NEW ZEALAND’S CIVIL CONTRACTING INDUSTRY MAGAZINE
SEPTEMBER 2014 $8.95
Waste into treasure with
CAT wheel loaders
INSIDE: A new association born – conference coverage from Rotorua Making sweet pasture – an innovative Canterbury water project AMETI – the challenging first phase is about to open When PPPs go wrong – lessons from Queensland
CONTENTS CONTRACTOR
36
INSIDE: Regulars 2 Editorial 4 Upfront
Highlights / Features 22 Conference coverage Highlights from the Tripartite Conference held in Rotorua.
16 On the Cover 56 Classic Machines
34 A theme of consequences Coverage of the JLT Annual Crane Conference held in Queenstown.
60 Motoring 62 Innovations 62 Contractors’ Diary
36 Dry land into sweet pasture The Central Plains Water Irrigation scheme – a major Canterbury construction project.
64 Advertisers’ Index
Profile
Comment
It’s been said; “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure,” and if ever there was a company that could attest to that, it’s EnviroWaste. EnviroWaste is now using Caterpillar purpose-built waste handling wheel loaders in its more sizeable operations in the North Island. See page 16
42 The first phase of AMETI The Auckland Manukau Eastern Transport Initiative is about to celebrate the official completion of Phase 1.
18 Bradley Day Warren Drake Memorial Trainee of the Year.
ON THE COVER
48
When PPPs go wrong A landmark Aussie infrastructure project or a disastrous lesson in public-private partnerships?
50 Jeremy Sole
Civil Contractors NZ
52 Rob Gaimster CCANZ / NZRMCA
53 Janet Brothers Life Care Consultants
54 Paul Glucina Roading Efficiency Group
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22
48 SEPTEMBER 2014 1
CONTRACTOR EDITORIAL
PUBLISHER Contrafed Publishing Co Ltd Suite 2.1, 93 Dominion Road, Mt Eden, Auckland PO Box 112357, Penrose, Auckland 1642 Phone: +64 9 636 5715 Fax: +64 9 636 5716 www.contrafed.co.nz
A bigger view Kevin Lawrence, Contractor’s editor, has taken a well-earned rest so I am sitting in his chair and covering the editorial for this issue. In my capacity as editor of EnergyNZ, a feature magazine covering upstream energy sectors, I am accustomed to taking a wider industry view, or a bigger picture approach. I have to look back and look forward (reflections and predictions), and avoid getting bogged down with reporting the daily bun-fight that makes up most media content these days. We are taught history as a series of major events for convenience. In reality, it is more of a long slog of subtle influences and gradual change. Take the internet – it has changed the way we work and communicate. It did not suddenly appear, but crept up on us and slowly, by stealth, took over, in the same way the internal combustion engine crept up on us late in the 19th century and took over through the 20th century. The impact that engine had on the civil contracting industry alone has been astounding. In a similar way, stored energy technology is creeping up on us and I wonder how the petroleum industry is preparing itself for around 2020 (if not sooner) when my studies (or predictions) tell me batteries should have mostly taken over the role of the combustion engine in the transport industry. The development of battery-stored energy is speeding up. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries makes a high-performance lithium-ion battery weighing just 1.4 kilograms that is used to power industrial machines, such as electric forklifts and excavators. Stacked into a 40ft container they can whack out up to 20MW. You could argue that even if every car produced by 2020 was all electric, demand for fossil fuels would still be high as the country tolerates such an old vehicle fleet. That’s unless emissions legislation between now and then doesn’t change things? It’s a sobering thought for vintage car owners, such as me, to have to drive over to the other side of the city to the last remaining petrol station to buy gas at $20 a litre. The point I want to make is – it pays to take a long-term view if you want to keep your business or association sustainable. Don’t dwell on the present. Congratulations. You now have a united representative industry organisation, made up of all-sized members. On top of this, the country saw its first transport PPP signed off. The SCIRT collaboration, we were told in Rotorua, has been an astounding success. You have pledges from the Transport Agency that it wants to work in collaboration with you. The Government has pledged future roading projects. WorkSafe says it wants to work with you, not against you. Politicians from both sides of the house took turns in Rotorua thanking you for your contribution to our economy. Well done – but that’s now – can you tell us what your future as a collaborative industry looks like? Alan Titchall, Guest Editor
GENERAL MANAGER & EDITOR Kevin Lawrence DDI: 09 636 5710 Mobile: 021 512 800 Email: kevin@contrafed.co.nz EDITORIAL MANAGER Alan Titchall DDI: 09 636 5712 Mobile: 027 405 0338 Email: alan@contrafed.co.nz REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS Richard Campbell, Tom Clarke, Hugh de Lacy, Peter Gill, Gavin Riley, Lawrence Schaffler, Richard Silcock, Jeremy Sole. ADVERTISING / SALES Charles Fairbairn DDI: 09 636 5724 Mobile: 021 411890 Email: charles@contrafed.co.nz ADMIN / SUBSCRIPTIONS DDI: 09 636 5715 Email: admin@contrafed.co.nz PRODUCTION Design: TMA Design, 09 636 5713 Printing: Client Focused Solutions Ltd 027 255 1818
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.
The official magazine of The New Zealand Contractors’ Federation www.nzcontractors.co.nz Roading New Zealand www.roadingnz.org.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 Infrastructure Industry Training Organisation www.infratrain.co.nz
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2 SEPTEMBER 2014
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CONTRACTOR UPFRONT
Strength through unity – a milestone Members of the Contractors’ Federation and Roading NZ voted at their separate AGMs at a joint conference in Rotorua last month to merge into a new, collective representative body called Civic Contractors NZ. In this issue we cover the NZCF/RNZ/ACENZ 2014 Conference in
First transport PPP Leighton Contractors is the special purpose vehicle manager for the $1 billion contract to build the Transmission Gully road north of Wellington, has the majority role in the design and construct subcontract with JV partner HEB Construction, and will perform 100 percent of the operations and maintenance subcontract. The project was awarded to the Wellington Gateway Partnership as the first PPP in this country to fund a state highway. The partnership includes Leighton Contractors, HEB Construction, InfraRed Capital Partners, Bank of TokyoMitsubishi UFJ, and the Accident Compensation Corporation. The consortium will finance, design and construct the project, and then operate and maintain the motorway section from 2020 for a period of 25 years. Work begins next year and is expected to be completed in 2020. More info: www.nzta.govt.nz/projects/transmission-gully/. 4 SEPTEMBER 2014
all its glory. This tripartite event was themed Achieving Results Together, and it could not have been more accurate. The event proved three days of unity, collaboration, education, networking, debate and – one a hell of a party! Learn all in pictures from page 24.
Cost of CRL changes design Changes to Auckland’s proposed City Rail Link (CRL) project, developed two years ago, will save Auckland City about $150 million. Auckland Transport (AT) has opted to redevelop the existing Mt Eden station and connect it to the CRL rather than build a new underground station at Newton near Symonds Street. AT chairman Lester Levy says removing the very deep Newton station will also reduce construction disruption in upper Symonds Street by 12 to 18 months. “The improved design will connect passengers at Mt Eden station to the CRL which previously bypassed them and improve operation reliability through the provision of a separated eastwest junction so train lines won’t need to cross over each other.” The CRL platform at Mt Eden will be constructed in a trench similar to the New Lynn station out in the city’s west, and be open to the sky. This open-air design and a separated train junction will also lower operating costs.
UPFRONT CONTRACTOR
Celebrating 50 years of concrete history The 2014 Concrete Industry Conference is being held at the Wairakei Resort, Taupo, October 9-11. Delegates at this year’s conference will enjoy unprecedented opportunities to deepen their knowledge of our concrete industry and build relationships with key players in the industry, say the organisers. The conference technical programme will include a balanced mix of concurrent sessions and plenary sessions to cater for keynote presentations from Gavin Cormack, Professor Hugo Cores Peirette and Professor Ken Hover. Organising Committee chairman Jeff Matthews says the conference promises to be one of our most exciting conferences in recent years. “As well as celebrating concrete projects that have been important to our economic and social development over the last 50 years, the NZ construction industry is going through some exciting times. “The Christchurch rebuild is starting to gain momentum, and the rest of the country is beginning to see increased activity as markets improve globally.” In keeping with the theme of the conference, which celebrates the last 50 years of the concrete industry in New Zealand as part of the Society’s 50th anniversary, the programme will feature papers that look back at precast concrete, ready mix and masonry, etc. in addition to the usual forward-looking papers which will focus on research, design trends, marketing opportunities, recent developments, construction, materials, methodologies and new issues for cement and concrete. As always the technical programme will offer a good balance of project and research based papers.
The Taupo area offers a vast array of activities, from trout fishing, river rafting, jet boating, mountain biking and scenic cruises for both delegates and partners. The Conference is jointly organised by the Cement & Concrete Association of NZ, the NZ Concrete Masonry Association, the NZ Concrete Society, the NZ Master Concrete Placers Association, the NZ Ready Mixed Concrete Association and Precast New Zealand Inc. • For more information, visit the conference website www.theconcreteconference.co.nz or email concrete@bluepacificevents.com
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CONTRACTOR UPFRONT
They are not forgotten Last month TV One aired a documentary about the recently found portrait negatives taken by Wellington photographer William Berry just before the soldiers were shipped away to WW1. The glass-plate negatives were found walled up in an attic at 147 Cuba Street and feature unidentified WWI soldiers and their loved ones. With the help of Te Papa and the public, some of these soldiers were identified and their stories recalled in the documentary as part of the centenary of our involvement in the Great War. Called The Berry Boys the documentary captured some of these soldiers’ personal stories and provides a family perspective. One of the most moving is the story of PTE James Arthur Juno of the Wellington 17th Infantry Brigade and one of four brothers who went to the front, and one of only two who came back home. His story is told by his grandson Jim Juno, of Juno Civil Ltd, and his son Wayne Juno. Jim’s grandfather fought at Gallipoli and on the Western front – arriving in Gallipoli three days after his brother had been killed there. Fighting in the allied assault on Passchendaele mid-1917 and witnessing the battle of Messines, which started with the detonation of 19 mines under the German front line defences, he wrote; “Hell spewed upward – earth fire and men flung so high you wondered if they’d ever come down.” He came home uninjured and was balloted to a farm in 1919, and spent the rest of his life there, finishing his farming career on the board of the local dairy board.
NZTA road data Investment in roading infrastructure is long overdue, states Gerry Brownlee in a recent press release that must have been drummed up on a ‘no news day’. We all know that. However, among the expected trumpeting about what the current Government says it is doing about this problem, there are some interesting road usage facts. The Ministry of Transport’s fleet statistics show light vehicle ownership per capita has returned to its 2007 peak, helping grow traffic volumes in 2013 and 2014. Total travel (measured in kilometres travelled) was flat between 2005 and 2012, but growth returned in 2013 with a 1.6 percent increase in total travel nationwide and more recent data suggests larger increases are on the way. Data collected by the NZTA on State Highway usage shows a 3.6 percent increase in Northland and Auckland, and a 5.4 percent increase in Canterbury in the six months to May 2014, compared with the same period a year before. These increases in vehicle travel and vehicle registrations, reckons Brownlee, reflect our economic recovery, consumer confidence and net migration. 6 SEPTEMBER 2014
What amused them? Find out on page 24.
Car park dust-up ends up in court The High Court awarded compensation of $300,000 to a Christchurch subcontractor who ripped up a supermarket car park because he had not been paid. Pera Te Amo and his crew destroyed a car park they built outside the Countdown supermarket in Ferrymead back in April after claiming lead contractor Watts and Hughes Construction had withheld payment for the completed work. The High Court ruled Te Amo’s Whakatane-based company, Complete Siteworks, be paid for materials and work completed. Te Amo still faces criminal charges in relation to the car park damage but says, meantime, he wants the Government to improve the Construction Contracts Act to ensure subcontractors are paid before lead contractors.
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CONTRACTOR UPFRONT
Charity gives Gough a helping hand
Secretary for Justice, Andrew Bridgman, and Fletcher Construction chief executive, Graham Darlow, sign the main building contract for the Precinct.
More Christchurch precinct details As reported in our last issue, Fletcher Construction has won the contract to build the new Christchurch Justice and Emergency Services Precinct, the official signing of which took place late last month. Fletcher has purportedly committed to lopping six months off the building schedule with completion now timetabled as the end of 2016. As an earthquake of the magnitude of the 7.1 quake in September 2010 had never previously been experienced in Christchurch, neither has a project of this magnitude been attempted in the southern city. This is good news for local business as Fletcher Construction chief executive Graham Darlow says the build will require the broad use of local subcontractors. He expected 700 workers to be on site at the peak of construction alongside “many more” in associated industries that supply products and services, although they will be supported where necessary by national and international partners, he confirmed. The Justice and Emergency Services Precinct will be home to the Ministry of Justice and 19 courtrooms; New Zealand Police; Department of Corrections; New Zealand Fire Service; St John New Zealand; Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management; Canterbury Civil Defence and Emergency Management Group; and Christchurch City Council – Civil Defence and Emergency Management.
Maori up-skilling A new suite of first-line management programmes from Te Puni Kokiri in conjunction with Connexis turned out 34 graduates last month. They join the 43 Maori – 20 women and 23 men – who completed the 2013 Wahine Toa, Tama Toa, and Mana Whakatipu programmes to establish careers in the civil infrastructure industry. Te Puni Kokiri says the programme suite is the first of its kind and its success is being achieved by partnering with employers to provide valuable skills and enhance Maori capability within industries. Between 2013 and 2014, 245 Maori were recruited and supported in the civil infrastructure industry; and another five Maori began diploma level industry qualifications. 8 SEPTEMBER 2014
Business is so good for Gough Group that it is running out of hours in the day, particularly in regards to assembling and distributing its fluid testing kits. Enter Kilmarnock Enterprises, a Christchurch charity that provides work for those with mental and physical disabilities, which will now assemble and distribute Gough’s 100,000 fluid testing kits annually. Gough Group’s ceo, Karl Smith says Gough Analytical handles 2.5 million tests annually on oils, coolants, fuels and greases, a 70 percent share of the fluid analysis market, which means some 600 samples a day are processed and this is core business, which left little time for kit assembly. Kilmarnock Enterprises will pick up the slack. The contract is a welcome addition to its portfolio after losing a significant slice of income three years ago when, after 30 years of producing New Zealand’s 1.4 million ANZAC Day poppies, the RNZRSA decided to give the job to the Australians. Although Kilmarnock is a charitable organisation 85 percent of its revenue is self-generated through commercial contract work.
Industry game changer The best Building Information Modelling (BIM) practices from around the world, tailored to the specific needs of New Zealand’s building and construction sector are now available as a free downloadable handbook courtesy of the BIM Acceleration Committee. Chris Kane, the manager of Building and Construction Productivity Partnership, says the tool has the potential to be an industry game changer as international feedback indicates that productivity gains of up to 20 percent are realised when BIM is an integral part of the construction process. He says the handbook sets up a consistent approach to using BIM across the country and is packaged into a main document and eight separate appendices including briefing templates and examples, written in a way that reflects how things are done here. Find it at www.buildingvalue.co.nz/BIM-in-NZ.
Huntly joins Waikato Expressway The $458 million needed for the Huntly section of the Waikato Expressway has been approved by the NZTA and work is scheduled to begin on the 15.5 kilometre stretch in September 2015. The stretch will start around 1.3 kilometres north of Fisher Road, pass east of Huntly through the Taupiri Range, and connect the Ohinewai section of the Expressway to the Ngaruawahia segment. Construction will include nine bridges and two intersections, tenders close in December and the contract will be awarded in April 2015.
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CONTRACTOR UPFRONT
The La Rosa Daylighting Project team was: Auckland Council (project management), HEB Construction (contractor), Andrew Stewart Ltd (community engagement), Ecomatters Trust (community engagement), Boffa Miskell (design and environmental consultancy) and Engineering Design Consultants (design).
Auckland Council project wins environmental award An Auckland Council project to revitalise streams in West Auckland has won a major engineering accolade from the Institute of Professional Engineers of New Zealand. The La Rosa Gardens Reserve stream daylighting project was awarded the prestigious Arthur Mead Environmental Merit Award in the under $5 million category. The project liberated 180 metres of the Fairburn and Parahiku streams from lifeless underground pipes, restoring them to a more natural state. Removing the pipes has improved the waterways’ ability to sustain life and their performance as part of the local stormwater drainage network. Natural features such as rocks, stones and tree branches
10 SEPTEMBER 2014
were added to replicate the streams’ condition prior to them being piped, and new walkways and public artworks in the reserve have created a place where the community can connect with the natural environment. “The La Rosa Project was an exceedingly rewarding project for everybody involved – with a real commitment from everybody involved, especially the community who were as much a part of the project team as any of the engineers involved,” says Auckland Council’s stormwater manager, Craig McIlroy. Auckland Council says it has an ongoing project to identify piped streams and to revitalise them by removing the pipes and restoring them to a more natural state.
UPFRONT CONTRACTOR
New appointments Alf Aitcheson has returned from Australia to be responsible for North Island Earthmoving and Roller sales for Youngman Richardson’s IHI and Ammann brands. Alf has extensive experience in new equipment sales and equipment hire management on both sides of the Tasman. And Andre Davis will be responsible for the South Island where he has already been involved in the hire industry in Christchurch for over a decade. Alf Aitcheson
Wirtgen ramps up Richard Seay is the new general manager of Wirtgen NZ as the company looks to strengthen its business in this country. Wirtgen CEO Australia and New Zealand, Paul Hockridge says the growth of the construction equipment company here has made the company take a closer look at how it’s structured and its resources here. Other appointments include the secondment of Gary Payne to Christchurch in a dual role as national sales manager for Kleemann crushing and screening products, and South Island territory manager representing and further developing roading products such as milling, stabilising, paving and compaction lines. In Auckland, Jason Allen will join Richard Watson as mobile back-up support in the upper North Island with the Vogele, Hamm and Kleemann brands.
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CONTRACTOR UPFRONT
Red zones up for discussion The public has the opportunity to say what it wants in regards to the future use of one of Canterbury’s red zones under a Government initiative called Canvas. The first locality under review in the CERA-run programme is Waimakariri District’s residential red zones, an area of around one kilometre (or 74 rugby fields plus 1800 tennis courts) with a bit of space left over (according to Gerry Brownlee) – taking in Kaiapoi, Kairaki and Pines beaches. This particular red zone is the first under the Canvas scheme because it so small, making the essential infrastructure required more easily identifiable, including how horizontal infrastructure within the red zones might be repaired, maintained or removed, as well as issues like flood mitigation. Next up is public input and it is hoped that individuals and groups will take great advantage of this opportunity to have a say as there has already been considerable interest in the future of the residential area, says Waimakariri District Mayor David Ayers. Of the 1048 properties red-zoned in the Waimakariri District, owners of just 36 properties have chosen not to accept a voluntary offer from the Crown. Details of the campaign – supported by key agencies and strategic partners including the Waimakariri District Council, the Christchurch City Council and Te Rūnanga O Ngāi Tahu – can be found at www. canvasredzone.org.nz
Consent for northern motorway section The Environmental Protection Authority’s board of inquiry, in its draft decision, consented the construction of the first section of the Puhoi to Warkworth section of the Ara Tuhono Puhoi to Wellsford Road of National Significance. The first stage of the project involves construction of a four-lane, 18.5 kilometre-long motorway from the Johnstone’s Hill tunnels on State Highway 1 to a roundabout just north of the Warkworth town centre and includes ramps near the community of Puhoi. NZTA acting highway manager, Steve Mutton, says subject to the board’s final decision (this month) construction may start between 2016 and 2019, and the section is estimated to take five years to build. The draft report and decision is available at: www.epa.govt.nz/Resource-management/Puhoi/Pages/default.aspx. Puhoi to Wellsford project details: www.nzta.govt.nz/puhoi-wellsford.
IN BRIEF Convention Centre developer The preferred developer for Christchurch’s new Convention Centre Precinct is Plenary Conventions NZ, a consortium of Ngai Tahu Property and Carter Group. The project remains on track for construction to begin in 2015, and for the centre to be open for business in 2017. Beyond the Convention Centre complex, the precinct is likely to combine hotel accommodation, hospitality, retail, and commercial and residential uses. The Crown has committed $284 million to the project. For more information visit www.ccdu.govt.nz/projects-andprecincts/convention-centre-precinct.
Warkworth’s new roading Work to improve Warkworth’s roads will begin this summer and is expected to be finished before Easter 2015, and will avoid work on the busiest holiday weekends of the year such as Labour Weekend and Christmas/New Year. Warkworth is already infamous for its holiday traffic congestion, especially around Hill Street. NZTA highway manager, Brett Gliddon, says the improvements do not represent the final solution for the area and longer term plans involve the traffic impacts of the new Puhoi to Warkworth motorway, the Western Collector, and potential projects such as the Matakana Link. Full details of the work can be found at www.nzta.govt.nz/warkworth.
DIARY NOTE: NZ Concrete Industry Conference Wairakei Resort, Taupo 9–11 October 2014 Early Bird Rates end Friday 5 September 2014 For more information or to register for the NZ Concrete Industry Conference visit: www.theconcreteconference.co.nz NOTE: There is no hard copy brochure this year; all registrations are via the website.
12 SEPTEMBER 2014
Hawkins Construction appointment Hawkins Construction appointed internal candidate Gary Walker as executive general manager following an extensive search, in New Zealand and overseas by a recruitment specialist. Gary joined Hawkins in 2009 and became Auckland regional manager two years ago. With 30 years industry experience, Gary has worked in a wide range of senior construction and design-related management roles in East Africa, the UK, New Zealand and Australia.
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CONTRACTOR NZTA
Green light for Transmission Gully Work will get underway by the end of the year on the 27 kilometre, $1 billion, Transmission Gully motorway after the signing of a contract between the NZTA and the Wellington Gateway Partnership (WGP), bringing an end to decades of indecision and delay. Transmission Gully is a vital section of the 110-kilometre long, Wellington Northern Gateway – between the capital and Levin. It is expected that the section will be open for traffic by 2020. As the third and most significant public private partnership (PPP) to date (and the first for a transport project), it is being built by a consortium, made up of Leighton Contractors, HEB Construction, InfraRed Infrastructure General Partner, the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFH and the Accident Compensation Corporation. The rival bidder short-listed for the project was Positive Connection, made up of Fulton Hogan, Fletcher Building, Macquarie Group and the Morrison & Co-managed PIP Fund. Although not part of WGP, the Bank of New Zealand has provided 20 percent of the senior bank debt facility used to construct the motorway. The bank now funds two of three major PPPs currently under development. ACC chief financial officer Mark Dossor says its commitment represents a strong investment for the corporation and will “deliver stable, long-term cashflows. The motorway design embeds high standards of safety for commuters and freight movers, and we see a natural alignment between our injury prevention responsibilities and a project that will strengthen the quality of New Zealand’s road network.” Leighton will be the special purpose vehicle manager for the project and also holds the operations and maintenance subcontract, while also acting as an equity investor with InfraRed and ACC. The design and construction is a joint venture with Auckland-based HEB Construction, with Leighton taking a majority role. At peak construction the project is expected to employ 700 people. While a $1 billion price tag has been put on the project, the NZTA estimates its net cost will be $850 million – and $25 million less than if it had been a conventional procurement. When opened, the agency will make annual cash payments of about $125 million over the life of the 25-year contract. Wellington’s Dominion Post newspaper estimates that, by the time inflation has been added into the mix, taxpayers will have handed over about $3.1 billion.
A long debate The new corridor is designed to replace the fragile coastal segment of State Highway 1 north of Tawa, which is vulnerable to flooding and earthquakes, and represents one of the most hazardous stretches of roading in the country. NZTA chairman Geoff Dangerfield says the completed Transmission Gully highway will be flatter, wider, and straighter with enhanced safety features making it safer and more resilient to natural disasters and closures. He said the PPP model also encourages the most advanced technology and innovative approaches from overseas to be brought to the project. There has been public interest in a route going through what came to be called Transmission Gully since 1919, although it is only in the past 10 years that public views have been canvassed formally and it has been quite some decade and quite some debate. 14 SEPTEMBER 2014
Objections ranged from the proximity of the proposed highway to the environmentally sensitive wetland area of the Pauatahanui Inlet. The alternative was to upgrade the existing coastal road. There have been questions about whether the road will be a tollway with the old coastal route being a viable free route. The Automobile Association says its research concluded motorists would accept tolls of $2.50-$4, but a toll component was not asked for nor provided by bidders. If there were toll charges placed on this route, they would have to be collected by the Government not the WGP. The Government would also have to sign off on such a move, should the NZTA decide upon one. Currently the only toll road operated by the NZTA is the stretch of the Northern Gateway between Orewa and Puhoi, north of Auckland. Fees for a single trip range from $2.20 for a car to $4.40 for a heavy vehicle and in the year to June 2012, the road’s 5.2 million trips created revenue of $11.4 million.
Part of a big design The steep and geologically complex Transmission Gully route will use a road corridor first identified during the Second World War and involves 28 bridges, with two lanes in each direction from MacKays Crossing to Linden (through Transmission Gully). There will be interchanges connecting the route to State Highway 58 and Kenepuru with a connection to Kenepuru Drive. In addition, there will be two link roads from the eastern Porirua suburbs of Whitby and Waitangirua to the route. The Porirua City Council link roads to Waitangirua and Whitby are to be delivered under a separate design and construction contract. Negotiations between the Council and the Wellington Gateway Partnership are ongoing and expected to be concluded in late 2014. The project includes protection or relocation of utilities including transmission towers. It is believed the corridor will cut peak journeys into the capital by seven to 15 minutes and cut the time between Levin and Wellington Airport by 40 minutes. The NZTA says the corridor will be less prone to accidents and closures than the existing coastal SH1 and freight will be moved more efficiently. Indeed the announcement of an impending start to the corridor was welcome news to the road freight industry, says Road Transport Forum chief executive officer Ken Shirley. He says a major link into and out of the capital and to the South Island is essential for freight. Heavy vehicles used by commercial freight operators are more than capable of handling the one stretch of steep gradient on the Transmission Gully route, he adds. “Some people have been spreading the misconception that heavy vehicles won’t be able to climb parts of the new road. The reality is that the entire route will be no steeper than Ngauranga Gorge out of Wellington which trucks of all descriptions routinely use every day.” The road’s other selling point is that in the event of a major earthquake or other natural disaster, it is expected it could reopen after 30 days instead of the 120 days allotted to the current SH1.
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CONTRACTOR ON THE COVER
Turning waste into treasure
with Cat wheel loaders It’s been said; “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure,” and if ever there was a company that could attest to that, it’s EnviroWaste. IN KEEPING ABREAST with industry leading innovations, EnviroWaste is now using Caterpillar purpose-built waste handling wheel loaders in its more sizeable operations in the North Island. As part of the new Cat K Series redesign, Caterpillar can manufacture the new wheel loaders with a dedicated waste handling package specifically for the waste management industry. Powered by the Cat C6.6 ACERT engine, the Cat 924K wheel loader is able to work efficiently and deliver fuel savings up to 25 percent, compared with the previous H-Series model. Rhys Pryde, EnviroWaste’s RTS manager, is very impressed with the fuel efficiency of his new machine being used at the Patiki Road Transfer Station, confirming Caterpillar’s claim he says; “My fuel bill has come down by $1500 per month.” The C6.6 ACERT rated speed setting of 1800rpm, compared with 2415rpm for the H-Series, contributes significantly to the reduced fuel consumption, as does the engine-idle shutdown system present in this new K Series wheel loader. Pryde goes on to say; “The machine has got a lot of pushing power and less wheel spin than the loader we had before. I’ve had this machine for about eight months and the tyres are not even half worn; and they are solid rubber. “Before I was buying a new set of tyres for my loaders every eight to 10 months, so with less wheel spinning on the Cat machine, I’ll be making a saving of $25,000 a year, at least.” Gough Cat’s building and construction product manager, Paul Janovec explains; “The rim pull function allows the adjustment of the wheel torque on the go for specific application conditions that vary from day to day. This minimises the wheel slippage 16 SEPTEMBER 2014
which in turn minimises the tyre wear.” The bucket strike angle improvements from Cat enable increased material retention through the lift range. Pryde says they have replaced two machines and no longer need to use a ramp now that they have this Cat 924K on site. “I’ve effectively got this wheel loader doing two machines’ jobs, saving fuel and staff costs.” Another improvement to the Cat K Series is easier serviceability. All service points are accessible from ground level, with three large service doors giving full access to filters and service points. Extended service intervals reduce service time and maximise uptime. “For servicing on the Cat machines, everything is so much easier for the staff, it’s great,” says Pryde. He goes on to say; “The operators check the machines every morning and evening. Each night we blow all the radiators out because we work in a very dusty environment.” The Cat 924K waste handling configuration is equipped with Reversing Fan Control. This gives the operator a way to clean dust and debris from the radiator using the cooling fan. “Every 20 minutes the fan will reverse and blow out from the radiator,” explains Pryde. “In previous years, before we started using Cat loaders, we would end up having to pull the radiators out of the machine every 12 months and get them acid dipped, because all those machines did was suck the air in from the outside.” EnviroWaste has five new Cat 924K wheel loaders operating at its larger transfer stations around Auckland. Their capacity is perfect for the big volumes they move and manage on a daily basis according to Phil
Ellis, the national transfer station manager for EnviroWaste. The 924K is part of what is considered the range of Cat small wheel loaders. When it first arrived on site Ellis was surprised at how big it looked. “The big bucket and big radius wheels make it look bigger than it actually is.” The heavy and robust nature of these “little” machines is welcomed and has dramatically decreased running costs. Ellis iterates; “Our fuel consumption has dropped quite a bit, it’s remarkable. They are
“Our fuel consumption has dropped quite a bit, it’s remarkable. They are great machines with excellent fuel efficiency.”
great machines with excellent fuel efficiency.” With the improvements to the K Series, there is a greater load retention at all heights, better rack back angles for larger fill factors and curved bucket sides for improved material retention, according to Goughs. “The visibility is fantastic,” says Poovan Naidoo, the Auckland territory sales manager for Goughs. After talking to the operators of these machines Naidoo says; “They don’t want to sit in other machines after being in the 924K.
“The Cat 924K is definitely operator friendly and very comfortable with the air ride seat and it is so quiet.” Along with the five new Cat wheel loaders, EnviroWaste also use a Cat M318DL waste handler and has a number of Cat excavators spread around the country as well. “Cat has a very good name in the market and I’ve also operated a lot of Cat gear myself and have never had any issues,” says Pryde. In any industry, there is no time for break downs. EnviroWaste is open seven days a
week and only shuts down for three days a year, so it is imperative to have good back up support and service. “Having a Gough’s branch here in Auckland has made a big difference,” says the national transfer station manager. “If something breaks down on a Saturday or Sunday, you need to get it fixed because you can’t move rubbish otherwise. “The machine has got to be reliable and you have got to have good service back up. Goughs have always been responsive and their back up support is impressive.” l SEPTEMBER 2014 17
CONTRACTOR PROFILE
Brad Day won the Warren Drake Memorial Trainee of the Year Award this year at the NZCF Northland awards. While working full time at Robinson Asphalts, Brad is also studying part-time towards the NZ Diploma in Engineering (Civil) at Northtec.
18 SEPTEMBER 2014
A hard day’s work ALAN TITCHALL catches up with Bradley Day who won the Warren Drake Memorial
Trainee of the Year Award category this year at the NZCF Northland awards. IT IS NOT OFTEN an employer nominates one of its young workers for a Contractor magazine profile. When Annie Johnston from Robinson Asphalts extolled the work record of trainee Bradley (Brad) Day we just had to meet him. Words such as “hard working” and “dedicated” are not what we have come to associate with a young generation that wants it all now, and is quick to move between jobs to achieve it. While working full time at Robinson Asphalts, Brad is also studying part-time towards the NZ Diploma in Engineering (Civil) at Northtec. But that is only part of his routine. He not only studies in the evenings after a hard day’s work that starts at 7am and finishes at 5pm or even 5.30pm (with two, half hour, smoko breaks in between), but fits in rugby training and Saturday games (playing on the wing with the Hora Hora prems), and training for an annual boxing tournament organised by Northland contractors. If that is not busy enough, Brad also finds time to drive up to Kerikeri from Whangarei to see his girlfriend. Any time left to read industry magazines, I ask? “Until the other day, when I was told about this interview, I had never heard of Contractor magazine,” he says with a laugh. A subscription is on its way Brad. So how did you get here? “I started working here when I was still at school, during the holidays. When I left school I was offered a cadetship. That was three years ago.” Not untypically, contracting was not on his career wish list at the time. “I wanted to be an electrician and I worked free labour for a company hoping to get an apprenticeship, but they had no work for me – that’s what they told me anyway. “I could have got an apprenticeship at Northpower but, by that stage, I had been working here for a while and was enjoying it.” And what do you actually do at Robinson Asphalts? “I do a bit of everything, depending on the job, machine work and labouring, setting out levels.” Best part of the work? “Working with the other ‘fullas’, we have a lot of fun, and the variety – you are not doing the same thing every day. “Although I like the bigger commercial sites – bit more interesting.” Worst part of the job? “Working in the rain – which is worse than the
summer heat. I don’t like getting wet.” This boxing stuff sounds interesting, can you tell us a bit more? “I did a lot of amateur boxing for a long time and last year three of us from work fought for the Fulton Hogan team against the Downers team in the Contractors for Charity Boxing Tournament.” When was that? “December last year.” Did you win? “We all won our fights and I beat the other fellow pretty convincingly in my opinion.” This annual event raises funds for a chosen charity each year. Last year it was the ‘Choose Life’ suicide prevention charity and was organised by local contracting firms in Northland, and supported by Robinson Asphalts. The other contestants last year from Robinsons were David Wright, Brad’s stepfather, and Sam Johnston, the son of the company’s owners – Alan and Annie Johnston. “I will be fighting again this year as well in the middle weight section [under 85 kilograms]. “The heaviest I fought as an amateur boxer was 69 kilograms, which was welterweight. I had 24 fights and won the Auckland champs and Central North Island champs once, and went on to New Zealand champs and Golden Gloves twice, but didn’t do any good – lost in the first bout of both of those tournaments. “But it kept me fit and off the streets, and I never went partying because I was always training. That’s until I turned eighteen and started going out with my mates.” You won the Warren Drake Memorial Trainee of the Year Award this year? “I was presented with a hand-carved greenstone trophy [pictured] and a $1000 scholarship towards my studies.” At what point in your studies are you up to? “Third year and the diploma takes around four years. Study involves a day on a Tuesday and a night class. And they give me time off from work to study before an exam.” Are you going to specialise when you graduate? “Papers have five electives to choose from – that include waste water, waste water management, land surveying and highway engineering. “I’ve gone for land surveying. I only have one more paper in this subject and a few core papers and I will be finished at the end of next year, or even earlier.”
“I did a lot of amateur boxing for a long time and last year three of us from work fought for the Fulton Hogan team against the Downers team in the Contractors for Charity Boxing Tournament.”
SEPTEMBER 2014 19
CONTRACTOR PROFILE What happens then? “After graduating I will carry on working for Robinson Asphalts for a few more years and then I might go overseas. I will see what happens at the time.” “I am in no hurry to leave – you can go further in a company of this size and earn faster.” So your stepfather and younger half brother also work here – you all get on? “Yeah, yeah … [pause] … they put us in our separate corners sometimes.” “No … it’s fairly good … everyone’s laid back.” It’s mid Friday afternoon and I’m aware Brad has been given the rest of the afternoon off work. We end the interview with a quick photo session and he’s off – studying, rugby, girlfriend… I didn’t ask, but at least I knew it wasn’t to read industry magazines. Brad’s employers Annie and Alan Johnston hung around to get in the last word. Robinson Asphalts is really a family affair and it occurred to me to cover their story in the next issue of Contractor. Alan and Annie bought the company (founded in 1972) off her father in 1992. Alan’s brother and Annie’s nephew work for the company and their two sons have both worked their holidays there. “How did the interview with Brad go?” Annie asks. Good I say. “Brad’s stepfather David also used to work here after school and also left school to work here. “Apart from a stint doing heavy haulage for about four years he’s been here ever since.” As Annie explains it – when David’s generation left school they learnt a trade through experiential learning and now encourage the next generation to get a qualification as well. “And Brad came here on the understanding that he gets a qualification.” These days represent a different time and a different work ethic among young workers, Alan adds.
20 SEPTEMBER 2014
“Every now and again we get a really dedicated young worker, particularly if they have been raised on a farm where they contribute to the daily operation. “Brad was one of these. From day one he had a very good attitude and work ethic.” Staff cultures are closed shop, says Annie, and they don’t take on newcomers easily. “It is the core staff who put the new ones on trial and it is they who decide if they are keepers or not, not just us, and they soon let us know. Once they do accept a new employee, they are as good as family. “When Brad came here straight from school, he was accepted within a week. “And, when he finishes his studies, I am sure we will lose him overseas for a period of time – it’s inevitable – but he will be back – we hope.”
A FAMILY AFFAIR Alan and Annie Johnston bought Robinson Asphalts (founded in 1972) off her father in 1992. Alan’s brother and Annie’s nephew work for the company and their two sons have both worked their holidays there.
CONTRACTOR TRIPARTITE CONFERENCE
Executive council members readying to take on questions from the membership at the old federation’s 2014 AGM in Rotorua (from left): Dayle Scrimshaw; Cos Bruyn; Joe Edwards; Jeremy Sole (chief executive); Dave Connell; Paul Buetow (Kensington Swan); Woody Blakely; Colin Calteaux; Denis Chambers; and Leigh John. Three executives on the council (Simon Everett, Dale Scrimshaw, and Denis Chambers) have been replaced by Bailey Gair, Bob Fulton, and Brian Warren.
One voice going forward At 5.30pm August 8 the Contractors’ Federation, without fuss, voted to absorb the assets and membership of Roading NZ and change its name to create a new industry body for contractors. EARLIER THAT WEEK, Roading NZ members also voted to merge their association with the federation to form this new, representative organisation. Talk of a merger between the two industry associations had been going on for years, and resulted in a lot discussion and coverage in this magazine. At their joint conference in Rotorua, both association presidents – Dave Connell and Cos Bruyn – had talked up the proposed merger as the ‘sensible’ and ‘collaborative’ way for the industry to face the future. However, it was not absolutely certain which way the membership would eventually vote. Under the federation rules, the merger needed the support of at least two thirds of those members attending the AGM and eligible to vote. This is first done by asking those in ‘favour’ of the resolution to say ‘aye’. If that is not conclusive, the resolution is put to a show of hands. If that is not clear, then it goes to a poll vote. Before the AGM started at 4.30 on the Friday (towards the end of the three-day conference) an hour-long meeting was called for general federation business and the merger was a focus of discussion. It was learnt that Alan Stevens, who manages Roading NZ’s technical committees, would join the new association to work alongside Malcolm Abernethy, the federation’s technical advisor. We also learnt that most members of Roading NZ were already members of the federation. There are only about four former Roading members who now have the opportunity of joining the new representative body. A name change (passed at the AGM) was going to cost between $25,000 and $30,000 if “done in a targeted way”. Income wise, the new association, we were told, would be cost neutral by 2016-2017, if not better off through improved sponsorship. Some members expressed fear that the ‘big boys’ would dominate the new association. Members of the federation’s executive council and its chief executive, Jeremy Sole, were quick to point out that ‘large’ members (by turnover) only represented 15 percent of the membership. Joe Edwards from McDow pointed out that big and small contractors very much rely on each other and his company spends some $300 million a year on smaller contractors. Dave Jewell said the bigger members are not exactly reliant on the federation to influence central and local government, as they have the resources to do that themselves. “But we believe in the 22 SEPTEMBER 2014
federation as an industry representative.” The federation had to prepare for the merger resolution to go to a vote, so had laboriously prepared voting packages for each member. Most of these sat at the back of the meeting room unopened because there was not a big turnout to the AGM. One source told us many smaller members had ‘abstained’ by not turning up. Before the merger resolution (No 4) was put to the membership, members had to vote on 25 other resolutions that were minor changes to update wording in the federation’s rules and regs. Whether this had the effect of wearing everyone down, or the pre AGM meeting had appeased the dissenters, or the clock was ticking towards happy hour and the buses leaving for the big gala night – a majority of members quietly mumbled ‘aye’ to resolution No 4 and, without discussion, the merger was approved. Prior to this, Roading NZ had one of its shortest AGMs in history, all over within half an hour, with its members unanimously voting for the merger. It had helped that, back in May, the association called a special general meeting to discuss the merger idea, and this had resulted in some healthy discussion that resolved any issues. Resolution No 6 accepted all Roading NZ life members into the federation and resolution No 5 changed the name from the NZ Contractors’ Federation to a name favoured by the executive council members – Civil Contractors New Zealand. The federation had wisely bought the domain name in advance. Only one resolution did not pass and this was also the only one to go to a paper vote, and that proposed reducing the percentage of members of the executive council (from 75 percent to 50 percent) needed to remove the chief executive if they fell out of favour. After the votes were counted, it failed to get a get a two-thirds majority. Civil Contractors New Zealand came into existence on the first of this month with the previous structure for the branches, regions and national office in place. There are three ex Roading NZ executives on its executive council – Cos Bruyn, from Downer (ex Roading NZ chairman); Brian Warren, Isaac Construction; and Bob Fulton, Fulton Hogan. New association templates, logos and letterheads will be sent out to the membership as they become available.
TRIPARTITE CONFERENCE CONTRACTOR
On the Couch A packed room turned out in force for the inaugural “Challenges Facing Small Business” Couch Session, hosted by Margo Connell, financial manager and director of Connell Contractors, along with Janet Brothers, CEO of Life Care Consultants, Graham Rodgers, and Mike Whitehead of BNZ, sponsor of the event. THE SESSION WAS A free-flowing discussion with active audience participation looking at the health and employment problems common to many small businesses. Here are a few gems we picked up from the room.
Finding the right applicants: • Recruit for fit, train for skills. • Employees will stay for culture; don’t employ someone willing to move for a few more dollars as they’ll do the same to you. • If you want to recruit good people, you’ll have to find someone who’s already employed elsewhere – and not the first person who applies. • Think about where your ideal person would expect to find your job listed.
A pre-employment checklist: • Advertise the correct job that matches what you’ll be wanting them to do. • Get applicants to sign a disclaimer allowing you to do confidential background checks. • ACC history check. • Criminal history check (seven years only) – but think carefully about why you might want to know this; what you’ll do with the knowledge; and don’t forget not all problems are elevated through to prosecution. • Reference checks – ignore written references, they’re too easily forged. Do verbal only, and don’t restrict to the ones offered up by the applicant. • Qualifications and licences – make sure they’re real. • Drug test – many sites will ban a tradesman for six months. • Driver’s licence check – details of demerit points. • Skills test. • Letter of offer.
A pre-employment health assessment: • Hearing loss is particularly important in industrial settings; ACC says the current employer is responsible for noiseinduced hearing loss, irrespective of employee’s history. So get the check and complete an ACC claim and you’ll only be responsible for degeneration subsequent to that point. • Health is the forgotten part of Health & Safety. • It’s unlikely a GP will give you the information you need from a health check. If possible, use a commercial supplier, who will know the type of information you need – such as whether Type 2 diabetes might explain someone having accidents in the early afternoon. • Where relevant, include the results of a health check in your company hazard register.
• Consider employing young people rather than experienced only. Yes, you will have some problems, but nor do they come with bad habits and baggage from previous employment.
Need to terminate? • Include a 90-day trial – following Clause 67A of the Employment Relations Act 2000, which must be signed before employment begins. Even then you still have to be careful – constructive dismissal provisions still apply. • Consider what you put into writing, while still acting in good faith, and warn the employee of the possibility that the 90-day provision may be invoked if it’s not working out. • Within the 90 days, a notice period is likely to be one week, different from whatever is normal after the 90 days have passed. • If you have a problem, try for mediation, which remains private – an Employment Authority ruling is public, and may not reflect well on your company. • Be aware of, and follow, proper procedure. Most problems are caused by this. • Written warnings should include details of the consequence of the behaviour. • Written warnings generally expire after 12 months.
Leadership: • If the leader doesn’t know the company’s strategy, no one will. • Groom your business as though you’re about to sell it.
Work / Life balance: • Plan your business as though you were a big corporation: identify key roles (CEO, CFO, COO etc) and write job descriptions for each of these – then find someone who can take that workload off you. This will 1) give you a life and 2) make the business saleable. No one will buy your business if “you’re it”. • Remember to take a holiday to reduce burn-out. • Don’t do all the menial tasks yourself. A doctor wouldn’t do the admin, even if faster than an assistant. • Plan in advance for succession and/or sudden loss of a business partner.
System checks and balances: • Be aware that your most trusted employee might be stealing from you. • Watch for the person who won’t go on holiday. • Instigate a system of checks and balances such as regular “mini audits” and ensure no one person has too much control. SEPTEMBER 2014 23
CONTRACTOR TRIPARTITE CONFERENCE
Achieving results together Bits and bytes from the tripartite annual conference in Rotorua between the NZ Contractors’ Federation (now Civil Contractors NZ), Roading NZ (now Civil Contractors NZ), and the Association of Consulting Engineers NZ.
2014 Company Award sponsored by Z Energy and Connexis Companies over $25m turnover – Downer NZ Companies $10m to $25m – Goodman Contractors Companies under $10m – Construction Contracts
Bruce Marshall, Downers.
Hirepool Construction Excellence Awards The joint awards (NZCF and Roading NZ) had a record number of entries this year and the winners were: CATEGORY ONE – less than $0.5m – Katikati-based Bridge It NZ, for a project to replace a 1940s’ farm swing bridge over the Motu River. CATEGORY TWO – $0.5m to $5m – McConnell Dowell Constructors for repair works on the historic Arapuni Power Station diversion gate and tunnel. CATEGORY THREE – $5m to $30m – McConnell Dowell Constructors for the fish-hook design Lower Hatea River Crossing at Whangarei. CATEGORY FOUR – greater than $30m – Fulton Hogan for the Christchurch Southern Motorway Stage 1. Road Science was the winner of the Excellence in Maintenance and Management of Assets section for its work for NZTA in Waikato. Downer NZ won the Excellence in Routine Maintenance section for its long-standing contract to provide water and wastewater service for Horowhenua District Council. 24 SEPTEMBER 2014
Warren Twort and Colin Wickman from Hirepool and Charlie Taylor.
Malcolm Abernethy and Caroline Booth.
TRIPARTITE CONFERENCE CONTRACTOR
WEIRDEST QUESTION What weighs the heaviest – the body of the Morepork bird or its feathers? The organisers reckon it is the feathers!
The Pub Quiz sponsored by Fletcher was owned by the ‘Site-sorted’ team From left: Matt Cobham; Doug Cobham; Simon Wall; Dave Jewell (presenting prize from Fletchers) and Allen Browne.
Don Tillbrook. Jeremy Sole.
Denis Chambers.
SEPTEMBER 2014 25
SPEAKERS
CONTRACTOR TRIPARTITE CONFERENCE
“It is important that we have an association that represents a balance of small, medium and large players so all voices are heard.” Dave Connell, now Civil Contractors NZ president.
“Investigations are an important task [of WorkSafe], but we will place the majority of our resources in stopping bad things happening in the first place.” Gordon McDonald, chief executive, WorkSafe.
“It’s about recognising a collaborative industry – and while there is an increasing optimism out there, we are all facing challenges and it’s still tough in some rural areas. We need now, more than ever, to have a unified, proactive body to rise to these challenges.” Cos Bruyn, ex Roading NZ president.
“This year is about [project] delivery – not new initiatives. The 2014-15 year is the biggest delivery year we have ever had – $2 billion.” – Tommy Parker.
“Extreme green policies will compromise the country’s growth and we are more dependent on natural resources than any other country” Minister of Housing and Minister of Conservation, Nick Smith.
“The RMA act doesn’t mention infrastructure and natural hazards – and needs fixing,” he said. 26 SEPTEMBER 2014
Malcolm Abernethy discussed the clause ‘reasonably practicable’ in the pending new WorkSafe legislation – a working description of worker’s responsibility or more Yoda speak from Wellington? (our words, not Malcolm’s). These words are borrowed from Australian legislation (Safe Work Australia), where it’s vaguely defined as meaning – “A ‘duty holder’ must meet the standard of behaviour expected of a reasonable person in the duty-holder’s position who is required to comply with the same duty.” In other words – it relies on a clear definition of the ‘duty holder’ and their ‘duties’.
Good question during the WorkSafe presentations; ‘What is the sense in having a brand called ‘zero harm’ when a ‘life is a risk’ and accidents are going to happen?’ Harm is inevitable – we can only manage it.
TRIPARTITE CONFERENCE CONTRACTOR
“As SMEs we have to make a three year investment in plant and training and we need a similar contract time to attract smart young engineers” – Dave Connell asking Tommy Parker a question.
Big and small contractors rely on each other and McDow spends some $300 million a year on smaller contractors.” Joe Edwards, McDow.
It was Tommy Parker’s first conference presentation as NZTA group manager and he spent time at the entire conference.
We don’t know if Aussie speaker Dr Jason Fox is descended from Ned Kelly or some other 19th century bushranger, but he can sure entertain a crowd.
“I was asked to improve relationships with contractors,” he said.
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CONTRACTOR TRIPARTITE CONFERENCE
Tommy Parker talked about the Transport Agency doing a lot of industry “collaboration” and “working together”. The agency is under a lot of government scrutiny about lifting productivity, he said, and procurement contracts, as a model, were under the “magnifying glass”.
Chris Olsen discusses industry self-governance as a
“very old practice of enforcing our own standards using industry knowledge – by the industry for the industry”. He used the E/2 Specification for the Performance of Bitumen set 20 years ago as an example.
John Gamble, president of the ACEC, talked at a rate of knots on Canada’s experience with PPPs with a combination of dry humour and odd facts. Example;
“Saskatchewan is so flat you can watch your dog run away for three days.” On a serious note he said;
“PPPs are here to stay. They are not a panacea – just a different way of procuring and financing projects. Conventional models still work.” “PPPs are all about risk and third party risk is a big one.” “Having the right team is so important – you have to live with them for a long time.”
“The pace and adoption at which technology trends are unfolding, and how they are interacting and colliding is creating an environment, that if you have not considered developing a ‘digital ecosystem’ for your business - you are already late to this digital economy world.” Keynote speaker,
Duncan Gibb of SCIRT on working on the Christchurch rebuild with a collaborative effort; “You need to be intentional in creating a plan to drive collaboration. There needs to be a compelling reason and understanding of the benefits.”
28 SEPTEMBER 2014
Eduardo Niebles, BST Global.
Gordon McDonald, chief executive, WorkSafe
“The inspectorate is important and we will put resources into it, but we won’t inspect the country to death. “We need to work with you and collaborate with industry organisations.”
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INNOVATORS
A walk around the trade hall Without them, there would be no conference – just a few of the trade stands at the Rotorua conference pitching new and innovative products and services.
Ally Shadbolt, N3.
Andrew Crane (left) and Patrick Coley, Cable Price.
A Hynds line-up: (from left) James Logan; Adrien Hynds; Nicki O’Sullivan; and Ray Brindle. Pip Carson, Synergy Positioning Systems.
Steve Hale and Keil Davies, Kubota.
30 SEPTEMBER 2014
John Stevens, Manheim.
Jason Gribble, Young & Richardson.
TRIPARTITE CONFERENCE CONTRACTOR
Paula Evans and David Lee, NZ Equipment.
Joel Kiefte and Jenna Ferguson, Z Energy. Bailey Gair, Gait Contracting; and Derek Schneideman, Tebo.
Julia Rowland and Innes Fisher, Utility Location Services.
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CONTRACTOR TRIPARTITE CONFERENCE
Is that you ……? It would be an understatement to say the themed dinner night at the conference each year is a conference highlight. This year’s dress-up dinner, sponsored by CablePrice was themed ‘Star” and boy, did they dress up. In regards to privacy and to protect the innocent we have omitted names and identifying details (but is that you James?). Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental (Ed).
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SEPTEMBER 2014 33
CONTRACTOR JLT ANNUAL CRANE CONFERENCE
A theme of ‘consequences’ The Crane Association held its 40th Annual Conference in Queenstown this year and it was the first year that the conference had naming rights sponsorship and so it became the JLT Annual Crane Conference. By RODNEY AUTON, chief executive of the Crane Association of New Zealand. THE ASSOCIATION IS fortunate in having a good following of sponsors, many of whom have aligned themselves with the association over many years. In a year of ‘firsts’ – the conference also had its first Master (Mistress) of Ceremonies ably taken up by renowned comedian and South African Urzila Carlson. Her wit and charm had many in stitches over the period of the conference. This year the theme of the conference was “consequences” and the speaker list reflected that with Dr Paul Wood and Nigel Latta headlining a varied and knowledgeable list of speakers. Dr Paul Wood spoke on how an individual can recover from adversity and make a difference in their own life and then pass that onto others. Nigel Latta gave an interesting presentation on the progress of man from caveman days to today. According to Nigel we haven’t come far. Two exciting speakers were Sharon Zölner, an economist from ANZ who showed that economics can be an interesting subject, especially when one is well versed in the subject. Karl Berendt from MB Century also presented a case for ‘root cause analysis’. This presentation showed that management has a greater role in the prevention of on the job accidents and brought home to many members present that maybe there is more that they can do. VP Scott McLeod introduced the association’s online shop and the range of health and safety initiatives that are now on offer for crane operators and the construction industry in general. These can be viewed at http://shop.cranes.org.nz. Presentations were given on the Waterview project and the Memorial Park Alliance project in Wellington. Both of these
Master of Ceremonies and comedian Urzila Carlson introducing a speaker and trying very hard not to swear (not). 34 SEPTEMBER 2014
projects are joint ventures between various companies. This form of collaboration is becoming more prevalent in the industry and is proving successful for the participating companies. These presentations highlighted the depth of planning and preparation, the intricacy of the plant required and the vast amount of resources needed to fulfil the project. Conferences are an opportunity to network and this one was no exception. With 19 exhibitors ranging from crane manufacturers and support industries to providers to the association, delegates had the opportunity to network with the exhibitors at every opportunity. All meals, breaks and social hours were held in the exhibition halls. The association took the opportunity to introduce the newly drafted Crane Safety Manual to members and to give them a chance to have input to the content and provide feedback. There has been much work put into this manual which is being developed for the crane operator as a training and on the job resource. The social side of a conference is equally important and this year was no exception with an opportunity to explore Queenstown’s nightlife on the Thursday night and a Liebherr sponsored conference dinner on the Friday night. The conference dinner was a gold-mining themed night and many delegates dressed for the part. The Project of the Year and Skills Trainee, Trainer and Training Company of the Year awards were presented at the dinner. This year Fletcher Construction won the Project of the Year with its bridge beam lift on the Waikato Expressway. The Skills Trainee of the Year was Tim Rhodes of Smiths Crane
Achieve bucket perfection with hardox and esco.
Nigel Latta turning the subject of ‘man’s evolution’ into light listening at the conference.
and Construction. The Trainer of the Year was Andrew Kitney of Kitney Assessment; and the Training Company of the Year was HEB Construction represented by Lee Liddelow. Gary Fissenden from The Skills Organisation (Crane ITO) presented the awards. Feedback from this year’s conference was very positive, and next year the conference is being held at Trinity Wharf, Tauranga. The Crane Association extends an open invite to the construction and contracting industry to attend next year’s conference.
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Presentation of the Crane Project of the Year trophy to Fletcher Construction for its project beam lift on the Waikato Expressway. Presenting is Daryl Stanley from UDC, sponsor of the award and recipient, Bryce Irving, on behalf of Fletcher Construction. SEPTEMBER 2014 35
CONTRACTOR PROJECT
Dry land
into sweet pasture 36 SEPTEMBER 2014
Even by the magnified standards of the Christchurch rebuild the Central Plains Water irrigation scheme is a major Canterbury construction project. HUGH DE LACY takes a look at it.
Once completed, CPW will treble the production from that area of dry land to a value of $264 million a year, which will in turn generate a further $328 million in downstream benefits, with an ultimate wider annual economic gain to the region of between $1 billion and $1.4 billion.
THE TWO CONTRACTS worth $60 million each that have been let for the first construction phase of the Central Plains Water (CPW) irrigation scheme in Canterbury have already made it one of the bigger South Island greenfields projects ever. Dwarfed it may be by the $40 billion Canterbury rebuild under way simultaneously, but at a total of $375 million the scheme to irrigate 60,000 hectares of the Canterbury Plains southwest of quake-wracked Christchurch will give an immense boost to the region’s economy, already 70 percent dependent on agriculture. Once completed, CPW will treble the production from that area of dry land to a value of $264 million a year, which will in turn generate a further $328 million in downstream benefits, with an ultimate wider annual economic gain to the region of between $1 billion and $1.4 billion for the full scheme. CPW will create over 1100 new full-time jobs, 400 of them from expanded farm output and 700 more in processsing, transport and related off-farm activities. In the short term the construction phase alone will create 300 jobs directly and 500 indirectly, generating $325 million in direct and $368 million in indirect benefits. SEPTEMBER 2014 37
CONTRACTOR PROJECT
Capable of producing up to 120 tonnes of pipe a day, the Aquaduct system completed 58 kilometres of the 85 kilometres Valetta project in just two months, and at the time of writing it had completed that job and was being dismantled into 60 truckloads for transport to CPW.
38 SEPTEMBER 2014
To ensure water reliability, CRW made an arrangement with Trustpower to store water in the electricity generator’s Lake Coleridge, further to the north-west, this being made legally possible by the Government altering the Conservation Order covering both the river and the lake. In essence, then, the scheme takes water from the Rakaia River and this makes its way across the central plains by way of an open headrace canal, and it will be distributed to the farm borders by underground pipes. The two distinct components of the scheme, headrace and pipes, have been let under separate contracts, with Fulton Hogan and its long-time Australian joint venture partner John Holland Pty building the canal and associated concrete structures, and Downer Group laying the pipelines in association with on-site pipe-maker Aquaduct Ltd. Fulton Hogan and John Holland were quick onto the site of the 17 kilometre canal, and by early August were celebrating the completion of the first million cubic metres of earthmoving, out of an eventual total of three million cubic metres for the canal alone. “They’ll finish the excavation work probably about February-March next year, and the whole thing will be lined and have all the bridges across it by July,” Derek Crombie, the chief executive of CPW, told Contractor. The entire length of the canal will be lined using a system of geotextile underlay and a 1.5mm thick HDPE liner to minimise water loss through seepage, and there are no fewer than 13 bridges to be built. Three of these bridges will allow public access across the canal, whereas the other 10 bridges will provide access for the farm operators. All bridges are designed to public road standards comprising a single span precast concrete deck with carriageways of up to 30 metres length and up
to 10 metres width. The canal takes the water from the Rakaia River and onto the first of two terraces where it’s formed by a combination of shallow excavation and the construction of engineered fill bunds. “After around 6.5 kilometres, the canal traverses out of the lower terrace onto the upper one and sits completely in the excavation cut,” says Fulton Hogan-John Holland JV project manager Peter Wissel. “We’re using for the canal excavation a combination of motorscrapers and bulldozers for the initial cut of around two metres depth, then shifting to the more usual method of excavators and dump trucks. “We have more than three million cubic metres of material to be moved in a very short time – less than a year, which requires from us to move up to 80,000 cubic metres of cut and fill each week.” With the canal excavation well under way, Downer and partner Aquaduct are preparing for the secondary distribution of the water from the canal to farm boundaries by way of 135 kilometres of underground pipes. This is a major variation from the usual system of smaller canals and trenches, and is made economically feasible by an on-site pipemanufacturing facility which has had its world-first debut on the nearby long-established Valetta irrigation scheme. Supplying 45 mid-Canterbury farmers on 13,000 hectares, Valetta has had 84 kilometres of highdensity polyethylene pipe installed at a cost of $30 million so the water can be supplied under pressure, replacing existing open waterways feeding off an old canal built early last century. The pipes were produced on-site by Aquaduct using three giant extrusion machines temporarily housed in a purpose-built marquee that’s 120 metres long and 20 metres wide.
Long ‘strings’ of top quality 1600mm, 125 metre-long, PE pipe are hauled on dollies from the extruders to the pipeline and are key to the economics of the on-site extrusion system because they hugely reduce the time spent welding pipes – usually 40 hours per kilometre – which would otherwise be supplied in 120 metre lengths.
Plastic chips fed into the extrusion machines at one end turn out pipes up to 250 metres long at the other, with one machine producing diameters from 180mm to 450mm, the second from 450mm to 900mm, and the third from 900mm to 1600m. The length of the pipes, which are hauled on dollies from the extruders to the pipeline, are a key to the economics of the on-site extrusion system because they hugely reduce the time spent welding pipes – usually 40 hours per kilometre – which would otherwise be supplied in 120-metre lengths. Further significant savings arise from the elimination of the cost of transporting pre-formed pipes to the site. Aquaduct’s on-site extrusion system at Valetta, which has won it a raft of awards including this
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SEPTEMBER 2014 39
CONTRACTOR PROJECT
Top: CPW Head race site office. Above left: Topsoil stripping for canal. Above right: At 200 tonnes, this machine is the biggest chain trencher made in the world. Aquaduct’s principal, Australian Gerard van den Bosch, stands beside it to provide scale. Bought second-hand for $3.8 million, it has previously been working in the oil business, laying two pipelines in Algeria and a third in Texas. On the CPW project, the machine is able to cut 400 metres of trenches a day.
40 SEPTEMBER 2014
year’s Irrigation New Zealand biennial Innovation Award, will increase the amount of water reaching the Valetta farms by 28 percent, allowing the area of irrigated land in the scheme to be expanded by 37.5 percent. Capable of producing up to 120 tonnes of pipe a day, the Aquaduct system completed 58 kilometres of the 85 kilometre Valetta project in just two months, and at the time of writing it had completed that job and was being dismantled into 60 truckloads for transport to CPW. In developing his on-site extrusion system, Aquaduct’s principal, Australian Gerard van den Bosch, has incorporated the latest pipe manufacture technology to include ultrasonic monitoring of the output to ensure its strength. According to independent tests, the pipe that Aquaduct produces is 25 percent stronger than the ASNZS Standard 4130 for PE100. Once laid along the line of the trench, the pipes are welded – and the company has 10 welding machines to cover the range of diameters – using a high-interface technique that is faster and more secure than traditional methods. With its sister company, Bosch Irrigation, Aquaduct has also brought big machinery and an innovative bedding system to the Valetta and CPW projects. At Valetta it has had a 65-tonne Dutch-made Trencor chain-trencher on the job, but that is about to be dwarfed by the 200-tonne model, one of only
nine built by the same company, on the water and due to arrive in late September. Bought second-hand for $3.8 million, this largest trenching machine in the world has previously been working in the oil business, laying two pipelines in Algeria and a third in Texas. Turned loose on the CPW project, the machine is expected to be able to cut 400 metres of trenches a day. Aquaduct’s current trenching machine has the ability to separate spoil into bedding and covering material, allowing the bony mid-Canterbury ground to provide both at a significant saving compared to buying the material in and carting it to the site. This capacity has led in turn to an improved bedding system: once the pipe is almost covered in the trench by the bedding material, the pipe itself is vibrated along its length, which has the effect of compacting the bedding material around it. Trials of this method, with 900mm of covering material over the pipe, revealed that 30 days after installation there was only a 0.15 percent rate of deflection, compared with the ASNZS standard of five percent. Though largely lost amid the clamour of the Christchurch rebuild, the CPW irrigation scheme is not only giving a significant boost to Canterbury’s long-term economic prospects, but by employing big and innovative machines and techniques it is making irrigation far more affordable throughout the country.
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CONTRACTOR PROJECT
THE FIRST PHASE OF
IMAGES: AUCKLAND TRANSPORT.
AMETI
Traffic was diverted onto the new busway to allow the Ellerslie-Panmure highway bridge to be replaced.
42 SEPTEMBER 2014
The Auckland Manukau Eastern Transport Initiative is about to celebrate the official completion of Phase 1 and it has been quite a challenge so far. MARY BELL explains. FLETCHER CONSTRUCTION, which was awarded the $100 million main contract for Phase 1 of the Auckland Manukau Eastern Transport Initiative (known by its acronym ‘AMETI’), is just a few short weeks from completing the project. The key features of this phase include the $17.5 million Panmure interchange with its new bus and train station; a new 1.5 kilometre-long road linking Morrin Road to Mt Wellington Highway; and a 220 metre box tunnel for the new road next to the rail line at Panmure Station. This project is a major scheme for Auckland’s southeastern suburbs and aims to reduce congestion and improve public transport links and it posed some pretty significant technical challenges as well as a number of logistical ones. The new interchange is the first stage of the Southeastern Busway between Panmure, Pakuranga and Botany, and is already being hailed as a success. Back in July, Auckland Transport announced a 57 percent increase in passenger numbers since the new Panmure railway station opened in January, and a 73 percent increase since this time last year. SEPTEMBER 2014 43
CONTRACTOR PROJECT
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“The station itself was a late addition to the project and, although a good idea, incorporating it was challenging for the designers.”
A team from NZ Strong brought their experience and expertise to the Panmure station build, having recently completed the $20 million New Lynn station.
44 SEPTEMBER 2014
According to Auckland Transport, Panmure is now ranked the 10th busiest railway station in Auckland, up from 18th in 2013. In time it is expected to become Auckland’s third busiest station. On average some 1116 passengers use the Panmure station every weekday – contrast this with 2003 when it was used by fewer than 100 people a day. One of the most significant improvements for commuters is that the train and bus stations are now seconds apart (the bus station is almost on top of the railway station) whereas previously passengers would have to walk for five to seven minutes to transfer from one to the other. The link road, which will be named Te Horeta Road, allows commuters travelling between Morrin Road and Mt Wellington Highway to bypass the Panmure roundabout and is expected to open in late September. This new road will allow 40 percent of traffic to escape the dreaded roundabout, which has been a frustrating bottleneck for commuter traffic for years.
]
THE CHALLENGES Ameti project director Peter King told Contractor that Phase 1 posed some pretty significant technical challenges as well as a number of logistical ones. As you would expect from a volcanic site, large volumes of basalt have been encountered as part of the project. The excavated rock was taken to a nearby site to be crushed and then used for retaining walls and the like. However, Peter says that below the layer of hard volcanic rock is a layer of poor-quality marine material. When the contractors were installing the piles for the station and bridges they would drill through the hard basalt and into slosh, he says. This meant they had to keep drilling down until they reached the sandstone layer below – some 5060 metres deep. Possibly the most complex thing, however, was traffic management – as well as simply dealing with huge traffic volumes, clever staging was initiated to keep the Ellerslie-Panmure highway operational
throughout the project. Of particular note, traffic was diverted to the new busway to allow the existing bridge on the highway to be replaced. Peter says Fletchers employed a full time traffic management person, and worked closely with Auckland Transport to mitigate the disruption to road users and local businesses. “The phasing of works was not trivial,” he says. “Stakeholder management has also been important and there have been some issues – noise, dust, access to businesses, parking, etc. “We have put a lot of effort into being a good neighbour but you can’t do a project of this size without cracking a few eggs.”
AN HISTORIC SITE Among the key stakeholders in the project is local Maori who are represented by about eight different tribes. The area is very significant for them and features a very high concentration of preEuropean settlement. And Peter says there have been a number of quite significant archaeological discoveries during the project – at one stage there were 13 archaeologists on site who found evidence of a number of burials at the northern end where old lava flows from Mt Wellington have created caves that Maori used as tombs. Further down the site, near where Harvey Norman is located, is the historic Tainui spring. And scattered throughout the whole area is evidence of occupation – signs of whare (houses), cooking pits, middens, etc. The finds include what are possibly the earliest archaeological discoveries in the region. In addition, the colonial history of the area is quite rich; Van Damme’s lagoon at the south end of the site once boasted the largest tannery in the Southern Hemisphere. It is currently being rehabilitated after many years of neglect and will be used as part of the stormwater management system. From the 1870s the lagoon provided water for steam engines and boilers for the Ireland Brothers’ Tannery, which processed 90 percent of the Auckland province’s leather. A Van Damme bought the property in the 1930s, transforming it with landscaping and stocking the ponds with goldfish and carp. He also grew waterlilies in the lagoon, harvesting them for market. Later a large industrial company purchased the property and used the lagoon as a rubbish dump until the local council bought it in 1975 and restored it as a nature reserve. The lagoon and other historic landmarks have been commemorated in a large compass design that fills the ceiling of the new train station. As well as marking north, south, east and west, lines point to a number of areas of historic interest.
WORKING ALONGSIDE RAIL Project engineer Kirsty McVicar of Fletchers was responsible for the large structures on the project. She says early contractor involvement in the
project was really beneficial, keeping the project buildable, “and the finished product looks great”, she adds. “The station itself was a late addition to the project and, although a good idea, incorporating it was challenging for the designers, and we had to work hard to coordinate the building of the structures as one is almost on top of the other,” she told Contractor. The station itself features a central pedestrian plaza linking both sides of the rail tracks, two lifts, escalators to both platforms and four sets of stairs at the main access point. Working next to rail was a big challenge for the project, and it’s a busy rail corridor too, with a train every few minutes. Safety was paramount and innovation was essential.
Piles for the station and bridges were drilled 5060 metres deep, through a layer of volcanic rock and marine mud and into the sandstone below.
SEPTEMBER 2014 45
CONTRACTOR PROJECT
Traffic was diverted onto the new busway to allow the Ellerslie-Panmure highway bridge to be replaced.
46 SEPTEMBER 2014
While Phase 1 of AMETI was in progress the railway was in the process of being electrified by KiwiRail. This meant extra precautions were required once it was live, but it also provided opportunities for the AMETI team as block outages of the railway could be utilised to progress their work. Installing the Super T beams for the box tunnel was both technically and logistically challenging. Kirsty says they used NZ Crane’s massive 450 tonne Grove all-terrain crane with mega-wing lift enhancement system. The mega wing increases the lifting capacity of the crane by 30 percent and allowed them to lift the beams over the rail, keeping the line open throughout. The lifts were done at night between train movements, as there were fewer trains at that time.
YEARS AHEAD A lot has been achieved since the project officially kicked off in February 2012, and while Phase 1 is almost complete, and has been hailed a success, there are still many years of work ahead to fully ease the traffic issues in the area. Local commuters can expect further relief as Phase 2(a) sees the Panmure roundabout upgraded to an intersection, a new busway from Panmure Station to Pakuranga town centre and a flyover built at Reeves Road. Work is scheduled to be finished in 2022, with the next stage, the Pakuranga to Botany busway, programmed for completion in 2018. The whole of AMETI is being funded by Auckland Transport (the council) and the Transport Agency to the tune of $1.5 billion.
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CONTRACTOR INTERNATIONAL
WHEN PPPs GO WRONG You can look at it as a landmark Aussie infrastructure project or a disastrous lesson in public-private partnerships, but Brisbane’s Airport Link is one impressive piece of roading. By ALAN TITCHALL
JUST BEFORE MIDNIGHT on July 24, 2012, Australia’s largest privately funded road infrastructure project opened to traffic. Brisbane’s Airport LinkM7, a new part of the city’s M7 motorway, connects the city’s CBD, northern suburbs and airport. As a tunnelled, motorway grade, toll road in the northern suburbs of the city it features 6.7 kilometre-long twin tunnels (the longest in Australia), seven kilometres of new motorway, busway tunnels and connecting ramps, and 25 bridges. The contract for the project was conducted as a public-private partnership (PPP), which was awarded to a consortium called BrisConnections, made up of the Macquarie Group, Thiess (an Australian integrated engineering, construction and mining services specialist), and construction company John Holland (a 48 SEPTEMBER 2014
subsidiary of Leighton Holdings). Thiess and John Holland also worked together on the A$2.5 billion EastLink project in Melbourne, and the $1.1 billion Lane Cove Tunnel project in Sydney. The A$4.8 billion Airport LinkM7 project generated around 12,000 jobs, with work started in October 2008 and completed three years and nine months later – actually a month overdue which resulted in BrisConnections collecting A$23.375 million in late fees from Leighton. The project used 12.48 metre diameter tunnel machines to bore the twin tunnels that are around 49 metres underground at their deepest point. The project cost was designed to be paid off through toll revenue collected via an electronic ‘free-flow tolling system’ similar to the Northern Gateway Toll Road just north of Auckland. There are two sets of tolling gantries, one set at
the southern and another at the northern end. Vehicles entering or exiting midway only pass one gantry and pay a partial toll.
A PPP disaster The financial aspects of the Airport Link project were mired in controversy from the outset. Reportedly, Macquarie Group charged A$110 million in fees for the financial engineering of the project, which used the equity from private investors to raise the necessary debt and planned to pay investor distributions from capital – an arrangement at the time ridiculed as the “dead parrot model”, after the famous Monty Python comedy sketch. BrisConnections was listed as a unit trust (or collective investment constituted under a trust deed) on the
Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) via a A$1.2 billion initial public offering (IPO) of instalment receipts on July 31, 2008, and was described as the largest IPO in Australia at the time. It also proved to be one of the most disastrous. The value of initial A$1 instalments fell by 60 percent on the first day of trading, and by late November that year had collapsed to A$0.1c, the lowest possible price on the ASX. Among the institutional investors was the state-owned corporation that invests the superannuation funds for Queensland’s public servants – the QIC, which invested A$25 million. The dramatic price slide was mostly attributed to the leverage risk associated with stapled securities. Potential toll revenue was forecast on traffic volumes. While the Environmental Impact Statement process lodged by the Queensland state government showed traffic forecasts in 2012 of 95,000 vehicles per day, rising to 120,000 motorists by 2026, the Product Disclosure Statement by BrisConnections’ traffic consultant forecasted 193,000 vehicles a day using the three tollable sections of the route in 2012, rising to 291,000 vehicles by 2026. BrisConnections did take pains to point out among the ‘risk factors’ that lower traffic volumes than predicted would impact on “returns to unit holders and BrisConnections’ ability to service its debt”. All forecasts were way off. By the
beginning of this year an average of 47,000 vehicles used the 6.7 kilometre link each day – about half of the original forecasts estimated by the state government. Under the original scheme BrisConnections collected the tolls and was responsible for the operation and maintenance of the tunnel until 2053. By mid-February this year, despite extensive marketing and discounted tolls, the route had failed to attract enough traffic to cover costs. BrisConnections was placed into voluntary administration with debts worth more than the tunnel. It was the second Brisbane tollway to go broke not long after opening. Brisbane’s first private tollway, the Clem7 Tunnel, opened in 2010 under the operation of RiverCity Motorway, which had a concession period of 45 years before the tunnel was handed back to the City of Brisbane. Again, vehicle patronage was overestimated and receivers were appointed to RiverCity (reportedly burdened with A$1.3 billion worth of debts) in 2011.
A fine piece of urban roading BrisConnection’s non-executive chairman Trevor Rowe said at the time the company went into administration; “The Airport LinkM7 is unquestionably a world class piece of transport infrastructure that will continue to support Brisbane’s growth into the decades ahead.” And, finances aside, the news for
Brisbane’s motorists since the route opened in 2012 has only been positive, reducing congestion around Brisbane’s city roads. The tunnel works have proven to work well with the city’s river crossings to provide drivers with more route options, especially in the event of an accident on one of the river bridge crossings. Brisbane City Council, not surprisingly, has taken a far more cautious estimate of its latest city toll tunnel under construction – the A$1.5 billion, 4.6 kilometre Legacy Way tunnel, which is predicted to carry about 24,000 vehicles a day. Construction started on this tunnel in April 2011 by Transcity, a joint venture between Brisbane-based BMD Constructions, Italian tunnelling company Ghella and Spanish tunnelling and civil infrastructure company, Acciona Infrastructures. Transcity will also be responsible for the operations and maintenance of Legacy Way for 10 years after it opens. The original name for this latest tunnel was the Northern Link. Before work started, the Brisbane City Council changed it to Legacy Way in honour of those serving in the Australian Defence Force. One cent of every toll (equating to $5.5 million over the lifetime of the road) will go to Legacy Australia, a volunteer organisation caring for the families of veterans.
By mid-February this year, despite extensive marketing and discounted tolls, the route had failed to attract enough traffic to cover costs. BrisConnections was placed into voluntary administration with debts worth more than the tunnel.
Matilda, the tunnel boring machine used on the Clem Jones Tunnel. SEPTEMBER 2014 49
CONTRACTOR COMMENT
A new advocacy space JEREMY SOLE CEO, CIVIL CONTRACTORS NZ
GOOD NEWS OUT of conference this year is that the integration of the federation and Roading NZ has finally become a reality. This is something many people in the sector have been wanting and working towards for a number of years. It will be particularly helpful to be able to put significantly more time and energy and resource into developing agreed policy and advocacy activities. Industry organisations and advocacy activities can be complex and dynamic beasts and activities are usually intertwined at multiple levels and across a broad tapestry of players and interest groups. Like any diplomatic or political activity, profile in one area very easily translates into effectiveness in another. Such is the playing field when two organisations compete for the same political oxygen in the same sector environment. This system dynamic, and each organisation’s survival, in such an environment, simply demands that they spend time and energy on activities that ultimately don’t contribute anything positive to the sector. I am very pleased that, through integration, we can move forward as one into a new clean advocacy space in the industry. Entering this new space is also a timely opportunity to ensure the organisation is positioned in a way that stakeholders recognise there has been a shift – the name change voted through at conference is a clear signal that we in the civil construction industry are doing things differently now. Civil Contractors New Zealand is a clean
50 SEPTEMBER 2014
new name and a clean message and I’m looking forward to cementing that brand as a balanced, objective, strong, positive, and influential contributor at central and local government levels and amongst our current and prospective members. In tandem with the negotiations between the federation and Roading NZ, we have undertaken a review of our internal structure and how we operate and have integrated those findings with the work that has come out of the negotiations and arrived at a new strategic plan. This was shared and discussed and approved at the federation annual general meeting. So, as of this month (September) Civil Contractors New Zealand is working to provide stronger benefits and services to our members – including more local workshops for the administrators of small and medium businesses, better engagement with associates, and a raft of other aspects that will flow out of operationalising the strategic plan. One of the key things we have gained through our review process is a better understanding of how our associate members want to engage with the federation and members. The core message from this group is; “we want to be given the opportunity to add value and make a positive contribution to the industry – and be recognised for that”. We are identifying ways in which we can leverage that expertise and energy for the benefit of members of all types. I’d like to close off with an observation about a conversation at the members’ forum ahead of the federation AGM. A
Civil Contractors New Zealand is a clean new name and a clean message and I’m looking forward to cementing that brand as a balanced, objective, strong, positive, and influential contributor at central and local government levels and amongst our current and prospective members. member asked how the integration of the two organisations will affect the balance of voting rights in the federation. That is a good and relevant question and we have been at pains to be clear on this topic by circulating information showing current voting rights by membership category alongside the predicted percentages post integration. The graphs were virtually the same. But there is never a perfect scenario where everyone turns out to central or local government elections and there will never be a perfect attendance scenario at our AGM either. There were two responses to the question that triggered the conversation I mentioned above, the first was – it isn’t that often that all the firms in a particular membership category agree on everything anyway. The second response was that we had 400 voting envelopes laid out at the back of the room for the AGM, one for each financial member, and only around 100 were picked up. That means that 75 percent of federation members didn’t exercise their right to have their say and put their vote either in person or by proxy. That is people’s democratic choice, and I’m confident that the communications prior to the AGM were such that it was an informed choice. The outcome was arrived at democratically and fairly, and my personal view is that it is the ideal outcome for the industry.
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Trade in your old working total station and receive a $10,000 credit towards the purchase of a new Topcon PS Series robotic Total Station* Topcon PS Series Robotic Total Station Professional grade robotic total station Rugged, waterproof and dustproof design PowerTrac™ Tracking technology TSshield™ Advanced Security and Maintenance system Hybrid Positioning capable Easy to use and Topcon built tough
Trade up deal 2
RTK GPS System
Trade in your old working GPS receiver and receive a $10,000 credit towards the purchase of a new Topcon GR-5 RTK GNSS system and Rover kit* Topcon GR-5 RTK GPS 226-Channel Vanguard Technology™ with Universal Tracking Channels Tracking capabilities include: GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, Beidou (BDS) and QZSS Advanced Fence Antenna™ Technology Unsurpassed tracking and performance Sophisticated, High Accuracy RTK technology with position updates up to 100Hz Integrated Dual Communication System with multiple Radio and Cellular combinations
* Terms and conditions. Trade in equipment must be in good working condition. Offer only available in New Zealand, for a limited time and whilst stocks last. $10,000 trade in applies to Recommended Retail Pricing (RRP) on Topcon PS Series Robotic Total Stations and Topcon GR-5 GPS with base and Rover kit only. Offer not to be used in conjunction with any other special offers.
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CONTRACTOR COMMENT
Consolidating concrete associations ROB GAIMSTER, CEMENT & CONCRETE ASSOCIATION (CCANZ), NEW ZEALAND READY MIXED CONCRETE ASSOCIATION (NZRMCA) A MYRIAD OF INDUSTRY associations currently occupy the cement and concrete ‘space’ in New Zealand. While their raisons d’être are entirely justifiable in isolation, it is perhaps time to seriously consider a comprehensive programme of consolidation.
A dense concrete mix There are currently at least six organisations which represent specific cement and concrete sector interests. At a time when globally there is amalgamation amongst concrete related industry associations, some stakeholders and industry leaders in New Zealand are questioning the effectiveness of our fragmented network.
architectural fraternities. While the associations are differentiated in terms of their target audiences, they have similar names and share a common goal in ensuring the optimum use of concrete – albeit for a defined sector. Furthermore, each association competes for membership, sponsorship, event registrations, publication sales etc in what is a small market. Is this sustainable over time?
A single, consistent voice If the industry wants to promote excellence in all things concrete, in an efficient and cost-effective manner that reduces transaction costs and provides
If the industry wants to promote excellence in all things concrete, in an efficient and cost-effective manner that reduces transaction costs and provides better value for all, it has to be done through a single organisation. The main protagonists at the moment are the Cement and Concrete Association of NZ, Precast NZ, the NZ Ready Mixed Concrete Association, the NZ Concrete Masonry Association, the NZ Portland Cement Association and the (learned) NZ Concrete Society. Throw into the mix the NZ Master Concrete Placers Association, the Concrete Pumping Association of NZ, the NZ Concrete Tank Manufacturers Association and the NZ Concrete Sawing and Drilling Association, and it is literally standing room only.
Confusion and competition It is unsurprising that this number of organisations creates a little blurriness in the minds of the engineering and 52 SEPTEMBER 2014
better value for all, it has to be done through a single organisation. Such an organisation would have one consistent voice driving advocacy, education, training, information exchange, research and quality assurance, whilst serving engineers, architects and anyone with an interest in concrete. It is also entirely possible for the NZ Concrete Society, a learned organisation with no commercial bias, to become the educational wing of the single entity.
South African experience Our concrete colleagues in South Africa are currently grappling with a similar scenario and have coined the term “Consolidution” – a concrete
consolidation solution – to encapsulate their predicament. ‘More of the same’ is not considered an option for moving into the future, and the re-evaluation of the various organisations representing concrete interests in the built environment arena is being urged. John Sheath, CEO of the Concrete Society of South Africa, has proposed that the meaningful and effective promotion of excellence in concrete be driven through a single organisation, driving activities across the board. He envisages an all-inclusive, memberbased body (company and individual), recognised as truly independent and impartial. One that would be built on its technical base to be the leading provider of information serving the needs of clients, architects, engineers, specifiers, suppliers, contractors and users of concrete, with emphasis on quality and service. The cement and concrete industry in New Zealand will be closely monitoring developments in South Africa, as I suspect will the wider construction industry, which is more than well catered for in terms of advocacy and technical support organisations.
A sustainable way forward To help challenge the status quo and encourage the concrete related industry associations to take up the gauntlet and work collaboratively to define a long-term and sustainable solution, I will be presenting a paper titled An Aggregation of Associations, or 6 into 1 Does Go? at the 2014 NZ Concrete Conference in Wairakei, October 9-11. No doubt opinions will be strong, and possibly divided, as the three “Ps” – patch protection, personality and politics, come into play. However, a sustainable way forward is ultimately required, one that will help to ensure that the cement and concrete industry remains competitive.
LIFE CARE CONTRACTOR
Investing in first aid training JANET BROTHERS MANAGING DIRECTOR, LIFE CARE CONSULTANTS AS WE ALL KNOW any staff training can, at times, feel like the proverbial money down the black hole scenario – so what does a ‘return on investment from first aid training’ look like and how do we know we have achieved it? There are a number of ways we can ‘measure’ the effectiveness of first aid training and they may include, of course, the willingness to help someone in need of first aid, increasing the staff’s motivation to train and upskill, increasing staff engagement, consolidating other health and safety training, increasing the staff’s health awareness and ensuring that the first aid given is of the appropriate standard (this can include talking to the victim, keeping them warm and calling the ambulance, right through to performing CPR). So is the objective of first aid training to achieve one of the above outcomes or a bit of all of them? We often have different objectives, however by identifying the objectives it makes it easier to establish if we have achieved them. First aid training is unique insofar as if all of the other training we do works all of the time we wouldn’t need first aid training, however, we know that not all training works 100 percent of the time so when it doesn’t work first aid training can be the difference between a real tragedy and a minor disruption to
‘business as usual’. The other unique part of first aid training is that most other ‘on the job’ training is only applicable ‘on the job’ ie, we wouldn’t normally need confined space training knowledge at home on a Sunday evening or hazardous substance training at our cousin’s wedding, whereas we may well need first aid training at one of these times. We know from a large number of studies that we are five times more likely to perform CPR on a family member or close acquaintance than we are on a complete stranger. Over the years, especially the CPR component of first aid training has gone from being really rigid ie, “you must do this and don’t do this otherwise the patient will die” (although at this stage they are already dead), through to “doing something is so much better than doing nothing” and at present is sitting at “if you are going to do something you might as well ensure it is good quality CPR otherwise why bother?” There have also been scare tactics by uninformed people – “I wouldn’t do CPR because I might get HIV”, even though there have been no reported cases of HIV in the world from CPR. We also know that people often feel valued if they are given opportunities to up-skill and in some cases to achieve a
qualification while at work. On the other side of the ledger the cost of training is high, although first aid remains one of the lower priced training options, the real cost of training is in work down time so, like all training, first aid training needs to meet the above objectives while not impacting in an unrealistic manner on productivity. As with any business decision the questions to ask are – what are my objectives of the training other than the obvious in ensuring staff know what to do if they come across an accident. Will it increase staff engagement; meet the health and safety compliance requirements; or assist staff to achieve qualifications? NZQA is currently making such requirements very prescriptive and Life Care is lobbying hard to focus on outcomes and reduce the rigidity regarding ‘training hours’ regardless of class sizes, prior knowledge and competency. (Watch this space!) In conclusion, every training dollar needs to achieve a return on investment, so be clear about your objectives of training and choose your provider well so your staff achieve the relevant knowledge, gain confidence to use the skills if and when required, and individually ‘get value’ from the training experience.
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SEPTEMBER 2014 53
CONTRACTOR ROADING
New roading performance measures A major milestone has been reached with the completion of a set of provisional performance measures for the new One Network Road Classification (ONRC). PAUL GLUCINA, director of the Road Efficiency Group, explains how the ONRC came about and how it might influence the contracting approach in the local government sector.
NEW PERFORMANCE MEASURES supporting customer levels of service for the One Network Road Classification (ONRC) were signed off by the Road Efficiency Group last month (August). Local government, the New Zealand Transport Agency and a number of interested parties including road safety and other advocate groups have been meeting over the past 12 months to develop the ONRC. At more than 35 meetings throughout the country, close to 800 attendees first developed the ONRC categories, then worked on what levels of service road users could expect in each category, and finally how the performance of the network would actually be measured against those service levels. The ONRC will become an integral part of local government asset management planning in the transport area. Having this nationally consistent set of standards in place is likely to lead to a much more consistent approach to asset management and contracting. It will also give road users more consistency and certainty about what standard and services to expect on the national road network.
impacts following in its wake forced governments worldwide to challenge their expenditure. The 2009 Government Policy Statement on Land Transport Funding (GPS) flatlined the total funding available for road maintenance and renewal activities. What’s more, it is probable that these financial constraints will continue into the foreseeable future and beyond (see graph). As a consequence the Transport Agency, together with Territorial Local Authorities (TLAs) and industry representatives, investigated options for improving the delivery of land transport activities in what was called the Road Maintenance Task Force (RMTF). The RMTF identified opportunities to derive better value and performance through collaboration, asset management and the consistent classification of roads and the related levels of service. Governance and implementation structures were set up jointly between the Transport Agency and TLAs to pursue these opportunities. In 2012, the Road Efficiency Group (REG) was formed.
Why change?
REG is a collaborative initiative by local authorities and the NZ Transport Agency and it focuses on three key areas: 1. A One Network Road Classification (ONRC) to standardise data and create a classification system which identifies the level of service, function and use of road networks and state highways. 2. Best Practice Asset Management to share best practice planning and advice with road controlling authorities. 3. Collaboration with the industry and
New Zealand’s land transport delivery model has remained essentially unchanged since the local government amalgamations of 1989. The expenditure to meet the country’s growing transport demands and increasing levels of service escalated significantly between 2003 and 2010. This pattern of growth was not financially sustainable. The global financial crisis of 2008 and the continuing economic
54 SEPTEMBER 2014
The Road Efficiency Group
between road controlling authorities to share information, staff and management practices. The work is expected to create a number of benefits, for example we want to encourage uptake of best practice models by road controlling authorities, as well as better collaboration and flexibility between road controlling authorities. There is also scope for industry and suppliers to do the same – by adopting best practice, the performance of suppliers and the industry can improve. Importantly, by providing the tools for a more holistic, collective way of maintaining and operating state highways and local roads in the regions, local authorities and the Transport Agency can prioritise investment on the roads that need it most. REG has established working teams which deliver learnings and best practice tools for road controlling authorities to utilise in the future. These tools are all available on the REG website at www. nzta.govt.nz/reg and are increasingly popular with road controlling authorities. Clearly, this means that construction contractors can also benefit from these studies – the case studies offer great insight into the thinking of local authorities and what they expect from their suppliers. REG also promotes collaborative initiatives with the industry and between road controlling authorities to share information, staff and management practices. A number of practical collaborations are underway, and practice guides have been published on the REG website to offer meaningful advice for those wanting to set up collaborative initiatives.
The big picture New Zealand is experiencing healthy economic success, and it’s important to remember that our transport system provides the backbone of our export-led economy. Our economy is growing, and the world economy is projected to triple in size by 2050. That puts the spotlight on some immediate issues that are increasing tension on the affordability and funding of transport infrastructure. Influencing factors include changing demographics (urbanisation and an aging population), land-use changes such as forestry harvesting and the intensification of dairying, increasing costs of input such as materials, labour and equipment and the aging of existing pavements and bridges and the increased stresses due to increased traffic volumes and heavy vehicles. On top of that are the ever increasing level of service expectations of road users – they expect a high standard of roading, and they expect to know what kind of road they will be getting if they take a certain route. New Zealand must be prepared for the impacts of these short and long term challenges. This is reflected in the Government’s transport goals of increasing value for money, growing the economy and improving productivity. From the transport infrastructure perspective, ongoing (and probably increasing) financial constraints will demand a change in thinking. It will require more sophisticated asset management and decision making along with the use of increasingly complex technologies to improve productivity and the delivery of customer outcomes. The industry will need to be agile, innovative and prepared to change.
Fact box: The One Network Road Classification The One Network Road Classification (ONRC) involves categorising roads based on the functions they perform as part of an integrated national network. It standardises data and creates a classification system which identifies the level of service, function and use of road networks and state highways. The ONRC was developed by a working group consisting of local government and Transport Agency representatives. After a year of engagement at workshops throughout New Zealand, REG signed off the ONRC and it was subsequently adopted by the Transport Agency, replacing the State Highway Classification System. The ONRC specifies the following categories: 1. National – Roads meeting at least three of the criteria above the national thresholds. (A high volume sub-category has also been identified. In addition to meeting the national criteria, these roads also have volumes of heavy commercial vehicles and/or typical daily traffic above the high volume thresholds.) 2. Regional – Roads with at least two of the criteria above the regional thresholds. 3. Arterial – Roads with at least two of the criteria above the arterial thresholds. 4. Primary collector – Roads in this category must meet one criteria above the primary collector threshold. 5. Secondary collector – Roads in this category must meet one of the criteria above the secondary collector threshold. 6. Access – All remaining roads (including a low-volume subcategory of access roads). The ONRC is supported by a set of fit-for-purpose Customer Levels of Service and related Performance Measures. Local Government New Zealand has set up a Road Transportation Unit to assist local authorities to adopt the ONRC. Extensive information on the ONRC is available on the REG website at www.nzta.govt.nz/reg
SEPTEMBER 2014 55
CONTRACTOR CLASSIC MACHINES
M
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A C E H I N
A LANDMARK machine The Diesel Sixty marked a significant milestone in the development history of the track type tractor in that it was the first such diesel engined machine to be put into full production by any heavy equipment company, and was the forerunner of tens of thousands of Caterpillar diesel tractors. BY RICHARD CAMPBELL.
Above: This is “Old Tusko”, the most famous of all the Diesel Sixtys. It set a world record in 1932 for non-stop plowing. It was owned by successive generations of the same family for over 70 years and did its daily chores all through that time. It must have the highest hour meter recording of any tractor on the planet! It is now in preservation. (Photo: ACMOC)
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THE DIESEL SIXTY was not Caterpillar’s first track type tractor by a long shot and was itself an adaptation of an existing machine that had already been in production for a number of years. Originally designed by CL Best in 1918, and released for sale the following year, the Sixty was at the time, the largest track type tractor built by that company. When Holt and Best merged in 1925 to form the Caterpillar Tractor Company, the Sixty was one of the CL Best models carried over into production with the new company, becoming the Caterpillar Sixty. At that stage in the Sixty’s career it was powered by a very large 4-cylinder gasoline engine running
at 650rpm and producing 50 drawbar horsepower. The weight of a gasoline Sixty was around 9.5 tons without any attachments. It was manufactured at both the Stockton, California and Peoria, Illinois plants and was a very successful and reliable tractor. In the 1920s, the diesel engine was a large and cumbersome piece of equipment, usually placed in a fixed installation to power generators, pumps and the like, but it was also very economical to run. Both Holt and Best had been looking at adapting the diesel engine to power their tractors but it wasn’t until after the merger of the two that development of the idea really began in earnest. Other companies, notably International
Above: A rare tractor indeed. This particular Sixty was originally a gasoline powered machine and was re-powered in the 1930s with one of the diesel engine conversion kits that were offered by Caterpillar to modernise older Sixtys. It has recently been beautifully restored to its original glory. All the yellow parts form part of the conversion kit while all the grey items are the pre-1931 tractor. It is a wonder it survived. (Photo: ACMOC)
Harvester and Atlas, had attempted to produce a diesel-powered machine in 1928, but their prototypes were notoriously unreliable and were withdrawn very quickly. It quickly became apparent that none of the existing diesel engines that were available would fill the needs of a track type tractor so Caterpillar set about designing their own. This took up considerable R&D costs (over US$1 million) for a couple of years until the first experimental engine ran. It was at this stage of development that the 2-cylinder pony engine starting system was also developed to pre-condition the diesel engine before starting. This allowed the diesel to be started in all types of temperatures allowing oil circulation and coolant warming before putting the main engine under load.
(Love them or hate them these little starting engines were a standard fitment to Cat diesels for over 35 years.) With a workable diesel engine that Caterpillar called the D9900, the next task was a suitable chassis to put it in and the existing Sixty chassis ticked all the boxes. Some modifications were of course necessary. For a start, the chassis frame rails needed to be extended and increased in size due to the new engine’s heavier weight and castings were used in places that had formerly been fabricated. A change was also made to the gearbox to accept the increased horsepower and torque the new diesel produced. These modifications increased the machines weight by almost two tons. With all these changes in place, the first Diesel Sixty, serial number 1C1, rolled off the line in
Left: Pre-diesel Caterpillar 60 at work on a building site towing a Killefer “tumble bug” scraper. Note that the elaborate canopy was a standard Caterpillar factory offering. Sixty’s, both gasoline and diesel powered, can be seen with the fuel tank on either side of the fender. As a general rule, fuel tank on the right is agricultural and tank on the left earthmoving but as you can see, rules were made to be broken! (Photo: Author’s Collection)
SEPTEMBER 2014 57
CONTRACTOR CLASSIC MACHINES
Really nice shot of a Diesel Sixty and Athey hydraulic ‘Trac-Truk’ dumper on a US road job in the 1930s. The hydraulic pump for the 3-stage cylinder was driven off the tractors power take off. (Photo: Authors collection)
Above left: The very first Diesel Sixty off the line, pictured at Caterpillar’s Stockton, California plant in 1931. A very clean and business-like machine. Note that at this point, Caterpillar did not fit caps to the air intake pipes of their diesel tractors. (Photo: ACMOC) Above right: Another very rare machine, this Caterpillar Sixty still has its original gasoline engine installed and is a runner! These types of old Cat machines are highly regarded and sought after by machinery collectors. (Photo: Author’s collection)
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September 1931 and things in the track type tractor world changed forever. We should not forget that all of this took place during the Great Depression, so Caterpillar were taking quite a risk, one that could have potentially ruined the company. However, the new diesel engine proved its worth right from the start as it had great lugging ability, was reliable, and extremely economical to run compared to a gasoline powered tractor. A new market was quickly established for diesel-powered tractors. Demand was such that Caterpillar began to design diesel engines to fit other tractors within their range, notably the D7700 and D8800. The Diesel Sixty also featured in a number of endurance and economy tests to promote
Caterpillar’s new form of power. Probably the most famous of these Sixty’s is ‘Old Tusko’, a 1932 built machine (s/n 1C12) which took part in a non-stop plowing endurance test which set a world record not only for time but also for fuel economy. The speed at which the acceptance of the new form of power occurred can be gauged by the fact that by the end of 1933, a scant two years after the first Diesel Sixty tractor had appeared, over half the production of Caterpillar track type tractors were diesels. This was not the only claim to fame for the Caterpillar model Sixty. It was also the start of the lineage that includes the Diesel Sixty Five, Diesel Seventy, Diesel Seventy Five leading ultimately to the D8 which
was introduced in 1935. To the fledgling attachment industry, the Diesel Sixty represented a blank canvas and many manufacturers vied for the opportunity to outfit one of the new machines. (Caterpillar did not begin to manufacture its own attachments until 1946.) So, as a consequence, it is not uncommon to see Sixtys – both gasoline and diesel powered – with a great diversity of front and rear end equipment. Favoured suppliers were LeTourneau, LaPlant-Choate, Isaacson, Allied, Euclid, Buckeye, Kay-Brunner, Wooldridge and Heil, all of whom manufactured dozer blades of one kind or another, with Hyster-Wllemette and Carco providing logging winches. Caterpillar also offered “retro-fit” engine kits to re-power existing gasoline engined Sixtys. These included the diesel engine (initially a model D7700), strengthening parts, new engine mounts, new transmission shaft, radiator shroud and other components necessary to carry out the conversion. Later kits included a D8800 engine in place of the D7700.
For the model collector For once you are in luck! German diecast manufacturer NZG saw fit to produce a model of the Diesel Sixty in 1991 to commemorate 60 years of the diesel tractor. This model is to 1:25 scale and was produced in a limited run of 10,000 and came with a certificate. While detail is not on the high side, the model is accurate, nearly all metal and is a very good platform for super detailing. As they are out of production, Ebay is your best source for one of these and you can expect to pay around US$250 – $350 for a good example. The photos in this feature include a photo of a Diesel Sixty from my collection with a few added ‘extras’.
Below: The author’s 1:25 scale Caterpillar Diesel Sixty which has been fitted with a LeTourneau bulldozer blade and radiator mounted front power control unit (PCU). NZG, who released this model as a bare tractor in 1991, did a good job of making a fairly accurate model but a little bit of extra work can turn it into a show stopper. (Photo: Richard Campbell)
Finale Despite all of the accolades, the Diesel Sixty was only produced from 1931 through to the end of 1932 with a production run of just 157 machines. It was replaced by the improved Diesel Sixty Five, making the Diesel Sixty quite a rare tractor. The first two Diesel Sixtys were built in Stockton CA, with the balance being manufactured in Peoria. Caterpillar also sold around 100 conversion kits for re-powering former gasoline engined Sixtys. There is one final claim to fame for the Diesel Sixty. It was the first Caterpillar track type tractor to be painted in the new ‘Hi-Way Yellow’ paint scheme, introduced December 7, 1931 with only the two Stockton built machines leaving the assembly line in battleship grey.
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SEPTEMBER 2014 59
CONTRACTOR MOTORING BY PETER GILL
THE ROLLER SPIN-OFF Bentley, that long time maker of stultifyingly boring copies of equally boring Rolls Royces, says it is going to come out with a four wheel drive SUV. Now that’s original. Given that everyone else is doing it or has done it already. Such as Porsche, Aston Martin and Jaguar. Difference with the Bentley, due in 2016, is that it may well
AC
be the world’s priciest SUV. It could cost as much as $400,000. Not many people know this, but a few years ago, Bentley ceased becoming a Rolls Royce spin-off. When both brands went up for sale, Rolls Royce was bought by BMW and Bentley by Volkswagen. Volkswagen wanted to beat BMW to Rolls Royce,
J E L LY B E A N ? A R O AR
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but wound up with second prize, Bentley. Apparently, Dagmar the chief secretary at Volkswagen, when couriering VW’s offer, omitted to send a copy to Rolls Royce aero engines who at the time owned the car brand. She sent it to the car company’s address only. She was relegated to officer in charge of the crash dummy team.
As I am now in the process of writing my second book on the life of a motoring journalist, I am putting together a list of the worst looking cars ever made in recent times, meaning from the 1990s to the present day. Here is one of them. It’s the Ford Taurus. It came out of the USA in the 1990s. They did right hand drive models as well, which meant they foisted it on us. What kind of psychological problem do you imagine the person that created this must have had? Is it possible that they craved to be a designer of jelly moulds rather than cars, but there were simply no positions on offer?
MIS-CONCEPTIONS
A racer called Bruce McLaren is a name intrinsically linked to New Zealand. For it takes the name of one of our greatest racing drivers. Fact is the firm has long been British because that’s where Bruce McLaren went to live and work, and help develop racing cars before his death in a crash in 1969. In more recent years, the company has set out to challenge the Italian super car makers like Ferrari and Lamborghini with road-going cars of phenomenal performance. The latest is the 650S. It’s on sale here for a bit under half a million. It will do 333km/hr. I sometimes wonder where the owners of such cars go in order to do those speeds. You would have to rent an airfield, wouldn’t you?
Those crazy Swedes I was sad to sell my Saab 9-5 not long ago. It was one of the smoothest most powerful, most rewarding sedans to drive that I’ve ever known. I was invited to the factory in Sweden many times over the years to see Saabs being built and was extraordinarily impressed by the operation. But the mileage was getting up and it was time for mine to go. The company went broke about five years ago and so spare parts were likely to become a problem. There was an alleged rescue effort by Chinese investors, but I am yet to see any tangible result. There were a couple of fascinating quirks in the last of the Saabs. The ignition and starter key were set down almost on the floor between the two front seats. So a wife or girlfriend angry or unhappy with the male’s driving, could simply turn the whole thing off. And in the company’s days, being an aircraft maker also, Saab knew how unappreciated flatulence was in an enclosed environment. My Saab 9-5 had a downwards-drawing extractor fan inside the base squab of each front seat.
Back in the 1970s I had a contractor friend who occasionally, when having fallen into the arms of Bacchus, would come up with a fantastically imaginative idea. Imaginative, but less than useful maybe. One day when we were having Friday night drinks in his depot, he decided that birth certificates should include as the middle name, what place the conception had likely take place. He decided he would petition the government about it. We, his mates, didn’t think that the middle name Velox, Commodore, Falcon, Zephyr or Zodiac on their child’s birth certificate, would be a popular idea with the public.
WHEN ROLLS ROYCE HAULED TANKS In my childhood, I lived on British military bases, my father being a serving senior NCO. There was no more inspiring sight and sound as that of a Thornycroft Mighty Antar. This was one of the biggest trucks of its time, seeing service as the British Army’s tank transporter from the early 1950s to the mid 1980s. It hauled the 30 ton Centurion tanks, and then newer, heavier models. The engine was a cut down V8 version of the 12 cylinder Rolls Royce meteor which was related to the Merlin aero engine of Spitfire fame. In the Antar, it was 18.4 litres. Later, a Rolls Royce diesel engine of 16.2 litres capacity became an option. We lived in houses on the edge of the base. When a Mighty Antar rolled in, such were the vibrations as it crawled slowly past, that you couldn’t get any sense out of an army wife for several hours.
WHEN THE CAR NEEDS A-DRESSING I was interested in the advice of an Alfa Romeo technician to an owner when their Italian vehicle was slightly off song. Four drops of garlic oil under the accelerator pedal.
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ACC310CON
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CONTRACTOR INNOVATIONS
Mowing from a distance Vegetation management has taken a turn with a new generation of mowers operated via remote control. The Irus Deltrak 2.0 and Quatrak 4WD machines will clear rough growth, wild growth, gorse and other brush with stalks or trunks as round as 100mm. Their performance on steep slopes up to 50 degrees and on other inhospitable terrain has considerably lessened the risks of vegetation management, promises the company. Wireless operating range is 300 metres, an important element for operator safety in hazardous areas that allows the operator to be positioned for good visibility, attitude and productivity. The design features a zero-gravity articulation system that ensures the engine is always in an upright position when the machine is operating on a slope. This also ensures the engine’s internal components are always fully lubricated under all load conditions. The systems meet all of the new Health and Safety requirements. Details www.slopemowing.com
World first for Sandvik It’s an extraordinary fact that conventional fire suppressant foams are believed to linger in the environment for thousands of years, so a biodegradable option is way overdue. It shouldn’t even be an option, it should be mandatory and with luck that might happen now that Sandvik Fire Suppression has launched Eclipse. The fluorine-free fire suppression foam for mobile equipment rapidly biodegrades, can be used in all new and existing Sandvik-compliant fire suppression systems and complies with AS5062 2006 Fire Protection for Mobile and Transportable Equipment. Sandvik spokesman Michael Sargaison says all Sandvik-compliant fire suppression systems that the company services are expected to be converted to Eclipse over the next 12 months. Eclipse is superior to fluorine-based foams, delivering faster knock-down while still maintaining post-fire protection. This makes it more efficient at putting out mobile equipment fires.
CONTRACTORS’ DIARY Date Event
Venue
Contact
3-6 Sep 14
Homberg / Niederofleiden, Germany
www.steinexpo.eu
Steinexpo 2014
25-28 Nov 14
bauma China
International Expo Centre, Shanghai, China
www.bauma-china.com
15-18 Dec 14
bC India
India Expo Centre, Greater Noida, Delhi
www.bcindia.com
8-10 July 15 Crane Association of NZ Conference Trinity Wharf
Rotorua
www.cranes.org.nz
15-17 July 15 AQA/IoQ Conference
Claudelands Hamilton
5-7 Aug 15 Civil Contractors NZ Conference
Wairakei Resort Taupo
www.nzcontractors.co.nz
13-14 Aug 15 (TBC) NZ Heavy Haulage Association Conference
Rotorua
www.hha.org.nz
21-24 Oct 15
Santiago, Chile
conexpolatinamerica.net
Conexpo Latin America
Please send any contributions for Contractor Diary to kevin@contrafed.co.nz, or phone 09 636 5710
62 SEPTEMBER 2014
Laying the perfect lawn Residential property landscaper, Ross Green, has been laying and maintaining the perfect lawn since he left school. Priding himself on delivering a top quality result that adds value to a family’s back yard, Ross’ Terex compact track loader has always been his first choice in machines. “I bought my first track loader back in 2002 when I first started construction of house lawns, however this is my first PT-30 and it’s been brilliant,” says Ross. Its compact frame and excellent manoeuvrability makes the PT-30 ideal for productivity, especially in tight spaces, he adds. “It’s a perfect size for working on residential yards. I can get the machine into almost any backyard, even when access is limited, or the site is tight.” The most compact rubber tracked loader in the Terex range, the PT-30 is a low-impact loader, enabling it to work on finished lawns and landscaping without leaving any damage. “The tracks are really important – they get things really flat and provide a lot of compression, but without leaving a mark,” endorses Ross. Easy to operate, with pilot-operated joystick controls and exceptionally comfortable driver’s housing, this smallest of the Terex loader family is renowned as a pleasure to operate. “I’ve really enjoyed the PT-30, it is a good soft ride and very comfortable.” With standard auxiliary hydraulics and a quick coupler that attaches quickly and easily to a broad range of attachments – including auger, backhoe, pallet forks, tiller and land leveler – Terex says the PT-30 is best in its field for flexibility and performance. PT-30s are sold and serviced by Advancequip; call 0800 483 739, www.advancequip.co.nz.
Civil EnginEEr rEquirEd nZiHT is currently undergoing a period of significant expansion and has a vacancy for a Civil Engineer who is passionate about the roading sector and understands and can translate the practical requirements of the sector to add real measureable difference to our customers and the training courses they undertake.
As A suCCEssful CAndidATE you will • Have excellent relationships with consultants, contractors and regulators within the civil engineering sector in NZ and the ability to identify specific areas that require training in partnership with our customers • Be recognised as a highly skilled engineer within the sector • Demonstrate ability to build strong internal and external relations and assist the team in delivering exceptional outcomes for our clients • Demonstrate ability to add value to all levels of the sector from entry level through to Consulting Engineers
• Have proven skill in monitoring budget and revenue expenditure against scope and project completion • Understand NZTA design standards and project delivery requirements • Refresh and further develop our Professional Development (short course portfolio), Seminar and Conference packages to the benefit of our customers • Demonstrate ability to sell value add products to our customers and be comfortable that this is a KPI • Assist in identifying and developing offshore opportunities
• Be flexible and work around New Zealand as required • Deliver selected programmes as required • Be driven by timelines and the desire to succeed. Ideally this would suit a candidate that is looking for a full time role in New Plymouth. The organisation is however open to novel ideas of how this role could be executed. Please send a Cv and cover letter to Eunice@nziht.co.nz
SEPTEMBER 2014 63
CONTRACTOR INNOVATIONS
Skookum chooses Hatz Skookum Technology has completed the manufacture and commissioning of three powered Betico compressor power packs using a Hatz diesel engine to power them. Spokesman Jonathan McLachlan says the Hatz engine was chosen for its quietness and efficiency in an application where noise is an issue. Hatz is distributed here by Youngman Richardson.
Asbestos protection As evident in the news recently, materials containing asbestos are present in many residential and commercial buildings throughout the country and those working on its removal and handling products and materials that contain asbestos, require high levels of personal protection. WorkSafe NZ provides guidelines to identify various asbestos work procedures or tasks and the required respirator options and filter types. Personal protective equipment Specialist 3M has launched four new convenient respiratory and body protection kits designed to manage varying levels of exposure to asbestos fibres and dust. Two new negative pressure asbestos/dust respirator kits offer a choice of either a 3M designed full face or half face reusable respirator and appropriate filters. The half face kit also includes a pair of 3M safety glasses. The positive pressure kits allow a choice between either a readyto-use face-mounted or belt-mounted full face respirator system. Both kits also include a 3M disposable coverall. “The right personal protective equipment is essential to protect your health when working with asbestos,” says Terry Gorman, 3M senior occupational hygienist. “People most at risk from asbestos exposure are those carrying out maintenance, repair or refurbishment work or asbestos removal in all types of buildings, including factories built or refurbished before 1985 – for example, carpenters, plumbers, electricians and cable installers. Home renovators also have the potential to be exposed to asbestos when working on older homes. “Friable (crumbly) asbestos should only be removed or handled by suitably trained and certified workers.” • For information visit: 3M.com/nz/ppeasbestos, or ring 0800 252 627.
IVS goes online Taking time off work to attend courses that sometimes require travel to other centres and then spending time finding an approved test certifier to get sign-off is not within the margins of cost and time efficiency in most cases. But help is at hand – at least for the around 45,000 handlers of gases, aerosols, flammable liquids and other dangerous substances who have to re-certify themselves every five years to be compliant under the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms (HSNO) Act 1996. Independent Verification Services (IVS) has gone online with a full training and certification package. As an added benefit the programme also allows participants to stop and start study as often as they wish to fit around existing work schedules. IVS chief executive Peter Webb reckons the move will benefit a wide range of industries such as petroleum and gas companies, steel manufacturers and the forestry sector as well as smaller businesses that deal with paints, pool chemicals and other hazardous materials. Details www.ivslimited.co.nz.
A DV E RT I S E RS IN D E X 3M New Zealand
5
Hynds Pipe Systems Ltd
Advancequip 21
Kiwi Asset Finance
Bauma China
Maccaferri NZ
IBC
39 3 20
Ryco Hydraulics
27
Sanzu Distributors
31
Slopemowing 25
CablePrice OBC
Mimico 15
Taylor Built
59
Contractor subscription form
47
NZ Institute of Highway Technology
63
Synergy Positioning System
51
DitchWitch NZ
13
Porter Group
IFC
Transdiesel 41
61
Prime Pumps
Forklift Solutions Gough Group
OFC, 7, 9, 16, 17
Hirepool 29
64 SEPTEMBER 2014
Real Steel
11 35
Rocktec 10
Youngman Richardson
53
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