In the media
Construction numbers misleading, says
economist
Housing construction levels appear to be improving, but economist
Peter Jones claims that this shows that the Australian housing
market is actually still in a critical state (05 April 2013).
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Years for Huge Leighton Fraud
An employee who stole $20 million over twelve years from Australian
construction giant Leighton Holdings has been sentenced to a
maximum of 15 years in prison (05 April 2013).
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FWBC provides new guidance to industry on sham
contracting
Fair Work Building & Construction (FWBC) has released its first
guidance note addressing a substantive area of workplace law - sham
contracting. The guidance note is designed to give the building and
construction industry information about how FWBC interprets the
laws it enforces (04 April 2013).
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Australian Industry Group calls for considered approach
to CSG mining restrictions
The Australian Industry Group has spoken out on the issue of coal
seam gas production, arguing for the need to balance a secure gas
supply against concerns over environmental impact (04 April 2013).
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National Infrastructure Construction
Schedule
The enhanced National Infrastructure Construction Schedule (NICS)
website is now live with improved navigation, functionality and
updates (27 March 2013).
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Safework Australia Guide for Managing Risks Involving
Heritage Plant
A new guide has been released that provides practical guidance
about managing health and safety risks for people who carry out
activities involving heritage plant (27 March 2013).
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National Infrastructure Award Winners for 2013
announced
The winners and finalists include: The refinancing of Sydney
Desalination Plant; Diamantina Power Station Project Financing;
Royal North Shore Hospital Redevelopment; Sunshine Coast University
Hospital; Serco and the WA Government, working to establish
non-clinical services at Fiona Stanley Hospital; The Operation of
Sydney Ferries; IBM Townsville Water Smart Pilot (27 March 2013).
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Lend Lease, Partners Win A$630 Million Hospital
Project
Lend Lease Group, Australia's biggest property developer, is
among three companies selected to develop a A$630 million ($656
million) hospital in Bendigo in central Victoria state with the
state government in a public-private partnership (05 April 2013).
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$200m Broken Hill solar plant approved
A $200 million solar power station for the far west has been
recommended for approval by the NSW Government. Electricity company
AGL is planning to build the plant at Rob Day Station south-west of
Broken Hill (02 April 2013).
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Flawed process claims spark rocky 24 hours for
CSG
In the space of 24 hours, the coal seam gas industry has been hit
by claims of flawed approval processes, calls for a moratorium on
all new projects and one company suspending its operations in New
South Wales (02 April 2013).
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Bays precinct a lost opportunity for a private public
partnership
The Bays Precinct with its extensive areas of underutilised land
needs a Private Public Partnership approach so that some port use,
new development and public domain improvements can all occur says
the Urban Taskforce (27 March 2013).
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Infrastructure Australia Welcomes Action on Chullora
Intermodal Access
Infrastructure Australia (IA) has welcomed the agreement between
the Australian and NSW governments to move ahead with improving
access to the Chullora Intermodal Terminal in South West Sydney (26
March 2013).
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Kaniva Bridge Upgrade Contract Awarded
The upgrade of the bridge over the rail line at Kaniva along the
Western Highway will begin within weeks following the awarding of
the contract to Cut and Fill Pty Ltd (26 March 2013).
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First APLNG Modules Arrive in Gladstone
The Australia Pacific LNG Project has unloaded the first LNG
modules on Curtis Island following their arrival into Gladstone
Harbour. The first four modules were delivered to the Curtis Island
site where these modules and others will be used as the foundation
structure for the LNG processing trains and supporting
infrastructure (03 April 2013).
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New authority for games infrastructure
The State Government has established a Commonwealth Games
Infrastructure Authority to oversee the planning, development and
delivery of facilities for the 2018 Commonwealth Games on the Gold
Coast (01 April 2013).
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Payroll tax compliance in the building and construction
sector
OSR are examining payroll tax compliance in the building and
construction sector. The compliance program will focus on workers
who should be included in an employer's payroll tax liability,
because they are either employees or relevant contractors (26 March
2013).
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New Acland project evaluation moves
forward
The Coordinator-General has finalised the terms of reference for
the New Acland Coal Mine Stage 3 project near Oakey. This clears
the way for proponent New Hope Coal to prepare a new environmental
impact statement (EIS) for the scaled-down proposal (26 March
2013).
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Published – articles, papers, reports
Engineering Construction Activity, Australia, December
2012
Author: Australian Bureau of Statistics. The trend estimate for the
value of total engineering construction work done rose 0.4%, and
the seasonally adjusted estimate for the value of total engineering
construction work done fell 1.7%. The seasonally adjusted estimate
for the value of work done for the private sector fell 3.9% and the
trend estimate for the value of work done for the public sector
rose 0.4% (03 April 2013).
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Offshore oil and gas safety and security in the Asia
Pacific
Author: Lee Cordner; S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
(RSIS). This monograph explores the safety and security risks
associated with the massive expansion of offshore oil and gas
exploration and exploitation activity in the Asia-Pacific region.
Risk mitigating options for action are presented that need to be
urgently and collaboratively considered by all stakeholders (03
April 2013).
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Network development plan – metropolitan rail:
overview
Author: Public Transport Victoria
This paper puts forward a plan of how Melbourne's train system
needs to evolve to meet the needs of the city and of train
passengers in the short, medium and long term (27 March2013).
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Great Artesian Basin Water Resource
Assessment
Author: CSIRO
The project examined the water resources of the Great Artesian
Basin and assessed potential impacts of climate change and resource
development ( 9 June 2011; Updated 27 March 2013).
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In practice and courts
National Infrastructure Construction Schedule
(NICS)
The National Infrastructure Construction Schedule (NICS) has just
released 'Phase 3'—its new package of website
improvements. The site now has a total of 103 projects, with a
total value over $60 billion and this value is steadily
increasing.Visit www.nics.gov.au to view more
projects (27 March 2013).
More...
Free Australian Standards and Guides
These Guides are reference tools which include information on
Standards and Certification Schemes. They are indexed by key
subject areas and use easy to understand terms
AS 4055: Wind Loads for Housing standard
A revised version of the Australian standard AS4055 Wind Loads for
Housing has been released and is now in force. The standard
provides a process by which wind loads can be determined for houses
that fall into the dimension limits imposed by the standard (26
March 2013).
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New draft Standards for consultation
DR AS 1418.11
Cranes, hoists and winches - Part 11: Vehicle-loading cranes (EN
12999:2011, MOD) Comment closes 07 June 2013.
More...
DR AS 1530.4
Methods for fire tests on building materials, components and
structures - Part 4: Fire-resistance test of elements of
construction. Comment closes 05 June 2013.
More...
DR AS 2550.11
Cranes, hoists and winches - Safe use - Part 11: Vehicle-loading
cranes. Comment closes 07 June 2013.
More...
DR AS 2550.5
Cranes, hoists and winches - Safe use - Part 5: Mobile cranes.
Comment closes 07 June 2013.
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NSW: Asbestos Plan 2013
The plan will increase awareness of the dangers associated with
asbestos and ensure its safe management to improve long term health
and safety outcomes. The Asbestos Plan has four priority areas
including research, risk communication, prevention and
coordination. (04 April 2013).
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NSW: construction code of practice
released
New procurement guidelines for construction companies tendering for
New South Wales (NSW) Government infrastructure work were released
on 22 March 2013. A Construction Compliance Unit will be
established in NSW Treasury to enforce the guidelines.
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QLD: Electrical Safety Regulation review
The Electrical Safety Regulation 2002 is currently under review.
Public comment on the Regulatory Assessment Statement (RAS) opened
on Thursday 28 March 2013 and closes on Friday 26 April 2013 (03
April 2013).
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QLD: Mines Safety Bulletin 132 - Xanthates in
mining
Xanthates are a group of chemicals typically used in sulphide
flotation in mining applications. Xanthates are classified as
liable to spontaneous combustion in the Australian Dangerous Goods
(ADG) Code. They pose a number of hazards due to their nature, the
vast quantities used in industry and the climate conditions at most
Queensland mines using them (27 March 2013).
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Cases
Amcor Packaging (Australia) Pty Ltd v Baulderstone Pty
Ltd [2013] FCA 253
ARBITRATION – whether arbitration agreement – dispute
resolution clause – interpretation – application for
stay of proceeding – misleading and deceptive conduct –
s 52 Trade Practices Act 1974 (Cth) – breach of contract
– proposed proceeding stayed. PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE –
application for preliminary discovery – application stayed
without an adjudication of the merits – inappropriate to
determine. More...
Mainteck Services Pty Limited v Stein Heurtey SA and
Stein Heurtey Australia Pty Ltd [2013] NSWSC 266
PROCEDURE - principles regarding the adoption of a referee's
report - whether referee's report should be adopted or rejected
in part - whether the plaintiff should be permitted to withdraw an
admission in relation to the referee's report. CONTRACTS -
construction and interpretation of contracts - whether contract
void for uncertainty - courts should be astute to adopt a
construction which will preserve the validity of a contract.
EVIDENCE - findings of fact - whether findings in referee's
report are unreasonable or perverse. Civil Procedure Act 2005;
Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005.
The plaintiff Mainteck Services Pty Limited (Mainteck), made a claim for approximately $9,884,338 against the defendants (Stein Heutey SA and Stein Heutey Australia Pty Ltd, SHF and SH, which I will call SH unless the context requires greater precision) to the effect that certain compensation was due to them by reason of misrepresentations made by SH leading to the underpricing of the contractual tasks in the order of $5,075,157. Claims were also made for delay and disruption totalling $2,548,383 and certain other claims were made for variations totalling $2,260,798.
Mainteck's claims arose out of a Head Contract between Bluescope Steel (BSL) and SHF for the design and construction of a second "walking beam furnace" (WBF2) at BSL's hotstrip mill complex, at Port Kembla. More...
Thiess Pty Ltd & Anor v Arup Pty Ltd & Ors
[2013] QCA 065
CONTRACTS – GENERAL CONTRACTUAL PRINCIPLES –
CONSTRUCTION AND INTERPRETATION OF CONTRACTS – CUSTOM AND
USAGE – DEFINITION – where the appellants engaged the
respondents as consultants – where the appellants and the
respondents entered into a Collaborative Consultancy Agreement
– where Schedule 7 establishes a '3-Element'
compensation model – where the first element provides that
the respondents are to be reimbursed at 'actual cost' for
Collaborative Agreement Work– where the primary judge found,
and the respondents contend, that clause S7-3 defines, in relation
to staff rates, the way in which 'actual cost' within the
meaning of Element 1 is to be determined – where the
appellants submit that S7-3 has application only for the purpose of
calculating notional 'actual costs' for the purposes of
progress claims and payments – whether, upon the proper
construction of Collaborative Consultancy Agreement, S7-3 defines
'actual costs' for the purposes of S7-1 or whether S7-3 is
limited in its application to progress claims and payments.
CONTRACTS – GENERAL CONTRACTUAL PRINCIPLES –
CONSTRUCTION AND INTERPRETATION OF CONTRACTS – CUSTOM AND
USAGE – DEFINITION – where clause 20.3(a) of the
Collaborative Consultancy Agreement provides that BDO, as the
Collaborative Agreement Auditor, would have access to the personnel
and records of the first and second respondents – where the
primary judge refused the appellants' application for
declarations requiring the first and second respondents to give the
Collaborative Agreement Auditor access to their records and
personnel – where the appellants submit that the provisions
of the Collaborative Consultancy Agreement support a broad approach
to the Auditor's right of access – where the respondents
contend that BDO sought the documents for a purpose irrelevant to
the exercise of its functions under the Agreement – whether
the primary judge erred in exercising his discretion against the
grant of declaratory relief. More...
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