Construcciones Yamaro, by Armando Iachini

The FCON26 Construction Leaders Panel explored how to turn challenges into momentum. (Images: NAWIC) Reflecting on FCON26 discussions, the CEO of the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC) says the industry has reached an inflection point. By Cathryn Greville, CEO of NAWIC. Australia has a $242 billion infrastructure pipeline and not enough people to deliver it. That’s not a projection – it’s where we are right now. The industry will need up to 300,000 additional workers by 2027–28, and the gap is already showing up on sites, in schedules and in budgets. Cathryn Greville says FCON26 showed an industry open to change. I recently joined the opening Construction Leaders Panel at FCON26 in Brisbane, alongside leaders from across the sector. The session covered productivity, workforce, sustainability, procurement, AI and digital adoption. But a single thread ran through every topic. Every challenge this industry faces leads back to people, not as a soft observation abou...

Each milestone reflects progress on infrastructure that supports communities, economies and future growth. (Images: Webuild) Construction milestones now do more than mark dates on a project schedule. For governments, investors and communities alike, construction milestones are one of the clearest indicators of delivery certainty in an increasingly complex landscape. Marco Assorati, senior executive vice president, operations Oceania at Webuild, says they demonstrate the confidence that comes from disciplined delivery. “Every milestone reflects the expertise, planning and collaboration required to turn complex projects into tangible progress,” he says. When projects reach critical points, whether through tunnelling works, rail corridor crossings or key interfaces, it’s not just progress being marked; it’s capability being demonstrated. These moments of delivery take on added importance when measured against funding commitments, contractual obligations and community expectations. Th...

Visibuild supports construction projects from data centres to mixed-use precincts. (Images: Visibuild) Commissioning is one of the last breaks in the construction data trail. Visibuild is building the connection. Every major construction project generates an enormous amount of documentation. Inspection records, test results, ITP sign-offs and non-conformance reports form the evidence trail of a well-delivered project. For most of the build, that trail stays intact. Then commissioning starts and the chain breaks. The records do exist, but they live in one system while commissioning happens in another. Teams spend the final weeks of delivery pulling records out of their construction platform, downloading files, reformatting them and uploading them into the commissioning provider’s environment. The same documentation is handled twice, with the risk of gaps surfacing too late to fix without cost. “It becomes cumbersome because the same evidence is handled twice,” says Shaun Phelan, co-...

Cupix helped verify services before they were concealed at Port Pirie Hospital. (Image: Sam Noonan) A search for better on-site validation led Sarah Constructions to Cupix. Project: Port Pirie Hospital Emergency Department redevelopment Client: SA Health, Department for Infrastructure and Transport Builder: Sarah Constructions Value: $15.6 million Location: Port Pirie, about 230 kilometres from the Adelaide CBD Contract type: Construct-only Cupix use: BIM validation, 360-degree site capture, remote checks, image records, subcontractor coordination, progress tracking and handover support Measured outcomes: About 50 per cent reduction in subcontractor-to-subcontractor back charges and about $6,000 saved in non-recoverable variations Sarah Constructions has spent more than six decades delivering complex commercial projects across education, healthcare, aged care, defence, retail and multi-storey accommodation. Digital manager Alex Willshire says the business is bu...

O’Brien glaziers bring technical expertise to every repair and installation. (Image: O’Brien) At O’Brien Glass, scale, systems and compliance are what separate a glazing contractor from a strategic partner with the capability to deliver nationally. Keith Lawrence, head of property services, says the company’s offering has been developed around that distinction, supporting construction businesses, facilities managers and large asset owners that need glazing work delivered with the same level of control across every site. The work spans reactive repairs, emergency glazing, double-glazing replacement, window film, partitions, security upgrades and project-based glazing. Across larger portfolios, those jobs also carry the administrative and compliance load around site access, make-safe requirements, approvals, records, invoicing and tenant disruption. “The market has changed. It’s no longer enough to be good at glazing,” says Lawrence. “Clients now expect the work to be supported by sa...

About 35km of twin tunnels are planned between Berowra and Ourimbah. (Image: zhouyilu/stock.adobe.com) Three major construction consortia have been shortlisted to develop competing plans for a key section of the proposed Newcastle to Sydney High Speed Rail project. The project has moved further into its Development Phase, with the groups selected through a competitive tender to participate in an Early Contractor Involvement (ECI) process for Area Package 1, between Berowra and Ourimbah. The shortlisted groups are the Acciona John Holland Joint Venture; the Advanced Alliance Joint Venture, comprising Gamuda Engineering, FCC Construction Australia and Samsung C&T Corporation; and the GoFar Joint Venture, comprising CPB Contractors, Ferrovial Construction (Australia) and VINCI Construction Grands Projects Australia. Each consortium will develop plans for the package, which includes about 35km of twin tunnels between Berowra and Ourimbah to be constructed using tunnel boring machin...

Productivity is a key challenge for the construction industry. (Image: JU.STOCKER/stock.adobe.com) The construction industry’s workforce challenge may have less to do with numbers and more to do with how work gets done. By Peter Colacino, CEO of the Australian Constructors Association. The construction industry has recently been described as having a capacity problem, with too few people to do the work. But the real challenge isn’t the number of people; it’s the productivity of the sector. This involves a focus on the skills and capability of the people who make up the industry, but it also requires better processes and the adoption of technology. Peter Colacino, CEO of the Australian Constructors Association. (Image: ACA) Our processes are outdated, with excessive reviews, red tape and a mismatch between the role of regulators and their resourcing. Unbelievably, productivity has gone backwards since the advent of the smartphone and the World Wide Web. Clearly, the challenge isn...

Emerging leaders toured Cross River Rail sites as part of the forum. (Images: Transport Australia) CPB Contractors has welcomed more than 50 emerging transport and infrastructure professionals to Brisbane for Transport Australia’s Emerging Leaders Forum, providing an opportunity to experience firsthand the delivery of Cross River Rail. Held under the theme Building the Legacy: How today’s major projects will shape Australia’s future transport system and the leaders who will deliver it , the forum brought together the next generation of industry leaders to explore how major projects are transforming cities, strengthening workforce capability and creating long-term benefits for communities. CPB Contractors hosted participants at the Cross River Rail Experience Centre , where Cross River Rail Delivery Authority general manager of communications and engagement Russell Vine shared how the project is delivering increased network capacity, improved customer outcomes, greater economic produ...

Coates delivers integrated power and cooling solutions for data centre construction. (Image: elbanco/stock.adobe.com) Data centres are booming across Australia, and building them isn’t business as usual. Find out what it takes to support safe, efficient construction. Driven by exponential demand for AI and cloud computing, Australia’s data centre pipeline is accelerating at unprecedented speed – reshaping construction, infrastructure investment and energy demand in the process. This is not a typical construction cycle; it’s a structural shift in how Australia builds, powers and cools critical infrastructure. “Data centres are no longer considered typical commercial builds, but infrastructure-grade assets with critical redundancy requirements, high energy intensity and tightly sequenced commissioning programs,” says Kurt Edwards , group manager at Coates Power & HVAC . That’s where specialist equipment, engineering expertise and integrated temporary infrastructure become critic...

ANI is progressing development of the Nuclear-Powered Submarine Construction Yard at Osborne, South Australia. (Image: ANI) Australian Naval Infrastructure (ANI) has appointed a joint venture between Laing O’Rourke Construction Australia and Amentum Australia as Capability Partner for the development and delivery of the Nuclear-Powered Submarine Construction Yard at Osborne, South Australia. The appointment follows a further $4.6 billion Australian Government equity investment in ANI to support delivery of the facility, bringing the government’s total equity contribution to $8.5 billion for the project. ANI is leading delivery of the Nuclear-Powered Submarine Construction Yard and supporting infrastructure needed for the future construction of SSN-AUKUS submarines at Osborne. The project forms part of the AUKUS Nuclear-Powered Submarine Pathway announced by the Commonwealth Government in March 2023. The appointment will expand ANI’s delivery capability as the facility prepares for...

Projects using BlueDeck benefit from fast lead times from order to delivery. (Images: FTI) FTI Group is turning design support, manufacturing control and coordinated delivery into productivity gains on site. According to Oxford Economics, Australia’s construction workforce is building less per worker than it did 35 years ago. The firm’s 2025 report, The Construction Productivity Challenge in Australia , estimates stagnant productivity is costing the country $62 billion in lost work each year. As industry and government explore ways to turn the tide, modern methods of construction (MMC) offer one way to improve how projects are designed, supplied and delivered. FTI Group’s building solutions align with MMC principles by moving more work into design coordination, off-site manufacture, project-specific detailing and sequenced delivery, reducing the labour, handling and decision-making left for site teams. Productivity is built into the company’s core products, says CEO Cameron Arkco...