From Constructioncontractor.com.au
Monday, 10 August 2009 | by Roger Lindley

Recently, Construction Contractor asked senior executives of leading international construction companies to peer into their crystal ball and tell us what they see for Australia in the months ahead.

Alexandre Saubot, CEO, Haulotte Group is optimistic:
“The Australian market is a significant market for the Haulotte Group. In the Asia/Pacific region, Australia is the most closely aligned with the European markets when it comes to safety and required Standards. Whilst being seriously effected by the current economic climate (data supplied by an independent source shows elevating work platform sales across the market in the region down by approx 65 per cent over the same period last year) Haulotte Australia has been able to sell more units, year-to-date, than at the same time last year. This ability to increase our sales in a significantly reducing market is testament to the commitment Haulotte Group has for the region. It would appear that the Australian market is faring better than other markets in the world. Whilst it was hit hard, it is, in relative terms, positioned a lot better for a recovery sooner rather than later.”

From Constructioncontractor.com.au
Friday, 7 August 2009

Watpac has been appointed as the successful managing contractor of the Gold Coast's new multi-million dollar AFL Stadium at Carrara. The construction is planned as an iconic venue, purpose built for the Queensland lifestyle.

During construction around 350 full-time equivalent positions will be created and that's not including the jobs that will be created once the new AFL team joins the league in 2011.

From ConstructionIndustryNews.net
Monday, 3 August 2009

IN the spirit of the riddle “How do you eat an elephant?” perhaps the answer for the Gateway Bridge duplication is “segment by segment”. Put simply, the construction of the Gateway Bridge approaches is a matter – once the piers are in place – of assembling the bridge segment by segment using a balanced cantilever approach, and tensioning those segments once they are erected. By Greg Keane

Overhead truss lifting segments for the new Gateway Bridge

The segments are actually half-segments for ease of casting, transporting and lifting, and thus the halves also have to be stitched together.

From ConstructionIndustryNews.net
Friday, 31 July 2009

LEIGHTON Contractors and Macmahon have shared rail upgrade projects worth a total $252 million awarded by the Australian Rail Track Corporation as it continues to overhaul its Hunter Valley coal operation.

Image courtesy of ARTC

Leighton Contractors and ARTC have formed the Upper Hunter Valley Alliance to undertake two works packages in the Upper Hunter Valley worth a combined $152 million.

From ConstructionIndustryNews.net
Wednesday, 22 July 2009

TWO Liebherr tower cranes will be putting on a star performance in the opera Aida at Austria’s Bregenz Lakeside Theatre.

The cranes, a 550 EC-H 40 FR.tronic and a 280 EC-H 12 Litronic, are actively involved in the opera, shifting parts of the stage setting, some of which weigh up to 12 tonnes, as the drama unfolds.

From Constructioncontractor.com.au
23 June 2009

For major road development projects, the big ideas that shape our overall approach to sustainability can be challenging to implement at a project level.

The duplication of the Hume Highway in south western NSW from Woomargama to Table Top shows how sustainability can be incorporated into a major road infrastructure project. Key considerations included traffic and transport efficiency, biodiversity, heritage, water management, community impacts and long-term and cumulative impacts.