NEW ZEALAND’S CIVIL CONTRACTING INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
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CONTENTS
CONTRACTOR
INSIDE:
24 Regulars
Highlights / Features
4 Editorial
18 Company profile: Swale Earthmovers
Four decades on, Dave Swale looks back over his career and the development of his company.
6 Upfront 12 Contractors’ Diary
24 R emembering the Battle of the River Plate
14 On the Cover
Turning an unstable Auckland cliff into a commendable memorial and lookout.
60 Classic Machines 64 Innovations
30 A n Irish encounter The official opening of Combilift's new global headquarters and manufacturing facility in Ireland.
66 Civil Contractors NZ update 66 Advertiser's index
36 B uilding a new city precinct The transformation project of Wynyard Quarter, an old area on the Auckland waterfront.
Comment 54 Peter Silcock CCNZ 56 Jason Walker Hays New Zealand 57 Erica Welsford Plan A 58 Michelle Hill & Ariana Stuart Kensington Swan
42 A ge awareness around lifting gear A look at safe practices around lifting gear.
46 N ew engine technology line-up
ON THE COVER For more than 10 years, Prime Pump has been sourcing industry-leading pumps from around the globe – a strategy that has been paying off for national projects and local companies. See page 14
A review of the new EV Stage V emissions ready engines.
50 E nd of tunnel for London's Crossrail New images highlight construction progress across the route to deliver the city’s newest railway, the Elizabeth line.
18
30
50 JULY 2018 3
CONTRACTOR
EDITORIAL
Everyone likes a doomsday scenario I had my ears chewed recently by someone blathering on about climate change like it is an invading armada looming on our coast ready to sweep down upon us with storms and floods. Embracing carbon dioxide neutrality is our only redemption, they say. Really? A couple of points: Even if you are a fanatical disciple of the worse scenario climate prediction, how could a pip-squeak country like ours possibly make a difference to the global climate on the scale of things? As the editor of two technical journals I have followed the very complicated (and emotional) global discussion of both long-term and short-term climate change and whether carbon dioxide is a cause or result, and whether climate change is natural or man-made. I don't need to take sides, but I can't ignore a global conflict in climatology/meteological circles over predictions based on computer modelling. Just Google it yourself. Meantime, I am uncomfortable with the 'pending doom' theme around climate predictions commonly touted at conferences these days. When you live long enough, you start to see a pattern of 'selfdestruction' in Western thinking that is both biblical and secular – and based on the admonition of a sinful world and a day of reckoning. Many times the faithful have gathered forlornly on the mountain top waiting for the mother ship; many scientific theories (usually around plagues and resource shortages) have been preached on why mankind is facing a nemesis of his own making; and many tremble over the day electronics take over like Victor Frankenstein's monster to wreak vengence and havoc on our misguided souls. On that last note, if you were too young to remember, it was an interesting time crossing into the 21st century. By the 1990s our fear of apostate computers reached into a deep darkness that even the creators of Hal 9000 (Arthur C Clarke's 2001: A Space Odyssey) and Blade Runner (1982 neo-noir science fiction film) could not have imagined. Because some computer manufacturers might have (it was never clear) failed to code their equipment beyond the end of the last century – at 12.00am 2000, electronic global systems would/could/might crash, planes could/would plummet out of the sky and armageddon could/would be upon us. Survival kits sold like hot-buttered scones. I was an aviation writer at the time so knew the aircraft scenario was absolute crap (they fly through time zones), but, believe it or not, many airline chiefs had to promise to fly on their own airlines at midnight 2000 to appease a world gone mad with the Y2K bug, paranoia. Many countries such as Italy did nothing. Not untypical of our small emotionally charged nation, New Zealand went into a panic, even appointed a ‘Minister Responsible for Y2K’, and chastised Y2K deniers, of which there were plenty. At the stroke of midnight, nothing abnormal (computer wise) happened, even in Italy. My friends and neighbours stood out in our street in Auckland together, with wine glasses in hand, waiting for the Sky Tower fireworks display. One was an IT chap working for an international company. His cellphone rang just after midnight. It was head office in the US. They wanted to know if anything had happened. As we were the first country to enter the millennium, according to the Gregorian calendar and the 24 hour clock, they thought we were the crash dummy for end of days. True story. Anyway, with the conference season now in action, if you are presenting on stage, please spare a thought for us ‘doomsday-battered’ souls before confusing complicated long-term climate science modelling with last week’s storm and fractional variances in local temperatures and sea levels. Keep an open mind please. Scientific reasoning changes all the time. But, hey, if you are talking earthquakes, floods, tsunami and angry volcano preparedness – I’m all ears. Man makes plans, God laughs. As our history is a rich litany of natural disasters you, as the nation’s professional dirt shifters, are the folks we rely on to clean up afterwards. Keep on shifting dirt for a better future.
GENERAL MANAGER David Penny DDI: 09 636 5710 Mobile: 021 190 4078 Email: david@contrafed.co.nz REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS Mary Searle Bell, Richard Campbell, Hugh de Lacy, Richard Silcock. ADVERTISING / SALES Charles Fairbairn DDI: 09 636 5724 Mobile: 021 411 890 Email: charles@contrafed.co.nz ADMIN / SUBSCRIPTIONS DDI: 09 636 5715 Email: admin@contrafed.co.nz PRODUCTION Design: TMA Design, 09 636 5713
Contributions welcome Please contact the editor before sending them in. Articles in Contractor are copyright and may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the permission of the publisher. Opinions expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the shareholding organisations.
www.linkedin.com/NZcontractor @NZContractormag nz contractor magazine nz contractor magazine @nzcontractormagazine The official magazine of Civil Contractors NZ www.civilcontractors.co.nz The Aggregate & Quarry Association www.aqa.org.nz The New Zealand Heavy Haulage Association www.hha.org.nz The Crane Association of New Zealand www.cranes.org.nz Rural Contractors New Zealand www.ruralcontractors.org.nz The Ready Mixed Concrete Association www.nzrmca.org.nz
ISSN 0110-1382
A LS O P U B L I S H ES
Local Government, Quarrying & Mining and Water New Zealand magazines. 4 www.contractormag.co.nz
EDITORIAL MANAGER Alan Titchall DDI: 09 636 5712 Mobile: 027 405 0338 Email: alan@contrafed.co.nz
Connexis www.connexis.org.nz
Alan Titchall, Editorial Manager
CONTRAFED
PUBLISHER Contrafed Publishing Co Ltd Suite 2.1, 93 Dominion Road, Mt Eden, Auckland PO Box 112357, Penrose, Auckland 1642 Phone: +64 9 636 5715 Fax: +64 9 636 5716 www.contrafed.co.nz
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CONTRACTOR
UPFRONT
Regional fuel tax becomes contagious
Northland Regional Council Kaitaia office area manager Peter Wiessing (left) and regional councillor Mike Finlayson on a stopbank beside the Awanui River with the Bell’s Hill slip site behind them.
Northland flood works worth over $15 million The largest construction project ever undertaken by the Northland Regional Council – a $15 million flood scheme upgrade massively boosting flood protection in and around Kaitaia should be up for tender in another three years. The new seven-year Awanui scheme project is one of the crucial projects at the heart of the council’s new Long Term Plan (LTP) 2018-2028 adopted by councillors in Whangarei last month. The scale and cost of the Awanui works means they will be carried out over several years from 2020 to 2027. Work on flood risk mitigation involve a combination of improvements to stabilise stopbanks in the area, plus diversion of flow and works to mitigate the effect of the large, slow-moving Bell’s Hill slip falling into the nearby Awanui River and causing flooding. The value of the Awanui work will outstrip the $11 million-plus the council spent on the Hopua te Nihotetea detention dam, which officially opened two years ago and is designed to better protect Whangarei’s Central Business District from its own damaging and costly floods. Planning and design will take up to three years with civil works tendered in year four. The council has also decided to bring forward by five years about $440,000 of planned flood scheme work at Panguru. Project design and consent work – originally planned to begin in 2023 – will now happen this year, with actual construction due to begin late next year.
Road Transport Forum chief executive Ken Shirley says it comes as no surprise to learn that 14 councils around the country are seeking a regional fuel tax similar to Aucklands. “As the transport sector predicted, the Government’s bad idea of an Auckland Regional Fuel Tax has become contagious and is now infecting various other parts of the country.” From 2021 every regional and unitary council in the country can apply to the Government for the right to impose a 10-cents-a-litre (plus GST) regional fuel tax on their communities, he adds. “With a number of councils obviously seeking this option it is likely to result in unintended consequences such as forcing transport operators and fuel retailers out of certain regions to avoid the tax. “That is, of course, if price spreading doesn’t just make a mockery out of the whole concept anyway. “It is undeniable that regions such as the Westland struggle to maintain their roading infrastructure, however there is a far better way for the Government to support them. “A simple increase in fuel excise and RUCs nationwide could be aligned with an increase in the financial assistance rate (FAR) allowing councils to access more funding from the National Land Transport Fund than the 53 percent they get now,” says Shirley. “This would maintain the integrity of the funding system and wouldn’t burden small councils with having to administer and enforce a regional fuel tax.”
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UPFRONT
CONTRACTOR
Auckland business confidence collapses A quarterly survey of over 800 business respondents undertaken by the Auckland Chamber of Commerce last month (mostly SMEs employing 20 or fewer people) revealed 44 percent believe the economy will deteriorate over the next six months. In the same survey last year just eight percent said the economy would deteriorate. Only 15 percent of Auckland businesses this year think the economy will improve. Blamed for the drop in confidence were: Worsening skill shortages, especially across the SME sector; and uncertainty over the direction the Government is taking the economy with uncertain union and tax environment; lack of faster action on infrastructure and housing; increasing costs of fuel; and labour and wage round uncertainty.
Results of GPS beckon The Minister of Transport has released the draft Government Policy Statement on land transport (GPS), which sets out the government’s strategic direction as well as how the land transport system will be funded during the next 10 years. The draft GPS lays out four new priorities and six objectives, which include safety, improved transport access to economic and social opportunities as well as providing more resilience and choice, better environmental outcomes and infrastructure which delivers the best value for money. The draft GPS was open to public engagement for a fourweek period until May 2 and the final GPS needed to be adopted by the government by the end of last month. While the draft GPS provides guidance for transport investment decisions we’ll be making through the National Land Transport Programme (NLTP) the New Zealand Transport Agency cannot comment on future plans for specific transport projects until the public engagement process has been completed and the final GPS has been adopted. At that stage the Transport Agency says it will have greater certainty about what the final GPS will guide us to invest in through the next NLTP and which projects we will deliver to meet the new government priorities. The Transport Agency says it is committed to working closely with local government, communities and key stakeholders to deliver solutions that meet transport needs now and for the future. The Transport Agency needs to adopt the National Land Transport Programme (NLTP) for 2018-21, the three-year programme of planned investment in New Zealand’s land transport system, by the end of August 2018.
Self-Erecting Tower Cranes Short and long term hire with a lifting range from 6 tonne to 14 metres radius, and 1 tonne to 45 metres radius. • Remote control operation • Cost effective mobilisation to site.
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www.waikatoaucklandcranes.co.nz JULY 2018 7
CONTRACTOR
UPFRONT
ConstructSafe programme roll out ConstructSafe claims to have “experienced incredible results” since its Tier 1 Foundation test launched in 2016. “With almost 60,000 assessments completed, it truly has become the health and safety industry standard for construction and now it’s time to launch the tiers for specialised trades, supervisors, management and professionals,” says its chief Jon Harper-Slade. Last month (June) ConstructSafe Assessments: Tier 5 Construction Client Project, Contract & Programme Managers; Tier 4 Managers; Tier 3 Supervisors; and Tier 2 Scaffolders, became available. From August 2 ConstructSafe Assessments: Tier 2 Plant Operators – Excavators; and Tier 2 Plant Operators – Rollers (both launching at the CCNZ Conference) will be available. “This is a genuine first for New Zealand,” says Harper-Slade. “ConstructSafe is providing consistent health and safety competency standards for the construction industry, right from the workforce on the ground, right up to the professionals who design and create structures.” The Tier 5 assessment for Project, Contract and Programme Managers aims to provide assurance to clients that these professionals have the skills required to identify and eliminate health and safety risks right from the outset of a project. Tier 4 is aimed at site managers and multi-site manager and site superintendents where competency is focused on the importance of leading and influencing others safely. Tier 3 is designed for supervisors of small construction teams, also known as Leading Hands or Coalface Leaders. “This framework is based on knowledge of competency
More on PPE I heard some months ago about Dave Price and his discussions re PPE. I too am totally opposed to a blanket rule cover across the board on PPE being forced on people when it is not necessary in relation to the task you are doing, such as asking workers to wear long longs, gloves and safety glasses (and hard hats) when doing traffic control. I personally would not encourage people into the industry under these circumstances. I am for providing the necessary safety gear required, but it should be up to the individual to use common sense and wear the necessary items in relation to the task they are doing. The minimum requirement should always be hi-viz and safety boots, of course. I also want to know why some companies do not accept the NZS/AUS safety approved orange bump caps? These are lighter on the neck, provide better visibility, and are generally more comfortable to wear. Regards, Bevan Moore 8 www.contractormag.co.nz
verification standards, technical health and safety and the necessary skills in leadership and communication to keep their teams safe. “Tier 2 are tests created for specialised trades and identifies critical risks and controls for each specific sector. These tests are delivered in the same online format as all the others and can include in-field assessments. “In-field assessments for specialised trades are practical verifications that will provide a true picture of how work is done,” says Jon. Development of Tier 2 and Tier 5 are ongoing and eventually ConstructSafe will launch assessments for all specialised trades and professionals, he adds. Tier 2 Scaffolders launches on 15 June, then Plant Operators (Rollers & Excavators) will launch at the CCNZ Conference in Hamilton next month.
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CONTRACTOR
UPFRONT
Fletcher Construction taken to task over accident Following a WorkSafe investigation of a work accident, Fletcher Construction was found to have failed under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 to ensure, so far as was reasonably practicable, the health and safety of a worker. WorkSafe and Fletcher Construction agreed to an ‘enforceable undertaking’ under the Act 2015, which is a tool that is increasingly being used, in appropriate cases, as an alternative to prosecution, which includes the company making a “Safety in Temporary Works Design” presentation at the CCNZ conference this year. The accident happened in May 2016 when a worker was injured by a temporary wall which collapsed following a high-rain event. The worker was working in a two metre deep hole where temporary concrete blocks were being used as a retaining wall. Water was being pumped out of the hole following heavy rainfall. The worker was attaching plywood to the blocks to stop aggregate being washed under the temporary concrete block wall when the concrete blocks started to shift. He was unable to get far enough away before he was caught under the falling blocks and plywood. The victim sustained multiple fractures to his right lower leg. The incident required him to take eight months off work as a result of his injuries. "This is not an opportunity for Fletcher Construction to escape its corporate responsibility for the health and safety of a worker,” says WorkSafe deputy general manager, Investigations and Specialist Services Simon Humphries. “It’s a legally binding agreement that requires them to complete a number of commitments, which will benefit health and safety in the wider construction industry. “We have a dedicated team monitoring compliance with the enforceable undertaking and ensuring that Fletcher follows through on its promises.”
Hawaiian light rail project flounders A planned $9.5 billion metro-light rail transit project in Honolulu in Hawaii is proving one of the most expensive per capita in the United States. The project was started more than a decade ago but is still less than halfway completed and facing a budget shortfall of up to US$3 billion, according to media sources The proposed 32-kilometer route stretches from suburbs west of Honolulu into downtown and stops short of Waikiki. The fast-growing western suburbs have only one very congested road route to downtown Honolulu, with congestion getting worse. City and rail officials say lawsuits have delayed the project, driving up the price because they couldn’t execute new contracts in 2012, when construction costs started rising. Cost estimates could increase further as the rail project heads into Honolulu’s urban core, where utility lines must be relocated and where crews unearthed bone fragments indicating construction could disrupt Hawaiian burial grounds. 10 www.contractormag.co.nz
Under the enforceable undertaking, Fletcher Construction committed to initiatives including: Providing amends in the form of payment to the victim, and professional development opportunities in addition to ACC top-up; developing a new temporary works procedure for workers, including visual aids and training; arranging for an external consultant to audit the use of the temporary works procedure to verify ongoing effectiveness; assisting in the development of programmes with Site Safe regarding temporary works; presenting to Civil Contractors New Zealand conference focusing on safety in temporary works design; donating to the New Zealand Institute of Safety Management; setting up a health and safety forum with labour hire companies; publishing an article about health and safety and temporary works in an industry publication; developing a health and safety module for Mahurangi College; providing work experience for Mahurangi College students; running a community open day; and donating safety equipment to a local school. Fletcher Construction’s chief executive Michele Kernahan, says the division has committed an immense amount of time, and resource in recent years to improving its safety record. "Temporary works are a challenging area which require collaboration, consistent understanding and shared learning between designers, contractors and suppliers to create a safe work environment. "We welcome the opportunity that this undertaking provides for us to improve the safety of temporary works on our sites and hope the changes we make as a result will benefit practices across the construction industry.” Kernahan says there is currently no New Zealand standard for temporary works and the company will develop and implement its new temporary works procedure guided by the British Standard or Code of Practice (BS5975:2008).
SH1 Edendale realignment underway Fulton Hogan has been awarded the $13 million contract to build a bypass to take SH1 to the north-west side of Edendale, in Southland. Work started last month. “This is one of the largest highway projects seen in Southland for many years,” says NZTA project manager Jason Forbes. “The safety and efficiency of the current section of highway is affected by a tight 45 kph curve, three different speed limits, two rail lines that cross the highway to the Fonterra site and a steady stream of highway traffic past the local primary school. A lot of that traffic is heavy vehicles. “The lack of safe passing opportunities is an issue on SH1 between Gore and Invercargill, causing frustration for drivers, and sometimes encouraging ‘risky’ overtaking manoeuvres. “The new bypass will help address this problem with the introduction of a new north-bound passing lane.” Support from both Fonterra and the local community has been excellent, he adds. “Their input into the project design has been invaluable and helped with the final design of the bypass. It is important that the realignment meets the needs of the Edendale community and the local dairy factory.” Strong growth in dairy and expansions at the Fonterra site mean there are a lot more milk tanker movements on this busy section of SH1, he says. The new 2.6 kilometre long bypass will carry more than 5000 vehicles a day, and take about two years to build.
JULY 2018 11
CONTRACTOR
UPFRONT
South Island Agricultural Field Days 2019 The next South Island Agricultural Field Days (SIAFD) takes place March 27-29 next year in Kirwee, Canterbury, and organisers are already at work preparing to host the event. Exhibitors can now register on-line to reserve a site. This year the SIAFD organising committee has a new secretary and events co-ordinator, Tineka Johnstone, who says an online application form is now available on the SIAFD website, along with a prospectus that provides all the information exhibitors need to know regarding how the field days will be run, payment, advertising options, and award competitions. “We want potential exhibitors to start thinking about their options and register early. We are upgrading the website, so at present it looks a bit barebones, but the all necessary information is there.” A new-look website was due to be up and running by the end of June, she adds. Tineka says SIAFD is well-known for its machinery demonstrations and this will again be a major attraction. Exhibitors are encouraged to put their latest machines through their paces. SIAFD media liaison person Daniel Schat says a number of working bees have already been held to prepare the field days site for next year.
The SIAFD organising committee is laying gravel on the site's laneways to ensure wet weather will not disrupt the field days, thanks to local contractors.
“This will be the third field days we have had at the Kirwee site, and facilities are being improved. Rain in the lead up to the last field days in 2017 left the laneways muddy, which meant extra work to get them ready for the public,” he says. “This year we are using hard fill from the Central Plains Irrigation scheme to gravel the lanes so we will be ready if we do get wet weather. Thanks to Nathan Stewart and the Cresslands Contracting team, Downers, Porter Equipment, Digout Services, and Rooneys for their help in getting this done.” More information: www.siafd.co.nz
New GM WorkSafe high hazards and energy safety WorkSafe has appointed Tony Hetherington to the role of general manager for High Hazards and Energy Safety within the health and safety regulator’s operations group. Hetherington has a background as a high hazards regulator in the United Kingdom and starts here next month. “He has almost 30 years working with the UK’s Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and has worked with most major sectors of the UK’s high hazards industries developing intervention strategies,
leading accident and incident investigations and taking enforcement action,” says Phil Parkes, WorkSafe chief operating officer. “Given his experience, Tony has the ideal background to take us forward. He will be a tremendous asset to our organisation and will help us to build on the foundations laid over the past few years since WorkSafe was established.” Craig Marriott, who had been acting general manager since February this year, finished at the end of June, when his contract came to an end.
CONTRACTORS’ DIARY 2018 Date
Event & Venue
Contact
2018 17-20 Jul
AQA/IOQ Anniversary Conference, Claudelands Event Centre, Hamilton
bit.ly/AQA_IOQAnnConference
18-20 Jul
2018 Crane Conference, Grand Millennium Hotel, Auckland
www.cranes.org.nz/2018-crane-conference
1-4 Aug
Civil Contractors NZ Annual Conference 2018, Hamilton
www.ccnzconference.co.nz/
16-17 Aug
Building Nations Symposium, ANZ Viaduct Events Centre, Auckland
infrastructure.org.nz/BNS-2018
19-21 Sep
Water NZ Conference, Hamilton
www.waternzconference.org.nz/
11-13 Oct
Concrete NZ Conference 2018, Claudelands Event Centre, Hamilton
www.theconcreteconference.co.nz/
5–7 Nov
NZTA & NZIHT 19th Annual Conference, Marlborough Conv Cnt, Blenheim
bit.ly/NZTA_NZIHT_2018
27-30 Nov
Bauma China 2018, The Shanghai New International Expo Center (SNIEC)
www.bauma-china.com/
South Island Agricultural Field Days. Kirwee, Canterbury
www.siafd.co.nz
2019 27-29 Mar
Please send any contributions for Contractors’ Diary to alan@contrafed.co.nz, or phone 09 636 5712
12 www.contractormag.co.nz
CONTRACTOR
ON THE COVER
Prime Pump’s remote-controlled dredge a NZ first For more than 10 years, Prime Pump has been sourcing industry-leading pumps from around the globe – a strategy that has been paying off for national projects and local companies. AMONG THE RECENT, innovative, products Prime Pump has deployed is a remote controlled dredge designed and manufactured by Dragflow in Verona, Italy. Today, it’s helping transform a far-sighted Northland sanddredging operation. Situated near Wellsford, Tomarata Sand is part of the Semenoff Group and produces raw and washed sand. Ultimately, the existing quarry, which has been operating for 16 years and has a projected life of 20 to 30 years, will be an extension of the surrounding leisure area and wetlands. Right now, however, it’s playing an equally important role in the local economy, helping feed the huge demand for sand for golf courses, horse arenas, sports fields, and for concrete and landscaping material for the bourgeoning Auckland construction market. The DRP Dragflow dredge being used at Tomarata Sand is a New Zealand first, and has the potential to change the industry here. Its remote control means no company will ever need to face the very real risks that come with a person being out on the water. At the same time, the operator remains in complete control of the dredge from the safety of the banks. Glenn Powell, Civil and Mining sales engineer at Prime Pump, who over-saw the commissioning of the system by an Italian specialist, says while safety is hugely important, that’s not its only advantage. The Dragflow dredge cuts down on operating time and man-hours, and also eliminates the wear and tear that inevitably comes with conventional machines working long hours on the job. 14 www.contractormag.co.nz
Tomarata Sand had previously been using two, and sometimes three, long-reach excavators to do the same work that the dredge now does on its own in a fraction of the time. Currently the dredge is discharging 150 cubic metres an hour into the quarry’s bunded containment area, achieving as much in two working days as the two excavators combined accomplished in five. Glenn says the dredge’s award-winning and technologyrich system easily out-performs conventional sand extraction systems and provides pin-point accuracy when it comes to sand flow (monitored by electronic sensors).
...little effort is required to extract so much. This is combined with the ability to integrate with GPS to view precisely the area covered. And, despite all the impressive circuitry that accompanies it, he says it’s easy to use. What Glenn, who has years of experience in the civil industry, has been most impressed by is how little effort is required to extract so much. “It also requires just one person to operate it, and they don’t need to be hugely experienced.” Previously, he adds, expert operators would extract sand guided primarily “by feel” and would be limited by the length of their machine’s boom, both of which compromised production potential. Glenn says the Tomarata Sand Quarry manager Phillip Dodd is also very happy with the dredge’s performance.
Above left: Dragflow’s integrated control centre – complete with GPS/telemetry and power control systems. Above right: Manager Philip Dodd operating the remote controlled dredge from the safety of the bank.
“He says they find it remarkable how well it’s going.” Dragflow’s DRP technology is specifically designed to clean ponds and extract sand and gravel; and it can effortlessly handle a solid content up to 70 percent concentration by weight. The dredge’s output will also impress: The Dragflow system guarantees a production range of 30m³ - 2800m³ per hour depending on application, running off a large generator, or the options of hydraulic drive. The small floating dimensions are in stark contrast with an operating depth of up to 100 metres. Conversely, the limited draught means that working in shallow water is no problem at all. Because no application is the same, the dredge is also designed so that distance is not an obstacle. The maximum discharge is one kilometre from the dredging point and it’s designed for a
working depth of up to 35 metres below the waterline. Although it comes from sunny Italy, the Dragflow dredge has been manufactured to withstand the harshest conditions, which includes those in New Zealand. And with cleverly designed modular hulls, it’s easy to transport (the whole thing will easily fit in a 20 ft container). The dredge also comes with an impressive pedigree and Prime Pump’s commitment to service. Dragflow has specialised in the marine, mining and energy sectors since 1980 and Glenn says the durability and performance of their products stands out. “They’ve put a lot of time and commitment into optimising sustainable operations by achieving energy savings and reducing environmental impacts and overall costs.” l JULY 2018 15
We do hard things, the easy way. Established in the 1980s, Italian-designed Dragflow, are super heavy-duty submersible agitator pumps, that handle slurries with highly abrasive solids. At Prime Pump, for quarrying and mining we reckon it’s difficult to find better. When things get a bit rough, or there’s a real challenge, Dragflow can sort it. From pumping out clay and sand, to doing everything but dig the hole for you. (And, sometimes, even that.) The Dragflow team works constantly on technology that improves performance and helps meet the end users’ needs: Achieving energy savings, reducing environmental impact and cutting overall costs.
Call now 0800 482 747
|
info@primepump.co.nz
www.primepump.co.nz
CONTRACTOR
COMPANY PROFILE
Four decades on As Swale Earthmovers prepares to celebrate its 45th anniversary, Dave Swale looks back over his career and the development of his company – both the highs and the lows. By Mary Searle Bell.
Swale Earthmovers currently boasts a range of tip trucks and trailers, compaction roller, a tracked loader, and diggers from two to 14 tonnes, as well as lots of attachments.
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WAIKATO BOY Dave Swale left school on his 15th birthday – the academic life clearly was not for him – and got a job on a dairy farm. A few years later, when he was 18, he got a job with JD Daltons at Te Poi, a rural village not far from Matamata. There, John (known also as JD) taught the eager teenager how to drive a range of heavy machinery for farm work, from bulldozers to draglines to tip trucks. “That company is still going,” he says. “It’s now Daltons Landscape Supplies.” While working for Daltons, Dave met Mark Belami who owned a Fordson tractor with a side mounted digger, and Dave’s education continued as he learnt more skills driving for Mark during the weekends. His range broadened further when he got a job driving hedge cutters.
“I spent two-and-a-half years cutting hedges around Matamata for Gordon Stanley,” Dave told Contractor. “In the winter time we would also trim vegetation along forest tracks and haul roads in Tokoroa for Forest Products. Sometimes it was very scary work… there was no OSH back in those days!” The official start for DW Swale (now Swale Earthmovers) came in July 1973 when Dave was offered a contract with the drainage department of the Ministry of Works (MOW), working on ‘spaghetti junction’ on the Auckland Motorway, between Hobson Street and Western Springs. “I bought a brand new Ford 5000 and track weld backhoe and loader for $12,500 and with it worked for the MOW for seven years, until they were disbanded in early 1980.” When the MOW contract ended, Dave
and his wife Bev bought a small dairy farm in Woodhill, near Helensville in northwest Auckland. Bev milked cows while Dave carried on contracting around the Auckland region. “I built up my client base, and added a six tonne Komatsu excavator, a tip truck and a small dozer to my fleet – I always loved dozers,” he adds. “By 1983, I had four excavators, bulldozers, scoops, two trucks and tip trailers, and between eight and 10 people working for me from the farm at Woodhill. “The biggest job we did in the 80s was to complete the site works for the Ranfurly Retirement Village in Epsom, in central Auckland. In a six-month period, we excavated some 8000 cubic metres of earth. “Our biggest low came when we got caught up in the share market crash in the late 80s
and lost $90,000 to the yuppies. I had to sell most of my equipment and cut down to just two operators, however we managed to carry on through the hard times.” In the subsequent three decades, Swale Earthmovers has built itself back up. It now offers a wide range of contracting services, as well as materials and equipment. The company currently boasts a range of tip trucks and trailers, compaction roller, a tracked loader, and diggers from two to 14 tonnes, as well as lots of attachments. When he wasn’t working on his machines, Dave raced stock cars for many years. He later switched to classic cars and, with a few friends, founded the Kaipara Classic Car Club. The KCCC holds regular burnout competitions to give young and old alike a place to burn rubber. He also played rugby for the Helensville
The official start for DW Swale (now Swale Earthmovers) came in July 1973 when Dave (top left), was offered a contract with the drainage department of the Ministry of Works. Top right: Looking over the stop bank to the flooded Kaipara River. Swale Earthmovers won a tender for Stage 1 of the Parakai Stopbank Upgrade in 2010. Above: When he wasn’t working on his machines, Dave raced stock cars for many years.
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Above: Stage 1 of the Parakai Stopbank Upgrade in 2010. This involved building up the existing 820-metre-long stopbank along the Kaipara River to a height 1.7 metres above the high tide mark and widening it to three metres across the top.
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Raging Bulls for 25 years (and was a founding member of the Bulls team). In July this year, Swale Earthmovers will celebrate its 45th anniversary, and Dave reflects on a few of the more memorable projects over this time, and there’ve been a few. “We helped build the hydro slides at Parakai Springs [a natural hot springs water park some 40 mins from central Auckland], placing the foundation poles. It was an interesting and unusual job as it was only the second waterslide in the country, and the first to be built in the North Island.” Dave says he particularly enjoys pole work and pile driving, making this job one of his favourites. “We had to drive foundation poles some 10 metres into the ground, then pour a concrete pad on top before erecting a series of poles, up to 10 metres high, and constructing the slide on top.”
Before the various Auckland councils merged, Swale Earthmovers was involved in many projects for the Rodney District Council in northwest Auckland. The firm oversaw stage one of the Helensville riverside walkway, which entailed earthworks and the construction of a boardwalk along the Kaipara river. They also worked on the Molly Green Reserve, Seddon Fields, Te Kaurerei parking area and Makiri Street Reserve. “We won a tender for Stage 1 of the Parakai Stopbank Upgrade in 2010. This involved building up the existing 820-metre-long stopbank along the Kaipara River to a height 1.7 metres above the high tide mark and widening it to three metres across the top. “In the same year we were also awarded the Stanmore Bay wetlands restoration project (now Rata Reserve). “This involved catching as many skinks as possible and housing them, relocating hundreds of eels and transforming a Rapu
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Clockwise from top left: In 2014, Swales tackled Stage 2 of the Parakai Stopbank Upgrade; Swale Earthmovers helped build the hydro slides at Parakai Springs, placing the foundation poles; Pile driving at Parakai Springs.
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swamp and dumping ground into a multifunction park-like area. “We transformed the stormwater catchment with ponds and islands for wildlife, and constructed boardwalks for the public to access the adjoining college, sportsground, park and beach. “This was a job done in very difficult conditions with above average rainfall, but
we got there. “We received great praise from the council for our work, which was very satisfying.” In 2014, Swales tackled Stage 2 of the Parakai Stopbank Upgrade. Mangroves, pampas grass, old car tyres, pushbikes and other detritus had to go before the team could start forming the 360-metre-long extension to the stopbank. “Someone emailed us a photo of how well the bank worked during a big flood last year,” says Dave. “It’s good to know we helped to prevent Parakai flooding.” These days, the council work has given way to private contracts, and the firm offers a turnkey service. They are kept busy constructing small subdivisions, preparing house sites, forming driveways, drilling, driving and digging foundations, trenching and drainage work, building roads – farm roads particularly, drain cleaning, and constructing stock water dams and large duck ponds. Dave’s business philosophy is straight forward: “Never give up”, although he does acknowledge that simply having a mortgage helps to get you out of bed early in the morning! “I have to credit my staff, both past and present, who have stood behind me, especially when times were tough, and helped keep my company going.”
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Remembering the
Battle of the River Plate Richard Silcock rekindles naval history and the challenges encountered by the design and construction teams in turning an unstable Auckland cliff into a commendable memorial and lookout.
Below: Anniversary dedication and opening of the memorial. Next year marks the 80th anniversary of a significant WW2 naval battle – the Battle of the River Plate – in which three allied cruisers took on the might of the heavily armed German battleship, the Admiral Graf Spee off the coast of South America. Opposite page: Pouring concrete for one of the piles. Utilising a tied-back, 110-metre palisade wall along the northeastern section of the site and a continuous concrete capping beam structure was seen as the only appropriate solution for retaining the site and providing certainty of the structure over a 100-year design life expectancy.
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DEVELOPMENT OF ACHILLES MEMORIAL in Auckland’s St Heliers Bay required geotechnical expertise, significant piling, a large palisade wall, a timber boardwalk, a cantilevered viewing platform, a stone wall, flagpole, hand-railing and landscaping – all in just under nine weeks! Next year marks the 80th anniversary of a significant WW2 naval battle – the Battle of the River Plate(1) in which three allied cruisers took on the might of the heavily armed German battleship, the Admiral Graf Spee off the coast of South America. Although no match for the German ship, and despite the allied ships sustaining considerable damage they chased the battleship into the neutral port at Montevideo in Uruguay. Thought to be faced with an armada of allied ships and damaged herself, the Graf Spee was several days later sailed out of the harbour and scuttled in the River Plate estuary – a victory and moral boost for the allies. During the battle, the Leander-class light cruiser of the NZ Navy(2), HMNZS Achilles, was directly hit by enemy fire, resulting in the loss of four lives and a number wounded, including the Captain. In 1940, to mark this country’s prominence
in the battle, a headland east of St Heliers Bay in Auckland was named Achilles Point as it resembled the bow of a ship. A reserve was established and a small memorial erected. In 2008, a 285-metre palisade wall (one of the longest in the country) was constructed at a cost of $5 million by Brian Perry Civil (BPC) to arrest subsidence of reserve land on the cliff side, adjacent to and towards the western end of the road leading to the site. To mark the 70th anniversary of the historic event, the Auckland City Council embarked on a project to construct a more fitting memorial and lookout on the site. A concept design by architects, the Isthmus Group, for a boardwalk, viewing platform and landscaping was accepted by the council and Tonkin and Taylor (T and T) were appointed structural design and geotechnical consultants. BPC was appointed construction engineers (3). In addition, the Isthmus Group was appointed to provide environmental and landscaping design, Greenscene – arborist services, Transfield – electrical design, and Holmes Consulting – construction peer review, along with numerous other subcontractors. The eroding cliff face at the headland and the confined shape of the site provided the design and construction teams with a unique set of challenges. The design and construction also had to be fast-tracked, as there was just under nine weeks before the actual anniversary on December 12, 2009. BPC, awarded the contract on Friday October 9, began work the following Monday with the design team working in tandem. Due to the nature of the cliff face and general instability, considerable geotechnical work was carried out to establish soil and rock composition (largely weak sandstone and mudstone) and to ‘map’ the roots of protected pohutukawa trees which are a feature of the site (4). “The concept design for the memorial lookout called for robust structural input, especially in relation to the viewing platform and in
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addressing the erosion of the cliff,” says Geoff Radley, a senior structural design engineer with T and T. “Utilising a tied-back, 110-metre palisade wall along the north-eastern section of the site and a continuous concrete capping beam structure was seen as the only appropriate solution for retaining the site and providing certainty of the structure over a 100-year design life expectancy. “By tying the cantilevered viewing platform to the palisade wall and supporting it on two drilled piles near the edge of the cliff provided for future cliff regression. “It was also the least obstructive solution with the piling and substructure hidden beneath the boardwalk and viewing platform deck,” he says. Within several days of construction work commencing, a temporary pile-drilling platform was built and concrete piles were driven to a depth of between 15 and 22 metres. “The piles were 600–750mm in diameter with 1.5 metre centres and were connected with the concrete capping beam, which was 26 www.contractormag.co.nz
anchored into rock using inclined multi-strand anchors,” says Matt Findlay, who was BPC’s operations manager during the construction. “Due to the narrowness of the reserve, the ground anchors were inclined 45-50 degrees to the horizontal to avoid drilling under private property. “A tied bulkhead design was used where the two palisade walls on the western and north-eastern sides were tied together using high tensile steel rods to provide further lateral stability.” To overcome the problem with the trees and avoid damaging them, Greenscene was able to dig drenches to expose the tree roots using the ‘mapped’ plans to locate them. Matt says that to avoid the roots a number of the pile positions had to be revised and changes made to pile diameters. “We also had to alter the spacing and capping beam level to avoid them. This in turn required some amendments to the boardwalk design,” he says. The design and construction of the cantilevered and sloping viewing platform,
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connection was also incorporated to allow for the future removal of the outer section should the cliff erode in the future. “Logistics and careful planning played an important part in getting the project completed on time,” he says. “For instance, the fabricated steel framework for the viewing platform was assembled offsite, as this allowed the concrete and timberwork to progress unhindered.” A commemorative plaque set in a basalt stone wall, a naval flag pole, wave-shaped handrails, seating and attractive landscaping completed the project. In addition and in recognition of the site being once a Maori pa site, three totara po were specially carved and erected on the boardwalk. “Health and safety was also given prominence in all aspects of the construction,”
th
some 32-metres above sea level and jutting out seven-metres from the cliff was driven by the limited number of foundation options applicable to the site. Following exploratory boreholes being drilled to ascertain stability, two pile foundations were seen as the most appropriate solution as it allowed for the viewing platform to be cantilevered out past the outer-most pile. Then after the construction of a 12-tonne, reinforced steel frame it was craned into position and aligned with the reinforced concrete pile caps to form the substructure for the platform. “This connection of the capping beams and the frame was complex due to the geometry of the platform slope,” says Matt. “It required careful manoeuvring before it could be bolted into position. A bolted, spliced
k in
Above left: An aerial view of the completed Achilles Memorial and Lookout. Above right: The view towards Rangitoto – a commemorative plaque set in a basalt stone wall, a naval flag pole, wave-shaped handrails, seating and attractive landscaping – completed the project.
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Above: Piles and timber framing for the boardwalk under construction. Above right: Crane lifting the 12-tonne reinforced steel framework for the viewing platform across Cliff Road to the site.
says Ron Caesar, who was BCP’s site manager for the project. “Due to the number of people on site we instituted weekly meetings to ensure all work was appropriately planned and safety measures initiated.” It was only due to the fast-tracking of the design, excellent planning, obtaining rapid resource approvals and break-neck construction that the project was completed on time. Such was the tightness of the time-frame, some finishing details were still being completed a few hours prior to the dawn blessing, official opening and dedication ceremony. “All those engaged in the project were effective in developing practical solutions to often complex problems as the project progressed,” says Matt. “As could be expected, challenges arose from the site conditions. “There was also a high level of workmanship displayed by our suppliers despite the tight time-frames. For example, George Grant Engineering who provided the fabricated steel structure and KB Construction who did the timberwork for the decking both did an excellent job.” In the spirit of Christmas, Auckland’s mayor
1. T he Battle of the River Plate (Rio de la Plata) took place between December 12 and 17 1939 in the South Atlantic, near the expansive river delta separating Uruguay and Argentina. 2. H MNZS Achilles was on loan from the Royal Navy. Up until 1941 the NZ Navy operated as a division of the RN with senior officers seconded from it, however most of the crew were New Zealanders.
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at the time, Hon John Banks, delivered platters of food to the construction team in recognition of their hard work and the dedication they had shown – often working long hours in unfavourable weather to get the project completed on time. The complexity of the project was recognised at the annual INGENIUM Awards, with the memorial gaining an award for council projects under $2 million. It also won an ACENZ merit award and was nominated for a CCNZ Award. The completed memorial commands an unequalled view of the Waitemata Harbour, Rangitoto and the Hauraki Gulf and has proven popular as a vantage point with Aucklanders and visitors alike – a reflection on the success of the project and what it stands for. “Like the naval battle, where there was dedication and a willingness to tackle insurmountable odds, all parties involved in the project showed a willingness to bring the project to completion, on time, to budget ($1.75 million) and to an extremely high standard,” says Markus Pillay, Auckland Council’s principal project engineer at the time. “To quote the motto of the ship’s company: “Fortiter in Re – Firmness in doing what is to be done; an unflinching resolution to persevere to the end.”
3. Brian Perry Civil (a construction division of Fletcher Construction) was appointed following a tendering process and because they had had previously been involved with the site to stabilise erosion in 2008. 4. T he dual level of the boardwalk was specially designed to avoid removal of the pohutukawa roots.
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An Irish encounter
The official opening of Combilift’s new global headquarters and manufacturing facility in Monaghan, Ireland, was on an epic scale by our country’s standards. Ruth Le Pla was flown to Ireland to check it out. THE COUNTRY TOWN of Monaghan is a 17hour flight to Dubai, another eight hours to Dublin Airport and a short-hop 90-minute drive through a spring green landscape for a welcome rest. Stray just a short distance up the road in the other direction, and you slip over the invisible border to County Armagh in Northern Ireland. County Monaghan flies under the typical tourist radar. It is known for its lakes, lacemaking and farmer-poet Patrick Kavanagh whose images lined the walls in the hotel where I stayed and whose initials formed the
name of the bar serving the ubiquitous Irish Guinness. The small town of Monaghan is home to Combilift. The firm manufactures heavy lifting equipment and provides material handling solutions. It has built its business on the oxymoronic concept of mass producing customised product. Co-founder and managing director Martin McVicar says this is the “new frontier”. It’s a way to tailor products so they’re exactly what customers want, and for Combilift to continually lift its game by learning as it
Above: The Combi-MG Mobile Gantry is designed for handling and conveying large loads typical of the civil construction, structural steel, precast concrete, shipping, wind turbine and aerospace sectors. Opposite page, far left: Part of the new 46,500 square metre global headquarters. Left: MD Martin McVicar says Combilift has built its business on mass customisation. JULY 2018 31
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Above: Combilift’s Combi-SC straddle carriers are designed to handle containers, and long and over-sized loads.
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works hand-in-glove with customers. Built at a cost of €50 million (around $83.8 million), Combilift’s new 46,500 square metre global headquarters and manufacturing facility is what has brought me across the world. I’m one of 2500 international visitors attending a series of official opening events. Irish Prime Minister (An Taoiseach) Leo Varadkar is one of many dignitaries presiding over the various events that culminate in evenings of prime beef, Irish coffee and flamboyant Irish dancers stamping and leaping high up on the tables amongst the guests. Such is Combilift’s prominence in the town
that an open day just for locals reportedly drew in a further 3400 people to see for themselves what all the talk was about. Perhaps that shouldn’t come as a surprise. Now celebrating its 20th anniversary, Combilift has grown from a kick-start staff of three. Its current workforce is now 550, and the new facilities and expansion mode mean a further 200 new jobs are on the cards in the next three years. All of this paves the way for production to double in the next five years. The new purposebuilt factory is set on a 100-acre site allowing room for further expansion when required.
Demonstrated at the opening of the manufacturing facility in Monaghan, Ireland: the newlylaunched Combilift Slipsheet can load a 40 foot container in six minutes.
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Scott and Dave Comber represent Combilift in New Zealand.
It takes us three hours to tour the facilities, stopping for demonstrations and explanations of a wide range of heavy load handling machinery, multi-directional powered forklifts and space-saving warehouse products. The facility means Combilift’s different divisions now all operate in one building. Four 90 metre moving assembly lines produce one finished truck every 15 minutes. There are 60 welding bays, two plasma cutting machines, three paint lines and three automatic shot blasters to cater for different products of different sizes. Some 12,000 pallet locations ensure ample storage space for parts and components. There’s a 50-seat cinema training room, 5000m2 of office space and a dedicated Research and Development and Testing Centre. (Combilift reinjects seven percent of its annual turnover back into R&D.) The company dispatches more than 50 truckloads of finished products from the factory each week. It currently exports 98 percent of its products to 85 countries through an international dealer network.
The Kiwi connection Father and son team Dave and Scott Comber represent Combilift in our country with a strong focus on the company’s straddle carriers and mobile gantries. Dave, who has been in his role since 2013, says clients include steel specialist Eastbridge, building construction company Calder Stewart, Hastings’ Tomoana Warehousing and Mainfreight. Napier-based Eastbridge operates two Combilift mobile gantries with a combined lift of 70 tonne. Dave says Eastbridge, which specialises in the supply of steel bridging, towers, poles and heavy steel fabrication, typically uses the 34 www.contractormag.co.nz
mobile gantries singly or in tandem for shifting bridge beams. In Milton, just south of Dunedin, Calder Stewart operates a Combilift standard straddle carrier SC3 for loading its fabricated structural steel onto trucks. Bought in 2017 and assembled in April this year, the carrier helps lift workforce productivity and streamlines processes. “Previously, Calder Stewart was having to put one of its truck trailers into its factory,” says Dave. “It would have been a lengthy process to load steel pieceby-piece, tying up the trailer for a whole day. “Now the load is assembled in the same footprint as a truck trailer. When the trailer becomes available they pick up the whole load, so the trailer only needs to be on site for about an hour.” Dave says Combilift’s new facilities in Ireland will ultimately speed up delivery of equipment for customers in our country. Current lead times are 28 weeks for manufacturing and eight weeks shipping. He adds; there’s a general misconception in the contracting and road transport industries that, because these machines are quite large and relatively new to New Zealand, they are a lot more expensive than what they are. “That constantly surprises me. I’ve had a report that one of my customers told a competitor that a standard straddle would cost $1 million. They’re about half that price. So, it surprises me people would believe that. “Our equipment is an economic alternative way to handle big heavy loads. “People are often surprised about the solutions we can come up with for them by customising the equipment. The price for a mobile gantry starts at around €160,000 – about $NZ268,000 – Dave adds. “But mass customisation means I don’t think we’ve ever made two units the same.”
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Building a new city precinct Mary Searle Bell looks at a redevelopment project of an old area of the Queen city that started in 2011 and won’t be completed until 2030.
Below: When Wynyard Quarter is fully developed in 2030, it will be home to around 3000 residents as well as 25,000 workers.
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WYNYARD QUARTER on Auckland’s waterfront has been transformed over recent years. The industrial and marine heritage of this part of the city is now rubbing shoulders with many and varied restaurants, office blocks and upscale apartments and townhouses, as well as the other trappings of inner city life. This inner city area had been progressively developed by the Auckland Harbour Board to provide additional berthage capacity and flat land for port related activities. From the 1930’s it started to be used for bulk petro-chemical storage, leading to the area becoming known as the Tank Farm. Changes to the way fuel was supplied to Auckland meant much of the land was no longer required for fuel storage, freeing it up for revitalisation. In 2005, a vision was developed to transform the area in stages over 25 years. In August 2011, stage one opened made
up of $120 million of capital projects. When Wynyard Quarter is fully developed in 2030, it will be home to around 3000 residents as well as 25,000 workers. Along with the new buildings, the streets are getting a facelift. But it isn’t just what is on the surface that counts. Much of the work is happening below ground. New piping and landscape design improve the stormwater before it flows into the harbour, and the wastewater network is getting an upgrade so that it can support the increased population forecast for the area. Watercare awarded the construction of a new $16 million wastewater pump station and rising main under separate contracts: the pump station to Fulton Hogan and the rising main to Hawkins (now Downer). Work on the rising main began along with street upgrades in early 2015, and on the pump station in December 2016. The project was due
to finish at the end of May 2018. Peter Kukulsky, project engineer at Watercare, says the 800,000 litre tank has been constructed using the secant piling method. This helped combat the difficulties posed by high ground water levels. “Sixty two interlocking male and female piles were drilled down to bedrock 20 metres below the ground level. Concrete for the piles was poured progressively – 45MPa for male and 8Mpa for female piles,” he explains. “A ring beam was poured to connect the piles at the top. Earth was then excavated out from within the piles.” Peter says the total volume of excavated earth from the tank area was approximately 1200 cubic metres, plus a further 400 cubic metres from the ancillary chambers area (valve, flowmeter and odour control unit chambers). “The soil within the site is contaminated (mainly hydrocarbons) – the legacy of the
previous occupants. This meant any earth being carted off site had to be taken to special waste disposal site and additional personal protective equipment had to be worn by workers when handling the soil. “We also installed a sprinkler system around the entire site perimeter to prevent any odours leaving the site.” A 200mm layer of shotcrete was applied on the tank walls in three stages as the excavation progressed. Then a two-metrethick base was constructed to ensure the structure doesn’t float. Peter says, to install the inlet pipe for the tank, the contractor had to make an opening through the secant piles and thrust a steel casing towards the inlet manhole in Pakenham Street. “Ground water was expected, however, the inflow was 10 times higher than expected and completely flooded the tank. It took two months to stop the ingress and pump the water down. “Fulton Hogan came up with the method of injecting an inert chemical compound around
Above: A 200mm layer of shotcrete was applied on the tank walls in three stages as the excavation progressed. Then a two-metre-thick base was constructed to ensure the structure doesn’t float.
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the outside of the structure to seal it.” Peter says an activated carbon odour control unit, housed in underground chamber, will treat any odours from the pump station. Above ground, a control building has been constructed – its 10.5-metre-high curved walls reflect the nearby silo stacks. It sits in what will be landscaped into a small neighbourhood park. This small ‘pocket park’ will be constructed by Auckland Transport once the pump station project is complete. The pump station pipework connects onto a 720 metre long rising main installed by Downer under three separate contracts. The rising main discharges into the Orakei Main Sewer on Victoria Street West. Within the Wynyard Quarter itself, the new pipeline has been laid by open trenching in ground that had been stabilised by IMS (In-situ Mass Stabilisation). Pieter Maarschalk, who was project manager with Watercare until recently, explains that IMS is a technique where cement is mixed into the ground using specialised machinery to create, in effect, a weak concrete that enables trenching to be done in poor quality ground that would otherwise need sheet piling or similar for support. “The ‘poor quality’ here was due to it being reclaimed land with a very high and tidally-influenced water table,” he says. “There were, nevertheless, a couple of places within Wynyard Quarter where IMS did not work particularly well, due either to proximity to existing services – where it was physically impossible to get the mixing head in –
or where the trench got down into the underlying Puketoka formation, which the equipment could not penetrate. “In two sections this was overcome by sheetpiling and in another a short timber heading was driven under existing services.” Outside Wynyard Quarter, the section in Halsey Street, between Fanshawe and Victoria Streets, was laid by open trenching. Pieter says the main challenge here was traffic management. For the crossing of Victoria Street West, to minimise the road width closed by excavation at any one time, an oversize (525mm) duct of concrete pipes was laid during a DecemberJanuary low traffic period and the polyethylene service pipe pulled in afterwards. The same method was attempted to cross Fanshawe Street. Pieter says it was successful for part of the way under the eastbound lanes but could not be used under the west-bound lanes due to traffic management considerations. “Due to underground obstructions such as an old sea wall under the eastbound lanes, in one part it turned out to be more practicable to lay the PE pipe by direct trenching rather than in a concrete duct. “Under the westbound lanes, where the road could not be even partially closed, a 1300mm concrete sleeve was installed by pipe-jacking and the PE pipe laid inside. “To support the PE pipe and achieve the required grade, a 525mm uPVC duct was first secured inside the 1300mm pipe, and then the PE pipe was pulled in.”
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An additional challenge under Fanshawe Street was to safely tunnel under two 220kV cable clusters belonging to Transpower. Traffic management was a significant challenge to this project. Within the Wynyard Quarter, the pipeline was laid as part of road upgrade projects and the roads were completely closed. “In Halsey Street south of Fanshawe, traffic restrictions had to be imposed for several months. Prior to this, extensive traffic modelling was carried out, against the backdrop of other projects going on at the time, to find a solution that would be least disruptive to local businesses and commuters. “The plan included temporary changes to some bus routes,” explains Pieter. “Commuters adapted, but it did make life difficult for the businesses and we were grateful for their patience and understanding. “We were also grateful for the ongoing support and cooperation from Auckland Transport’s traffic operations and AT Metro.” Peter credits the project’s success to having really good teams from Fulton Hogan and Downer. He also says the collaboration between the three council-owned organisations involved – Watercare, Panuku Development Auckland, and Auckland Transport – has resulted in an; “unusual and cool building which will enhance the surrounding urban environment”. “People using the park will quite likely not even realise that there is an underground wastewater pump station under their feet.”
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JULY 2018 39
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CONTRACTOR
CRANE SAFETY
Age awareness around lifting gear To ensure safe practice it is crucial that lifting gear users are fully aware of issues surrounding design working period and maintenance responsibilities, writes Ben Dobbs, Technical manager at the UK-based Lifting Equipment Engineers Association (LEEA).
Ben Dobbs, Technical manager at Lifting Equipment Engineers Association.
42 www.contractormag.co.nz
THE SAD LITANY of in-service failure of cranes and other lifting gear has many causes, from criminal negligence downwards. One recurrent, and to the uninitiated rather baffling, theme is the failure of equipment that appears to be operating well within its ‘safe working load’ and ‘design life’. Such incidents are seen both in ageing and in relatively new equipment, and suggest that those responsible for safe maintenance and operation do not always fully understand the ‘life cycle’ of the crane and its implications for safety. To concentrate directors’ minds it is worth noting that recent crane-related fatalities have resulted in multi-million pound fines, corporate failure, disbarment from being a director and in some cases jail sentences. Age-related failures are entirely avoidable provided everyone in the chain of responsibility performs their role, and understands that unlike their Victorian forebears, the modern finely engineered crane does not necessarily last forever – you have to look after them. Part of the problem may be that the simple concepts of ‘design life’ and ‘safe working load’ are not really valid in modern practice. The whole approach to the design of cranes has changed in relatively recent times. Greater understanding, combined with the ability of computer aided engineering to enable a less conservative evaluation of stress and strain calculation, has enabled engineers to design close to the ‘limit state’, not just in terms of static loads but in terms of cyclical or fatigue loading, and in the effects of wear and tear. That has yielded great benefits in terms of initial cost, ease of transport and assembly, and indeed the giant tower cranes seen on construction sites would not have been possible under the old design approach. However, this also means that cranes are designed, and classified, for particular patterns of duty. Structures are designed for a lifetime measured not in calendar years but in working cycles (and mechanisms similarly for a life in running hours). Working cycles are related to the load spectrum – the average load handled by comparison with the nominal rated load. So, for example, a crane rated at 10 tonnes and intended to perform occasional maintenance tasks will be designed differently, and have different vulnerabilities, from a 10 tonne crane intended for continual use on a production line. If the inspection, maintenance and use of the crane takes due account of what is now a quite complicated specification – not a ‘design life’ but a ‘Design Working Period’ (DWP) – all should be well, but there is little margin for error. This does not just apply to structures – there are similar considerations around motors, brakes, wire ropes and other elements. Various components and assemblies may have DWPs, which are not the same as that of the crane as a whole.
It is easy to see how things can go wrong The intended usage may have been inadequately defined when it was bought or hired; usage may change, perhaps
JULY 2018 43
CONTRACTOR
CRANE SAFETY
because production increases; it may be used for purposes it wasn’t intended for. It becomes very important to maintain a history of usage and to relate that to the design parameters: that may not be easy, for example with a hired crane, or when a new owner takes over a site or factory with cranes already installed. It isn’t enough to depend on the periodic inspections and examinations specified under LOLER (Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations) – incipient failure, whether in structural members or for example in wire rope cores, may not be readily visible. BS ISO 12482 describes a method of monitoring the actual duty of bridge and gantry cranes relating it to the original duty envisaged in the classification. That then enables the prediction of when design limits are being approached and, in turn, the timely targeting of special inspections, maintenance and refurbishment. The philosophy of BS ISO 12482 should apply to all cranes.
The duty holder – where does responsibility lie? In the first instance, of course, with the ‘duty holder’, but there are many other parties that also carry responsibility. Nor does appointing a duty holder let the company’s owners and directors off the hook. Safety inevitably carries commercial costs, although nothing like the costs of a fatal accident. Even minor injury or near misses can also be expensive, depending on the extent of the negligence. The company owners are responsible for ensuring that the financial and other resources, and the ‘corporate culture’, required for safe operation are in place. Formally, the duty holder’s responsibilities include: • Ensuring that cranes brought in (bought or hired) are fit for purpose; 44 www.contractormag.co.nz
•C reating a risk assessment using manufacturer’s data, environmental details, usage information to identify critical or vulnerable components and determine maintenance and inspection intervals; •E nsuring that cranes are maintained, inspected and thoroughly examined to ensure they are safe to use; •E nsuring that they are not unduly susceptible to foreseeable failure modes; •K eeping records of crane use, maintenance, inspections, repairs, modifications, exceptional events and so on so that the history of the crane and thus its remaining safe life can be determined. The duty holder also has to keep and supply information required so that anyone modifying or upgrading the crane can calculate a revised DWP; •E nsuring that cranes are overhauled or replaced before they reach their DWP. Unless the company is actually a crane specialist itself, the duty holder will probably not have the required level of knowledge to carry out all of the above adequately and so will delegate to others competent for the required task. But the duty holder is responsible for ensuring that the necessary level of competence is possessed. It shouldn’t really need stating, but the duty holder is of course responsible for ensuring that any remedial actions that are flagged up – whether they be special inspections, parts replacements, changes in usage – are fully and promptly acted upon.
Examiners, inspectors and maintenance staff The ‘thorough examination’ by a ‘competent person’ is carried out in accordance with statutory requirements. Routine inspections of critical features may be carried out in-house, perhaps by maintenance staff, to a frequency determined by
risk assessment – which they may have been responsible for creating. In accordance with statutory requirements a competent person will take into account the age of the crane using actual or estimated information on the DWP expended to decide what actions to take or recommend, from deeper inspections to partial or complete disassembly, or precautionary replacement of parts. But the duty holder needs to realise that, unless specifically contracted for, the competent person isn’t responsible for assessing how much of the DWP the crane or its components have remaining. Obviously, records of inspections, actions and recommendations need to be kept and passed back to the duty holder. Planned and preventative maintenance may reset the DWP clock for particular components or assemblies.
Manufacturers, modifiers and resellers Suppliers have the responsibility of providing all the information necessary for classification and assessing DWP. Modifiers are responsible for assessing and informing the duty holder of the remaining DWP.
Procurement Logically, purchasing should come at the head of the list. Those bringing in – whether buying, hiring, or letting a contract for crane services – have a responsibility for ensuring that the specifications they issue, and the bids they accept, properly reflect the likely usage of the crane, and that it will be able to perform safely under all foreseeable conditions of use, for the specified classification of crane duty, as determined by risk assessment. They must ensure that equipment meets, and is marked and documented for, all relevant safety requirements and standards. They also bear responsibility for ensuring the safety of bought-in spares and replacement parts, the competence of any contract maintenance or service firms, of contracted examiners, of trainers and so on. It is particularly important that procurement is not exposed
to undue financial pressures that might lead to the acquisition of equipment underspecified or unsuited to the task. This is ultimately the responsibility of the company’s owners and directors to ensure. • This article is written by a British-based writer and the regulations and rules in the article refer to the UK standards, Regulations and Rules. New Zealand compliance for cranes is based on the Pressure Equipment, Cranes, and Passenger Ropeway Regulations 1999 and the Approved Code of Practice 3rd Edition, 2009. These documents include the design, manufacture, supply, safe operation, maintenance and inspection of cranes. The Crane Association of New Zealand Crane Safety Manual version 3.2 is a ready resource that enables crane operators and dogmen to easily access relevant and current information that is directly linked to New Zealand Regulations and Rules.
The Lifting Equipment Engineers Association (LEEA) is established across the globe as the leading representative body for all those involved in the lifting industry worldwide. The equivalent here is the Lifting Equipment Engineers New Zealand Incorporated (LEENZ), which was formed in 1992 to adopt a common range of Standards for the New Zealand Industry and to promote the safe use of Lifting Equipment. LEENZ’s formulation was based on the principles of ‘Lifting Equipment Engineers Association’ (LEEA), and has at its disposal full resources of this United Kingdom based organisation. The LEENZ Code of Practice for the Safe Use of Lifting Equipment was written to cover all areas from legal requirements through to recommended usage, maintenance and repairs. LEENZ, in conjunction with the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA), has registered Unit Standards covering both inspection and proof testing of Lifting Equipment. Information on Unit Standards numbers 23448, 23449 and 23450 can be obtained from website www.nzqa.govt.nz
JULY 2018 45
CONTRACTOR
TECHNOLOGY
NEW ENGINE technology line-up
With many engine manufacturers confident of meeting Stage V emissions regulations, attention is likely to shift towards performance, productivity and efficiency in other powertrain areas, says Geoff Ashcroft. This article was originally published in Aggregate Business UK WITH EUROPEAN UNION STAGE V
emissions regulations on the horizon, and many engine makers confident of meeting this legislation, there could soon be a revised focus of attention that sees powertrain efficiency making big strides forward. Many manufacturers are already starting to turn their attention, and perhaps R&D budgets, towards energydiverse powertrain technology.
Cummins electric technology American manufacturer Cummins expects to put its Stage V engines into production by mid-2018, some six months ahead of the scheduled emissions legislation. It also claims to be the only company currently ‘removing’ technology – the omission of exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) on some of its latest ultra-low emission engines for example ¬– rather than ‘adding’ complexity. Such confidence has enabled the company to look ahead to the next generation of powertrain solutions including clean diesel, near-zero natural gas and electric power technology. The latter is an area that has taken on greater significance with Cummins’ recent acquisition of battery-expertise company Bremmo. 46 www.contractormag.co.nz
As a result, the company has already revealed a new powertrain solution for use in full battery electric vehicles (BEV) and rangeextended electric vehicles (REEV) – the latter incorporating a compact enginegenerator. Currently, these powertrains are suited to shuttle and commuter buses, but offer scope for integration into a diverse range of applications and industries seeking greater operating efficiency from zero-emissions vehicles. Each standard-size Cummins battery enclosure provides a 70 kilowatt hours (kWh) storage capability. In the BEV application, a total of eight battery enclosures are linked to provide 560kWh of power giving a ‘zero emissions’ range of 36.5 kilometres on a single charge. The REEV application uses three battery enclosures offering 210kWh and a range of 135 kilometres. As the battery packs deplete to a low state of charge, the vehicle calls upon its 20l horsepower engine-generator to recharge the batteries while continuing to operate with ultra-low emissions capability. Regenerative braking adds to stored battery power, and electrical energy can be used for vehicle accessories such as air conditioning, power steering and cooling fans. Advanced electronics on the current engine line-up has simplified the introduction of data management and connectivity, boosting telematics capabilities. This allows operators to check component status, fuel consumption, machine use and service requirements. Cummins’ solution is the Guidanz App – an Android and Apple iOS compatible data analytic app to provide remote reading of fault codes.
Perkins My Engine Perkins Engines (a subsidiary of Caterpillar) has also produced an engine app that allows users to access build data, service and parts manuals. Called Perkins My Engine, it allows users to manually log engine hours to predict service schedules. This app can also be synchronised with an electronic oil cap that Perkins is set to introduce, which cleverly monitors engine hours through vibration frequencies. Available for use on engines from the compact 0307 engine up to the 1206 series, it feeds data directly to the Perkins My Engine app when the user is within Bluetooth range of the engine.
Deutz connected technology Deutz AG, a German-based internal combustion engine manufacturer, is also looking to make more of connected technology with the launch late last year of its free Deutz Connect service app. Initially, the app offers remote engine diagnostics via smartphone or tablet, and other functions will follow. The company says it is the first engine maker to be given an EU Stage V certificate, which is applicable to its TCD 6.l engine. And its Stage V engine portfolio is set to grow next year with four new additional in-line engines offering capacities from nine to 18 litres. The TCD 18.0 will head up the range, with power from this all-new sixcylinder engine reaching 620kW and 3600Nm of torque. This new power unit is said to be targeted at heavy construction equipment with its high power and torque demands. In addition, Deutz has taken a step closer to the world of electrification,
Deutz AG claims to be the first engine maker to be given an EU Stage V certificate, which is applicable to its TCD 6.l engine (pictured). Its Stage V engine portfolio is set to grow next year with four new additional in-line engines offering capacities from nine to 18 litres.
having acquired German electric drive specialist Torqeedo. As part of its E-Deutz strategy, the German engine maker intends to extend its operations to include the development and manufacture of hybrid and all-electric drive system solutions for off-highway applications.
Meanwhile, US-based John Deere Power Systems (JDPS) has turned to new catalyst technologies, emission control calibrations, and new aftertreatment solutions with improved package flexibility and easier installation with its EU Stage V compliant engines.
JCB line-up The JC Bamford Excavators’ (UK-based JCB) line-up of Stage V power units extends from 36-448kW from a range of 2.9 litre, 4.5 litre, 6.8 litre, nine litre and 13.5 litre engines. JDPS says OEMs (original equipment
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CONTRACTOR
PROJECT
Production is set to get underway of a brandnew fuel-efficient JCB engine. The three litre JCB DieselMax engine uses up to eight percent less fuel than the already very fuel efficient 4.4 litre EcoMax JCB engine, and is 30 percent lighter.
manufacturer producing parts and equipment that may be marketed by another manufacturer) are likely to benefit from its continual product improvement that has seen engine performance retained but in a much smaller and lighter package. Typically, this adds up to a 39 percent reduction in size and a 57 percent reduction in weight, most of which has come from revised after-treatment technology. JCB continues to expand its engine range, and the latest model is an all-new three-litre unit with a power rating at launch of 55kW. It represents the third engine line for the British maker since production started at JCB Power Systems in Derbyshire, and joins the 4.4, 4.8 and 7.2 litre models. Called the JCB430 DieselMax, it is said to offer an eight percent reduction in fuel use over the 4.4 litre EcoMax, while being 30 percent lighter. It meets existing emissions regulations without the need for diesel oxidation catalyst (DOC), diesel particulate filter (DPF), or selective catalytic reduction (SCR), and is said to be ready for Stage V emissions standards, and will eventually be offered with additional power ratings. The company says engine mounting interfaces are shared with those of its larger 4.4 and 4.8 litre power units, enabling simple installation in existing JCB-powered equipment. 48 www.contractormag.co.nz
Stage V solution has an exhaust temperature lower than the average of many other competitor solutions on the market. Volvo say a lower exhaust temperature suits operating environments where higher exhaust temperatures have health and safety implications.
FPT has created the Cursor 13 NP to power the Stralis model in Iveco’s heavy truck range. This 343kW ‘natural power’ engine is one that is based on the 13 litre diesel-fuelled Cursor 13 power unit, but it has been re-engineered into a spark ignition engine..
Volvo and Stage V regulations
‘natural power’ engine is one that is based on the 13 litre diesel-fuelled Cursor 13 power unit, but it has been re-engineered into a spark ignition engine – identical to the operating principles of a petrol-powered engine. FPT claims it is a direct match for the 343kW diesel-powered cursor 13 engine, though the NP version brings much lower running costs, simpler maintenance, lower noise levels and near-zero emissions. It can be fuelled by either liquefied natural gas (LNG) or compressed natural gas (CNG). Importantly, neither of these fuels require a DPF, DOC, cooled EGR or the addition of an exhaust after-treatment catalyst, which dramatically simplifies the engine architecture and installation. The only external addition to the engine is a three way exhaust catalyst, similar to that found on a petrol engine, and dealing with carbon monoxide produced from the fuel burn. FPT has already had a lot of success with the smaller capacity, and lower powered Cursor 9 NP engine. The arrival of the 13-litre has finally put the gas-powered engines on a par with their diesel counterparts. Operating temperatures are typically 30 percent higher than the diesel engine, so FPT has given the Cursor 13 NP a new cylinder head constructed of graphite iron to help valve and valve seat lubricity. It also gains a revised exhaust manifold and turbocharger – the latter getting ball bearings and a water cooled core. The NP engine also uses multi-point fuel injection, feeding gas directly into each cylinder, on the back of the intake valve. However, there are challenges for operators concerning the accessibility of the two fuels, and the practicality of storing fuel on-site. LNG is cryogenic and its liquefied state requires storage within insulated tanks at nine bars pressure. CNG on the other hand is stored in high pressure vessels from 20-200 bars.
Volvo Penta (internal combustion engine manufacturing company owned by AB Volvo), has taken the wraps off five and 13 litre engines that meet Stage V emissions legislation, and cover the 105-565kW sectors. Badged D5 and D13, the two engine platforms use complementary exhaust after-treatment systems made up of a DOC, DPF, SCR, and an ammonia slip catalyst (ASC) to work in harmony to comply with forthcoming EU Stage V regulations. The company says its Stage V solution has an exhaust temperature lower than the average of many other competitor solutions on the market, and says a lower exhaust temperature suits operating environments where higher exhaust temperatures have health and safety implications. Volvo Penta adds that its Stage V engines and exhaust after-treatment packages are designed to work together to maximise passive regeneration during normal operation. There is no high temperature regeneration, because the sulphur regeneration in the SCR catalyst is not required – and only soot regeneration is needed to clean the DPF.
FPT gas power But diesel is not the only fuel choice available for off-highway power units, and Fiat Powertrain Technologies (FPT was set up in 2005 as a Fiat Group division which includes all the activities related to powertrains and transmissions) has already hinted at what might be coming over the horizon based on its on-highway experiences with truck maker Iveco. And that is because FPT has created the Cursor 13 NP to power the Stralis model in Iveco’s heavy truck range. This 343kW
Southern Aggregates Manager Southern Aggregates Ltd is a Joint Venture Company with H W Richardson Group Ltd and Fulton Hogan Ltd. We are an environmentally responsible producer of high quality aggregate-based construction materials in the South Island of New Zealand. As our Southern Aggregates Manager you will take full responsibility for the overall day to day operations, management and well-being of the operations of Southern Aggregates Ltd, including financial performance and the formulation of business strategies to optimise the opportunities in the region. You will be instrumental in ensuring staff are supported in all aspects of their work, championing Health and Safety and providing solid leadership for their development. To be successful, you must have an understanding and working knowledge of fixed and mobile crushing and screening equipment, together with prior experience in a site supervisory role on large or multiple quarries. Your Health and Safety and Environmental record should demonstrate your ability to deliver a Zero Harm environment and an ability to lead and motivate those around you to continuously improve. Our ideal candidate will have the following attributes: • An A Grade Quarry Certificate • Have a strong commitment to safety, quality and environmental care • A very good understanding and complete knowledge of the legislation pertaining to quarrying • An ability to consult and negotiate with clients, community stakeholders and local authorities • Strong focus on long term planning, maintenance planning and scheduling, overall process efficiency and ongoing continuous improvement • Strong leadership and good communication skills • Strong mechanical aptitude • Good computer skills conversant with both word and excel • A team player • Have honesty, integrity and enthusiasm • Full and clean drivers licence Successful applicants will be required to pass a pre-employment medical and drugs screen.
Please send your CV to jessica.berry@fultonhogan.com, or for a confidential conversation please call 027 899 6251
CONTRACTOR
INTERNATIONAL
End in sight for
London’s Crossrail New images released by London’s new Crossrail underground highlight construction progress across the route to deliver the city’s newest railway, the Elizabeth line.
50 www.contractormag.co.nz
Platform level at Whitechapel Station. A significant amount of work continues in the Elizabeth line tunnels below ground bringing together the complicated interfaces between track, power, signalling and trains.
JULY 2018 51
CONTRACTOR
INTERNATIONAL
CONSTRUCTION OF THE Elizabeth line
has entered its final stages with fitout of the new Elizabeth line stations and tunnels advanced with intensive work underway. From the summer, Crossrail will begin handing over the completed infrastructure to Transport for London, which will lead the railway’s testing and commissioning phase ahead of the opening of the Elizabeth line in December this year. “After almost a decade of hard work from tens of thousands of men and women across the country, the construction of the Elizabeth line has entered its final stages,” comments Andrew Wolstenholme, chief executive, Crossrail. “This fantastic set of new images shows the huge amount that has been achieved, and gives passengers a glimpse of their new railway ahead of its opening at the end of the year.” The new route will pass through 41 stations from Reading and Heathrow in the west, through new twin-bore 21 kilometre tunnels to Shenfield and Abbey Wood in the east. The Transport for London (TFL) operated railway will be named the Elizabeth line when services through central London open in December 2018. The Crossrail project is being delivered by Crossrail Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of TFL and is jointly sponsored with the Department for Transport.
Top: Engineer tightens track fixings at Fisher Street. Above: Elizabeth line trains at Old Oak Common depot. This will be the main depot for the Elizabeth line where the majority of the fleet will be stabled and maintenance work carried out. Left: The western ticket hall takes shape at Bond Street station.
52 www.contractormag.co.nz
Above left: Escalators installed at Woolwich station. Passing through the naturally lit ticket hall, passengers will descend below ground to a 276 metre-long box station, which sits directly below a major new residential development site. Above right: Escalators descending into Paddington station concourse. Two sets of 21-metre long escalators at each end of the new station will bring passengers into the bright and spacious concourse directly below Eastbourne Terrace.
Diesel exhaust fluid made easy! With the growing number of SCR engine vehicles within trucking fleets, Allied Petroleum offers Alliedblue, a diesel exhaust fluid. We’re supplying customers in two ways:
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JULY 2018 53
CONTRACTOR
COMMENT
Showing the next generation the way to an EPIC career PETER SILCOCK, CHIEF EXECUTIVE, CCNZ
INVESTING IN THE NEXT generation of civil contractors is vital to the future of our infrastructure, so Civil Contractors New Zealand’s members have pooled their ideas and resources to come up with EPIC Careers in Infrastructure – an amazing careers promotion programme targeted at helping the next generation see the potential of a career in civil contracting. If you talk to any civil contractor, they will tell you that one of the largest challenges they face is attracting and retaining enthusiastic and capable new recruits. Entry level jobs in our industry have been seen as undesirable and to be avoided where possible for too long. With an exciting industry founded on amazing technology and innovation, it doesn’t have to be this way. Civil Contractors New Zealand has been working with industry training organisation Connexis to build a more accurate story around working in the civil contracting industry so people looking to start their careers can be inspired to find a way to get hands-on and find meaningful work in connecting our communities and essential services with roads, water systems and even internet cables. The importance of our roading, water, energy and communications infrastructure is clear. The sheer scale of the work can’t fail to impress with projects such as the Waterview Connection, Transmission Gully, and the State Highway 1 rebuild at Kaikoura. The fact is we need to do a better job of inspiring people to take up the challenge and experience the rewards of a career in civil contracting. EPIC aims to show people the gateway to a successful career they can be proud of. That they can work as part of a great team in the outdoors instead of being stuck behind a desk.
That they can be part of building something they will point out to their children and say, ‘I made that’. To help our members and partners to share this with the world, EPIC includes a comprehensive digital and physical careers promotion toolkit to use in promoting a career and work in their businesses to all New Zealanders. The toolkit features inspiring visual imagery and detailed information on the exciting roles, career pathways and development opportunities available for people at all stages of their careers. We have also launched a video series and an industry careers promotion website, which can be found at www. epicwork.nz. In short, EPIC can help put New Zealand’s next generation of civil contractors on a path to success in an industry they will be proud to be a part of. The opportunities are there, and I’m looking forward to working with the industry to share them with the rest of the country.
Postal Address: PO Box 12013, Thorndon, Wellington 6144 Physical Address: Margan House, 21 Fitzherbert Terrace, Thorndon, Wellington 6011 Phone 0800 692 376
54 www.contractormag.co.nz
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CONTRACTOR
COMMENT
Salary increases thinner on the ground this year JASON WALKER, MANAGING DIRECTOR, HAYS NEW ZEALAND
CIVIL CONSTRUCTION SKILLS remain in demand, but tight
margins mean salaries fail to reflect this in all bar a few cases. There’s no doubt that civil construction remains an active jobs market in New Zealand. According to findings in our 201819 Hays Salary Guide, business activity increased in 73 percent of organisations over the past year, with 80 percent expecting it to increase in the next 12 months. One third (34 percent) say our economy will strengthen in the coming six to 12 months. Underpinning this are our growing cities, largescale demolition and vertical commercial construction work in Wellington and seismic projects in both Wellington and Auckland. This activity helps account for expected headcount increases in the year ahead; 53 percent of employers intend to increase permanent staff levels and 18 percent temporary and contract staff. However, labour supply has been an ongoing issue across the country for some time. It should therefore be no surprise that 78 percent of employers say skill shortages are likely to impact the effective operation of their business in either a significant (33 percent) or minor (45 percent) way. Perhaps this is why, in skill short areas, 69 percent would consider employing or sponsoring a qualified overseas candidate. In particular demand are civil engineering professionals thanks to a continuously increasing population. Roading engineers, transportation engineers and geometric designers and engineers will remain in demand for new or upgrade road network projects around the country. Civil Engineers with land development experience and registered surveyors will also be sought nationwide. Environmental engineers and those with ‘three waters’ experience will be needed in response to new land developments and roading projects, while the shortage of Civil 12D Designers will remain. Civil tradespeople are in demand too, especially ticketed machine operators for new subdivision projects and road upgrades. Plant and machine operators with a class two licence or above are also needed, as are certified and CCC approved drain layers and senior concrete cutters.
Salary trends Given the demand for civil engineering professionals, we expect to see further salary increases in 2018-19 for those in the water, stormwater and wastewater fields, and in transportation engineering and planning. However, this is an exception to the general trend across the construction sector. Overall, the value of salary increases is falling for many employers compared to their last review. 56 www.contractormag.co.nz
This is unsurprising when we consider that main contractors and subcontractors now operate with tight margins. Many have reduced margins to win projects. As a result, when they last reviewed salaries, five percent of employers gave no increases. In addition, the value of increases for those who receive them will fall. Two fifths (21 percent) of employers intend to increase salaries between three and six percent when they next review, down from 23 percent who increased salaries at this level in their last review. And while 11 percent increased salaries by six percent or more in their last review, just six percent plan to do so this year. Instead, 64 percent intend to raise salaries at the lower level of three percent, or less, up from 62 percent who did so in their last review. Our Hays Salary Guide also found that North Island employers are more generous than those in the South, with seven percent compared to two percent respectively intending to increase salaries above six percent. In addition, 22 percent of North Island employers compared to 18 percent of South Island employers will increase salaries between three percent and six percent. At the lower level, 63 percent of North Island employers will increase salaries by up to three percent, compared to 71 percent in the South. Seven percent of North Island employers do not intend to give any salary increases, less than the South Island’s 10 percent.
Employer and employee salary intentions at odds Despite tight margins, civil construction professionals are aware of job opportunities and skill shortages and are more willing to ask for a pay rise. In fact, our survey results show a pay rise is their number one priority this year and over half of those who plan to look for a new job in the next 12 months cite an uncompetitive salary as a motivating factor. No wonder 55 percent plan to request a salary increase if one is not forthcoming. Given the disparate salary views of professionals and employers, how can you retain and attract top talent? Apart from a salary increase, career progression, and ongoing learning and development are valued by professionals, which makes upskilling essential to your retention game plan. After all, with the Fourth Industrial Revolution rapidly gaining ground, automating many job functions and introducing new technologies, constant learning is now a requirement for all workers for ongoing career success.
Key learnings from a tender evaluator’s course a bid writer’s perspective ERICA WELSFORD, CONSULTANT, PLAN A
AS A BID WRITER, I am ever-curious about what happens on the other side of the tendering fence. I always wonder – who put this tender document together and why was it done like this? What went on when it was evaluated? Some of these mysteries were revealed when I attended a tender evaluator’s course in May. I spent two days with tender evaluators and procurement professionals who were there to develop their skills. They came from local authorities and multinational companies, and included independent advisors and engineering consultants. As a bid writer I was certainly the odd one out. I wasn’t in disguise though – I ‘declared my interests’ and found there was a lot to be learnt.
Those involved with procurement – from planning, to developing the tender, to evaluating the responses – are reasonable people. They want to encourage suppliers to respond so their organisations get the best value from the tendering process and the best possible result. 1) Procurement professionals are real people The course provided me with an overview of the various processes that help develop RFTs which are fair, reasonable, and attractive for suppliers to respond to. It was reassuring to see how much goes into developing an RFT and, most importantly, how much tender evaluators and procurement professionals care. Those involved with procurement – from planning, to developing the tender, to evaluating the responses – are reasonable people. They want to encourage suppliers to respond so their organisations get the best value from the tendering process and the best possible result. Many spend a lot of time and effort developing targeted RFT questions which are aligned to the risk and opportunities a project presents. This benefits us all as we are challenged to think and be innovative, which in turn translates to a better, value for money outcome.
2) S coring methodologies – understand them and make them work A highlight of the course is that I now fully understand scoring systems including their benefits and shortcomings. We looked at Lowest Price Conforming (and when it’s best
to use it – and more importantly – how to use it correctly); Weighted Attributes (and the sensitivity – or not – of moving those weights around); and the Price Quality method. I am now able to advise clients where they need to be concentrating their efforts to score most highly. Evaluators know which scoring method is best under a variety of scenarios: i. A simple tender for cleaning council offices? Lowest Price Conforming. ii. Building a cycle path through a native bush area and alongside a busy road? Price Quality would enable a better assessment of respondent’s processes for safety, traffic management and environmental compliance. We tested out the sensitivity of the Price Quality method, and how it can be used to get the desired result.
3) T ender respondents should ALWAYS think of the evaluators – and understand their requirements It was especially valuable to get a glimpse of the challenges evaluators face when reading what we submit – and how important it is to submit thoughtful answers that differentiate you from the competition. I got to understand their frustrations with tender responses that were ‘cut and paste’ and didn’t follow the tender requirements. We talked about legal and probity issues – how to treat all suppliers reasonably and fairly. And when is it acceptable to ‘bend the rules’ – what if your tender is submitted late ‘because the dog ate it’? Ethical discussions revealed that procurement professionals do want to be transparent and impartial. The outcome for me as a tender writer is that I am now better placed to help my clients achieve higher scores and submit a bid that reflects the requirements. This includes not overcooking a Lowest Price Conforming bid response, and putting heart and soul into Price Quality. It’s great for suppliers that tender evaluators around the country are attending this course and learning how to develop RFTs with targeted and thoughtful questions, with clear guidance on how they will be evaluated. This should result in quality responses and more effective procurement. What is especially helpful for me as a bid writer is that I got to hear what evaluators think first-hand, and can share this with clients. • Erica Welsford is a consultant at Plan A – Tender Specialists. Over the past seven years she has worked with clients in a wide variety of sectors to develop winning proposals and tender submissions. See www.plana.co.nz/resources for more advice about tender writing. JULY 2018 57
CONTRACTOR
COMMENT
Leaky buildings and bodies corporate MICHELLE HILL, SPECIAL COUNCIL, AND ARIANA STUART, SENIOR ASSOCIATE, KENSINGTON SWAN
WHEN CONTRACTING with a body corporate to carry out a leaky
building remediation, contractors may not be aware of what is going on behind the scenes with their client. Bodies corporate are a complicated entity, with many different stakeholders – these stakeholders may not all have the same interests. The recent judgment of Manchester Securities Limited v Body Corporate 172108 [2018] NZSC 19 is a useful reminder of the difficulties faced, particularly in remediation and the resolution of disputes.
When do disputes arise? A leaky building can be complicated, especially where a unit title development is involved, as unit owners (as members of the body corporate) are liable to contribute to the cost of repairing common property, as well as building elements and infrastructure that relate to one or more units. Assessing when building elements or infrastructure (e.g. cladding) relate to one or more units is not always easy or clear-cut. Disputes can arise in relation to determining who is responsible (or to what extent) to meet the costs of repairs of such building elements or infrastructure. Some types of repair can potentially be seen as offering greater benefits to certain owners. As an example, some may see repairs to the roof as giving greater benefit to penthouse owners. Under the Unit Titles Act 2010 (‘UTA 2010’), it may be possible to recover some or all of the costs of those repairs, above and beyond an owner’s ownership interest, from that owner.
What happens when disputes arise? The UTA 2010 replaced its predecessor, the Unit Titles Act 1972 (‘UTA 1972’). The UTA 2010 provides a clear dispute resolution process. It also provides (in section 74) for a scheme following destruction or damage. This entails a process for the High Court to make an order to settle a scheme for the repair of a unit title development. A similar process was provided under the earlier legislation (section 48 of the UTA 1972).
What happened in Manchester Securities? The recent Supreme Court decision affirmed the approach of the Court of Appeal and dismissed Manchester’s leave to appeal of the Court of Appeal decision. The dispute concerned a high rise apartment complex known as Hobson Apartments in Auckland. Essentially, the building was a 12-storey apartment block with 39 apartments. Manchester owned the 12th floor of the building. The exterior of the building on levels 58 www.contractormag.co.nz
1 to 11 was common property and is owned by the body corporate. However, the exterior of level 12 was owned by Manchester. The dispute concerned the Body Corporate for the development applying to the High Court for the approval of a scheme under section 48 of the UTA 1972 (as this was the legislation that was then in effect). A scheme is often used to arrange and manage the carrying out of repairs to a unit title development, including as to costs allocation usually (but not always) in the case where parties cannot agree how to carry out the repairs.
A leaky building can be complicated, especially where a unit title development is involved, as unit owners (as members of the body corporate) are liable to contribute to the cost of repairing common property, as well as building elements and infrastructure that relate to one or more units. The scheme was approved by the High Court. It declared a scheme that would require Manchester to contribute to the repairs of the common property (i.e. building exterior for levels 1 to 11) as well as paying for the level 12 work. However, Manchester’s liability would be capped at 11.88 percent of the total costs of repairs to the whole building. This was a “departure from the default scheme” under the UTA 1972, but it was considered justified in the circumstances. When it came to actually carrying out the scheme, things did not go according to plan. This was due to lengthy delays, cost escalations and a notable absence of full cooperation between the different unit owners. The repairs to the common property had a cost increase of 41 percent above the original estimate. The repairs to level 12 at August 2011 had a cost increase of 150 percent from the original estimate. This further increased to 430 percent in August 2016. Ultimately, this meant that the repairs to level 12 well exceeded 11.88 percent of the total cost to repair the common property. The outcome, if one were to follow the approved scheme, would mean that not only would owners (other than Manchester) therefore have to contribute more to the common property repairs on levels 1-11, they would also be required to make a payment to Manchester in
relation to the repair of the exterior on level 12. The Body Corporate subsequently applied for a variation of the scheme under section 48(6) of the UTA 1972, ostensibly to avoid an unjust outcome. The variation was approved by the Court which made an order requiring Manchester to pay additional money for the benefit of the other unit owners.
Court of Appeal case The case came to the Court of Appeal because Manchester appealed the High Court judgment. Manchester argued that the High Court’s decision was based on a misunderstanding of the original scheme and the evidence. The Court of Appeal concluded that the High Court’s decision, which created the original scheme, essentially ‘collapsed’ as a result of subsequent events (and, in part, the excessive cost escalation). The Court of Appeal rejected Manchester’s appeal as they concluded there was nothing wrong with the High Court’s decision i.e. it was fair and reasonable that the scheme be varied requiring Manchester to pay more than its 11.88 percent share of the total costs.
What does this mean for contractors? This is an unusual case because the body corporate was required to find a new contractor in the aftermath of
the Mainzeal insolvency (which contributed to the cost escalation). However, it is illustrative of the issues that can come up when contracting with bodies corporate. So what does the Manchester decision mean for contractors if their client is fighting internally about how they will pay? Contractors undertaking remedial works shouldn’t have to wait for bodies corporate to resolve messy and lengthy legal battles before they are paid. However, they will need to be proactive to ensure they are in the best place possible in the event of an internal body corporate conflict. That means doing the basics right – like getting legal advice before signing up to the contract, ensuring Construction Contract Act 2002 compliant payment claims are being served, taking out relevant security if necessary, and finally making sure that the body corporate understands the contract they are entering into.
• The authors thank Georgina Garrett, a solicitor in Kensington Swan’s Property team, for her assistance. Kensington Swan offers 15 minutes of free advice on construction issues to CCNZ members. The company also provides comment on topical construction issues, visit www.nzconstructionblog.com to keep up to date.
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www.smart-dig.com JULY 2018 59
CONTRACTOR CL
M
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CLASSIC MACHINES
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C H I N E S
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The Allis-Chalmers HD-19 revisited
Allis-Chalmers led the charge for a bigger, higher horsepower track-type tractor following World War Two. The resulting model HD-19 was a breakthrough in many ways and was the foundation on which the later, highly successful model HD-21 was based. By Richard Campbell. WE FIRST TOOK a look at the Allis-
Chalmers HD-19 back in 2006. Since that time, much more information has come to light, so it is high time we reexamined this machine. On its introduction in 1947, the HD-19 was called the HD-19H. The H stood for “Hydromotive”, referring to the fact that the tractor was equipped with a torque converter. It was not the first track-type tractor that Allis-Chalmers had manufactured with a torque converter, that honour belonging to its model HD-14 which came out in 1946 and was the first track-type tractor of any manufacturer to have this device. The HD-19H supplanted the HD-14 in production and pretty soon after the “H” was dropped, the tractor being simply 60 www.contractormag.co.nz
known as the HD-19. Allis-Chalmers had established a strong relationship with General Motors for the supply of diesel engines. This relationship went back as far as 1938 when various types were being tested in some of Allis-Chalmers’ gasoline powered machines with varying degrees of success. When the “HD” series of machines began to appear, these were all powered by General Motors 71 series engines – GM 2-71 in the HD-5, GM 3-71 in the HD-7, GM 4-71 in the HD-10 and HD-9, and the GM 6-71 in the HD-14, HD-15 and the new HD-19. For Allis-Chalmers it was a match made in heaven as the two-cycle GM engines were powerful and more importantly, reliable.
As the GM engines had been extensively used by the US armed forces, there was no shortage of people who knew how to work on them and they were simple, and relatively cheap to overhaul. Allis-Chalmers chose the GM 6-71 for the HD-19. This delivered 163 flywheel horsepower at a rated engine speed of 1750 rpm and featured direct electric starting. Connected directly to the engine’s flywheel was a 17” dry type master clutch manufactured by Lipe-Rollway. Beyond the clutch was the hydraulic torque converter which used diesel fuel, not oil, to help multiply the engine’s lugging ability. These types of converters were
1. B eautifully restored Allis-Chalmers HD-19 seen at an antique machine show in the USA. It is outfitted with a Baker straight blade and overhead frame with the correct tubular cable guide, and has a Garwood CU-2 PCU on the rear. Note the relatively uncluttered operator’s deck. PHOTO: HCEA
2. What the well-dressed logging tractor wore in 1949. This HD-19 has factory installed sweeps and lightweight canopy with a Baker narrow blade (especially for logging), front mounted PCU and a Carco J series winch on the rear. ROPS was an unknown word in those days and today the machine would not be allowed on a skid site! PHOTO: AUTHOR’S COLLECTION
3. Seen at the late (great) Ian Martin’s depot on the Hauraki Plains near Thames is one of two Allis-Chalmers HD-19s that his company operated. This photo was taken in 1982 when the machine was being prepared for yet another job. Cable control unit on the rear is a Caterpillar No 25.
2
PHOTO: AUTHOR’S COLLECTION
4. This HD-19 is all set up for cold climates. Along with the heated cab it is also fitted with ice grouser track shoes for setter traction on the ice. The Baker 19BC cable blade has a Buckeye PCU on the rear (not visible in this photo). PHOTO: AUTHOR’S COLLECTION
3
known as ‘diesel charge torque converters’ and many manufacturers ended up using them, including Caterpillar. One of the added benefits of the torque converter (apart from its lugging ability), was it was almost impossible to stall, cushioned gear changing shock, and in a lot of cases, reduced the number of gear changes required during loading, dozing etc. A great gadget indeed that is still in widespread use today. On the HD-19, the torque converter was located directly under the operator’s floorboards making it easy to remove if maintenance was required. Attached to the other end of the converter was the HD-19’s transmission. While most track-type tractors of the
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JULY 2018 61
CONTRACTOR
CLASSIC MACHINES
3
1
2
1. H D-19 push loading a Heil 2C-700 Heiliner motor scraper (later International 2T-75) on a US highway job in 1951. The tractor is equipped with a factory installed front push plate and a LeTourneau Model N double drum PCU on the rear. Note the small windscreen that has been added to protect the operator from “sandblasting”. PHOTO: AUTHOR’S COLLECTION
2. Very rare photo of an Allis-Chalmers HD-19 employed in the “snatch tractor” role. This is where a pole, attached to the tractor’s drawbar, and raised and lowered by the machine’s PCU, hooks the pull hook of the scraper and pull loads it instead of pushing. Very effective with Super C Tournapulls (which tended to wander a little). PCU on the HD-19 is the ubiquitous Garwood CU-2. PHOTO: EDGAR H BROWNING
3. Climbing a steep hill at Moa Point, Rongotai, Wellington in 1954 is this HD-19 with Garwood CU-2 PCU and Garwood 620 scraper. Colour photos from this period in New Zealand’s history are rare. My thanks to Ron Nash for supplying it. Note: This could actually be an HD-15 as it is very difficult to tell the two apart at this angle. 4. L aying pipe for the Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line in Delaware, USA in 1949 are a fleet of Allis-Chalmers HD-19s equipped with Tractomotive side booms (Tractomotive was later absorbed by Allis-Chalmers). This was a huge job at the time and employed many contractors. PHOTO: AUTHOR’S COLLECTION
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day had five or six speed gearboxes, the HD-19’s was a very simple affair with two speeds forward and one reverse. It did not need to be any more complicated as the torque converter compensated for all the speed ratios in between. Top speed of the tractor was a respectable 7 mph.
Steering Another of Allis-Chalmers’ innovations was its continuing development of better tractor steering. The HD-19 was steered in the conventional manner for tractors of the period, by steering clutch and brake. However, the steering clutches featured a hydraulic booster which reduced the effort required to engage them to practically zero. Brake bands were of the contracting band type, self energizing, and could be easily adjusted. Allis-Chalmers well understood the need for easy maintenance and to this end the entire steering clutch/brake band assembly for either track could be removed from the tractor’s main case as a unit by removing the fuel tank and one cover plate.
The Track Frame The HD-19’s chassis was a semi-‘H’ section box frame welded together across the front. This in turn was bolted to the tractor’s main case.
A seven-pack multi-leaf equalizer spring took care of track vertical oscillation while the track frames themselves were supported by a shaft through the end of the tractor’s main case. This was a bit of a weak spot in the HD19 as wear in this area caused the track frames to go out of alignment unless the maintenance people were super vigilant. The problem would be remedied in the later HD-20. Final drives were double reduction and featured Timken tapered roller bearings throughout.
The Undercarriage As for the tracks themselves, the HD-19 rode on a six-roller frame with spoke-type idlers, and two carrier rollers per side. All of the rollers featured 1000 hour extended lubrication intervals thanks to Allis-Chalmers’ continuing development of Duo-Cone seal technology. Track tension was maintained by a bell crank arrangement and recoil spring. The tracks themselves were 38-section with 24” single grouser shoes.
For the Operator The Allis-Chalmers HD-19 featured an exceptionally clean deck for the time period and it was easy to get on and off the machine. Instruments were grouped in a small panel just to the right of the console which
B R I E F S P EC I F I CAT I O N S ALLIS-CHALMERS HD-19 Engine: General Motors 6-71 inline, 6-cylinder diesel rated at 163 flywheel horsepower at 1750 rpm Clutch: 17” single plate, over-centre type made by Lipe-Rollway Torque Converter: Allis-Chalmers own design, diesel fuel filled Transmission: Allis-Chalmers constant mesh, 2-sp fwd, 1 rev.
5
Top Speed:
7 mph
Steering Clutches: Multi-Disc, hydraulically boosted Brakes:
Large contracting band type
Track Frame: 6-roller Track Gauge: 84” Std. Track Shoe: 24”
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5. The office on an Allis-Chalmers HD-19. A very simple, well laid out affair. Although Allis-Chalmers hadn’t yet introduced its tapered hood, visibility to the front and rear are excellent. PHOTO: AUTHOR’S COLLECTION
contained the two steering clutch levers and throttle control. The gear change lever was centrally placed emerging from the floorboards with the master clutch on the operator’s left. The only other controls were the two foot brake pedals. A deep and comfortable seat cushion and back was provided for the operator.
The Attachments & Options As Allis-Chalmers did not manufacture any of its own attachments during the time the HD-19 was in production, it was up to companies such as Baker, Garwood and Carco to outfit the machine for use. From published photographs it would seem that Baker was the major supplier of both cable and hydraulically operated bulldozers for the HD-19 while the scrapers most chosen for use behind the machine were Baker or Garwood. Cable controls (PCU’s) were supplied by Garwood, Heil and Buckeye and there are also examples known to have been fitted with LeTourneau and
Length (bare):
15’ 8”
Width: (bare)
9’ 1¼”
Height:
8’ 8”
Op. Weight (bare):
20 tons
6. A rare sight outside of Australia is this HD-19 with full LeTourneau AK8 angledozer blade equipment and frame. The photo was taken at the LeTourneau plant in Rydalmere, NSW in 1948. Australian Allis-Chalmers dealer Tutt-Bryant was also the LeTourneau retail outlet, hence the unusual pairing. PHOTO: AUTHOR’S COLLECTION
Caterpillar PCU’s. Although the occasional Hyster winch could be seen on an HD-19 equipped for logging, the vast majority of logging winches fitted to HD-19s were supplied by Carco. Optional attachments offered by Allis-Chalmers themselves included a cab with heater, engine hood, side screens and front bumper (mainly for logging applications), belly guards, track roller guards, and one must not forget the chassis-mounted front push plate applied to a lot of scraper towing machines.
End of the Line The last Allis-Chalmers HD-19 came off the assembly line in 1950, and some 2600 machines of this type were produced. For a short time it was the world’s largest and most powerful track-type tractor until International-Harvester brought out its TD-24. The HD-19 was replaced in production by the more powerful model HD-20 in 1951, but that is another story.
The New Zealand Connection It is not known how many Allis-Chalmers HD-19s were imported into New Zealand but there certainly were several of them. All records of Allis-Chalmers importations from that period have unfortunately been lost. Last known user of the type was Ian A Martin Ltd who had at least two operational examples in the Thames region as late as 1982. It is not always easy to spot the difference between an HD-19 and the similarly powered HD-15. Both have the twin aircleaners on the right and the exhaust stack on the left. However, careful examination of photos reveals the HD-19 is a physically larger tractor and has more operator’s deck room than an HD-15.
For the Model Collector Unfortunately there are no known models in any scale of the AllisChalmers HD-19. Models exist of its replacement, the HD-20, but if you want an HD-19 you will have to scratch build one. JULY 2018 63
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INNOVATIONS
US Tier 4 machines Komatsu’s rollout of new low-emission, more fuel-efficient engines that comply with US Tier 4 Final emissions regulations has seen it launch an unprecedented 25 new machines across excavators, loaders, trucks and graders – the largest in its history. All feature Komatsu’s new generation Tier 4 Final-compliant engines, which incorporate unique Komatsu technology to reduce emissions levels by 90 percent compared with their previous-
generation Tier 3 equivalent machines, according to Dean Gaedtke, Komatsu’s executive general manager, Construction. “At the same time, Komatsu has introduced new electronic control systems throughout the new machines that ensure engine power, hydraulic requirements and transmission output is optimised – resulting in fuel consumption savings of between five and 15 percent – depending on models and applications.”
Upgrading Komatsu’s telematics capabilities
New underground information service in Taranaki A new Taranaki firm, Utility Scan, specialises in state-of-the-art underground services in the region. “Strikes on underground services like electricity, gas, water or sewerage are surprisingly common,” says Utility Scan operations manager Ben Giles. Utility Scan supplies detailed information of underground assets by using cutting-edge technology and internationally-recognised training and industry experience. Giles says a call to Before U Dig will help provide plans of underground services, but the accuracy of these plans isn’t always guaranteed and may not detail all underground assets nor those that are unknown or disused. “The situation only gets more hazardous when working on private properties where loose and unrecorded practices can leave behind a minefield of underground hazards.” Utility Scan’s fast response team offers its clients a full picture of what’s underground by first interpreting existing plans and then using precision locating technology (to detect conductors like electricity cables) and ground penetrating radar (that can see pipes and other assets to depths of several metres). Furthermore, Utility Scan also offers an accurate leak detection service, which uses acoustic technology with sensitive directional microphones to pinpoint the source of costly leaks. Phone: 06 758 3100 or 027 884 5500 64 www.contractormag.co.nz
Komatsu’s latest product releases incorporate its Komtrax Step 5 remote monitoring capabilities, giving machine owners and fleet managers unprecedented access to very detailed data about every aspect of a machine’s operation – and available online via computer, smartphone or tablet 24/7. According to Todd Connolly, Komatsu’s general manager – Construction Solutions, Komtrax gives its customers the ability to identify potential issues with a machine, well in advance of them causing a breakdown, so they can be rectified and repaired in a timely manner. “Since it was introduced nearly 10 years ago, in late 2008, Komtrax – which is available free on every Komatsu machine sold in New Zealand – has grown to cover more than 11,000 machines,” he says. “And with our latest Step 5 version identifying individual operators working on a given machine, Komtrax now allows site or project management and operators to work together even more closely to improve and develop their skills and production levels.” In addition to remote monitoring in Komatsu’s telematics capabilities, over the past 18 months the company has rolled out its integrated ‘intelligent Machine Control’ concept, which allows machines such as excavators and bulldozers to excavate, bulk out and trim – in high-precision complex 3D designs. “Our intelligent Machine Control, or iMC, system is factory-integrated into select Komatsu machines and results in significant improvements in efficiency and productivity compared with conventional construction processes. “Customers who’ve used this technology are seeing massive benefits from it, and we are already seeing multiple repeat orders from contractors and plant hirers throughout Australia and New Zealand.”
INNOVATIONS
CONTRACTOR
How big? Shandong Lingong Construction Machinery (known as Lingong) is one of China’s leading manufacturers of construction equipment, produced under the SDLG brand. Back in May it hosted a customer day where Asian-Pacific customers toured SDLG’s manufacturing plants in China. The programme included a tour to a 650,000 square metre plant, the size of 90 football fields, where SDLG produces wheel loaders, motor graders, compactors, backhoe loaders and components. This manufacturing facility has capacity to produce 50,000 wheel loaders per year. Separately, SDLG excavators are produced at a 197,000 square metre plant, which has capacity to produce 20,000 excavators per year.
Investing in Sumitomo
Auckland-based earthmoving company, The Digger Collective, has recently purchased its second Sumitomo SH235X-6 from New Zealand distributor, AB Equipment. However, there was something very special about this one. It was wanted in a hurry! “We put it out to tender but on the condition that it was very time critical; the excavator needed to be delivered and ready to go in just one week,” says The Digger Collective director, Keegan Webster. “AB Equipment was the first one to answer the call, easily meeting the brief within the tight timeframe. That’s pretty good service when you consider that we had a machine with all the bells and whistles on-site working before most of their opposition had even responded with a quote. The machine came with an optional Topcon GPS system.
“Our existing Sumitomo SH235X-6 has worked very well for us and is very versatile. We particularly like the zero-tail swing as we work on a lot of projects where space is limited.” The zero-tail swing of the Sumitomo SH235X-6, unlike a standard counterweight 20-ton machine that swings around, is safer for this type of work, reducing the potential for damage and minimising traffic disturbance. “Our operators are also impressed with the SH235X-6’s power and can’t get over how smooth and easy it is to operate,” he adds. “The addition of a Doherty tilt hitch and bucket controlled by the intuitive tilt bucket controls on the joystick has added a large degree of versatility. The cab is also very comfortable and has all the bells and whistles for operator comfort. For further information call 0800 303090 for the location of your nearest nationwide AB Equipment branch. JULY 2018 65
CONTRACTOR
CIVIL CONTRACTORS NEW ZEALAND
CCNZ update Welcome to our new major associate Fleet Agent pulls together the best tracking and asset management technologies to help CCNZ members build New Zealand. From understanding your business through to training and technology adoption, they have it sorted. Fleet Agent utilises GPS tracking devices, electronic RUC solutions and operator mobile apps on easy-to-learn online software to build automated workflow to help you run your business. For more about Fleet Agent visit www.fleetagent.co.nz.
Welcome to new members • Nicholls Earthworks & Drainage, Waikato Branch • Rocka Excavation, Wellington/Wairarapa Branch • Clarke Underground, Manawatu Branch
EPIC careers in infrastructure launched CCNZ has now launched the EPIC Careers in Infrastructure website and careers promotion toolkit. Members and partners can expect a package in the mail in the near future. To see what it’s all about, visit www.epicwork.nz.
Join us at Smarter Together 2018 Civil Contractors New Zealand and the Association of Consulting Engineers New Zealand will hold a joint Conference at Claudelands in Hamilton from 1 to 4 August 2018. We have a great conference planned with inspiring keynote speakers Peter Hillary and Gilbert Enoka, along with the Minister of Transport Phil Twyford. An amazing line-up of industry experts will share the latest knowledge, and there will be fantastic networking opportunities, including the legendary ‘Battle of the Bands’ CablePrice Themed Dinner and a chance to see the stars of the civil contracting industry shine at awards events during the Z Luncheon and Hirepool Construction Excellence Awards Dinner. Register now at www.smartertogether2018.co.nz.
Tommy Parker appointed to CCNZ executive council Tommy Parker, general manager Infrastructure Fletchers Construction (and former NZTA general manager System Design and Delivery), has been appointed to the CCNZ executive council to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Brent Leach earlier this year. Tommy is well known and well respected throughout the industry after 13 years at NZTA, and will provide CCNZ with valuable perspective and experience.
Point-to-point speed cameras investigated thanks to CCNZ advocacy Point-to-point roadside speed cameras may be used on New Zealand roads in the near future after CCNZ met with the Minister of Police Stuart Nash and the Associate Transport minister Julie Anne Genter to discuss road worker safety. CCNZ suggested that point-to-point cameras, which snap vehicles at two points along the same stretch of road to calculate if drivers have been speeding, and driver education would be positive steps in making roading sites safer for workers. Reports from Australia and the UK confirm point-to-point speed cameras are effective in reducing speeds and the rate of serious harm and fatal accidents. Genter is now seeking advice from the Ministry of Transport on a raft of measures to reduce speed on dangerous roads, including the use of point-to-point cameras, with a New Zealand trial proposed in two high-risk locations over the next six months.
WorkSafe seeks input on review of codes of practice Worksafe is undertaking a review of the Flammable Liquids and Flammable Gases and Oxygen Tank Wagon codes of practice. Draft versions of these two codes are currently out for industry consultation, with feedback required by 6 July 2018. If you are interested in reviewing these documents or providing feedback, please contact stacy@civilcontractors.co.nz.
First ConstructSafe Tier Assessments available ConstructSafe has announced that the first of its Tier 2, 3, 4 and 5 Assessments are now available at test centres. For more information, visit www.constructsafe.kiwi.
Support employees that don’t meet ConstructSafe Standard It is important employees are supported if they fail a ConstructSafe test. The employer and employee need to look at the feedback report and identify what training, information, instruction, coaching, and supervision is needed to help the employee pass the test on their second or next attempt. The biggest value ConstructSafe brings to an employer is providing insight and knowledge into their workforce’s H&S capabilities. This is intended to help focus H&S training and development to those who need it most.
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Robur Attachments
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CCNZ thanks and appreciates the support of our Major Associate members
Principal Business Partner
Core Associates
Major Associates
EROAD
Civil Contractors New Zealand
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Phone 0800 692 376
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www.nzcontractors.co.nz
HIREPOOL
POWER & LIGHTING WE WON’T LEAVE YOU IN THE DARK! Hirepool has a specialist Power and Lighting division providing power generation and lighting solutions for construction sites, events and emergency outages. With generators ranging from 1kVA - 1000 kVA, hybrid and diesel light towers, power distribution solutions and environmentally certified onsite fuel systems, we’ve got the total solution so you won’t get left in the dark. Our specialist branches are supported by Hirepool’s network of over 50 branches nationwide boasting 24/7 response and support. Call us for all your Power and Lighting needs.
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