PDF DOWNLOADCommonwealth
Government ‘wrong’ on jobs boost claims
12 August 2010
The ANAO report criticises the government’s
initial failure, rectified in a second funding
round, to quantify how many jobs its money would
buy through the spending on projects such as
museums, community halls and swimming pools,
even though job creation was a stated objective
of the Nation Building stimulus package. Random
checks by the ANAO showed “a continuous program
of on-site construction was not actually under
way at the time” and blames the lag on
“high-risk” projects, and grants that were
approved for projects that were not ready to
proceed. More...
AMP to launch pure-play infrastructure fund
10 August 2010
AMP Capital Investors plans to launch the first
retail global listed infrastructure fund,
allowing retail investors to benefit from the
expected long-term global growth in
infrastructure. Global portfolio manager Craig
Noble said the fund had some 200 global
companies to choose from, including Australian
stocks such as Prime Infrastructure, Intoll
Group and Transurban Group. He said the
challenge facing Australian infrastructure
groups had been high debt. More...
New South Wales
Report investigates stall in developments
20 August 2010
A report to Wollongong Council has investigated
why only two major projects approved for
construction in the CBD over three years have
been built. More...
1,300 jobs & more than $560 million investment
in July
18 August 2010
A total of 42 development proposals worth more
than $560 million and support in excess of 1,300
jobs were approved through the NSW planning
system in July 2010. Minister for Planning, Tony
Kelly, said the figures show the State’s major
projects assessment system is continuing to
facilitate strong investment. More..
Tenders
called for Hume Highway upgrade
17 August 2010
The New South Wales Government is calling for
construction companies interested in building
the Holbrook bypass to apply for the tender. The
Hume Highway is expected to be widened to four
lanes from Sydney to Melbourne by 2010. More...
Second largest wind farm approval in NSW
9 August 2010
Approval has been given for a $700 million 270
megawatt facility to be located near Nimmitabel
on the far south coast. The company hopes to be
producing electricity in 2012 and be fully
operational by 2010. More...
Newcastle coal port upgrade sets export target
11 August 2010
Capacity at Newcastle, which is the world’s
largest coal export port, will increase 25 per
cent to 180 million tonnes a year by 2013, with
a $900 million upgrade.. The Newcastle Coal
Infrastructure Group claims infrastructure
bottlenecks are a major issue for Australian
mining companies, particularly in the NSW Hunter
region and the Bowen Basin in Queensland. More...
Public schools slugged higher prices for BER
projects
11 August 2010
The NSW government said its figures had been
calculated from the tender results of 585
projects, about one-quarter of the program, and
were the “anticipated final costs for each
project”. According to the BER taskforce interim
report, educational authorities were paying
between 5 per cent and 6 per cent more for
buildings than they had been paying pre-BER,
suggesting some state governments had long been
overpaying for buildings. More...
Thiess Hunter Expressway contract finalised at
$825 million
18 August 2010
Preliminary design and construction costing has
been completed on the eastern section of the
Hunter Expressway Project in NSW with the
contract finalised at $825 million. The eastern
section will be constructed by Thiess in
alliance with Parsons Brinkerhoff (PB) and Hyder
Consulting. More...
Queensland
Building Regulations make Queensland pools safer
18 August 2010
The State Government has today introduced the
final stage of Australia’s toughest swimming
pool safety laws into the Queensland Parliament.
Proposed amendments in the Building and Other
Legislation Amendment Bill (No. 2) 2010 will
replace the current assortment of 11 pool safety
standards with a single, uniform approach.More...
Lutwyche Road Bridge makes way for Busway
station
12 August 2010
A section of Lutwyche Road has been transformed
into a bridge enabling further construction on
the state-of-the-art Lutwyche Busway station.
The Northern Busway (Windsor to Kedron) will be
handed over to the Queensland Government for
operation by TransLink on completion. More...
Canadian oil and gas explorer to open regional
headquarters in Australia
11 August 2010
A Canadian global upstream oil and gas
exploration company has announced that it will
open Australasian regional headquarters in
Brisbane, Queensland to support Papuan and
Australasian operations across a range of
activities including engineering, drilling,
sub-surface and project management and
development. More...
$7m upgrade to Whitsunday Coast Airport tenders
under evaluation
10 August 2010
Nine applications to upgrade the existing
Whitsunday Coast Airport are being evaluated by
the Federal Government, with tenders now closed.
Work on the airport, located 15 kilometres south
of Proserpine, is expected to be completed in
early 2011.The Department of Infrastructure and
Planning is managing the project for the
Whitsunday Regional Council. More...
Victoria
Box Hill to be public sector build
18 August 2010
The Victoria Government’s $407.5 million
redevelopment of Box Hill Hospital will be a
public sector built project. Mr Andrews said the
benefits associated with traditional procurement
for this particular project outweighed those of
a public private partnership. More...
Melton South builder convicted and fined over
unfinished renovations
10 August 2010
The Melbourne Magistrates’ Court convicted an
unregistered Melton South builder on six counts
of breaching Victoria’s building and consumer
protection laws, and that he accepted payment
for work he did not complete and that he
demanded an excessive deposit from his client.More...
New affordable homes for Victoria announced
13 August 2010
Housing Minister Richard Wynne has announced the
allocation of almost 1,500 new affordable
private rental homes under an innovative
partnership between the Gillard and Brumby Labor
Governments. More...
Victoria exceeds target on public housing
improvements
19 August 2010
Over 9,100 Victorian public housing properties
have been upgraded under the $99.2 million
Nation Building Repairs and Maintenance Program
- almost double the original target. More...
New wind farm for Victoria
18 August 2010
The Victorian Government has approved a major
wind farm capable of supplying power to 80,000
homes. Planning Minister Justin Madden granted
planning permits for the proposed Crowlands Wind
Farm located within Ararat Rural City Council
and Pyrenees Shire Council. More...
Victoria secures Southern Hemisphere’s largest
wind farm
12 August 2010
The largest wind farm in the Southern Hemisphere
worth $1 billion will be built in Victoria’s
west over the next three years. The Macarthur
Wind Farm project is a joint venture between
AGL, Australia’s leading renewable energy
developer and Meridian Energy (New Zealand).More...
Pine Hill Drive, Frankston - emergency order
19 August 2010
Tenants of an apartment building have had to be
evacuated under an emergency order due to a
Building Surveyor report, and an investigation
into the builder has now commenced. The vast
majority of Victoria’s 24,000 registered
building practitioners do the right thing but in
instances where misconduct is proven the
practitioner faces sanctions including
de-registration, orders to rectify defects and
substantial fines. More...
Other
Leighton bags HK tunnel contract
18 August 2010
Australia’s biggest construction company
Leighton Holdings has been awarded a $409
million contract to build tunnel sections of a
Hong Kong rail link. The project involves
building the West Kowloon Terminus approach
tunnel and Track Fan tunnel section of the
Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link
(XRL). More...
Bridge collapse sparks safety blitz
16 August 2010
CFMEU ACT branch secretary Dean Hall said that
his union had reported the contractor, Rayners
Construction, to work safety authorities,
alleging that ‘’sham contractors’’ - workers who
are not being paid their proper entitlements -
were being used on the site. More...
Legislation
Queensland
Regulations
Workplace Health and Safety (Codes of Practice)
Amendment Notice (No. 3) 2010
Bills
Building and Other Legislation Amendment Bill
(No. 2) 2010
Publications/Conferences
CTH: Proposal to amend the Building Code of
Australia to include requirements for Private
Bushfire Shelters
11 August 2010
A Consultation Regulation Impact Statement (RIS)
has been prepared for the purpose of informing
stakeholders and other interested parties
regarding the proposal to include requirements
for private bushfire shelters in the Building
Code of Australia (BCA). More...
VIC: Panel Report - Crowlands Windfarm
Construction of the 75-turbine Crowlands Wind
Farm, east of Ararat. More...
VIC: Transport Integration Act 2010
The planning scheme amendment explanatory report
template has been updated to ensure planning
authorities consider any significant impact of
an amendment on the transport system, as
required by the Transport Integration Act 2010.More...
Infrastructure report card 2010: New South Wales
Source: Sydney: Engineers Australia, 2010; 1v
New South Wales; Infrastructure; Electricity
supply; Water resources; Land transport
infrastructure; Telecommunications; Rail
transport; Planning processes; Evaluation;
Statistics; Interstate comparisons. More...
Building the Education Revolution Implementation
Taskforce: interim report
Author: Australia, Building the Education
Revolution Implementation Taskforce
Source: [Canberra] \: The Taskforce, 2010; 97 p.
Schools funding; Education infrastructure;
Government expenditure; Primary schools;
Interstate comparisons; Complaints; Cost benefit
analysis; Models; Evaluation; Statistics. More...
Renewable resourceful Victoria: the renewable
energy potential of Victoria
Author: Sinclair Knight Merz
Source: Victoria: Dept. of Primary Industries,
2010; 2 v. in 4
Victoria; Renewable energy; Energy consumption;
Wind energy; Solar energy; Hydroelectricity;
Alternative fuels; Geothermal energy; Wave
energy; Statistics. More...
The state of Australian cities 2010 report:
towards a national research agenda
Author: Winter, Ian C.
Source: Melbourne : AHURI, 2010; 10 p.
Cities and towns; Capital cities; Housing;
Population; Quality of life; Social inclusion;
Sustainable development; Infrastructure;
Research. More...
Cases
John Holland Pty Ltd v Construction,
Forestry, Mining and Energy Union [2010]
FCA 834
Industrial Law - consideration of further steps
to be taken upon referral of the proceedings to
the primary judge for further consideration
consequent upon orders of the Full Court. More...
White v Construction Forestry Mining
and Energy Union [2010] FCA 835
Industrial law - Strike-out motion based on
double jeopardy principle and abuse of process -
allegation of contraventions of different
statutory provisions based on same conduct -
motion dismissed. Industrial Law - Construction
of Building and Construction Industry
Improvement Act 2005 (Cth) s 43(1). More...
Wagners Nouvelle Caledonie Sarl v
Vale Inco Nouvelle Caledonie SAS [2010] QCA
219
Arbitration - the submission and reference -
dispute or difference within the meaning of an
arbitration clause - dispute as to meaning of
contract - clause provided that contractual
disputes would be “submitted to arbitration in
accordance with and subject to the UNCITRAL
Arbitration Rules” - whether clause constituted
an agreement that the Model Law would not apply
to any arbitration between the parties - whether
Australian Granites Limited v Eisenwerk Hensel
Bayreuth Dipl-Ing Burkhardt GmbH wrongly
decided. More...
Cargill International SA v Peabody
Australia Mining Ltd [2010] NSWSC 887
Application under s 38(4)(b) of Commercial
Arbitration Act 1984 (NSW) for leave to appeal
from Arbitrator’s award on grounds of manifest
error of law or strong evidence of error or in
the alternative to remit questions of law to
Arbitrator under article 34(2)(b)(ii) of Model
Law if former, whether leave to appeal should be
granted under Commercial Arbitration Act if
latter whether denial of natural justice under
the Model Law. Held: Model Law applies -
Referral of dispute under rules of ICC did not
operate as an ‘opt-out’ of Model Law under s 21
of the International Arbitration Act 1974 (Cth)
- the decision in Eisenwerk Hensel Bayreuth
Dipl-Ing Burkhardt GmbH v Australian Granites
Ltd [2001] 1 Qd R 461 is plainly wrong and
should not be followed - referral of dispute to
ICC Rules did not indicate that parties intended
to opt-out of Model Law to extent it applied as
the curial law or lex arbitri had Commercial
Arbitration Act applied, threshold requirements
for grant of leave not satisfied - discretion to
grant leave would not have been exercised in any
event - no denial of natural justice -
plaintiff’s application dismissed. Admiralty and
Maritime jurisdiction - Whether dispute was one
arising out of a maritime claim - held dispute
did arise out of a maritime claim so that
exclusion agreement by adoption of article 28(6)
of the ICC Rules would not apply. More...
Grave v Blazevic Holdings Pty Ltd
[2010] NSWCA 200
Procedure - Stay - Notice of Motion seeking
variation of order - Whether it should be
adjourned or dismissed. The judgment of Young JA
does indicate there is a possibility that the
appellant could succeed on the basis that it was
his company, and not the appellant himself, who
contracted with the builder. Held: no material
suggested that the builder is owed less than the
$48,000 that Young JA required to be paid as a
condition of the stay. More...
Boral Resources (Qld) Pty Ltd v
Thomas & Anor as trustees for the Avandel
Property Trust & Ors [2010] QSC 297
Procedure - Supreme Court procedure - Queensland
- Procedure under rules of court - Summary
judgment - where applicant applied for summary
judgment following the failure of a small
construction company to repay debt - where the
second respondent, who was the director of the
construction company, and the third respondent,
his wife, had provided a personal guarantee and
indemnity - where applicant had lodged a caveat
over land the subject of the personal guarantee
and indemnity - where court considered s
126(4)(a)(ii) of the Land Title Act 1994 (Qld)
which requires a caveator to commence
proceedings in the Supreme Court within three
months to avoid the lapse of a caveat if the
caveatee has not consented to its filing -
whether summary judgment should be entered for
the plaintiff - recommendations for law reform.More...
Asian Pacific Building Corporation
Pty Ltd v Aircon Duct Fabrication Pty Ltd & Ors
(No 2) [2010] VSC 340
Building Contracts - Building and Construction
Industry Security of Payment Act 2002 (Vic) -
Adjudication determination made in part beyond
jurisdiction - Adjudication determination
declared void in part - Application to stay
operation of valid part of adjudication
determination on ground of alleged insolvency -
Grosvenor Constructions (NSW) Pty Ltd (In
Administration) v Musico and Ors [2004] NSWSC
344 considered - Costs of judicial review which
was successful in setting aside one of two
adjudication determinations. More...
Roberts v Parletta Constructions Pty
Ltd [2010] SASC 248
Magistrates - Appeals and review - South
Australia - Appeal to Supreme Court. Contracts -
Building, engineering and related contracts -
Performance of work - Remedies for breach of
contract - Damages - Appellant seeks damages for
breach of contract suffered as a result of the
construction of a patio on her property -
Appellant not initial owner of property - Water
leakage through patio floor and carport roof -
Whether leakage a result of latent defect -
Whether damage actually suffered - No building
inspection conducted before appellant purchased
the property. Held: There was never any contract
in existence between the builder and the
appellant. Torts - Negligence - Essentials of
action for negligence - Duty of care - Special
relationships and duties - Whether any duty of
care owed by builder to initial owner and to
subsequent purchaser. Held: No breach of
builder’s duty of care to initial owner and
therefore no breach of duty to subsequent
purchaser - Appeal dismissed. More...
Sam the Paving Man Pty Limited v
Berem Constructions Pty Limited (in liquidation)
[2010] NSWSC 868
Corporations - Application for leave nunc pro
tunc under Corporations Act, s 500(2) - First
defendant in liquidation - Second defendant was
principal contractor - Work subcontracted to
first defendant and plaintiff - Plaintiff sought
to recover debts owing by first defendant under
Contractors Debts Act - Where plaintiff obtained
default judgment against first defendant and
issue of debt certificate under Contractors
Debts Act, s 7 in District Court without leave
and served notice of claim on second defendant -
Where plaintiff reached agreement with
liquidators regarding pursuing claim against
second defendant at own cost - Where second
defendant raise defence of set-off - Whether to
grant leave where liquidators consent to leave
and no realistic prospect of recovery for other
creditors - Whether to refuse leave because
interfering with principles of rateable
distribution between priority creditors -
Whether to refuse leave because notice of
application not given to other creditors. More...
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