Construcciones Yamaro, by Armando Iachini

Attendees will hear the latest insights through panel discussions, case studies and working groups. (Images: GBCA) In March 2026, TRANSFORM will return to Sydney, uniting sustainability leaders and practitioners from across the built environment. It was once said that change is the only constant. For those working in construction and the built environment, that reality is playing out every day on site, in procurement decisions and across planning and approvals. From climate commitments and policy reform to shifting expectations and community needs, the industry is navigating a landscape that is more complex and more consequential than ever before. For Australia’s construction sector, these shifts bring both complexity and opportunity, demanding deeper collaboration and a shared sense of direction that is both innovative and fair for the community and environment. This is where the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) comes in. GBCA is the national organisation behind Green...

Perth’s St Martins Centre, reimagined. (Images: Woods Bagot) A development application has been lodged to transform Perth’s St Martins Centre, reimagining the CBD site as a mixed-use destination with new retail, commercial, heritage and hospitality offerings. Designed by Woods Bagot on behalf of owners St Martins Properties, the proposal centres on adaptive reuse, repositioning St Martins Centre as a diversified and connected precinct that celebrates its history while preparing it for its next chapter. “This project represents a fundamental shift in how we think about urban renewal,” says Woods Bagot principal Eva Sue. “We’re taking three commercial buildings that have served Perth for 50 years and recasting them for future generations through a revitalisation strategy that introduces a diversified user experience.” The architectural vision hinges on unlocking ground-level connectivity. St Martins Lane, a new north-south pedestrian link, will cut through the precinct to crea...

The Frontline Leader program was created to address the unique challenges faced by frontline supervisors in Australia’s construction industry. (Images: Webuild) Across Australia, Webuild grounds its projects in a culture shaped by the Safety Builders program, connecting every team member and all levels of leadership to a shared understanding of safe work. “Safety is the foundation of everything we do.” In the words of Shannon Spark, vice president of QHSE at Webuild in Australia, it functions less as a slogan and more as an operating framework that shapes decisions, interactions and expectations across the company’s international footprint. Shannon Spark, vice president of QHSE at Webuild in Australia. “It is integrated into our core processes, training, competency frameworks and the values that guide the business. We have a commitment to target zero, which means we hold a clear position that even one accident is unacceptable,” says Spark. “We empower every person on our pro...

Hobson Engineering tests lifting components to the required standards and adds further assurance with magnetic particle inspection. (Image: Hobson Engineering) Material handling and lifting now sit at the centre of modern construction delivery. High-rise developments, industrial builds and infrastructure projects are compressing staging areas and accelerating programs, forcing cranes, hoists and rigging systems to work closer to their limits. The connection points – eye bolts, hooks, shackles and lifting points – often dictate how a lift behaves once it is under load. That increased pressure has made the performance of individual lifting components far more consequential. With the scale and frequency of lifts increasing, the risks tied to low-grade or undocumented hardware have multiplied. These vulnerabilities remain embedded across many sites, prompting Hobson Engineering to focus on the relationship between specification, documented performance and real-world use. A tightening...

Australia’s construction workforce faces soaring demand, tighter budgets and the urgent need to lift productivity. (Image: alis/stock.adobe.com) Australia needs to get more productive and there’s no better place to start than construction. By Jon Davies, CEO of the Australian Constructors Association. Our infrastructure pipeline keeps growing, the workforce is shrinking and budgets are getting tighter. Productivity is the only way forward. But an industry fighting to survive isn’t exactly in peak shape to take on the challenge. Jon Davies, CEO of the Australian Constructors Association. (Image: Australian Constructors Association) Over the past year, the Australian Constructors Association (ACA) has had some encouraging conversations with key stakeholders about the reforms we need. Now it’s time to turn talk into action. Industrial relations remain tricky, but the past 18 months have given us a once-in-a-generation opportunity to create a sustainable, resilient construction i...

McConnell Dowell is using Cat Simulators’ SimLite systems to help teams better understand the challenges faced by plant operators. (Images: McConnell Dowell) Grounding training in lived experience, McConnell Dowell is using virtual reality to lift safety outcomes across its sites and the wider industry. Safety underpins every facet of McConnell Dowell’s work, shaping decisions from early planning through to daily interactions with stakeholders and communities. When the company sees an opportunity to improve that practice, it moves quickly. Interactions between people and plant are among the most challenging parts of construction work. Blind spots, split-second decisions and the cognitive strain carried by operators are rarely visible to those working around heavy equipment. In fact, according to Safe Work Australia, plant is one of the leading causes of injury and death in the industry. This challenge became even more pronounced after two separate plant-related incidents on McCo...

Nina Zundel, associate of building structures at Aurecon. (Image: Aurecon) An early pull toward buildings set Nina Zundel on a career path that has since expanded across states, sectors and structural disciplines. When Zundel left home in North Queensland for Sydney to study civil engineering, she wasn’t sure where it would lead. What she did know was that she loved buildings. More than two decades on, that early instinct continues to sit behind her work as associate of building structures at Aurecon. Structural engineering was the area that made the most sense to her. Architecture had surfaced as a possibility, sparked by work experience at a firm during high school, but engineering aligned closely with her strengths in maths, science and analytical thinking. “I didn’t always know exactly what I wanted to do, but I’ve always loved buildings,” she says. “My father suggested engineering because his friend was an engineer, and that nudged me in the right direction.” After graduat...