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A E S m i t h ’ s m ag az in e f o r s t a f f a n d f r i e n d s brisbane cairns gold coast mackay perth rockhampton sydney tasmania
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2014 issue 22
We Believe There is a Better Way... 20 Year Industry Local Appointed to Lead New AE Smith Rockhampton Office Win-Win Maintenance Agreement to Rely On A Winding Road to Success for “Unbelievable Mentor” CSIRO Gets New Chiller in Record Time Optimising Asset Performance to Deliver Investment Returns Subscribe to Cool Breeze and Win a Panoramic Ball Camera Prefabrication Minimises Disruption at Redcliffe County Court Dementia Training for Service Technicians Leads to Improved Service Delivery AE Smith Perth Helps RMHC Raise $785,000 Good Things Come in Small Prefabricated Packages Winning Team Helps Lend Lease Stay Safe From the Top of Melbourne to South East Asia, Support Never Waivered 120 kg of Seeds to Bring Back a Forest Inside Every House There’s a Story
engineering services
mechanical
energy
fire
hydraulics
refrigeration
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We Believe There is a Better Way... Change is in the air at AE Smith, as a new CEO brings fresh energy, takes stock of AE Smith’s past achievements, builds on our strengths and looks for new and better ways to help our customers David Willett, who started as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at the end of July, comes to AE Smith from Actrol and brings a wealth of local and international management experience to the role.
Pics: David Willett above and standing front left of the AE Smith Leadership Team in November.
Meanwhile, long-serving boss Andrew Permezel vacates the CEO role to lead the AE Smith Board as Executive Chairman. “David has a vision for AE Smith to be a dynamic, creative, learning environment. Like me, he sees AE Smith as so much more than just another mechanical services contractor,” commented Andrew.
No stranger to AE Smith, being involved with the Actrol national purchasing agreement that is helping AE Smith to leverage its considerable buying power, David also, quite by chance, gave a speech at the 2013 AE Smith Recognition Awards.
“AE Smith has an enviable reputation in our industry that spans decades,” said David. “You can’t fake a track record of integrity, a helping spirit or a genuine care for your people and customers.”
“Taking part in the Recognition Awards, I was able to experience the AE Smith culture first hand. It is a team galvanised by a set of values. It is a team I want to lead.” said David.
Energy and Growth
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“There are few companies I hoped would tap me on the shoulder,” David said. “I was delighted to receive Andrew’s call early this year exploring the potential of what we might achieve leading AE Smith together.”
David’s appointment confirms that while AE Smith has long been a respected company in the heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) field, it is time for new energy and new growth.
Good news for our customers who have come to expect the very best from AE Smith when it comes to helping them find the right outcome. As the company’s first externally appointed CEO in 116 years, David sees a strong future for AE Smith, with a broad range of products and services on offer. David sees new technologies such as BuidlingIQ predictive energy optimisation and Building Information Modelling (BIM) as being positive for the industry. “Compared to smaller operators, AE Smith is of size and scale where we can make the financial and non-financial investments needed to leverage new technologies and systems on behalf of our customers. Customers who are always looking to do more with less,” said David. Addressing the future of AE Smith, David Willett had this to say: “We believe there is a better way… A better way, created by a passionate team dedicated to delivering our customers a valued solution every time. We care about people’s welfare, believe in the power of relationships and do what we say we are going to do.” Good Team, Great Relationships “Where can AE Smith do more for our customers? For example, AE Smith recently opened its tenth and newest office in Rockhampton, strengthening our ability to help new and existing customers in regional Queensland who are already well serviced by AE Smith teams in Cairns, Mackay and Townsville,” David said. “I’m convinced that if you’ve got a good team who already have great relationships, then the question we should be asking ourselves is; are we truly leveraging every AE Smith resource and every AE Smith expertise to help our very best customers?” This is more good news for AE Smith customers, because it means a redoubling of efforts to deliver “value”, where AE Smith understands “value” means different things to different customers. “AE Smith delivers insightful solutions in Engineering Services across Australia including mechanical, energy, fire, hydraulics and refrigeration,” said David.
“ We believe there is a better way… A better way, created by a passionate team dedicated to delivering our customers a valued solution every time. We care about people’s welfare, believe in the power of relationships and do what we say we are going to do ”
We Still Believe in Helping People Outside work, David is a keen sportsman who regularly cycles up to 250 kilometres a week. A family man at heart, he and his wife Lesley met in University and have two adult children studying information technology and medicine. Meanwhile, as Executive Chairman, Andrew Permezel will take an active role alongside David Willett, and together they will ensure AE Smith delivers insightful solutions in Engineering Services across Australia. AES www.aesmith.com.au
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20 Year Industry Local Appointed to Lead New AE About Rockhampton: With over 2.5 million cattle within a 250km radius of Rockhampton – it’s called Australia’s Beef Capital for a reason. This sprawling country town is the administrative and commercial centre of central Queensland, its wide streets and fine Victorian-era buildings reflecting the region’s prosperous 19th-century heyday of gold and copper mining and the beef-cattle industry. Source: www.lonelyplanet.com
AE Smith has announced the opening of an office in Rockhampton. This will further strengthen their presence across Regional Queensland, with AE Smith teams already well-established in Townsville, Mackay and Cairns “Growth in Regional Queensland continues to be a strategic priority for AE Smith,” said Mark Lovelady, AE Smith General Manager Regional Queensland. “Opening an office in Rockhampton helps us help our growing customer base, particularly those with a national footprint in both metropolitan and regional areas.” The AE Smith Rockhampton team will be led by Charlie Murphy who has recently joined AE Smith to take on this key role. Prior to joining AE Smith, Charlie held a management role with another local HVAC contractor BPM Cowlrick for over 20 years. “Charlie has a formidable knowledge of the Rockhampton, Gladstone and Hinterland region,” said Mark Lovelady. “His extensive experience, engineering knowledge and skill will add value to the whole business and most importantly, how this helps his customers.” Charlie Murphy commented on his appointment, “It is exciting to join a mature national business that has the resources, relationships and reputation to provide great depth to clients.”
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E Smith Rockhampton Office In a move to further strengthen capability in Regional Queensland, Mike Mulherin, previously General Manager of AE Smith Mackay, has been appointed as Regional Queensland Business Development Manager. “We’ll be looking to embed existing builder and developer relationships and establish new ones in the Central Region,” said Mike Mulherin. “With state-wide coverage and a strong and mobile team of Project Managers, we’re also focused on securing construction projects and service contracts further afield,” he added, referencing a number of AE Smith’s recent remote delivery projects coordinated out of Queensland such as Onslow Airport 5,000km west of Mackay!
“ Charlie has a formidable knowledge of the Rockhampton, Gladstone and Hinterland region. His extensive experience, engineering knowledge and skill will add value to the whole business and most importantly, how this helps his customers ”
For more information about AE Smith Rockhampton, please contact Charlie Murphy on rockhampton@aesmith.com.au or call 0447 920 478. AES
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Win-Win Maintenance Agreement to Rely On About Mater Dei College: Mater Dei College, Edgewater, is a Catholic co-educational college established in 1993 to serve communities in the northern suburbs of Perth. The College offers a rich program in the Marian tradition of Catholic Education based on the pillars of Faith, Community, Service and Learning. The curriculum is extensive with a particular emphasis on performing and creative arts, design and technology, languages and learning technologies. For more information visit www.mdc.wa.edu.au Images courtesy of Mater Dei College.
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With more than 1000 students, and 140 staff members, Mater Dei College (MDC) in the northern suburbs of Perth needs heating and cooling it can rely on Built more than 20 years ago, the sprawling campus, on eight hectares of land in Edgewater, had some issues with venting and design of the original Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) system. Issues AE Smith has had to overcome. And MDC Business Manager Sue Kinsella says that the AE Smith engineers have been proactive in finding ways to improve the system and deliver the best possible outcomes, despite the original design faults. Comprehensive Agreement The College has had a relationship with AE Smith for about 15 years, and for the past several years has had all its HVAC maintenance and repairs come under a single comprehensive agreement. This gives Mater Dei College a set price each year for all repairs and replacements, which makes it easier for the college to budget and pragmatically means, as AE Smith Perth Business Development Manager Geoff Binns says, “It’s in our best interest to do it properly because if it breaks down, it costs AE Smith money.�
Geoff has worked with Sue for about 10 years, strengthening a relationship built on trust, customer service, reliability and professionalism. But it wasn’t always that way. In fact, some seven or eight years ago Sue and Geoff had some “heated meetings” in regards to service delivery. From that robust conversation, the comprehensive agreement was born, and both parties are now big supporters of each other. Sue, who is leaving the college at the end of the year, would recommend AE Smith’s comprehensive maintenance and repairs agreement to her private school peers, as well as other organisations faced with heating and cooling a number of different types of rooms and offices. “Things are so much better. We get great customer service and I have a strong, positive relationship with Geoff,” she said, adding that the fixed pricing was also a big plus. Win-Win According to Geoff, AE Smith is all about building relationships, rather than a “quick fix”. “We believe in helping people in everything we do, which means doing things right,” he said. “Mater Dei trusts us – we are good at what we do and we view everything we do from a long-term perspective.”
“ AE Smith is reliable, trustworthy and timely; they service and maintain our air conditioning systems proactively and have overcome various engineering difficulties that come with a 20year old campus ” Sue Kinsella Business Manager, Mater Dei College
Under the comprehensive agreement, AE Smith “does so much proactive maintenance that the system doesn’t break down very often.” Even in the peak of a Perth summer. “It’s a win-win.” Sue agrees, saying AE Smith attends to any problems in a timely fashion, and has been very proactive in overcoming the various engineering difficulties that come with a 20-year old campus. And the fixed-price agreement means there are no nasty surprises when the bill comes. AES www.aesmith.com.au
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A Winding Road to Success for “Unbelievable Mentor” Pic: Lionel Sing, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Student of the Year, accepts his award at the 2014 North Queensland Regional Training Awards ceremony held in Townsville on 26 July. The Queensland Training Awards, in its 53rd year in 2014, are the state's highest recognition of people and organisations who strive for success, best practice and innovation in training. For more information visit www.qta.qld.gov.au
Indigenous apprentice Lionel Sing had a few false starts to his career before landing on his feet at AE Smith in Townsville, but his patience paid off with a win in Training Queensland’s Indigenous Apprentice of the Year Award for Regional Queensland Lionel, who finished his apprenticeship late last year, credits the culture and the support he receives from mentors and senior electricians for his success. But supervisor James Wilson, and Operations Manager Jim Kerby are quick to praise Lionel himself. “He is a real asset to AE Smith and he is an unbelievable mentor to our young electrical apprentices coming through the ranks,” Jim says. “He just knows what’s going on,” James says. “He educated himself and took a lot of initiative.” A Self-Starter It’s apparent that Lionel is a self-starter who thrives on the various challenges and opportunities offered by a company such as AE Smith. With a background in both solar energy and refrigeration, Lionel was a welcome addition to the Townsville team when he decided to move north from Toowoomba to further his career.
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“It was just a matter of finding the right employer,” he said. Born in Katherine in the Northern Territory, Lionel completed an apprenticeship as a refrigeration mechanic before deciding to follow his dream to become a qualified electrician. From there, his path took him into renewable energy before leading him to AE Smith – the right employer. “It’s got everything, from a great culture to the way people such as James and Jim have confidence in me,” he said. “If you do have a problem, they are happy to sort it out. “I have grown a lot in the time I have been here – compared with smaller companies where there is not much room for growth.” Planning Ahead Lionel is now a qualified electrician with plans to continue to learn and grow with a long-term aim of moving into project management. “Training is the key to personal development and achieving your goals,” he wrote in his application. At AE Smith, he has been given the opportunities to develop relevant skills such as customer service, mentoring others and juggling priorities. Reward & Recognition And this is not the first time a Townsville-based AE Smith Apprentice has been recognised, with Kristie McQuilty winning the 2012 North Queensland’s Apprentice of the Year award. Jim is not surprised by the double win, saying it came down to the excellent individuals and AE Smith’s commitment to quality. “To produce quality, you need to have quality,” says Jim.
“ [AE Smith’s] got everything, from a great culture to the way people such as James [Wilson] and Jim [Kerby] have confidence in me… I have grown a lot in the time I have been here – compared with smaller companies where there is not much room for growth ”
Lionel will be in the running for the state Indigenous Apprentice title in September; and with a win there, he could be heading to Adelaide for the national titles. AES
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CSIRO Gets New Chiller in Record Time
About Daikin Magnitude® Magnetic Bearing Centrifugal Chillers: The new technology begins with centrifugal compressors utilising magnetic bearings for oil-free operation, integral variable-frequency drives, and direct drive technology. Exceptional efficiency and reliability is due to its cuttingedge permanent magnet motor and magnetic bearing compressor technology. The use of oil-free magnetic bearing technology significantly increases chiller efficiency by reducing frictional losses within the bearing system. In addition, efficiency improvements can be realised since there is no oil to coat the heat transfer surfaces. Source: Daikin 2014
When constant temperature is vital and a fast turnaround between old and new equipment is of the essence, AE Smith won’t disappoint AE Smith won a tender to replace two chillers and all accompanying electrical, switching and control components at the CSIRO’s Queensland Centre for Advanced Technologies (QCAT). A world-class research and development collaboration between government, industry and researchers in the mining, energy and manufacturing sectors, QCAT requires conditions to be maintained in laboratory and research areas. Time Critical Replacement AE Smith Project Sales Manager, Frank Booysen said the team was acutely aware how critical turnaround time was to get two chillers and the mechanical services switchboard (MSSB) replaced and running perfectly. “The physical location of the MSSB and both chillers complicated matters. Being a fully enclosed single entry plant room, all equipment had to be decommissioned and removed via the same plant room door. None of the equipment could be craned and dropped into position,” Frank said. “All services had to be decommissioned and removed before new equipment could be installed as one chiller was behind the other and
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the MSSB was blocking access into the plant room.” The tender recommended custom-built Daikin magnetic-bearing oil-free chillers, which have impressive energy-efficiency as well as low noise. After a lead-time of about four months, the chillers were ready and the Queensland weather had cooled off, allowing AE Smith to complete the job in more ambient temperatures. The MSSB – which had 12 week lead time – was ordered so its arrival would coincide with that of the chillers. 60 Hour Turnaround With only a 60 hour window available, there was no room for error. “Starting at 5 pm, Friday afternoon we only had a 60 hour window to get the job done and go from decommission to having two new chillers commissioned and fully operational,” Frank said. “This included getting the MSSB board and chillers decommissioned, changed over and reinstalled, alterations to pipe work, upgrades to power, controls, chilled water pipes and by-passes and full commissioning by Daikin.” All Systems Go Frank explains what happened next and how what began as a threatening deadline, soon just became another tick on a job well done. “The client, appreciating the magnitude of the job, gave my team an early start and blew the starting whistle at 3 pm. “We switched all controls to chiller two to maintain conditions in the building and got to work on chiller one. Everybody on site could feel the hype in the air and everybody knew exactly what was expected from them. The race was on!
“ Starting at 5 pm, Friday afternoon we only had a 60 hour window to get the job done and go from decommission to having two new chillers commissioned and fully operational ”
“We rotated on split shifts and effectively had at least eight people on site at all times. Different trades working together, coordinating movement through the limited access to get equipment in and out of the plant room safely, all with one common goal - start up!” “In order to allow time for any unforeseen delays or issues, we planned to start-up midday on Sunday. At that time, the client had three representatives on site. AE Smith Project Manager, Ben Ovington stopped breathing for a few seconds whilst the new MSSB was energised and Daikin flicked the switch… Finally, after 45 hours from the start of decommissioning old chiller one, new chiller two kicked into motion - start up!” The next step was for Daikin to commission new chiller two, while the other was installed. The team easily met the Monday morning deadline and, according to Frank and Ben, the client was impressed by the positive attitude and commitment of the AE Smith team. AES www.aesmith.com.au
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Optimising Asset Performance to Deliver Investment Returns In the past two years, AE Smith has won five projects with a major retail property group in Brisbane, with each project having its own complexities - from constrictive building dimensions to minimising disruptions during Christmas shopping. With each successive project, the AE Smith Brisbane team proved a solution and service-based approach is the key to success. Pic above: YORK MAXE centrifugal chiller and YORK YVWA variable-speed, water-cooled, screw chiller (shown over page) help AE Smith deliver maximum efficiency for the customer.
The projects were driven by the client’s need to optimise asset performance to deliver investment returns. And with HVAC typically representing 70%* of a commercial buildings energy use, choosing the right HVAC supplier, with the most efficient and cost-effective outcome, was critical. A Solution-Based Approach Most recently, the AE Smith team installed a new chiller at the one of the client’s shopping centres, after securing the project in a competitive tender. Frank Booysen, Project Sales Consultant for AE Smith, is responsible for finding the right solution to meet clients’ needs.
* Heating, Ventilation & Air Conditioning High Efficiency Systems Strategy (HVAC HESS) 2013, HVAC Energy Breakdown Factsheet, http:// industry.gov.au/Energy/EnergyEfficiency/NonresidentialBuildings/HVAC/FactSheets/Documents/ HVACFSEnergyBreakdown.pdf
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“It’s never as simple as just specifying the most energy efficient equipment,” Frank said. “We needed to consider existing building structure and the current HVAC systems.”
The AE Smith team worked closely with the client, engineering consultant and structural engineer to solve a particularly difficult conundrum during the project: How to get a chiller the size of an elephant through a much, much smaller door? “The chiller room doorway, built over 25 years ago, is load bearing and couldn’t be widened more than 100mm,”AE Smith Project Manager Ben Ovington said. “This meant we only had a 20mm clearance on either side to work with,” he added. To make the situation even more nail-biting, the chiller - weighing more than nine tons - was reversed in on the back of a flat bed truck via the only viable building entrance - a loading dock. The AE Smith team stripped the chiller back, removing the control system and external piping, and worked closely with the structural engineer to ensure the doorway had sufficient propping to avoid any structural damage to the building. Everything was then meticulously re-built with the combined efforts of AE Smith’s electrical and mechanical engineers. The main concern for the shopping centre’s operations manager was keeping tenants and customers happy whilst the chiller changeover took place. “A shopping centre in summer without air conditioning is a nightmare,” he explained. “AE Smith’s Project Manager was fantastic. He kept us informed throughout the works and was very responsive. This helped us manage the expectations of tenants.” Communication Improves Safety The same client had another shopping centre project that was equally as complex. The objective for the new chiller unit was to increase capacity as well as efficiency.
“ A shopping centre in summer without air conditioning is a nightmare… AE Smith’s Project Manager was fantastic. He kept us informed throughout the works and was very responsive. This helped us manage the expectations of tenants ”
A larger chiller was craned in via the shopping centre roof and lowered slowly down to fit between two existing chiller units. The margin for error was a limited 100mm. Even a slight breeze posed a huge risk during the operation. “Safety is paramount during this kind of installation. We do a lot of planning to mitigate risk,” Ben Ovington said. “Both before and during the installation strong communication with everyone involved is essential.” To improve efficiency of the chiller, AE Smith installed a Variable Speed Drive (VSD), which improves the responsiveness of the chiller unit, helping to lower the peak demand and as a result, reduce energy usage. (Continued on page 14)
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Project Organisation and Coordination The third completed project for the same client involved replacement of a chiller servicing a three-level complex in the heart of Brisbane. “The chiller had reached the end of its life and it was approaching Christmas. Without air conditioning, customers would swelter and the client would have lost revenue,” Frank Booysen said.
“ The chiller had reached the end of its life and it was approaching Christmas. Without air conditioning, customers would swelter and the client would have lost revenue…
“We needed to find a way to replace a chiller in a weekend when it usually takes a week.” The solution to was to work against the clock for 16 hours over a weekend, shutting down traffic in the central district of Brisbane, with the AE Smith team organising traffic control subcontractors and all council permits. “To change over a chiller this fast relies entirely on good coordination,” Ben Ovington said. “Thorough engineer reports informed every decision, the right people were on the job at all times and demolition and then removal of the old chiller was timed down to the minute.”
[AE Smith] needed to find a way to replace a chiller in a weekend when it usually takes a week ”
End-to-End Service Every AE Smith energy solution is designed with maintenance in mind. An exhaustive 12-month fine-tuning process is now underway at the three shopping centres. AE Smith will continue to work the client to improve their energy efficiency, helping to ensure a strong return on investment. AES
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Prefabrication Minimises Disruption at Redcliffe County Court Other current projects where AE Smith is leveraging prefabrication to the benefit of our customers include:
When AE Smith Project Manager Michael O’Farrell commenced on the Redcliffe Court House project he looked to offsite prefabrication to minimise disruption
Redcliffe County Court House is a small, busy Court House north of Brisbane. Like all public venues it is dependent on air conditioning for the comfort of employees and the public.
180 Anne Street, Brisbane 567 Collins Street, Melbourne Darwin Onshore LPG Processing Plant, NT Green Chemical Futures, Monash University, Melbourne Lady Cilento Children’s Hospital Energy Plant (formerly Queensland Children’s Hospital) Melbourne Airport Terminal 4 Micro Nano Research Facility, RMIT University, Melbourne
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When the Court House’s Air Handling Unit (AHU) plant rooms reached the end of their operational life they turned to AE Smith to find a appropriate solution. But, as Michael explains, onsite replacement of AHU plant rooms causes significant disruption and inconvenience in public buildings. “It’s not just the air conditioning that gets disrupted,” said Michael. “Onsite equipment and assembly take up space, works are noisy and we normally inconvenience our customers by taking up work spaces like carparks.” It was for these reasons that Michael made the decision to prefabricate the two AHU plant rooms at AE Smith’s purpose built prefabrication facility.
Assembly Method Improves Safety Colin Jones, AE Smith’s DfMA (Design for Manufacture and Assembly) - Prefabrication / Modularisation Coordinator explains the operations within the factory, “We build and commission entire plant rooms as well as other HVAC modules offsite using manufacturing assembly systems and processes similar to the automotive industry.” He added, “As well as the obvious benefit of minimising disruption at the clients place of business, offsite manufacture improves safety, as AES employees aren’t working in confined spaces or at height and the public aren’t within the vicinity of the works.” Talking about the construction of the Redcliffe plant rooms Colin said, “Two teams worked side by side to assemble and then commission the plant rooms in parallel. Right down to putting the walls and the roof on the plant room.” Business as Usual A more traditional onsite approach is likely to have taken over two weeks per plant room to construct, install and commission excluding the time needed to procure the equipment ship to site. With prefabrication occurring offsite, each 4 x 4 m plant room has been installed and connected within only one week, completely outside of business hours. “We haven’t disrupted the day-to-day operation of the court house at all. We were there at 7am and finished by 9am for each installation 14 hours total,” said Colin. Fit to Task
“ AE Smith’s prefabrication expertise provides unique mitigation opportunities where disruption to a customer’s ‘business-as-usual’ must be avoided at all cost ”
With its many practical benefits, assembly based prefabrication continues to gain favour within the construction industry. “We’ve just commenced parallel prefabrication of 35 AHU plant rooms for the RAAF base in Amberley,” said Colin. “Projects of this scale are becoming increasingly common at the AE Smith prefabrication factory.” “We have a strong focus on continual improvement,” concluded Colin. With 30 years of prefabrication experience under its belt and a commitment to helping clients “find a better way”, it’s no surprise that AE Smith’s prefabrication expertise provides unique mitigation opportunities where disruption to a customer’s “business-as-usual” must be avoided at all cost. AES
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Dementia Training for Service Technicians Leads to Improved Service Delivery About LASA National Congress 2014: Australia’s premier networking event for age services, the LASA National Congress is the foremost educational and networking event hosted by Leading Age Services Australia (LASA), the peak body for age service providers. About LASA Victoria: Leading Age Services Australia - Victoria is the peak body for aged care in Victoria, and the united voice for providers and other organisations associated with aged and community care. About Brightwater Care Group: The Brightwater Care Group is one of the largest and best known providers of residential accommodation in Western Australia with 23 facilities located from Joondalup to Mandurah.
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In a first for a mechanical services company, AE Smith commissioned peak body Leading Aged Services AustraliaVictoria to provide specialist dementia training to all its Service Technicians to help improve relationships and service delivery to residential aged care customers Invited to speak at the Leading Aged Services Australia (LASA) National Congress in Adelaide on 21 October, AE Smith General Manager of Western Australia, Graeme Stewart, and LASA Victoria National Manger of Training Strategy and Development, Diana FitzGerald explained how – and why – such training can reduce risk. “We identified aged care as a market we wanted to specialise in. But in conversations with our young service technicians, we came across a problem,” Graeme said, adding that some technicians were reluctant to work in aged care facilities due to stressful incidents in the past. “We have a responsibility to our staff that they are able to operate confidently and comfortably in their workplace,” he said. “To AE Smith aged care customers, both current and future, we saw several risks associated with service providers working on site including: the mental and physical safety of residents; how care staff
deal with incidents and the time it takes to manage this; and potential scrutiny from families or residents, or the broader community or media. “Safety of our staff and the community is our number one priority, but in aged care, the usual approach to safety isn’t enough. “We needed to increase awareness and understanding of dementia with our service technicians and then educate them on appropriate responses and actions within an aged care environment.” Developing the Training Diana told the audience that such training was “an innovative step for a service provider to take” and designing appropriate training was critical. “This wasn’t the normal demographic for LASA Victoria. We were training a group of young men, external to the ‘world’ of aged care.” The training covered key points such as understanding how dementia affects the brain, understanding the behaviour of a person with dementia and how to communicate effectively, all with the aim of increasing the empathy of the technicians working in aged care facilities.
“ My first impression on knowing [AE Smith] were doing specific dementia training was actually surprise because I didn’t realise it was part of their core business. Dementia is [Brightwater’s] core business, so I was really quite surprised ” Jennie Neilsen Resident Liaison Coordinator Brightwater Care Group
In a short two minute video played at the conference [and ready to view now at www.youtube.com/watch?v=jOXftMrY6Y4], Resident Liaison Coordinator at Brightwater Care Group, Jennie Neilsen (pictured above), said a good cultural fit was vital when considering a service provider. “It’s important they have experience in working in a residential environment in an occupied site,” she said. (Continued on page 22)
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“My first impression on knowing [AE Smith] were doing specific dementia training was actually surprise because I didn’t realise it was part of their core business. Dementia is [Brightwater’s] core business, so I was really quite surprised.” Valuable Lessons AE Smith Service Supervisor, Joel Tebbenhoff, said the most valuable thing he took away from the training was “teaching yourself to put yourself in the residents’ shoes”. “You are coming into their house so to speak,” he said.
“ The valuable piece of knowledge I took away from the training is that these facilities are the resident’s homes and therefor you should treat them with the respect you would like in your own home ” Kane Thompson Service Technician AE Smith
“When I go into an aged care facility now, if I am working in a resident’s room, I actually introduce myself to the resident. Whereas before I just went to the care manager.” Joel is one of more than 75 AE Smith Service Technicians across Australia that have received the specialist training designed and delivered by LASA Victoria. “We have asked [our Technicians] what’s different now they’ve done the training,” Graeme said. “They’re asking for more information, they’re aware of communication challenges and how to assist, and they’re scheduling work differently to reduce safety risks.” Kane Thompson, AE Smith Service Technician said, “If I am entering a resident’s bedroom, I knock until I get a response, then I enter the room with a smile and make a connection with the resident before I look at their air conditioner.” “The valuable piece of knowledge I took away from the training is that these facilities are the resident’s homes and therefor you should treat them with the respect you would like in your own home.” Graeme ended the presentation reminding the audience of aged care professionals that “when everyone has care in full focus – the aged care facility, the service provider and industry body like LASA, we can see how a practical initiative, such as specialist aged care training for service providers and contractors just like AE Smith can help improve culture and reduce risk for all parties concerned.” AES
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AE Smith Perth Helps RMHC Raise $785,000 AE Smith was delighted to be a Gold Partner sponsor of the 21st annual Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) Ball - the most successful charity ball in Australasia As Australia's largest privately-owned mechanical services contractor, the help we provide Ronald McDonald House (RMH) in Perth and four other Houses around the country brings special meaning to our work and the efforts of our people. "For more than 15 years AE Smith Perth has provided air conditioning maintenance and service to RMH Perth. In doing so, we hope this has increased your capacity to care for families during a stressful time in their lives and made their stay at RMH Perth that little bit more comfortable," said AE Smith General Manager Western Australia, Graeme Stewart (pictured above in a promotional photograph commissioned by RMHC that appeared in the event program distributed at the Ball). "Thank you for allowing AE Smith to be part of your RMH family." Held at Crown Perth’s Grand Ballroom on 8 November 2014, more than 1,000 guests attended and in excess of $785,000 was raised for RMHC, which will go towards providing a home away from home for regional families with seriously ill children. AES
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Good Things Come in Small Prefabricated Packages Hot on the back of delivering a 16 metre, 10 tonne giant prefabricated module at Monash University’s Green Chemical Futures building, AE Smith has again proved “there is a better way” this time manufacturing 8 significantly smaller “prefab modules” as part of an onsite power, turnkey cogeneration solution AE Smith is delivering at 567 Collins Street for Leighton Contractors 567 Collins Street will be the largest PCA Premium Grade tower constructed in Melbourne in the last 25 years. The 26 level development is registered to target a 5 Star Green Star – Office Design v3 rating with the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA).
AE Smith Prefabrication Factory Supervisor, Ian Battams said the largest of the small prefab modules only took about 2.5 weeks to build: “The biggest module was 2.6 x 2.3 x 2.2 metres high and weighed about 3 tonnes. Another module, which had two large heat exchangers encased inside a heavy duty frame, weighed around 2 tonnes.” “Tiny in comparison to the 16 metre, 10 tonne prefab giant we manufactured recently in the same AE Smith factory… The smallest prefab module this time was only 0.6 x 1.0 x 1.8 metres high and weighed in around 150 kilograms,” Ian said.
Source: www.leightonproperties.com.au
Ian explains that by manufacturing prefabricated modules offsite in a safe, controlled environment (as opposed to stick build onsite, in situ the “old” way) paid dividends beyond compressing the already tight program on the 567 Collins Street project. “At AE Smith, we believe there is a better way: A better way to work 24 Cool Breeze 2014 #22
safely; a better way to help our customers; and a better way to accelerate construction times,” said Ian. Because of the controlled manufacturing environment – on the right project – the benefits of prefabrication to both client and contractor include:
Accelerated construction times; Improved productivity; Greater quality control; Significant abatement of reworks; and Reduction in onsite health and safety risks.
“Prefabrication also saves a lot of time in coordination. For example, material and equipment used in each module is delivered to our factory. I don’t have to book in deliveries as I would normally do if I’m receiving materials on a construction site. Importantly, I also avoid typical issues common on most construction sites like delivery bottlenecks or hard to find small deliveries on a big construction site,” Ian explains. “Furthermore, the cogeneration plant is located on Level 3 and a few of the modules had close to 1000 individual pieces, which you would normally need to get to site and then man handle to Level 3. “Because each of the prefab modules is being manufactured offsite,
“ At AE Smith, we believe there is a better way: A better way to work safely; a better way to help our customers; and a better way to accelerate construction times ”
it doesn’t impede on the overall construction program. I also don’t have to wait for other stages of construction to be completed before I can start works. For example, while we were manufacturing the 8 small prefab modules at the AE Smith factory, the cogeneration plant room was being soundproofed at the same time,” said Ian. “By manufacturing selected components of the cogeneration plant in prefabricated modules, we estimate that AE Smith has saved this particular construction program up to 8 or more weeks compared to outdated construction methods.” AES www.aesmith.com.au
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Winning Team Helps Lend Lease Stay Safe
About Lend Lease: Lend Lease is a leading international property and infrastructure group, listed on the Australian Securities Exchange. The company employs 16,500 employees worldwide, and has capabilities that span the full property and infrastructure spectrum.
AE Smith places the highest value on the safety of our staff and our clients, as three Brisbane mechanical plumbers from the Queensland Construction AE Smith team have proven with their success in a pilot Workplace Health & Safety (WHS) training course championed by Lend Lease
In Australia Lend Lease has more than 80 years of experience in the construction and infrastructure industry having delivered some of the nation’s largest and most important projects.
The five-month course led to a Certificate IV in Workplace Health & Safety and involved attendees working in groups of four to come up with a WHS safety initiative that Lend Lease could adopt across its building projects. It culminated in the teams presenting their innovation to Lend Lease senior managers.
Recent examples of significant Lend Lease projects involving AE Smith include: Lady Cilento Children’s Hospital in Brisbane, Monash University Green Chemical Futures in Melbourne, and Sunshine Coast Public University Hospital. Source: www.lendlease.com
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Daniel Gray (pictured above), Peter Morrison and Grant Shanahan took part in Lend Lease’s pilot “Safety Leadership Program”, targeted at the construction industry.
And in great news for AE Smith, Daniel’s group won the award for the best initiative - a smart phone app to identify intangible hazards, such as stress, metal wellbeing and tiredness. AE Smith National Safety Manager, Nick Daley said the course was specific to the construction industry, so it was an ideal choice for the three AE Smith employees.
Perfect Fit “Lend Lease is a significant player in the Australian construction industry and by virtue of the different projects we help them with around the country, also one of our biggest clients,” Nick said. “So this program is a perfect fit. “The mandate was to conceive initiatives to improve on the Health and Safety management on Lend Lease sites and to present those initiatives to a panel for consideration. “The guys were understandably nervous. But they represented both themselves and AE Smith exceptionally well.” According to Daniel, the course has made him feel “a lot more confident” and better at identifying safety issues. “AE Smith has a great safety culture and, I have always felt able to speak up,” he said, adding that the course’s focus on public speaking helped him feel more comfortable. Safety Initiatives The three AE Smith mechanical plumbers joined three separate groups to develop and present their initiatives to Lend Lease. Daniel’s group developed a smart phone application to assist in identifying ‘intangible’ hazards. This was very well received by the panel and Daniel said it would be implemented on the Sunshine Coast Public University Hospital (SCPUH) site, as well as projects in Melbourne. Grant’s group targeted health and fitness and their initiative involved improved site canteen options, subsidised personal training and organised team sports – rather than going to the pub each Friday after knock off. This was also well-received by the panel. Peter’s group came up with an idea to improve induction and simplify paperwork and procedures. The panel was impressed and will investigate the implementation of this initiative further.
“ The five-month course led to a Certificate IV in Workplace Health & Safety and involved attendees working in groups of four to come up with a WHS safety initiative that Lend Lease could adopt across its building projects ”
“The success of this program can be attributed to the collaboration and mutual benefit to AE Smith, Lend Lease and program participants,” concluded Nick. AES
www.aesmith.com.au
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From the Top of Melbourne to South East Asia, Support Never Waivered About Miles for Smiles: In late January 2014, four Australian riders embarked on a 63 day, 7500 mile/12,000km charity ride on vintage designed Royal Enfield motorcycles through; Nepal, India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and then on to Perth for their Australian leg to Melbourne. The purpose of the ride was to film a documentary and raise money in aid of the Australian charity Interplast. Visit www.milesforsmiles.org.au for more information.
Building a strong relationship between customer and contractor is the key to a successful outcome, according to Peter Jones. And as the former General Manager for Melbourne’s tallest apartment building and existing customer – the Eureka Tower – he should know For nine years, Peter dealt with countless contractors – 10 per cent were exceptional; the majority were OK, and a few were poor – and rates AE Smith among the top, purely based on the standard of service provided. While he wasn’t prepared to let on how much he appreciated AE Smith’s construction and maintenance work while he was in charge of facilities at Eureka Tower – “you’ve got to keep them on their toes” – Peter is now happy to sing the company’s praises. “AE Smith was always available to sort out issues, especially in the summer months when our system required a lot of TLC,” Peter said. “They never succumbed to taking the easy way out, and are very professional in the way they do business.” And Peter’s relationship with AE Smith went deeper than purely business – when he decided to ride a vintage motorbike across South East Asia to raise money for Interplast, AE Smith was the first company to sponsor his “Miles for Smiles” fund raising initiative. “It came about during a regular weekly meeting with them, we were
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having a coffee and I mentioned the motorbike ride to Matthew,” Peter said. Account Manager with the AE Smith team, Matthew Scarman was a keen motorbike rider himself and asked for more information, which eventually led to AE Smith donating $5000 of the eventual $35,000 raised. Interplast is not-for-profit organisation that sends fully qualified Australian and New Zealand volunteer plastic and reconstructive surgeons, anaesthetists, nurses and allied health professionals to the Asia Pacific region to provide free surgical treatment to people disabled as a result of such things a cleft lip and palate or burn scars contractures. “It’s Australia’s best-kept secret,” Peter said, adding that he became aware of the charity when he set up the Eureka stair climb in 2008, Australia’s biggest vertical race at 1958 steps and 89 floors high. Peter and his Miles for Smiles team rode through South East Asia visiting Interplast sites and seeing their charity dollars in action. And AE Smith was with them the whole way, not just financially, but through offering moral support and promoting the fundraiser. “Their support was fantastic, right from the start,” Peter said. “We were supposed to head off in 2012 and were delayed for a year, and their support continued through this delay.”
“ AE Smith was always available to sort out issues, especially in the summer months when our system required a lot of TLC... They never succumbed to taking the easy way out, and are very professional in the way they do business ” Peter Jones former General Manager Eureka Tower
“They posted about our ride on their social media profiles and online publications. We were extremely lucky that AE Smith was on board and that we already had a relationship that Miles for Smiles could benefit from. And in return, we certainly made sure they were recognised through our channels and media interviews.” In short, Peter has nothing but compliments for AE Smith, both as a mechanical contractor for big projects, and as a supportive sponsor. AES www.aesmith.com.au
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120 kg of Seeds to Bring Back a Forest Since 2005, AE Smith has planted more than 21,500 tress in Australia with Greenfleet to offset over 5,500 tonnes of CO2-e generated by hundreds of AE Smith vehicles and 1 million kilometres of staff air travel.
This year, Greenfleet is revegetating 180 ha of overgrazed land in Central Victoria, using 120 kilograms of native seeds
Visit www.greenfleet.com.au for more information.
Located near Wedderburn, this new reforestation project connects with 830 ha already seeded by Greenfleet in the area. As they grow, these forests create a link between the remnant pockets of native bushland, allowing native wildlife to thrive.
Ranging from Yellow Box [Eucalyptus melliodora] to Golden Wattle [Acacia pycnantha], direct-seeding started in June and was completed at the end of August.
They’re hoping to see the rare Powerful Owl, the Brush-tailed Phascogale and the endangered Grey-crowned Babbler make a comeback to the region.
Cool Breeze is a magazine published by AE Smith & Son Pty Ltd ABN 54 004 274 793 for its staff and customers. Subscription is free and available directly from AE Smith. Š 2014 AE Smith & Son Pty Ltd. Important Notice: The information contained in this magazine is given in good faith. To the maximum extent permitted by law, neither AE Smith, its employees or contractors accept any liability for loss or damage arising as a result of any person acting on information contained in this magazine. This magazine should not be used or relied on as a substitute for detailed professional consultation with AE Smith.
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Since Greenfleet commenced in 1997, they have planted over 8.6 million native trees, across more than 400 sites, on behalf of individual and business supporters just like AE Smith. The ultimate reason for planting these trees is to create healthy forests that recapture carbon from the atmosphere. AES
Inside Every House There’s a Story Thanks to the generous support of people and organisations just like AE Smith, Ronald McDonald House (RMH) Monash continues to keep their doors open for families like Clements and Torney Four and half year old Madelaine Clements has been receiving treatment for cerebral palsy which is unavailable in Tasmania, and baby Reed Torney made a rather early and dramatic entrance into the world at 24 weeks. “When we arrived we were met by such friendly people. Our son was ecstatic to be able to play with other children his own age. When Madelaine and I came back from her first appointment she was able to move freely around a safe, home-like environment, and the distress and fatigue we were expecting her to experience never eventuated,” reflects Amanda, Madelaine’s Mum. Similarly, baby Reed’s Mum Amanda recounts her experience. “Without RMH Monash I don’t know how I would have managed to pick myself up and carry on. I missed my own home, family and friends every day but I made a second life at the House while we waited until our son was healthy enough to come home. There is so much that I love about RMH Monash, but most of all it’s because of them that I’m able to be so close to my little boy.”
Every Ronald McDonald House (RMH) supported by AE Smith no longer receive bills for air condition service and maintenance, saving each House thousands of dollars every year that can be better spent on helping families feel that little bit more comfortable during their stay.
RMH Monash (Melbourne) RMH Parkville (Melbourne) RMH Perth RMH North Queensland (Townsville) RMH Westmead (Sydney)
Visit www.rmhc.org.au/houses for more information about the House closest to you.
Please donate to the House closest to you and make a real difference in the lives of families with seriously ill children. AES www.aesmith.com.au
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