Month: August 2018

City Rail Link Wins Award for Setting Sustainability Benchmark

New Zealand’s largest transport construction project, Auckland’s City Rail Link (CRL) has been judged the leader in delivering sustainable infrastructure.

Last night the project won the 2018 Deloitte Energy Excellence Award’s Large Energy User Initiative of the Year. This is for outstanding energy-related initiatives that have delivered significant benefits, carried out by large energy users.

The CRL is a 3.45km twin-tunnel underground rail link up to 42 metres below Auckland city centre transforming the downtown Britomart Transport Centre into a two-way through-station that better connects the Auckland rail network.

The project has established a carbon foot printing programme on its first two contract packages to identify opportunities and actions for reducing energy emissions. CRLL has been working in collaboration with its construction partners Downer NZ and Soletanche Bachy JV and Connectus (McConnell Dowell and Downer JV) to deliver significant carbon savings.

From replacing diesel generators with grid-connected transformers to training haulage drivers in fuel-efficient techniques, CRL’s initiatives are expected to reduce energy emissions by over 2,000 tonnes – a 29% reduction project is on target to achieve its goals, while also reducing costs and saving time.

CRL’s CEO, Dr Sean Sweeney, says sustainability is a cornerstone of CRL thinking where the aim amongst everyone involved is to build the project without using unnecessary resources.

“The CRL will ultimately deliver a sustainable transport option and we want to make sure we are sustainable during its delivery. Our sustainability story also includes social outcome initiatives like providing employment and training opportunities for young people not already in jobs and addressing the construction skill shortage.”

Jointly funded by the Government and Auckland Council, the CRL is on track to be completed in 2024.

“Sustainability is a part of our DNA”, declares the website of Konica Minolta Australia. That is due in part to the leadership of its Australian Chair and Managing Director, Dr. David Cooke, who will be our speaker on August 23.

David is well-known for his leadership in sustainability in Australia, as is Konica Minolta worldwide. The Australian branch of this Japanese business systems and healthcare imaging products company was the first technology company to join the United Nations Global Compact Network Australia in 2016. Under David, Konica Minolta has focused on implementing ethical supply chains and raised the issue of modern slavery, becoming a champion of the Modern Slavery Act which was introduced into Parliament on 28th June 2018.

David will discuss the new model of CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) and its benefits for companies in any industry.

Event Details
Date & Time August 23 (Thursday) 6-8pm (venue opens 5:45 pm)
Networking drinks and snacks to follow presentation.

Venue
HWL Ebsworth Offices Level 14,
Australia Square,
264 George St,
Sydney

Cost
$40 AJS members, JCCI members
$50 non-members

To sign up please visit: www.ajsnsw.org.au

Sustainability Knowledge Now More Fundamental Than Ever To Business Success, Confirms New Research

New research published today by the Supply Chain Sustainability School of Australia has revealed a significant jump in the importance of sustainability knowledge for property, construction and infrastructure businesses, with 63 per cent of respondents reporting that it has become more important over the past twelve months; up 11 percentage points from last year.

These findings from Australia’s leading sustainable supply chain educator confirm that sustainability across property and infrastructure supply chains is becoming a higher priority, with businesses recognising the need to upskill their workforce and suppliers in order to meet their own goals and align with the requirements of customers.

“The increased value of informed and skilled employees to organisations is reflected in the survey results, with over a third of organisations now having base-level knowledge requirements for employees and more than one in four embedding it into job descriptions,” explains Robin Mellon, Chief Executive Officer of the Supply Chain Sustainability School.

“Almost two in every five members have noticed an improvement in their supply chains since they’ve been a member of the School (37 per cent), and 46 per cent of members have seen economic, environmental or social benefits from improved supply chains”, Mr Mellon adds.

The Survey finds that an understanding of key sustainability issues is fast becoming a requirement when assessing prospective employees. Similarly, expertise in sustainability is more of a consideration in project and tender assessments, with sustainable procurement now a key driver of innovation in materials, waste and energy.

“There is a growing call for enhancing sustainability skills across our built environment disciplines, across infrastructure projects, and across Australia’s extended infrastructure supply chains,” says Ainsley Simpson, the Chief Executive Officer of the Infrastructure Sustainability Council of Australia which is a founding partner of the School.

“Better educated businesses mean more sustainable infrastructure projects, with reduced environmental impacts, improved social and workforce outcomes and wholesale efficiency gains,” Simpson adds. “It’s particularly encouraging that 20 per cent of members have already seen improvements in the quality of Infrastructure Sustainability (IS) rating submissions.”

However, realising a higher level of sustainability knowledge across a workforce can prove challenging, with employees sometimes slow to engage with sustainability activities and learning and reluctant to change behaviour. According to the School’s members, one of the most effective ways to motivate employees in this space is good communication; ensuring clear links are made to project outcomes, organisational objectives, and career development. Furthermore, they suggest that sustainability needs to be embedded within ‘business as usual’, and that this approach has helped boost engagement with the School’s sustainability learning resources.

Respondents to the survey also highlighted that senior management needs to be driving sustainability to ensure that it isn’t simply seen as an added cost.

“Laing O’Rourke has backed the School from the very beginning because we understand how our supply chains can help us achieve our sustainability goals” says Hollie Hynes, Head of Sustainability for Laing O’Rourke and Co-Chair of the School’s Advisory Board.

“Now that so many survey respondents have sustainability plans in place – 83 per cent, in fact – the vast majority of the School’s members feel that the most important factor for the success of sustainability programs is real commitment from management,” she adds.

This year’s survey also revealed the areas of sustainability knowledge that are most sought-after, with social sustainability – and modern slavery in particular – being the most pressing need. This was highlighted as an issue across organisations and across the industry.

Energy was also identified as a key area (including renewables and battery storage, energy efficiency, literacy, efficient design, retrofitting) as well as waste (diverted from landfill, reduction, management, closed loop) and ‘the business case for sustainability’ needing strong educational support.

The annual survey reported a year-on-year increase in satisfaction with the School on every measure; the vast majority of members are satisfied with the School and most (84 per cent) would recommend it to colleagues.

“We encourage small, medium and large organisations across Australia to take advantage of the School’s free sustainability learning resources, and to work with their supply chains towards more sustainable outcomes and more efficient businesses,” Mr Mellon concludes

Addressing Sustainability From The Start

Taken from the 2018 ISCA Impacts Report

At Arup, “We shape a better world”, so sustainability is at the heart of all we do. We believe that delivering sustainable outcomes for both current stakeholders and future generations will make our business stronger in the long run. Like ISCA, we recognise that sustainable outcomes on projects are a result of collaboration between stakeholders, from planning through to construction and operation phases.

We played a key role in developing the initial Infrastructure Sustainability rating tool, providing us with in-depth knowledge, from its development to its context within the wide range of sustainability frameworks. Arup’s leading sustainability infrastructure professionals were involved in developing Version 2, and we are ISCA verifiers and trainers, having trained more than 200 Infrastructure Sustainability Accredited Professionals.

Case study: Port Drive Upgrade, Brisbane

Arup has significant experience in the ISCA rating tool projects including the Port Drive Upgrade, Melbourne’s Metro Tunnel Project, Parramatta Light Rail and Canberra Light Rail.

In 2017, the Port Drive Upgrade project was awarded a certified IS Design v1.2 – Excellent rating. This was the second road project in Queensland to receive the rating, and is currently the highest scoring of all projects registered in the state.

The Arup team was committed to meeting sustainability commitments for activities across the project lifecycle, not only those in our direct responsibility. Together with Port of Brisbane Pty Ltd (PBPL), and Principal Contractor Seymour Whyte Constructions (SWC), achieving an ISCA rating was a core objective in delivering the project.

Integrating the sustainability requirements into the design and construction ensures commitments are met efficiently. A robust and integrated process was carefully considered for delivery of the sustainability objectives across design, procurement, construction, and operation. Implementation and milestones were aligned with the engineering and delivery programme to achieve success through collaborative and seamless decision making.

Key to achieving the Design rating was the Australian first use of the innovative Quickcell wide flange Super I girders. Developed by Quickcell Technology Products and Arup, the new type of beam can reach spans of up to 46m, longer than the standard 32m Super T girder. Using the longer girders on the Lucinda Drive bridge component of the project reduced materials, construction and maintenance costs, while also mitigating major safety and constructability issues.

Another significant feature of our design was the use of 50,000 tonnes of sustainably-sourced Enrobés à Module Élevé Class 2 (EME2) asphalt, a binder (bitumen) rich mix which produces a stiffer asphalt with remarkably good workability. This innovation resulted in a reduced asphalt thickness leading to the reduction of 99,000 tonnes of asphalt, which in turn delivered a 32% reduction in lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions between the preliminary design and detailed design. We realised time savings of 80 days needed to lay the asphalt along with construction fuel savings due to less plant movement.

This rating has also positioned contractor Seymour Whyte Constructions to receive an IS As Built v1.2 – Excellent rating upon completion of construction, due mid 2018.

Arup offers a holistic environmental and sustainability consulting service, which is integrated globally with our engineering, design and planning/economics services. Our global team of specialists offer services in developing policy, assessing impact, creative design and implementation, gaining regulatory approvals, reporting publicly, stakeholder consultation, managing risk and controlling costs.

At Arup, we believe it takes commitment to bring long-term change. The future depends on it.

Immersion : the rewards of secondments

Immersion – it’s one of the most rapid approaches to learning, and the rewards are plentiful. The LendLease Foundation recently partnered with ISCA enabling a six month secondment of one of LendLease Engineering’s finest sustainability professionals, Jaclyn Fathers.

This experience has been a powerful and positive experience all round. The outcomes have been mutually beneficial in that Jaclyn benefited from wider skills development enabling career progression and the opportunity to build upon her greatest strengths; Jaclyn’s effervescence added more value than we could have imagined.

While embedded in our team as a Case Manager, we stretched our thinking with her fresh perspectives, we are even more efficient thanks to process improvements and new templates, and we are ready and raring to support the many new relationships Jaclyn fostered.

This secondment worked because the spirit of arrangement was one of growth and opportunity, there was genuine willingness to collaborate, we had a agreement making clear the governance and nature of the relationship and most importantly, Jaclyn was an excellent skill and cultural fit. Her personal ethos will serve her well throughout her career and life.

“My eight month secondment at ISCA was a unique opportunity that was highly rewarding and provided me with valuable insight into the operating of a not-for-profit. The team at ISCA welcomed me with open arms, and offered me the chance to work with the wider ISCA community, which has helped grow my knowledge and understanding of successful sustainability management in infrastructure projects and the value that can come from engaging with leadership” Jaclyn Fathers

This experience has broadened our approach to embracing the many challenges a growing NFP encounters. It also enables future opportunities where our members can work along side us for discreet periods to bolster our impact, delivery and capability, in exchange for a vibrant and purpose-driven learning experience which develops core skills like initiative, determination and contribution.

If one of your team members deserves an outstanding growth opportunity, express your organisations interest in partnering with ISCA. The skills sets we would benefit the most from in the next six months are:

• Impactful communication – Digital Media/PR (0.2 FTE, 3 months)
• Process re-engineering (0.2FTE, 4-6 weeks)

GO BACK

Sustainability: Sydney Metro’s Lasting Legacy

Sydney Metro is Australia’s biggest public transport project. The new standalone railway will deliver 31 metro stations and more than 66 kilometres of new metro rail, in two stages – Sydney Metro Northwest, and Sydney Metro City & Southwest.

Sustainability underpins core program objectives for Sydney Metro with a commitment to delivering reliable and innovative infrastructure. The Sydney Metro Northwest project have achieved “Leading” Design & As-Built IS ratings. The team at Sydney Metro recently created a video to explain how they have achieved ISCA’s highest available rating, and are building a lasting legacy for future generations.

The video was premiered at the 2018 WA IS Conference.

Forum: Precinct scale living laboratories and the value of spatial data

Low Carbon Living CRC are putting on a free event for industry stakeholders to dive deeper into spatial data and the Randwick Redevelopment Project.

ISCA’s newest team member Paul Davies will be presenting as part of the panel.

We warmly invite you to be part of this free event bringing experts together to discuss the value of living laboratories and the role of spatial information in supporting smart precinct planning and design.

The event will offer opportunities to explore the design of a precinct scale living lab as part of the NSW Government’s $720m Randwick Hospitals’ Campus Redevelopment (Randwick Redevelopment).

This is a collaborative event sponsored by the Cooperative Research Centre for Low Carbon Living, University of New South Wales, University of Sydney, Randwick City Council and the Infrastructure Sustainability Council of Australia.

Background

The Randwick Redevelopment is bordered by Hospital Road, High, Barker and Avoca Streets, Randwick and encompasses four major referral hospitals. Demolition and site clearance will commence in late 2018 and construction in early 2019.

The precinct falls within one of the Greater Sydney’s Collaboration Areas, that is, an area with high potential to grow into centres of increased productivity and innovation.

The Randwick Redevelopment is an excellent opportunity to build upon the success of the 2017 Spatial Data Forum held at the University of Sydney to bring together stakeholders to explore the collaborative design of a precinct-scale living lab within the Redevelopment.

Why attend?

By participating, you will have the opportunity to:

1. Learn about the Randwick Redevelopment and how that creates an opportunity to create an integrated living laboratory.
2. Hear (from experienced practitioners and renowned academics with specialised knowledge, experience, and skills) about the role and value of living labs and spatial data in precinct design, planning and the delivery of better outcomes.
3. Contribute to the design of a precinct scale living lab at Botany Street, Randwick, and understand the ideas, needs and priorities of industry, government and researchers.
4. Meet new and like-minded people from a diversity of fields (stimulating original insights and livelier, deeper conversations) and network with existing colleagues.

Presenters

Presenters/panellists include:

• Professor Greg Morrison, Curtin University
• Paul Davies, Infrastructure Sustainability Council of Australia
• Randwick and Newcastle councils
• Greater Sydney Commission
• Prof Chris Pettit, UNSW
• Prof Sisi Zlatanova, UNSW
• Prof Roland Fletcher, USyd
• Prof Pascal Perez, UoW
• Bruce Thompson, NSW Government

This is a free event. A light lunch and morning tea will be provided.

To register for the event, please click here.

Event details:

Date:  30 August 2018

Time:  8.30 am – 4.30 pm followed by networking drinks

Venue: Galleries 1 and 2, John Niland Scientia Building, UNSW

Infrastructure Sustainability Award Nominations Open

The Infrastructure Sustainability Council of Australia (ISCA) annual Infrastructure Sustainability (IS) Award nominations are now open to all ISCA members and industry partners.

The IS Awards recognise and reward projects, assets, organisations and individuals who demonstrate leadership in advancing sustainable outcomes in infrastructure across Australia and New Zealand.

“ISCA’s role is to uplift the industry and drive higher performance in delivering sustainable outcomes, we do this with the IS framework and also by recognising the leaders who go above and beyond to bring about positive change,” said Ainsley Simpson, CEO of ISCA.

Following industry feedback ISCA has introduced two new awards in 2018; an Emerging Young Leadership Award, an Innovations and Impact Award, and has separated the Outstanding Achievement Award to include ‘As Built’ and ‘Design’.

Award Categories for 2018:

1. IS Organisational leadership
2. IS Individual leadership award
3. IS Emerging Young leadership award
4. IS Innovation and Impact Award
5. IS Outstanding – Design Award (based on certified score)
6. IS Outstanding – As Built Award (based on certified score)

The Emerging Young Leadership Award recognises the individual, under 30 years of age, whom best exhibits the most outstanding performance, leadership and greatest potential to advancing infrastructure sustainability in Australasia.

“We’ve introduced the Emerging Young Leadership award to acknowledge the significant contribution of young leaders in shaping the future of sustainable infrastructure. The knowledge, enthusiasm and innovative ideas young people bring to the industry constantly inspires me,” said Ainsley.

The Innovations and Impact Award replaces the IS Impact Award and recognises an active project that has thought outside the box about innovative sustainable solutions.

Nomination forms can be found here, and should be submitted to info@isca.org.au by 24th of August. Finalists will be announced in October.

Held in Sydney on 17^th of October, tickets are now available for the black-tie Gala Awards dinner, hosted by Logie award-winner and star of Utopia, Dilruk Jayasinha.

“Join us for the infrastructure sustainability night of nights and rub shoulders with the leaders of this impactful community” said Ainsley.

Since the sustainability performance framework was developed for infrastructure in 2012, the IS rating scheme has been deployed on more than $103 billion worth of infrastructure spend across 91 projects in Australia and New Zealand. ISCA’s IS rating tool measures the impacts of these projects, which have collectively;

• Avoided 18.7million tonnes of CO₂-e; equivalent of powering the households of Brisbane for a year,
• Reduced materials by 74%; which has equivalent environmental benefit of diverting all household waste of Dunedin for 2 years,
• Avoided enough water to fill 67,000 Olympic swimming pools.

The ISv2.0 Technical Manuals Are Now Available

The Infrastructure Sustainability Council of Australia’s (ISCA) latest innovation of the Infrastructure Sustainability (IS) rating scheme, IS version 2.0 (ISv2.0), was released today.

All of the Technical Manuals and downloadables needed to undertake an ISv2.0 rating are in the Tools & Resources section of the ISCA website, available to IS Accredited Professionals (ISAPs).

“The contribution and collaboration to develop this sustainability framework has not been experienced on this scale since the ISCA framework was first developed in 2012. More than 100 organisations contribute their time and resources. It truly has been developed for industry, by industry,” said architect of ISv2.0 Nicole Boyd.

“This is a step change for the industry as the benchmark for sustainability performance has shifted what once was considered innovative is now becoming business as usual,” said Nicole.

Although, only launched today, ISCA has received two registrations for Australia’s first IS planning rating, with Main Roads WA and Westport in WA signed up for the ISv2.0

“We’re committed to continuous improvement and we’re living by our values by acknowledging and responding to stakeholder feedback received since the launch of the IS rating tool.

Version 2.0 provides several advancements while maintaining the technical rigour which underpins V1.2. Key outcomes include:

• • Better alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
  • Provide a comprehensive quadruple bottom line assessment
  • Broadening the assessment to include economic and social elements
  • Credits for each phase in the infrastructure lifecycle to clearly outline the requirements in each phase
  • A clearer layout of the technical manual
  • Eliminating any overtly onerous evidence collation and those credits with limited beneficial contribution
  • Improving accessibility for IS tool users

Since the sustainability performance framework was developed for infrastructure in 2012, the IS rating scheme has been deployed on more than $103billion worth of infrastructure spend across 86 projects in Australia and New Zealand. ISCA’s IS rating tool measures the impacts of these projects, which have collectively;

• Avoided 18.7million tonnes of CO₂-e; equivalent of powering the households of Brisbane for a year,
• Reduced materials by 74%; which has equivalent environmental benefit of diverting all household waste of Dunedin for 2 years,
• Avoided enough water to fill 67,000 Olympic swimming pools.

With special thanks to the ISv2.0 funders: