Case Studies - Achievements

Skilled Park Stadium Gold Coast

Our commitment to health and safety has resulted in accolades from industry and government bodies. Of particular note is our Skilled Park Stadium project at Robina. The design called for 23,000m2 of fabric membrane roof panels to be fitted at heights in excess of 30 metres.

Workers needed to work from the structural steel, from platforms adjacent to the steel, and under and over the roof at near-horizontal and near-vertical faces.

Undertaking the work on the ground was not possible due to excessive loading and availability of space in order to position cranes. The traditional methodology of scaffolding was deemed too cumbersome and impractical. Boom lifts in all areas would be inadequate to undertake the work, while swinging stages would only reach a fraction of the area.

With the sub-contractor and client, Watpac incorporated a purpose-built working platform, similar to a safety net, which attached to the structural steel. It was lightweight, to avoid injury during the installation and removal processes, and doubled as an area to lay out the roof membrane prior to installation. It was designed to allow the roofing fabric to be pulled up and over the beams, via winch systems.

This innovative system, not tried in Australia previously, proved a success—all of the roof panels were installed without incident.

The system also earned Watpac a number of awards, including:

• National Australia Institute of Building Award for Professional Excellence—Technology and Innovation
• National 2007 Safe Work Australia Award—Best Solution to an Identified Workplace Health & Safety Issue
• Queensland State Safety Award—Best Solution to an Identified Workplace Health & Safety Issue
• Queensland Master Builders Association Award—Innovation in Workplace Health & Safety

Bidgerley Tailings Dam, South Walker Mine

The Bidgerley Tailings Dam project involved the raising of the dam wall in response to an urgent need for extra capacity for tailings being pumped from the coal wash facility at South Walker Creek Mine into the dam itself.

Each month the client, BMA, reviewed all the work being undertaken across the site, and would present a safety award to the individual, crew, or project that had made an exceptional contribution to safety and/or had demonstrated excellent compliance with the safety systems in place.

A Watpac crew was operating on site when a two-way radio in one of the compactors failed, without the knowledge of the operator. As such, he was continuing to work but nobody could contact him. As soon as the fault was recognized, all heavy vehicles on site stopped in place. The operator of the compactor with the faulty radio observed the other machinery had ceased working and he also stopped, perceiving something was amiss. The site supervisor was able to meet up with the operator, explain the situation, and swap the radio with one that worked.

This demonstration of a scenario where all of the safety systems and training in place came together to form a positive outcome was recognised by the client, and the Watpac team was awarded the South Walker Mine Safety Award.

8 Australia Avenue, Sydney

Watpac’s approach to safety at 8 Australia Avenue was based on reducing materials handling to help reduce injuries. This was achieved through a variety of techniques.

Firstly, gravel was pumped through the basement plenums via a machine in lieu of the traditional means of barrowing and shovelling the gravel by hand, greatly reducing the probability of risk to personnel from this activity, if not eliminating it altogether.

The primary way in which the team were able to reduce materials handling, and therefore risk of injury to staff, was through the use of a new formwork system. The system, called Alufort, is a product imported from Italy. Formtec—the formworker sub-contracted for the project—supplied the aluminium Alufort formwork system, which allowed soffit formwork to be erected quickly and safely from below the deck.

Stripping time is also reduced with the benefit of ‘quick strip drop heads’. After stripping, the props remain as undisturbed supports and panels are re-used quickly and efficiently with less materials on site, significantly reducing crane lifts. With less timber used, the working deck below is clearer, enabling easier access.

Complementing these innovative techniques was the company’s ‘zero tolerance’ stance on safety. Safety on site was managed by dedicated safety representatives, while activities such as site inductions, tool box talks, whole-of-site meetings, and safety committee meetings also helped to maintain safety as the priority on site for all staff, sub-contractors, and visitors.

For our innovation in safety, Watpac was awarded the 2009 NSW Master Builders Excellence in Construction Award for Site Safety (Commercial Projects $10–$50 million).