In the media

Urban development at a 'critical juncture'
Australia needs a national plan for the growth of cities and regions overseen by a minister, national chief planner and a new COAG council, parliamentary committee says. The committee's Building Up & Moving Out report makes 37 recommendations addressing issues at national, regional and local level (20 September 2018). More...

Australian urban transport 'an unfolding disaster'
The botched way governments plan and deliver major infrastructure is contributing to other policy dilemmas like housing affordability and social mobility (19 September 2018). More...

Builder dreams to future-proof homes for our ageing population
A builder is pushing to make Townsville a pilot city where all new homes are built to silver level standard, to meet the needs of Australia's growing populations of older people and people with a disability (12 September 2018). More...

Unsecured creditors likely to get nothing from liquidation of construction company York Civil
Unsecured creditors of construction company York Civil are unlikely to see any returns from the business. In a report provided to creditors, the company's administrators, Martin Lewis and Timothy Mableson from accounting firm Ferrier Hodgson blamed York Civil's failure on a number of joint venture projects (10 September 2018). More...

Victoria

Getting on with the rail and road projects Victorians need
Over the coming months, Victorians will be faced with another construction blitz to prepare for bigger trains, work on the Metro Tunnel, West Gate Tunnel and improvements to Hoddle Street (19 September 2018). More...

How apartment owners got hooked to pick up the massive bill for dodgy cladding
Victoria's Planning Minister, Richard Wynne recently dropped a bombshell on thousands of apartment owners whose buildings are covered in flammable cladding. New loan laws likely to be passed by Parliament have been billed as a kindly gesture to help owners of apartments covered in the flammable cladding to fund the rectification costs (13 September 2018). More...

'I hope everyone knows your name': Magistrate blasts Corkman developers over asbestos dump
A magistrate says he would have jailed two Melbourne developers if he had the power to, after they pleaded guilty to dumping asbestos from an illegally demolished historic pub near homes and a childcare centre (13 September 2018). More...

New South Wales

New major plan for critical infrastructure in New South Wales
A new New South Wales Government strategy will minimise the impact of disasters on infrastructure, making it possible for residents and businesses to access electricity, running water and transport in the event of a disaster. Minister for Emergency Services, Troy Grant, launched the New South Wales Critical Infrastructure Resilience Strategy (CIRS) (17 September 2018). More...

Improved access to Sydney Airport
Sydney Airport will soon be faster and less painful to access, with the Sydney Gateway Project set to improve road and rail access to the airport and Port Botany area. The project aims to give local roads back to the local community, ease congestion and make journeys to and from Sydney Airport easier, faster and safer (14 September 2018). More...

New South Wales delivering infrastructure
Key metropolitan, regional and local infrastructure projects to be delivered on time and on budget are outlined, with 10 key infrastructure projects in metro and regional areas planned to be on time and on budget by the end of 2024 (10 September 2018). More...

Queensland

Cyclone resilience program clicks with Queenslanders
The first two months of a Palaszczuk Government program to make Queensland homes more cyclone resilient has been welcomed by North Queensland residents (19 September 2018). More...

Fears of secrecy as Qld Government set to ban information requests on mining rehabilitation fund
The Queensland Government is set to grant a blanket exclusion from right to information requests on a new multi-million-dollar mining and gas rehabilitation fund — going against the advice of the information watchdog (14 September 2018). More...

Investigation into claims Adani bores put 'sensitive one-million-year-old springs' at risk
The Queensland environment department launches an investigation into a series of groundwater bores drilled by Adani, which conservationists say were sunk without approval, contrary to the miner's claim it had permission for the works (12 September 2018). More...

Licence cancellations after a QBCC financial crackdown
Queensland building companies operating under high-risk financial circumstances have had their licenses cancelled following a targeted investigation by the QBCC. The investigation has resulted in 12 licence cancellations, including seven licensees who were more than 200 per cent over their maximum revenue limit (10 September 2018). More...

Published

Building Up & Moving Out
Commonwealth of Australia 2018: September 2018. More...

Future transport and mobility - Australian capabilities and opportunities: summary report
Australian Trade and Investment Commission, ITS Australia, Department of Infrastructure, Regional Development and Cities (Australia): 10 September 2018
Increasing urbanisation, rapid population growth and questions of environmental sustainability are forcing Australia to rethink its transport infrastructure matrix, according to this Austrade report. More...

ACI Construction Briefs
A fortnightly communication highlighting key updates related to Australia's construction industry (17 September 2018). More...

Cordell Construction Monthly – 17 September 2018
The latest CoreLogic - Cordell Construction Monthly Report identified Civil Engineering projects as the heroes of the sector, leading both the quantity stakes at 29% of all pipeline projects, and the majority of pipeline value at 57%. Second place goes to 'Apartment and Unit' projects, with 25% of the pipeline quantity and 14% of the pipeline value, but the highest median project value of $1.2M (17 September 2018). More...

In practice and courts

HIA Submissions
Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Amendment Bill 2018 and Securing Payments in the Building and Construction Industry - A Proposal for 'Deemed' Statutory Trusts - NSW (21 September 2018)
Building Industry Fairness (Security of Payment) Amendment Regulation - QLD (20 September 2018)

ISCA: IS Innovation Challenges: IC-3 Carbon Neutrality
IS Innovation Challenges are there to inspire projects, organisations, assets and individuals to pursue sustainability initiatives beyond the expectations of the ISv1.2 rating scheme. A project can register interest for an Innovation Challenge through their Case Manager using the Innovation challenge registration form. For more information on submissions, visit the innovation challenges index (19 September 2018). More...

Cases

Hyundai Engineering & Steel Industries Co Ltd v Two Ways Constructions Pty Ltd [2018] FCA 1427
ARBITRATION – international arbitration – where award creditor brought proceedings to enforce award obtained in Singapore – where award debtor sought to set aside the award in part in the High Court of the Republic of Singapore – where award debtor applied under s 8(8) of the International Arbitration Act 1974 (Cth) to adjourn award enforcement – adjournment granted on condition that award debtor provide security for full amount of the award plus interest – where award debtor failed to provide security and then when into voluntary administration – application by award creditor under s 440D of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) for leave to proceed with enforcement application notwithstanding voluntary administration – leave granted.

Greenwood Futures v DSD Builders [2018] NSWSC 1407
BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION – application to quash adjudicator's determination under Security of Payment Act – whether first and second payment claims issued were invalid because supporting statement was not included – weight of first-instance authority indicates invalidity. BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION – where three payment claims issued in the same terms – whether third payment claim supported by a separate reference date – prohibition on serving multiple payment claims referable to same reference date – existence of reference dates to be determined in accordance with the Security of Payment Act – third payment claim validly supported by reference date.
BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION – whether adjudicator failed to discharge his statutory functions in good faith – where alleged that adjudicator failed to value the construction work – no requirement for adjudicator to value work as the contract determined the progress payment amounts for each milestone.
COSTS – where successful defendant caused the present litigation – where defendant proceeded with disregard for the requirements of the Security of Payment Act to harass the plaintiff – only reason for not awarding costs against defendant is the compensatory and not punitive function of costs – each party to bear its own costs.
Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 1999 (NSW); Corporations Act 2001 (Cth); Supreme Court Act 1970 (NSW).

Mann v Paterson Constructions Pty Ltd [2018] VSCA 231
RESTITUTION – Building contract – Whether quantum meruit award available to builder who accepts owners' repudiation of contract – Sopov v Kane Constructions Pty Ltd (No 2) (2009) 24 VR 510 applied.
RESTITUTION – Building contract – Owners' repudiation accepted by builder – Claim in quantum meruit – Whether regard must be had to builder's actual costs in assessing amount payable – Whether Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal erred in assessing amount payable on basis of quantity surveyor's evidence rather than actual costs – Appeal dismissed – Sopov v Kane Constructions Pty Ltd (No 2) (2009) 24 VR 510 followed.
BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION – Building contract – Owners' repudiation accepted by builder – Whether Domestic Building Contracts Act 1995 s 38 precludes recovery on quantum meruit basis for orally agreed variations – Appeal dismissed.

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