Industrial Safety News: April - May 2022

April - May 2022

Five myths of staff wellbeing Worker sleep deprivation on the rise Covid-19's deadly toll on mental health

APRIL- MAY 2022

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APRIL- MAY 2022

Chemical safety relies on meaningful cooperation

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Expanding government-industry partnerships to help business operators should be a no brainer. Inviting enquirers to read the regulations falls well short of educational expectations

KEEP CALM, USE YOUR EMERGENCY RESPONSE BIBLE Increasing community concerns about vulnerability to unwanted chemical exposure and damage to our fragile environment places additional pressure on both suppliers and users of the chemicals.

Barry Dyer Chief Executive Responsible Care NZ

T

We all need to sustain and improve our quality of life and these products must be safely managed throughout their life cycle.

places, by responding to workers’ suggestions about improvements.

Conscientious business operators can add value by sourcing accurate, cost-effective workplace chemical safety advice and compliance tools from their suppliers, industry partners and Responsible Care NZ. A proven strategy is government agencies collaborating with proactive industry associations to best achieve workplace safety aspirations. The problem is that SMEs rarely join associations.

However, they all obtain their chemical requirements from suppliers and can benefit from product stewardship advice and cost-effective industry compliance initiatives.

Responsible Care NZ extols less regulation in favour of enabling business operators to be increasingly self-sufficient, using cost-effective products and services such as site compliance assessments and specialist training.

oday, chemical Downgrading the flawed suppliers and their but effective HSNO Cercustomers continue tified Handler requireThe focus is keeping STAY SAFE ROAD, to adjust to the Covid oper- ON mentTHE has inadvertently people safe around the ational GET environment. undermined an invaluable chemicals we encounter YOUR 2021 A/NZ capability. every day by adding value EMERGENCY RESPONSE They struggle with supply to businesses.

GUIDE BOOK. chain delays, the loss of exThe action deprived busiperienced staff, frustration nesses, particularly SMEs, UPDATED EDITION NOW AVAILABLE with unanswered queries of anchemical immediate and recResponsible Care is a global voluntary chemical Providing accurate FROM OUR to risk-averse authorities, ognisable source of workindustry initiative developed autonomously by the WEBSITE safety advice toplace drivers and inflexible and prescriptive chemical safety and chemical industry for the chemical industry. regulations, rising comcompliance advice -a safe first responders during the pliance costs, diminishing chemical handling capabiliChemical suppliers continue to help customers achieve initial phase of an incident resources and increasing ty and emergency response workplace chemical safety aspirations through product public chemical safetydangerous exknowledge – critical when a stewardship initiatives. involving goods pectations. chemical incident occurs. and hazardous substances.

To help solve the in-house chemical compliance While 130,000 businesses PCBUs and SMEs must dilemma in New Zealand, Responsible Care NZ delivers are reportedly captured by now devise their own soluspecialist and cost-effective Certified Handler standard the Hazardous Substances tions to ensure employees training, complete with a certificate. and Major Hazard Faciliare competent to safely BULK ORDER DISCOUNT AVAILABLE ties regulations, the official handle the chemicals with Responsible Care NZ site compliance assessments are mantra of “600-900 persons which they work. non-threatening, effectively capturing and assessing seriously harmed each year chemical safety performance in a variety of workplaces.

BE COMPETENT,Chemical STAY industry COMPLIANT by unwanted exposure to leadchemicals in their workers are moving away from place” presumably applies relying on lagging indica+64 4 499 4311 to all of the country’s tors of safety performance info@responsiblecarenz.com 530,000www.responsiblecarenz.com workplaces. in favour of identifying safer www.responsiblecarenz.com work practices and work-

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APRIL- MAY 2022

Skills shortages require pragmatic response

T

he Russian invasion of the Ukraine is forcing millions of families to seek sanctuary throughout Europe. Many will not return to their homeland, preferring to establish new lives in countries offering safety and an improved quality of life.

In return, these refugees provide their expertise and gratitude for the opportunity they are being offered – similar to other refugees who have successfully settled in New Zealand since the early 1860s.

Explorers and sealers, followed by traders, farmers, tradespeople, administrators, retired military and refugees involved many ethnic groups contributing their culture and determination to achieving a more rewarding lifestyle, where their expertise and skills were an invaluable contribution to a young colony with high aspirations. These adventurous participants helped make our country what it is today.

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Fast forward to 2022 and a pandemic, together with a faltering infrastructure delivering sub-par results in our schools and trading establishments, combined with convoluted immigration policies and the lure of better paying jobs in neighbouring Australia, means a steady erosion of the key skills necessary to improve productivity and deliver the required services.

Unfortunate natural disasters, political and military actions in many countries have created a tidal wave of migrants, particularly those fleeing war zones and not forgetting those seeking a superior lifestyle in a country with attributes we defend, as we also under-value their importance.

As the “kind and friendly” nation of international repute, offering a haven and a fresh start to those who have lost everything, we should also recognise the opportunity to embrace those refugees who will repay our kindness with

their loyalty, skills and work ethic.

Engineers, builders, teachers, healthcare workers, fishermen and even drivers will greatly advance our urgently needed infrastructure development.

Reports of training 40,000 apprentice carpenters, electricians and plumbers is a commendable achievement which will be wasted without jobs where they also receive competent supervision and mentoring to achieve their full potential.

There is also the constant threat from higher paying offshore employers, luring professionals, especially where healthcare and commercial building is rapidly expanding.

Our erratic immigration policy reacts to interest groups needing to fill shortfalls in critical export sectors. Visas available to relieve short term, low skilled seasonal labour shortages such as harvesting fruit export crops while ignoring long term, higher

skilled workers desperately needed to sustain national development. The latest relaxation is another 1,500 skilled workers for farms, meat processing and forestry throughout our critical and increasingly stressed primary and food processing industries.

The unfolding disaster in the Ukraine presents a mutually beneficial opportunity for both the war refugees and for New Zealand.

History proves our migrants become valuable citizens, repaying our hospitality with their skills, commitment and loyalty.

Increasing our population makes economic sense. As a wealthy nation with GDP per capita higher than the UK and many Asian and European countries, we can afford to increase our population by stepping up acceptance of war refugees.

A growing population encourages more competition in products and services dictated by monopolies supplying increasingly ex-

APRIL- MAY 2022 pensive commodities such as energy, supermarkets, construction materials etc.

The UK is an example of mainly Eastern European migrants providing the tradespeople the education and trade training system fails to provide in sufficient numbers. New Zealand has a similar need for tradespeople, technicians and the array of lower paid jobs New Zealanders are not prepared to undertake.

We must, however, avoid exploiting migrants, clearly evident where employees are not receiving a fair income for their efforts, preventing them from

establishing themselves in the community. Accelerated recognition of credible foreign qualifications should be a priority, including working with mentors to confirm their expertise on the job and to assist the family’s integration into their new community Our Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment is predicting an exodus of at least 50,000 Kiwis this year, many of whom will be the very professionals and skilled workers we can ill afford to lose.

A pan-political party immigration policy to complement other proven initia-

tives like overseas students in the Sciences, Engineering and IT who elect to stay and work, should be a priority, together with suitably experienced workers seeking a better quality of life, while providing tomorrow’s skilled workforce.

Providing the experienced professionals and front-line workers needed to train and mentor future generations in the skills needed to keep New Zealand at the forefront of where people aspire to live.

Until such political acumen and courage emerges, government should actively facilitate industry importing

the highly skilled individuals desperately needed to significantly improve productivities and accelerate national infrastructure development, while enhancing their local communities.

Meanwhile, let us open our door to those needy Ukrainian refugees in a mutually beneficial act of kindness.

We will all be the better for it.

The views expressed

by Content Partner, Responsible Care Chief Executive Barry Dyer, may not necessarily be those of Responsible Care NZ

The state of play at home As the annual Winter flu season looms, coping successfully with international and national supply chain disruption remains critical. Businesses are now required to be lateral thinkers determining how to innovate in supplying essential products and services, while upskilling employees, throughout what may ultimately come to be remembered as the “Year of the RAT” rather than the “Year of Tiger”.

The enduring pandemic and disappointingly slow takeup of booster vaccinations, coinciding with the change to employer-driven Covid protection measures, emphasise the need for businesses to focus on safeguarding staff.

The lockdown of three major Chinese cities, their factories and adjacent ports, including the world’s busiest container terminal of Shanghai, during a new

Omicron wave will prolong the shortage of refrigerated containers.

New Zealand food exporters, hampered by the shortage of both skilled and unskilled workers, are

the final crude oil shipment has arrived in Northport, the concerns about greater self-sufficiency and security of essential commodities like fuel, deserve renewed scrutiny and will require a

facing escalating shipping charges. Freight forwarders report a TEU to Shanghai has risen from NZ$1,180 last year to $9,450; and a TEU to Europe from $1,500 to $7,380.

As energy prices soar and

massive investment.

We reportedly hold only 20 days stock of our 90 days strategic fuel reserves in country. To increase our local storage capability also will require a massive investment.

By comparison, the Australian government has given A$150 million to upgrade and maintain their remaining two domestic oil refineries, highlighting a pragmatic approach to greater self-sufficiency in fuels.

Would a significant increase in investment in our scientific capabilities be a pragmatic contribution to our future economic wellbeing? Covid has provided opportunities for our world class scientists.

Given the ‘forever’ status of the pandemic and concerns about greater selfsufficiency, it is exciting the Malaghan Institute plans trials of a locally produced vaccine later this year. In addition, this much wanted boost to our national selfsufficiency would be greatly enhanced by opening our borders to the scientists and overseas students we cannot provide ourselves.

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APRIL- MAY 2022

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY OF

Construction industry suicides: numbers, report prepared for MATES in Constructio uicide and Mental

Gabrielle Jenkin, June Atkinson. Health Research Group, Department of Psy Te Rōpū Rangahau i te Mate Whakamomori me te Hauora Hinengaro. Univer

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While construction workers make up about 9.5% of all workers, the study found that b MATES in Construction Infrastructure were employed in the sector.

New This definition comprises of 112 occupations at theZealand 6-digit level of the Australian and

Drawing on data from closed cases of suicide (coded intentional self-harm) in the Nat found the following main findings.

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OF THE 5,814 SUICIDES IN THE 12 YEARS 2542 SUICIDE CASES WERE WORKING AT THE TIME OF DEATH

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16%

13.7%

IN THE INDUSTRY LOWER SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY OCCUPATIONS

ROTORUA

2x

CONSTRUCTION INDUS FROM 35 TO 65 AND

RISK OF DYING BY SUICIDE COMPARED TO THE REST OF THE Quest Rapid Facility Services AND THE CONSTRUCTION WORKERS ARE AT WORKFORCE* THERE ARE HIGHER NUMBERS OF SUICIDES IN

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APRIL- MAY 2022

Contents

78

Commercial Property bounces back from restrictions

86

What have two years of Covid taught us about property?

88

Comparing markets with Australia – what can we learn?

2

No better investment than chemical safety training

89

Design centre future where timber construction leads the way

4 8 10 16 18

Skills shortages require pragmatic response What good is safety without health?

Nearly half the world does not get enough sleep The great unlearning Five employee wellbeing myths to avoid

Published by Media Solutions Ltd PO Box 503, Whangaparaoa Auckland 0943

25

This is not the time to put mental wellbeing on the backburner

28

Set up a safe and healthy work at home

33

Wireless EV charging a gamechanger

34

Multi-purpose, safer, faster telehandlers increase productivity

36

Port of Tauranga project highlights need for fasttracked consents

Media Solutions. Opinions expressed

37

Road user charges could top-up dwindling transport funding

not necessarily be those of Media

38 40 44

Time and planning essential for tunnel projects

46

Plans to decarbonise the skies could be closer than you think

48

09 428 7456 Original material published online and in this magazine is copyright, but may be reproduced providing

How to cure tunnel vision

permission is obtained from the editor and acknowledgement given to are those of the authors and may Solutions Ltd. ISSN 2624-0572 (Print) ISSN 2624-0580 (Online)

Treescape weathers the storm Publisher Mike Bishara

The 2022 Carbon and Energy Professionals Conference is open to all

50 51 52

Drowning our sorrows and burying our sins

54

After the revolution -- faster, cheaper stronger roads

60

Hard work gets results

62

A pioneering new recovery facility sets the global standard

64

Daily news updates online

Automation on the rise as labour shortage bites Chemical safety relies on meaningful cooperation

An interview with Carsten Steentjes, Head of Special Sales at PlanET Biogas

66

Costs of delivering infrastructure continue to rise

67

Construction as we know it is changing

70

Partnership brings mental health awareness and training to construction

72

Comparing markets with Australia – what can we learn?

73

Soaring inflation to stunt housing construction

70

Study explores climate change’s effects on property

74

Life returns to a new normal

+64 27 564 7779 mike@infrastructurebuild.com Editor Michael Curreen +64 21 029 20234 michael@infrastructurebuild.com

Administration Manager Anita Feria +64 27 444 1573 anita@infrastructurebuild.com Graphic Designer Rachel Loo rachel@infrastructurebuild.com

Sales Manager

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Margie Lindsay +64 22 317 8170 margie@infrastructurebuild.com

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APRIL- MAY 2022

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What good is safety without health?

We have a workplace health crisis on our hands and few people seem to care about it, says pH7 Managing Director Darryl Burn

W

orksafe NZ estimate that between 750 and 900 people die each year from workplace diseases.

That is things like cancers caused by prolonged and repeated exposure to solvents or pesticides and rapid onset of silicosis from the inhalation of silica dust.

I say “crisis” because the numbers are appalling and as a country, we are doing very little about it.

To put these numbers in context, death from workplace diseases are over two times the road toll, 10 times the number of drownings and 15 times the number of workplace acute deaths. Every one of these areas are getting significantly more focus and attention than workplace health.

What makes the “health” part of health and safety so difficult to address is a complex question.

Unlike acute accidents such as being hit by a falling shipping container, deaths from workplace diseases are often difficult to attribute to a single incident or even a single workplace.

They often occur many years after work has finished, and causation can be

difficult, if not impossible, to determine.

For example, is the death of a farmer from non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma due to his use of pesticides over many years while working, his spraying of roundup around the family home, or just bad luck?

In most cases it’s a combination of all these things.

Without clear numbers, and clear causes people find

it difficult to see the crisis playing out in front of them, and even more difficult to know what to do to fix it.

What’s more, a person can often get away with poor practices, such as spraying chemicals without a chemical suit or respirator for years before feeling any ill effects, by which time it could be too late.

It’s the same reason most of us don’t look after our ourselves as well as we should until we have a health scare. So, what do we do about this?

• The first step must be to raise awareness. Businesses and workers need to understand the risks that their use of hazardous substances present.

• Government and industry bodies need to work together to educate high risk sectors and set out codes of practise which are designed to keep workers safe.

• Businesses need to engage occupational hygienists more frequently to assess and monitor

their working environment and workers health. How do you know whether the controls you put in place are working if you’re not monitoring the outcome?

• Workers need to take control of their own health and demand proper risk assessments, access to quality controls and advice.

Just because it’s a difficult problem to solve, doesn’t mean we should look away and just carry on as normal.

We must take work related health seriously now!

If you work with hazardous substances, the first step you can do is ask your employer to explain the risks associated with them and what they are doing to keep you healthy and safe?

Written by Darryl Burn, Managing Director of pH7. pH7 is dedicated to preventing harm to people and the environment from hazardous substances. https://ph7.co.nz/

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APRIL- MAY 2022

Nearly half the world does not get enough sleep In recent years, sleep loss has become a critical issue, with far-reaching implications for human health and wellbeing, say Djavan De Clercq, Nelly Papalambros and Tobias Silberzahn of McKinsey & Co

In addition to this detrimental effect on health, sleep deprivation carries high economic costs, estimated at $680 billion a year in five OECD countries—for example, $400 billion for the United States alone and $60 billion for Germany. A study calculated that the direct and indirect cost of sleep disorders in Australia equals one percent of GDP Sleep-related absence from work is thought to account for the loss of 10 million working hours a year in the United States, 4.8 million in Japan, and 1.7 million in Germany as examples.

An analysis using data from US companies puts the annual cost at US$$1,300 to $3,000 per employee.

Lost sleep not only impairs the performance of employees at work but also raises healthcare costs for employers.

Countering sleep loss

S

leep loss has a detrimental longterm effect on the well-being of individuals, businesses and economies.

Consumer wearables and sleep technology are in their infancy and further research is needed to establish an evidence base for their effectiveness.

Yet these emerging tools hold considerable promise for understanding, managing, and enhancing sleep-related health and well-being.

In the past few years, the rise of smart watches, fitness trackers, and other consumer wearables has made it possible to monitor sleep remotely at scale.

The information from 10 safetynews.co.nz

these devices is yielding insights that can be used to better understand sleep and find ways to counter sleep loss.

Sleep tech is now a growing industry that is drawing new entrants, from start-ups to big tech companies, and attracting the interest of insurance companies, healthcare organizations, employers, and policy makers.

The costs of sleep loss

Sleep loss — particularly the loss of deep (or slow-wave) sleep — is linked to a long list of chronic health conditions, including Alzheimer’s disease, anxiety, dementia,

depression, hypertension, and type 2 diabetes. It also affects cognitive function, attention, and decision making.

According to sleep researchers and physicians, people can improve their own sleep by setting consistent sleeping and waking times, increasing early-morning exercise, reducing alcohol and

APRIL- MAY 2022 caffeine consumption and eliminating blue-light exposure from screens for at least an hour before going to bed.

For employers, the recommendations include recognising the importance of sleep to health and performance in the workplace, providing access to amenities such as napping booths and gyms and discouraging afterhours work.

Technological solutions, such as consumer wearables, have also increasingly addressed the global decline in sleep levels.

Market forecasts indicate that the resulting influx of sleep devices could take the global market to some $32 billion by 2026, up from $11 billion in 2019.

bio-signals and, therefore, open up the possibility of accurately monitoring sleep at scale for the first time.

Sleep technology

Research has shown that consumer wearables can be used to investigate the relation of sleep to demographic, socioeconomic, and lifestyle factors and to various markers of health and aging.

As wearables become increasingly common, remote monitoring could become a helpful tool for physicians seeking to develop a better understanding of sleep and to find effective ways of treating its disorders.

In February 2021, the team from McKinsey interviewed a number of academics to

People can improve their own sleep by setting consistent sleeping and waking times and eliminating blue-light exposure from screens for at least an hour before going to bed Many of the new devices focus on monitoring the quality of sleep, motion and

get their perspectives on sleep technology.

Dr Phyllis Zee, professor

of neurology and head of the Division of Sleep Medicine at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, said that “having an understanding of light exposure and sleep-wake activity patterns for millions of people will help us further define what healthy or abnormal sleep really looks like.”

Dr Weng Khong Lim, an

assistant professor at the Duke-NUS Medical School, in Singapore, pointed to the need for “an evidence base for the utility of consumergrade wearables in picking up sleep disorders” before these devices can be used to monitor sleep at scale.

Noting that largescale clinical studies in cardiovascular medicine have generated enough evidence for the US Food and Drug Administration to approve the use of some smart watches for detecting atrial fibrillation, Dr. Lim said that “similar work will have to be done in the sleep disorder space to generate trust among the clinical community in consumer devices.”

Dr Colin Espie, professor of sleep medicine at the University of Oxford, also wanted more evidence. He pointed out that “claims that sleep-monitoring wearables can aid sleep disorders have yet to be validated in large-scale randomized control trials, especially with regard to debilitating safetynews.co.nz 11

APRIL- MAY 2022

Source: https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/life-sciences/our-insights/sleep-on-it-addressing-the-sleep-loss-epidemic-through-technology

health issues, like insomnia and comorbidity.”

He also noted that technology can have a detrimental effect, causing stress and making people sleep less well. People’s complaints about sleep “don’t necessarily match up to the measurements taken by wearables, due to [their] crudeness”.

“The belief that a device is helping you manage [a condition like hypertension or insomnia] may distract you from seeking out genuine clinical advice, he said.

producing or ending sleep or stupor, medicinal sleep aids and electrotherapybased stimulation Insights into this kind of behaviour could help people take constructive

at the Charité hospital in Berlin, said that when scaled up across populations, behavioural data could revolutionise our understanding of sleep.

“The more we know about

steps to improve their sleep. Dr Ingo Fietze, head of the Interdisciplinary Center of Sleep Medicine

the sleep behaviour of the population, the better we can identify intercultural and gender differences and

Using behavioural data to improve sleep

Consumer wearables could be valuable for collecting data about sleep behaviour, such as whether individuals have regular bedtimes or sleep longer at weekends.

Analysis based on approximately 1,700 US patents suggests sleeptech devices have mostly focused on devices to detect sleep quality, motion, and bio-signals ,Devices for 12 safetynews.co.nz

learn about the influence of light, temperature, noise, and humidity. The better we understand sleep, the easier it is to intervene and propose recommendations for shift work or flexible working hours, jet lag, school, competitive sports, and work in extreme situations like the Arctic, outer space, and the desert.”

Some health-tech companies already use behavioural data to help individuals adopt better sleep habits. Behavioural data from sleep trackers, for example, can support techniques such as cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), which has been shown in clinical trials to be effective in treating insomnia and other sleep disorders.

CBT is traditionally provided on a one-to-one basis by specialists, so scaling up the therapy across large populations is difficult.

But research into new digital CBT interventions suggests that they ca

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APRIL- MAY 2022 provide an effective, costefficient treatment for insomnia.

Remote sleep monitoring

One early adopter of remote sleep-monitoring techniques is the Californiabased healthcare company ResMed, which offers devices and digital health technologies to treat sleep apnea.

Patients can access their personal data, use CBT applications to treat their condition, and monitor their progression and improvement.

Jim Hollingshead, the company’s president of sleep and respiratory care, notes that 87 percent of the remotely and selfmonitored patients using ResMed products adhere to their therapies.

He said that data collected in this way are “opening the door to over 8.5 billion nights’ worth of clinical sleep and respiratory data that can help us further understand the link between sleep disorders and other chronic conditions such as diabetes.”

From a business perspective, combining diagnosis, treatment, and tracking has “significant implications for future growth and profitability,” he said.

Remote monitoring reduces costs for patients and payers alike, while treatment and adherence help improve the quality of care and ensure reimbursement.

Health-insurance companies may accelerate the trend toward remote sleep monitoring as they come to see its value.

Most US based companies recommend an initial screening using a sleep 14 safetynews.co.nz

test at home before they will reimburse an overnight stay in a sleep clinic. That approach saves time and effort.

Remote monitoring via wearables could become a helpful tool for physicians seeking to better understand sleep disorders

say Mei-Yeh Wang, Shu-Yei Wang, and Pei-Shan Tsai, Addressing the sleeploss epidemic through technology for the patient and reduces the costs associated with inpatient screening.

Some insurance companies already provide

their clients with free or subsidised wearables to encourage healthier habits and reduce long-term healthcare costs.

The ability to detect sleep disorders could be an additional bonus for businesses and individuals using these devices. In parallel, health-insurance payers could continue to explore reimbursement structures for sleep-related telemedicine and consider expanding coverage to home monitoring.

Digital health ecosystems

Source: https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/life-sciences/our-insights/sleep-on-it-addressingthe-sleep-loss-epidemic-through-technology

Increasingly, health insurers and other companies are building digital health ecosystems: broad, platform-based services that cut across traditional healthcare silos and span much of the patient journey, such as telemedicine plus health insurance and a digital pharmacy.

Sleep-tech companies could participate in these emerging ecosystems through partnerships with other health-tech companies or with healthinsurance companies or by expanding into broader digital health offerings.

They could address a dual opportunity by supporting patients with sleep-related disorders and helping healthy people to enhance their well-being and cognitive performance through better sleep.

Looking ahead, participants in healthtech ecosystems could take constructive steps to capture the potential economic and social benefits of sleep technology.

Employers seeking to enhance the sleep health of their workforce could ensure that healthcare

APRIL- MAY 2022 plans include preventive care for sleep disorders – ideally as part of broader well-being packages that also support nutrition, fitness, and stress management.

Insurance companies and others building digital health ecosystems could explore remote approaches for diagnosing and treating sleep disorders and for tracking adherence to sleep.

Participants in sleeptech ecosystems provide patients with products and services in seamless journeys across industry boundaries.

Gain insights into patient activity (eg, timing of sleep and wakefulness) and learn about product use Assess the effectiveness of remote sleep-monitoring interventions by combining patient-activity data (eg, adherence) with health data Combine structured historical data with nonclinical data to ensure that products per patients’ both diagnostics and intervention (eg, insomnia diagnostics plus cognitive behavioural therapy, or CBT) Interact with patients to provide sleep products Use patient-generated sleep data to derive behavioural insights (eg, relationship between sleep tracking and medical interventions) Access relevant targets (eg, sleep enhancement or patient diagnostics) and establish business models

Improvement interventions

Health tech participants like medtech, pharmacy, healthcare providers, payer, insurer or pharma companies could also include such interventions in their wellbeing offerings for the

healthy insured population.

Sleep-tech companies could conduct large-scale randomised and controlled trials for individual products in order to investigate whether consumer wearables have causal links to enhanced natural sleep or deep sleep.

They could also cooperate with clinicians and

adhere to established clinical practice and to distinguish between products supporting clinical health (such as CBT apps) and those promoting wellbeing (such as meditation apps).

Pharma, medtech, and wellness companies interested in expanding into sleep tech could improve

academics to develop clinically accepted measurements of sleep quality and to ensure that doctors treating sleep disorders do not receive potentially misleading data from consumer wearables.

The sleep-tech industry as a whole could consider setting up industry bodies and encouraging selfregulation to show which companies and products

their chances of success by observing a few guiding principles.

First, they could structure online and offline partnerships that take into account the entire patient journey for insomnia or sleep apnea, investigate diseases that have a sleep component, and add sleeprelated services to diseasespecific offerings.

Second, they could create

value with partners by integrating new business offerings (such as remote sleep monitoring or online diagnostics, adherence, and treatment) into the existing core business (for instance, R&D for medtech devices, physical services, or hospital treatment).

Third, they could create value for all ecosystem participants by providing consumers with 24/7 access to digital monitoring and diagnostics, offering payers and insurers reduced care costs and improved prevention, and giving healthcare providers opportunities to enhance the experience of their patients, to increase the utilisation of their facilities and to extend their capacity through digital enablement.

The abstract above is taken from a report produced

by McKinsey &Company.

Author Djavan De Clercq is a consultant in McKinsey’s Brussels office, Nelly Papalambros is a consultant in the Chicago office, and Tobias Silberzahn is a partner in the Berlin office.

The authors thank Sue Lavin Jones and Kirsten Westhues for their contributions to this article. safetynews.co.nz 15

APRIL- MAY 2022

The great unlearning

Sponsored Article

Safety News and AsiaPacific Infrastucture publisher Mike Bishara accepts an invitation from Optimum Training to join a four-hour safety training session

I

harboured a fervent hope that 25 years of development and refinement of Wayne Milicich’s injury prevention model might contain a few surprises.

The prospect of four hours in what I suspected could be a moralising lecture about how to lift a box was not enthralling. I could see, as we shuffled into the training centre, that the rest of the class felt the same, with a range of resigned, bored and cynical faces.

We were wrong. Boy, were we wrong. Participants soon learned “it was all about them” and their individual quality of life. And how 30 seconds after the training would break the harmful muscle memory that had taken over the way we did things.

“The programme is about unlearning what we learned between the ages of about eight to 13 years old and restoring all the movement patterns that we learned naturally during the first five to eight years of our life,” says Milicich.

For example, children all demonstrate best balance, unlike most adults. About 80 percent of the adult population “half breathe” from the apical area of the lungs as opposed to the diaphragm and lower lobes of the lungs, according to Milicich. “Children all naturally breathe from their belly, diaphragm, unless they are stressed.”

The most hardened cynics in our group quickly became engaged in the programme through a series of 16 safetynews.co.nz

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Optimum Training manager Dwane Stewart with an eager team of learners practical truths, illustrated by a range of interactions, sometimes with a workmate.

We emerged half a working day later wondering who to sue for the preventable harm I have inflicted by following instructions. Life quality did not require lifetime dedication, just a reordering of basic instincts and tossing out a few myths.

For our group, the quality of life had become anchored forever around balance and the 70/30 weight split between heels and toes.

We were converts to breathing out like weightlifters, sticking out our butts and letting tummies and abdominals do their thing - we discarded posture misinformation and stress and replaced it with comfort, a safe and secure back and no pain.

Optimum’s programme is of suggested solutions, not imperatives. “When we do this training, it is to benefit the individual. The company

clips the ticket and gets a benefit only when the individual benefits.”

“You cannot stand on a platform and tell people they are wrong. When a person’s belief is challenged, they will do anything to defend that truth as it is what they believe and know and have lived by. The only way to expose the false belief is to lead someone to find the truth for themselves.

In most cases following instilled poor habits is akin to

tapping yourself lightly on the head with a hammer for years. Do it enough times and you will end up permanently damaged.

You cannot separate work safety and whanau safety – they are two sides of the same coin, according to Milicich. Health and safety at home and work are just a component of our life quality. Not something that is separated out with its own rules to be applied at specific times and locations.

To a person, we emerged

70/30 balance is at the core of a quality of life

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ready to retrain our misguided muscle memory with the 30-secondsa-day-worth of drills to reprogramme our muscle memory that had taken us just four hours to master.

“The training empowers people to work out the truth for themselves and trust themselves. You are the only person who can determine what works best for you. Trust yourself to make a good call,” says Milicich.

With no pen, paper or tables in the room, this programme is “pure adult facilitation of kinesthetic learning followed by cognitive understanding. It is simple to restore what was once in the muscle memory when we were five to eight years old. The original neural pathways just open up again,” he says. We learned and now retain what we learned.

“Stress is recognized as a major cause of MSD and auto-immune disease. We help people understand how their body manifests stress and equip them with the understanding and tools to manage themselves during stressful times,” says Milicich.

Optimum’s facilitation process has four specific steps.

When applied correctly to the session, most often the learner has no idea of what

APRIL- MAY 2022 has happened, but they do recognise that their life has changed for the better.

Our session began with participation exercises which showed the overriding importance of balance.

The 70/30 rationale was enough to consign to the bin, along with a flurry of other medical myths, the long-held and totally wrong “bend your knees and keep your back straight” doctrine.

It soon became apparent why Optimum’s quality of life programme is used by many of the country’s most astute corporations in an age where time “off the floor” is critical to the bottom line and many companies look only to tick the boxes of compliance.

The benefits are equally cost effective, available and absorbed by SMEs. My class had only nine other participants so having a cast of thousands is not essential – or even recommended.

“Move Smart Think Smart is about addressing the underlying causes of muscle and joint pain that occur as we interact with inert objects both at work and at home. Home injuries affect the workplace. Workplace injuries affect the home and family,” says Milicich.

“Either way the quality

of life of a person is compromised. The traditional medical model calls the problem ‘nonspecific back pain and occupational overuse’. In fact, the pain is about inadvertent personal misuse of the body -- it is very specific.”

The bio-medical model reckons back pain is normal. “No, it is not normal,” says Milicich. “It is common, and the medical model is unwittingly part of the problem.

“Good posture” is nothing more than an old wives’ tale based on the military model of control and it is still believed today. A teacher tells children to sit up straight as a means of controlling the class. It is now portrayed as good posture.

“The medical field is littered with information and advice that was eventually proven wrong and retracted. Some of our western cultural beliefs are based in nothing more than decades or centuries old beliefs and mores.

The sad thing is that more than 80 percent of MSD's are inadvertently and unwittingly self-inflicted. People hurt themselves as they interact with inert objects, and they don't even realise it, says Milicich.

“The only way a box can hurt someone is if it is flying

through the air and strikes them. Or if it is moving on a conveyor and they put their hand where they should not.

A spade and the ground are both inert. To suffer pain while digging a hole is the person hurting themselves as they interact with the spade and ground.

The pain is a direct result of poor skills and technique of movement -- self-inflicted pain.

Most people blame something or someone for this self-inflicted injury. At that point, only the symptom can be addressed with drugs and therapy.

The problem returns as they repeat their old thinking and poor technique once the symptom has eased.

“No one deliberately hurts themselves. Given the opportunity, everyone makes the right choice,” says Milicich.

To a person, everyone was engaged for the full duration of training, always relevant, interesting, practical and beneficial to each person. We felt equipped and empowered to take back responsibility for ourselves. I personally still muse over and apply the learnings. My years of knee pain has gone.

30-second daily drills to re-programme muscle memory

Wayne Milicich 07 8583040 027 291 1829 www.otl.nz Representatives NZ wide safetynews.co.nz 17

APRIL- MAY 2022

Five employee wellbeing myths to avoid Despite an increased focus on staff wellbeing programs to support workers in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, not all wellness strategies are worthwhile, employee support company Sonder says

T

he world of employee wellbeing can be a maze of shiny objects and misinformation.

Business leaders, trying earnestly to look after their people, are confronted with conflicting messages at every turn. It’s confusing and disorienting.

How can you be sure of the best wellbeing initiatives for your people? What benefits should you include or exclude? What kind of support delivers the most meaningful value?

There is no one-size-fitsall solution for employee wellbeing. What suits one individual, workforce, industry and operating environ-

18 safetynews.co.nz

ment may not suit another.

Many factors need to be considered and multiple traps avoided.

Some organisations make decisions based on concepts that evidence tells us won’t work.

Sorting fact from fiction is the critical first step to building a culture of mental and physical wellbeing and reaping the benefits of a well, engaged, and productive team.

To help organisations decipher wellbeing offerings so they can design an evidence-based strategy geared towards organisational resilience, here are five employee wellbeing

myths that may be costing your organisation time, money and results.

Myth #1: Paid time off cures burnout

A recent survey of 1,025 employees suggests that 42 per cent of workers took time off during the last 12 months because of concerns for their mental wellbeing.

Global media has done an exceptional job of glorifying companies that have gifted their employees with paid time off (PTO) to curb burnout and improve mental health and wellbeing.

PTO can set the tone for a more balanced and health-

ier workplace, but it is a bandaid for burnout, not a cure.

Burnout is a multifaceted, multidimensional issue that can rarely be solved with short bursts of time off work - employer-funded or otherwise.

Wharton Organisational Psychologist Adam Grant says holidays should be a time to celebrate, not to recharge.

“If work is exhausting people to the point that they’re using their time off to recover, you might have a burnout culture. A healthy organisation doesn’t leave people drained in the first place.”

at every turn. It’s confusing and disorienting.

APRIL- MAY 2022 Burnout refers to the physical and emotional erosion that an employee can experience when they feel regularly unsatisfied, powerless and overwhelmed at work. It is an occupational phenomenon resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed.

Burnout is characterised by three dimensions: 1) Feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion; 2) Increased mental distance from one’s job, or feelings of negativism or cynicism related to one’s job; and 3) Reduced professional efficacy.

The phenomenon of burnout is commonly a sign of deeply entrenched issues in the workplace.

Last year, Deloitte published a deep dive into the disconnect between timeoff policies and the culture around using them.

Despite generous and sometimes unlimited vacation policies, workers are resisting taking time off to disconnect, hence Deloitte’s term, the “disconnect disconnect”.

Reasons cited include “the inability to travel, difficulty justifying time off in a workfrom-home environment, and especially, fear of taking time off in an unstable job market”.

Deloitte also blamed a constantly-connected, “work martyr" culture.

Rather than focus on random PTO, Deloitte suggested employers should instead put the “P” back in PTO - in terms of permission, prioritisation and persistence in ongoing campaigns to encourage and empower workers to regularly rest and recharge.

Until every risk factor is addressed, and sustainable,

The perplexity of options risks paralysis by analysis. Yet, time is of the essence. As employee turnover rates rise1, recent Australian statistics impress a sense of urgency:

9%

15%

77%

OF WORKERS

OF EMPLOYEES

OF EMPLOYEES

are currently considered engaged2

are consistently “thriving”3

experienced burnout last year4

An evidence-based approach for decision-makers 1 ABC

3

2 Gartner

3 AHRI

4 Asana

Five myths of employee wellbeing

© 2022 Sonder. All rights reserved.

sonder.io

42%

OF WORKERS

took time off in the last 12 months due to concerns about their mental wellbeing5

>43%

38%

OF WORKERS

OF WORKERS

are “really struggling” or “not feeling bad, but just getting by”6

are looking to leave their current employer in the next 12 months7

92%

OF WORKERS

want their next employer to offer mental wellbeing support8

$15.8b to $17.4b is the cost of workplace-associated mental illness per year9

Source: 2022 Sonder, 5 myths of Employee Wellbeing, Insights, Issue 1. safetynews.co.nz 19

Originally attributed to only work factors, there are now multiple studies attributing

APRILMAY burnout to both work and personality factors. These tables share examples of work and 2022 personality factors which can contribute to burnout.15

What triggers burnout?

Source: 2022 Sonder, 5 myths of Employee Wellbeing, Insights, Issue 1.

Work (organisational) risk factors include:

1

Workload

Excessive job demands and time pressures in relation to employee expectations and/or capabilities

21

Control

Low levels of personal control and decision-making at work

31

Reward

Lack of positive feedback and recognition

41

Community

Low quality or frequency of social relationships at work

51

Fairness

An absence of trust or justice in the workplace

61

Values

A conflict between individual and organisational values

71

Job insecurity

Low organisational commitment to an employee

81

Patient or customer-related stress

When the stress of a worker’s patients or customers transfers stress to the worker

An evidence-based approach for decision-makers

Personality (individual) risk factors include: 15 Journal of Clinical Nursing, Psychiatry Research, Burnout for experts, Occupational Medicine, Frontiers in Psychology, The Journal of Social Psychology, Psychology Research and Behavior Management,

Neuroticism

High levels of neuroticism and negative emotions

21

Perfectionism

Guilt when the goal of flawlessness is not achieved

31

Agreeableness

Difficulty in saying no, which leads to higher workload/expectations

41

High conscientiousness

Overlooking one’s own needs to fulfil work demands

51

Low conscientiousness

Low proactivity in addressing work stressors

61

Low hardiness

Low sense of commitment, control and positive challenge

71

Low resilience

The inability to recover quickly from adversity

81

Low extraversion

Less confident, optimistic and social

Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, International Journal of Nursing Studies, Electronic Theses and Dissertations, Journal of Humanistic Psychology, Nursing Economics, 1 Journal of Health Services Research and Policy, European Journal of Oncology Nursing, Journal of Personality, Psychology Today, Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development

supportive and protective sages, music jam sessions Five myths of employee wellbeing 7 systems put in place, any and daily ice cream allowclaim that burnout has been ances. cured will likely be one-diThey have installed yoga mensional and premature. studios, rainbow slides, pods, volleyball The phenomenon of burnoutsleep is commonly a sign Myth #2: Perks keep courts, climbing walls, of deeply entrenched issues in the workplace. gyms, ping-pong tables, people engaged Until risk factor is addressed, and Someevery employers are going games arcades, puppytoto extreme lengths to keep riums, hair salons, olymworkers happy by offering pic-sized pools, botox-injeckaraoke parties, organic tion rooms, tanning beds, lunches, in-office scooters, wine bars, food trucks, mini The “disconnect disconnect” acupuncture, saunas, massupermarkets, and 100-seat

Reducing burnout

20 safetynews.co.nz

theatres. embryo freezing, as well as sonder.io © 2022 Sonder. All rights reserved.

Remote workers have house cleaning, concierge been offered virtual zoo services, relocation assisand museum visits, virtual tance, dry cleaning, festiescape room experiences, val tickets, trips to Disney online flower-arranging andandWorld, healthsystems and insurance sustainable, supportive protective put cocktail-making courses, benefits, student loan in place, any claim that burnout has been cured pay virtual bingo tournaments downs, plus free transpor16 willwatercolour likely be one-dimensional andtopremature. and classes. tation and from work - all Third party providers to keep employees happy. are promising everything While these experiences from employee discounts can all bring moments of to gender reassignment pleasure, they cannot alone surgery and egg, sperm and cancel out the factors at the

APRIL- MAY 2022 Myth #3: Digital-only is the answer

heart of workplace stress.

An overdose of perks can also make potential employees wary about how many hours they might be confined to their desk.

Long hours, overloaded to-do lists, poorly designed and dead-end jobs, illtrained managers and bullying colleagues can quickly erase any memory of the free organic sandwich that an employee had after their nap in the NASA pod at noon.

Awesome, unusual and unbelievable employee perks promoted in the media serve to generate powerful clickbait headlines, attract job candidates, surprise and delight current employees, and deliver short-term wins for an organisation - but they only scratch the surface.

Too many employee perks might actually be a bad thing, says Gerald Ledford, a senior research scientist at the Center for Effective Organizations at the University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business.

“These benefits are not being offered out of largess.

It’s done because organisations want employees to work 24/7.

“If you never have to leave to get your dry cleaning, to go to the gym, to eat or even go to bed, you can work all the time. They’re golden handcuffs.”

Perks can also lure employees into a false sense of security.

For example, an employee taking advantage of flexible work practices might think everything’s rosy, but beneath an organisation’s diplomatic veneer, their colleagues and managers can perceive those employees as unprofessional and lacking commitment - which is penalising their career prospects.

Conversely, an employee not taking advantage of perks and flexible work practices might be punished by the organisation for not taking part in policies put in place to incentivise them.

It creates a paradox when management wants to cre-

ate an environment with a high level of autonomy, but simultaneously retain high levels of monitoring and oversight.

The evidence suggests that companies are far better off spending their money on creating a workplace where employees feel respected, appreciated and safe than well-fed and entertained.

As the lines blur between our personal and professional lives, employees are increasingly turning to their employers for better mental health and wellbeing support.

Looking for easy wins and low-effort solutions, many organisations are banking on self-help digital tools as the answer.

With between 165,000 and 325,000 health and wellness apps now commercially available, these apps are typically convenient, widely available, highly scalable, relatively easy to implement, and delegate much of the responsibility back to employees themselves.

Self-help apps can provide valuable initial guidance, but they should complement, not substitute, professional health care and robust clinical governance.

They should enhance a more holistic and comprehensive employee wellbeing strategy, not be the strategy.

Self-help apps risk user drop-off. This can result in delays to care or the ab-

safetynews.co.nz 21

APRIL- MAY 2022 sence of care (if there is no human support or ongoing follow-up).

Journal of Medical Internet Research authors Brittany Rudd and Rinad Beidas say there is mixed evidence around the efficacy of selfhelp apps.

“Standalone digital interventions ignore decades of research about the importance of social support and may further isolate individuals who need human connection the most.

“Engagement with digital mental health interventions, particularly mobile apps that lack ancillary human interaction, is abysmal. Users are unlikely to use these interventions more than a few times.

Digital app users also often struggle to fit their circumstances into the predefined categories in an app. Limitations of the tools can lead to a ‘Dr Google’ type of self-diagnosis.

This represents a dangerous gap in patient assess-

22 safetynews.co.nz

ment because it neglects that many wellbeing issues are complex and multilayered.

For example, Sonder Medical Director Dr Jamie Phillips says around 51 per cent of their support cases are caused by something other than the issue stated.

“To illustrate, self-diagnosed financial stress might, upon professional triage, uncover a need for urgent safety support for domestic violence, plus mental health support for isolation, depression, and suicide ideation all underwritten by a complex medical problem.”

Myth #4: Employees need psychological debriefing after traumatic events

For years, employee support programs have prescribed the urgent deployment of a psychologist or trauma counsellor to the scene of a critical incident or traumatic event.

Subsequently, well-intentioned employers who are keen to exercise their duty of care, have traditionally agreed to pay exorbitant rates for a psychologist to be sent onsite to support their employees after traumatic events.

However psychological debriefing may do more harm than good and most employees should not need direct psychological support in the first instance.

Psychological debriefing (including critical incident stress debriefing to reconstruct the traumatic event) is not the best clinical practice.

The evidence has for some time suggested that psychological debriefing is ineffective and has adverse long-term effects.

The World Health Organisation says it is not an appropriate treatment for trauma victims.

“Psychological debriefing should not be used for people exposed recently

to a traumatic event as an intervention to reduce the risk of post-traumatic stress, anxiety or depressive symptoms.”

Several studies also show that psychological debriefing can make symptoms worse: • A study of police found that those who had psychological debriefing exhibited more hyperarousal at follow-up than those who did not receive a debriefing.

• A study of road accident victims discovered that the intervention group had a significantly worse outcome at the three-year mark, in terms of general psychiatric symptoms, travel anxiety when being a passenger, pain, physical problems, the overall level of functioning, and financial problems.

• A burn trauma victims study showed 26 per cent had post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) at follow-up, compared to 9 per

APRIL- MAY 2022 cent of the control group.

• The Cochrane Review of 11 clinical trials found no evidence that psychological debriefing reduced the severity of PTSD, depression, anxiety and general psychological morbidity, and some suggestion that it may increase the risk of PTSD and depression.

They recommended that compulsory debriefing of victims of trauma should cease.

Psychological First Aid (PFA) is the preferred alternative as a modern approach to critical incidents and disasters.

Its premise is that people are resilient and in most cases can recover naturally from trauma.

PFA is a humane, supportive response to a fellow human being who is suffering and who may need support.

This involves helping people feel safe, connected to others, calm and hopeful, and ensuring access to physical, emotional and social support.

It aims to reduce initial distress, meet current needs, promote flexible coping and encourage adjustment - and it can be delivered by colleagues and managers.

The five principles of PFA are: 1) Ensuring safety 2) Promoting calm 3) Encouraging self-efficacy 4) Creating connectedness 5) Instilling hope.

Myth #5: Wellbeing cannot be measured

It’s a popular business adage: What gets measured, gets managed.

Wellbeing advocates often struggle to secure appropriate funding for their workplace wellbeing initiatives.

Many times this is because their business case focuses on qualitative data,

but budget holders prefer quantifiable metrics - to satisfy their due diligence, allay their sense of risk, and promote colleague accountability of results.

The good news is that there is widespread acceptance that wellbeing can be measured.

There have been at least 30 formal measures of wellbeing developed over the past 50 years, using different definitions and applied to the organisational context.

Unlike sales and expense figures, wellbeing metrics do not fit naturally on a balance sheet.

Similar to employee performance metrics, they need work behind the scenes to define what is being measured, when, how and why.

This upfront effort, together with a concern about choosing the wrong metrics, can deter organisations from starting their journey.

However, it’s important to remember that wellbeing metrics will change over

time - based on organisational learnings, industry best practices and a maturing definition of wellbeing.

The necessity to start, learn and pivot should trump the requirement for perfectionism at commencement.

Four steps to measure workplace wellbeing might include: 1) Define what wellbeing means for the organisation. Articulate what ‘good’ looks like and show how it relates to other objectives (e.g. retention, revenue, cost and risk).

2) Determine the parameters, measurable attributes and indicators.

Be clear on the scope.

Draw on both leading and lagging indicators.

Formalise data capture.

3) Start measuring. Establish a baseline, compare to future state goals, and prepare a gap analysis.

Over time, benchmark against industry data.

Show progress and learnings.

4) Review and improve. Embed a process of regular review, consultation and refinement. To establish ROI, include a correlation between investments and programs.

For more information on Sonder’s evidence-based report, five myths of employee wellbeing, visit www.sonder.io

Dr Jamie Phillips is Medical Director and Head of Member Support at Sonder.

Sonder is an Australian wellbeing and safety company accredited by the Australian Council on Healthcare Standards. safetynews.co.nz 23

APRIL- MAY 2022

This is not the time to put mental wellbeing on the backburner

Mental Health Toolbox

Are they struggling to concentrate?

Are they distancing themselves?

Are they drinking more than usual?

Are they easily agitated?

Are they coming to work late?

Checking in if they’re self-isolating

26 safetynews.co.nz

SELF-CARE GUIDE BE KIND TO YOURSELF Have reasonable expectations of yourself. If

you feel like you are struggling remember that we have been dealing with unusual and unique times. The pandemic has caused stress and anxiety in the community which can affect your mental health and wellbeing. Be aware of the strain you may have been under and don’t beat yourself up if you are not firing on all cylinders.

TAKE TIME FOR SELF-CARE In times of increased stress, self-care

must increase to counter the negative effects on your mental wellbeing. Ensure that you make time and create opportunities to do healthy things that make you feel good. This may be outdoor activities, hobbies, sports or spending quality time with friends and family.

DEVELOP YOUR KEY RELATIONSHIPS Take time to develop the

most important connections you have with people. Create time for your relationships. Be kind and share how much you appreciate those valued relationships. These special human connections will then thrive, bringing you joy.

REMOVE NEGATIVE INFLUENCES IN YOUR LIFE Negative people

and harmful activities can bring us down and affect our mental wellbeing. Surround yourself with happy and positive people who are positive and supportive. Avoid doing activities which you know to be harmful to your wellbeing.

EAT, DRINK AND SLEEP HEALTHILY A healthy diet, good hydration

and sleep are fundamental for positive mental health and wellbeing.

Look after your physical health and good mental health will follow.

Need to talk?

In an emergency dial 111 if you or someone you know is at risk of harm.

• Tautoko Suicide Helpline 0508 828 865

0800 111 315 www.mates.net.nz

• Lifeline 0800 543 354 (text 4357) • Youthline 0800 376 633 • Free phone or text 1737 to communicate with a counsellor

APRIL- MAY 2022

Set up a safe and A healthy work at home environment Although home-based teleworking has potential advantages, it is also associated with an increase in prolonged sitting and time pressure, longer working hours and social isolation - this may have a negative impact on workers’ health and contribute to the development or exacerbation of MSDs

28 safetynews.co.nz

s MSDs are multidimensional in origin and related to ergonomic, work organisation, environmental and psychosocial factors, it is crucial to identify teleworkers’ MSDs risks in the home and address them preventively and proactively.

The tips are good practice examples mainly intended for teleworkers. They are not mandatory or relevant to all workers. Their relevance will depend on the specific teleworker/ home-based telework environment/company

APRIL- MAY 2022 and the outcomes of risk assessments.

Workplace risk assessment is the first step

Telework must be included in the employer’s mandatory risk assessment. Workers’ and management’s participation in the risk assessment process is important.

Apart from providing information key to taking the next steps towards an action plan to prevent risks, it creates awareness among teleworkers and management. Interactive body mapping and hazard mapping methods, combined with online tools or checklists, are a good way to identify and understand teleworkers’ home-based workplace and related MSD risks.

Optimise workstation ergonomics and environment

Teleworkers do not always have the same resources at home as they do in the office. Follow these tips to make the home office a comfortable and healthy workplace: • Office chair: Adjust the seat height so that the hips are slightly higher than the knees and the thighs slope slightly downwards. Use a cushion if the seat is too low and

the chair is not adjustable.

Ensure that the feet are in contact with the floor.

• Office desk: Make sure that the desk is large enough (i.e. 120 cm by 80 cm). Adjust the height to elbow height. If the desk height is not adjustable, raise the height of the chair (e.g. with cushions) if the desk is too high, or raise the desk height (e.g. using blocks) if the desk is too low.

•Screen: Position the screen at eye level (or just below) and at arm’s length from the eyes. Use a laptop stand, or a box or a stack of books, to position the screen at the optimum height. Follow the 20-20-20 rule (i.e. every 20 minutes focus on an object at least 20 feet away for at least 20 seconds) to avoid eye fatigue.

• Mouse and keyboard: Use an external mouse and keyboard. Position the keyboard in front of the screen and 5-10 cm from the edge of the desk. Place the mouse as close as possible to the keyboard. Use a document stand, placed between the screen and the keyboard, when typing from paper documents.

• Lighting: Provide adequate lighting (daylight or artificial light). Avoid extreme contrast and prevent glare from

sunlight or bright lighting on the screen • Air and temperature: The optimum room temperature is between 22 °C and 24.5 °C. Open windows and doors regularly, e.g. before starting work or when taking a break.

• Background noise: Work in a separate room and make clear arrangements with housemates. A noisereducing headset may be useful.

Keep moving!

Combine these three pieces of advice: sit fewer hours a day; change posture often; and adopt a good sitting posture.

Physical activity and exercise outside working hours is equally important.

Move more during the working day as follows: • Start the day with a short walk or a quick workout.

• Regularly stand up during online meetings or walk during phone calls.

• Avoid long periods of sitting – aim to get up every 20-30 minutes and always get up after 2 hours of sitting for at least 10 minutes (short, frequent microbreaks are better than longer breaks taken occasionally).

• Alternate sitting and standing. Use a sit-stand desk. If not available, put the laptop on a platform on the desk or on a cabinet.

• Lunch break is the ideal time for a walk, 15 minutes of exercise, garden work or other outdoor activity.

• Move while sitting, e.g. by activating the dynamic seat of the office chair or stretching and leaning back.

Regularly do these quick exercises to improve blood circulation and release

safetynews.co.nz 29

APRIL- MAY 2022 muscle tension: • Turn your head to the left and right.

• Tilt your head forwards and gently shake it from side to side • Let your arms and shoulders hang loosely, then lean your shoulders towards your feet.

• Roll your shoulders backwards and then forwards.

• Extend your arms forwards at shoulder height. Put your hands together (palms facing outward) and stretch your arms.

• Spread out your arms sideways and backwards.

• Plant your heels on the floor and raise your toes.

• Plant your toes on the floor and raise your heels.

Improve work-life balance

When working from home, the boundaries between work and home life become increasingly blurred. Follow these eight tips for a better work-life balance: 1. Provide a separate home office where you can work undisturbed.

This maintains a clear separation between work and home.

2. Schedule the workday (including lunch and short breaks). Start each day by setting goals and track your progress. If necessary, adjust goals according to current circumstances and work rhythm.

3. Respect ‘normal’ office working hours.

4. Maintain a good routine: get up, dress and start work at the same time as you would on a ‘normal’ workday. End the workday, for example, by taking a walk.

5. Make plans for after-work hours. This makes it more likely that you will log off 30 safetynews.co.nz

and stop work.

6. Set up an out-of-office reply and voicemail during holidays.

7. Take enough breaks during the day to break up periods of intense work, and do not skip lunch break. Go offline!

8. Inform colleagues that you’re ‘not available’ to avoid getting distracted when you need to concentrate.

Stay healthy and connected

Schedule regular phone calls or virtual meetings with colleagues and supervisors. This helps to keep them informed of what you are working on and maintain positive relationships.

Tell them when you would like them to help you.

Otherwise, express your appreciation and in turn help them when necessary.

Make time for informal chat. Reserve the first part of meetings for a check-in to discuss how everyone is doing and talk about nonwork-related issues. Take virtual coffee breaks.

What can employers do?

Have a clear telework policy. This should include provisions on how to assess and manage occupational risks, ergonomic equipment, hours of availability and expected results.

Provide training and education. Technical assistance and training help teleworkers to make optimal use of dynamic workstations and stay active throughout the workday.

It also raises awareness among teleworkers and supervisors of MSD risk factors related to telework and how to deal with them.

Support teleworkers in preventing MSDs: • Provide ergonomic laptops, external mice and keyboards.

• Provide technical support and guidance on how to set up a home workstation.

• Promote regular exercise by encouraging employees to take part in active breaks and short workouts during online meetings.

• Stay connected with colleagues. Team meetings are best alternated with one-to-one

talks.

• Provide teleworking buddies to allow employees to share their concerns, which will detect potential difficulties more quickly.

• Talk to employees about healthy disconnection.

What are their needs?

What do they expect?

What do you expect?

Say too what you do not expect.

This article was sourced from The European Agency for Safety & Health at Work

April - May 2022

THE WAY WE MOVE IS EVOLVING

APRIL- MAY 2022

Wireless EV charging a gamechanger

Electrical energy can be transferred in an inductive process from a magnetic coil in or on the road pavement to a receiver coil in the vehicle, eliminating many of the issues currently holding back electric vehicles, Movemnt reports Roads of tomorrow The Michigan Department of Transportation is to design, fund, evaluate, iterate, test, and implement a wireless charging network along a one-mile stretch of state-operated roadway.

It will be the first wireless charging infrastructure on a public road in the US.

Wireless taxis

T

his allows for many short but high-speed charging processes – for example at shopping centres, in multi-storey car parks or even at home.

Car makers including Audi and BMW are already installing charging coils in new vehicle models.

“Wireless charging is the future,” Stercom Chief Executive Robert Sterff says.

“Short and frequent charging dispenses with the need for large car batteries.

This significantly lowers the price of electric vehicles while making them lighter and therefore more efficient.”

Sterff’s company develops inductive charging technology and German energy storage systems developer Tesvolt has recently become a shareholder.

Tesvolt Chief Technical Officer Simon Schandert says the investment aims to accelerate the development of wireless charging and potentially dynamic inductive roads

“Our aim is to work together to bring highly efficient charging systems to the market and even in the medium term to enable inductive supercharging with up to 200 kW charging power. This would also make it more efficient to charge while driving in the future.”

The big problem to date is capacity, Tesvolt Commercial Director Daniel Hannemann explains.

“So far the only wireless charging suitable for mass-production offers just 3.2 kW. We want to introduce an inductive charging station with a charging power of 44 kW, which is 14 times faster.”

There are still significant challenges when it comes to inductive charging. Short and powerful charges place high demands on batteries and the issue of how to pay for wireless charging is yet to be resolved. movemnt.net

A three-year program in Gothenburg, Sweden will investigate the potential of wireless charging for electric taxis operating within a live city environment.

The taxis will be driven for more than 12 hours a day and 100,000 km per year, providing a real-world durability demonstration in a commercial use scenario.

The charging starts automatically when the adapted taxi is located over a charging pad embedded in the taxi rank. The taxis will utilise an onboard camera to guide drivers to the charging position.

Project partner Momentum Dynamics Chief Executive Andy Daga says automated charging provides unlimited driving range for high intensity driving.

“Our system enables Gothenburg cab drivers to stay in revenue service all day. This project perfectly outlines the automatic electric taxi charging model for any city looking to implement zero emission transportation as well as use by passenger vehicles.”

A UK government-backed project also aims to demonstrate the suitability of wireless charging technology for taxis.

Taxi ranks in the medium to large cities of Nottingham, Coventry and London are to be fitted with inductive pads allowing the vehicles to charge while waiting for the next ride.

This has the potential to increase range and by reducing the need to plug-in, vehicles can be in service for more of a driver’s shift.

infrastructurenews.co.nz 33

APRIL- MAY 2022

Safer, faster, multipurpose telehandlers

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The introduction of game changing 360-degree rotating telehandlers looks set to disrupt the infrastructure, civil and construction industries

T

he days of needing on site a mobile crane, a boom lift or other types of elevated work platforms, a forklift and an excavator are numbered - one machine can do it all.

Rotating telehandlers may look a lot like their conventional cousins, but they are very different.

Their arrival on New Zealand work sites has completely changed the way project management is planned and the way on34 infrastructurenews.co.nz

site work is completed in a safer and faster manner.

They load material, pick it up, drive to where it’s needed and then unload.

The rotating telehandler can then pick the load, rotate and place the materials where needed.

The concept originated in Europe, where the majority of urban construction sites are very compact and do not allow room for traditional telehandlers.

“Rotating telehandlers have taken North Ameri-

The world’s highest rotating telehandler – RTH6.51 (six-ton lift) has an impressive 51-metre reach (not pictured) ca by storm and over the past 18 months have been attracting a lot of attention in New Zealand,” says APS general manager Darren Boon, agents for Magni, one of the most technologically advanced brands of rotating telehandlers in the world.

“As technology has improved so has the reach and lifting capacity of these

type of machines. On a multi-level construction site, a machine with a five-tonne lift and 26-metre reach would usually have been the standard,” says Boon.

“Now machines are available for bigger projects with heavy lift capability up to 13 tonnes and machines with a reach of 51 metres.”

APRIL- MAY 2022

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Magni recognised early that the biggest trend in the industry is to lift safer, higher and heavier

MAGNI ROTATING TELEHANDLERS - EFFICIENCY

Proven efficiency

Replacing a tower crane with a rotating telehandler.

A

n Auckland private building company has purchased a Magni rotating telehandler in favour of hiring a tower crane for the construction of a four storey apartment block in West Auckland.

The rotating telehandler meets most of their lifting requirements for the crane work, with a larger mobile crane only being bought in to lift the heavy pre-cast panels. Having the ability

to easily swap attachments between winch and a set of forks the machine can pick and carry around the building site for more efficient lifting or the unloading of trucks.

All deliveries from the building supplier can be ordered on flat-deck trucks which means quicker delivers and savings of up to $150 per delivery by not waiting for Hiab/crane truck to become available.

MAGNI ROTATING TELEHANDLERS - SAFETY

The safety of the operator and people nearby is paramount The Load Movement Indicator (LMI) system is a load limit device. It is fitted as standard on all Magni telescopic handlers (RTH, TH and HTH ranges). It is made up of a rotation sensor, stabiliser cable reel, lifting cylinder pressure sensors and the LMI safety control board. Together, these components provide the operator with the best real-time load chart. This system continuously analyses the spatial positioning of the load and stores specific load charts for each attachment, displaying the correct load chart based on the machine’s working configuration.

The LMI system constantly monitors the movements of the machine to avoid any type of overload.

If the system detects operating inconsistencies, it interrupts all aggravating movements, allowing only safe maneuvers (boom retraction and load release).

This prevents operator error causing serious injury to themselves and nearby staff.

Every telehandler is equipped with the R.F.ID automatic attachment recognition system on the boom head. Whenever a new attachment is fitted to the machine it is recognised automatically and the display shows the corresponding load chart.

infrastructurenews.co.nz 35

APRIL- MAY 2022

A

proposed container berth extension at the Port of Tauranga is now awaiting a resource consent hearing before the Environment Court after applications under the Covid-19 (Fasttrack Consenting) Act 2020 and inclusion in the Government’s shovel-ready infrastructure projects programme were declined.

The $65.8m project has so far lost a year due to these delays.

The capacity of the port, which handles 42% of New Zealand’s container traffic, carries particular importance for the infrastructure sector as it faces rising costs and delays in sourcing building materials, due in part to global supply chain pressures.

The extension, if it is

36 infrastructurenews.co.nz

Port of Tauranga project highlights need for fasttracked consents Delays in the expansion of the Port of Tauranga’s capacity are set to exacerbate New Zealand’s supply chain woes, Infrastructure New Zealand reports consented, will take up to two-and-a-half years to build and will allow for up to one million more containers to be handled each year, allowing for a decade or more of growth.

At current growth rates, the port will likely run out of

capacity in three years.

With just a six-month buffer, the pressure will be on in coming months as the port challenges the Government’s decision to deny its applications.

In a broader sense, these delays reflect the

importance of the resource management system reform currently underway.

The more effectively the consenting process can be streamlined, and leadtimes on large infrastructure projects can be dramatically reduced, the better.

APRIL- MAY 2022

Road user charges could top-up dwindling transport funding

With vehicles becoming more fuel efficient and EVs gaining prominence, mileage-based user fee programmes are being adopted overseas to make up for lost revenue in fuel taxes

T

he US state of Virginia has signed a contract with tollbased mobility solutions provider Emovis to implement a mileage-based user fee programme for an initial period of three years.

It joins Oregon, Utah, and Washington that have previously rolled out the solution.

According to Emovis, its mileage-based user fee programme can help compensate for the loss of fuel tax revenue resulting from the increase in electric and more fuel-efficient vehicles.

It is designed to be an equitable way to ensure all vehicle owners pay their fair share of tax.

Eligible vehicle owners will be given a choice during

the annual vehicle registration process to pay a flat fee or opt for a pay-permile charge, capped at the equivalent of the annual flat fee.

The solution to be implemented in Virginia is based on the current Utah solution. Client authority the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles says up to 1.9 million vehicles will be eligible for the Virginia programme, which is expected to launch in July.

Emovis says it shows a clear commitment toward mileage-based user fees in the country as an alternative for future funding and improved performance of the US transportation system.

New Zealand’s policy on EVs Technically EVs are already subject to road user charges because they don’t use petrol, but are temporarily exempt from paying, the Ministry of Transport says.

“The Government’s long term view is that all road users should pay for their use of the roads.

A temporary exemption from road user charges provides an incentive for people to purchase an EV.” The exemption is currently due to expire on 31 March 2024.

The prospect of scrapping fuel taxes altogether and introducing road user charges for all vehicles has been discussed and has seen bi-partisan support in the past, but there is no indication this will happen any time soon. infrastructurenews.co.nz 37

APRIL- MAY 2022

Time and planning essential for tunnel projects As traffic density continues to increase with population, keeping society from grinding to a halt often rests on our tunnel infrastructure, Mainmark Civil and Mining Operations Manager Matt McLean says

T

unnels help to alleviate congestion, promote smoother traffic flow, and minimise disruption in built-up areas.

They are complex structures that require funding in areas which can sometimes be overlooked, yet the investment is essential to ensure the safety, quality and longevity of these heavily utilised transport corridors.

The relationship between tunnel infrastructure and ground conditions When surrounding ground conditions have not been fully considered during construction, tunnels can become more susceptible to degradation. For example, unconsolidated soil can result in a soft and often precarious envelope for tunnels that is prone to shifting.

This can be problematic in areas where ground conditions are rife with water tables, palaeochannels and weak and unconsolidated sandstone. If these geological occurrences are not identified and planned for in advance, they can affect a tunnel’s structural integrity by causing ground movement and cracking, or significant water ingress

that can slowly degrade the structure.

Unfortunately, costly and irreversible damage may not appear for some time as significant deterioration can take a decade or more. In some cases issues may even be completely overlooked due to competing priorities such as meeting the community’s expectation to complete a tunnel quickly to alleviate serious traffic congestion.

Yet the serious implications of water ingress in tunnel infrastructure cannot be ignored and having a plan and budget in place for proactive mitigation, like waterproofing and ground reinforcement to minimise the likelihood of costly structural issues postconstruction, is essential.

Remediating problems before they occur With increasing pressure on roads in our expanding urban centres, the need for tunnel infrastructure will be ongoing.

It is therefore vital that tunnel construction includes a combination of careful pre-construction planning, ground and risk analysis, and the specification of appropriate remediation solutions.

Detailed planning, site

38 infrastructurenews.co.nz

APRIL- MAY 2022

A fundamental part of Auckland’s future The Government is taking the next step regarding Auckland light rail from the CBD to the Airport, Transport Minister Michael Wood says.

A tunnel will run from Wynyard Quarter to Mt Roskill, coming to the surface and running alongside the SH20 motorway to the airport.

“The Government is also committed to an additional Waitematā Harbour crossing, and has brought forward planning for the crossing to ensure a fully integrated transport network for Auckland.

“Public consultation on options for the additional Waitematā Harbour crossing will begin this year, with a preferred option selected in 2023.”

The crossing will also enable a future light rail line to the North Shore.

Urban centres across New Zealand A second Mt Victoria tunnel has been proposed in Wellington, while a tunnel has also been suggested to combat congestion in Dunedin.

Tunnelling through Australia Tunnels are a highly valued element when developing urban environments, which is why a number of tunnels have been included in the Australia's infrastructure boom, such as the new Sydney Harbour tunnel in New South Wales and the North East Link project in Victoria.

These important infrastructure projects are particularly valuable for major cities in growing metropolitan areas. New South Wales, for example, saw 5,892,206 motor vehicles registered in 2020 according to the latest motor vehicle census, with many of those vehicles expected to travel through Greater Sydney.

surveying and a thorough geotechnical analysis of the surrounding ground conditions should take place well before construction begins.

This should then be followed with tailored solutions like specialised resins, gels and coatings that are engineered for civil infrastructure use, introduced before and during the tunnel

construction phase.

Understanding what solutions and application techniques to use for different tunnel systems and ground conditions is vital to mitigating potential issues. By utilising the right solutions, we can ensure the quality and longevity of existing and future tunnel infrastructure for decades to come. infrastructurenews.co.nz 39

APRIL- MAY 2022

How to cure tunnel vision PCM treatments are used to reduce crash risk by improving driver speed behaviour, alertness and lane discipline within tunnels

T

he purpose of the study was to investigate and evaluate the application of low-cost perceptual countermeasure (PCM) treatments in tunnel environments as a means of improving driver speed behaviour and lane discipline within tunnels, thereby reducing crash risk.

The project involved a systematic literature review and stakeholder consultation and an experimental study conducted in a virtual reality driving simulator.

The review identified 33 PCM treatments that had been demonstrated as having a behavioural effect on driver speed behaviour and/or lane discipline.

Stakeholder consultation complemented the literature review in outlining the

advantages/disadvantages of these PCMs, particularly in terms of ease of implementation, cost, maintenance, and applicability to a tunnel environment.

Based on the outputs of the literature review and stakeholder consultations, three PCM treatments were selected for evaluation in the virtual reality driving simulator – a striped wall pattern, rumble strips (Edgeline and Centreline), and Pacemaker Lighting.

The experimental study, involving 102 participants, conducted in a virtual reality driving simulator was designed to investigate whether the application of PCM treatments had any impact on drivers’ speed or lateral control in road tunnels and to determine what

drivers’ opinions were of the proposed PCM treatments.

The findings revealed that, as implemented in the simulated tunnel environment, the three PCM treatments evaluated had little or no positive effect in either maintaining drivers’ speed or lane position in the simulated tunnel environment.

This does not mean, however, that they were ineffective as treatments, given that there is previous evidence which demonstrates that one of the treatments (Pacemaker lighting) has been found to be effective in a real tunnel environment, and that rumble strips are effective on real open roads.

Further research is recommended to determine whether certain critical pro-

posed modifications to the experimental design utilised in this study would make these PCMs more effective in inducing positive changes in driving behaviour in the virtual tunnel environment.

Subjective feedback from study participants indicated that none of the PCMs evaluated were perceived to compromise their safety.

On the contrary, evidence from this study indicates that the tunnels treated with PCMs were rated as being significantly more visually interesting, more attractive, induced less boredom and less sleepiness (striped wall patterns), and were significantly more memorable (Pacemaker lighting), compared to the untreated tunnels.

Sidewall striped patterns

preliminary evidence of the efficacy of installing wide to thin stripes along a tunnel wall in reducing speed although this finding has yet to be replicated.

Across the ratings, the stakeholders indicated that this was a mid-range treatment with respect to modifying speed.

The cost and maintenance associated with this treatment might be high

depending on how it is implemented. It was deemed suitable for a tunnel environment.

Additional comments from the stakeholders suggested

that considerations would need to be made regarding the painting and cleaning of the tunnel walls with this treatment.

A single simulator study

by Manser and Hancock (2007) found that when drivers were exposed to wide to thin stripes on a tunnel wall, they reduced their travelling speed.

This effect was further attenuated when the stripes on the wall had texture added to them.

This finding provides 40 infrastructurenews.co.nz

APRIL- MAY 2022 Sidewall red arrows

ment.

Across the ratings, the stakeholders indicated that this form of treatment is a mid-range treatment but would be highly suitable for a tunnel environment.

The cost and maintenance of this treatment, according to the stakeholders, could be high due to issues with painting and the cleaning of tunnel walls.

Furthermore, stakeholders raised potential issues around the impact this sort of treatment would have on tunnel luminance due to reducing the reflective surface of the tunnel walls

by adding in colour.

Therefore, this sort of treatment would need to be investigated in conjunction

with luminance to ensure it does not impact on overall visibility in a tunnel.

Optical speed circles

environment.

Across the ratings, the stakeholders indicated that this would be a midrange treatment, overall.

The efficacy of this PCM in modifying speed was unclear for stakeholders with some questions raised over applicability to a tunnel environment; therefore, the

most suitable display would need to be investigated.

The maintenance and cost of implementation of this treatment were rated average on the rating scale, but comments suggested that the paint associated with this form of roadway marking and constant maintenance to ensure the

visibility of the circles would be an important factor to consider.

The stakeholders suggested investigating the impact these circles would have on drivers in terms of confusion and sensory overload.

Peripheral transverse lines

rating.

The cost, maintenance and ease of implementation ratings are above average.

However their efficacy at reducing speed and improving lane position was less certain.

The comments from the stakeholders suggested that they could introduce confusion to drivers and interfere with other lane markings. The effect on drivers would therefore need to be investigated.

A single simulator study

by Wan et al. (2016) found that red arrows presented at a temporal frequency of between 4.45 Hz and 7.01Hz were effective in causing drivers to overestimate their speed while travelling through a tunnel.

This has yet to be tested to determine whether it modifies driver behaviour or simply their perception.

Further research is therefore required to determine whether this combination of arrow features results in drivers travelling at slower speeds in a tunnel environ-

A simulator study by Hussain et al. (2018) found that optical speed circles were effective at reducing speed on the approach to an intersection.

This finding has yet to be tested on a road without an intersection and has not yet been trialled in a tunnel

Peripheral transverse lines have consistently been demonstrated to result in small but significant reductions in speed in both simulator and on-road studies.

The efficacy of this treatment in improving speed in a tunnel environment has not yet been tested.

Across the ratings, stakeholders indicated that this would be a suitable treatment for tunnels, receiving the second highest overall

infrastructurenews.co.nz 41

APRIL- MAY 2022 Rumble strips plus dragons teeth

intersection and recommended this treatment as one of the most effective they trialled.

This combined treatment has not yet been tested in a tunnel environment. It is important to note that this treatment also has demonstrated efficacy in improving lane position.

Across the ratings, the stakeholders indicated that this was a suitable treat-

ment with average effectiveness ratings for both speed and lane position.

The cost and maintenance required were rated as average.

The ease of implementation of this treatment was rated as high but applicability to a tunnel was more uncertain. There were some concerns raised over maintenance costs due to high wear of the paint markings

for the Dragons teeth component of the treatment.

Pacemaker lighting

emerging and innovative PCM treatment type.

Pacemaker Lighting involve the use of LED lights installed on the side walls

of tunnels that flash in a sequence in the direction of travel of vehicles.

They operate on the principle of “phototaxis” (the movement with directionality toward the photic stimulation) and were implemented in a tunnel in Tokyo, Japan, as a method to support recovery of speed during congestion (Kato, Nakagawa, Hashimoto, & Inaba, 2015).

In a five-month evaluation, Kato et al. (2015) found that the Pacemaker Lightings were able to reduce congestion at the treatment sites by 60 percent, and the congestion of the whole route reduced by 20 percent. The reductions in congestion were attributed to the Pacemaker Lights facilitating better speed maintenance within the tunnels

Perceptual lane narrowing

in speed.

The recommendation by Godley et al. was that lanes of less than three metres wide were effective at reducing speed.

This suggests that a width of less than 3m might be effective at reducing speeds but is yet to be tested in a tunnel environment.

It is important to note that this treatment also has demonstrated efficacy at improving lane position.

Across the ratings, the

stakeholders indicated that this was the best of the proposed PCM options.

Concerns were raised over the initial costs involved in order to remove ghost markings; but once implemented the maintenance and costs were rated as

reasonable.

Some concerns were raised over the effect the space reduction might have on feelings of comfort and anxiety by drivers which have been suggested to investigate.

position was found for lanes of three metres wide and 2.5m wide.

The efficacy of this treatment has been tested both in simulators and on-road but not in a tunnel environment. This treatment also has demonstrated efficacy at improving speed.

Across the ratings, the stakeholders indicated that this was the best of the

proposed PCM options.

Concerns were raised over the initial costs involved in order to remove ghost markings; but once implemented the maintenance and costs were rated as reasonable. Some concerns were raised over the effect the space reduction might have on feelings of comfort and anxiety by drivers which have been suggested

to be investigated.

In a review of the PCMs that were evaluated to improve lane keeping, five treatments were identified as potential options for trial in a simulator: Centreline rumble sticks, rumble sticks plus dragon’s teeth, LED lighting, Pacemaker lighting and edgeline rumble sticks

A simulator study by Montella et al. (2011) tested a variety of combined PCM treatments for their efficacy at reducing speed and lateral position deviation on approach to an intersection.

They found the combination of Rumble Strips and dragons teeth resulted in a significant decrease in speed on approach to an

The Pacemaker Lighting treatment was identified by a member of the Austroads Tunnel Task Force as an

There were mixed findings about the efficacy of narrowing the lane widths at reducing speeds. There were key methodological differences between the studies with one study (Rosey et al. 2009) finding that it was not effective at a lane width of three metres but another (Godley et al.

2004) finding that when lane width was reduced to 2.5m, there were reductions

Lane Position

Both the simulator study

by Godley et al. (2004) and simulator and on-road studies by Rosey et al. (2009) found significant improvements in lateral positioning when the width of the lane was narrowed.

Drivers were found to position themselves better in the centre of their lane.

This improvement in lateral 42 infrastructurenews.co.nz

APRIL- MAY 2022 Centre line Rumble Sticks

This improvement in lane position has been found in both simulators and onroad but has not been tested in a tunnel environment.

Across the ratings, stakeholders indicated that this treatment would be effective at modifying lane position, but concerns were raised over applicability to a tunnel environment.

The most common recurring concern was associated with the noise the rumble strips would make and the potential for this to have an echo effect in a tunnel and confuse drivers.

There were also concerns

raised over the impact centreline strips would have on motorcyclists when chang-

ing lanes and for stopping distances.

LED Lighting

A simulator study by Domenichini et al. (2017) found that when in a tunnel with LED lighting drivers responded earlier to hazards and acted in a more effi-

cient way.

This suggests that LED lighting has demonstrated small but significant safety benefits across the board.

Across the ratings, the

stakeholders indicated that, while LED lighting is highly applicable to a tunnel environment, the implementation will be difficult, and the costs associated with this are high.

Stakeholders noted that in some tunnels it is not possible to retrofit LED lighting systems but that they should be considered for all new tunnels.

Edgeline rumble strips

strips is a result of improved lane keeping.

The efficacy of this treatment in improving lane positioning and crashes has not been tested in a tunnel environment. The ratings from the stakeholders for this PCM are provided below in Table 2.14. Across the ratings, the stakeholders indicated that this was applicable to a tunnel environment but there was uncertainty over its efficacy in improving driver behaviours of speed and lane

position.

Again, concerns were raised over noise in a tunnel environment of the Rumble Strips and the potential

implications from a driver hitting the strip and then overcorrecting. These factors would therefore need to be investigated.

Three studies have found that Centreline Rumble Strips improve the positioning of drivers forcing them to drive closer to the middle of their lane (Rosey et al. 2008; Auberlet et al.

2010; Auberlet et al. 2012).

This improvement has been demonstrated to be equivalent to a tyre width.

A review by Hatfield et al.

(2008) found that Centreline Rumble Strips reduced crashes by 25 percent, with the inference being that they reduce crashes by improving lane keeping.

LED lighting was found to have small benefits at improving lane keeping and speed on approach to, and exits from, tunnels.

Edgeline Rumble Strips have not been examined in relation to lane positioning but a review by Hatfield et al. (2008) found that they reduce off-road crashes by approximately 22 percent.

They were also found to not result in an increase in head-on crashes in on-road trials.

The inference from this review and on-road trial is that the reduction in crashes with Edgeline rumble

Austroads, of which Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency is a member, has produced this report as part of its work to promote improved Australian and New Zealand transport outcomes by providing expert technical input on road and road transport issues. It was prepared by Prasannah Prabhakharan, Julius R. Secadiningrat, Michael A. Regan, Joanne Bennett, Mitchell Cunningham, Aleksa Zlojutro, Vinayak Dixit. Project manager Geoff McKernan. www.austroads.com.au

infrastructurenews.co.nz 43

APRIL- MAY 2022

Treescape weathers the storm It was a once in a century disaster and Auckland-based arboriculture company Treescape bore the brunt of what New Zealanders call a ‘weather bomb’

“The bomb hit at 2.30am. and when I arrived at our holding yard at dawn, I found it completely underwater,” Treescape’s national fleet manager Dion Wright said.

Thirteen Hilux utilities, five trucks, two staff vehicles and more than $30,000 worth of chain saws and tree felling equipment were lost.

“But, after carefully assessing the situation I waded through 1.5metre deep water and climbed up on our Komatsu WA100 wheel loader and it started first time,” Dion said.

The wheel loader became the central recovery vehicle in an emergency shut down operation, safely ferrying electricians, plumbers, and mechanical staff in its bucket, above the floodwaters so they could safely secure the site.

Treescape’s resources were in great demand.

Whilst in the middle of Auckland’s Level 4 Covid-19 44 infrastructurenews.co.nz

lockdown, Treescape was deemed as an essential service, which helped clear storm debris with the affected area in an operation which took several weeks.

Komatsu immediately went to work to properly restore Treescape’s wheel loader so that it could play its role in the restoration.

Like the other machinery in the yard, it had taken a big hit of high sediment contamination from the floodwaters.

Komatsu’s Auckland workshop manager Hamish Moore supported by his managing director Philip Pritchard, both also locked down, successfully sought permission from New Zealand’s Ministry of Business and Administration to bring in staff to fully clean and inspect the loader.

Water had surrounded the front and rear differentials, the hydraulics, the engine and transmission.

Urgent fluid samples were

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sent to Komatsu’s KOWA (Komatsu Oil Wear Analysis) laboratory in Brisbane, filters and lubricants were replaced and electrical connections replaced.

The WA100 was back on the storm relief job within two days.

“It stood up really well, although we’re keeping a watching brief on it even now, months after the event, to be certain,” Hamish said.

Treescape is one of the region’s largest green asset management companies, employing more than 600 people across New Zealand and Australia.

It has more than 45 Komatsu wheel loaders and excavators at the core of an innovative program to equip the machines with a multitude of attachments to economically multi-task on each job.

“We’re grateful to Komatsu for their swift intervention,” Dion Wright said. Its one less work around the company has to perform in what looks like becoming a protracted recovery.

With mid-2022 now a target for the arrival of some of the new equipment.

About Komatsu Komatsu develops and supplies technologies, equipment and services for the construction, mining, forklift, industrial and forestry markets. For a century, the company has been creating value for its customers through manufacturing and technology innovation, partnering with others to empower a sustainable future where people, business and the planet thrive together. Front-line industries worldwide use Komatsu solutions to develop modern infrastructure, extract fundamental minerals, maintain forests and create consumer products.

The company's global service and

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*Terms and conditions apply visit:https://komatsuweb.link/nz-fixed-price-servicing-promo. Image is for illustration purposes only.

APRIL- MAY 2022

Plans to decarbonise the skies could be closer than you think The world’s first fully integrated hydrogen-electric propulsion aircraft nacelle will begin flight tests in France in the coming weeks

H

3 Dynamics is on a mission to decarbonise aviation with a unique solution focused on distributed hydrogen-electric propulsion.

The nacelle (a streamlined casing on the outside of an aircraft housing an aircraft engine) contains the core enabling power solution for propulsion of future hydrogen aircraft designs.

In the future such a distributed hydrogen electric propulsion architecture could fly over 100 passengers, allowing airlines to cover medium 46 infrastructurenews.co.nz

and long-haul routes over 2500km, beyond the short-haul flight distances

centralised hydrogen fuel cell system, H3 Dynamics distributes multiple

targeted by emerging battery-based aircraft.

Instead of a single

integrated powertrains incorporating batteries, fuel cells, hydrogen storage,

and smaller electric motors across the wings.

This means the size of each fuel cell system, hybrid battery pack, and heat management challenges all become smaller, making systems more manageable and safer.

The announcement in February “marks a key milestone for H3 Dynamics and the broader aviation industry,” says the company’s founder and Chief Executive Taras Wankewycz.

“It’s the world’s first realworking propulsion system capable of being distributed

APRIL- MAY 2022 on the wings of new zero emission aircraft.”

In 2018, H3 Dynamics filed international patents for full-scale distributed hydrogen propulsion and announced plans for “Element One”, a visionary hydrogen aircraft that applies this technology.

Two years later a global hydrogen aviation movement was born: industry leaders announced new hydrogen aircraft plans and startups formed in a new race to the skies.

H3 Dynamics has been working alongside the realities of safety certification timelines and entering the market with lower risk, reduced weight unmanned platforms, progressing step by step towards heavier cargo and manned platforms.

The company is implementing an incremental roadmap with three key steps -first scaling revenue with autonomous aerial analytics services, then moving to autonomous hydrogen aerial cargo solutions, and powering passenger flight as a final step.

The company currently has 80 employees and services clients globally from its three regional headquarters in Austin, Singapore, and Paris.

infrastructurenews.co.nz 47

APRIL- MAY 2022

The 2022 Carbon and Energy Professionals Conference is open to all

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Reducing emissions is in everyone’s job description this year the CEP gathering is a great place to learn and meet experts

W

hile the CEP annual conference in Rotorua on June 1-2 in Rotorua is an essential calendar entry for all carbon, sustainability and energy efficiency professionals, it offers an opportunity for anyone who needs to know more about reduction opportunities to meet the experts who can help reduce emissions.

The CEP conference is New Zealand’s largest gathering of practising carbon, sustainability and energy efficiency personnel. The year’s theme is Accelerating Decarbonisation and the focus is on educating delegates with innovations, practical solutions and case studies.

As an investment in personal development or to accelerate your organisation’s decarbonisation, the CEP conference is excellent value for money.

The conference runs in partnership with the Bioenergy Association and The Sustainability Society and 48 infrastructurenews.co.nz

topics on the programme include efficiency, decarbonisation, low carbon buildings, renewables, biofuels and energy storage and cover embedded and/ or operating emissions.

CEP is affiliated with Engineering New Zealand as a Collaborating Technical Society and the conference programme reflects this practical bias, especially its second day where the structure of concurrent sessions allows delegates to pick and choose sessions to match their areas of interest.

The conference is an excellent way of picking up CPD points and there are concessionary rates for members of CEP, Engineering New Zealand, The Sustainability Society and the Young Energy Professionals Network.

The keynote speakers are world leaders in their fields and have been selected to bring variety and fresh perspectives.

Kim McCoy is an ocean-

ographer who has dedicated his life to understanding the relationship between climate change and the oceans. He has unsurpassed insight into how rising sea levels and more volatile tidal surges will impact coastal areas and what we can do about it.

Dr David Rolnick is a leading expert in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning. He is CoChair and biodiversity lead at Climate Change AI, a collaborative of the brightest global brains in artificial intelligence and machine learning.

AI is already delivering huge efficiency improvements in building maintenance but that is just the tip of the iceberg. The next wave of AI will dramatically change design, build and operations in virtually every sector of the economy.

The remainder of the programme is packed with high quality sessions from across New Zealand’s corporate and public sectors.

These include Genesis, EY, NZGBC, Ara Ake, EECA, Toitu Envirocare, Hutt City Council and GNS. The conference closely follows the scheduled release of the Government’s Emission Reduction Plan and representatives of the Green Party (Hon James Shaw), the Labour Party (Hon Dr Megan Woods) and the National Party (Hon Scott Simpson) will be on hand to provide their views on its content, implications and impact.

Event MC is Te Radar, who brings proceedings together with his wit and knowledge of sustainable living.

The conference runs an associated trade exhibition which provides a platform for companies in the market to showcase their products and services and engage with buyers.

It allows delegates to learn about the latest in available technologies and innovations and meet product and service providers that will help them decarbonise.

In association with

CEP CONFERENCE 2022

ACCELERATING DECARBONISATION 1st & 2nd JUNE

ROTORUA www.cep.org.nz

APRIL- MAY 2022

Drowning our sorrows and burying our sins Planetary Technologies has been recognised for its leadership in climate technology, being the first to remove carbon using direct ocean capture while creating renewable fuel and restoring ocean damage from climate change

T

he Canadian based startup's approach to ocean carbon dioxide removal is unique.

Carbon dioxide is removed from the atmosphere up to gigaton scale and sequestered for tens of thousands of years.

By essentially giving the ocean an antacid, the process can help heal local marine ecosystems harmed by climate change, improving natural growth in animals like coral and shellfish, leading to a better functioning food chain and a healthier regional economy.

Planetary’s process also creates green hydrogen as a by-product, which can be burned without carbon emissions, allowing carbon challenged industries to limit their use of fossil fuel.

It also extracts metals from mine waste that can be used in batteries, another important tool for a future low-carbon economy.

50 infrastructurenews.co.nz

The company recently raised C$7.8 million to add to pre-seed and seed funding rounds at $4.2 million.

It received $3.6 million through grant funding.

Planetary will use the new funding to build pilot facilities to deploy its proprietary carbon transition technology, which speeds up the earth’s natural process of removing carbon from the air and safely storing it in the ocean, the largest natural carbon sink on earth’s surface.

This funding also will support the launch of Planetary’s pilot plants in Quebec and Nova Scotia, which will demonstrate a scaled version of its patented carbon removal process.

The pilot plants will come online in phases beginning later this year and will be integrated with a major oceans research project in coordination with local partners to continually monitor the chemical and

biological effects, and finetune Planetary’s process.

Planetary is currently selling 3,000 carbon credits with retirement dates of 2025-2027. The company has previously pre-sold carbon credits to Shopify, a leading provider of essential internet infrastructure for commerce, based on carbon removal to be generated by Planetary's pilot plant later this year.

There is an impressive range of academic research partners including the University of Dalhousie and University of Miami Basico2 project, an XPRIZE Carbon Removal Student Award Winner.

Major investors include Innovacorp and Apollo Projects.

Based on the research of biogeochemist and Planetary Chief Technology Officer Dr Greg Rau, Planetary’s carbon dioxide removal technology accelerates the earth’s natural

carbon cycle, pulling carbon from the air and storing it as a natural component of ocean chemistry for up to 100,000 years.

Planetary is also testing its carbon transition platform with Brazilian Nickel PLC, a UK-based sustainable nickel and cobalt mining company. Using its technology Planetary is working with the company to assist it on its decarbonisation path.

Planetary Co-Founder Brock Battochio was named to Forbes’ 2022 30 under 30 Energy List.

This innovative startup has been recognised for its leadership in climate technology receiving the OceanShot award from the Ocean Startup Project.

The United Nations’ Blue Climate Initiative named Planetary as a semi-finalist for its Ocean Innovation Prize.

Thanks to Waste Management World

APRIL- MAY 2022

Automation on the rise as labour shortage bites

T

he number of enquiries about automation have increased significantly across both our New Zealand and Australian businesses as organisations look for solutions to staff shortages.

Businesses are facing inflation, high wage costs, closed borders and now, the reality that staff may have to isolate for long periods of time over the next few months. Automation is increasingly being seen as a way to reduce the impact of these external factors.

More businesses see automation as a way to increase efficiency and reduce their reliance on a shaky labour market – that trend is accelerating in a Covid environment.

Businesses are recognising that incorporating automation can also help protect their people and customers by freeing up space and reducing staff contact in warehouses.

While traditionally automation was the domain of large corporates, there is now increased interest from small to medium sized businesses who are able to access automation at a lower price point.

Small to medium

With work shortages forecast to continue and predictions that up to 30% of the workforce may have to isolate, businesses big and small are looking to automation, TMX New Zealand General Manager Caleb Nicolson says

businesses are also the ones who are hit hardest by labour shortages and increased labour costs, so for them, an investment in automation is one which can pay dividends long term.

Automation doesn’t always have to be on a grand scale. There are a range of solutions available, from simple technology such as leveraging your existing WMS with pick and put wall processes, to vertical and horizonal carousels to more advanced solutions such as automated storage and retrieval (ASRS) at the

pallet, carton or unit level.

There are a lot more automation providers and local partners in New Zealand compared to 10 years ago. While steel and shipping challenges are causing challenges around pricing, we are definitely seeing an uptick in interest in automation.

The warehouse automation sector is a rapidly growing market, with Reports and Data last year reporting that the global logistics automation market will reach $120 billion USD by 2026.

Planning and

implementation can take time and is dependent on the capacity and timelines of automation suppliers.

New Zealand organisations also need to consider the incredible volume of automation demand in North America and Europe.

Identifying what kind of automation solution would best fit your business can seem complex so I’d encourage anyone interested in automating to seek independent advice to help them navigate the process. infrastructurenews.co.nz 51

APRIL- MAY 2022

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APRIL- MAY 2022

After the revolution - faster, cheaper, stronger roads The process and materials used in building roads have remained remarkably unchanged over the past decades.

That is about to change

T

he roads of the future will look significantly different and make road construction much faster and cheaper, a report produced by McKinsey & Company and Oxford Global Projects for Europe says.

The advances outlined in the report, from which this article was abstracted, apply equally in Australasia and Asia.

The sea change in road construction will be driven by four megatrends – autonomous driving, automated production, digitization, and advances in road construction materials.

54 infrastructurenews.co.nz

Until now, road networks have been given a back seat in discussions surrounding transportation – undeservedly so, given their importance.

Private vehicles are the most common mode of transportation – accounting for more than 80 percent of traveled kilometers per passenger in the EU, for example, and road transport accounts for 75 percent of the total inland freight transport.

In almost all advanced economies globally, transportation continues to rely heavily on the ever-growing

road network. Reliable road networks help economies flourish but they can curb further growth and prosperity if people and goods are caught up in traffic jams.

Governments, therefore, spend significant shares of civil engineering budgets on road projects and are highly motivated by the interests of their taxpayers to ensure that roads are built and upgraded cost-effectively while meeting the requirements of future transportation.

This report provides fresh insights from the latest McKinsey and Oxford

Global research into three pressing questions for the road construction industry and its stakeholders: • How will contemporary megatrends, namely automation, digitization, as well as innovation in construction materials shape patterns in road transportation and construction?

• Why and in which ways will tools and processes in road construction need to change so as to facilitate the maximization of the benefits associated with these trends?

• What do these changes imply for the road construction industry’s future and how can construction companies, public entities, and governments and their taxpayers prepare for this?

The adage “the pace of change has never been this fast, yet it will never be this slow again” holds true for the road industry, which is expected to change massively by 2050.

This is what will happen in the megatrends, the reports says: • Once autonomous vehicles (AVs) reach a critical mass, road width may shrink by a third • Automation in road construction will increase productivity and profit margins • Digitisation enables smart roads that improve lane capacity and increase road capabilities • Advances in construction materials increase road durability by 60 percent.

• Speed of road construction is expected to double, while costs may shrink by 30 percent if novel technologies and process optimisation are applied consistently.

New value pools and actors are likely to make road construction more com-

pabilities. ($0.22/kilometer) by 2035.

The adage “the pace of change has never been this fast, yet it will never be this slow again,” In advanced economies, Autonomous driving guarcommonly used to describe contemporary shifts in society, also holds true for the road industry, which is expected to change massively by 2050. Four major trends will propel this share is expected toautomated production, antees unrivalled precision this change: autonomous driving, digitization, and advances in road materials. With these megatrends at play, in 2050 at the latest, roads in the EU be evenconstruction higher.

In a world and reliability, which will and countries such as the US, Canada, and China will be narrower, faster, less expensive to build, smarter, no and more durable than today (seeeliminate illustration). For players space, there where people longer thein this need for lanes are three main reasons why tomorrow’s revolution requires planning and attention today: need a —driver’s license, and that are much wider than Long lead times. Planning and creating the conditions for the construction of these new will have a no long lead time – potentially more than 15 years. driverlessroads trucks longer vehicles.

Significant investment.

In many features will require significant require—resting phases, ve-cases, these new Whereas traditional lanes, investment in brownfield upgrades of existing road infrastructure.

0 m 50

2. m

The availability and use of autonomous capabilities is projected to increase rapidly, according to the report.

By 2035, 15 percent of light vehicles sold globally are expected to be equipped

8

An autonomous future

ods such as pedestrian paths, bike lanes, bus lanes, tram tracks), particularly in cramped urban environments.

Since there is currently no indication that any government is likely to limit highway usage to AVs, all will depend on the adoption rate. The report says it is estimated that an adoption rate of at least 85 percent will be necessary to get the authorities to consider making a trade-off between economy-wide benefits and regulations restricting non-AVs for individual road users.

The emerging revolution in road construction

2.

petitive.

To channel innovation and realise economic benefits, governments should seize the initiative and craft a broad alliance with relevant players from the private sector with a view to setting standards for smart roads.

With these megatrends in play, by 2050 at the latest, roads in the EU and countries such as the US, Canada, and China will be narrower, faster, less expensive to build, smarter, and more durable than today.

For players in this space, there are three main reasons why tomorrow’s revolution requires planning and attention today: • Long lead times. Planning and creating the conditions for the construction of these new roads will have a long lead time – potentially more than 15 years.

• Significant investment. In many cases, these new features will require significant investment in brownfield upgrades of existing road infrastructure.

• Staggered horizons. Even though all megatrends are expected to have significant impact on road design and construction in the future, their timing might unfold differently.

• Advances in construction materials are imminent and yield gradual optimisation potential.

• Digitization of roads will likely occur step-by-step as existing roads are upgraded and modularisation kicks in.

APRIL- MAY 2022

Four megatrends can be expected to shape future road design and construction with fully autonomous ca($ 0.53/kilometre) to $0.4

hicle kilometres are projected to increase substantially mainly for two reasons: First, higher transport efficiency. Inefficiencies such as congestion delays and accidents currently cost EU countries an estimated one percent of their gross GDP per year. The rise of AVs has the potential to significantly decrease these inefficiencies through accident-reducing technologies and driving techniques such as “platooning,” a method for coupling vehicles and thus driving them closer together than previously possible.

Second, Reduced mobility costs. The spread of AVs is also expected to drive down mobility costs, increasing utilisation by eliminating the need for resting phases (in the case of trucks).

The practice of sharing vehicles on an as-needed basis could reduce the total cost of ownership of a regular car from US$ 0.85/mile

usually with a width between 3.50 and 3.75 meters, are devised to account for human error, the width of future lanes could be reduced to 2.8 meters and still accommodate oversized vehicles.

Roads exclusively dedicated to passenger cars could have lanes as narrow as 2.5 metres. This means that a four-lane road could be up to four meters narrower than today.

In the case of newly constructed roads, narrower roads could see a decrease in required construction material of up to one-third.

In the case of existing roads, narrower lanes will free up valuable space that could either be used to increase the capacity of existing roads by up to 50 percent (expanding a fourlane road to a six-lane road without the need for more space) or be dedicated to other transportation meth-

Road work ahead – the emerging revolution in the road construction industry

7

Automation in road construction will increase productivity and profit margins.

Aside from AVs, automation will significantly impact road construction.

Over a 20-year period, other industries such as retail and manufacturing have realised annual productivity improvements of 2.8 percent because they systematically reinvent themselves through automation and process-flow optimisation.

The construction industry has not yet tapped the potential from automation, which has resulted in an improvement of just one percent per year during the same period.

Given the still comparatively large amount of manual labour needed to build a road, automation is a promising opportunity to improve productivity in this low-margin industry.

The rise of digitalisation

The initial surveying could be further automated through lidar technology, which could not only save money but also time. Data infrastructurenews.co.nz 55

APRIL- MAY 2022 from multiple sources could be fed into a digital representation of the physical asset – a digital twin.

Such digital models allow roads to be visualized across their entire lifecycle to optimise asset performance. 3-D machine control excavation systems may serve as a proxy to gauge the potential from automation in the later process.

These systems combine geolocation services with digital models to partially automate earthworks.

Excavators equipped with such systems can carry out excavations or grading up to 30 percent faster than machines without a 3-D system.

Finnish researchers have even built an automated 3-D blade control system that achieved a 100 percent increase in labour productivity while maintaining a geometric accuracy of road structure layers of ±1 centimetre.

Digitisation enables smart roads that improve lane capacity and allow for predictive maintenance Like automation, digitization will also affect road design and construction in the near future.

Until around five years ago, road design and construction rarely utilised any form of digitisation and analytics, offering great potential for improvement.

First, roads will change from a purely mechanical asphalt structure with some systems for traffic density to a system of measuring and guiding.

Using sensors either embedded in the road structure (in the case of newly constructed roads) or positioned around the road (in the case of existing roads) for guidance enables vehicles to drive closer together and is expected to 56 infrastructurenews.co.nz

increase lane capacity by 50 percent.

In addition, roads will be able to communicate surface conditions to AVs, e.g.,

New construction materials increase road durability by 60 percent, and are bound to disrupt road construction. Almost half of

Plastics add to circular economy development One example of a new construction material that improves road strength is one of humanity’s most notorious waste products – plastic – which is not just lighter than asphalt but can also be added in small pellets to increase the bulk of an asphalt mix.

British entrepreneur Toby McCartney has developed a method for turning plastic bottles into small pellets and adding them to an asphalt mix, which results in roadways that last 10 times longer than conventional roads.

A Dutch company built a street made fully out of plastic to prove its resistance in a natural environment.

The state of Arizona has pioneered the use of rubberised asphalt, claiming that their solution may reduce cold weather and fatigue-related cracking to produce longer-life pavements. Other advantages include better rideability and less noise pollution.

Processing approximately 1,500 old tires per lanekilometre, rubberized asphalt has the potential to significantly reduce waste streams.

Another material was used by researchers at the University of Delft who developed an asphalt with small steel fibers which, with the help of a big magnet, can seal small cracks. The civil engineering department at the University of British Columbia tested a similar technology in Thondebavi village in India. friction levels due to cold temperature or water. Other types of sensors will be used for predictive maintenance, increasing the operational time of the asset while reducing costs and number of road closures.

Another smart feature of roads will be electric charge-as-you-drive infrastructure. In 2018, Sweden was the first country to install an “electrified road” that charges electric vehicles.

the costs of road construction currently stem from raw materials, particularly crushed rock, cement, oil derivatives (asphalt), water, and sand.

Even though personal vehicles are expected to become lighter in the decades to come, roads in 2050 have to be more durable than today due to increasing car ownership and greater lane capacity due to platooning.

Newly constructed roads can be built using new con-

struction materials such as plastic in their asphalt mix, which make roads up to 60 percent stronger than conventional asphalt roadways and are thus suited to accommodate more vehicles per kilometer of road.

Existing roads will likely also have to undergo significant refurbishment to accommodate these requirements, which will call for significant infrastructure investment from governments.

However, because the share of AVs and the associated stress on roads will rise gradually over a timeframe of 20 to 30 years, governments will have the opportunity to plan and coordinate these refurbishments in advance.

Furthermore, these upgrades will be limited to the top-most layer (wearing and binding course) of roads and will thus be less cost intensive than building new roads from scratch.

Road construction of the future

Speed will more than double, cost will shrink by 30 percent over time. Road projects have gradually been getting longer (in kilometres), cheaper, and faster.

About two and a half years could be saved from the time the decision to build a median 88 lane-kilometer road is made until road completion.

Indirect macroeconomic costs from congestion correlate with the time needed for construction. Therefore, reducing construction time is key for many stakeholders, especially since road construction projects regularly overrun scheduled construction times (by up to 105 percent) and, hence, budget (on average by 20 percent).

Longer term projects are

APRIL- MAY 2022 met with a double whammy of inconvenience, as their unit costs are also more expensive, the report says.

Speed is crucial for protecting cost Exhibit 4 in both absolute

construction cost that, in turn, can be split into cost of material and cost of installation.

Over the 25-year lifespan of a road, the cost per

nificant variation in cost per lane-kilometre compared with project duration.

Even though they are comparatively simple from a technical perspective,

The new process flow for road construction will decrease construction time and cost by up to 30% Total of 3 months to build 1 km of road 1 s t m onth

P has e De s c rip tion

2nd m onth

3rd m onth

Data -d rive n ne e d s a s s e s s m e nt

Design and im p le m e nta tion p la nning

Manufacturing a nd c ons truc tion

Decision to build a certain type of road based on thorough needs assessment

Holistic design and feasibility plan ready to build with digital technology

Road is being constructed according to implementation plan

Use of big data at an early stage:

LiDaR technology for site surveying

Prefabrication

3-D engineered construction models

New design requirements: lighter vehicles, narrower roads

  2.5 Construction cost per lane- 2.0 kilometer, USD 1.5 millions 1.0

Who drives where and when?

New delivery model

Use of new materials

Old New

0.5 0 Source: Expert interviews

In the following, we arelane-kilometre going to examine theamounts three overarching of the future road and relative terms. to steps earthworks have a subconstruction process in detail and describe how they differ from current processes.

This is particularly signifi$2 million, of which direct stantial cost impact and Step 1:which Data-driven needs assessmentcosts account cant for motorways, construction are prone to delays due to road construction expected to use advanced analytics to necessary create data-driven needs accordhave higher costFuture overruns forisapproximately 85 -90 reworks, assessments. Car manufacturers and navigation apps already collect billions of data points than other types of roads. percent. ing to the report. to understand how many people are traveling from point A to point B and what time of day The average duration from If the introduced improveAIfvariety of smart machine and year. Capacity and other road parameters can also be specified. fully anonymized, the final decision to buildauthorities ment levers this getreal-time rigorously that government could leverage data in what-ifguidance analyses andtechnologies simulations to plan andis prioritize road projects accordingly, than rely on lengthy needs the road to its opening implemented, the rather share aim attraditional reducing the time assessments, such as traffic counting. The same data could be used to develop better traffic 5.5 years. of direct construction and cost of earthworks management plans to ease the impact of construction closures.

Digital tools will improve cost per lane-kilometre is is currently being trialled, offer evidence-based guidance on whether and, if yes, to what each stage of a Advanced road analytics can expected to remain largely among them GPS-based extent a certain road project can actually help improve traffic flows. Increasing reliance on project, supporting not unchanged, since the three excavation instead of ladata-driven approaches could also help speed up the political discussion around approval only analysis of processes. what road main costprocess drivers –slows mateexcavation, 3-D Currently, the approval often down road ser-guided construction from the very specification is required rials, earthworks, and ingrade control, tilt rotator (and subsequently reducing stallation – bear significant control, and remote moni14 Road work ahead – the emerging revolution in the road construction industry waste from overproduction) optimisation potential. toring. but also both faster design While the materials for the Through such approaches, and faster construction roadbed will not change operators achieve higher through standardisation. dramatically, new materials degrees of standardisation like plastics will be used for and discover discrepancies The mega-trend the upper layer of the pave- as they occur. ment, driving down its cost.

Machine-driven installadisruption To gauge the disruption Due to the increased road tion will be faster due to a effect of megatrends on strength achieved through higher degree of automaroad construction costs, the new materials, the pavetion and use of digital tools, report focuses on the lifement will also be thinner thus reducing the time time cost of a road, which and consume less material. machines need to be rented is mainly driven by direct There is a statistically sigand personnel needs to be

hired.

Additionally, a higher degree of automation will also reduce human error in road construction. Given that there is on average approximately 2-3 percent of rework to be done in each project, this will further drive down lifetime cost.

Another reason why cost is expected to decrease is that less road maintenance, which represents about 1015 percent of lifetime cost, will be required.

New materials such as plastics typically extend the lifespan of a road by between 100 and 300 percent. This holds true even without applying predictive maintenance, which will have an additional life-prolonging effect.

Thus, the total lifespan of roads will likely be extended from an average of 12 years today to 25 to 30 years in the future, and will incur significantly fewer maintenance costs.

Assuming constant land and property cost, the average cost per lane-kilometer is expected to fall by around 30 percent to $1.6 million.

Three key steps of the new process

The report examines the three overarching steps of the future road construction process in detail and describes how they differ from current processes.

First is a data-driven needs assessment, followed by design and implementation planning and finally manufacturing and construction.

Future road construction is expected to use advanced analytics to create data-driven needs assessments.

Car manufacturers and navigation apps already collect billions of data points to understand how many infrastructurenews.co.nz 57

APRIL- MAY 2022

people are traveling from point A to point B and what time of day and year.

Capacity and other road parameters can also be specified. If fully anonymised, government authorities could leverage this real-time data in “what-if” analyses and simulations to plan and prioritise road projects accordingly, rather than rely on lengthy traditional needs assessments, such as traffic counting.

The same data could be used to develop better traffic management plans to ease the impact of construction closures. Advanced analytics can offer evidence-based guidance on whether and to what extent a certain road project can actually help improve traffic flows.

Increasing reliance on data-driven approaches could also help speed up the political discussion around approval processes. Currently, the approval process often slows down road construction.

Once a final decision to build a certain type of road is made, the implementation planning phase is launched. This phase includes all activities from feasibility study to construc58 infrastructurenews.co.nz

tion plan. New technologies recently trialled in construction promise to increase the efficiency of this phase dramatically.

Conventional road construction companies split this preparatory work into three phases The road is surveyed.

What are the current conditions and where are the deficits?

A high-level work plan is drafted. What do I want to build and when?

The work plan is substantiated by the individual contractors. What equipment, material, and staffing levels do I need, when do I need them, and where do I implement the work plan?

All in all, this often takes 6-12 months. However, the same outcome could be generated in just two months if the right technologies were consistently used.

Among the numerous technologies recently introduced in the construction space, two are particularly helpful in such planning phases: Light detection and ranging methods (LiDAR) have become increasingly popular, as they allow users to make digital 3D repre-

sentations of objects and landscapes and can also be mounted on cars.

If applied to drones, LiDAR could revolutionise labour-intense and time-consuming site surveying steps, which currently involve manual inspections of the proposed construction area. Such LiDAR methods could speed up the preparatory phase of road construction.

Construction time of infrastructure projects and other mega-projects can also be reduced through the use of 5-D-building information modelling.

These models enable construction players to virtually build a certain project twice – once digitally, and once on site. Digital twins can help uncover potential challenges and other unforeseen difficulties during implementation and validate the substantiated implementation plan.

Through simulation, this further reduces the risks inherent in construction, likely improving speed.

This phase also includes coordination with utility providers that varies in length and nature depending on the type of road that is going to be constructed.

While such consultations often derail the overall construction process today, innovations in road construction can help to speed it up.

Data-driven analyses allow utility providers to immediately understand whether they need to be part of the process at all, and if so, which pipes and cables will be needed.

On top of that, new materials used in road construction change the way cables are installed.

Prefabricated plastic roads typically provide a duct, which significantly simplifies the interaction between construction companies and utility providers.

The third step is manufacturing and construction automation and the availability of new construction materials which will completely transform the lengthiest process step, namely the construction itself.

Road construction usually involves a significant proportion of manual tasks.

However, repetitive manual tasks, such as distributing the material of each layer, could be automated by vehicles that recognise barriers and the depth of material needed at each level, similar to farming.

Until recently, ensuring that construction material is continuously added to the machine has been a major challenge. However, promising innovations involving multiple AVs have since been trialled successfully, enabling construction workers to substantially reduce the time required for laying the road’s foundation.

Automated solutions also have two other distinctive advantages worth considering. First, machines guided by such solutions do not need breaks and time off.

Shift workers can continu-

APRIL- MAY 2022 ously supervise the progress the machines make.

Second, machines are unrivalled when it comes to precision, which is particularly important, as rework often causes delays.

While automation will shorten the time necessary for building the bottom layers, the availability of new construction materials will significantly alter how the upper pavement layer is installed.

Unlike in other areas of construction, such as residential buildings, where some parts are already prefabricated, most road elements are still cast on site.

Roads featuring plastic, however, will allow for modularisation and prefabrication, and companies that can begin producing the surface in advance and offsite are able to start and finish much earlier than their competitors.

The Dutch company KWS, which has developed a prefabricated, modular roadway made from recycled plastic, claims that its “PlasticRoad” can be constructed up to 70 percent faster than traditional roadways.

If it were possible to standardise at scale the most difficult-to-build parts such as drainage systems, total construction time would decrease even further. In addition, future road design featuring lanes that are up to one-third narrower will also contribute to a reduction in construction time.

Enter the competition

Unlocking such substantial value from road construction is sure to attract new players. Emergence of new value pools and market entrants will shake up the industry.

The road construction industry needs to prepare

for increasing competition.

Whether conventional construction companies – with their reliance on manual labour and low levels of automation – will be able to develop the technological capabilities necessary to build these tech-heavy roads remains an open question.

Overall, the emergence of new technologies and business models in the road construction business will likely increase competition, which could cause the overall cost of road construction to plummet further.

If conventional construction companies fall behind, high-tech players developing AVs – such as Alphabet, Apple, and Tesla – will be incentivised to form partnerships with each other or with start-ups in the smart road construction business.

Although these companies are unlikely to enter the road construction business as end-to-end players, they have made some first forays into the road systems.

Alphabet subsidiary Sidewalk Labs is planning to build the world’s first “smart neighborhood” in Toronto, which includes smart streets, while Tesla offshoot The Boring Company is pitching “smart tunnels” as a solution to gridlock in American cities.

If traditional construction companies fail to develop the expertise to adopt these innovations in road construction, they run the risk of becoming raw material suppliers to more tech-savvy players, who could capture newly emerging value pools through new business models, such as dynamic tolls based on road congestion.

Smarter traffic management has the potential to curb CO2 emissions of cars by up to 30 percent.

With new industrial heavyweights, such as China, not pinned down by large legacy road systems or fragmented regulation, players in the European road ecosystem have more hurdles to leap.

The report urges these

players, especially governments and construction companies, to take action to stay competitive in the race towards the next transport revolution.

Download the full report here

Contributors to the study

infrastructurenews.co.nz 59

APRIL- MAY 2022

Hard work gets results

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he team was forged by three friends working in the industry who realised that the key thing stressed building managers, business owners and landlords needed was to make a single call and get a reliable and qualified support team that would cover any aspect of facilities management.

The Rapid trio set down a business philosophy that “we will do what others can’t or won’t do “ and set about assembling a highly trained, efficient and safety-conscious team of professionals who get the job done right, the first time.

Today that service stretches from food manufacturers’ audit cleaning, all aspects of industrial cleaning, painting, building and floor safety management to anti-microbial and moss

60 infrastructurenews.co.nz

Having worked in the industry for many years, three friends, Paul Schoch, Robyn Schoch and Andrew Chan realised that by combining their skills, they could create a company unlike any other and mould treatments to prevent surface damage to roofs, ceilings, walls, floors and specialised equipment.

Team members Darren, Brandon and Akeli

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infrastructurenews.co.nz 61

APRIL- MAY 2022

12 robot arms that sort objects from bulky construction and demolition waste that weigh up to 30 kg and together perform up to 24,000 picks per hour

A pioneering new recovery facility sets the global standard The plant in Finland stands out not only for its state-of-the-art Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology, cutting-edge processes, and high level of automation, but also for integrating Commercial & Industrial (C&I) and Construction & Demolition (C&D) waste lines in the same plant

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he Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) has an annual processing capacity of 120,000 tonnes of construction waste and 60,000 tonnes of energy waste produced in commerce and industry.

The waste is recycled into high-quality alternatives to virgin materials, giving the waste a new life and reducing the need for incineration.

The project presented unique and complex design 62 infrastructurenews.co.nz

challenges for being the first of its kind to combine a C&D plant capable of processing 30 tonnes per hour (t/h) and a C&I plant with 15 t/h capacity, and a high level of automation.

Resolving the challenges required an exceptionally close collaboration among the partners. STADLER designed the Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) in collaboration with Remeo Oy and built it, while ZenRobotics supplied AI-based

robotics waste-sorting technologies.

“The combination of our experience with the C&D line, STADLER’s solid familiarity with the C&I line and ZenRobotics’ impressive knowledge of robotics made this an excellent co-operation with the best results,” says Mauri Lielahti, Business Director, Processing at Remeo.

“We appreciated STADLER’s capability to be innovative, their willingness

to seek new solutions and that they were ready to listen to the customer’s needs.

“We have been working closely with ZenRobotics since 2014 and have a continuous development cooperation. Thanks to the knowledge we acquired on our older recycling facility, we knew what we should and should not do. It has been easy to work with them.”

Nikolaus Hofmann, Sales Engineer at STADLER says

APRIL- MAY 2022

STADLER designed the Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) in collaboration with Remeo and built it, while ZenRobotics supplied AI-based robotics waste sorting technologies it the most advanced waste sorting facility in the European Union.

“The result of this collaboration is a design that “combines ballistic separators, screening drums, 3D drums, optical sorters, air separators, sorting robots, magnets, eddy-currents as well as the ZenRobotics robots,” he says.

The robots do all the heavy lifting that’s neither safe nor feasible for humans adds Juha Mieskonen, Head of Sales at ZenRobotics.

“The Remeo facility is equipped with 12 robot arms that pick objects from bulky C&D waste that weigh up to 30 kilograms and together perform up to 24,000 picks per hour.

“They sort multiple fractions on the spot, including different qualities of wood, metals, stone and plastic.

“The facility integrates two

different processing lines and features two consecutive robot systems on each line. It’s the largest fully roboticised MRF of its kind, which brought new operations and safety aspects to take into consideration in

the design,” she says “The most innovative aspects of the design can be described with the ‘Form from Function’ principle,” explains Hofmann. “The function of the lines was the driver in every design

decision.

“For example, C&D waste tends to clog, especially at 90-degree transitions of the conveyors, so we eliminated them in the design as much as possible.

“To accommodate this, infrastructurenews.co.nz 63

APRIL- MAY 2022 we designed a narrow and long building rather than a square structure.”

This approach to design extended to looking at the best solutions for maintenance, “in order to ensure a reliable and safe sorting facility for the future,” says.

“The layout is designed for easy maintenance, with almost every motor being accessible from walkways and maintenance platforms.

The layout groups similar equipment together where possible and allows future possibility of extension. The dedusting system with multiple suction points across the whole plant and two large filter units installed outside the building further adds to the plant’s cleanliness,” he says.

Remeo’s MRF project is unique in Europe as it uses the latest technology and, thanks to its operation, material recovery will play a much greater role than energy recovery for the first time. The plant will cover more than 30 percent of all waste recycling needs in the Helsinki region in Finland.

In doing so, this facility also removes the need to export the waste from Finland as the capacity to recycle waste domestically increases.

Remeo’s facility offers effective recycling close to the place of origin of the waste, cutting transport emissions because of the short distances.

Due to efficient recycling capabilities, Remeo is also helping its customers to meet the minimum 70 percent recycling rate required by law in Finland. www.remeo.fi www.zenrobotics.com www.w-stadler.de 64 infrastructurenews.co.nz

An interview with Carsten Steentjes, Head of Special Sales at PlanET Biogas PlanET Biogas ia a specialist in engineering, approval, plant construction, technical plant service and CHP service and is a leading provider of biogas plants. The company also has an inhouse laboratory for biological service and process optimisation.

How small are your small-scale digesters?

Our VALENTIN biogas plant is our smallest digester with a volume between 580 m3 and 891 m3. A few years earlier, we had developed this product for the international agricultural market, but quickly realised that it could also be used very well in other industries.

What is the minimum in-put your small digesters needs? How much output do they produce?

Each substrate behaves differently and takes more or less time to convert from organic to methane. For pure manure, the flow capacity per year ranges from 7,000 m3 to 12,000 m3 with an average residence time of about 30 days. The output also depends on the substrate but can range from 40 to 150 kW. What sets your product apart from others?

I would call it a “plug-and-play”-plant, that the competition does not have. It fits into two containers and can be shipped and installed worldwide. Through its modular design, it’s easily adaptable for individual needs. A PlanET Biogas supervisor helps with the set-up which is usually done within two weeks.

Who is your target group?

Wherever there are low currents of substrates, our digesters can be used.

From farms to industrial plants or even municipal sewage treatment plants. One of our clients, for example, is a sugar mill in Brazil.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of small-scale digesters?

The advantages are that even small

farms and settlements are able to produce their own energy. A disadvantage is, that it is not very flexible with regard to the substrate. It must be clarified in advance which substrate is to be processed, and the system is adapted to this. This cannot simply be changed again.

Where do you see your biggest market growth?

It's hard to say because demand is actually high worldwide. We have inquiries from South America as well as from the Asian region.

Do you think small-scale and micro digesters will play an important role in the future?

I think so. Small-scale digesters might be very interesting in regions where the infrastructure for other renewables is already saturated. Subsidies and legal provisions of course also play a role.

Produced by Helena Nageler-Petritz for Waste Management World

APRIL- MAY 2022

With your support we can continue to provide practical help, care and comfort.

Accommodation and home visits are just two of the ways we support New Zealanders affected by cancer.

Visit cancer.org.nz to find ways to make a difference by volunteering, donating or taking part in our events.

infrastructurenews.co.nz 65

APRIL- MAY 2022

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everal ongoing issues mean the cost of building and operating infrastructure could go even higher, including: • Fallout from Covid-19, particularly on the workforce • Supply chain disruptions – from shipping costs to congestion at ports • Supply constraints due to manufacturing still being impacted due to sudden lockdowns in key trading partner countries like China • Wage inflation • Interest rate increases that affect project financing • Added fallout and uncertainty due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – especially since New Zealand imports most of its fossil fuels.

The Infrastructure Commission expects construction costs to jump by a further 10% in 2022.

To put things into context, the early publicly released estimate for the Auckland Light Rail project is $14.6 66 infrastructurenews.co.nz

Costs of delivering infrastructure continue to rise Inflation, the high cost of labour, materials and services alongside higher cost of borrowing does not bode well, Infrastructure New Zealand reports billion. A 10% cost increase would push that to over $16 billion, and if inflation and other issues become persistent, a price tag around $20 billion should not be unexpected.

In terms of wage inflation, the Australian economy is doing relatively better and there is a risk that a high number of skilled New Zealanders could leave for Australia, creating an even bigger skills gap and further increasing our reliance on migrant labour, only adding

to the demand for higher wages and causing further delays to infrastructure projects.

The development of a credible infrastructure pipeline – as recommended by the New Zealand Infrastructure Commission – Te Waihanga – to provide the industry with certainty to invest in training and retention may go some way in addressing this issue.

The issue of supply chain disruption is one that deserves further insight. Prior

to the Covid-19 pandemic, logistics expenses made up around 5% of the total cost of landing goods for a given company. That is now edging closer to 25-40%.

With global pressures likely to remain for some time yet, any hope that 2023 will look more like ‘normal’ is increasingly looking less likely. A long-term view of the supply chain, focused on resilience, collaboration and partnership is needed. infrastructure.org.nz

APRIL- MAY 2022

Construction as we know it is changing Supply chain disruption and rising material costs are putting additional pressure on construction firms already stretched thin, with many now turning to digital solutions, says Payapps Chief Operating Officer Tony Simonsen

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ccording to the latest New Zealand Core Logic data, construction costs in New Zealand have increased by 6.2 percent last year, largely due to rising commodity and raw material prices.

Raw material shortages have meant continual price adjustments and ultimately price increases, making it difficult to accurately budget both time needed and material costs of a job.

Particularly when you factor in cost pressures in other areas including labour costs and equipment hire.

Escalating prices: The double digits this year as they continue to rise at the numbers speak for quickest rate in over four themselves

Highlighting this issue, the global consultancy firm Rider Levett Bucknall released a forecast of construction cost increases for capital and regional cities around Australia in 2022. The projections are that costs will increase by 2.5% in Darwin; 3% in Adelaide, Melbourne and Townsville; 4.5% in Perth; 5% in Brisbane and Gold Coast; and 5.6% in Sydney.

In New Zealand, CoreLogic predicts that construction prices could grow by

years.

Interest.co.nz analysed Stats NZ’s building consent figures and found that average residential building costs rose 4.3% over 12 months to the end of September 2021, and the cost of some types of dwelling increasing by up to 8.0%.

That equates to an average construction cost of $2,484 per square metre for a new dwelling, up from $2391 in the 2020 September quarter. Based on the average size of 152 square metres,

that’s an additional $5,621 per dwelling.

These numbers provide an indication of the challenges our construction companies and contractors are facing, and it still doesn’t include rapidly growing and exorbitant shipping costs and the fallout of month-long delays.

Digitisation in construction: A landscape of change

Our recent Frost & Sullivan study on digital transformation within construction flagged supply chain issues as one of the top infrastructurenews.co.nz 67

APRIL- MAY 2022

roadblocks for construction firms. Of the respondents, 55% cited supply chain transformations as the top shift impacting workplaces of the future in A/NZ. However, our whitepaper also highlighted that digitisation and the adoption of technology tools presents a possible solution.

Real-time collaboration, the ability to manage and track key tasks, and having a centralised platform with a single source of truth can help to develop the relationship between head and sub-contractors and bring together a fragmented environment.

If you ask an average person to imagine a typical construction worker, they’ll probably think of a male in work pants, boots, a high visibility vest and helmet. But the face of the construction industry is changing.

For one, more than 40% of our users are female. We’re also seeing the next generation of leaders coming 68 infrastructurenews.co.nz

through. For a long time, construction firms have been led by their founders, but now those with fresh ideas and approaches are stepping into leadership positions.

While it’s important to not lose the momentum we have built up over time, it’s crucial to embrace the new, to be open to the power of digital tools, and the new thinking that comes along with that.

On top of this, most organisations are small – they might have under 10 people in their team, not 50 or 100.

These factors also lend themselves to tools that will help people become more effective and efficient, and better engage with all stakeholders. In this scenario technology becomes an obvious choice.

Organisations may not think they are engaged in digital transformation, but in fact they do have some form of construction management platform, whether that’s around estimation,

project management, or financial aid. And that’s across all sizes of organisation.

In beginning to recognise these tools and actively adopt more, leaders can create more efficiencies and help teams to meet ongoing, and at times severe, challenges.

Using technology to improve efficiencies and clarity around progress claims, which has long been a manual process, has become a critical piece in reducing complexity for both builder and subcontractor, enabling them to have live, collaborative documents that can be adapted and changed to match their activities, costs and work within a contract.

This is even more important as prices and projects are changing so rapidly.

In this instance, digitisation also becomes about lowering the cost of doing business and increasing satisfaction with subcontractors.

In moving from manual to automated processes, you create a cost efficiency opportunity. It helps contractors to deliver on what is promised each time and reduce risk of misinformation or miscalculation.

Giving people the best chance of being paid the right amount at the right time will keep all parties happy and in the know of what’s going on.

Knowledge is power, especially when we’re faced with difficulties around price increases, delays in projects and changing teams.

What gives us a sense of optimism within the construction industry, despite the current landscape, is to see organisations that are moving into a new phase of growth and adopting digital tools and technologies to drive greater efficiencies, collaboration and risk mitigation.

Payapps | Construction Software for Managing Progress Claims

April - May 2022

Lessons from Australia's Omicron experience

Plus: End of the housing market boom - what have we learned?

Oearbook Y ctober 2021 2022 - January 2022

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70 70

A

fter commissioning a 2019 report in partnership with BRANZ into suicide in construction, Site Safe began looking at ways to offer practical assistance to the industry to better understand and deal with mental health issues in its workforce.

Site Safe Chief Executive, Brett Murray, says it was a logical step to take after the release of the report.

“There was a real ‘what next?’ question, in us figuring out how to help our industry deal with the mental health issues that the report had clearly highlighted.

“We have partnered with St John to develop this course to tackle some of these issues head on.”

The course will equip attendees with the skills and knowledge to support their own mental health and assist others to do the same, with a particular focus on scenarios within the construction industry.

Combining the experience of the St John trainers in delivering their existing mental health course and applying the real-world context of the construction industry has provided

APRIL- MAY 2022

Partnership brings mental health awareness and training to construction A new Mental Health First Aid in Construction course developed by Site Safe and St John is bringing much needed support to the construction sector, flagged as a high risk industry for mental wellbeing outcomes intended to have benefits outside of just those who sit the course.

St John Head of First Aid Training, Julian Price, says the partnership represents a valuable opportunity for the two organisations to further spread the message of the importance of mental health.

“We have been delivering the Mental Health First Aid course since August 2018, however the ability to specifically target workers in construction who are at

risk of mental health issues – that is invaluable and is part of St John’s continued commitment to improving the health outcomes of all New Zealanders.”

With successful trials run in Auckland and Wellington in late March, participants were in praise of the outcomes of the course.

When asked about the value that the course provided, Wayne, a construction worker who participated in the Auckland trial, said that it was very informative and he learned a lot in the subject of Mental Health that he did not have much knowledge of.

“It provided a lot more knowledge around how to identify and deal with persons in need of assistance.”

One Wellington trial participant, Mickala, indicated that she would use her new understanding and skills to help others in her workplace.

“It taught me how to properly engage with people who need some help … and encourage them to seek the help they may not know they need.”

Brett Murray is confident of a positive industry response and looks forward to further course developments in future.

“My major focus for Site Safe as an industry leader and membership organisation is to work alongside the industry to develop high value products that address key issues the industry is facing.

“Mental health is certainly one of those, and this course is totally aligned to that goal.”

For more info and to book your seat on the Mental Health First Aid in Construction course, click here.

If you or someone you know needs support, or someone to talk to, try: • 1737 – Mental Health Foundation support service.

Free call or text any time • 0800 111 315 – MATES in Construction • 0800 543 354 – Lifeline (0800 LIFELINE) • 0800 376 633 – Youthline • 0800 726 666 – Samaritans propertyandbuild.com 71

APRIL- MAY 2022

Soaring inflation to stunt housing construction Building consent numbers will likely peak in the first half of 2022 – if left unchecked, the issues of housing supply and housing unaffordability could worsen significantly this year, Brad Olsen from Infometrics warns

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nnual inflation in the year to the December 2021 quarter was 5.9%, well outside the Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s target of keeping inflation between 1 and 3% on average over the medium term.

Statistics New Zealand advises the main driver for this high annual inflation rate was the housing and household utilities group, with prices for construction and rentals for housing increasing.

72 propertyandbuild.com

Prices for construction of new dwellings increased 16 percent in the December 2021 quarter compared with the December 2020 quarter.

The Infrastructure Commission’s latest Infrastructure Quarterly report shows that construction costs jumped by more than 10% in 2021, and similar increases are forecast for 2022. The increase represents the most rapid growth in prices since the Global Financial Crisis. The Infrastructure

Commission’s report is available here.

While the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has projected inflation would fall back to within the Reserve Bank’s target band by 2023 in its 2022 Economic Survey of New Zealand, that will come at the cost of higher interest rates.

The high inflation and rising interest rates mean that already high construction costs will

rise even further, forcing developers to put some projects on hold as commercial feasibility evaporates.

This combined with factors including skills shortages, supply-chain bottlenecks, Covid-19related shutdowns and reduced ability to secure a residential mortgage create a perfect storm for a slump in the supply of new residential dwellings and general construction activity.

Study explores climate change’s effects on property Exacerbated flood risks associated with climate change will affect future property values in vulnerable areas as the intensity and frequency of flooding increase

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niversity of Otago researchers have launched a vital study into climate change that will leverage CoreLogic NZ’s property database to learn how future coastal flooding could impact residential property values.

CoreLogic joins the Reserve Bank of New Zealand as key partners on the three-year inter-disciplinary Strand Marsden Fund Project, which will help the top-tier research institute fill a knowledge gap around geographical information systems, geology, climate change, real estate and potential banking losses.

Since both property and

financial markets are forward-looking, understanding the interplay between increasing flooding hazard, related financial losses, and when those losses will occur, has profound implications for homeowners, banks, insurers, and the stability of financial systems.

The associated risks are long-term and susceptible to the ‘tragedy of the horizon’ in that current decision makers fail to fully account for future risks.

The research framework learns from Māori traditions of considering multiple generations in decision-making and Māori investment prin-

ciples where environment and people are integral to a systemic view of investment decisions.

Accordingly, this research will explore to what extent, and when, increasing flood frequencies will impact property values in New Zealand’s coastal cities given that markets are forward looking and have imperfect information.

Further, they will examine if there are flow-on effects of these losses on the stability of domestic banking system. New approaches to answering these questions will be adopted by an interdisciplinary team of experts in geographical information

APRIL- MAY 2022 systems, geology, climate change, real-estate and banking.

CoreLogic NZ Country Manager Simone Moors says the partnership provided University of Otago academics with access to approximately 30 years’ worth of housing data, providing researchers with extensive and timely property information.

“By supporting such critical fields of academic study, we’re acknowledging the important role this partnership plays in supporting climate change research,” she says.

“Through study, academics have the potential to implement change, inform property and policy decisions and potentially improve climate-related risk management practices.”

CoreLogic NZ Head of Research Nick Goodall says it was critical to support research into property and peripheral sectors such as banking and finance, property development and valuations, and public sector policy.

“Our strength lies in the power of our data – we bring together hundreds of diverse data assets, which we clean, match and synthesise. We offer our clients the most comprehensive property-level insights available in New Zealand,” he says.

“Providing academics with access to one of New Zealand’s most authoritative sources of housing statistics and housing-related data provides an opportunity for innovative research that will explore new methodologies, test theories and investigate the relationship between housing markets and other factors such as climate change.”

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Life returns to a new normal Telarc finds itself well down the path of deploying an operating model that reflects what has become the new normal says Chief Executive Philip Cryer

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ovid and its associated interruptions has taught all of us a variety of lessons. They cover the physical world we operate in and, as importantly, the level of impact and need for action which has impacted our people from an emotional and psychological level.

All these aspects needed to be considered as we passed through the second anniversary of New Zealand and its people, dealt with the impacts of Covid and moved our businesses forward.

As much as we would have loved to hang on to the “good old days” our survival longer term will not allow that to happen, says Mr Cryer.

The number and nature of the learnings are too many to run through as part of this overview.

To this end I will select a few of the key areas that 74 propertyandbuild.com

impacted us the most and detail how we have factored them into our future way of working.

Overarching in all of the learnings and what we now believe is pivotal to our being successful in the future requires us to be increasingly nimble, data and technology centric and regularly communicating.

Pacific Islands and Australia.

The audit planning and confirmation process can take anywhere from 10 minutes to a day, depending on the nature of the audit. The bigger and more complex the audit the more time needed.

For this exercise I will break Telarc’s case for

“The later environment requires team members to educate and provide clients with confidence that the options being offered, even if novel, can work” As a service company the core driver of our operating model is “audit days scheduled and completed”.

Historically the demand did not move around too much.

During the Covid restrictions period it has been a wild ride, to put it mildly. To create a sense of context Telarc conducts roughly 40-50 mostly on-site audits a week in New Zealand, the

action and operating model response into - root cause, effect on the business, learning and changes.

To further simplify this overview the root cause and elements of the effect are consistent between each of areas where learning and change has occurred.

These common elements are listed below and are

fundamental to all of the learnings and resulting changes, detailed as Learning and changes 1 -3.

Root cause

A sudden change in the regional or national Covid restriction levels (either up or down)

Effect on the business

Telarc’s forward work-plan is hit hard and fast with deferments, cancellations or a switch to remote or partial remote audits. The impact is predominantly felt in working with clients to rearrange and agree to audits.

Sudden and large-scale changes to the audit schedule impacts the business financially as well as creating significant levels of administrative overhead/ burden as a variety of manual “work arounds” are put in place.

Learning and changes – area one

The first of the learnings and resulting changes to our operating model relates to “mind-set”.

The business now requires all members of the team to understand the options available to work under “business as usual” or a “restrictions tightening” or “restrictions easing” world.

The later environment requires team members to educate and provide clients with confidence that the options being offered, even if novel, can work. And, ultimately, allow the client to retain certification.

Key changes now embedded into the business from this learning area are: • Escalation pathways for rapid decision-making are now formalised and utilised. Forums have been established on a weekly or bi-weekly basis that

APRIL- MAY 2022 allow decision escalation and calibration of learnings based on the market mood • Key Telarc front-line workers are encouraged to get involved and are given the mandate to support clients as they see fit (trouble-shoot mind-set). Decisions and choices made by front line workers are not re-litigated even if it has a detrimental financial impact on the business.

• The mind-set of the various layers of the business (Governance to front-line) moves from managing to a forecasted productivity and profitability level, to one of retain as much work as we are able to keep clients happy and the team and the business active.

• All members of the team are supported to ensure the mind-set remains positive during what is a

very challenging period (emotionally and commercially). Monitoring workers well- being and proactively supporting them when concerns are flagged are pivotal.

Learning and changes – area two

The second of the learnings and resulting changes to our operating model relates to the nature of audit type and support model.

As site access became increasingly challenging, fully remote or partially remote/on-site later audits (hybrid audits), became the norm. Audit success factors switched overnight from: • Managing a single client engagement that requires an ability to get around the country and access key client representatives all supported by reliable transport options, client availability and good logis-

tical planning.

• to, having to manage a potentially moving target that requires access to good technology and or reliable/intuitive platform(s) via well-planned, easily-accessed virtual meetings. The technology choice utilised needed the ability to transfer large files / evidence as well having good video technology all operated over reliable high speed home broadband. All of this in turn needed to be supported by a responsive/ timely in-house IT service desk.

Key changes now embedded into the business from this learning area are: 1. All key front line Telarc employees are provided with regularly upgraded top of the line phones and laptops that have best in class with video calling / multi-party

meeting management applications installed on them as well as access to all internal technology.

2. All key front-line workers are paid “working from home” allowances to ensure they can set up their home broadband with a high-speed solution 3. Service delivery is now a role in the management structure as a result of the increased priority that having working/ available good technology plays in our being successful 4. The skill sets of the people we now look to employ sees increased focus on technology skills, broad and extensive operational experience, good positive communication skills, ability to manage face-to-face or virtual audits and being nimble to deal with the idiosyncrasies that

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APRIL- MAY 2022

changes in restrictions throws at them (trouble shooting mind-set) 5. Office design has been amended moving from desk and chair to remote noise proof auditing pods with design features based on our learnings from two years of conducting remote audits.

6. The CRM has been redesigned to incorporate the potential for multi-dimensional, fast changing audit plans and scopes.

An audit reporting tool is under development that sits over the new data structures developed as a result of future proofing the CRM. 7. Longer term scheduling and client self-service are being scoped out for inclusion in the systems architecture to ensure the future operating model is able to deal with increasing levels of complexity and ambiguity.

Learning and changes – area three

The third of the learnings and resulting changes to our operating model relates to “determining and communicating change”.

As office access and getting the team physically together became increasingly difficult, trying to 76 propertyandbuild.com

make changes to the operating model and implement them consistently required increasing levels of virtual contact and communication.

Business success factors switched overnight from refining and improving a relatively refined and prov-

and from governance level to front-line) to understand any new or proposed changes 3. Operating guidelines are developed to support the market conditions that each of the restriction levels creates. Changes to guidelines or policies

“What we now believe is pivotal to our being successful in the future requires us to be increasingly nimble, data and technology centric and regularly communicating” en way of doing business at regular six- monthly group training events to having to manage demands on the fly for change from clients, regulators and accreditation bodies and having to prototype, refine and deliver changes to a distributed/ remote working group of recipients.

Key changes now embedded into the business from this learning are: 1. A weekly management meeting that discusses market influence factors and how those factors might further disrupt the businesses operating model 2. Regular forums established to seek feedback from all key stakeholder contact points (inside and outside the business

are only made when significant changes are announced or key stakeholders are changing their protocols for certification or site access.

These are communicated on the day they arise and/or are confirmed as they come into force.

4. Focused communications and calibration meetings are held with client facing groups to share and create joint understanding of guide-

lines/directives. Weekly communication methods, along with our process management tool, are heavily utilised to share changes to processes or approaches 5. Regional training forums established to allow one person to travel and communicate to a smaller group rather than many travelling and meeting as a larger group.

While not earth-shattering in nature the changes implemented are allowing Telarc to survive the periods when restrictions create high levels of disruption.

The changes are all designed to allow the business to move quickly into a defensive operating position when required.

The systems and process changes are all designed to allow key internal stakeholders to manage change in a more integrated (eventually automated) manner.

Telarc’s business has been disrupted and while in the vice of Covid it has learnt how to survive and now longer term how to be successful.

The learnings we have integrated into our operating model are pivotal. Hoping to go back to the “good old days” is off the table.

As a company we will survive and we will thrive by continuing to anticipate and deal with change as both the local and the international environment force us to do.

Philip Cryer is CEO of Telarc, a Crown Entity subsidiary with a vision to provide its clients with end to end, impartially audited Food & Wine and Management Systems Certification and Training services. www.telarc.org | 0800 004 004

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APRIL- MAY 2022

Commercial property bounces back from restrictions Demand for real estate is expected to pick up across all asset classes, although recovery will remain multispeed, says JLL New Zealand Head of Research Gavin Read

M

arket activity for sub-sectors will continue to be driven on an opportunity-by-opportunity assessment basis. As borders are planned to open further in 2022, cross-border investments into New Zealand should recover with increased travel and accessibility thus supporting transaction activity.

We highlight some key property thoughts for 2022 that will impact on property decision making as follows:

• Environmental, social and governance considerations will continue to be at the forefront of conversations and increasingly underpin prime real estate decisions for all key stakeholders.

• With increasing interest

rates and murmurings that funding is getting tighter, there will be continued focus on the quality of occupiers to secure predictable and sustainable future returns for investors.

• Investment decisions will continue to focus on the longer-term horizons and see through the 78 propertyandbuild.com

shorter-term impacts of the pandemic on the economy.

• Quality offerings of all asset classes will attract tenants, as the ‘flight to quality trend’ continues to be increasingly important, along with a widening divergence between prime and secondary assets.

Auckland Industrial Demand Supported by robust demand from both manufacturing and logistic occupiers, Auckland industrial market remains tightly held as demand continues to outpace supply.

With tenants competing strongly for space in 2H21, vacancy fell: from 2.3 to 0.9 percent in Auckland City from 2.1 to 1.0 percent on the North Shore from 1.5 to 0.8 percent in Auckland South.

Although we don’t track vacancy rates for the North West precinct, overall vacancy fell for Auckland industrial fell from 1.9% to 0.9%.

Demand is particularly

strong for well-located and modern facilities as occupiers consider long-term efficiency and sustainability strategies.

Any weakness in demand is much more likely to be experienced in the secondary market as tenants move into new or better stock.

With that being said, secondary assets with under-utilised land are likely to be targeted by add-value investors or developers for redevelopment or refurbishment opportunities, especially those in good locations.

Supply There were two completions reported during 4Q21, both in the Auckland South precinct.

The first was the completion of one of the lots at 78 Tidal Road in Mangere, a warehouse by Centura. The other was a warehouse for Wurth NZ at McLaughlins Road in Wiri.

There remains a number of developments in the pipeline supported by strong demand.

In Auckland City, these are spread across Mt Wellington, Otahuhu, St Johns, Sandringham, Mt Albert, Mt Roskill, Onehunga and Ellerslie.

Developments on the North Shore are concentrated in Silverdale, but are also spread across Takapuna, Northcote, Albany and Rosedale.

Auckland South industrial developments are spread

APRIL- MAY 2022 Auckland industrial developments in the pipeline Auckland City 15-21 Bell Avenue in Mt Wellington is a brownfield development with capacity to deliver 10,000 sqm of high stud warehouse facility by 2H22, with a budget of over $40 million.

The Microsoft Data Centre is underway in the CBD, with a budget of $100 million, projected to be completed by 2024.

The construction of hydrogen generation facilities at Waitemata Port has a budget of $50 million and is projected to be completed by 2023.

North Shore National Storage Albany at Don McKinnon Drive in Albany has a budget of $25 million with completion expected in 2H22.

The industrial development at Newman Road in Silverdale has a budget of $10 million and is expected to be completed in the first half of 2023.

Auckland South A Southern Gateway Development by James Kirkpatrick Group at Princes Road in Manukau has a budget of around $1 billion.

Various sites are under construction by Logos Property in Wiri with a total expected cost of over $90 million.

Rent: Auckland City industrial

North West Hobsonville Business Park at 96 Hobsonville Point Road in Hobsonville is a development by HD Group Investments and has a budget of above $50 million.

The development of Kakano Business Park in Westgate by Midpoint Investments has a budget of above $15 million.

Costco Westgate, Mainfreight's new warehouse within the Brigham Creek Business Park and 18 office/industrial units at 14 Northside Drive, Westgate will make up a total area of more than 48,000 sqm. out across East Tamaki, Mangere, Manukau, Matakana, Takanini, Otara, Highgate, Brookby, Wiri, Drury, Papakura, Pukekohe and Waiuku, with expected completions from 2H22 through to 1H26.

There are many developments in the pipeline for the North West precinct, most of which are located in the up and coming Hobsonville Business Park.

Asset performance Industrial assets remain the most sought-after class

for investment.

Prime yields for all Auckland industrial for 4Q21 held at the previous quarter’s historical low of 3.88%, as well as secondary yields holding at 5.00%.

Average rents for prime stock for all Auckland industrial increased slightly from $172 in 3Q21 to $174 in 4Q21, while average rents for secondary stock stayed stable $139.

By precninct, rents in Auckland City rose for the second quarter in a row with prime up slightly to

$177 per sqm from $174 per sqm, and secondary staying the same at $140 per sqm.

Average land values for the precinct increased slightly from $1,350 per sqm in 2021 to $1,400 per sqm in 4Q21.

On the North Shore, rents stayed stable for the fourth consecutive quarter at $170 per sqm for prime stock and $140 for secondary stock.

Average prime land values for the precinct increased slightly by $50 per sqm to $1,300 per sqm for the fourth quarter.

Rents in the Auckland South precinct rose for prime stock for the third quarter in row from $172 per sqm in 3Q21 to $176 per sqm in 4Q21, and secondary stayed at $138 per sqm.

Average land values for Auckland South increased slightly from $1,150 per sqm in 3Q21 to $1,175 per sqm in 4Q21.

Meanwhile average land values for the Auckland north west precinct stayed consistent at the 3Q21 value of 1,250 per sqm, with continuing strong demand for propertyandbuild.com 79

APRIL- MAY 2022 industrial land in this region.

Notable transactions included an industrial centre at the intersection of Church Street and Captain prings Road in Onehunga in 3Q21, acquired by Jasper for $35.4 million.

There was also a private sale of 23-25 Porana Road in Wairau Valley for $14 million and he acquisition of a brand new industrial estate at 78 Tidal Road, Mangere

by Centuria.

With interest rates now on the rise there is an expectation for a slow upward movement in yields towards the end of 2022, with prime and secondary yields drifting above 4.75% and 5.75% respectively by the end of 2026.

Retail Demand Even though retail has been one of the hardest hit industries from the pandemic, Auckland suburban retail continues to hold up.

We continue to see new major multi-national brands wanting to enter the countries retail market with the most recent announcement from Ikea of their proposed retail store and online offering at Sylvia Park.

Vacancy decreased from 12.4% in 1H21 to 10.0% in 2H21. This is different to CBD retail, where vacancy increased from 7.1% during 1H21 to 8.1% during 2H21.

This is due to changing business strategies of SME retail businesses, and their focus moving away from physical presence towards a strong online presence.

Foot traffic has also shifted from the CBD to the suburbs, as more people start working from home even after lockdown restrictions have ended.

Despite this, leasing momentum is positive in parts 80 propertyandbuild.com

of Auckland CBD. Offerings close to transport nodes and the waterfront continue to see new tenants taking over any vacancies, as evidenced by Espresso vacating corner of Queen and Customs Streets being replaced by luxury jewellery company Van Cleef & Arpels.

Interest is starting to build further up Queen Street where shops are close to the City Rail Link (CRL), which is nearing completion. This area is expected to have an increase in foot traffic once CRL starts operating.

Supply No notable retail-based completions were recorded for 4Q21.

However, the refurbishment of Countdown CBD in Britomart, together with the completion of Beaumont Apartments in the Wynyard Quarter with retail spaces on the ground floor has assisted in creating minimal positive net increase in supply for the CBD. The supply of new offerings in the CBD remain limited to ground floor retail components of other development types (office, residential or hotel) as highlighted above.

Ongoing developments

such as One Queen Street (office), One Mills Lane (office), Seascape (apartment) and Voco & Holiday Inn Express (hotel), all include ground floor retail components.

The luxury precinct continues to be underway at Westfield Newmarket mall with most of the shops anticipated opening around Christmas time.

In addition, Ikea’s megastore remains in early planning with proposals provided for both West Auckland and South Auckland where there remains greenfield land available that would be suitable.

Vacancy and Occupied Space: Auckland CBD Retail

Development pipeline is spread across various suburban precincts, including Mt Albert, Newmarket, Takapuna and Albany. A number of these developments are mixed-use and include hotels and apartments with retail and hospitality spaces on the ground floors.

Asset performance Rents remain stable for majority of the suburban retail categories. As at 4Q21, prime suburban retail average rent held at $925 per sqm and secondary suburban average rents remained at $325 per sqm.

Prime CBD rents also remained stable for 4Q21, after increasing in 3Q21 by 5.1% (q-o-q) reaching $2,575 per sqm. Leasing activity remained strong along the lower end of Queen Street and in Wynyard Quarter.

Yields remained unchanged at 6.06% for prime stock and 8.94% for suburban stock on the back of limited transactional evidence, and no new sizable retail stock coming to market.

However, with interest

APRIL- MAY 2022 rates now rising there is an expectation for a slow upward movement in yields towards the end of 2022.

Investors will remain selective over the near term with a focus well located in strategic areas with quality retail tenancies, and the simmering confidence that the very high vaccination rates of New Zealanders as we look to ‘live with’ COVID in our communities.

Office Auckland CBD

Demand Our 2H21 vacancy survey results showed mixed results across the area.

Overall vacancy in the CBD office increased from 10.6% to 11.5% suggesting an additional 12,290 sqm of available space, however there is an uneven spread of occupancy across the city on a building-by-building basis.

In comparison by grade, prime stock vacancy for 4Q21 was at 8.5% while secondary stock vacancy was recorded at 14.6%.

There has been an increase in divergence both in vacancies and in rents, between prime and secondary office buildings.

Meanwhile, vacancy reduced for Auckland fringe office space from 12.0% to 10.8%, while Auckland suburban space also decreasing from 9.8% to 7.6%.

Vacancy in Symonds Street is predicted to decrease further in 2022 depending on international students, as education services make up a big proportion of occupiers here.

Overall vacancy also decreased in the Southern Corridor from 14.6% to 7.1%, mainly due Central Park and Millennium Centre being leased up.

However vacancy in-

creased from 6.5% to 8.2% in Takapuna, and marginally increased in Albany from 7.4% to 7.5%.

Some of the larger vacancies in the North Shore suburbs which we track, include the 2,800 sqm Air NZ space in Takapuna and 1,800 sqm space at 9-11 Corinthian Drive in Albany.

Looking forward, rising employment confidence and strong hiring demand in the labour market should support ongoing demand for office space.

Though, with substantial supply forecasted in the short-to-medium term (particularly in the CBD), the suburban office market is likely to remain challenged

2024) and One Queen Street (14,300 sqm premium space, estimated completion 2023) continue to be the most significant developments in this market.

These developments are predicted to significantly increase prime office stock in the CBD. Other notable projects in the pipeline include 3-15 Albert (15,000 sqm new build), 35 Graham Street (24,000 sqm refurbishment), 87 Alberts (14,500 sqm refurbishment) and the final stage of Precinct Wynyard Quarter innovation precinct (~18,000 sqm across three buildings), all currently in planning stage.

There are also projects in

Vacancy and occupied space: Auckland Southern Corridor: Office

as backfill vacancy and rationalisation of space continue to dampen demand.

However with that being said, comparatively affordable rentals of the suburban office market will continue to attract tenants.

Supply No new buildings were completed in 4Q21, thoug the completion of 136 Fanshawe (100% occupancy) during 3Q21 added 20,000 sqm of A-grade stock to the CBD office supply.

One Mills Lane (25,0000 sqm A-grade space, estimated completion mid

the pipeline spread across Newmarket, Freemans Bay, Parnell, Grafton, Mt Eden and Greenlane.

Of those, Manson’s One Ten Carlton Gore Road in Newmarket, the refurbishment of 24 Balfour Road in Parnell and 9-15 Marewa Road in Greenlane are the most notable.

In the Southern Corridor, moderate supply is anticipated in the short to medium term.

Most projects here are mixed office and retail developments, including Building 2 at 9-15 Marewa Road (Kimberley Trust,

~5,300sqm new build) and 656 Great South Road (Mansons, 6,000 sqm refurbishment).

Both developments are targeting a Green Star rating and would look to set new benchmarks for the Southern Corridor office market once completed, with an expected completion date in 2022.

However, medium-term office projects in the precinct remain either on-hold or in early planning as developers wait patiently for the next property cycle.

These include the $120 million LQ Hotel mixeduse development by Safari Group Ltd (currently in planning).

Consequently, limited new supply in the medium term may help to support rental levels and vacancy in the Southern Corridor.

As for the North Shore, there are several developments in the pipeline, with projects scattered across Albany, Pinehill, Takapuna, Milford, Northcote, Wairau Valley, Orewa and Silverdale.

Supply continues to be focused in Albany which has available land for development.

Notable projects in the pipeline include the $120 million Munroe Lane office development by Asset Plus Limited. With an anticipated completion date of 2H22, the project is expected to deliver ~15,000 sqm of 5 Green Star office accommodation to be anchored

by Auckland Council on a 15-year lease.

Another major development is at Goldwater Drive in Silverdale by the name of East Coast Heights. This is a mixed office and retail development with a budget of $100 million and expected completion by 2025. propertyandbuild.com 81

APRIL- MAY 2022 Asset performance Rents in some precincts stayed steady with an upward trend supported by ongoing occupier demand for quality.

This was true of average rents in the Southern Corridor, at $273 for 4Q21 and are forecasted to reach $289 by December 2026.

Prime rents in the CBD and fringe precincts were also steady at $521 per sqm.

Secondary rents on the other hand decreased in these precincts, as tenants try and get into premium buildings where space is available.

In the CBD they dropped to $224 per sqm and in the fringe precincts to $251.

Secondary rents are likely to face additional downward pressure through to 2023 in an increasingly more competitive market, with the gap between prime and secondary rents expected to widen.

Average rents for suburban precincts stayed consistent at $299 per sqm.

Though Takapuna remained at $320 for 4Q21, given the recent small increase in vacancies for the North Shore, we expect this to impact Takapuna rents with a small reduction to $315 by the end of 2022, followed by a gradual increase to above $330 by the end of 2026.

There were four notable transactions recorded during 4Q21, all in the fringe or suburban precincts.

These included sales of the PFI Building in Epsom, Sky TV Campus in Mt Wellington, Fidelity House in Newmarket, and the property at 99-115 St Georges Bay Road in Parnell.

Despite these transactions, yields held steady for the fringe and suburban precincts in 4Q21 at 5.75%.

While we are aware of a few notable deals currently under contract in the CBD, yields held steady here too. Overall, average prime yields remained at 4.69% (the lowest levels ever recorded by JLL) and average secondary yields remained at 5.75% as at 4Q21.

Southern Corridor yields held steady for 4Q21 at 6.50%. This represents a range between 5.50% and 6.00%. Yields are forecasted to increase slowly to reach 6.50% by 2023.

On the North Shore, average yields remained at 5.63% and are forecast to gradually increase in the coming years to over 6.00% by the end of 2026.

Hoever, with interest rates now on the rise, we will need to see evidence of transactions to establish if the expected slow upwards movement in yields by the end of 2022 transpires.

Yields Auckland CBD Office

82 propertyandbuild.com

Wellington Industrial Demand Our latest 2H21 vacancy survey shows overall vacancy fell 70 bps to 2.1% from 2.8% with tenants competing strongly for space as it becomes available.

In comparison by precincts, Grenada North saw the largest fall in available space with the vacancy rate decreasing 230bps from 5.6% to 3.3%. Vacancies for Petone and Seaview decreased marginally, and Nguaranga and Porirua bucked the recent trend with minimal increases for second half of 2021.

Current market conditions give no indication of any significant increases in vacancy for the foreseeable

future across the Wellington industrial precincts. With little new supply entering the market, vacancy will continue to range around present structural lows.

Supply Between June 2017 and June 2021, we recorded only ~31,000 sqm of new supply entering the market averaging 3,500 sqm per year.

There was just one development completed for during the last quarter, being 37 Percy Cameron Street, being a warehouse and office space, with an NLA of 1,987 sqm.

We are aware of just one more project for Wellington industrial currently underway. The Lyall Bay Junction has an expected completion date in second half of 2023.

Though the limited supply pipeline has supported cur-

Yields Wellington Industrial

APRIL- MAY 2022 rent rental levels and kept vacancy levels low, and with little to no availability of new industrial space, any possibility of expansion or relocation over the near future remains a challenge for the market.

Asset performance Prime gross rents remained unchanged for 4Q21 at $165 per sqm. Secondary gross rents have a range of $128 per sqm to $140 per sqm for 4Q21. We expect rents for both prime and secondary assets to resume increasing for the foreseeable future due to limited scope for new development activity.

There were no transactions recorded for Wellington industrial for 4Q21.

Notable transactions for the second half of 2021 remained those recorded during 3Q21, being 29 Parkway, Wainuiomata which sold for $7.95 million, land area of 12,900 sqm and building area of ~8,800 sqm, and 176 Gracefield Road selling for $7.5 million with land area of 8,200 sqm and total building area ~4,510 sqm.

Average prime yields held at 5.83% for 4Q21, and secondary remaining at 7.00%, While we do expect yields to increase gradually by a total of 0.5% by 2026, it is yet to be seen how this market will react to increasing interest rates during 2022.

Retail Demand We have observed that tenants are becoming more strategic about the spaces they lease in Wellington.

With continued low foot traffic in the CBD and growth in E-commerce, some retailers have chosen an online model to reduce

costs, to the more traditional physical retail space offering, with an example of this change including OfficeMax. As a result, total vacancy moved higher by 62 bps in 4Q21 to 9.45% due to less demand for physical space.

In Wellington’s CBD retail sub-precinct, where a majority of retail units are located or close proximity to the Golden Mile, our 2H21 vacancy survey recorded an increase in vacancy of 153 bps from 8.7% to 10.2%, highlighting the effects of the increased challenges for the retailers in this sub-precinct.

Supply We did not record any completions for this market during the second half od 2021. However, we did record positive net completion in our 1H21 vacancy survey, including the new unit at 104 Cuba Street, part of Willis Bond’s Cuba Precinct development, with six units totalling 1,000 sqm completed.

We also noted the partial completion of 16-20 Willis Street, around 1,050 sqm, with a variety of tenants now occupying spaces in the mall, and construction is still underway on the remaining units.

Despite ongoing development in the Wellington CBD, however a continued

lack of large-format retail under development in the CBD means any significant changes to supply are unlikely in the short term.

Asset performance Average prime retail rents for 4Q21 remained unchanged at $857 per sqm and $600 per sqm for secondary stock. Rents have stayed consistent since fir the second half of 2021 for CBD prime stock and since first quarter of 2021 for CBD secondary stock.

With no significant transactions for the retail market in 2021, and all recent new stock in the CBD being a component of buildings of other use types, primarily office yields have remained unchanged for 4Q21. Current yields for prime CBD is 7.19%, prime suburban is 10.0% and secondary CBD 9.44%.

We are forecasting yields for prime CBD, prime suburban and secondary CBD to slowly towards the later part of 2022, as a result of the rising interest rates.

Office Demand By grade, prime vacancy dropped from 1.8% to a mere 0.9% while secondary vacancy also decreased substantially by 320 bps from 10.2% to 7.0%. Wellington core (CBD and Thorn-

don) office vacancy also reduced from 5.1% to 3.3% overall.

Te Aro also recorded a fall in vacancy by 350 bps from 10.8% to 7.3% over 2H21.

When compared to the CBD and Thorndon, Te Aro continues to be an attractive location for tech, startup and SME companies due to its relative affordable office offering.

With government tenants as a key demand driver for office space, prime vacancy is expected to remain low while secondary vacancy may face some upward pressure as we are expecting increasing backfill vacancy from completing developments.

Supply No new project completions were recorded for 4Q21 for Wellington CBD office, just the completion of the seismic upgrade for 30 Waring Taylor Street.

Pre-leasing activity in new builds such as 8-14 Willis Street (12,300 sqm, 100% preleased), 40-44 Bowen Street (22,000 sqm, 100% pre- leased), and 1 Whitmore Street (17,500 sqm, 100% pre-leased) are set to create a quantum of backfill space availability through 2022 and 2023 in existing A-grade buildings.

Also expecting to add to the backfill space story will be the recently compropertyandbuild.com 83

APRIL- MAY 2022 menced projects such as the Wellington Archive Building (15,000 sqm) and 48 Mulgrave Street (4,500 sqm) are also 100% leased to government tenants with similar delivery timeframe of 2022/2023.

Asset performance For the last quarter of 2021, A-grade spaces gross average rents increased to $618 per sqm from $613 per sqm. B-grade, average gross rentals also increasing from $448 per sqm to $453 per sqm. B- grade incentives stayed consistent at 6.10% as owners look to maintain face rents to retain/attract tenants.

With limited available stock transacting, this has kept yields unchanged for the fourth consecutive quarter. Prime gross yields stayed at an average of 6.25% (a range of 5.50% to 7.00%).

Notable transactions for 2H21 remained those recorded during 3Q21, including Precinct’s acquisition of both Bowen House ($92 million) and the Freyberg Building ($49 million), with plans to refurbish both buildings in the near future.

Investors remain interested in acquiring new or strengthened office stock in good locations, or value add properties with good opportunities.

Rent Wellington Office

84 propertyandbuild.com

Christchurch Industrial Demand Vacancy reduced across all precincts in Christchurch for 4Q21, with overall vacancy at 2.6% being the city’s lowest on record since 2014, as a result of strong demand and limited new stock coming to market.

With limited new stock some tenants are having to remain where they are or take secondary space, as opposed to moving to the preferred option of newer, more modern space where they would be paying a premium for such space.

We expect tight conditions will continue through 2022, with demand not expected to ease from investors and occupiers for industrial.

Supply Christchurch holds the draw card when compared to Auckland and Wellington for its availability of industrial development land. This is expected to provided the region with a continuing increase in interest from occupiers and investors.

We continue to expect the expansion of total supply to be at a well managed pace, without large amounts of stock coming to the market quickly. This is supported

by the construction pipeline which will see positive net completions throughout 2022.

Pre-leasing activity will continue to be a key to viability of developments with comparatively little speculative accommodation been seen coming to the market.

Asset performance We observed minimal rental growth for Christchurch prime industrial rents for the fourth quarter of 2021. Average prime net face rents increased by 0.4% to $127 psm during 4Q21, while secondary net face rents held at $101 psm.

We saw a minimal increase in the gap between prime and secondary industrial rents in Christchurch.

Given there is still limited new stock projected in the short term, this will support the medium term forecast of minimal rental growth for both prime and secondary industrial assets in Christchurch.

For 18 months yields have remained unchanged for the Christchurch industrial market. Looking forward with interest rates now on the rise we expect yields to initially hold steady in 2022 and then gradually drift higher as a result of the higher interest rates.

Retail Demand Christchurch retail market sentiment has been a positive story throughout 2021, due to less restrictive lockdowns. This has been supported by the open domestic market, and retail spending in the region being one of the least impacted in comparison to other regions within New Zealand underpinning demand.

With domestic borders open mid December, just in

time for the holiday period, which was expected to provide an increase in foot traffic and a boost to consumer spending in retail and hospitality.

What is uncertain for Christchurch for early 2022, is the level of any future impact, with retailers now operating under the new ‘traffic light’ system, there is a sense that with the borders opening the CBD’s foot traffic will reduce with impacts of Omicron.

Supply Christchurch’s retail sector does comprise a high proportion of quality retail stock, as result of the rebuild over several years.

This is more prominent in the CBD area where newly constructed offices are now open and popular with tenants. The reducing vacancy trend continued in 4Q21 for Christchurch CBD retail space, with no new supply for the second half of 2021.

The development pipeline remains unchanged with approximately 15 projects under construction. These developments are made up of primarily mixed-use developments, with smaller ground floor retail components. The scheduled completion dates ranging between early 2022 through to late 2023.

Asset performance Christchurch retail rents seemed to have found a floor at current ranges and remaining at current levels throughout 2021. With short- lived restrictions in the City, rents remain unchanged across the board for the fifth consecutive quarter, with prime CBD net rents at $575 psm.

Much of the local retail focus had remained in the CBD throughout most of

APRIL- MAY 2022

Rent Christchurch Retail

2021, however for the last quarter of the year with the growing uncertainty of COVID, the suburbs have had more support from the ‘shop locally’ mentality.

One major transaction for Christchurch being the Palms shopping mall selling in 4Q21 for $88.8million.

Outside this transaction there was very little activity in the last three months.

Yields continue to remain well supported, with average prime CBD yields unchanged at 6.25% and prime suburban yields reducing by 25bps to 6.00% .

Office Demand The general sentiment and demand for quality office space remains very positive with leasing enquiries continuing, particularly so in the CBD. Tenants that are wanting

to move to the CBD, are struggling with the limited opportunities due to lowering vacancy rates.

Vacancies are now at their lowest with prime at 3.2% and secondary 6.0%, which is a result of the limited new stock coming to market.

With the minimal supply of new offerings and the very low vacancy for prime, tenants looking to relocate in the short term, may need to consider secondary locations where there is higher vacancy and opportunities.

the near term keep supply behind demand.

At least for the first half of 2022, there is an expectation that there will be no easing of the limited labour resources, international borders to open on a staggered basis, rising construction costs and supply chain issues all point to continuing to impact future viability of projects unless the development has secured good tenant(s) with strong covenants and long lease terms.

Asset performance For the fourth quarter of 2021, we have seen the second quarter in a row of minimal rental growth of prime CBD net rents, up 1.50%. This provides the continuation of the divergence started last quarter between prime CBD rents and prime suburban rents,

as a result of low vacancy, lean supply and tenants wanting to be nearer to the City Centre.

With CBD space being newer in stock in comparison to other cities, this is a contributing factor to 4Q21 being the fifth successive quarter for yields remaining flat at 5.38%.

As noted previously, interest in prime stock Christchurch office stock from investors outside the region have continued in the last quarter of 2021 and is expected to continue into 2022, with limited assets coming to market in other regions. We forecast yields will gradually start to rise towards the end of 2022, as rising interest rates start to have an impact.

First published February 2022 by jll.co.nz

Vacancy and occupied space: Christchurch Office

Supply With net completion back 760 sqm for 2H21, this provides a very minimal increase for the year of 776 sqm for Christchurch.

This confirms what we have been saying in previous quarters, that the minimal future pipeline that is expected to come to market in the short term will in propertyandbuild.com 85

APRIL- MAY 2022

A

fter an initial four to five month period of housing uncertainty, the policy changes that were aimed at supporting the real economy – e.g. official cash rate cuts, quantitative easing, wage subsidies – also indirectly boosted the property market.

Of course, direct measures such as the removal of loan to value ratio speed limits also played a key role, and since August 2020 the average national property value has risen by 41.6%, or $307,245.

By territorial authority area, three have seen postCovid growth in average values in excess of 60% (Wairoa, South Wairarapa and Tararua), another 16 have had increases of at least 50%, and only one has been less than 25% (MacKenzie at 16.4%). In other words, it’s been a large and synchronised boom, reflecting common drivers, including low mortgage rates and tight listings.

That upswing is now quickly giving way to a sharp slowdown, and as affordability constraints bite, mortgage interest rates rise, and credit availability tightens, outright falls in property values in some parts of the country could well be on the cards in the coming months. In other words, we now seem to be quickly shifting into a ‘buy86 propertyandbuild.com

What have two years of Covid taught us about property?

It’s been a bizarre period for the housing market ever since New Zealand entered its first lockdown on 25 March 2020, with predictions of large falls in property values turning out to be way off track, CoreLogic Chief Economist Kelvin Davidson observes

er’s market’.

What do the figures show?

If we start with a simple comparison of apartments to flats, flats (think townhouses or terraced dwellings) have seen stronger growth in values.

In fact, apartments in Auckland City, and the North Shore too, have been relatively subdued, only seeing growth in median values of 5-10% over the past two years. That’s likely to have reflected the par-

ticular pressures in those areas from the absence of foreign students and the weak short-stay accommodation market (without tourists).

But in dollar terms, the levels are still pretty high – a budget of $700,000 would get you an apartment in Auckland City, but none of these other property types/ locations. Indeed, a flat on the North Shore is now pushing $1m.

Apartments vs flats post-

COVID % change in median values Switching to a comparison of flats to houses, it’s generally the case across the main centres that houses have seen stronger growth – and also that Christchurch, Tauranga, and Wellington have been the most buoyant locations in absolute terms.

However, that’s not universal, with flats in Christchurch and Dunedin actually seeing slightly

APRIL- MAY 2022 Change in median values as at Feburary 2022

larger increases in median values than houses.

Switching to values themselves, for any given budget, a flat is going to be more attainable than a house, with the smallest value gap (Dunedin) still standing at more than $170,000. It’s the only main centre where the median house value is still less than $700,000 (at $657,323), but flats are lower still, at $484,461. By contrast, in Auckland City, the increase (or value gap) to go from a flat to a house is far larger, at $747,684.

Around the main urban areas (i.e. the next tier of towns/cities outside the main centres), all have seen strong growth in values, regardless of property type – e.g. even Queenstown flats have gone up 23% – but there’s been a more mixed post-Covid experience in terms of the relative growth for flats versus houses.

In Whangarei and Queenstown, and to a lesser extent Invercargill, houses have outperformed flats.

But the opposite has been true in Hastings, Napier, Kapiti Coast, New Plymouth, Palmerston North and Nelson.

So what has been learnt (or re-learnt)?

• Apartments often tend to lag behind the other

property types, seeing smaller rises in value than houses (and flats) during upswings, and sometimes bigger falls in downswings. The reasons for this differ from cycle to cycle, but the end result is typically the same. In the post-COVID world, excluding apartments in Auckland City and North Shore, all other property types and locations have seen large increases.

• Housing market booms aren’t necessarily always ‘good’ for many owner occupiers, in particular those looking to trade up to a bigger property. For example, over the past two years, many would-be movers have been stuck where they are, either because they’ve had little suitable stock to choose from (listings low), or the financial/equity gap that needs to be closed in order to make the move has been too great, as the ‘next homes’ have sometimes risen faster in value than theirs.

• Credit availability and cost matter more for the market over shorter horizons than other ‘fundamentals’ like population growth or housing stock changes – indeed, without net migration in the past year or two, and with new housing supply also strong, proper-

ty values have still soared.

Why? We’ve had low interest rates and mortgages have been relatively easy to get, especially while the LVR limits were temporarily removed from April 2020 to March 2021.

• Low interest rates have a two-pronged influence on housing – making it cheap to borrow, but also reducing the incentive to hold cash in the bank. The post-COVID outflow of money from term deposits and into property highlights once again that kiwis need more ‘trusted’ investment options, and perhaps carrots to look at them rather than sticks for property. For example, tax breaks on KiwiSaver deposits could be an option.

• Housing affordability measures help to tell us where the market currently sits (relative to history, and certain regions against others) and unaffordability is clearly a handbrake on price growth over time.

But these measures don’t necessarily tell us that the upswing will end when the house price to income ratio reaches X or years to save a deposit hits Y – nor how the adjustment back to ‘normal’ will play out. Take years to save a deposit for example. It peaked at 9.4 in Q4 2016, a mark reached again in late 2020/early 2021. But the latest upswing then rolled on through 2021, simply extending that measure ever higher. propertyandbuild.com 87

APRIL- MAY 2022

Comparing markets with Australia – what can we learn?

As the number of Omicron cases rise, Colliers looks to Australian cities to see how New Zealand’s office, retail and industrial markets could track in the future

of capital which investors have accrued and plan to deploy within the sector.

The strong demand for New Zealand assets has been well illustrated by the recent confirmation that Precinct Properties has agreed to inject five of its properties, valued at about $590 million, to seed a new strategic investment portfolio with the Singaporean sovereign wealth fund.

A further uplift in overseas activity within the market is anticipated later in the year as border restrictions are eased.

Industrial Sector

Office Sector Over the past two decades, vacancy rates in Auckland’s CBD and metropolitan office markets have typically followed a similar path with Sydney (5.1mil sqm total inventory) and Melbourne (4.9mil sqm total inventory).

While the past two years have seen vacancy rates rise from cyclical lows in Auckland, Sydney and Melbourne, the Auckland metropolitan market as well as the Wellington CBD have not experienced the same level of vacancy rises in office accommodation, remaining relatively strong in comparison to other markets and by historical standards.

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Sydney and Auckland’s vacancy rates, which are at 9.0% and 10.9% respectively, have now started to ease from the escalation in vacancy arising from Covid-19.

New ‘back to work’ initiatives in Australia are likely to assist pull vacancy rates downwards and while Auckland’s Omicron wave is upon us now, the Auckland market is expected to also have reached a vacancy peak.

Wellington’s CBD continues to remain resilient, a feature of the lack of high quality stock available and solid government demand for office space. However, with ongoing seismic resilience requirements and only 22% of stock consid-

ered prime (premium and A-grade) quality space in comparison to 50% to 70% for Auckland, Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra, etc, new development activity will be key to alleviating availability pressures and unlocking the capital’s longterm growth prospects.

Investor demand for core office assets has resulted in yield compression over the last two years. Average prime yields in both Auckland and Wellington have firmed by approximately 50 basis points since the end of 2019 to 5.2% and 5.5% respectively.

While increasing interest rates suggest that yields will ease over the course of 2022 the impact is likely to be limited by the weight

Auckland and Wellington’s overall industrial vacancy rate, both at around 2%, are comparable to Sydney’s industrial vacancy rate, but slightly under Melbourne and Adelaide, with Perth’s industrial market at just over 4%.

Demand and supply pressures are prevalent across Australia and New Zealand, with land supply, cost constraints and a massive boost to demand from online retailing and infrastructure key to the sector’s performance.

With such tight leasing markets and rising costs in NZ, the pressure on rents to increase continue to mount.

While prime rental growth of 3% p.a. in Auckland and Wellington is forecast, the pressure for this to increase at higher rates are increasing steadily as inflation continues to rise.

Despite the disruption which constantly changing COVID-19 related rules and sanctions is having on the economy, New Zealand’s manufacturing sector has expanded for the fifth consecutive month.

The BNZ Business Per-

APRIL- MAY 2022 formance of Manufacturing Index (PMI) recorded an index of 52.1 in January 2022. (A PMI reading above 50 indicates that manufacturing is expanding, below 50 signifies that it is contracting).

With the exception of August 21, a month impacted by a COVID-19 enforced national lockdown, the PMI has registered growth every month since December 2020.

Of the main sub-indices only employment registered contraction.

The strongest results were delivered by Deliveries (53.8) and New Orders (53.3). New Zealand’s rating compares favourably with both Australia and China, which, according to J.P. Morgan’s Global Manufacturing PMI index, experienced contraction in the opening month of the year registering ratings of 48.4 and 49.1.

Retail Sector Retail leasing conditions in major CBD markets remain challenging as a result of Covid-19 impacts on pedes-

trian counts, inflation, staffing and consumer spending activity. Auckland CBD vacancy has reached a record high 14%, while Wellington’s vacancy remains more resilient at 4.9%, below the 25-year average.

While CBD prime rents have increased over the past decade in NZ and Australia, the gap between rents for the two country’s remains high. With ongoing border limitations in NZ versus an opening in Australia’s border restrictions and a return of CBD office workers, the gap is likely

to increase further moving forward.

Figures from Stats NZ show that actual retail card spending totalled $6.35 billion in January 2022, up $344.75 million (5.7%) on the January 2020 figure.

Core retail spending increased by $273 million influenced predominantly by a 9.4% increase in spending on consumables and a 5.7% lift in sales of durables. Only the hospitality sector saw a decline in sales values with total spending contracting by 2.9%.

The expansion of online

retailing has accelerated over the last two years.

Figures released by NZ post show that in 2021 online spending reached $7.67 billion. This represents annual growth of 21% which, following a huge year of growth in 2020, sees online spending now 52% larger than it was pre-pandemic.

NZ’s Offshore Sales Activity Despite NZ’s closed borders, offshore investment activity remains a highlight of NZ’s transactional market, a feature highlighted by the recent GIC/Precinct announcement.

While Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is elevating risk and uncertainty on international investment decision making currently, NZ’s ‘safe haven’ appeal will continue to remain a positive feature.

With border restrictions gradually easing in NZ, more so in the second half of 2022, a boost in offshore sales activity is expected that will lift overall sales values back in line with more recent sales trends over the past few years. colliers.co.nz propertyandbuild.com 89

APRIL- MAY 2022

Design centre future where timber construction leads the way Envisioning a future where timber is used more widely in mid to high rise buildings and contributes to carbon neutral targets, is an exciting opportunity

T

he tools to make this a reality are now coming together with the launch of the Timber Design Centre.

Te Uru Rākau – New Zealand Forest Service deputy director general Jason Wilson announced the launch at the WoodWorks conference, explaining that the Timber Design Centre aims to increase the use of timber, particularly in structures such as offices, hotels and multi-storey apartments.

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The Centre will provide expert advice, research, information and educational resources for those in building design and construction. The services are being shaped directly by industry and the timberdesigncentre.co.nz website has been created to support this from day one.

The Centre’s work programme will be co-designed with a wide range of people involved in the building construction process including developers,

designers, council planners and consenters, architects, engineers, builders, building owners, students and researchers.

The Centre is an initiative between Te Uru Rākau – New Zealand Forest Service and a consortium comprising Scion (Crown Research Institute), the Wood Processors and Manufacturers Association (WPMA), New Zealand Timber Design Society and BRANZ. The consortium explains

that the greater use of timber in construction provides an opportunity for the sector to support the Government’s commitment to be carbon-neutral by 2050, whilst realising the broader economic and wellbeing benefits of including wood products in multi-storied buildings.

Scion sustainability architect Andrea Stocchero says the world is on a quest to decarbonise and many people don’t realise New Zealand’s built environment is responsible for about 20 percent of the country’s carbon footprint due to the emission of greenhouse gasses over the full life cycle of buildings. This includes embodied emissions of building materials and products.

“New Zealand can maximise the use of sustainably sourced, locally grown and manufactured wood products.

“Trees sequester carbon from the atmosphere while they’re growing, and as long as the wood is in use, that carbon is stored so

APRIL- MAY 2022 it’s not going back into the atmosphere. If the timber is sustainably certified it means that the forests are re-growing after each harvest, and the carbon sequestration cycle continues,” he explains.

Timber Design Society president Dr Daniel Moroder says the time is right for New Zealand to have a dedicated timber knowledge centre which provides advice and guidance on timber construction.

“Over recent years, the interest in engineered timber construction has increased significantly and we now need to ensure that clients, designers, contractors and authorities have all the information they need to build efficiently in timber.

“The centre aims to bring the timber industry together and to provide answers to all current obstacles we encounter during the design and consenting process of timber buildings,” he explains.

WPMA chief executive Stephen Macaulay says technological advancements in wood manufacturing provides an opportunity to accelerate the use of engineered mass timber products in medium to high rise buildings across New Zealand.

“The Centre has a key role to play in promoting greater use of an expanding range

Te Uru Rākau New Zealand Forest Service programme delivery forest science lead Emily Telfer showcases the new timberdesigncentre.co.nz website of timber products available to the construction industry.

Greater use of locally harvested timber products in apartments and offices not only significantly reduce the carbon footprint of these building structures, it also offers the natural characteristic of comfort and warmth to occupants that are rarely found in other building materials.”

BRANZ General Manager of Research Dr Chris Litten says the development of the centre has been a true collaboration between Government, industry and the research community.

“We are excited by the role the Timber Design Centre will play in challenging

the construction sector to produce healthier and more sustainable buildings.

BRANZ is proud to support the work of the Timber Design Centre in providing evidence-based information for low-emissions construction.”

The Government is funding the Timber Design Centre as part of its Fit for a Better World roadmap and is one of several key initiatives under way this year to help transform the forest and wood processing sector.

The Timber Design Centre encourages and facilitates greater use of timber in the design and construction of all building projects. It has a particular focus on non-residential buildings and multi-story residential buildings. Visit www.timberdesigncentre.co.nz propertyandbuild.com 91

APRIL- MAY 2022

Come as a guest.

Leave as a local.

No matter where your business travel takes you, you can live as local as you like.

Want to find an award-winning flat white? How about the best restaurant to charm clients in town? Because we’re local, we can point you towards the very best.

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