MARCH 2021
& INFRASTRUCTURE
LEADING LEVEL CROSSINGS
Meet the project directors behind two major level crossing removals
MORDIALLOC FREEWAY Building the missing link in Melbourne’s South-East Official media partners of
GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE Benefits to turning Australia’s infrastructure green
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MARCH 2021 CONTENTS
& INFRASTRUCTURE COVER STORY
14 Leadership for level crossings
Formwork for bridge supports on the Mordialloc Freeway.
PROJECT REPORT
16 Mordialloc freeway progression
AfPA
20 Meet the new National Sustainability Director 22 AfPA member profile
NATIONAL PRECAST
25 Precast on the Smithfield Bypass
ISCA
26 Recycled material on a major project
ROADS REVIEW
28 Industry leaders detail exciting innovations in 2021
RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT FEATURE
30 Circular economy at the asphalt plant 32 Continual innovation with the Road Ant Charbel Bou-Ghosn and Chris Camenzuli at the Citywide asphalt plant.
ASPHALT IN ACTION
34 Sealing green with the SAMIflex E HR range
ENVIRONMENT AND SUSTAINABILITY
40 Turning our infrastructure green
TECHNOLOGY AND EQUIPMENT
42 Recycled roadbase
38 Building foundations for regional growth
44 Grounded at the gate: Australia’s airports
36 Creating a digital shield
INFRASTRUCTURE IN FOCUS
REGULARS Green infrastructure could have major benefits for Australia. Photo by Ricardo Gomez on Unsplash.
4 E ditor’s note 6 News
The SAMIflex E HR range being sprayed on a project. roadsonline.com.au
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& INFRASTRUCTURE PUBLISHER Christine Clancy christine.clancy@primecreative.com.au MANAGING EDITOR Melanie Stark melanie.stark@primecreative.com.au EDITOR Lauren Jones lauren.jones@primecreative.com.au
PERPETUAL PROGRESS ON MARCH 10, 2020 Australia had recorded 100 coronavirus cases. At that point in time not too much had changed for the general population and workforce. Within the next 15 days, limits had been put on gatherings, spatial requirements were enacted, the Australian population were finally encouraged to work from home and nonessential businesses were ordered to close. I write this nearly an entire year on from these events and while much has changed, the challenges presented by coronavirus are still very much present. The infrastructure construction industry was labelled an essential service and was able to continue work, though practically very differently, throughout most of the last year. Once community coronavirus cases decreased the industry were able to operate with increased personnel once again allowed on site. Governments then allocated major funds to construction projects to help facilitate economic recovery. So far in 2021 three words have dominated news coverage; vaccine roll out. This year one of Australia’s biggest challenges is shaping up to be distribution of the vaccine, for which public infrastructure, roads, rail and airports will be crucial. In this edition we speak to Australian Airports Association CEO, James Goodwin about the crucial role airports will play in the distribution of a vaccine. On page 44 he notes, air travel is the only form of public transport in some remote parts of Australia, so the only way the vaccine or medical professionals will get to those places is by using the airport. We also look at some of the projects that have made major progress despite COVID-19 disruptions, such as the Mordialloc Freeway in south-east Victoria or the Smithfield Bypass in Queensland. With this rate of progression taking place while working patterns were majorly disrupted, we can only imagine what to expect from infrastructure construction in the coming 12 months.
DESIGN PRODUCTION MANAGER Michelle Weston michelle.weston@primecreative.com.au ART DIRECTOR Blake Storey DESIGN Kerry Pert, Madeline McCarty BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER Brad Marshall brad.marshall@primecreative.com.au CLIENT SUCCESS MANAGER Justine Nardone justine.nardone@primecreative.com.au
HEAD OFFICE Prime Creative Pty Ltd 11-15 Buckhurst Street South Melbourne VIC 3205 Australia p: +61 3 9690 8766 f: +61 3 9682 0044 enquiries@primecreative.com.au www.roadsonline.com.au SUBSCRIPTIONS +61 3 9690 8766 subscriptions@primecreative.com.au Roads & Infrastructure Australia is available by subscription from the publisher. The rights of refusal are reserved by the publisher. ARTICLES All articles submitted for publication become the property of the publisher. The Editor reserves the right to adjust any article to conform with the magazine format.
COPYRIGHT
Lauren Jones Editor, Roads & Infrastructure Magazine
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Roads & Infrastructure Australia is owned and published by Prime Creative Media. All material in Roads & Infrastructure Australia is copyright and no part may be reproduced or copied in any form or by any means (graphic, electronic or mechanical including information and retrieval systems) without the written permission of the publisher. The Editor welcomes contributions but reserves the right to accept or reject any material. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of information, Prime Creative Media will not accept responsibility for errors or omissions or for any consequences arising from reliance on information published. The opinions expressed in Roads & Infrastructure Australia are not necessarily the opinions of, or endorsed by the publisher unless otherwise stated.
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NEWS
CONTRACTORS COMPLETE WERRIBEE STREET LEVEL CROSSING REMOVAL Werribee Street level crossing is the 45th to be removed in the Victorian program.
Artists impression courtesy of Victoria’s Big Build.
Alliance contractors have completed the removal of Werribee Street Level Crossing, the 45th crossing to be removed in Melbourne. The team built a new one kilometre rail bridge south of Werribee Station to take freight and passenger trains above the road. In partnership with the Level Crossing Removal Project, an alliance of McConnell Dowell, Arup, Mott MacDonald and Metro Trains Melbourne have completed the build and are now undertaking design for 30,000 square metres of new public space.
PACIFIC HIGHWAY FLORA AND FAUNA PROTECTION PROGRAM BEGINS A rehabilitation program for threatened flora and fauna has begun at Teven as part of the Woolgoolga to Ballina Pacific Highway upgrade biodiversity offset program. A 220 hectare property at Teven has been given to NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service to continually protect native wildlife and vegetation along the highway. NSW Minister for Regional Transport and Roads Paul Toole said the
Pacific Highway upgrade has been a major investment in regional communities, creating more than more than 100,000 jobs over the lifecycle of the project – 3000 of those on the final Woolgoolga to Ballina section alone. “We’ve used about 1500 tonnes of recycled glass sourced from Lismore City Council and after being crushed and washed, it went into the concrete paving
used on the Wells Crossing to Glenugie section of the Woolgoolga to Ballina upgrade,” Toole said. State Member of the Legislative Council Ben Franklin said other sustainability initiatives used on the Pacific Highway upgrade included using cleared mulch for sediment controls, reusing rock and dirt cut from one site to fill other sections and fuelling a biomass-fired power generator with green waste.
Major construction works have now kicked off at the Old Geelong Road level crossing removal project in Hoppers Crossing. Works will be undertaken by an alliance of McConnell Dowell, Arup, Mott MacDonald and Metro Trains Melbourne in partnership with the Level Crossing Removal. This team won the $355.5 million package for the construction of the Old Geelong Road and Werribee Street level crossing removals in early 2020. Crews will remove the level crossing by building a new road bridge over the rail line which will connect the Princes Highway to Old Geelong Road. On completion the current level crossing will be closed to traffic to make way for improved community areas and landscaping. 6
ROADS MARCH 2021
Crews begin on major construction to remove the level crossing at Old Geelong Road and connect the route to the Princes Highway.
Image courtesy of the Level Crossing Removal Project.
ALLIANCE BEGINS MAJOR LEVEL CROSSING CONSTRUCTION AT HOPPERS CROSSING
NEWS
Image : Inland Rail.
INLAND RAIL CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER TO RETIRE AFTER THREE YEARS
Richard Wankmuller, CEO of Inland Rail.
Richard Wankmuller, Chief Executive Officer of Inland Rail at the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) will retire in mid-2021. As CEO for the past three years Wankmuller has delivered the first section of Inland Rail between Parkes and Narromine in New South Wales. He has also overseen the beginning of
construction on the Narrabri to North Star section, which began in November last year. ARTC Chair Warren Truss said the Board was sorry to lose Wankmuller. “Richard’s leadership has been critical in progressing this nationally significant project to this point and ARTC is grateful that he has chosen to stay until mid
this year to ensure a smooth transition to his successor,” Truss said. “The planning approvals for Inland Rail are well advanced, our delivery strategy is well accepted in the marketplace and important program milestones have been achieved including the completion of the first major stage of construction.”
MAJOR CONSTRUCTION BEGINS AT EXHIBITION STATION IN BRISBANE Concept image of Exhibition Statement, courtesy of Queensland Government.
Exhibition Station’s existing western platform has been demolished to make
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way for construction of the Cross River Rail station and tracks. A 75 person construction Exhibition Station on the Cross River Rail route is expected to be fully open by 2025.
team will undertake the works which include the construction of a new island platform to facilitate multidirectional travel, piling pad construction, water main and sewer installation and demolition of existing pavement. The station is situated at the RNA Showgrounds and will provide commuters with round trains to events and the surrounding business and health precinct. Cross River Rail tracks will sit around four metres above the RNA Showgrounds. A viaduct will be built to support this and is expected to be complete in time for Ekka next year. Exhibition Station is expected to be open for daily use by 2025, Cross River Rail’s opening year.
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NEWS
Photo by Nathan Hurst on Unsplash.
EOI’S OPEN FOR NEW CAUSEWAY BRIDGE CONSTRUCTION
The new bridge will connect the city, Herrison Island and the Town of Victoria Park.
Contractors are being asked to express their interest to build the new Causeway pedestrian and cyclist bridge across the Swan River. Project works will include building two bridge sections, one connecting the City of Perth to Heirisson Island, at 140 metres long, and the other connecting from the island to the Town of Victoria Park, at 250 metres long. The $50 million project was a key feature in the Perth City Deal, to promote active transport across the municipality.
Consultation with key stakeholders such as representatives from Aboriginal Groups has shaped the bridge design which will include two feature pylons reaching 35 to 40 metres high. Western Australian Minister for Transport and Planning, Rita Saffioti MLA, said the current Causeway Bridge was one of the busiest connections into central Perth but the current path was too narrow to accommodate demand from people walking, running and riding.
The Greater Connect consortium has been awarded the contract for the $386.5 million Great Eastern Highway Bypass Interchanges project in Perth’s eastern suburbs. Comprising Laing O’Rourke, AECOM, and Arcadis the consortium will construct two new major interchanges and upgrades to adjoining roads. Western Australian Minister for Transport and Planning, Rita Saffioti MLA, said drivers from Perth’s eastern suburbs and hills would be familiar with peak hour queues at these intersections, and our package of works will vastly improve traffic flow in these areas. “This complements a range of other works
underway in the area including the new interchange at Kalamunda Road and Roe Highway and upgrades to Tonkin Highway,” Saffioti said. The second interchange to be constructed will replace the intersection at Roe Highway and the Great Eastern Highway Bypass, improving safety and traffic flow for its 60,000 daily users. Crews will also upgrade the Great Eastern Highway Bypass between the new interchanges and the Lloyd Street connection, north of the bypass. A new bridge will be built over the Helena River to complete the Lloyd Street extension. New shared paths will also be part of the project.
Photo by WantTo Create on Unsplash.
CONTRACT AWARD FOR $386.5M GREAT EASTERN HIGHWAY BYPASS INTERCHANGES
The Great Eastern Highway works will improve traffic flow and safety.
ROADHEADERS BREAK THROUGH WESTCONNEX AT M8 MOTORWAY
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on WestConnex and our joint financial commitments are delivering major benefits to Sydney motorists in reduced travel times, less congestion, and greater safety,” This major milestone has been reached two years ahead of the project completion date.
Fletcher said. The tunnels are due to be open to the public in 2023, saving up to 40 minutes on a trip between Parramatta and the Sydney Airport. Image courtesy of Transport for NSW.
The M4-M5 Link Tunnels are now connected to the M8 Motorway for the first time, linking the two stages of the major WestConnex project. Roadheaders have been creating the missing link in Sydney’s motorway network, which will eventually provide tunnels between the M4, M8 and M5 motorways. Federal Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts, Paul Fletcher said the major milestone was reached 41 metres underground at the St Peters Interchange. “The Commonwealth and NSW have worked closely together
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NEWS
ROBERTS CO PURCHASES PIZZAROTTI SHARE TO BECOME AUSTRALIAN-OWNED FIRM The Roberts Co Group has acquired the remaining 50 per cent shareholding previously held by it’s Italian partner Impresa Pizzarotti, making the major tier one construction company Australianowned. Roberts Pizzarotti will officially change its name to Roberts Co to reflect the acquisition. This will consolidate Roberts Co as a global business under one name with operations across Australia, the Middle East and Europe. Over four years Roberts Co has worked
on Zurich Tower in North Sydney, North Shore Health Hub, redevelopment of Concord Hospital, upgrades throughout the Liverpool Hospital precinct and The Schools at Meadowbank Education and Employment Precinct for the NSW Government. Australian CEO Alison Mirams said the company is extremely proud of the success achieved to date and believe this move will allow us to direct our energy into further growth and expansion in Australia.
Alison Mirams, Australian CEO of Roberts Co.
CONTRACTORS KICK OFF BUNBURY OUTER RING ROAD CONSTRUCTION The South West Gateway Alliance recently kicked off the $852 million Bunbury Outer Ring Road works, the biggest road project in the South-West. Acciona, NRW Contracting, MACA Civil, AECOM and Aurecon, together with Main Roads will work to build the 27 kilometre long, four-lane road from Forrest
Highway near Australind to the Bussell Highway, south of Bunbury. Sustainability and social procurement are project priorities. The project has a target of 60 full time equivalent positions for Aboriginal people and a $20 million dollar target spend for Aboriginal businesses. Local business
procurement will also be of priority with a target spend of $300 million, which is hoped to invite South-West industry participation. South West Gateway Alliance will also work with the local recycling industry to maximise opportunities to safely reuse waste materials in construction.
TRAINEES START ON MAJOR INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS ACROSS THE COUNTRY IN 2021 each year, over four years. Places will be created on the North East Link, New Footscray Hospital and the new Warrnambool Learning and Library Hub, with more to come later. In Western Australia, the ‘Infrastructure Ready’ program by the state government began in October 2020 and there are now 27
METRONET trainees Elly Harrington and Elly Thompson.
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Images from METRONET video on their trainees and apprentices.
In December 2020 Victoria’s Big Build announced it would be the training ground for the next generation of skilled workers with a $33.2 million state government investment to boost apprenticeships and trainees. As part of the Victorian 2020/21 budget this program will create 1,500 new opportunities for apprentices and trainees
trainees working on the Yanchep Rail Extension and Thornlie-Cockburn Link. More trainees are expected to begin working on these projects throughout 2021. One trainee, Elly Thompson is working on the Yanchep Rail Extension. She was previously a sound engineer working in Melbourne before COVID-19 affected her industry and she moved to Perth. “I looked into the future of civil construction in WA and saw there was a lot of jobs going on, so I applied for the course and I got in. It’s been fantastic,” she said. Elly Harrington is another trainee on the Thornlie-Cockburn link and has several years’ experience in the construction industry. She recently took the next step, enrolling in a Certificate ll Rail Infrastructure traineeship.
SYDNEY’S WESTERN HARBOUR TUNNEL GETS PLANNING APPROVAL Following an imminent contract award, construction is expected to begin on the project in the first quarter of 2021.
Photo by Moritz Kindler on Unsplash.
The NSW Government has granted planning approval for the Western Harbour Tunnel and Warringah Freeway Upgrade. Contract awards are now expected to be given in the first quarter of 2021. Planning approval makes way for the government to deliver the first stage of the project which will be to upgrade four kilometres of the Warringah Highway. A survey will then be undertaken with local residents and businesses in early 2021, to ensure the project team will understand and can mitigate impacts of construction. The community can also respond to the Beaches Link Environmental Impact Statement which will be on public exhibition until 1 March 2021. Following the award of contracts construction is also expected to begin in the first quarter of 2021.
The Australian Rail Track (ARTC) corporation has signed an $80 million contract for the manufacture of turnouts for Inland Rail with a local company. Vossloh Cogifer Australia has won the contract and will design and create 200 turnouts from its factory in Castlemaine, Victoria. Chief Executive Officer of Vossloh AG, Oliver Schuster welcomed the opportunity to be involved in the delivery of Inland Rail. “This order is the biggest in the history of Vossloh in Australia. It highlights our strong market position and the increasing importance of the Australian market,” he said. “We are delighted that our long-standing customer ARTC has once again placed its trust in us and that we can contribute to the biggest rail infrastructure project for freight transport in Australia.” Vossloh Cogifer Australia is part of the Vossloh Group with its headquarters in Castlemaine Victoria.
Photo by Wolfgang Rottmann on Unsplash.
$80M CONTRACT SIGNED FOR LOCAL MANUFACTURING OF INLAND RAIL TURNOUTS
The local contractor, Vossloh Cogifer Australia, will design and create 200 rail turnouts for the project. roadsonline.com.au
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TAKING THE LEAD
ON LEVEL CROSSING PROJECTS
Impression of the future Robinsons Road level crossing.
IN JULY 2020 TWO OF MELBOURNE’S MOST DANGEROUS AND CONGESTED LEVEL CROSSINGS WERE FAST TRACKED FOR REMOVAL BY THE VICTORIAN GOVERNMENT. HALF A YEAR ON ROADS & INFRASTRUCTURE SPEAKS TO FULTON HOGAN’S PROJECT MANAGERS TAKING CHARGE OF CONSTRUCTION.
L
ate last year, Fulton Hogan was awarded the $234 million contract to remove two level crossings at Robinsons Road and Fitzgerald Road in Deer Park, on behalf of the Level Crossing Removal Project. As part of an alliance with Metro Trains Melbourne and the Level Crossing Removal Project, Fulton Hogan’s crews will work to remove both level crossings, improving safety, connectivity and travel times by 2023. Fulton Hogan has allocated a dedicated team to work across each of the level crossing removal projects, with an expected 400 jobs to be created. At Robinsons Road the teams will remove the crossing by creating a road underpass and for Fitzgerald Road a road overpass will be built. In early 2021, at the time of writing, the detailed designs for these projects have been finalised and crews are getting ready to begin major construction. Roads & Infrastructure got the opportunity to speak to each of the project managers for these works from Fulton Hogan; Gosia 14
ROADS MARCH 2021
Left - Jenny Terpstra, right - Gosia Suchorska, project managers at Fulton Hogan. .
Suchorska and Jenny Terpstra, about what is to come this year. ROBINSONS ROAD At Robinsons Road level crossing, the boom gates can be down for up to 45 per cent of
the morning peak, delaying many thousands of vehicles. Tasked with removing these boom gates is Gosia Suchorska and her team. Suchorska is Project Manager, in charge of construction of a road underpass which will separate cars
COVER STORY
from the regional V/Line trains which run on this section of the rail network. “We are excited to be able to deliver this project earlier. The majority of the team are hands on people and love being on site, and remote working in the current environment has been tough,” she says. Due to COVID-19 restrictions the Deer Park Level Crossings will both be delivered in two stages. The first stage involved the enabling works and detailed design with the second stage, being major construction, kicking off in the second quarter of 2021. With a 2023 completion, the ability to get on the ground working in 2021 will be a huge positive for the team. “The next eight months will be exciting. Robinsons Road will mostly be built in an offline environment, the current road will stay in place and with traffic management we can separate traffic in order to perform works,” Suchorska says. “Widening of the realignment is happening now and we are soon hoping to install our first retaining wall on the east side of our alignment.” Construction of the rail bridge will come towards the middle of this year and the team has an eight day road and rail occupation planned to construct the bridge. “In 2022 we plan to move traffic onto the new alignment and remove the boom gates. Following that we’ll upgrade the existing Robinsons Road on the north side and we’ll create green space with landscaping on the south side,” Suchorska says. “We have a good and well-resourced team and we’ve been planning for a while now so there is a vast knowledge, experience and passion that we can draw on to build a successful project. I am looking forward
to more face-to-face interaction this year as we’ve spent a lot of time behind our screens.” FITZGERALD ROAD At the Fitzgerald Road level crossing around 37 trains pass through in the morning peak, significantly disrupting local traffic. For this removal project a road bridge was chosen as the optimal design due to the proximity of the crossing to a major freeway and lower impact to nearby properties during construction. Project Manager Jenny Terpstra says the design minimises disruption to the community, due to the sizeable number of utilities required to be relocated. Both the Robinsons and Fitzgerald Road projects were fast tracked in 2020, which Terpstra says has made the projects both exciting and challenging. “Fast tracking the project is going to push the team to think outside the box and to challenge the status quo during construction to build something more efficiently and innovatively,” she says. “One of the advantages of being under the Level Crossing Removal Project umbrella is that we aren’t running as a solo entity so we’re able to draw learning from existing organisations and government sectors to maximise efficient design and build methods.” The team is looking to the start of major construction this year, beginning with the relocation of existing utilities and services. “We have got every utility under the sun underneath our project and so over the next couple of months we will commence relocation and upgrade of those services, working in line with the utility authorities,” Terpstra says.
Next, crews will build the temporary service route on Fitzgerald Road, which was included as part of the project design to minimise disruption, so major construction of the project can be completed offline. “We’ve got a couple of rail and road occupations scheduled in the year for track works, and then we have one end of the year to build the structure itself. Piling will commence this year and then hopefully we’ll be lifting 14 bridge beams into place late in the year,” Terpstra says. “So far for us the biggest challenge has been working individually throughout COVID. This demonstrated how highly resilient the team was to pull through and achieve an outcome and it gave me an insight into how they will be in the delivery phase.” BUILDING THE CHANGE In addition to construction benefits the alliance have set significant targets for social procurement across the program. Fulton Hogan have recently partnered with the AFLW Richmond club to endorse the flexibility of working conditions for women in construction and in football. They are working with the Brotherhood of Saint Laurence to employ people who have been unemployed over the long term, giving them a chance to develop new skills. The team is also working with the EPIC program to employ refugee and asylum seeker engineers to work on Level Crossing Removal Projects. With both of these crossings set to be removed by 2023, communities and commuters familiar with the area will experience improved travel times, safety and connectivity. Those working on the project will also gain valuable work experience in delivering state shaping infrastructure. Impression of the future Fitzgerald Road level crossing.
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MORDIALLOC FREEWAY:
MOLDING SOUTH-EAST MELBOURNE THE MORDIALLOC FREEWAY WILL FILL THE MISSING NINE-KILOMETRE LINK BETWEEN MORNINGTON PENINSULA AND SOUTH EAST MELBOURNE. DUE FOR COMPLETION LATE 2021, WE CATCH UP WITH PROGRAM DIRECTOR BRENDAN PAUWELS TO FIND OUT HOW THE MAJOR WORKS ARE PROGRESSING.
I Crew wearing the Geared Up Culcha King Gee boots with Aboriginal artwork.
n May 2017, Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews announced the Budget for 2017/18 included $300 million in funding for the nine-kilometre Mordialloc Freeway. Andrews said the government will build the Mordialloc Bypass to “slash congestion and create jobs in Melbourne’s South East”. The freeway would create a seamless link between the Mornington Peninsula Freeway in Aspendale Gardens to the Dingley Bypass in Dingley Village. Travel time savings of up to 10 minutes in each direction are expected alongside the diversion of 13,000 trucks from local roads. Three years later and the project is halfway through major construction. Roads & Infrastructure sat down with Brendan Pauwels, Project Director for the Mordialloc Freeway to learn about the construction journey so far.
Image: Peter Glenane at HiVis Pictures
CONSIDERED CONSTRUCTION “We’re now halfway through the delivery phase. Though prior to that we went through a lengthy Environmental Effects Statement process, so we’ve been working on this project for a few years now,” he says. “In construction we’ve clocked over 750,000 worker hours now and we’ve made good progress on all fronts with all types of work happening; civil, structural, earthworks and pavement works.” The major project has many smaller sections including five bridges over existing roads, twin bridges over wetlands, entry and exit ramps, two new connecting intersections and a walking and cycling path. Pauwels says the first half of 2020 saw significant earthworks progression. With unique ground conditions and environmentally sensitive land to work with, extra planning and contingency was required. 16
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PROJECT REPORT
Image: Peter Glenane at HiVis Pictures
Piling at the Waterways twin bridge site.
“At Waterways we will have twin bridges which are almost 400 metres long to build. All of the piling that is now done, 368 piles in total have been installed. That is all across the wetlands too, so we’ve built a causeway over the wetlands to make a working platform first and then have driven all the piles in for the structure there,” Pauwels says. “We have started pouring the cross sets for those structures and eight out of 24 are poured now. We are making progress on that section which is the biggest structure of the job.” In addition, almost 3000 tonnes of fill material has been brought into the project, to build the freeway alignment above the average surface level. Asphalt works have also begun in the areas with lower fill heights and almost two kilometres of
asphalt has already been paved. “In terms of our bridges we got our first beams up in November at Old Dandenong Road and in early December we poured the deck. We are close to being able to drive from one end to the other now, without having to use the local network,” Pauwels says. CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES For 2020 much of the focus was on the earthworks phase of the project, and the team will be moving onto more structural work this year. Earthworks have been a large part of the project given the unique ground conditions presented on location. “Some of the ground conditions are tough out there,” Pauwels says. “At Governor Road for instance, our
embankment is currently three metres higher than it will ultimately be because we are surcharging that ground to help it settle before we do the pavement layers. Then we will reuse that material as top-soil elsewhere.” He says most of the works are in environmentally sensitive areas. As most of the project runs along Braeside Park, works are close to the Waterways Estate and wetlands in that area. “There are several bird species that are naturally protected living in the wetlands, the connectivity between habitats is important so ensuring we’re building in a manner to limit the noise and dust on the surface has been a focus.” “Most of the project is on swamp ground which is why it’s a fill job. You couldn’t cut and reuse any of the material. We’ve used wick drains to help draw the moisture out of the ground to help with settlement as we do our earthworks,” he says. High fill areas on the project have had periods of between three and six months to settle depending on the ground conditions. “We have settlement plates in a number of spots to make sure we aren’t going to end up with a legacy problem down the track. We’re closely monitoring the response of the ground when we load up with fill material,” Pauwels says. The freeway then crosses a landfill site towards the northern end of the project, which has been inactive for around 30 years. While the landfill has not been active for three decades, the activity and gasses
Image: Peter Glenane at HiVis Pictures
Formwork for bridge supports.
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coming from the landfill meant the project team had to develop a gas ventilation system. “We had to design a gas ventilation system so that as the landfill combusts and gasses come up naturally, we have the right flow paths for that so the gas can come out from underneath the concrete slab that we are putting on top of it,” Pauwels says. The bridge over the landfill was designed specifically to allow contingencies during piling, so that if any foreign bodies were hit in the landfill, this could be counteracted. “There were around 220 piles in and there were eight of those where we had to drive replacement piles. We were aware of other projects that have had issues piling through old landfills, so we had to make sure the design had enough contingency in it to be able to deal with those issues,” he says. “We’ve now finished all the piling at that site, and we’ve cast the 180 metre long deck for that section. The deck is there so if the ground beneath the road in the landfill keeps combusting and settling the road will not give way,” Pauwels says. COVID-19 In addition to the civil, structural and environmental impacts of this major
project, construction began in 2019 and continued through significant lockdown periods in Victoria in 2020. While construction could continue with reduced personnel, the executive team and state government workers on the project work from home, except for essential field inspections. “Our contractors were allowed to keep going but they had to manage the project differently,” Pauwels says. Workers were split into about six work zones between each road crossing and each person was allocated to a particular zone to manage cross contamination. “We had to change small things like the pre-start meeting, we staggered those to do more of them with less people at each one. We had to consider on site vehicles and how many people could access those. Mask wearing with safety glasses was also a challenge, but we used tape to overcome that,” he says. “One of the other challenges was with the community being home while we were making noise during the day. We were right outside their backyards, when usually they would be out at work or school.” Sensitivity from the surrounding
community meant the project implemented extra dust and noise monitoring. The team was also careful to try and limit certain works to different times in the day to reduce impact for people at home. Though Pauwels says there were some positive aspects as a result of the lockdowns. “Less traffic on the road gave us the possibility to do more closures or traffic disruption events that we otherwise would not have been able to do,” he says. In 2020 the crews closed Old Dandenong Road, Woodlands Drive and Centre Dandenong Road for construction blitzes. “We’ve definitely taken those opportunities to try and do a lot of work in short periods of time for road closures which might then limit the disruptive nature of the project at the other end of the works,” Pauwels says. He says the work between Major Road Projects Victoria (MRPV) and the contractor has been a good example of how MRPV would like to work with contractors going forward in the active client model.
Image: Peter Glenane at HiVis Pictures
SOCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS On top of considerations for the sensitive land recycled products, diverse employment and procurement have been key considerations on the project. For the first time on a freeway in Victoria, Major Road Projects is using SI
Asphalting works on the project. 18
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Image: Peter Glenane at HiVis Pictures
PROJECT REPORT
asphalt with 30 per cent reclaimed asphalt incorporated. “We’re bringing in crushed concrete for all of our access tracks and our shared path. We’ve laid 2.1 kilometres of drainage pipes which are made from recycled plastic,” Pauwels says. The project has government set targets for employment and procurement. The team has a regional employment target of 2.5 per cent of hours worked, there is also a local employment target of around 97 per cent and a social procurement target to spend 10 per cent of the budget through local suppliers.
First bridge at Old Dandenong Road.
“We’ve worked with some companies that have really helped us with these goals, Ability Works is one. They are a company that employs people with disabilities to manufacture our settlement plates,” he says. Yarra View Nursery, a local social enterprise is the main contractor for plant supply on the project. PPE onsite is being supplied by Geared Up Culcha, an aboriginal company that exclusively distribute King Gee work boots with unique aboriginal artwork on the shoe sole and Veterans In Construction has built much of the accommodation on site.
STILL TO COME... With completion on the horizon for the end of 2021, major construction will continue throughout the year. Once complete the project is expected to save commuters up to 10 minutes in travel time between the Dingley Bypass and Springvale Road while taking around 13,000 trucks off local roads daily. “With more and more people finding they can live somewhere different, travelling into the city from places like the Mornington Peninsula is more of a possibility and this freeway will make that easier,” Pauwels says.
Image: Peter Glenane at HiVis Pictures
View of project works next to live traffic.
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INTRODUCING AfPA’S NATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY DIRECTOR TO HAVE A LEADING PRESENCE IN THE EVER-EVOLVING FIELD OF PAVEMENT SUSTAINABILITY, AfPA HAS CREATED A NEW ROLE WITHIN THE ORGANISATION. ROBERT VOS, THE FIRST NATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY DIRECTOR, SITS DOWN WITH ROADS & INFRASTRUCTURE TO DISCUSS HIS WORK.
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Robert Vos, AfPA National Sustainability Director.
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obert Vos is no stranger to the flexible pavements industry and AfPA members. He has spent over 40 years working with pavements, 20 of those with AfPA as the Executive Director for Queensland and Northern Territory. He is now stepping down from that role to take on this new task to support AfPA’s Sustainability Committee, as the National Sustainability Director. A role which Vos describes as an unbelievable privilege, with the opportunity to assist the industry to improve sustainable outcomes. When asked what challenges the industry faces in terms of sustainability, Vos outlined that he wants to focus on industry opportunities. “As an industry we are seeing opportunities to reduce energy demands and make greater use of waste materials and we are already doing a lot in this space,” he says. “If there is a ‘challenge’, from my point of view it is that suppliers have pressure from the public to offer certain sustainable products, but they also have constraints from specifications or restrictive regualtions and laws etcetera and so many of those get in the way of
Photo by Dmitry Osipenko on Unsplash.
“IN 2018 THE ASSOCIATION DEVELOPED ITS PRODUCT CALCULATOR, USING PRODUCT CATEGORY RULES TO INPUT DATA AND RATE THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF MANUFACTURING ASPHALT TO DEMONSTRATE SUSTAINABILITY.”
the industry offering alternatives.” Converting industry opportunities, already identified, into reality by addressing these barriers is Vos’ goal. “If AfPA and the National Sustainability Committee can bring everyone together to work and get the best outcome, that gives real strength, and respect, to the industry and the association,” he says. “The committee has got great players on board that are all committed to these changes. The AfPA National Board is also completely behind the processes we are looking to change.” In 2018 the association developed its Product Calculator, using Product Category Rules to input data and rate the environmental impact of manufacturing asphalt to demonstrate sustainability. This tool was based on information and practices out of Europe and the United States. Using the calculator, users can receive an environmental product declaration on their offering. Two years later, the association had further developed this into its Sustainability Framework for Asphalt, an assessment tool which starts at the asphalt plants giving a clear ranking through star ratings based on sustainability of the manufacturing of asphalt at the plant level. “The framework gives clear rules and star ratings for outcomes that are not just environmental they also include business, social, waste, circular economy and other United Nations Sustainable Development Goals,” Vos says. “A key thing for AfPA is to raise awareness of the advantages of considering sustainability in a different metric, and to start measuring these outcomes.” AfPA believes sustainability metrics will bring greater awareness to industry, clients and the public of the benefits of the improvements in sustainable outcomes for flexible pavements. This will
then spread and increase the take up of sustainable ideas and benefits. “We are working with recognised project rating systems, state road authorities and the Australian Road Research Board to see if our rating system can be used as part of their assessments. This will embed sustainability initiatives right from the plant level, through organisations, into projects,” Vos says. Growing awareness through advocation and clear demonstration of sustainable outcomes, such as through these frameworks will underpin Vos’ work in his new role. “I’m really looking forward to better awareness enough in industry to selfpropagate change, to see benefits, accept advantages and for the ideas to keep rolling,” he says. “I know many of the larger companies report on sustainable development goals but what we can do is pull that board level reporting down to the organisational level and the plant level to make it normal practice.” The National Sustainable Director role has been set up by AfPA to be a trustworthy advisor for the sector. The committee is already engaging with the Infrastructure Sustainability Council (ISCA), state road authorities and other sustainable bodies, but is looking to grow their profile in the regulation space. “We are there to help and we want to get the message out that we can aid in delivering sustainability changes. We want to help with setting regulations but also with how to facilitate change as innovations arise,” Vos says. “It’s clear that change is required to take place, for me the big question is can AfPA and its members keep up, can we lead and what can we learn from making a big shift in the industry? We want to know how to make the change ‘sustainable’. That will be the biggest opportunity and learning in my new role.” roadsonline.com.au
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AfPA MEMBER PROFILE HAYDEN SHARPE, MANAGING DIRECTOR – JET BLACK PAVEMENTS. 1. HOW LONG HAVE YOU OR YOUR COMPANY BEEN AN AfPA MEMBER AND WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO BECOME ONE? Jet Black has been a member since 2019, my previous business started membership with AfPA in the 1980’s. Being kept up to date with information from AfPA on safety and technology has been beneficial to my business. 2. HOW DID YOU START YOUR CAREER IN THE ROAD CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY? I started my mechanical apprenticeship at my father’s road construction company in 1992. The company had a large fleet of road construction equipment including dozers, excavators, loaders, graders, compaction equipment, hot bitumen sprayers, asphalt pavers and all sizes of trucks. This gave me great knowledge on all types of equipment which is invaluable today. 3. WHAT IS YOUR CURRENT ROLE AND WHAT DOES IT INVOLVE? Managing Director of Jet Black Pavements. This involves general management, strategy and designing road construction equipment. 4. WHAT IS THE BEST THING ABOUT YOUR CURRENT ROLE? Setting strategy and seeing that strategy come to fruition. Designing and building equipment to overcome an issue and seeing that piece of equipment becoming sort after. 5. WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST ACHIEVEMENT IN THE INDUSTRY? Designing and building award winning road construction equipment which achieves gains in all aspects of constructibility. 6. WHAT IS A RECENT CHANGE YOU HAVE SEEN IN THE INDUSTRY AND HOW ARE YOU AND THE COMPANY PREPARED FOR THAT? Not so much an industry change however, social change has had an impact. Making the road industry attractive to new talent is something the industry as a whole needs to work towards. 22
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Hayden Sharpe, Managing Director of Jet Black Pavements.
7. WHAT DO YOU THINK IS MOST INTERESTING ABOUT THE ROAD CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY? For asphalting, it’s the innovation in recycling. I was at an AfPA Flexible Pavements Conference when a Keynote Speaker said, “Innovation will lead to all flexible pavements being made from 100 per cent recycled material within the next 50 years.” This means no additional quarried materials and growth to the road network will be based on recycling everyday items to fill the void of quarried products which we are already starting to see with recycled plastics etc. The impacts of this will be huge financially and environmentally. As for road construction I am looking forward to the progress in 3D road networks in major cities through multiple layers of tunnelling.
8. HOW HAS BEING A MEMBER OF AfPA BENEFITED YOU IN THE INDUSTRY? Having success on projects drives motivation and interest. Secondly, asphalting has supported me financially my whole life being the third generation of my family’s involvement in the road construction industry. My passion for innovation and for this industry have fuelled me to keep up to date with the latest advancements, allowing me to ensure not only the best results for my clients, but the longevity of my career and business. AfPA has delivered the knowledge to allow this longevity through events, courses and meeting like-minded members. 9. WHAT ARE YOUR GOALS FOR THE FUTURE? My goal is to keep innovating with equipment and systems to continue the success of Jet Black Pavements.
AUSTRALIAN FLEXIBLE PAVEMENT ASSOCIATION
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PRECAST BYPASS
SUPPORTING LOCAL COMMUNITIES NOW AND INTO THE FUTURE NATIONAL PRECAST, MASTER PRECASTER, STRESSCRETE WAS ENGAGED BY HIGHWAY CONSTRUCTION AND ALBEM OPERATIONS (HAJV) TO SUPPLY PRECAST CONCRETE STRUCTURAL ELEMENTS FOR A MAJOR BYPASS PROJECT IN SMITHFIELD, CAIRNS.
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he $164 million Smithfield Bypass project is funded by the Queensland Government. Project works will include building a new 3.8 kilometre road from the intersection of the Captain Cook Highway and Cairns Western Arterial Road to the McGregor Road roundabout, as an alternative to the Captain Cook Highway. The bypass will provide a safer, more efficient travel route for motorists, and separate through traffic from local traffic movements. It will also improve traffic conditions on the local road network by addressing congestion. A new four-legged signalised intersection at Cairns Western Arterial Road and Captain Cook Highway will replace the old roundabout at one end of the project. An overpass at the other end of the project will reduce congestion at the McGregor Road roundabout, improving traffic flow. Precast manufacturer Stresscrete has supplied structural precast elements to the bypass project, notably seven precast headstocks spanning 13 metres each, and weighing a total of 490 tonnes. The headstocks are accompanied by sets of 25 metre and 15 metre deck units. Each headstock will be used as part of two new bridges on the project and for entry and exit ramps. So far, the new bridge over Avondale Creek has been completed. Crews will be working on the overpass bridge at McGreggor Road and the reconstruction of Cairns Western Arterial Road and Captain Cook Highway intersection throughout 2021.
Stresscrete will create the precast elements for the bridges off-site.
With precast components being manufactured by Stresscrete this is expected to create more room on site. As precast concrete elements are manufactured off-site in a factorycontrolled environment, the typical congestion of trades and materials deliveries is also reduced on the construction site. The off-site manufacturing process allowed Stresscrete to deliver precast elements with consistent strength and finish quality across the entire project. When using precast concrete, the reduced congestion of on-site labour can improve access to the construction site and regulated precast factories can ensure the safest
possible working conditions. The implementation of precast concrete elements can reduce the cost and time inefficiencies of on-site construction, and ensures a high quality, durable outcome that will be valued for many generations. The Smithfield Bypass Project is expected to be completed late 2021, weather permitting. Project: The Smithfield Bypass Project Master Precaster: Stresscrete Location: Cairns
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Infrastructure Sustainability Council of Australia
THE CHALLENGE OF TRANSFORMING LIVES
– CREATING A TRUE CIRCULAR ECONOMY
BY INCORPORATING RECYCLED MATERIAL INTO THE DESIGN OF THE NEW INTERCITY FLEET MAINTENANCE FACILITY ON THE NSW CENTRAL COAST, JOHN HOLLAND HAS DEMONSTRATED OPPORTUNITY TO CREATE POSITIVE CHANGE. FROM PLASTIC TO GLASS, CAPTURED WASTE MATERIALS CAN HAVE A NET POSITIVE EFFECT IN THE WAY INFRASTRUCTURE IS DESIGNED AND CONSTRUCTED, IMPROVING PERFORMANCE, REDUCING COSTS AND DIVERTING PROBLEM WASTE FROM LANDFILL. John Holland has shown that the market for soft plastic recycling can be broadened beyond the general public and commercial sectors.
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OFT PLASTIC RECYCLING PROGRAM INTO ASPHALT In an Australian first, John Holland partnered with Plastic Police to recycle project generated single-use plastic waste to enable it to be processed into a high performing asphalt for local road surfaces. The program was implemented to address the environmental concern of soft plastics ending up in landfill or in the environment and oceans as litter. Soft plastics have been shown to negatively impact marine and terrestrial species through consumption and entanglement and have been found to enter the human food chain as the material degrades into microplastics. By rolling out the Plastic Police program on a construction project, John Holland has shown that the market for soft plastic recycling can be broadened beyond the general public and commercial sectors. It has helped to open up the opportunity for other construction projects and companies to adopt similar processes, supporting the reduction of plastic waste across the
construction industry. The project has provided John Holland the opportunity to participate in a circular economy initiative. The landmark collaboration between John Holland and Plastic Police on the NSW Government’s New Intercity Fleet Maintenance Facility (NIFMF) Project, has enabled waste plastic products generated by construction to be collected and transformed into a component of environmentally sustainable asphalt which could then applied on the project, to close the loop. During construction of the maintenance facility, more than 226 kilograms of soft plastic – equivalent to nearly 57,000 singleuse bags – was collected for processing. Using state-of-the-art technology through Close the Loop, the captured soft plastics were processed with other recyclable waste, including used toner cartridges. The innovative recycling method delivers small pellets, which have then been incorporated within the asphalt mix, from Downer’s Reconomy business arm. This was the first time this innovative
asphalt has been applied on a Transport for New South Wales governed project, opening up the conversation of how other major projects can apply this product. This sustainable initiative reduces the use of crude oil in the construction of local arterial roads and minimises plastic landfill on the NSW Central Coast. EMESH The use of Fibercon’s Emesh fibres in June 2019 at the NIFMF project, constructed by John Holland for Transport for NSW, was the first major infrastructure project to use Emesh in Australia. Fibrecon are an Australian manufacturing company that create the 100 per cent recycled plastic fibre, Emesh, for concrete reinforcement. In addition, this was also the first time Emesh and glass sand were combined and used in concrete on an infrastructure project in Australia. OUTCOMES The NIFMF took two bold and innovative opportunities for recycling on infrastructure projects, and made them reality. These innovations show that this is possible and provide opportunities both within John Holland and the wider industry. John Holland design and delivery teams will now look at new ways to incorporate alternative materials within design and construction. Demonstrating that project personnel and industry partners have increased their knowledge of a circular economy model and what that looks like within the infrastructure industry. The NIFMF project also reduced its carbon footprint and construction costs while providing provided social benefit to small business and disadvantaged communities. This was made possible as Fibercon provides the opportunity for persons on the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) to package the Emesh product before being sent to market. Visit the ISCA Impacts report online fto find out more.
Acknowledgements Transport for New South Wales John Holland Plastic Police Downer Fibercon
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ROADS REVIEW
FOR THE MARCH ROADS REVIEW COLUMN ROADS & INFRASTRUCTURE ASKS ROAD CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY LEADERS: ‘WHAT IS ONE INNOVATION OR INNOVATIVE PROJECT THAT YOU ARE EXCITED TO SEE PROGRESS IN 2021?’
JIM APPLEBY, DOWNER, GENERAL MANAGER – RECONOMY
MICHAEL CALTABIANO, ARRB, CEO In 2021, ARRB will be able to provide expert guidance and technical support to State and Territory Road and Transport agencies together with Local Governments across Australia on the incorporation of waste stream plastics in asphalt road materials. This will be a world-first that defines the performance outcomes that are required to be met to incorporate waste stream plastics in a safe and sustainable way into our roads built in 2021 and beyond. ARRB is at the forefront globally of new knowledge development in this area. We have developed new test methods to assess microplastic contamination to ensure that our road networks of the future are net contributors to a cleaner, greener world.
I am excited to see construction completed on the Brendale Sustainable Road Resource Centre in Queensland, which is being built by Downer, supported by the Queensland Government. Using industry-leading technology, the plant will process materials that would otherwise be headed for landfill, including street sweepings and gully pit materials. The plant will decontaminate then separate sand, aggregate and organic matter, ready for repurposed use in the adjoining asphalt plant and/or for other commercial purposes. This reduces the use of virgin materials, contributes to a more sustainable circular economy, and aligns with our philosophy of ‘pulling products, not pushing waste.
DR BRONWYN EVANS, ENGINEERS AUSTRALIA, CEO Engineering Education Australia (EEA) - the training and development arm of Engineers Australia - has signed a 10-year partnership agreement with Online Education Services (OES) to build a bespoke platform and continuing professional development online courses for engineers, professionals, and engineering organisations. The partnership reflects Engineers Australia’s commitment to supporting skills development and developing workforce capability in a dynamic and changing environment. It will allow EEA to deliver relevant quality training to engineers regardless of schedule and location and bring new content swiftly to the market. The platform will launch with an initial 15 engineering courses, with course numbers set to grow throughout the partnership.
If you or someone at your organisation is an industry leader and would like to be a part of this monthly column in 2021 please get in touch with Editor, Lauren Jones: lauren.jones@primecreative.com.au
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ROADS REVIEW
DAVID TUCKER, INFRASTRUCTURE AUSTRALIA, CHIEF OF INFRASTRUCTURE ASSESSMENT I was pleased to see the release of the National Circular Economy Roadmap by CSIRO in January. The transition to a circular economy requires a fundamental change in consumer behaviour and innovations in our domestic resource recovery infrastructure. Nonetheless, it will benefit communities, create new jobs and industries, and improve sustainability by reducing carbon emissions and pressures on landfill. These goals align closely with the shift-change we’re advocating for at Infrastructure Australia, including new reforms in the 2021 Australian Infrastructure Plan, and a greater focus on sustainability in our updated Assessment Framework – the guideline we use for evaluating nationally significant infrastructure projects. We’ll be releasing the Plan and Framework in mid-2021.
BRANDON HITCH, CICA, CEO In the crane industry, data driven decision making is growing in importance and attention. For a while now, a ‘one size fits all’ road use and performance metric has been used to assess all heavy vehicles, trucks and cranes alike. Opening up the data sets and analysis of this data, is beginning to make us question whether the ‘one size fits all’ approach is relevant or even appropriate - so I am excited to see how the data will inform things like road access for cranes in 2021 and beyond.
SARAH BACHMANN, NATIONAL PRECAST CONCRETE ASSOICATION, CEO CHRIS MELHAM, CIVIL CONTRACTORS FEDERATION NATIONAL, CEO Despite the easing of the impact of Coronavirus in Australia, the civil construction industry is still facing a number of challenges associated with the pandemic. Statewide lockdowns, project disruptions and supply chain delays have been just a few of the obstacles facing our industry. It is imperative therefore that our industry returns to normal operations as soon as possible. So in this respect, I would say that the most important innovation in 2021 is the implementation of an effective and safe vaccine. And, just as importantly, for the national vaccine to be rolled out in an efficient, coordinated and clearly communicated fashion between the Commonwealth and the States.
As much of the workforce continue to work from home, both in Australia and abroad, offsite construction methods stand as the work from home equivalent in the building and civil sectors. Perhaps the most adaptable form of offsite construction is precast concrete. Perhaps most importantly, the factories of National Precast’s Master Precasters - which are certified to the highest degree of quality and workplace health and safety standards - can ensure quality elements, safe work environments and on-time deliveries to speed construction. The offsite manufacturing process also imbues a consistent structural outcome whilst minimizing waste and noise disturbance in comparison to insitu concrete. As COVID-19 restrictions persist, an uptake of precast concrete in the building and civil sectors is both a reliable and scalable solution for a safer future.
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CITYWIDE:
ON THE JOURNEY TO A CIRCULAR ECONOMY A YEAR INTO THE OPERATION OF ITS LAVERTON ASPHALT PLANT, THE CITYWIDE ASPHALT GROUP CONTINUES TO EXPLORE OPPORTUNITIES FOR INCREASED SUSTAINABILITY ACROSS THE ENTIRE PRODUCTION CHAIN.
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n early 2020, the Citywide Asphalt Group – a Joint Venture between Citywide Service Solutions and Fulton Hogan opened a new state-of-the-art sustainable asphalt plant in Laverton North. With a goal of running the plant on 100 per cent renewable electricity within 12 months, the company had its sights set on new and innovative ideas to support asphalt production. 12 months on the Joint Venture has achieved this goal and many more. We sat down with the team to speak about their learnings and triumphs in research, development, supply and sustainability. Stephen McArthur, General Manager of the Citywide Asphalt Group, says through its Joint Venture with Fulton Hogan the group gets access to National Association of Testing Authorities (NATA) accredited laboratories which allows the team to foster innovation for mix technology and design. “We are also unique in that we have a business model where two plants are located 22 kilometres from each other at either end of the city, which allows us to provide the latest in technology to the local market,” McArthur says. The state-of-the-art Laverton asphalt plant is the latest Marini model, which allows the company to drive sustainability with energy and product innovations. “The plant features a low-emissions burner, which enables reductions in energy in the drying component. We are also part of the Melbourne Renewable Energy 2 (MREP 2) project, in which Tango Energy supplies the asphalt plant with electricity from local renewable sources,” McArthur says. “This allows us to save over 1,000 tonnes 30
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of carbon dioxide being emitted into the atmosphere per annum.” Most of this energy comes from the Yaloak South Wind Farm near Ballan in Victoria, with some of the power coming from other regional Victorian wind farm projects if required.
The plant itself is the latest Marini batch plant which can process up to 200 tonnes an hour and accommodates a range of mix designs including hot, warm, cold, polymer modified, open or gap graded, high percentages of reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) and other recycled materials such as
Charbel Bou-Ghosn and Chris Camenzuli from Citywide Asphalt Group at the Laverton plant.
RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT
David Messenger from Fulton Hogan working at the Laverton plant.
Charbel Bou-Ghosn, a Citywide Asphalt Group supervisor in the asphalt plant control room.
crumb rubber or glass. “The plant will give us the capability to work towards producing mixes with 60 per cent RAP content without the need for a second drying drum,” McArthur says. As the Joint Venture marks its five-year anniversary, the team have reflected on areas of research and development they have significantly developed through collaboration. “With this new plant we have a big emphasis on improving our RAP mixes. That is an ongoing process, and we want to target all of the different mix types with high RAP, so we are continuously working on that,” McArthur says. “We already have an existing mix design using 50 per cent recycled content and we are looking to build on that. We’re conducting trials at the moment to incorporate many more recycled products and we are very much in the research and development phase there.” The Citywide Asphalt Group has looked into E-waste and other plastics which could be used in asphalt mixes. In 2020, they supplied Citywide Service Solutions’ maintenance division with an asphalt mix that incorporated plastic to be used on five streets in Melbourne City. “We also have some mixes that incorporate glass which are now Department of Transport approved for use in Victoria. Development of sustainable and
innovative mixes like these is something we are consistently working on behind the scenes,” McArthur says. “The primary areas of research and development we’ve been focusing on are high RAP mixes, glass, plastic, warm mix, slag and rubber.” Innovative mix designs like these come under the Citywide Asphalt Group’s GreenPave product range. Recently the company has also altered its cold mix asphalt design from using diesel as an agent, to a bio-based canola oil product made in Victoria. “The Laverton plant on top of the research and development has given additional supply options for the west-Melbourne asphalt market. The market feedback tells us
we have some of the best performing mixes across multiple sectors,” McArthur says. “We’ve realised benefits for carbon emissions and the positives of low plant wastage due to having the latest batch plant technology. Our Laverton Plant has also realised a true 200 tonne per hour capability and a big contributor to that is the plant’s four tonne pug mill.” For the next five years and beyond, the Citywide Asphalt Group want to continue to innovate and create high performing products in line with its values. “We want to play our part in the community, so we are always looking to adapt to the times, to change from good to great and to find ways of exercising innovation and creativity,” McArthur says. A truck full of asphalt at the Laverton plant.
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ROLLING OUT THE
ROAD ANT
WITH FOUR DUAL CONTROL FORWARD MOVING AGGREGATE SPREADERS, CALLED Q-FE ROAD ANT, WORKING ACROSS VICTORIA - AND ANOTHER FIVE IN BUILD - THE QUALITY FABRICATION AND ENGINEERING TEAM CONTINUE TO INNOVATE AND IMPROVE. ROADS & INFRASTRUCTURE CATCHES UP WITH THEM TO FIND OUT MORE.
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uality Fabrication and Engineering created the Q-FE Road Ant to ensure contractors could adhere to the Victorian Department of Transport (DOT) mandate for the use of forward moving aggregate spreaders on its works from 1 July 2022. This move was announced by VicRoads, now DOT, in 2017 and comes into force in just over a year, the mandate requires any aggregate spreaders working on DOT projects to be forward moving. As of early 2021, there are four Road Ants already in operation throughout Victoria, with several more due out in the coming two months. The truck features both a front and rear cabin, both with full operation of the truck, spreader and safety controls from either end, eliminating the need to spread in ‘reverse’. The rear cabin is also dual control, enabling operation from either the left or right hand side for a clear view of spread line.
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Road Ants can also be used in the spray sealing off season as the machine can be used for other works such as asphalting, shoulder work, and traditional spreading of crushed rock. David Lockwood, Quality Fabrication and Engineering’s Head of Sales, says the Road Ants that are out working now are on spray seal jobs across the Victorian countryside. “Some are working in bushfire areas for reconstruction of roads, others are working on mountainous terrain and some are doing shoulder sealing works,” he says. “One of the advantages of the Q-FE Road Ant is the line of sight and visibility for the operators so when you are working on tight roads, say in mountainous terrain, you can see right to the edge of the road when sealing.” John Esnouf, Principal Engineer – Spray Seal Technology at the DOT Victoria, says the industry and Vic Roads realised there was a safety risk with reversing spray seal
trucks on the road. “We saw forward moving spreading equipment as a way of avoiding this risk. Industry has been open to the change, they committed to five years at the beginning and there has been significant activity in the past couple of years,” he says. “Forward moving operations are safer because the operator can see what is going on ahead of them, and can use peripheral vision to see any people or objects that may be on the road.” Esnouf says there are already quite a few companies using forward moving spreaders on DOT projects. “This was a joint project with the DOT, AfPA and industry and it’s great to see the Road Ant as a locally designed and built solution to the challenge we gave industry.” Glenn Hardiman, General Manager at Quality Fabrication and Engineering, says the Road Ant’s first job was around the Snowy
RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT
River National Park, a challenging test. “The roads are very windy and steep, the machine performed extremely well and achieved exactly what we and the operators had hoped for.” What stood out to Bluey, the first ever ‘on the job’ operator, with one of Q-FE’s customers working on DoT projects, was the visibility. Hardiman says, he was impressed as to how much he could see in front of him. “We’ve also had Road Ant’s working on the Princes Freeway and in the Bellarine Peninsula and from our customer’s feedback, we couldn’t be happier with how it has been performing,” he says. Early on, with the very first Road Ant, there were a couple of hiccups but these only took a few hours to remedy. “We have since made improvements to overcome these issues and strengthened the design using the operator feedback,” Hardiman says. The line of sight was one of the most important considerations when creating the Q-FE Road Ant. The ability to switch sides within the cabin increases visibility for the operator which then creates a more comfortable environment to work in, whilst also increasing safety for those on the work site. “The operators don’t have to rely on reverse or side cameras to see where they are sealing, they can drive from either side of the cabin to get a view over the application,” Hardiman says. Other Road Ant safety features include anti-rollaway systems, reverse cameras and monitoring screens, brake lights and indicators which are all fitted to both cabins and are active when spray sealing.
For Quality Fabrication and Engineering safety is the number one priority.
“WE HAVE BUILT THE ROAD ANT TO MEET THE DOT MANDATE AND OUR FOCUS ON LINE OF SIGHT, VISIBILITY AND DUAL CABINS IS ALL TO INCREASE SAFETY. SAFETY IS OUR NUMBER ONE OBJECTIVE, AND WE WANT TO DO OUR BIT TO HELP TOWARDS ZERO HARM IN ROAD CONSTRUCTION AND SPRAY SEALING.” Hardiman says Q-FE actively chose Reverse Smart for its safety features, and added their system to operate from either cabin. The system automatically applies brakes when an object or pedestrian is detected in the truck’s path, virtually eliminating the possibility of a collision.
Road Ants can also be used in the spray sealing off season for other works.
For customisation, the Q-FE Road Ant can be delivered on a truck that meets fleet requirements. So far, the team has delivered Road Ants on Isuzu, Iveco and DAF and have been in discussions with Volvo as to adding this option in the near future. The next big step for Quality Fabrication and Engineering is to make the Road Ant available to be retrofitted onto existing trucks or Trout River units. “This would enable us to turn existing Trout River fitted trucks into a Q-FE Road Ant, so that if a company has made a prior investment that didn’t meet the future 2022 mandate requirements, then that investment would not need to be made redundant within Victoria,” Hardiman says. He says the team are in the research and development phase for this capability now. “This is a logical next step for us for both Victoria and other future markets. Whilst this will take some time to develop, we have a world class innovative engineering team inside Q-FE who I know are up to the task” he says. Throughout this process and with future Road Ants, the Quality Fabrication and Engineering team will continue to keep safety as their number one priority. “We have built the Road Ant to meet the DOT mandate and our focus on line of sight, visibility and dual cabins is all to increase safety. Safety is our number one objective, and we want to do our bit to help towards zero harm in road construction and spray sealing,” Lockwood says. For further information, please visit www.qualityfab.com.au or email sales@ qualityfab.com.au or ring 1800 97 97 08 roadsonline.com.au
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SEALING GREEN SAMI BITUMEN TECHNOLOGIES HAS CREATED A SUITE OF BITUMEN EMULSIONS, THE SAMIFLEX E HR RANGE, TO IMPROVE SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL OUTCOMES ON SPRAY SEALING PROJECTS ACROSS AUSTRALIA.
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n Australia 330,000 kilometres road surfaces are covered by sprayed seals, asphalt, or concrete. According to an Austroads report from 2005, around 70 per cent of those roads are spray sealed. Sprayed seals as we now know them were developed around the 1930s. The Austroads report states the concept of a thin layer of hot bitumen and a clean single‑sized aggregate was developed around that time. Over the years, companies have learnt to adjust sprayed seal mixes and techniques to suit all kinds of climate and traffic demands. One company, SAMI Bitumen Technologies, has gone a step further with its sprayed seal products, developing a range of high residue polymer modified bitumen emulsions called SAMIflex E HR as an alternative to hot binders sprayed seals. Bituminous emulsions are widely used for spray sealing in Europe and the United States of America. In the early 2000s, South Africa banned the cutting back of hot
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bituminous binders on its national road network, which led the way for widespread uptake of emulsions. It is widely documented that there are concerns with a popular cutting agent used in bituminous binders, kerosene. When heated to elevated temperatures, around 190 degrees as is often needed for spray sealing, kerosene can pose an explosion risk due to the flammable vapours it produces when heated. Working with kerosene containing binders at such high temperatures can create a risk for workers on each job in regard to burns and fumes exposure. Kerosene can also emit greenhouse gases, impacting the environment. Also, it is well known that hot binders may deteriorate while transported over long distances at high temperatures. This risk is in-existent with SAMIflex E HR emulsions, as the emulsion contains water and does not need to be kept at high temperatures during
transport. In other words, the emulsion system protects the binder from degrading. Iulian Man, Technical Services Manager at SAMI, says the most widely used alternative to cutback bitumen sprayed seals are emulsions. “Emulsions are produced by blending bituminous binders and water with an emulsifier in specialised plants. You don’t have to heat bitumen emulsion to elevated temperatures to spray it on the ground, it only needs to get to a spraying temperature at around 60 to 90 degrees depending on the binder and polymer content,” Man says. “Once heated you spray the emulsion and the water will evaporate. This allows the bitumen to revert back to its initial state and stick to the surface of the road and bond with the aggregates.” The SAMIflex E HR range is made up of high residue polymer modified binder (PMB) emulsions, using an SBS polymer. Mixing a high residue PMB emulsion is
ASPHALT NEWS
slightly different than with standard or latex modified emulsions. High residue emulsions contain solid contents at around 77 per cent, which minimises the amount of water used in the process while still optimising the blend for spraying and handling. “Normally standard emulsions aren’t modified with polymers. Though, with more traffic you might need more strength in the sprayed seal to withstand traffic stresses at higher pavement temperatures so you add polymers,” Man says. “Each product in the SAMIflex range has a different level of polymer, and it can be selected by the contractor as a function of traffic levels and ambient conditions for a particular road.” COLAS Australia have previously used the SAMIflex E30 HR on various local government and Transport and Main Roads projects in Queensland. Matthew Johansen, Operations Manager at COLAS – South Queensland, says the team have used SAMIflex E30 HR emulsion as an initial surfacing treatment on a range of sites. “We believe the SAMIflex E30 HR achieves a pavement bond that is comparable to traditional cutback bitumen, whilst providing a range of performance, safety, time and sustainability benefits over cutback bitumen.”. “The SAMIflex E HR blends provide substantially better aggregate retention properties than other forms of initial treatment, resulting in a significantly reduced risk of aggregate stripping during periods of cold weather.” COLAS decided to use the emulsions
based on their performance capabilities, safety and environmental benefits. “The primary environmental and safety benefits of using a polymer modified emulsion such as SAMIflex E30 HR, is eliminating the need for cutter to be incorporated into spray sealing treatments,’ Johansen says. “On low gradient pavements, SAMIflex E30 HR can also achieve better waterproofing properties than some standard emulsions, due to its ability to be applied at higher application rates without the risk of runoff.” These benefits are also achieved with minimal changes at the operational phase. “The overall application is similar to applying a hot binder. The main difference is that we typically will wait for a period of 10 to 30 minutes to allow the emulsion to break prior to applying aggregate, in
comparison to applying aggregate as soon as possible to aid adhesion when spraying hot binder,” Johansen says. He notes there are also standard operational practices that need to be considered when handling emulsions in sprayers, tankers or other vessels which can hold both hot bitumen and emulsion. In the future, COLAS will look to increase its use of the SAMIflex E HR emulsions across its projects. “We have full intention of continuing to use SAMIflex E HR on future projects, and are currently working with LGA’s to further develop knowledge and application processes for emulsions,” Johansen says. “This education will be a step towards, enabling SAMIflex E HR range of emulsions to be utilised further on sites which traditionally would only consider cutback bitumen.”
SAMIflex E HR emulsion being sprayed on a project.
A project after the application of SAMIflex E HR.
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DOWNER AND COATES HIRE BRING
3D SAFETY TECH TO WA
The technology evaluates the position of a machine against a pre-defined three-dimensional model of the restricted area.
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TECHNOLOGY & EQUIPMENT
DOWNER, COATES HIRE AND SITECH WA, HAVE PARTNERED TO TRIAL AN AUSTRALIA-FIRST TECHNOLOGY THAT PROMISES TO DELIVER ENHANCED SAFETY FOR CONSTRUCTION SITES.
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he three companies are bringing the revolutionary 3D Avoidance Zone System to Australia. The technology is developed by SITECH WA and it prevents machinery entering a restricted area in real-time through the creation of a digital 3D barrier which shuts down connected machinery in the event that any part ‘touches’ the digital barrier. The technology promises to dramatically reduce accidents and increase safety in construction jobs which are being undertaken within tight areas or nearby critical infrastructure, such as rail lines or mine sites. Downer and Coates Hire will deliver the technology as required to construction sites across the country. Cormac Brady, General Manager, Western Australia Infrastructure Projects, Downer said the system will be used as further mitigation against potential to ‘foul’ the rail danger zone, over and above to those physical barriers already in place. “Following a successful trial of the 3D Avoidance Zone System, Downer will be able to apply it to our wider rail and civil projects, thus ensuring safety is at the heart of everything we do,” he said. The technology will be trialled by Downer and Coates Hire for the first time in Australia, with Western Australia chosen as the ideal location for the trial to take place. James Naylor, Executive General Manager, West, Coates Hire said construction sites near rail lines and other critical infrastructure are both necessary and fraught with hazards, as excavators increasingly work within tight areas and nearby fast-moving transport. “Thankfully technology is emerging to ensure these work spaces are safer than ever before, with Western Australia the first Australian state to benefit through this trial,” Naylor said. “This offering is the next stage in our Internet of Things (IoT) strategy. Once completed, Coates Hire customers will benefit from enhanced safety, productivity and monitoring capabilities.” HOW THE 3D ZONE PROTECTS WORKERS AND PUBLIC TRANSPORT USERS With the 3D system, an excavator’s position is provided by SITECH WA’s next generation Trimble Machine Control System; Earthworks. Using dual Global Navigation Satellite
System (GNSS) technology, the position of the whole of the machine is passed to the Trimble Marine Construction Software (TMC) which compares the machine’s position with the exclusion zone. The TMC evaluates the current position of the machine against a pre-defined three-dimensional model of the restricted area. If any part of the excavator ‘touches’ the invisible barrier, TMC sends a signal to the machine to stop by disabling all operator inputs, ensuring the operator is no longer able to continue on their current path of movement. This barrier can be set by site managers, but once the barrier is set there is no need to update the barrier, as the GPS system is always aware of the location of the machine, even if it moves beyond its original location. “With the SITECH WA’s 3D Avoidance Zone System the restricted area is absolute, and the machine position is always known,” said Brady. The technology works on a “Traffic Light” system. A Green alert advises workers and managers that the excavator is all clear to proceed operation; an Amber alert advises the worker and site manager that the excavator is approaching the Avoidance Zone, usually 0.5 metres as defined within the TMC software; and a Red alert means the excavator has entered the Avoidance Zone and triggers the machine interlock, which overrides the machine’s operation and halts it immediately. Developed by SITECH in New Zealand, the technology has been deployed successfully by KiwiRail to ensure the safety of construction workers as well as train passengers and drivers. George Harris, Sales Manager, SITECH WA said the company leverages technology in all facets of the construction and mining sectors to improve safety, productivity and efficiency. “Applying this technology to Coates Hire’s equipment helps keep workers and the general public safe along with protecting critical infrastructure is of paramount importance to what we do day in, day out,” he said. “This technology can be used in so many different applications on many different machine types. We are excited to partner with both Downer and Coates in this project.” roadsonline.com.au
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BUILDING THE REGIONAL GROWTH
FOUNDATIONS REGIONAL LAND DEVELOPERS NORDCON LAND HAVE RECENTLY SEEN A MAJOR INCREASE IN DEMAND FOR RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT. WITH A LARGE PIPELINE OF WORKS ON THE WAY, THE TEAM INVESTED IN A WIRTGEN SLIPFORM PAVER AND THE AUTOPILOT 2.0 3D SYSTEM TO IMPROVE WORKFLOW AND RESULTS.
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nline and remote working roles grew significantly in 2020 as the pandemic and government restrictions forced many to work from home. Though it seems offices are not the only properties being abandoned. Australian Bureau of Statistics data shows in the September 2020 quarter, 11,200 people moved from Australia’s greater capital cities through internal migration. Sydney and Melbourne city dwellers topped the internal migration list with each city losing over 7000 people. It is this behaviour one land developer believes has contributed to a housing development boom in the regions. Eric Pietila is the owner of Nordcon LAND,
The Wirtgen SP15 in action. 36
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a privately owned land development group based in Albury-Wodonga on the Victorian and New South Wales border. “There is unprecedented demand for lots and we need to produce as many lots for the marketplace as we can at the moment,” Pietila says. He says the team initially put the boom down to a grant that was offered by the Victorian Government. From June to December in 2020, the Victorian government was offering $25,000 in addition to other grant money, to build or substantially renovate a home within those dates. This has now been cut down to $15,000 for builds between January and March 2021. “There still seems to be a strong demand if
not even more at the moment for land and we’re seeing it from people coming out of the capitals and relocating to regional areas.” With a major increase in demand the Nordcon team wanted to improve processes for land development. When it came to constructing the kerbs, gutters, footpaths, and roadways they decided to purchase the new Wirtgen Slipform paver and Autopilot 2.0 3D system to improve productivity. Nordcon often develops around 3-400 residential lots a year, so time is of the essence. “We have 12 active developments underway now and the paver is being used for various projects at those developments,” Pietila says. “With kerbs and gutters it’s a far superior
TECHNOLOGY & EQUIPMENT
Wirtgen’s SP15 and Autopilot 2.0 work to improve productivity.
product because we’re using a different concrete mix. When we hand over these projects to the council or authority, they are excited that it is a much better and stronger product being produced.” Using the Autopilot 2.0 system means there is no need to set up stringlines as would be required with traditional concrete paving works. “The slipform paver is GPS and TPS controlled so setting up the machine and site is much quicker. We are finding that with footpaths too, it’s really quick. We can lay a 1.5 metre wide footpath at a speed of about one and a half meters per minute which is fast and saves on labour,” Pietila says. A trimming feature on the front of the paver works to keep the subbase cut to the specified level throughout the job, which Pietila says ensures they are not using excess concrete. “The speed of actually laying the concrete is so much quicker with the Wirtgen Slipform
“THE SLIPFORM PAVER IS GPS AND TPS CONTROLLED SO SETTING UP THE MACHINE AND SITE IS MUCH QUICKER. WE ARE FINDING THAT WITH FOOTPATHS TOO, IT’S REALLY QUICK. WE CAN LAY A 1.5 METRE WIDE FOOTPATH AT A SPEED OF ABOUT ONE AND A HALF METERS PER MINUTE WHICH IS FAST AND SAVES ON LABOUR.”
paver, it saves us time and money. When there is unprecedented demand for lots it’s important that we can work quickly,” he says. With strong demand and expectation for works, Wirtgen have supported Nordcon to ensure the new paver and Autopilot 2.0 system are working smoothly. “We developed a great partnership with Wirtgen from our very first meeting. Wirtgen saw our vision and where we would like to go forward, to improve our productivity. Not only in their products but with their service as well,” Pietila says. “Once we brought the product, they did
not just leave it there they were constantly in touch. Their knowledgeable staff put the customer before the dollars.” Pietila says Nordcon are always looking to improve processes and having machine control on a slipform paver was a great investment. “Wirtgen SP15 and AutoPilot 2.0 did what we wanted and more. It increased levels of productivity by reducing overall construction time and deliver cost savings. We are able to increase consistency of the kerb throughout the job site and produce better results for our clients.” roadsonline.com.au
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Photo by Danist on Unsplash
SEEING GREEN LAST YEAR SAW PEOPLE ACROSS THE GLOBE BEGIN REGULAR PARK WALKS OR PICNICS IN GREEN SPACES FOR SAFE SOCIALISATION AND EXERCISE. ROADS & INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTIGATES THE ROLE GREENERY CAN PLAY IN FUTURE INFRASTRUCTURE PLANNING AND DELIVERY FOR SOCIAL, HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFIT.
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2019 study, published in Frontiers in Psychology, monitored the levels of the stress hormone – cortisol – from samples taken before and after people spent time in nature. It found that by spending 20 to 30 minutes in nature, people’s cortisol levels dropped therefore reducing stress. While this study and others have proved vegetation has benefits for mental wellbeing, bringing nature into cities may have significant benefits for infrastructure too. The Greening Australia organisation states trees and other green infrastructure help to reduce the amount of heat being absorbed and released by absorbing sunlight and shading hard surfaces. It says trees, shrubs and grasses are also natural coolers, they draw soil moisture into their leaves which then evaporates and cools the air. As a practical example of the benefits of greenery in infrastructure, the Greater Sydney Commission records urban heat as a key performance indicator for wellbeing. Using NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment data it compared the percentage of residents found to have exposure to high urban heat in 2016, in each of Sydney’s six districts, with the percentage 40
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of urban tree canopy cover in these areas. The North District, which had the highest urban tree canopy cover of 40 per cent, had the least number of residents with exposure to high urban heat - at just two per cent of the population. The next smallest percentage of heat exposure was the South District with 17 per cent of people exposed to high urban heat. The South District also recorded the second highest tree coverage percentage, at 24 per cent. With train and bus stations, carparks and tramways a key part of infrastructure in many of Australia’s urban and city areas, turning this infrastructure green could have significant benefits for liveability. GREEN ROOF GAINS These benefits and possibilities are beginning to be recognised by asset managers and owners in Australia. In October 2020, the Victorian Government announced its first park and ride facility at Bulleen. The bus terminal will feature a green roof, which will include walking and cycling paths, trees and other plants. Sydney’s One Central Park, a residential building, was recently constructed with greenery covering around 50 per cent of the
building’s façade. It also features a motorised heliostat which captures and directs sunlight into its adjacent park in the space where sunlight is blocked by the tower. With this progression of green building gaining momentum, we spoke to registered landscape architect and Lecturer at UNSW Sydney, Dr. Sara Padgett Kjaersgaard about the benefits that could be realised if public transport infrastructure embraces greenery. “We know green spaces reduce the urban heat island effect created by asphalt and buildings, so trees are an essential component of reducing heat in our cities,” she says. “Green spaces can also improve mental health, they give us an opportunity for respite and recreation and they provide multiple opportunities for local biodiversity.” In 2016, the Australian Bureau of Statistics found 71 per cent of Australians live in major cities, many of these spaces are often covered with hard surfaces such as concrete or asphalt. “Another major benefit of increasing green infrastructure in our cities is to mitigate damage caused by flooding. Where we have hotter environments or increased storm activity, green spaces and
ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY
PUTTING DOWN THE ROOTS IN POLICY As a Fellow and previous Director of the Board of the Australian Institute of
Landscape Architects, Padgett Kjaersgaard and her colleagues penned a submission to Infrastructure Australia in 2015, regarding green infrastructure. Titled ‘15 year infrastructure plan for Australia’, the submission outlined project and policy recommendations for a National Green Infrastructure Strategy, which advocated for Green Infrastructure to become an national asset class. It also called for the use of the Sustainable Sites Initiative (SITES) rating system to be applied to all federally funded infrastructure projects. “If green infrastructure were to become an asset class in its own right, it would be budgeted for, but also then maintained which would filter right down to council level, including the parks and streets,” Padgett Kjaersgaard says. “This way green structures would have an economic value as any other equipment that needs to be maintained and replaced.” Implementing green spaces within infrastructure can also provide value for developers, as it now adds to sustainability goals and targets on projects. “What a national policy might help us do is get green spaces incentivised, so that they become normalised. Then the public will ask, ‘why doesn’t that building have a green roof?’. If it means it captures water, increases pollinator biodiversity or even if it’s a green wall that cools the station while people wait for the train, these ideas all benefit people,” she says. In regional towns for instance, green spaces can help to provide active transport connections in the form of walking or cycling and can encourage people to visit certain places. Larger green linkages would also help Concept image from the North East Link Project
trees help to filter water into the ground and mitigate the impacts of those high storm events,” Padgett Kjaersgaard says. Green spaces are natural assets and are an important role in the culture of Indigenous Australians, in terms of how they read and connect to Country. “Trees and green places are a big part of the repositories of lore and stories about place and the way that place, or the landscape of cities are read and understood in Indigenous culture,” she says. Many of the missed opportunities to increase green spaces and coverage in our cities and towns are in the delivery of public infrastructure, for example; train stations, footpaths, cycle ways, bus stations and alongside roads. There are now examples of the inclusion of green infrastructure in policy from around the world. In Copenhagen Denmark, vegetation and soil is a mandatory obligation on roofs with a pitch less than 300. Incentives are also available for refurbishments of older rooftops. France mandates the inclusion of green roofs for all new commercial buildings. Whilst Toronto Canada, has passed a by-law requiring green roofs on new commercial, institutional and residential developments on buildings that have a gross floor area of 2000 square metres or more. “These changes are really bold steps forward to reduce heat emittance off those roof surfaces, to effect the microclimate, increase pollinator biodiversity, and to create a more carbon-neutral city,” Padgett Kjaersgaard says.
Victoria’s first green roof park and ride facility in Bulleen.
towards preserving Australia’s 85 eco-regions, of which only 46 were found to meet the International Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) protection mandate, which Australia has attempted to implement. In the Journal of Landscape Architecture, landscape architect Simon Kilbane argues, most forms of infrastructure are networks for example power grids, roads, drainage and telecommunications. Yet the idea of large-scale interconnected habitat is not something the public may typically appreciate as ‘essential infra-structure’. Padgett Kjaersgaard says the Woolgoolga to Ballina Pacific Highway, for which landscape architecture practice Corkery Consulting together with architects Studio Colin Polwarth were commissioned as specialist consultants to coordinate the landscape and urban design for the whole project, is a good example of green infrastructure. The works have created a section of road infrastructure which has been improved to include green outcomes. The project also collaborated with the traditional custodians of the land to further improve the infrastructure. Aboriginal participation targets were exceeded with over one million hours worked on the project by Aboriginal employees and 20 nations were represented in the works. The project also installed 3600 biodiversity offsets and 300 kilometres of fauna fencing. Teams planted 130 hectares of koala food trees and hydromulched 1250 hectares of land, to protect loose soil in the event of floods and ensure the soil encourages plant growth. “There are great exemplars of green infrastructure across Australia but what we need is a coordinated approach at a national level that would allow big projects to be funded for this asset class,” Padgett Kjaersgaard says. “It would be great if some of the key green linkages in cities and towns were identified as national priorities in Infrastructure Australia’s ‘Infrastructure Priority List’ and adequately funded. Green spaces - green cycleways, connected green parks and green streets that support the active movement of people and species are fundamental to Australia’s continued prosperity and the health and wellbeing of the community.” She says after all when you are getting social and environmental outcomes from a project you are going to have a better serving public asset. roadsonline.com.au
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READY TO
RECYCLE
RMIT UNIVERSITY RESEARCHERS HAVE CREATED A NEW ROAD CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL FOR THE BASE AND SUBBASE LAYERS MADE FROM CONSTRUCTION AND DEMOLITION RUBBLE AND CRUMB RUBBER.
Dr. Mohammad Boroujeni, Lead Researcher.
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MIT researchers noticed a gap in the knowledge and application of blends in different mixes for base and subbase applications. The team wanted to find a solution for this that was not only innovative but recyclable. Using two streams of waste materials, the research group came up with a crumb rubber and concrete aggregate mix to be used as a subbase material in road construction. To begin, they performed a number of experimental tests, including large-scale direct shear, unconfined compression strength, California bearing ratio, resilient modulus, permanent deformation, and Clegg impact hammer tests on the effect of different sizes and quantities of crumb rubber. These tests enabled the team to identify the mechanical properties, including shear strength, of the recycled concrete aggregate as a base material. From there they were able to detect the ideal mix of 0.5 per cent crumb rubber to 99.5 per cent recycled concrete aggregate as a base course material mixture. This mixture was able to meet road engineering safety standards and RMIT 42
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RMIT technology to measure the resilient modulus and permanent deformation.
is now looking to perform field trials of the product. Lead researcher at RMIT Dr. Mohammad Boroujeni says the main objective behind the creation of this mix is to reduce the use
of virgin resources and re-use construction and road related materials that might otherwise go to landfill. Research team leader Professor Jie Li say in 2019 the Federal and State governments
ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY
The mix uses 95.5 per cent recycled concrete aggregate.
agreed to ban the export of certain waste materials and as part of the agreement tyres will be banned from export in December 2021. “We saw this as a good opportunity for researchers and industry to find new applications for waste materials,” he says. Sustainability Victoria says approximately 50 million vehicle tyres reach end-of-life across Australia each year, only 16 per cent of these are recycled locally. In 2018-19 the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) found construction was the second biggest waste generating sector in Australia. This trailed manufacturing by 0.1 percent. ABS found the construction sector created 12.7 million tonnes of waste or 16.8 per cent of total waste created in Australia. However, ABS also found the waste category of masonry materials had the highest recovery rate, at 81 per cent, which was driven entirely by recycling. Meaning the reuse of masonry materials is common and contributes significantly to a reduction in overall waste. The creation of this material aims to grow acceptance for the use of such recycled, blended materials in civil construction and improve market confidence and demand for using recycled materials in pavement construction. “We believe this crumb rubber and recycled concrete aggregate product can
have many benefits in Australia. It can lead to improved pavement construction in terms of cost, safety and sustainability. It could also help governments and the recycling industry to reduce waste and create employment opportunities,” Boroujeni says. He says the performance of the material in trials so far has been impressive. “We’ve seen the inclusion of crumb rubber to the recycled concrete aggregate can provide properties such as good water and acid resistance, low shrinkage, high impact resistance and more,” he says. “So, in terms of the shear properties, the inclusion of rubber to recycled concrete aggregate lead to higher strength properties compared to those of the natural aggregate and recycled concrete aggregate only.” The research team also tested the mix at extremely elevated temperatures, up to 600 degrees centigrade, to replicate the temperature of roads during bushfire events. “Interestingly we observed that the inclusion of rubber to recycled concrete aggregate could provide higher mechanical properties when exposed to fire or high temperatures and provided better stability and strength compared to the recycled concrete aggregate only sample,” Boroujeni says.
Rubber properties were also found by the team, in line with industry performances, to increase the flexibility of the mixture. “The flexibility of a base course is important because of the reactive clay soils as the subgrade of roads which cover many parts of Australia. This sort of soil swells when it absorbs water and shrinks when it loses it. If the base course isn’t flexible enough the swell and shrinkage of the clay soil might lead to sudden failure of the base course and consequently the asphalt layer failure,” Professor Jie Li says. “Flexible pavements need to be able to absorb carloads and distribute the loads in the pavement structure. A non-flexible base might crack suddenly and cause rutting on the asphalt layer which leads to road hazards and maintenance costs.” As part of testing at the university, the team has already investigated the longterm performance of the mixture for pavement deformation, by subjecting the mix to 100,000 cycles of tyre loading. This represents the same loading as vehicles on a road and Boroujeni says these tests showed promising results. “At this stage we can argue that this mix can be used in low traffic applications but we need to investigate its performance on arterial roads, so we are looking for council, government or industry support field trials in a real pavement,” he says. roadsonline.com.au
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GROUNDED
AT THE GATE
James Goodwin, CEO of the Australian Airports Association.
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INFRASTRUCTURE IN FOCUS – BRIDGES
WITH INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL UNLIKELY TO RETURN UNTIL 2022 AND BORDER CLOSURES INTERRUPTING DOMESTIC TRAVEL PLANS, ROADS & INFRASTRUCTURE SPEAKS TO AUSTRALIAN AIRPORTS ASSOCIATION CEO JAMES GOODWIN ABOUT THE FUTURE OF OUR AIRPORT INFRASTRUCTURE.
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“THE AUSTRALIAN AIRPORT’S ASSOCIATION ESTIMATES AIRPORTS ARE LOSING AROUND $320 MILLION A MONTH WITH REDUCED PATRONAGE AND FLIGHTS.”
restaurants and road traffic continued almost as usual, airport traffic slowed down. STAYING AFLOAT Since March 2020, Australian Airports have seen drastic reductions in passenger movements, even with domestic travel opportunities. In April 2020, the Federal Government announced the Australian Airline Financial Relief Package. The $715 million program enabled the refunding and ongoing
waiving of some federal charges on the aviation industry from February 1 to December 31 2020. Further to this, the Domestic Aviation Network Support (DANS) program and the Regional Aviation Network Support (RANS) programs were implemented. These helped airlines to maintain key routes to provide essential travel and services. While airports still experience low passenger numbers these programs, along with JobKeeper, will taper off in late March 2020.
Photo by David Goulding on Unsplash.
n late 2020 Australia started the road to COVID normal, shops began to fill up, bars attracted crowds and people started to complain about traffic again. With positive vaccine roll-out news across the globe, and very few cases of coronavirus in Australian communities, families began to plan domestic holidays over the Christmas period. However, on the evening of December 17 2020, New South Wales recorded a cluster of 17 coronavirus cases in Sydney’s Northern Beaches. In the aftermath Victoria, Western Australia, Queensland, Tasmania and the Northern Territory imposed travel restrictions on people entering from New South Wales and on thoese visiting their states. These restrictions disrupted travel plans over the Christmas period and while shops,
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With border closures impending, based on local coronavirus cases, and the Australian Chief Medical Officer stating international travel borders will be one of the last things to change on the path back to normal, airports are expected to be quiet for some time to come. The Australian Airport’s Association estimates airports are losing around $320 million a month with reduced patronage and flights. As key infrastructure assets and as the gateways to vaccination and medical personnel movement, it’s critical airports continue to run safely throughout 2021. Australian Airport’s Association CEO James Goodwin says this year the industry was hoping to be on the road to recovery, but is still in a level of crisis.
available for when the sector is back on its feet,” Goodwin says. INFRASTRUCTURAL UPKEEP In addition to ensuring the upkeep of skills and talent, the maintenance of airport infrastructure continues to be critical for safe operation of aircraft and passenger movement. “There has never been a better time to carry out infrastructure upgrades at airports, with fewer aircraft and passengers it’s a great time to be investing in the future and undertaking infrastructure upgrades,” Goodwin says. “But it’s a Catch 22 because we can’t see the return on investment or raise the finance to undertake those major upgrades.” Goodwin says the association are asking
“MANY OF THE JOBS CREATED THROUGH THESE AIRPORT UPGRADES ARE NOT NECESSARILY AVIATION JOBS WHICH IS GREAT FOR THE REGIONS, SO THERE WILL BE A NUMBER OF LOCAL TRADESPEOPLE THAT WILL ASSIST WITH THESE PROJECTS, NOT JUST AVIATION PROFESSIONALS.”
“We need immediate relief and support for the sector to get through and to look at recovery. We are asking the Government to extend its support packages for another six months,” Goodwin says. “Having this support for longer will provide confidence for the airlines and airports that we have a sustainable air network to get Australians around, whether that be holiday makers or essential workers.” In January, Goodwin gave evidence at the Government’s Inquiry into the Future of Australia’s Aviation Sector, in the context of COVID-19 and conditions postpandemic. He called for extensions of support packages and the continuation of JobKeeper in the aviation industry to retain skills and capability in the sector. “JobKeeper has been a well targeted Government program to maintain skills and capability,” he says. The aviation workforce is comprised of staff with security screenings, certification and qualifications that take time to earn. “We need to be able to retain skills and capabilities needed for the recovery phase. We need to keep our workforce 46
ROADS MARCH 2021
Government to ensure the Remote Airstrip Program and the Regional Airports Program, which provide funding for infrastructure upkeep, are fully utilised in order to support airports to perform essential works at an opportune time. “Many of the jobs created through these airport upgrades are not necessarily aviation jobs which is great for the regions, so there will be a number of local tradespeople that will assist with these projects, not just aviation professionals.” He says there are many airports across the country with upgrade projects ready to go that could add to the economic boost coming from projects in other areas of infrastructure. “We want to urge Government to change things like the major development proposal thresholds, we would believe that lifting that from the current $25 million to $50 million would mean some of these projects can get underway now,” Goodwin says. A lot of attention and stimulus is directed at road projects to improve safety and reduce congestion, but Goodwin says it can be forgotten that airports get congestion and safety issues too with similar infrastructural demands.
“This is a great opportunity for the Government to understand the infrastructure led recovery that we can have at Australian airports, like resurfacing runways, building new aprons, new taxiways, reviewing terminal and aerobridge structures and associated developments like carparks,” he says. AIRPORTS AND THE COVID-19 VACCINE DISTRIBUTION As for challenges faced by the infrastructure network, distribution of a COVID-19 vaccine will arguably be one of the most important logistical programs that Australia has undertaken so far this century. Integral to the importation and distribution of the vaccine Australia-wide will be airports. “The vaccine roll out is the next stage of airport support to the Government to ensure we can tackle this virus. Airports will play an important part to ensure the vaccine and the people that administer it can get where they need to go,” Goodwin says. “Air travel is the only form of public transport in some remote parts of Australia, so we know the only way the vaccine or medical professionals will get to those places is by using the airport.” The Association has been advised by the Federal Government that airport workers who have a high likelihood of exposure to the virus will be prioritised under Phase 1a of the COVID-19 rollout. “It’s important that airport workers are prioritised for the vaccination as they are coming into contact with high numbers of passengers, particularly those working in international terminals,” Goodwin says. “We know that the workers will be prioritised accordingly, but we can’t forget that airport workers and those in the value chain operating the airport that go unseen by most people on an aircraft. Their work is vital to ensure people can get around the country.” While there is much uncertainty ahead for the airport industry, Goodwin says he is consistently impressed by workers ability to adapt and to find better ways of operating. “I continue to be inspired every day by the people that work at our airports. They are essential for getting their fellow Australians where they need to go, and I think the resilience of the people that work at our airports is second to none.”
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