Industry News

Earlier this year, Australian news corporations have proclaimed 5G smartphones to be the new standard for first-class mobile citizens. Australia’s largest telecommunications firm, Telstra revealed that the 5G networks the company has been in the process of building infrastructure since the onset of 2016 and is prepared to roll out over 200 5G sites throughout Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide Canberra, Perth, Gold Coast and Toowoomba. 

A national survey conducted by The Australian Physiotherapy Association (APA) queried over 800 tradespeople directly involved within the Australian construction industry. The study is part of the association’s ‘Tradies National Health Month’ campaign designed to aim a spotlight on the health of Australia’s tradies, raising awareness on a wide range of health concerns that impact tradies and raising physiotherapy as a potential treatment option. 

A major construction, tunnelling, rail, building and services provider has signed a memorandum of understanding with a global automated metro operator. The two partnered companies will aid one another for upcoming bids regarding the operation and maintenance of operations conducted across the Sydney Metro West and Sydney Metro Greater West.  

The New South Wales government has appointed 40-year construction industry expert David Chandler as their new buildings commission tasked with implementing the greatest overhaul to building laws in the state's history. 

A brief interview with Gerard Dyson, the Managing Director of Spectur Limited. 

Building ministers from across the country have met and agreed to adopt a national approach to solve the construction industry’s insurance crisis. The meeting’s main topic of discussion centred around addressing the countless defects and non-conformance building developments which have led to thousands of multi-residential towers throughout Australia being clad with flammable material.

 

Despite looming fears of a building crisis and current talks being conducted over the need for massive reforms over construction processes, contract administrators, project managers, site engineers, and other construction industry professions are becoming highly sought after following a surge in construction-related projects. Employment within the Australian building sector saw more than 30,000 positions added (seasonally adjusted) over the past quarter. 

The NSW Government has initiated expressions of interest for the construction of the Sydney Gateway Project after reaching a $2.6 billion agreement with the Sydney Airport Corporation late last year. 

Modern society finds itself at a crossroads in terms of infrastructure development. With talks and developments already underway to implement a digital ecosystem of tracking technologies, cameras, sensors and algorithms to greater optimise our way of life, the era of the ‘Smart City’ is upon us. Integrating our built surroundings into a networked collective promises to provide its denizens with countless conveniences at the expense of uninterrupted user surveillance. But can this smartly integrated utopia of the future become realised without surrendering our right to privacy? 

The Owners Corporation Network (OCN), the representative body for unit owners and the Australian Institute of Architects are mutually advocating for bolder reforms on construction processes to be implemented to guarantee the quality of construction and improvements for consumer protection.  

A newly introduced competition pits workers, companies and building managers across the nation against one another to see who can improve and outshine competitors with their green credentials.

 

To many the delight of Sydney drivers, State government announced Sydney’s new M4 tunnels will be opening on Saturday morning. The official launch of these tunnels will bypass the nightmarish traffic of Parramatta Road starting next week, cutting up to 20 minutes of travel time for cars seeking to commute from Sydney CBD to Parramatta. 

A declining workforce, sparse birth rates and an ageing population are just some of the problems confronting Japan in the 21st century. Since data gathering began in 1899, the Japanese government has cited the birthrate to be at a historic low. Japan's population has been in decline for a number of years with leading policymakers and experts beginning to speculate on its possible economic and social repercussions. 

Over the past decade, construction industry experts have been discussing the potential for Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) to open new doors for the practice. While the benefits of VR and AR integrated training, marketing and planning are some of the more discernible aspects of the technology, their ability to simulate real-world situations to provide insights that other established technologies cannot offer could maximise worker efficiency and safety training. 

To say it has been a tough year for Australian property owners would be a hefty understatement for the countless residential apartment owners who have been unwillingly evacuated from their premises af ...

Amidst a climate control crisis gripping the world, the construction industry has become increasingly environmentally-conscious as reflected in increased investments in recyclable-produced construction materials, sustainable building practices and integrating renewable technologies. Most recently, building developers and multinational corporations have pledged to become carbon neutral. But what does this title entail and will its efforts be enough to reverse some of the already detrimental effects of climate change? 

From providing geospatial survey data to building homes with the assistance of on board concrete-spraying hoses, since their first commercial application in the 1980s, drones are still commonly showcased as military or hobbyist tech but their application in the construction business is looking increasingly promising.

Tuesday marked a new historical low for Australian interest rates as Australia’s central bank lowered the cost of borrowing for its second straight month on Tuesday. After conducting a regular policy meeting, The Reserve Bank of Australia announced rates will be cut by another 25 basis points to one percent. 

An architect duo at the forefront of a architect-designed social housing movement and community focused projects, an entertainer with a knack for comedy and design, and a sustainability research centre fueling innovation for a greener future were but some of the highlights of those that were recently honoured at this years 2019 2019 National Prizes at the National Architecture Conference in Melbourne.

Victoria is expecting to conduct on-road trials of connected and automated vehicle technology. Elaborating further on the matter, Roads Minister of Victoria Jaala Pulford explained that road trials st ...

Monday night marked a significant milestone for the City of Sydney after a tram from the Sydney Light rail project made its way down Sydney’s central business district.  Accompanied by a convoy of con ...

Tokyo 2020: 17 days, half a million international travelers, and a countless sum of security concerns are but some of the challenges the Tokyo Olympic Games committee are preparing to tackle in prepar ...

The construction industry has regularly been cited as one of the world’s most fragmented sectors and has regularly been challenged to improve its efficiency, productivity, and to embrace the opportunities presented by emerging technologies. But how do built environment professionals and the construction industry recognise and capitalise upon the new school of technology such as blockchain and smart contracts?

NSW infrastructure budget sores to record highs as state prepares to launch it's largest ever commitment to infrastructure