3D Guidance and payload monitoring

Retrofit kit (RFK)

Digital functionality on an existing hydraulic excavator.

The utilisation of the RFK kit provides access to the following features, allowing your new or existing conventional Komatsu excavator to perform digital construction.

• 3D machine guidance

• Integrated tilt functionality

• Payload Meter

• Acquire 3D construction data

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Joanne Farrell

ACT Australian of the Year

Joanne Farrell, ACT General Manager of Kane Constructions, was recently named 2024 ACT Australian of the Year. Having pursued building since she left high school, Jo has spent over two decades working across the industry, including as a qualified carpenter, licenced builder, certified building designer and general manager of a multimillion-dollar company.

Jo founded the not-for-profit Build Like a Girl in 2020. The organisation provides support, guidance and connections for any woman in a trade role. Build Like a Girl is there for women at every stage in their career, whether they are starting out, finding a job or learning from the experienced ambassadors that showcase a range of roles.

In 2020, 2021 and 2022, Jo was a mentor for Master Builders Australia’s Women Building Australia National Mentoring Program. The program provides women who have been in the industry for less than 5 years with access to support, encouragement and advice from an experienced mentor like Jo. This is crucial for women facing challenging experiences like Jo did at the start of her career. Jo was the only female apprentice registered with TAFE NSW during the first year of her apprenticeship, which is indicative of the bias of the industry at the time. According to Master Builders Australia data, as of August 2023, women still only account for 12.4% of people working in Australian construction.

To help alleviate the challenges being faced by women, Jo works closely with building contractors, government, training organisations and peak industry bodies like Master Builders ACT. Jo assists them with recruiting, training and employing women in trade roles. Statistics show that Jo has been incredibly successful – from her beginning at Kane Constructions in February 2020 to December 2022, the females in the team grew from 6% to 48%. For her dedication to the industry, Jo was awarded Master Builders 2022 Construction Woman of the Year.

Congratulations to Jo on everything she has achieved for the industry and on earning this very well-deserved award. Master Builders ACT is very excited to see what the future brings for you.

The Australian War Memorial (The Memorial) is undergoing major works with three main packages currently underway. The impressive workforce of over 300 workers behind the development includes 46 veterans ‘on the tools’ and The Memorial’s own project team, which consists of 74% female workers (including 4 of the 6 project managers). All teams involved described working on the project as a once in a lifetime experience.

THE SOUTHERN ENTRANCE, PARADE GROUND AND MAIN BUILDING

The package awarded to Kane Constructions consists of the new Southern Entrance, structural and civil works for the heritage listed Main Building and the reshaping of the Parade Ground. Not only is the team glad for the opportunity to be a part of a technically challenging construction project, but they value the chance to collaborate with The Memorial and learn so much more about Australia’s story of service and sacrifice. On completion, the Southern Entrance will be accessible from both the east and west with direct access from Poppy’s Café and the landscaped courtyard, which is connected to the existing underground carpark and forecourt by a bespoke glazed lift. The low-level positioning of the Southern Entrance maintains The Memorial’s iconic silhouette and stone façade when viewed from Anzac Parade.

A centre piece of the Southern Entrance is the glazed oculus – a mathematical inversion of the Hall of Memory dome. The Spanish glass was precisely measured to fit the curved steel frame perfectly. It provides a visual and emotional connection between the new entrance and the existing building and offers a moment of reflection and orientation as visitors begin and end their journey at The Memorial.

During the project, Kane Constructions will reinstate the heritage entrance, stairs and commemorative forecourt in their original positions and clad in their original stone.

The team’s expansion and re-shaping of the Parade Ground will improve sight lines to the Stone of Remembrance and add new terraced seating areas, landscape pathways and connections from Anzac Parade to The Memorial forecourt level. Ultimately, the Parade Ground will be used for military parades, and provide accessible seating for major events and enhanced visitor safety and site security commencing with the 2024 Anzac Day National Ceremony and veterans’ march.

Kane Constructions’ refurbishment of the Main Building will improve wayfinding and exhibition flexibility within the existing spaces. These complex civil and structural works within the heritage listed structure will prepare the building’s Level 1 internals for the base building fit-out and gallery installation to follow.

The team is incredibly proud to have contributed to a development that will allow, for the first time, a large permanent display dedicated to the stories of Australia’s recent service and our efforts to prevent war and contribute to peace.

The Cew Bean Building And Central Energy Plant

When the opportunity arose, the Hindmarsh team fervently offered to work with The Memorial again. The package awarded to Hindmarsh includes the Central Energy Plant and the CEW Bean Building expansion, named after Captain Charles Edwin Woodrow Bean, the Australian War Correspondent, historian and primary advocate for the establishment of the Australian War Memorial. Hindmarsh is refurbishing the existing CEW Bean Building and adding a seamless extension for the staff that support The Memorial, as well as a research centre

Similarly to the other buildings, the CEW Bean Building integrates sandstone, architecturally designed glass and concrete detailing that requires a high degree of workmanship and rigorous quality assurance to meet the standards of the prestigious icon and ensure the consistency of the materials. Level 2 will feature curved concrete that is carefully sculpted to blend with other building sections, as well as bluestone cladding on the more prominent walls of the new staff working areas complementing the existing building’s facade.

When pouring the first concrete blinding to pad footings for the Bean Building, Project Manager Warren Fenwick purchased three 1915 pennies to throw in. It is a tradition Warren has held throughout his career and the specially sourced pennies commemorate the year of Australia’s first conflict as Australian forces in Gallipoli and the beginning of Captain Bean’s military story.

The package requires Hindmarsh to work closely with both Lendlease and Kane Constructions because the Central Energy Plant delivers long-term sustainable mechanical and fire services to the entire precinct, including the Southern Entrance and ANZAC Hall.

The Central Energy Plant will be the largest geothermal installation of its type in the southern hemisphere, and one of the largest in the world. Up to 128kms of pipe have been installed – the equivalent of approximately 256 Sydney Harbour bridge lengths laid end-to-end. This eco-friendly system will save the Memorial more than $1m each year on heating and cooling.

Hindmarsh has welcomed the rare opportunity to learn about the uses of various buildings, especially the work that is carried out in the archival storage and public interface for research on past, current and, potentially, any future conflicts. The team described their involvement as ‘a humbling experience to delve deeper into the stories of the people who experienced these events firsthand, remembering the bravery and sacrifice of our war veterans, whose unwavering courage has shaped our nation’s history’.

The Anzac Hall And Glazed Link

The package undertaken by Lendlease involves constructing the new ANZAC Hall and Glazed Link. It is mainly gallery spaces that will house large technology objects (LTOs), including an F/A-18 Hornet, Bushmaster, RF1-11 and Blackhawk helicopter.

Large precast ‘Super T’ beams (typically used in bridge construction) support the suspended slab on Level 1, allowing for a gallery space on ground level with no central supports. Each of the 32 beams weighs 60t and measures 31m in length. A 750t crane and extensive temporary engineering were required to safely and successfully install the beams. The crane was named Duffy by Canberra school children, after Private John Simpson Kirkpatrick’s donkey, which transported injured men in Gallipoli during WWI.

The Hall’s roof and walls are wrapped in approximately 70t of copper cladding and over 750t of geometrically challenging structural steel that will form the shape of the rising sun insignia. Internally, wall finishes include custom bronze cladding, glass, and sandstone that was taken from the same quarry where the stone of the original heritage-listed building was quarried in the early 1940s. Lendlease is acutely focused on these crucial finishes, whose small details will bring the design to life.

In addition to the galleries, there will also be areas for reflection, a café and space for hosting functions. The Glazed Link will connect the new ANZAC Hall to the existing heritage-listed building. To meet the high architectural standards, the roof that spans between the two buildings is made of ethylene tetrafluoroethylene – watertight, inflated plastic pillows that enable the use of aesthetic slender trusses.

Lendlease has welcomed the challenges that come with the bespoke structure’s shape, which consists of large off-form concrete elements and non-typical detailing. Their meticulous planning is currently being directed towards the gallery fit-out, which is expected to be underway in early 2025. The team is looking forward to lowering the LTOs into the live construction site.

Lendlease said the project ‘will recognise and bear witness to the stories of recent conflicts, peacekeeping operations, and the service people that made it possible. We are extremely grateful to be able to contribute, in a small way, helping The Memorial tell the stories of our Australian Servicemen and Servicewomen.’

The Memorial’s Integrated Management Team consists of direct Memorial employees and embedded consultants who work seamlessly to manage competing priorities to keep the Memorial open to the public while delivering more than $550m of new work. The cooperation and professionalism of the Principal Contractors provides fundamental support to the successful completion of this world class development, which is currently forecast to be delivered on time and on budget.

25 YEARS OF THE Training Fund Authority in the ACT

The Training Fund Authority (TFA) was formed in the late 1990s in what former TFA Chairman James Service AM referred to as ‘the best bit of bipartisan politics I’ve seen’. According to Mr Service, the government has provided a multidisciplinary board that governs how the fund is spent without interfering with governance or operations.

Former TFA CEO Gary Guy sees the structure of the TFA as one of its pinnacles of achievement. In the past, the board appointed the staff members, and resulted in a well bonded team. Together, they ensure that funds are available for eligible workers, and those who invest in training always get their money’s worth.

Over the past few decades, the TFA has experienced a lot of change to keep up with the needs of the industry and society. Former TFA CEO Glenn Carter noted the transition into the digital age in 2014 with online applications. His team made sure that the application and assessment process would not become a burden for the industry.

There has also been a great change in perspective since the TFA was introduced. Previously, the perception was that, once you finished your apprenticeship, no further training was necessary. Now, entry-level training is only 50% of funding. The TFA helped to grow a culture of upskilling that allows workers to grow their skills, move to a management position or run their own business.