manager, Gary Finnegan provided his insights into leadership, BiVACOR’s Michael Stevens inspired the audience with his presentation on the

FutureNet Trivia night attendees

development of a totally artificial heart and Arup Queensland Building Services Lead, Andy Bradley pushed the boundaries with his passion on changing the way all designers think.

FUTURENET BUSINESS LEADERS COURSE The FutureNet Business Leaders Course commenced on Wednesday, 2 May with an informal cocktail party. This was closely followed by the first official session which focussed on leadership. Participants had the opportunity to hear former Chairman of GHD, Des Whybird’s thoughts on leadership and some of the lessons he learnt on his path to leading a successful consulting firm.

Expressions of interest are now open for the 2013 course.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Latest FIDIC documents now on sale!

This includes Consultant Agreements, Construction Contract, Contract Guides, Cost Estimates, Electrical & Mechanical Works, Turnkey Contracts, Professional Liability and Claims and many more.

Visit our website to order online www.consultaustralia.com.au

Planning is underway for the 2012 TAS Division events schedule.

More details will be made available in due course.

27

28

Consulting Matters What’s happening at Consult Australia

NSW FUTURENET NEWS

Following the successful first event for 2012, FutureNet Sydney is busy planning events for the remainder of the year.

FutureNet Newcastle have held a number of successful events so far in 2012 and are currently in the process of organising their annual dinner which promises to be a great evening.

We would like to thank former Sydney FutureNet Chair, Gill Goldsmith for all her work and welcome new Chair, Annabel Killen (below) to the role.

‘substance vs. spin’ and what they see as the keys to coming out on top in the fight for work.

ACT FUTURENET

Site visit: FutureNet Newcastle held a site visit to the Hunter Expressway on Thursday, 10 May. The visit concentrated on the 13km eastern section, which includes the construction of the interchange at Kurri Kurri. The construction of the section began in 2010 and is due to be completed at the end of 2013. This year is the project’s biggest year of construction activity.

ACT FutureNet Chair, Joel Stevenson has been doing a wonderful job rallying the committee to develop some new event initiatives in the ACT. Joel has some fantastic new ideas which will be sure to excite the FutureNet community in our nation’s capital.

Both the Sydney and Newcastle FutureNet committees should be congratulated for the time and effort that have gone into holding the very successful events that have taken place so far this year.

FUTURENET BUSINESS LEADERS COURSE Annabel Killen

NSW FUTURENET RECENT EVENTS Beyond 2012 - Building a Better Sydney: This event was held at the magnificent Six Star Green Star rated building, 1 Bligh St, Sydney on Thursday, 3 May. The event began with a site tour of the building which proved extremely popular, booking out in only two days.

The main event allowed 130 attendees to enjoy the view while listening to speakers, Green Building Council of Australia Manager Sustainable Communities, Adam Beck; Infrastructure NSW Executive Director, Chris Swann; and Strategic Advisor for the Committee for Sydney, Dr Tim Williams.

The Big Pitch - Substance vs Spin: FutureNet Sydney held its second event for the year on Thursday, 6 June at acclaimed Lend Lease Headquarters (The Bond, 30 Hickson Road, Sydney).

The attendees welcomed David Rolls from Lend Lease, Kay Salvair Smith from Evans & Peck and Ed Riley from Max Sam. The panel discussed the challenges facing the built environment and provided insight into their experience on successful (and unsuccessful) bids, including a view into

The 2012 FutureNet Business Leaders course commenced on Thursday, 12 April with 36 registered participants.

The participants have so far enjoyed sessions on topics such as: leadership; networking; self awareness and negotiation.

The committee are now busy working on the remainder of the course, including the ‘task’ and the end of year Awards Dinner.

NEWS

There are committee vacancies for ACT FutureNet and a call for nominations has recently been sent to members. If you are interested in joining the committee and assisting in providing a valuable service to young professionals in the ACT please contact ACT State Manager, Amy Lowe.

ACT FUTURENET RECENT EVENTS Work the Room - Networking in Action: The ACT FutureNet committee held their first event for 2012 in April. Speakers for this event were talented networking and marketing gurus, Ashton Bishop and Jeff Cooper from Step Change Marketing who provided an interactive, high energy presentation while revealing the very latest techniques for marketing yourself and your company.

What’s happening at Consult Australia Consulting Matters

SA FUTURENET NEWS FutureNet SA has seen a few changes around the committee table with some old faces moving on to new interstate endeavours and some new faces fresh out of uni or drawn to the group through its wide ranging networking opportunities.

We welcome those new to the committee and together with our more experienced members, we are working on a diverse package of upcoming events.

SA FUTURENET RECENT EVENTS

Water Proofing the West - Stage One Project: Our June networking breakfast was held on Tuesday, 26 June at the Sebel Playford. Positive feedback from the 135 attendees demonstrated that it was an engaging, informative event with the new allocated seating arrangement allowing greater networking opportunities.

SA FUTURENET UPCOMING EVENTS In August, SA FutureNet will be holding an interactive networking event Client Relationships 101. The event will be held at the Italian Centre, Carrington Street, Adelaide on Tuesday, 7 August.

Adelaide Fringe Party: Held on Wednesday, 7 March this was an evening of networking with fellow young professionals over local brews and delicious canapés and wood fired pizza - all while being entertained by some of Australia’s hottest Fringe acts in the exclusive Fringe Club! Feedback from the 135+ attendees of this event was so positive the committee are looking to hold this as an annual event.

April breakfast: Sustainability Implementation - The path from Vision to Execution welcomed 130 young professionals to hear from URS New Zealand Senior Principal, Kerry Griffiths who recently worked on the development of a sustainable vision and roadmap for New Zealand in 2050. Also at the event was Cminus Sustainable Places Managing Director, Darren Bilsborough who discussed how the corporative imperative for the implementation of sustainability in business or on projects might be framed for organisational success and project benefit.

WA FUTURENET RECENT EVENTS

Nick Marvin (Perth Wildcats)

Lessons from the Court: In the second event for the year, FutureNet WA members were treated to an inspirational presentation by Perth Wildcats CEO, Nick Marvin (top). Nick discussed the development of the club since taking over as CEO/Managing Director in 2006, highlighting the importance of effort over talent and the role of mission, goals and values in transforming the club’s culture and ultimately the dramatically positive effect on the team’s results and game attendance figures.

Along with fascinating anecdotes from Nick’s professional history, Nick’s examples of community initiatives and the move away from individual player focus to a pure team focus provided an incredible insight into the executive management of the local basketball institution that is the Perth Wildcats.

Should I Stand Firm or Make a Concession?: On Friday, 8 June Professor Ray Fells (bottom) from the UWA Business school gave a presentation to FutureNet members, providing insights into the mechanics of successful strategic negotiations using real life examples and tips on how to apply techniques to the workplace and everyday life.

With global industrial relations experience and an academic background that includes qualifications from the London School of Economics and UWA, Ray’s presentation was one not to be missed!

Ray Fells (UWA Business School)

29

30

Consulting Matters What’s happening at Consult Australia

VIC FUTURENET RECENT EVENTS Trivia night: In line with the committee’s 2012 strategy to engage with a more diverse audience and provide a wide range of events and networking opportunities, the VIC FutureNet committee held its first ever trivia night. With over 80 attendees and fantastic trivia entertainment, competition was fierce from early on in the evening!

Regional Rail Link Project: Many of our member firms have been involved in the Regional Rail Link Project in the role of consultants for the government or for private sector bidders.

The FutureNet committee made use of this connection and hosted an event based around the Regional Rail Link project on June 20 with Regional Rail Link Authority CEO, Corey Hannett as guest speaker. Corey provided an overview of the status of the project, the challenges and successes of the project to date and the next steps for the remainder of the project.

VIC FutureNet Trivia event

VIC FUTURENET BUSINESS LEADERS COURSE The FutureNet Business Leaders course has kicked off for 2012. We have locked in 12 participants and welcomed high calibre of speakers at our first few sessions. The feedback from participants and speakers to date has been very positive and we look forward to seeing the course continue to grow, develop and create more great leaders for the built and natural environment.

VIC FutureNet Grand Prix

What’s happening at Consult Australia Consulting Matters

31

The business of sustainability Over the last decade, the business world has seen a shift to sustainability no longer being a business strategy, but becoming a business imperative.

A consequence of this shift is the development of whole new industries specialising in the commercialisation of sustainable business practices; the emergence of new markets for ‘sustainability’; and an increasingly complex philosophy and language supporting policy, reporting and evaluation.

This environment, and the range of business activities now promoted, is increasingly difficult to navigate. Whether your business is large, medium or small; whether your firm is well-advanced in pursuing a more sustainable model; or if you have never considered operating more sustainably at all, there are significant challenges in identifying and implementing value for money activities.

Those businesses that are considered, or consider themselves sustainable, achieve this through a range of activity areas and initiatives including: sustainable client services; a diverse workforce; and corporate social responsibility initiatives. Many such firms view forecast environmental and demographic changes as key drivers of innovation and catalysts for productivity improvements.

For professional services firms in particular, there is something quite unique to be harnessed and that is the power of people.

Developing a truly sustainable professional services firm means developing a workforce that takes sustainable behaviour and applies it to all that they do – for clients, for colleagues, in their own behaviours and even at home.

In looking at the power of the collective it is critical to recognise governments as belonging to the professional services

Arup Brisbane office Photo courtesy of Arup

sector as they are huge businesses within themselves, providing and procuring both goods and services. In advocating for a more sustainable professional services sector, there are significant opportunities in achieving gains in the way government manages its own sustainability and a great opportunity to lead by example.

1. Technological improvements to offices and infrastructure;

Whilst the benefits of developing a more sustainable business could not be more important, the path towards achieving it is not always clear. It is certainly not the same for all firms who each have different identities and cultures and are each at different stages of their sustainability journey.

5. Best practice standards, tools and guidelines.

Through its Sustainability Roundtable, Consult Australia is developing a thought leadership report that will look at the true business of sustainability.

In this work, building blocks that are key to developing a more sustainable business have been identified and, when the right conversations develop around them, each can help a professional services firm essentially improve its sustainability. These building blocks include:

2. Internal awareness raising; 3. Sustainable accounting, governance and reporting; 4. Collaboration and engagement; and

The work will not provide information or advice that is guaranteed to be applicable to your business, nor does it prescribe a formula to achieving sustainability. In recognition of the diversity of professional firms operating in the Australian business environment, what the report will aim to do is stimulate an unpredictable dialogue around sustainability that will aid firms to identify and develop their own journey.

Stay tuned over the coming months for the release of Consult Australia’s The Business of Sustainability report.

Gillian O’Young Consult Australia

Major Projects. Major Opportunities.

SMEC is a professional services firm with Australian origins and a global footprint that provides high quality consultancy services on major infrastructure projects. With over 5,000 employees and a network of over 70 offices around the world, SMEC is continuing to grow its business across all sectors.

SMEC provides services for the lifecycle of a project to a broad range of sectors, including: Transport; Water; Natural Resources and Environment; Energy and Renewables; Geotechnical, Mining and Tunnelling Services; Urban Development; Social Development; and Government and Advisory Services.

www.smec.com

32

Consulting Matters Features

Cities and communities: Sustainable planning and development

Australia’s cities are where most of us live, work and play. Home to more than three quarters of our population, our cities also account for 80 per cent of employment and GDP. They are truly the nation’s powerhouses of productivity.

Australia’s cities and how it will play a role in making them more productive, liveable and sustainable.

Our cities are facing unprecedented pressures on their transport, utility and social infrastructure, as well as population and demographic shifts and climate change. Put simply, our cities are at the frontline of Australia’s future prosperity and international competitiveness, yet face constantly increasing demands.

Until now, urban planning and development has tended to focus on ‘hard infrastructure’ - roads and railways, ports, power and telecommunications, water and waste. Certainly, sustainability considerations have had significant implications for the design and operation of hard infrastructure through improved public transport networks, management of storm water and sewerage systems, and the conservation of energy and water.

The way our cities are planned has an enormous impact on our economy, our wellbeing and our environment. As a result, the focus on them has intensified in recent years. The release of the National Urban Policy in 2011 was an important milestone - for the first time a federal government sought to outline its overarching goals for

However, a city is much more than its hard infrastructure. Cities are social as well as physical environments. ‘Soft infrastructure’ such as health, education and employment services, recreation and cultural facilities – essentially, the infrastructure that facilitates social relationships – are just as vital.

Features Consulting Matters

Urban planning and design must integrate these elements and incorporate both the soft and hard infrastructure to create communities that are truly sustainable.

In February, the Australian Green Infrastructure Council (AGIC) launched the nation’s first infrastructure sustainability rating scheme.

33

such as stakeholder participation, and management issues such as procurement and purchasing.

The rating tool covers the infrastructure lifecycle, from project design to operating asset. Three ratings are available: esign ratings awarded at the 1 Dend of the design process after

assessment of the sustainability of design and planning for construction.

Romilly Madew (Green Building Council of Australia)

s Built ratings which assess 2 Adesign, measure sustainability

performance during construction and constructed infrastructure assets. These ratings may be awarded after a project’s practical completion.

peration ratings which assess 3 Omeasured sustainability performance of operating infrastructure assets.

Both new projects and existing infrastructure assets are eligible to apply for an Operation rating.

The IS scheme is being embraced by industry, and AGIC is working with both governments and private developers across Australia to ensure it becomes a common, national framework included within infrastructure tenders.

At the same time, the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) has been developing the Green Star – Communities rating tool to assess and certify the sustainability of communitylevel development projects. Released in June, Green Star – Communities benchmarks and rewards developments by assessing them against the categories of: liveability; economic prosperity; environment; community design; governance; and innovation.

The Infrastructure Sustainability (IS) rating scheme measures the sustainability of infrastructure projects and assets across the ‘triple bottom line’ of economic, environmental and social criteria.

Green Star – Communities assesses environmental issues – such as minimising energy and water consumption, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, managing waste and reducing dependence on motor vehicles.

However, the rating tool also reaches beyond environmental efficiencies to broader holistic sustainability issues, such as economic prosperity, liveability and health.

The scheme can be applied to a broad range of infrastructure types, such as roads and bridges, ports, harbours and airports, energy infrastructure, water storage and supply, communication transmission and distribution. Fifteen categories across six broad themes cover environmental impacts such as energy and carbon, social issues

With support from industry and all three tiers of government, Green Star – Communities will also improve the longterm sustainability of soft infrastructure.

The ‘Liveability’ category, for instance, rewards projects that encourage healthy, active communities through parks, playgrounds, cycle ways and footpaths, as well as through local food production.

David Singleton (Australian Green Infrastructure Council and Arup)

The ‘Economic Prosperity’ category encourages projects to consider proximity to employment and education opportunities, and access to high speed internet. Strategies for improving housing affordability, developing local skills and enhancing investment in community infrastructure are also encouraged.

Natural synergies exist between the IS and Green Star – Communities rating tools: both comprise a practical framework, formal assessment process, rating certification and education program. Both have been designed to drive incremental improvement and innovation, reduce risk and validate the industry’s achievements through thirdparty certification. Both transform words and policies into results with ‘on the ground’ action.

It’s clear that AGIC and GBCA share a common mission to advance sustainability in the design, construction and operation of Australia’s built environment. We’re committed to working collaboratively to further our joint mission to ensure the best outcomes for industry, government and all Australians. Application of the two rating schemes to the built environment in cities will enhance their liveability, sustainability and prosperity and will improve the lives of their citizens.

Romilly Madew Chief Executive Green Building Council of Australia David Singleton Chairman Australian Green Infrastructure Council

34

Consulting Matters Features

QA &

with

JOHN BILMON JOINED PTW ARCHITECTS IN 1982, ATTRACTED

BY THE SCALE AND POTENTIAL OF ITS PROJECTS, THE FIRM’S FOCUS ON THE ASIAN REGION AND ITS NETWORK OF ASSOCIATED OFFICES. SINCE BECOMING A PARTNER IN 1988, JOHN HAS OVERSEEN THE DIVERSIFICATION OF PTW’S PRACTICE AND WORKPLACE AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF ITS LEADING REPUTATION IN FORMING CREATIVE MULTI-DISCIPLINARY TEAMS TO UNDERTAKE A VARIETY OF LARGE SCALE AND COMPLEX PROJECTS IN AUSTRALIA AND OVERSEAS. This year celebrates your 30th year with PTW Architects – a position which follows an already long career in architecture. What is it that has kept you in the one industry for so long?

As someone who has had the fortune to travel very frequently with my work, the opportunity for genuine cultural emersion is certainly a highlight. I often hear of people who have travelled to a country, seen the sights and eaten in beautiful restaurants and fallen in love with the place. I’m lucky enough to be there for work - see the same sights, eat the same beautiful food, and do so in the company of locals, which makes the experience, for me, much richer.

As an industry, architecture is so broad and so fascinating. It deals with aspirations and has the potential to address some of the world’s most serious issues such as quality of water, sustainability and energy use.

As an architect I am constantly challenged and excited by all that I see and do. I am always refreshed.

Every day I find myself in new places, being given new ideas and surrounded by beautiful environments. It’s very nourishing.

Whilst I’ll talk to this later on, I do love the opportunity to work together with other passionate professionals to produce the modern environments around us. I love teaming with others, learning from them and growing with them.

John Bilmon PTW Architects Managing Director Watching the way the industry has developed has also kept me fascinated and engaged. The new technologies, new materials and the enhanced understanding of the impact of our environments are wonderful developments. Increasingly in the press, I see a newfound appreciation of good design. Previously discussions around design aspirations were held behind closed doors within the profession. Now the industry is so evolved that these discussions are broadly understood and participated in. I think it’s because more and more people have in themselves, an urgency to produce better outcomes for the environments around us.

Across your career, what is the most standout project you’ve worked on and why?

Well in the whole history of my career, there have really been two projects that stand out. The first of which was Ladies Chapel in Cooranbong in New South Wales. This was a project I worked on earlier in my career in the mid-late seventies. It was so good! I was so impressed by this building which I had put so much energy into. It was the first larger project I’d worked on and it was truly an impressive space. It was made out of traditional materials; it was nicely planned and didn’t disturb the natural environment around it. I wonder what it’s like now...

The true crowning glory, and nothing will ever be like this again, was of course The Water Cube in Beijing. For this project I was fortunate to lead a really creative, diverse group of engineers and architects from different cultures including Asia, Australia, Europe, and from different disciplines as well. They all worked together in such a wonderful team environment where all hierarchy was forgotten almost immediately upon starting the project. Individuals were able and happy to contribute in their own way and these perspectives all came together so well and contributed to the end design.

It was a stunningly beautiful design.

Very simple. Pure architecture. There was no division between the facade

and the structure - what was inside was out and what was out was in. The purpose and the design were one. It really was incredible. Architecture and engineering were truly fused together in this project, which ticked all the boxes of sustainability, cultural relevance and the latest ideas, materials and technologies.

What was very exciting was that we followed the whole process from initial design ideas to celebrating the wonderful achievements of the Beijing Olympics itself.

A sense of great pride comes out of being associated individually, and through one’s firm, with a building now identified as an icon of China. A great pride.

You have been celebrated as bringing cultural and design sensibility to projects in different countries. What does this mean?

Why is this so important to you?

For me, there is something deeply personal in this in that my father came to Australia from Poland following the war. Due to my family’s background, foreign influence is a part of my life. I feel 100 per cent Australian in my heart and soul but my roots involve other parts of the world. To be culturally aware of differences, and to appreciate them, is part of who I am.

To bring cultural and design sensibility to a project, to me, means putting aside ‘arrogant’ concepts of superior exogenous systems or knowledge from outside the country. The impact of architecture has, at its very heart, a founding principle to reflect the culture that surrounds it. Architecture is rooted to a place and it will forever belong to this site. PTW Architects’ work in Asia has proven time and time again, very successful as it recognises local culture and celebrates it. The aspirations of the people are as important to me as the success of the development. All buildings have a pragmatic use and purpose... they’re not all just icons. This purpose is located in that particular culture and therefore, must satisfy that culture. >

Consulting Matters

35

Create with Vision.

Intelligent Model-Based Design with Autodesk BIM for Infrastructure.

AutodeskÂŽ Building Information Modelling for Infrastructure provides civil engineers, designers, planners, surveyors, project managers, and owners with a comprehensive set of integrated tools to plan, design, build, and manage road and highway projects more predictably.

See Autodesk Infrastructure Design Suite software in action and hear first-hand from customers how they are able to create with more vision using Autodesk BIM solutions at www.autodesk.com.au/ca

Autodesk is a registered trademark of Autodesk, Inc., and/or its subsidiaries and/or affiliates in the USA and/or other countries. All other brand names, product names, or trademarks belong to their respective holders. Autodesk reserves the right to alter product and services offerings, and specifications and pricing at any time without notice, and is not responsible for typographical or graphical errors that may appear in this document. Š 2012 Autodesk, Inc. All rights reserved.

36

Consulting Matters

I have been blessed with a fantastic career and have been lucky enough to achieve lots of personal goals in my life. But in particular...I am really pleased to know that this has been achieved in the company of others.

This is deeply imbued within me. Working together cooperatively in collaborative and multidisciplinary teams, for me, is the future of our industry.

Water Cube Interior Photo by Bernardo De Niz courtesy of Arup

Features Consulting Matters

37

Water Cube Interior Photo by Ben McMillan courtesy of Arup

Take the example of The Water Cube, as I mentioned we were involved from the design through to the construction phase. As foreign designers, many individuals raised the idea of prefabricating parts of the Cube to counter the potential of quality control issues but in the end this wasn’t favoured, which turned out to be a wonderful thing. It was a satisfying thing as well - that one of the worlds’ most significant and advanced buildings used some of the most traditional methodologies out there. This architectural and engineering feat really was a triumph of imagination over money.

What are the most significant changes and transformations you’ve witnessed in the architecture industry?

Having been in this industry since I was young, I’ve witnessed so many transformations.

From when I was young I remember the smell of blueprints drying on the floor of the print room. The way we print and produce information now, with BIM and 3D modelling, is just another world.

Time and technology have completely transformed the way we express our ideas. We now have tools available to use that help us to interrogate our designs and test them against criteria such as weather and urban design. For this reason, I can say that architects and engineers and those working in the built environment are the true fortune-tellers of life! We can produce visual diagrams to show people what the future will look like.

The change in material over time has brought about new mentality from the times of building pyramids to those lightweight structures we see now. We feel free enough to accept those materials and incorporate those into the design.

There have also been significant changes

in the way the built environment and built environment professionals are perceived. Pre-Olympics, the appropriateness of foreign architecture and engineers working in China was not the norm. My colleagues were concerned about the strong move to ‘oust’ the foreigners. But really their input was an opportunity. It was an opportunity for the local communities to have a say in what their future would entail and we had the opportunity to have our own work criticised, which always results in a better urban environment.

Changes in culture, brought about by changes in communication, have bettered our nation as well. More attention is paid to the aspirations of the architecture. For example, in major daily newspapers we now see vibrant debates about the appropriateness of new buildings and it is not a simplistic debate but an informed one that is helping to shape our built environment.

Architecture can now take its influences from forces that simply weren’t there in the past.

Yet another aspect that has changed is the speed and pace of the industry.

Perhaps this is unique to Asia, but the speed of design and construction blows you away. The most unbelievable achievements are made in such a short time. We really have as much to learn from Asia as we have to give.

What do you think are some of the key challenges engineers and architects face when working together on projects?

The greatest challenge for engineers and architects working together is simply the challenge of being limited in our vision – the risk of pragmatism at the expense of creativity. Sometimes we see a reluctance to embrace new ideas, materials and technologies with a fear of change at the heart of it. >

38

Consulting Matters Features

Features Consulting Matters

39

Ironically, this fear might be in favour of maintaining an environment and protecting it from redevelopments or new developments, even if the thrust towards the change was because the old environment failed its purpose.

Both architects and engineers must come together to overcome these fears and have an aspiring vision.

We can do a lot as creative professionals working together. If we subscribe to the fear of the new or encumber ourselves with ideas of working in a habitual way... well, that’s wrong.

What do you think needs to be done to help overcome these challenges?

Engineers and architects need to work more collaboratively in teams. We need to encourage and support one another.

Today, there are more opportunities and ideas available to us as well as more sensibilities that we need to address, such as the idea of Aboriginal pre-occupation of areas and the need to recognise that history. We need to be more creative in the way we manage our processes and problem solving. This comes out of collaboration.

Engineers and architects also need to embrace technology in a wholehearted comprehensive way and not just make use of technologies that are faster. If we look deeper into them they will be able to help us, as an industry, solve our problems.

What do you think is most important for engineers to understand when it comes to using design to increase profile?

There is a great need for both engineers and architects to recognise that there’s more than one good design.

The concept of ‘good design’ does not have a unique outcome (or a unique path to it) – there are so many ways of getting to that point.

Water Cube Interior Photo by Ben McMillan courtesy of Arup

Other than this, I think one of the most important things to know is that good design always wins in the end, which is a bit of a Darwinian idea. Good design always fulfils broader goals than just pragmatic ones. It considers the impact on the broader community or ecosystem and always uplifts attitudes. For me, this uplifting came as a child. I can recall walking into St Mary’s Cathedral in Sydney and I was awestruck by the beauty of the space.

It was aspiring and inspirational at the same time.

As a profession, we should shape our ideas and intentions to achieve exactly those responses. >

40

Consulting Matters Features

Watercube, National Swimming Centre, Beijing Olympics, PRC

Watercube, National Swimming Centre, Beijing Olympics, PRC

FPT Headquarters, Hanoi \Vietnam

Beijing Olympic Green Village, Beijing, PRC

Kunming Lakeside Dream, PRC

Unilever, HCMC, Vietnam

Photos courtesy of PTW Architects PTW Architects

I think that professionals in our industry must abandon the idea of ‘a great man’. Working together in a collaborative fashion is the way we will solve far more complex problems long into the future.

We must have broader aspirations at the centre of our endeavours and somewhat rid ourselves of the concept of a leader. This is old thinking. Instead, we must empower our teams with the knowledge and the tools they need to do the work.

I actually started out as an engineering student at UNSW. In one of the very first classes I attended we were handed a book called

Engineersmanship by Lee Harrisberger. It had a quote in it which went along the lines of: “...One day they’ll invent a car which will do 1,000 miles to a gallon...one day they’ll have a cure for cancer...one day they’ll make it to the moon...

They are the engineers.”

I hope that engineers are still thinking this way. I hope all professionals in our industry are and that no one is left buried under habit, process and preconceptions.

Features Consulting Matters

41

The great challenge – and opportunity – for Australia OPINION PIECE We know that Australia has a world class resources sector – and the income to prove it. We also know that there are anxieties about a two speed economy. What we don’t seem to realise is that Australia is about to acquire world class infrastructure which will help diversify its economy.

Australia is about to join other leading economies in having the right digital infrastructure on which to build both public and private sector business transformation - the National Broadband Network (NBN) will undeniably change the future of our industry.

Born and still mired in a political row about its cost and contracting model, the virtues of the NBN and the digital transformation it can encourage are often forgotten. I believe the average Australian (particularly those who live in regional Australia) see its virtues. These people understand its advantages and they want them now, not in ten years time. But they are up against some, who if they had their way, would never see the NBN stand up in Australia.

Essentially, the NBN delivers world class connectivity on the most resilient of fibre-based networks. Don’t get me wrong, I’m no fibre fanatic unable to see the merits of wireless or satellite, all are required in the mix. With its proliferation of Apps, mobile technology is complementary with fibre - it’s just not substitutive. And I do think that fibre to the node achieves most of what fibre to the home will deliver, at a far lower cost.

But whatever your opinion, world class connectivity is coming to Australia in the form of the NBN. The issue is to stop grieving this and get on with benefiting from its speed and capacity. To prepare, Australia must become broadband-ready.

The public sector in its broadest sense can play a key role in this process and I’d go further to suggest that without an engaged and informed public sector, and particularly local government, the potential of broadband for social and economic transformation will not be maximised.

The health sector is a good example of the potential of the NBN. It will help bring tele-health big time to Australia and enable older or vulnerable people to receive more cost-effective and beneficial care at home but health providers must plan for this and change their business models in order to realise the benefits.

In all the digital strategy work I have done, I see a crucial role for local councils – hopefully in collaboration with other tiers of government – to be a local welcoming committee for the NBN. Their role would be to provide local impetus for the digitisation of public services and of engagement with the community as well as to help local small and medium sized enterprises understand and participate in the benefits of the digital economy.

When researching for Connected Communities (a review of the impact of broadband on communities in the UK and its implications for Australia) I learned that for every job lost by SMEs in the digital revolution, something like 2.6 jobs were created by SMEs. Most of the benefit of online activity goes to traditional companies, not ICT companies. I also learned that companies who are really adept at online trading are 30 per cent more productive than those that are not.

The benefits for individuals are also clear. Regular users of the internet have better access to information around health, jobs and learning.

They have a direct economic benefit, a premium for being online.

They actually are more embedded in community life, not less, by being online. The benefits are such that as public services move increasingly online, the question arises as to what to do to overcome any digital divides that exist. Certain groups, like the elderly, the disabled, economically marginal groups and indigenous populations must be able to access the skills and connectivity which bring such benefits. No Australian should be left behind.

Finally, in going to regional Australia before urban Australia, the NBN raises the possibility of a short term competitive advantage but also a longer term benefit. Just as we have seen in areas like Cornwall in the UK, now gaining population and increasing wealth on the back of better digital connectivity, there is a potential bonus for regional economies from digitisation. People may not leave such areas to gain access to the jobs and services they seek from urban agglomerations.

Indeed, they may return to beautiful areas with great environments for their families, if they can be assured of the connectivity which brings global markets to their door and creates economically empowering links and clusters currently only available in cities.

That’s the potential of this moment. But to be made real it requires actions above and beyond pipes being laid in the ground. Demand for the NBN can only be created and imaginative applications unleashed when those of us who run businesses in the public and private sector seize the opportunity to broaden the impact of high speed broadband.

This is the great challenge, and opportunity, for Australia.

Dr Tim Williams Public Realm & Policy Leader Arup

42

Consulting Matters

Illuminating the creative economy

VIVID IS AN ANNUAL FESTIVAL IN WHICH INDUSTRY LEADERS FROM THE WORLD’S CREATIVE ECONOMY LIGHT UP THE SITES OF SYDNEY; TRANSFORMING IT INTO A CITY OF COLOUR. THIS YEAR, NORTHROP ENGINEERS PARTICIPATED IN VIVID IDEAS - A SUMMIT, FORUM AND A PLAYGROUND FOR CREATIVE INDUSTRIES TO CHALLENGE IDEAS AND INSPIRE EACH OTHER. Consultants working in the built and natural environment have long been recognised as significant contributors to the economy. They develop the road networks that tie our cities to one another, build the airports that connect us to the rest of the world, and bring to life the man-made wonders that draw in the world’s gaze.

Over recent years however, growth and a certain maturity in the industry has brought with it a change in attitude. The potential of the creative economy is now recognised, and investments in it are coming from the most unexpected places.

Where once the practical requirements of a space dictated creative parameters, industry experts are noticing the reverse is becoming just as commonplace.

Whilst creativity has always been an element of the built environment, the concept of illumination in architecture has not always been considered as an integral part of design.

Once perceived as an additional expense and optional extra utilised only by boutique designers, specialist lighting is becoming more widely accepted as a cornerstone of the design process.

No longer used simply to compliment structures, lighting is increasingly becoming a feature; enhancing the beauty of a project and evoking a sense of renewal or transformation over time; breathing new life into the world around us.

When creating aesthetics and determining the role lighting can play in a project, human responses are critical to consider, as it is such responses that ultimately dictate the success of a project.

In the hands of a skilled lighting designer, the combination of technology and innovation has the potential to completely change a space, enhance great architecture and ultimately, make the built environment a contributor to our creative economy.

Joining those working in film, music and visual arts, some of Australia’s most traditional engineering firms are seeing the potential of their own contributions to our creative economy. They are adapting their knowledge, skills and expertise in order to become more involved in the creative parameters of their work.

This shift represents impressive innovation where once-technical and traditional firms are transforming paradigms and moving into realms always seen as particularly niche.

In discussing the relationship between Sydney’s Vivid lighting festival, the creative economy, and our industries, Director of Vivid Ideas, Jess Scully, notes that the Vivid event plays host to the players of our future.

“The industries that will dominate our future are being invented today,” said Ms Scully.

“The creative economy will be driven by ideas and imagination, turning inspiration into innovation.”

This opportunity is new; and is one not to be missed.

Technology is advancing at such a fast pace that it will be an exciting challenge to ensure that lighting specialists can keep up. Lighting designers have to be flexible, imaginative and collaborative.

Manufacturers and lighting designers need to work closely together to create innovative, new installations so that the industry as a whole, as well as clients and consumers, can benefit from these advances.

The unique position of this industry is that designers must attempt to combine a clear understanding of construction needs with the aesthetic requirements of an increasingly creativity-driven industry.

What brings Vivid and ‘lighting engineers’ together in such a complimentary union is their understanding of the physiology and psychology of light perception by humans, which has resulted in an outcome of spectacular proportions.

In balancing the science of light production with an understanding of light as a medium in human environments, designers are leading the way for fundamental shifts in the building industry. >

Consulting Matters

43

Lighting the Sails at Opera Bar Photo by David Clare courtesy of Vivid

44

Consulting Matters

Where once the practical requirements of a space dictated creative parameters, industry experts are noticing the reverse is becoming just as commonplace.

Northrop Specialist Lighting Designer, Vessi Ivanova and her team designed the Chase the Colour installation which featured at SPARC: a presentation of interactive displays, high quality images, accompanying text and other artefacts in a gallery-style format for industry stakeholders as well as the public.

The Chase the Colour installation fuses bright, rapid colour changes with human interaction to spark excitement and inspire creativity.

Ivanova says the work is an important reflection of what is happening in the building industry more broadly.

“SPARC is a timely example of the industry’s operation in nontraditional spaces,” she says.

“Our installation changes depending on the people who visit it. In the same way, our industry is beginning to be driven by the innovation exhibited at festivals such as SPARC and Vivid.”

Designers seem now to be illuminating the creative economy.

Jamie Shelton Vessi Ivanova Kate Lainson Northrop Engineers

Consulting Matters

45

Rope Lighting Tree Photo by David Clare courtesy of Vivid

46

Consulting Matters Features

Stars align for a green future It was not so long ago that green buildings were considered a fanciful novelty - nice to have but unachievable on a practical level. Fast forward to May 2012 and there is now more than 6.6 million square metres of Green Starcertified space around Australia, with a further 8 million square metres of Green Star-registered space.

This achievement has been made possible through the establishment of the Green Building Council of Australia in 2002 and its subsequent Green Star rating system - a yardstick which has transformed Australia’s property

and construction market. Indeed, the industry has gone from no stars to six stars in 10 short years.

Green Star has become an intrinsic part of the building and construction industry vernacular and has grown beyond office and commercial buildings to a comprehensive rating system for a range of projects including apartment buildings, educational facilities, healthcare facilities, retail centres and industrial facilities. The Green Star - Communities rating tool launched mid-2012 assesses and certifies the sustainability of community,

neighbourhood and precinct-wide developments, which reflects the inevitable move beyond a focus on individual buildings. In addition, a Green Star – Performance rating tool to assess the operational performance of existing buildings is in development.

The benefits of sustainable design go well beyond a reduced carbon footprint. Research has shown that there are significant advantages for a business operating in a Green Star-rated facility. There are, of course, the lower operating costs, reduced greenhouse gas emissions and demonstrated

Features Consulting Matters

47

corporate social responsibility. Beyond these benefits and the bottom line savings, are the productivity efficiencies and improved comfort of occupants. Natural light, fresh air and access to external views have been found to directly improve productivity.

Casting our gaze to the future, green buildings and developments will be the new norm. For building owners, or those charged with responsibility for managing building assets to achieve a net return, high performance buildings make good business sense. This approach extends to the greening of existing buildings – retrogreening – a practice which will continue to be embraced as our current building stock ages.

Beyond this, what is the next frontier for the built environment?

According to US-based green building authority, Jerry Yudelson it will be ZONE, or Zero Net Energy buildings – buildings which ‘have no net annual energy use and provide their annual net energy use with on-site renewable energy.’

It’s in Western Australia where can we find an example of this philosophy at work.

Whilst not theoretically a ZONE building, the recently completed Australian Institute of Management Katitjin Centre in Perth is a 6 Star Green Star - Education Design v1 facility that has been designed and built to achieve net negative carbon emissions in operation.

Katitjin foyer & collaborative learning spaces Photo courtesy of NDY

Tony Arnel (Green Building Council of Australia and NDY)

It was just seven years ago that the first Green Star-rated building was certified and it was only in recent years that rating tools for schools, hospitals, shopping centres and industrial sheds were developed. Today, 6 Star Green Star certifications across a range of building types are becoming commonplace.

In a few short years, we’ve moved from recognising that buildings are depleting our natural resources, to looking at how we build carbon neutral buildings and beyond.

What we’re seeing today is exponential growth in the number of Green Star project teams looking for innovative ways to solve problems. They are truly pushing the boundaries and challenging the GBCA to keep up with best practice and beyond.

Norman Disney & Young ESD consultant, Leigh Gibb says “onsite energy generation via photovoltaic energy panels, and a range of other innovative passive design and energy efficient strategies, has resulted in a 110 per cent net predicted greenhouse gas savings on emissions.”

From being part of the problem, the built environment is becoming a big part of the solution.

The Katitjin Centre is an example of an innovative outcome resulting from a collaborative conversation between the client and design team.

As I look to the future I see the next decade as an exciting period of ongoing reform and an opportunity for our industry to move beyond compliance to fostering a culture of innovation.

The authors of the BT Technology Timeline say that the next 50 years of change will happen in the next five to 10 years. Looking back over the past decade, could you have predicted what you’re doing today? Can you predict where you’ll be in the next decade?

Tony Arnel Chairman Green Building Council of Australia

For me, personally and professionally, 2012 is an opportunity to embrace new possibilities, having taken up a new position with NDY as Global Director of Sustainability.

Global Director Sustainability Norman Disney & Young

Casting our gaze to the future, green buildings and developments will be the new norm. For building owners, or those charged with responsibility for managing building assets to achieve a net return, high performance buildings make good business sense. This approach extends to the greening of existing buildings – retrogreening – a practice which will continue to be embraced as our current building stock ages.

48

Consulting Matters Features

Building the livable cities of the future

Cities are shaped by community needs and circumstances over time. While long-term city plans may be adopted, these are invariably modified, ignored or deliberately abandoned as economic, social and political circumstances change.

Land use strategies and plans are based on forecasts for population growth and demographic change, respond to the physical landscape, and give careful consideration to spatial layout and urban form. However the infrastructure planning required for a city’s evolution is often undertaken independent of land use planning and rarely integrates transport, water, sewerage, energy and telecommunication infrastructure.

Infrastructure providers are often playing catch up in an effort to service the developments already in place. At the same time, we are aiming to provide infrastructure to meet the demands of population growth.

While we scramble to deliver, technology shifts service expectations and performance standards rise in the face of demands for lower prices and better social outcomes.

Today’s cities are now scrutinised from a whole of lifecycle, livability and sustainability viewpoint. The Australian Government’s National Urban Policy, Our Cities, Our Future is aimed at achieving productive, livable and sustainable cities. It requires integration and efficiency improvement of land use and infrastructure.

Planning for this requires a long-term perspective and an adaptive approach, the ability to integrate across landscape, land use and infrastructure considerations, and work on different scales. Limitations on capital availability, rapid evolution of technology and uncertainties - such as the impact of climate change - challenge the traditional, long-term, large scale, built asset approach to

providing services. Competing objectives can directly impact the viability and affordability of different types and different scale infrastructure solutions.

These consequences are seen in projects which require collective consideration of energy, carbon, water, land use, environment, economic and social aspects. Resilience and adaptability as well as opportunities for smarter operational control are increasingly required to more efficiently meet service standards or defer further capital investment.

For example, in the water sector, the future of large, centralised systems is increasingly uncertain. Ageing infrastructure and changing standards, coupled with the need to adapt and build resilience to climate variability, are challenging traditional methods and standards.

The ability to identify changing community expectations, understand customer and community values and accordingly adjust our service is also a major challenge for water utilities.

Decentralised water and wastewater systems present a range of opportunities for the consulting, technical and engineering service industry. An emerging theme is major urban renewal and greenfield precinct projects that operate independent centralised systems. Understanding customer expectations, behaviours and values is an area where utilities will seek assistance.

Indirect and direct potable reuse is now technically feasible, and being actively pursued both in Australia and overseas. This has the potential to ‘close the loop’ at both a

local and city scale, and will fundamentally shift the technical and financial viability of the servicing options for utilities and the urban development industry once community acceptance is achieved.

There is an increasing demand for diverse multi-scaled services which provide benefits to cities that go beyond water supply and sanitation. Multiple sources and grades of water delivered through centralised and decentralised systems can increase the resilience and reliability of a city’s water supply. They also contribute to the liveability of the city by supporting waterway health, urban amenities and ameliorating urban heat

Features Consulting Matters

49

Resilience and adaptability as well as opportunities for smarter operational control are increasingly required to more efficiently meet service standards or defer further capital investment.

impacts. Coupled with a range of water efficiency strategies, consumer water use behaviour can impact at a regional level by deferring major supply augmentation and at a household level by significantly reducing hot water demand and therefore household energy costs.

The resolution of potentially conflicting requirements is a challenge for traditional engineering consultants and utilities alike.

The development and delivery of a city’s infrastructure benefits from a broader perspective that takes into account approaches and issues across infrastructure types. This can identify opportunities such as

better coordinated planning and delivery, or technologies and analytical methods that lead to more efficient operations or investment.

The consulting sector is potentially well placed to provide these ‘smarts’ because it is involved in projects across infrastructure and industry types, and can provide access to highly skilled specialists and diverse disciplines that the utilities are unable to retain in house.

Peter Fagan National Business Development and Strategy Manager Sustainability and Environment MWH Kaia Hodge Acting General Manager Liveable City Solutions Sydney Water

50

Consulting Matters Features

15

minutes with

Marita Cheng 2012 Young Australian of the Year

“If we are to get girls into the industry, I think that we need to promote that the impact of your actions can make a real impression on the world and on society,” said Ms Cheng.

“That’s really why I first became interested – realising that, despite the arguments of many high school students, the principles taught in maths and science can be applied outside of the classroom!

2012 YOUNG AUSTRALIAN OF THE YEAR, FOUNDER OF NOT-FORPROFIT GROUP, ROBOGALS AND ENGINEERING UNDERGRADUATE, MARITA CHENG SHARES HER VIEWS ON WHY MORE YOUNG WOMEN DON’T ASPIRE TO BECOME PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERS. Many consultancy firms around Australia are committed to addressing the gender diversity issue and have been proactive in developing and implementing their own programs and campaigns. There have been studies which quantify this gender gap, analyse best practice and seek solutions on how to retain women in the industry. But as much as we have retention issues, attraction of women into the industry in the early stages of their careers is also essential.

The path to becoming a professional engineer requires a commitment to pursue mathematics and science for tertiary entrance examinations, and the drive to enrol into and complete a bachelor degree in the field. It is clear from the gender gap in the engineering industry that too few females are making this commitment.

As a young girl who is still on this journey, Marita Cheng has strong views on the factors that lead females away from a career in engineering.

According to Marita, the key to attracting more young females would be to abolish the incorrect societal perceptions of what it is to be an engineer. In her experience, many of her fellow students consider it to be a dirty, dangerous and solitary career.

“The knowledge that understanding these principles would allow me to work on projects that could have the potential to affect the lives of millions of people certainly appealed to me.

“I think that this is a real driver for young women in today’s society – the ability to make improvements to the communities in which we live and the ability to work in communities in need around the world.”

By portraying the industry in a more accurate and appealing light, Marita hopes to encourage more females to enter and stay in the industry.

This is the reason she started Robogals, an international, student-run organisation introducing young women to engineering and technology, which aims to substantially increase the number of young women pursuing engineering in their tertiary studies and careers. Robogals does this through Robotics Workshops, events, competition mentoring, career talks and rural and regional tours.

“Girls really need to be able to visualise that the principles they learn at school will allow them to change the world in so many different ways.

“At Robogals we try to bridge this gap and inspire young girls.”

Whilst Robogals has made its mark internationally as a driving force helping young women to be more involved, Marita is not shy in putting responsibility onto industry as well.

“As much as we need cooperation and collaboration, industry should take a leading role and be proactive, connect with schools and actively engage with them,” she said.

“The shortage of women, and indeed engineers more broadly across Australia, is a big problem. Industry suffers from this problem so surely it’s only logical that they should get involved in a very active way in finding the solution.”

ROBOGALS In approaching the issue of gender diversity, there is a lesson to be learned by the drive and vision of Marita and the Robogals organisation, which continues to be one of the most well-known and successful organisations of its kind in the world.

Marita uses her insights into the mentality of young women and their perceptions of engineering to inform the agenda of Robogals. She successfully uses the organisation to break down misconceptions and educate young women about what a career in engineering can really entail.

“In the last year we’ve established the Robogals Rural & Regional program (RRR) where representatives from our various chapters head off on road trips with a number of students as well as our robots. They teach as many girls as possible all about robotics.”

Since the program commenced in Victoria in 2011, 1,300 girls from 24 schools have been visited.

In 2012, Marita plans to expand RRR throughout Australia to South Australia, and a trip to Queensland.

To further advocate for the value of engineering skills and knowledge, Robogals is working on updating their curriculum to ensure its relevancy and for the second time, will run their popular Science Challenge.

The competition asks girls between the ages of 5-18, to look within their communities for problems, come up with solutions using science and technology and develop a four-minute video on how they’ve solved it.

“What’s great about this competition is that it also encourages the girls to develop strong relationships in their younger years,”said Marita.

Features Consulting Matters a5 ad youth leadership booklet students print.pdf

According to Marita, the key to attracting more young females would be to abolish the incorrect societal perceptions of what it is to be an engineer. In her experience, many of her fellow students consider it to be a dirty, dangerous and solitary career.

12/2/12

51

11:17:59 AM

Calling all girls from 5 to 18 years old!

Marita Cheng, the 2012 Young Australian of the Year and founder of Robogals, invites you to enter into the Robogals Science Challenge!

1. Do a project that uses science to solve a problem at your home or school.

“Rather than just leaving it to schools to encourage students to develop an interest in maths and science, we encourage mentors – people from within their lives – to foster and encourage this.”

In addition to her work with Robogals, Marita is working to develop a home automation company called Pushbutton; the aim of which is to produce an iPhone or web application that can control lights, blinds, heating and air conditioning in homes.

When asked about her vision for the future, Marita sees young girls having a greater interest in engineering – fuelled by a more accurate portrayal of the profession; higher enrolment rates in maths and science and engineering degrees; and eventually more females in entering and staying in the industry.

2. Film it, and send us the video online.

3. Win awesome prizes including a trip to Melbourne for the awards ceremony and science-related tours, as well as trophies, science kits, magazine subscriptions and more!

To find out more, visit www.sciencechallenge.com.au

She signs out with an energy that never seems to tire.

“The future of engineering will be amazing. It’s all just so exciting! Actually...just thinking about it all reminds me, I better get back to it.”

www.robogals.org

An international, student-run organisation introducing young women to engineering and technology

52

Consulting Matters Protecting your business

Vacancy: Generational Manager required DYNAMICS WITHIN THE AUSTRALIAN ECONOMY ARE CHANGING. EACH DAY BRINGS WITH IT EVOLVING THREATS AND EMERGING OPPORTUNITIES. FIRMS THAT BALANCE THE UNIQUE SKILLS OF THE DIFFERENT GENERATIONS MOST EFFECTIVELY WILL CREATE A POINT OF SUSTAINABLE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE AND BOLSTER OUR NATION’S PRODUCTIVITY.

Australia is changing.

The words ‘orderly’ and ‘default’ being strung together to create a reassuring phrase in our lexicon, carbon is being closely counted by a new breed of consultants, rent in a once deserted Dysart is now double that paid by Bondi’s recently retrenched tenants and we have an infatuation with China’s latest growth statistics. These are all indicative of the fact that Australia is changing.

We are 13 years into a century which will be distinguished for the prominence of internet based technologies and robotics, the rise of Asia’s middle class and the drowning of the polar bear.

Australia’s long term prosperity will depend on how we innovate to grow productivity. Such growth will enable our economy’s gross output to expand relative to each unit of input thus delivering incremental wealth.

In this challenge we are both enabled and restricted by our current macro-economic environment. Whilst we enjoy booming mining investment, high commodity prices and a declining current account deficit, the negative symptoms of Dutch Disease manifest in a high dollar which affects the competitiveness of our exports. Our agriculture, tourism and manufacturing sectors are hurting as a result.

Significantly, we are a nation which has not grown its multifactor productivity in the best part of a decade. Productivity gains are generally achieved through micro-economic reforms. The abolishment of protective tariffs and financial market deregulation are examples.

Given the dearth of productivity increasing reforms being debated in Australia today, our organisations hold a critical role in improving productivity within our national economy.

A meaningful way in which firms can increase their productivity is to create a high performing workforce. Leading organisations require a blend of people of differing ages, races, sexes, religions and social and educational backgrounds. This mix creates different perspectives and frames through which these firms view and respond to the world.

It is an environment that fosters a culture rich in ideas and innovation.

Generation Y is the most diverse of all that have gone before it.

Its members also instinctively incorporate emerging technologies

into both their private and professional lives. It would appear that organisations have much to gain by connecting with and maximising the capabilities of this cohort.

However little is known about Generation Y and even less about Australian Millennials. Members of the cohort are now aged between 12 and 32 and those currently in the workforce count Sydney’s Olympics, the creation of social media and the collapse of Lehman Brothers as ‘defining moments’. These are specific events or trends that have occurred in their formative years that will continue to affect how they respond to the world.

From a human resource management perspective, the aim of organisations is to create an environment that recruits the best talent and then manages it optimally. In order to do this, local firms must be keenly aware of the generational nuances that exist and clear regarding how they should manage the different generational participants within an Australian context.

In addition to investing resources to understand their generational target markets, this requires the recruitment, training and development of emotionally intelligent managers who can alter their approach and message depending on their generational audience. The employers of these managers will create a sustainable competitive advantage over their less sophisticated competitors.

Productivity gains and resultant standard of living improvements in Australia will be achieved because our organisations foster environments in which innovation is prioritised.

Generation Y, with its diversity and intuitive grasp of technologies, is a key ingredient. It would be a brave person to suggest there will not also be a team adept in generational management at the heart of these innovations.

Martin Keetels National Commercial Counsel and National Bid Manager Konica Minolta AIM 2011 Young Manager of the Year

Consulting Matters

53

54

Consulting Matters Protecting your business

Systematic innovation capability: the ultimate competitive weapon LATELY I’VE BEEN ASKING EXECUTIVES ABOUT WHETHER THE INNOVATION CAPABILITY OF THEIR ORGANISATION LIVES UP TO THE STRATEGIC IMPORTANCE OF BEING INNOVATIVE. FOR MOST OF THEM THE SHORT ANSWER IS ‘NO’.

• Customer focus: Does the ‘voice of the customer’ pervade the design processes of solutions that we provide to clients? Do we work collaboratively with lead clients to see what their needs will be in the future?

To define the terms, I refer to the fairly standard definition of innovation as, ‘implementation of a new or significantly improved product (good or service), process, organisational method, technology, marketing method, or business model’. Note that it refers to implementation, not just invention or research and development (R&D), both of which are just the first steps in the process.

Organisation capability to achieve systematic innovation refers to the ability to come up with a string of innovative solutions, both for clients and in your own organisational context. Consider Apple, 3M and Samsung who are successful innovators in other industries - what do they do to be at the leading edge of systematic innovation capability and what do they get from it?

• Sustainability: Do we seek opportunities to provide superior environmental and social/ community outcomes in our work and services? Do we measure our services and solutions in terms of these important non-financial outcomes? Sustainability can powerfully stimulate innovation.

This innovation capability is increasingly important in our Australian context. We are a high cost country and as a consequence of this, we do not win many orders against overseas competitors. Adding to the challenge is that of quality. Whilst this has previously been a differentiator, overseas suppliers are lifting their game and closing the quality gap.

Innovation remains a highly valuable competitive dimension, but one for which we do not have a competitive disadvantage. Indeed innovation is the ‘ultimate competitive weapon’, because it does not have a limit and because it can and does work at both ends of the profit statement, being both a revenue driver and a cost-reducing opportunity.

Research has shown that there are a set of factors that are strongly present in leading innovator firms, some of which I set out below.

In doing this, I do not just consider successful instances of innovation, such as new products or designs that succeed, but organisations that have a capability to systematically innovate. The logic here is that we shouldn’t simply wait or hope for the occasional lucky break, but that systematic innovation can be a matter of investment, purposive strategy, leadership, process, culture and behaviour to name a few.

In analysing successfully innovative companies, I point to the following topics as areas for development in organisations. These core factors driving systematic innovation capability are: • Leadership: How much and how well do our organisation’s influential executives encourage innovation and lead by example?

Do they know what the innovation possibilities are and have an active role in championing and resourcing those activities?

• Innovation strategy: How much of our overall business strategy is comprised of innovation strategy? Is there a specific and explicit strategy that specifies the focus of innovation activities? Is the innovation strategy activity managed, reviewed and updated?

• Resourcing innovation: What is the level of spend on innovation, and what is the human resource commitment to it? Do employees know all they need to about creativity, problem solving and innovation, in order to do it well? Is there a sound balance of resource allocation to early stage innovation (for example, R&D) and downstream commercialisation capability?

• Open innovation: Research has shown that in most industries, it is not optimal to ‘do it alone’ but that collaboration often leads to more effective innovation. Do we have a set of trusted collaborators who can each bring valuable expertise to our innovation efforts?

• Resourcing innovation: Like anything else, innovation capability requires some investment. Do we have some time and money available to drive forward our innovation agenda? Do we train for it?

• Radical versus incremental innovation: Do we expect only big breakthroughs, or like the best of organisations, do we seek a balance of incremental innovations with occasional bigger steps forward? To get the most out of their radical innovations, successful innovators continually move them forward incrementally.

• Risk appetite: Do we manage risk actively to assess and achieve a consistent balance between risk and return? Do we accept that in the realm of innovation, not everything that we try will work the first time?

• Innovation process: Do we have a set of steps in place that structure our innovative ideas, prioritise opportunities and promote development of the best of these, whilst killing off the others?

Do we have known approaches for testing and implementing our innovations (or is it left to ad hoc methods and chance)?

• Measuring and recognising innovation contributions: Do we have sound and systematic ways to assess or measure our innovation performance? Do we assess individuals partly on their contribution to our firm’s innovation outcomes? Do we recognise and celebrate innovations so as to promote the right behaviours?

• Innovation benefits: Do we ensure that our innovations are used to greatest effect to bring benefits, though our marketing of these, our ability to drive value from them in the marketplace, our knowledge management and our ability to capture and leverage from them?

Building these factors is likely to lead to great and lasting benefits for your firm; from winning more orders, to a premium in pricing.

Importantly, it will also help you win in the labour market, because bright people strongly desire the opportunity to work in innovative organisations above those who have an approach of ‘same old, same old’!

How strong is your systematic innovation capability?

Professor Daniel Samson University of Melbourne

Protecting your business Consulting Matters

55

Proposed reforms to the skilled migration program from 1 July While your organisation is busily preparing for the new financial year, it is timely to note that changes to Australia’s skilled migration program were implemented on 1 July 2012.

There are two key changes that will make recruiting skilled overseas workers easier for consulting companies providing professional services in the built and natural environment.

1. THE INTRODUCTION OF SKILLSELECT SkillSelect is a new, free and convenient way for employers to search and connect with skilled workers from around the world. SkillSelect enables skilled workers interested in migrating to Australia to gain access to an online system and submit an expression of interest to migrate to Australia as a skilled worker. These workers will be required to detail their skills and experience. They can also express their interest in employer sponsorship and indicate the regions of Australia where they are willing to live and work. Employers will be able to use SkillSelect from 1 July to connect with interested prospective employees and discuss their suitability for a role.

For more information on SkillSelect please visit: www.immi.gov.au/skills/skillselect/

2. CHANGES TO THE PERMANENT EMPLOYER-SPONSORED PROGRAM The Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Chris Bowen MP recently announced changes to the permanent employer-sponsored program.

These changes include the introduction of a simplified visa pathway for temporary skilled workers in Australia on a subclass 457 to obtain permanent residence through the Employer Nomination Scheme (ENS) or the Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme (RSMS).

Other reforms to the permanent employer-sponsored visa program which came into effect on 1 July include: • Simplifying the visa structure by reducing six visas to two, each with three streams; • Raising the upper age limit from less than 45 to less than 50 years; • Changes to key visa criteria including English language and skill requirements; and • The introduction of a single consolidated sponsored occupation list, which will replace the current subclass 457, the Employer Nomination Scheme and the state and territory-sponsored occupation lists.

More information on these reforms is available on the DIAC website.

To discuss any of these changes further, please contact Consult Australia’s Industry Outreach Officer, Sarah Gowing via email at sarah.gowing@immi.gov.au.

NEED INDUSTRY SKILLED MIGRATION ADVICE? Consult Australia members have exclusive access to a Department of Immigration and Citizenship Industry Outreach Officer.

The officer provides free advice on: • • • •

Visa options and case management Immigration processes and changes to migration policy E-lodgement of visa applications Using the Skill Matching Database

To speak with DIAC Industry Outreach Officer, Sarah Gowing on 0466 150 022 or email sarah.gowing@immi.gov.au

56

Consulting Matters Protecting your business

Clash detection – is BIM incompatible with PI insurance?

You might have heard the rumour that working with Building Information Modelling (BIM) technology is not covered by professional indemnity insurance.

This is a misconception. BIM and PI insurance are not necessarily incompatible.

Some particular ways of using BIM might fall outside insurance cover, but professional indemnity (PI) policies do not usually contain any blanket exclusion for BIM claims.

BIM, however you define it, is only an evolving technology. PI policies define their cover using general terms that will continue to make sense and remain relevant over the course of many years as the policy is renewed. Apart from a few specific exclusions for substances with potential for generating large class actions (such as nuclear risks and asbestos), PI policies do not mention particular technologies at all.

They simply cover the professional services usually performed in a particular discipline, without addressing the detail of how those services are delivered.

BIM does not get a mention in the standard policies of the major insurers in Australia.

This means that, unless the particular way in which BIM is used on a project infringes the terms of the policy, civil claims arising out of the use of BIM in a consultant’s professional business would generally be covered by the consultant’s professional indemnity insurance.1 WHEN IS BIM UNINSURED? ‘BIM’ is used in many senses, from an engineer producing their own design in three dimensions, to all consultants and contractors working off a single, aggregated model. It is at the latter end of the spectrum where consultants need to consider the limits of their insurance.

Many of us look forward to a new world of collaborative working between designers and contractors, ushered in by the growing use of BIM. Collaboration in an informal sense is a natural part of good design, and only to be encouraged.

However, on BIM projects collaboration is sometimes underpinned by a new and unusual legal structure, where the parties working on the model sign contracts agreeing to share all the risks and liability associated with the model.2 This kind of contractual risk-sharing arrangement is incompatible with professional indemnity insurance. PI insurance covers the named

consultant for the risks associated with its profession. An agreement to share all risks in the model, on the other hand, makes the consultant jointly liable for other parties’ errors, including errors in professions other than consulting. That liability is unlikely to be covered by PI insurance.3 Merely working on a common model should not jeopardise insurance cover, so long as the consultant is engaged under their own consultancy agreement in the traditional way, and is liable for their own work only.

However, any contracts referring to risk sharing or joint liability for the model should be checked with the consultant’s broker or solicitors.

It is also vital to check the individual policy for any specific exclusions – for instance, a few policies still contain ‘cyber’ exclusions intended for the ‘Y2K’ risk in 2000 that may inadvertently allow the insurer to deny cover for BIM related claims.

NEW TECHNOLOGY, NEW RISKS The potential benefits of BIM are wide. The Engineers Australia report Getting it Right the First Time 4 estimated that poor quality documentation contributed an additional 10 to 15 per cent to project costs, and that 60 to 90 per cent of variations were due to poor design and documentation. Any contribution BIM can make to detecting and preventing design errors is a welcome one.

Working from a common model improves clash detection, and three-dimensional modelling facilitates better understanding by lay clients, so as to reduce the potential for end-use problems to lie unnoticed until completion. BIM also enables the standardisation and duplication of elements within the design, minimising the need for repetitive work and associated errors of detail.

In its report, Productivity in the Buildings Network: Assessing the Impacts of Building Information Models (October 2010), the Allen Consulting Group surveyed construction industry participants regarding their experience with BIM, finding that around three quarters of the consultants who responded were using BIM and around half reported a reduction in project delivery times and request for information (RFIs).5 However, BIM also brings new risks and challenges which consultants must address, since BIM claims, even when covered by insurance, will still generate high dispute

costs and business disruption. Consultants using BIM should: • Define the level of BIM use from the outset, in their consultancy agreement and the project protocol. Which consultants and contractors will design using BIM and will their models be separate or aggregated?

• Insist on a BIM protocol acknowledged by all parties who will work on the model, governing procedural matters such as making and notification of changes.

• Seek legal advice if concerned about retaining copyright in their contribution to the model.

• Instil in staff the need to maintain a strong layer of human checking over and above reliance on assumptions built into BIM technology.

• Recognise that building a model may require more design work in the initial stages than on other projects, and negotiate appropriate time and fee levels to allow the model to be built accurately.

Clients bent on fast-tracking projects may need to adjust their expectations if they wish to reap the efficiency benefits of BIM. So long as they avoid contractual risk-sharing arrangements and seek advice from a broker with specialist construction expertise, consultants can use BIM technology without jeopardising their professional indemnity insurance. Despite rumours to the contrary, the two are not in conflict.

Wendy Poulton Corporate Risk Manager Planned Professional Risk Services This conclusion is, of course, always subject to the terms of the specific policy, on which consultants should seek advice from their broker, especially if they are outside core design disciplines like engineering or architecture.

1

More common in the United States, this risksharing model has not been widely adopted in Australia.

2

On large government projects that are run on an alliance basis, the client may be able to obtain project - specific cover compatible with joint liability, but this tends to be expensive and not widely available.

3

Engineers Australia, Getting it Right the First Time (June 2005), p 3-4.

4

Allen Consulting Group, Productivity in the Buildings Network: Assessing the Impacts of Building Information Models (October 2010), p 28, 31.

5

Protecting your business Consulting Matters

57

TESTIMONIAL

SIMPSON KOTZMAN PTY LTD IS AN AUSTRALIAN BASED CONSULTING ENGINEERING COMPANY PRACTISING IN THE FIELD OF BUILDING SERVICES ENGINEERING. SIMPSON KOTZMAN SPECIALISES IN PROVIDING BUILDING SERVICES SOLUTIONS FOR RETAIL AND ENTERTAINMENT DEVELOPMENTS, OFFICE BUILDINGS, HOTELS AND APARTMENTS, EDUCATIONAL, INSTITUTIONAL AND INDUSTRIAL PROJECTS.

“We have now been using Planned Professional Risk Services as our preferred service provider for Professional Indemnity insurance needs for the past 17 years.

Planned Professional Risk Services has always been able to source very competitive insurance for us on terms which meet our statutory, professional and commercial obligations.

More than this, the technical support provided by their in-house legal team in risk management advice, review of client contractual agreements and assistance when potential problems arise, is invaluable.

The contract review advice included with the services they provide to us has been especially helpful to our practice. We have undertaken a number of large D&C projects and the creative legal obligations which clients have sought to impose, at a potentially significant risk to our firm, have been numerous. Having our PI broker alongside has greatly lowered our risk, and some clients now even understand the sense of including reasonable terms in their consultant agreements so that PI insurance may be available to protect them if something goes wrong.

To a company that is constantly operating in a competitive market environment, having the right PI support team can be critical for business sustainability. We are very grateful for the relationship we have with Planned Professional Risk Services and the professional support they have provided over many years.”

Dermot Small Director Simpson Kotzman Pty Ltd

Professional Indemnity question?

Consult Australia believes that it is important to support members in all aspects of their business.

We also recognise the impact that the insurance market has on Consult Australia member firms in terms of availability, affordability and quality of Professional Indemnity Insurance.

Post your latest Professional Indemnity Insurance cases on the Consult Australia Linkedin group and our PI Insurance Pathway will advise you on the best steps to tackle these issues.

58

Consulting Matters

The path less travelled SINCE 2009, STEVE BARTON HAS BEEN ON STANDBY TO RESPOND TO INTERNATIONAL DISASTERS WITH REDR AUSTRALIA, AN AID AGENCY THAT MANAGES THE RAPID DEPLOYMENT OF TECHNICAL SPECIALISTS TO UNITED NATIONS EMERGENCY OPERATIONS AROUND THE WORLD. HERE, STEVE REFLECTS ON HOW HE HONED HIS PROFESSIONAL SKILL SET TO HELP PEOPLE WHOSE LIVES HAVE BEEN TURNED UPSIDE DOWN BY LARGE-SCALE NATURAL DISASTERS AND CONFLICT. HOW DID YOU BECOME INTERESTED IN HUMANITARIAN WORK? Way back in 1960, my family travelled to England by boat. We had a port visit in Bombay and at 10 years old, I was deeply shaken by the huge difference between the comfortable life I led and that of the children in Bombay; many of who I knew to be dying on the street for lack of food. It was this perspective that formed and shaped a sense of discontent that would remain with me for decades. Other than donations to charity, for some reason I could not see the path with which to tackle the enormity of this divide. That was until I became involved – at first reluctantly, then seriously – in a very successful campaign to save my local forest. This tumultuous time demonstrated to me that individuals can make a difference.

Although I was very successful in the construction field, I had the view that I had little to contribute in development or humanitarian response. It all seemed too complex and a realm for other wiser and perhaps braver people than me.

You can imagine my surprise when I was to find myself no longer a wellpaid managing director but a volunteer standing on remote Pentacost Island in Vanuatu confronted with the task of a major school construction project. It was this AusAID project that started my career in humanitarian disaster response.

The privilege and challenge of direct engagement with those suffering from poverty, loss and dislocation has sharpened an initial desire to assist, into

a passion for beneficiary driven solutions, for the voices of those we seek to assist to be heard and honored. It is a sad truth that this is all too rare in humanitarian response.

WHY DID YOU JOIN REDR AUSTRALIA’S STANDBY REGISTER? It’s my experience that it is hard to secure postings through offshore agencies, and so RedR, with United Nations links was a sensible agency to approach.

Because RedR Register personnel receive notifications of all field placements, I can be aware of opportunities on an ongoing basis. If I see a posting that would work for me, and I offer my services, the application is made on my behalf, so I feel well supported.

I have chosen to have humanitarian response as my main work. This isn’t particularly easy as, by its nature, disaster response is not predictable or usually long term. There are a lot of adjustments to make and it’s not a path to wealth.

WHAT DO YOU ENJOY ABOUT FIELDWORK? Working on these assignments is a remarkable honour. Instead of being a disconnected tourist lazing by a resort pool, I find myself instantly and deeply engaged at critical levels with fellow beings in the struggle for dignified life.

In Myanmar for Red Cross after Cyclone Nargis, I procured and distributed 60,000 shelter kits, supporting emergency housing for over 300,000 people in need before moving onto the long-term planning for their recovery.

In Vanuatu, on a RedR UNICEF deployment, I was part of a team that provided fresh water to communities, something that we utterly take for granted but is a big and life-giving step up for many households.

As well as meeting a deep desire to contribute, I like to be challenged, find my limits, to be nearer ‘to the edge’ and to constantly learn. The word ‘retirement’ has been erased from my dictionary – who would quit living a life this rich?

Consulting Matters

59

Supporting the communities in which we work

A working partnership between local non-government organisation (NGO) the Philippine Community Fund (PCF) and Hyder Consulting is changing the lives of disadvantaged local children in Manila.

costs involved in educating a class of 35 students for a year, including all school supplies; daily meals; teachers’ salaries; transportation; health checks; and an educational fieldtrip.

Designed and constructed entirely from recycled shipping containers, the recently built, four-storey Tondo School in Manila educates over 1,000 disadvantaged children who would otherwise be living and working on the dump sites that are scattered over the city.

Founder and CEO of the PCF, Jane Walker heralds the Tondo School as one of the most ambitious and successful projects in the region.

The brief given to Hyder Consulting outlined that they were to design a school on 1,478 square metres of land, on the infamous Smokey Mountain dumpsite.

The land had been given to PCF by the Government to enable them to build a school large enough to end labour for over 1,000 children that were working on the infamous Pier 18 open dump site.

STEVE BARTON

After 18 months of partnership work and dedication, the school was officially opened in August 2011. The Hyder/PCF partnership has continued well into 2012 and will do so long into the future.

RedR Australia recruits and selects, trains and prepares, then deploys and supports technical specialists to international humanitarian relief operations. Find out more: www.redr.org.au

To date, Hyder has provided volunteer support, technical expertise and an additional AUD$39,000 of financial support. This helps to cover operating

“The partnership that we forged has produced magnificent results,” said Ms Walker.

“Together, we have designed and built the largest and possibly the first multi-storey school building made from connected shipping container vans.”

Hyder Australasian Managing Director, Greg Steele said the project has captured the imagination of staff across the Hyder business.

“Some staff have had the opportunity to go to Manila and see the progress and impact of this partnership first hand,” said Mr Steele.

“We put the energy into it because we are passionate about making a difference to local communities where we are working.”

60

Consulting Matters Our industry

Sensitive refurbishment a salute to Melbourne’s rich history

Princes Pier, adjacent to Station Pier in Port Phillip Bay, is one of Melbourne’s most important cultural assets, both as an exemplar of a pre-containerised shipping facility, and as a place rich in Australia’s wartime, maritime and multicultural history.

Built between 1912 and 1915, it was constructed by the Melbourne Harbour Trust as a second railway pier in Port Melbourne. The pier was designed to handle both cargo and passengers, and also boasted office accommodation as well as a waiting room for passengers. Originally known as ‘New Railway Pier’, it was renamed Princes Pier in 1921 in honour of the royal visit by the Prince of Wales. The pier’s iconic twolevel timber Gatehouse was added in 1935 to enable better monitoring of cargo and traffic on to and off of the pier.

Princes Pier is a heritage listed structure, and was the departure point for Australian troops during the First and Second World Wars, and also the arrival point for American troops during the Second World War. In a significant peacetime role, it was the first landing point in Australia for post-war migrants – it saw more than one million migrants pass through it’s doors between 1947 and 1969.

Our industry Consulting Matters

“I soon realised there were many more complexities than at first sight,” said Steele.

“For a start, as the pier is positioned over water, most of the services had to be designed to be installed, and maintained, from boats and barges. Mix in the fact that the pier is almost one hundred years old and actually sways due to tidal movement, and that some existing structural elements didn’t allow us to support infrastructure from the deck, made for some quite complex solutions.

61

Environment Protection Authority (EPA), particularly where impact on wildlife might be an issue.

“The mechanical design for the gatehouse uses sea-water as a cooling medium, so there is some heat rejection to the bay,” Steele said.

“We had to engage with the EPA on this matter, but were able to demonstrate that any heating effects were extremely localised and minor. However we felt that sea-water cooling was vastly preferable to exposed

Exposure to the elements was a major consideration in the design. Princes Pier is more exposed than nearby Station Pier, so the effects of salt spray, strong winds and constant dampness had to be carefully considered.

“MPV also wanted to ensure there was spare infrastructure capacity for future requirements, including provisions for tall ships, which of course had to be hidden and not impinge on the heritage aspects.”

Princes Pier forest of timber piles Photo by Peter Glenane courtesy of MPV

After the containerisation boom and the last of the migrant ships of 1969, the pier became run-down and was decommissioned in 1985. It suffered severe deterioration over the next two decades until 2006, when the Victorian Government decided Princes Pier would not be left to rot and committed $34 million to its restoration.

The works would involve construction of 196 metres of new deck, removal of the original decking beyond that point to create a ‘forest of piles’ as an architectural centrepiece, and refurbishment and servicing of the gatehouse building to meet modern standards.

For Steele, the challenges of this project extended beyond engineering design. Other hurdles included dealing with authorities – all the traditional land-bound bodies for services to the shoreline, and then a second set for works carried out over the water.

This made for some confusion in ownership as some services, such as sewage, passed from water-side to dry land. Authorities implicit in the over-water design included the Port of Melbourne Authority and the

Norman Disney & Young (NDY) was appointed services engineering consultants

by Robert Bird Group (structural engineers) on behalf of Major Projects Victoria (MPV) in late 2009, under the guidance of NDY’s project coordinator Joseph Steele.

In an interview Steele said that whilst he had never undertaken a pier project before, he approached it as if it were a commercial building on stilts.

Princes Pier gatehouse Photo by Peter Glenane courtesy of MPV

plant on or around the historic gatehouse, particularly given the risks of corrosion.”

Exposure to the elements was a major consideration in the design. Princes Pier is more exposed than nearby Station Pier, so the effects of salt spray, strong winds and constant dampness had to be carefully considered. Also important was tempering the reaction of nearby neighbours, many living in properties at the upper end of the residential price-bracket. The completed pier however, seems to have been favourably received; after all, this jewel on the foreshore is infinitely preferable to the eyesore that existed for so many years.

62

Consulting Matters Our industry

Princes Pier front Photo by Peter Glenane courtesy of MPV

Princes Pier Aerial view Photo by Peter Glenane courtesy of MPV

Our industry Consulting Matters

63

Princes Pier front Photo by Peter Glenane courtesy of MPV

The project was one of significant collaborative success; with NDY, Major Projects Victoria and Lovell Chen architects all speaking highly of their experience working together on this complex project.

the dual-output Cosmopolis lighting system – allowing different intensities for normal and event uses – and the marine navigation lighting system.

The Pier was also an interesting test case for Building Information Modelling (BIM). In what was a test case for Major Projects Victoria, they appointed NDY to use BIM heirloom-fashion, capturing artefact and repair data for the more than 1,000 timber piles in a manner that can be accessed and interrogated by future generations. This was done in addition to the more ‘traditional’ BIM function of conveying detailed design data to the builder who can then augment the dataset with as-built information for the end user.

Asked how he would remember the project, Steele replied without hesitation.

In addition to mechanical, electrical and hydraulics services, NDY also provided communications and security services. Specialist division NDYLIGHT designed the lighting scheme for the new pier, including

Steve Brown Design Director NDYLIGHT

“Princes Pier is in my top ten projects, definitely.

“To work on an iconic Melbourne project so rich in history, and with difficult technical challenges requiring creative approaches was an immensely satisfying experience.”

64

Consulting Matters Our industry

Make My City Work.... make my infrastructure better!

Australians love their cities, but are also frustrated by them. We curse transport congestion and delays, low housing affordability, long waiting lists for vital community services, poor design and failing infrastructure. Above all, we condemn the absence of long-term vision and bold thinking about cities.

Consult Australia was disappointed to see few of these issues properly addressed in the 2012/13 Federal Budget.

Infrastructure should not be seen as a liability, but as an opportunity to build productivity and provide for future prosperity.

Whilst the budget had many social policy benefits, it had little by way of new, substantive, or immediate investment in the infrastructure pipeline. In the absence of a fresh round of funding for infrastructure, the government essentially failed to lever a key driver of productivity.

There is a certain disconnect here, between the very loud and very frequent calls for better infrastructure, improved public transport, more liveable cities, and short-sighted ‘fiscal populism’. While infrastructure projects may hit the bottom line initially, they are not part of recurrent expenditure, and ultimately can provide a net return for the government.

Infrastructure should not be seen as a liability, but as an opportunity to build productivity and provide for future prosperity.

Make My City Work is a welcome grassroots web-based campaign initiated by the Property Council of Australia, which will hopefully bring a megaphone to these calls from the citizens of our 18 major cities.

The creation of this site is not to suggest Australian cities are not on the agenda at all.

In March 2011, the Australian government released their National Urban Policy, Our Cities, Our Future, which decisively shifted the debate of prior years from local or state focused interests to one of critical national importance.

In response and support of this report, Consult Australia released its own thoughtleadership report, Tomorrow’s Cities Today, which followed the National Urban Policy goals of productivity, sustainability, liveability and good governance. This report represented a call from industry to government to act on its vision for a national, visionary approach to cities planning.

Just recently, the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) released their report into Capital Cities Strategic Planning Systems, which demonstrated without any measure of doubt, the importance of an ongoing commitment by all spheres of government to work together and to share information and

Our industry Consulting Matters

A NEW DEAL FOR AUSTRALIA’S CITIES WOULD: 1. PUT CITIES AT THE CENTRE OF THE NATIONAL AGENDA Our cities are home to 75 per cent of Australians and generate 80 per cent of the nation’s economic activity. In a country crying out for new ways to improve productivity, making our cities work is the answer. Cities need to be a bigger priority for the Federal Government. expertise towards better strategic planning for better cities.

2. NEW FEDERAL INCENTIVES FOR BETTER PLANNING AND REAL ACTION

It is on the agenda: for industry; (somewhat) for government; and now, for citizens too.

The Federal Government should create a regime of financial incentives and penalties to drive better planning and real action to solve issues facing our cities. Financial payments can be the incentive to bring state/territory and local governments together to deliver action to create more productive, liveable and sustainable cities.

The call from Australians for better housing, jobs, lifestyle, infrastructure and sustainability is coming in loud and clear.

The 2012/13 Budget represents a missed opportunity to have brought about many of these recommendations, desires and demands to fruition.

Make My Cities Work is now a more vital tool than ever: representing a unified voice for Australians to celebrate the achievements and wonder of our cities, but more importantly to bring about real action. As one contributor says: what we need, and what Make My Cities Work will hopefully achieve is the ‘courage to reveal, face and act on the truth’.

The vision for this initiative is to commit to a New Deal for Australia’s Cities by the Australian Government, which puts cities policy at the centre of the agenda.

3. REAL PLANS FOR OUR CITIES Every city needs a clear plan, based on real engagement, with clear targets. These need to clearly set out how each city is expected to grow and change, and where the new housing, employment and infrastructure will be encouraged in the future.

4. MORE MONEY FOR THE RIGHT INFRASTRUCTURE Governments need to increase their commitment to the infrastructure our cities need. The Federal Government needs to

65

recapitalise the Building Australia Fund to kick-start national infrastructure priorities in our cities. We need serious dollars to solve a serious problem.

5. CLEAR THE BLOCKAGES THAT STOP THINGS HAPPENING We need to simplify planning so it is clear what can and can’t be built, provide quick turn-around assessment, and so decisionmaking is transparent. We need simpler rules to increase the use of renewable energy and better incentives to support distributed energy and green buildings.

The site provides a forum for your opinions to be heard and for real change to occur, but the strength of the site must come from the power and volume of its voice. Our cities are too important to be ignored. We need to bring about change today, for a better tomorrow.

Consult Australia supports this initiative and encourages all readers to help bring about this new deal for our cities.

Join the campaign today by visiting makemycitywork.com.au and then help spread the word through Facebook and Twitter.

Facebook

Gillian O’Young Consult Australia

Twitter

66

Consulting Matters Our industry

Advancing collaborative contracting – Consult Australia and Department of Defence ON FRIDAY, 4 MAY REPRESENTATIVES FROM CONSULT AUSTRALIA MET WITH DEPARTMENT OF DEFENCE PROCUREMENT PERSONNEL TO DISCUSS THE BENEFITS OF RELATIONSHIP-BASED AND ALLIANCE CONTRACTING. THIS FORUM WAS PART OF THE PRODUCTIVE WORKING RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CONSULT AUSTRALIA AND THE DEFENCE DEPARTMENT INITIATED IN RECENT YEARS TO STRENGTHEN INDUSTRY RELATIONSHIPS. THE DEPARTMENT AGREED TO HOST THE FORUM WITH A VIEW TO PROVIDING AN OPPORTUNITY FOR SENIOR REPRESENTATIVES FROM INDUSTRY AND GOVERNMENT TO SHARE THEIR EXPERIENCE AND SUPPORT THE DEVELOPMENT OF BEST PRACTICE PROCUREMENT.

As owners of around three million hectares of land, including 390 properties and a further 350 properties leased, the Defence Department is one of the largest procurers of infrastructure and technical know-how in Australia. Their properties range from hi-tech laboratories through to gyms and sleeping quarters. Work on these facilities is often complex due to diverse challenges such as heritage, unexploded ordinances, or chemical related issues, as well as the usual parliamentary and public scrutiny applied to public sector works.

In the last financial year alone, Defence contracts amounted to around $15.9 billion out of a $33 billion infrastructure spend, or 40 per cent of the Commonwealth’s capital budget.

In this context, Defence is an important potential client for the consulting industry, just as the consulting industry is an important service provider to Defence. The Defence Department rightly demands the best possible professional advice and value for money.

It is in the interest of both parties to ensure procurement processes achieve these aims, and that fair and reasonable contracting practices support project delivery.

Consult Australia is well versed in the positive and negative consequences associated with the various contracting practices employed by governments and agencies across Australia. Previous contracting practices by a number of government clients have led to contracts being awarded on a ‘take it or leave it’ basis, and containing onerous terms that do not adequately deal with risk management or the allocation of liability. In many cases, these contracts have resulted in litigation, a breakdown in relationships, and time and budget overruns. Equally, many government agencies have progressed to far more sophisticated approaches that support relationship-based contracting, driving better value for money and project outcomes.

The forum was designed to start a discussion to address these duel concerns, and explore relationship-based and alliance contracting as an approach to procurement that will lead to better contracting relationships between all parties.

To this end, Consult Australia brought together a number of leading public sector representatives who were able to share with Defence their experiences of successful alliance contracts. The construction of the Northside Storage Tunnel in Sydney was cited as one example

where the creation of an alliance allowed the project team to meet an extremely tight deadline, ahead of the 2000 Olympics.

Another example discussed was the Hamer Hall development in Melbourne. This $120 million project was given timeframes for completion that did not appropriately acknowledge the possibility of all complexities, such as asbestos removal, that might be encountered during delivery. In this case, the alliance model of contracting was cited as critical to the project being delivered under budget.

In both examples, the alliances helped ensure that management was engaged, and a culture of collaboration rather than blame and ‘passing the buck’ was created, allowing contingencies to be controlled, and resulting in the cost of managing the contract falling from almost ten per cent to around 1.5 per cent.

Consult Australia provided strong representation on behalf of our members, who spoke of their experience from an industry perspective, and were able to present similar benefits when they had entered into alliance contracts. It was acknowledged that alliances are not appropriate in every situation, but represent a contracting model that should be considered and provide a number of elements that may be adapted for use in other types of contracting for a more collaborative approach Consult Australia looks forward to continuing to work closely with the Department of Defence to identify further opportunities to share experience and progress best practice procurement in all its forms.

Robin Schuck Consult Australia

Consulting Matters

We hope that you enjoy this copy of Consulting Matters magazine.

If you have received this magazine from a colleague and you’d like to receive your own copy each quarter, simply email info@consultaustralia.com.au.

Consulting Matters is available for non-members to purchase.

Subscribe for 12 months (4 x issues) for only $66 by calling the Consult Australia National Office on (02) 9922 4711.

Not a member firm? Join and begin accessing our member benefits today!

Benefits include: • Practice performance and salary benchmarking • Business development tools such as practice notes and business tips • WHS checklist • Safety in Design Pocket Guide • Networking events • Discounted education & training courses • Fortnightly newsletters featuring important industry updates and news • Discounted tickets to Consult Australia’s annual Symposium and Awards for Excellence • FutureNet – young professionals networking program For more information on membership, contact Consult Australia’s Director of Marketing and Membership, Cathy Mitchell on (02) 9922 4711 or cathy@consultaustralia.com.au Consult Australia National Office T: (02) 9922 4711 F: (02) 9957 2484 E: info@consultaustralia.com.au W: www.consultaustralia.com.au

67

68

Consulting Matters Our industry

Gaining and maintaining social licence to operate CONSULT AUSTRALIA’S INFRASTRUCTURE ROUNDTABLE IS CURRENTLY UNDERTAKING A PROJECT ON COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT. IN RECOGNITION OF THIS, WE INVITED KYLIE COCHRANE FROM SKM TO WRITE A PIECE ON A ‘SOCIAL LICENCE TO OPERATE’.

A ‘social licence to operate’ is the elusive, new ‘must have’ in corporate environments.

There is no accepted single definition, and it is often expressed in relation to other terms such as ‘corporate social responsibility’, ‘community acceptance’ and ‘reputation’.

However, ‘social licence to operate’ is rapidly becoming a widely recognised and used term, understood as an imperative to longterm business continuity and profitability.

A social licence to operate is difficult to obtain and maintain and yet easy to lose and once lost, almost impossible to regain.

This paper provides insight and guidance on understanding the importance of a social licence to operate, and how to obtain and maintain it to ensure project success.

safety; however, their projects are also being questioned on a social level. Companies must now prove their social mettle and reduce their social risk by gaining acceptance and support of the communities impacted by their project.

SOCIAL LICENSING: ARE YOU FIT TO WORK?

Some countries have formally recognised that gaining community acceptance is imperative to the success of major projects.

In 2008, Chile ratified ILO Convention 169, highlighting Chilean understanding of the importance of community consultation. Under the ILO Convention 169, mining projects must take into account the outcomes of all community consultation when making a decision on funding extractive projects in the country.

Thus, if a social licence to operate cannot be acquired from the indigenous communities, project funding is not guaranteed. Any mining organisation that is not prepared to operate in a socially responsible manner does not have a future in the country.

The concept of having a social licence to operate stems from the need for social aspects of project to have a form of return on investment to compete with other boardroom considerations.

Juxtaposed against the clarity of technical absolutes, consultation covers the more intangible elements of a project – political sensitivities, community and stakeholder opinion, potential impacts and so forth.

Companies are finding that they meet traditional risk mitigation measures relating to financial loss, legal obligation and personnel

Companies are finding that they meet traditional risk mitigation measures relating to financial loss, legal obligation and personnel safety; however, their projects are also being questioned on a social level.

Local communities have the ability to hinder, delay or in severe cases, stop programs from happening. Infrastructure initiatives across the power, energy, water and mining industries have wide consequences for the local community in which they occur and can incite powerful responses from the local community if they do not gain community blessing. To guarantee successful project delivery, it is imperative to gain a social licence.

The importance of community acceptance is also being recognised in Australia.

Sinclair Knight Merz (SKM) is currently working on a long term project for a state road agency.

At the beginning of the project, many local communities along the length of the road work were opposed to the project. However, over the course of several years, information was regularly shared with these communities. This was done in tandem with a structured program of tailored oneon-one meetings with all impacted residents and as many stakeholders as possible to better understand community concern and feedback. This is has led to greater community acceptance, knowledge and understanding of the project.

In delivering sensitive major projects across the globe, SKM has gained a number of key insights and principles which guide how to earn and maintain a social licence to operate.

• Do not underestimate the knowledge and passion of communities and stakeholders.

• Be accessible and be personal – have a local presence and continuity of key relationships and staff.

• Register, deliver, audit and communicate all commitments and promises to the community.

• Develop and adhere to strict communication protocols – work out who can make commitments and who delivers on them.

• Undertake continuous engagement with regulatory agencies to ensure timely approvals processes.

• Ensure that staff at all levels of the project support and drive these initiatives within their roles to ensure that implementation, and therefore success is achieved as intended.

It is undeniable that in today’s business world, it is critical that all programs must draw a correlation between good community and stakeholder management, risk mitigation and commercial success.

Kylie Cochrane Global Practice Leader - Communication and Stakeholder Engagement NSW & ACT Communication and Stakeholder Engagement Manager Sinclair Knight Merz

Our industry Consulting Matters

69

International trends in contracting

On Thursday, 3 May the International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC) President, Geoff French gave a presentation to Consult Australia members, representatives of the legal industry and procurement professionals about the latest trends in contracting. Alliance contracting and the use of dispute resolution boards were the focus for those stakeholders attending.

There was some discussion about the recent uptake of alliance contracting, which has been particularly strong in Australia and New Zealand relative to the rest of the world. The introduction of more competitive elements in alliances was noted as a concern, in addition to those situations where alliances may be incorrectly applied to projects.

Another trend in contracting that has been less used in Australia but is more popular overseas, is the use of dispute resolution boards. Under this model, a ‘board’ is established at the project’s outset, including independent representatives nominated by both parties, as well as a joint appointment.

URETEK NATIONAL OUTLOOK-DEC:Layout 1

11/11/11

Cracks usually close up as the house is raised

Then weak soil layers are compacted

10:17 AM

Thereafter, whenever a potential dispute is found, the issue is delegated to the board for their determination. Under this model, disputation has been found to be greatly reduced.

Other issues in contracting that were discussed included the development of standard contracts that are generally less aggressive in their allocation of risk and liability. This continues to be a major focus of Consult Australia’s activities alongside our peer associations internationally.

Thanks must go to URS and ARUP who joined Consult Australia in hosting Geoff French.

Robin Schuck Consult Australia

Page 1

We raise and re-level houses plus roads, airports, factories, railways etc.

The URETEK Method is unique: structural, expanding resin injection.

FAST Most residential jobs take only a day or two.

Pavement areas fully trafficable 30 minutes later!

Minimal disruption. No excavation, water or mess!

Occupants usually don’t need to move out.

We work area by area, and at times to suite clients.

Economical and far superior to old-fashioned underpinning or mud-jacking.

Uretek Ground Engineering

www.uretek.com.au 1800 623 312 info@uretek.com.au The Mainmark Corporation Pty Ltd. Building Licences NSW: 41231, ACT: 200413804. Using Uretek.

We service all parts of Australia and New Zealand

Pleas www.ure e see tek.com especia .au lly th section e Technical Info for Profe Enginee ssional rs

70

Consulting Matters Industry comment

Industry comments: The Budget abandoned the promised company tax cut.

Dishing it out as welfare added insult to injury. For all the good in trying to achieve a surplus, many people, and not just those in business, saw a vote-buying budget, not an economic vision.

BUSINESS DUBBED BY LOST COMPENSATION FOR NEW TAX There’s a principle taught in law schools that misrepresentation in the commercial world won’t be illegal if a claim is so outlandish that a reasonable person would consider it ‘mere puffery’.

The principle passed my mind during the Federal Budget lock-up, when the benefits of the mining boom were extolled, but the budget papers told me that business people had most of their promised share redistributed to others.

The government’s mining tax promised a company tax cut. It was a controversial redistribution, but at least it was from strong parts of the economy to the weaker.

Business had penciled it in as cost relief from a sea of new levies and taxes coming their way. The funding source was there – the mining tax was happening. And it had been government policy for two years... Until the Budget, that is.

The Budget abandoned the promised company tax cut. Dishing it out as welfare added insult to injury. For all the good in trying to achieve a surplus, many people, and not just those in business, saw a vote-buying budget, not an economic vision.

Government suggestions that it changed tack because it couldn’t get the tax cut through the parliament are unimpressive. True, the Coalition opposed it because it opposed the mining tax, but minor parties were with the government on agreeing to deliver the tax cut to small and medium businesses.

700,000 out of the 750,000 companies in Australia would have been eligible even on the numbers the government could have mustered.

The government’s parliamentary tactics allowed business to be snookered. It asked the parliament to vote up the mining tax without putting to a vote the tax relief it funded. Instead, it forced a contemporaneous vote on its plan to increase the superannuation levy that business pays – a new three per cent tax on payroll.

No wonder business is angry. Right up until budget week, government ministers were spruiking the company tax cut to small business. Now the private sector cops the mining tax, gets hit with six rises in the superannuation levy (which the government has misleadingly claimed are funded by the tax) and then finds the company tax sweetener redistributed as welfare.

That’s shabby politics. It’s also a raw deal.

Handouts accentuate an entitlement mentality which, if we think about it, is a bad habit, except for those in real need.

Governments are running out of money around the world, so promoting a mentality of reward for effort, not handout, is a safer route. Reinvesting in ways the private sector could take a load off the public purse, which is what the company tax reduction was meant to do, would have been right for society, not just business.

The extent to which the business community feels duded emerges from the fine print of budget paper number one.

The company tax cuts were to save business people $4.7 billion over the next four years.

The government’s alternative, the loss carry back scheme, is good as far as it goes but isn’t a tax cut. It’s much more modest, applying to 600,000 fewer companies. In short, the breach of promise shortchanges business $1 billion a year. That’s a lot of potential jobs, 20,000 in fact.

Business has to now work with Treasurer Swan and his business tax experts to try and revive company tax reform. But the

government demand that business has to tax itself more to fund a tax cut is unfair given that the mining tax is already legislated.

This company tax fiasco weakens business confidence and confidence in the ability of governments to follow through on their promises. It also fuels a broader small business sentiment that people in power don’t really understand the doing of business.

Governments, including the Gillard Government, want the best for our economy but policy reform has to be followed through.

Recent initiatives to tackle overregulation in our federation are a positive sign, but key parts of the budget are a setback even with its correct drive towards surplus.

How can business create wealth when the budget reveals that the carbon tax will cost $35 billion over the next four years, but small business gets no compensation? Or when the mining tax will cost $13 billion but company tax cuts disappear? Or when the superannuation levy goes up $20 billion a year but there is no wage trade-off provided for?

By redistributing rather than creating wealth, the Budget leaves these questions unanswered and industry with less capacity to foot the bill. No wonder Australia has become a hard country in which to do business and employ. Unless we find answers quick smart, we will kill the goose that lays the golden egg. And that claim is not mere puffery.

Peter Anderson Chief Executive Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry First published in: The Australian Monday, 14 May Page 12: Commentary

Industry comment Consulting Matters

71

Carbon price claims caution A carbon price commenced in Australia on 1 July 2012. Consult Australia is aware that our member firms may be requested by their clients to provide information relating to the impact of the carbon price on services supplied from 1 July 2012.

Such questions may include: • Whether you have calculated the carbon price impact;

• Whether you intend to absorb or pass through the carbon price impact to your customers; • What percentage of any intended price increase from 1 July 2012 is carbon price related;

• How you will substantiate the carbon price increase in accordance with ACCC requirements?

It is important to note that you are not generally required to justify or explain why your prices have increased however if you choose to claim that price increases are due to a particular cause, you should

EFIC dId mOrE than FInanCE OUr COntraCt

thEY EnablEd It. Cory Stevens, Managing Director, Lean Field Developments

Under the Competition and Consumer Act 2010, you must not make false, misleading or deceptive claims about the price of goods and services. This includes false, misleading or deceptive claims linking price rises to the carbon price.

As a business, you are entitled to increase your prices as you see fit - it is business as usual. Following the start of the carbon price, the same legal obligations not to mislead or deceive apply.

• What is the claimed increase, and over what period;

• On what basis your carbon price increases were calculated; and

have confidence in your claim. This includes where you choose to link your price increases to a carbon price.

Like any other claim, if you choose to make a claim about the impact of the carbon price or why a price has increased, this claim should be truthful and have a reasonable basis.

Firms are encouraged to consider very carefully whether, and how, they respond to questions like those above, and to consult guidance published by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) at www.accc.gov.au.

Jonathan Cartledge Consult Australia

When we won the contract to be part of the supply chain to the massive Queensland Curtis LNG project, we were delighted.

This was an opportunity to further establish our track record and reputation within the oil and gas industry in Australia.

Luckily we knew in which direction to turn. With the support of EFIC’s export working capital guarantee and bonds, we were able to meet the financial requirements and demonstrate our company’s ability to take on such challenging projects.

However, like other suppliers, we were required to provide performance bonds in support of our contractual obligations.

We also needed to ensure that we had access to additional working capital for other contracts. Yet, as a company without a long trading history in Australia, we couldn’t get sufficient bonding or bank finance for our needs.

Overcoming financial barriers for exporters Visit efic.gov.au/enable

72

Consulting Matters

A dentist’s budget The Federal Budget for 2012-13 was great if you were looking towards your aged care needs, feeling like some dental work might be a good idea, or have kids heading off to school.

Unfortunately these handouts seemed to come at the expense of reforms and investments supporting business, productivity and the broader economy.

This was seen most blatantly in the abolition and redistribution of the promised one per cent cut to the company tax rate (which would have at been at least a baby step towards addressing our lack of international competitiveness on this issue). However the government’s efforts to turn its fortunes were also evident in the cuts to the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency (some $15 million) alongside the axing of the Tax Breaks for Green Buildings Program. The latter rightfully bringing with it the ire of businesses and associations across the built environment.

Infrastructure investment largely comprised an additional $3.6 billion, potentially for the Pacific Highway if the NSW Government comes on board, and the release of over $230 million from the Building Australia Fund for the Torrens and Goodwood Junctions project in South Australia.

These announcements, alongside investments in the Moorebank intermodal freight terminal, hinted at what we know is a deeper understanding within the government regarding the capacity for the right infrastructure to deliver wide economic benefits. Though notably, neither of those two new projects announced impact on the government’s bottom line until 2013-14.

The Budget was an impressive performance in severe fiscal discipline: delivering a much-hyped surplus against the Coalitions’ backdrop of an overly-dramatised deficit.

Consult Australia applauds the delivery of a surplus, but fiscal responsibility is as much about spending money smarter as it is about driving efficiency and cutting back government.

The Budget was an impressive performance in severe fiscal discipline: delivering a much-hyped surplus against the Coalitions’ backdrop of an overlydramatised deficit. Consult Australia applauds the delivery of a surplus, but fiscal responsibility is as much about spending money smarter as it is about driving efficiency and cutting back government. Short-term policy agendas should not obscure longer-term vision.

It is a shame to see the government’s infrastructure credentials put on the line for a notional surplus.

Governments at every level can learn from the experience of NSW and two decades of underinvestment in infrastructure and planning.

Ultimately, not only will we fail to see the substantive benefits of better infrastructure, but eventually its absence will cost business, cost jobs, and cost seats.

testament to their commitment to the infrastructure and productivity agenda.

No doubt this will be one of the enduring legacies of the Rudd/Gillard terms. But the need for this type of nation-building does not end neatly, nor coincide with the demand for a surplus. It is too easy to focus on the bottom line today, and forget the windfall benefits that the right infrastructure projects can provide across a broad range of public policy objectives.

Jonathan Cartledge Consult Australia

The government often quotes their $37 billion capital works program across road, rail, and public transport as a

What do you think is the most pressing issue our industry is facing?

Submit an Industry Comment to Consulting Matters today. Send your comment to our editorial coordinator (max 200 words) at gillian@consultaustralia.com.au.

Consulting Matters

EASY CHOICES!CONSULT AUSTRALIA

IS ON YOUR SIDE

THE LATEST PATHWAY TESTIMONIAL SLR Consulting Australia’s range of environmental engineering and scientific services has broadened considerably over the past several years. As we continue to grow, new services are being introduced, new offices open and other consulting practices are being acquired. Our overseas work on significant international projects has also increase markedly.

As a consequence, greater focus on managing the technical and commercial risks of our multi-disciplinary service delivery was required. Significant changes to our Professional Indemnity (PI) Insurance cover became necessary. We realised that professional risk management advice well beyond that provided by a normal PI broker was required – we needed an insurance advisory service with considerable consulting industry experience.

SLR Consulting Australia selected a broker associated with Consult Australia PI Pathway, as the services provided seemed an ideal match. The broker was able to ensure continuity of cover, broadening the scope of cover and negotiating a reduced premium. Their contract review service and ongoing staff risk management training have proven invaluable to our business, enhancing the professional standard of our client contractual relations and improving the quality of our service delivery.

SLR Consulting Australia Pty Ltd

To get a quote please visit: www.consultaustralia.com.au/PIPathway/Default.aspx

Consult Australia’s PI Insurance Pathway gives Consult Australia members access to the PI market through a Panel of Brokers selected by Consult Australia. Consult Australia is providing a referral service only and is not providing any form of financial advice or offering a financial product. Consult Australia does not guarantee the value, price and terms of cover that may be received from any member of the Panel of Brokers. Any agreement entered into through use of the PI Insurance Pathway will be expressly between the Panel Broker and the Consult Australia member firm.

73

Is your business protected?

Open house courses and in-house training available!

Consult Australia has developed a number of intensive training programs to provide consultants with invaluable skills, knowledge and advice.

This powerful training puts you in control and allows you to better protect your business.

Safety in Design

Contracts for Consultants

Learn vital information about: • Designer duties under current legislation • Hazard identification tools • Risk assessment, control, and management • Safety in design procedures and documentation • Best practice examples • Safety in design resources Facilitated by Deborah Hammond - One of Australia's leading WHS experts with over 20 years experience working with a broad range of clients.

Member Price: $1,400, Non-Member Price: $1,700

Learn vital information about: • Contract formulation • Contract terms • Contractual relationships • Liability • Insurance • Onerous contract terms • Professional indemnity insurance • Dispute resolution Facilitated by Tony Horan - one of the most knowledgeable and experienced barristers working in the construction industry in Australia.

Member Price: $1,950, Non-Member Price: $2,400

Project Management

The Role of the Superintendent

Topics include: • Time management • Risk management • Construction management • What goes wrong • Workshops Facilitated by Mark Griffith - 25 years experience in Senior Management and Project Management within the heavy engineering construction sector including building, rail, petrochemical, mining and materials handling, minerals processing, infrastructure and renewable energy projects.

Member Price: $1,500, Non-Member Price: $1,900

Topics include: • Scope of duties • Contract administration • The dual roles of the Superintendent • Decision making and conveying information • Liability of the Superintendent • Insurance issues Facilitated by Tony Horan - one of the most knowledgeable and experienced barristers working in the construction industry in Australia.

Only available as an in-house program. Please contact daniel@consultaustralia.com.au for a proposal

For more information, including course dates, visit www.consultaustralia.com.au or contact Daniel Condon – 02 9922 4711 or daniel@consultaustralia.com.au