Driving Sustainability in New Zealand: Mott MacDonald
Driving Sustainability in New Zealand: Mott MacDonald
“Opening opportunities with connected thinking. Turning the obstacles you face into sustainable infrastructure and development solutions. We’re a global engineering, management and development consultancy focused on guiding our clients through many of the planet’s most intricate challenges.
The needs of the world’s population are changing fast. Our network of experts, active in 150 countries, finds opportunities in complexity, turning obstacles into elegant, sustainable solutions. By looking at problems from a fresh angle, we aim to add value at every stage, for our clients and our clients’ clients.
Improvement is at the heart of what we offer: better economic development, better social and environmental outcomes, better businesses and a better return on your investment.
In partnership with you, we establish the steps to meet your strategic ambitions, using analytical front-end advice that helps you fund, plan, design, deliver and sustain your goals. Our engineers, project and programme managers have taken lead roles in the world’s highest profile infrastructure and development projects. Yet design and management are just the tip of a deep iceberg. Our clients have access to the vast knowledge of internationally recognised environmentalists, planners, economists, project finance advisors, cost consultants, business strategists and more. They work with each other and with you to save money and time, reduce risks, increase efficiency and advance best practice. Whatever you need, you can be confident that Mott MacDonald will find efficient and creative ways of meeting your ambitions, and beyond.”
“A core aim is to make a sustainable difference to the world we live in. That translates into a focus on understanding our clients and their customers, to deliver outcomes that add value.” Keith Howells – Group chairman.
Why did Mott MacDonald decide to partner with ISCA for #ConnectNZ?
ISCA shares our common values that seek sustainable outcomes for both society and the environment. In sponsoring the Summit, we are showing solidarity in our common cause for achieving truly sustainable outcomes for the planet.
What are you most looking forward to at the Summit?
Sharing ideas with our peers in the sustainability space is invaluable for delivering continued value to the community. We look forward to listening, learning and discussing innovations, challenges and robust infrastructure solutions.
Which project are you most proud of and why?
Mott MacDonald have a strong track record of delivering technical advice to clients on the implementation of sustainability and IS ratings on large infrastructure projects in Australia. Our staff work in a range of capacities on projects, including client’s technical advisor roles, ISAPs delivering projects, technical discipline input and ISCA verification.
This includes acting as client’s technical advisor for multiple transport agencies including working on the first v2.0 IS Planning Rating proposed in NSW.
We have practical on-ground implementation experience with Design and As-built ratings also, the first of which was achieving a ‘Leading’ rating on the Torrens Road to River Torrens project, the first Design rating to be awarded in South Australia, in October 2016. The project included a 3.7km upgrade of South Road incorporating a 1.4km long non-stop lowered road (8m below ground level) and aimed to improve travel efficiency for north-south traffic through Adelaide’s metropolitan area. It also included a rail overpass, improving pedestrian and cycling facilities and other intersection upgrades.
We are currently working on the Tender Design for the first v2.0 Design and As-built rating in South Australia.
Here in New Zealand we are proud of our sustainability credentials also.
The Moata – Safe Swim project is a joint project with Auckland Council and won the International Data Corporation 2018 Smart Water Category, in the Smart Cities Asia Pacific Awards. Auckland’s beaches and waterways are usually clean enough for swimmers, but after heavy rain, the wastewater network can be overwhelmed, leading to sewer overflows into the city’s rivers and harbours. Moata connects real-time sensors across the wastewater network and global weather data, processing over 1 billion data points each day to deliver high quality forecasts on water quality at over 100 beaches around Auckland. This allows swimmers and beach goers to make informed decisions about when and where to swim.
What is Mott MacDonald’s approach to sustainability, environmentally and socially?
No matter how big or small the project we embed sustainability, environmental, social and cultural best practice principles into all of our projects. The links between sustainability, the environment, economics and social development are clear, albeit there are issues to resolve – not least around inequality. It’s true that the world is a more fragile place when it leaves large sections of society behind in the pursuit of growth. But the link between economic sustainability and inclusive social outcomes is even more crucial when you think of the importance of maintaining an environment in which we can enjoy healthy and prosperous lives. Climate change, air pollution, water quality, ecosystem fragility and species loss all impact society at large. What’s becoming increasingly evident is that infrastructure companies like our own have an obligation to provide solutions that are more inclusive. We must play our part in addressing inequalities. The 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDG) provide a framework for more equal and sustainable global development everywhere. Infrastructure is explicitly present in UNSDG ‘nine’, which notes that investment in transport, irrigation, energy and information and communication technology is crucial to achieving sustainable development and empowering communities. But what we do as an industry has a significant impact on many, if not all, of the other 16 goals. Planned and delivered with thought, infrastructure can provide outcomes that are both environmentally sensitive and socially inclusive and it can help resolve many of the challenges we face as a society.
What next for Mott Mac?
As a professional services provider, our role is to help individuals and communities get to their destination as skilfully as we can. Only by understanding what they experience, believe and desire can we truly deliver the services they want. That’s the connection we make in delivering the projects we are involved in, and that’s the connection we always keep in mind at Mott MacDonald. As an employee owned firm, our owners are also custodians of the company for the future. Our decisions do have an impact and we experience that. We understand that our company, our clients and our communities are all interconnected. Getting projects right, to leave positive lasting legacies, is important for us all. Projects always talk about leaving a legacy of change. The best way to bring that to life is by asking the people whose lives have been altered. We’ll keep talking to the community, creating a legacy and strive for inter-generational equity.