Homes NSW
Homes NSW has announced released its Modern Methods of Construction procurement list that will appeal to suppliers that want to deliver innovative, good quality homes that are cost-effective, sustainable, and efficient.
Those applying will be expected to provide information relating to the delivery and transport services of their products as well as site connection and installation of the products. The list includes over $9 million of pre-manufactured 3D and 2D primary structural systems, additive manufacturing and pre-manufactured – non-structural assemblies and sub-assemblies.
Affordable homes for Melbourne
The City of Melbourne has proposed transforming two council-owned sites into new affordable housing as it moves towards meeting its target of delivering up to 25 per cent more affordable housing on land that it owns. The goals were set to address the current shortfall of more than 6000 affordable homes across the city, which is set to increase to 23,000 by 2036.
One project, for a site of 2600 square metres on Curzon Street in North Melbourne, is for multi-unit housing and another is in Victoria Street in West Melbourne. Housing is expected to include provisions that benefit low to middle-income key workers, Indigenous people, and older women.
The council’s draft budget will also invest a further $1.5 million to provide vulnerable community members with frontline services.
Another project – the Make Room project – will similarly repurpose a council-owned building into support accommodation at 602 Little Bourke Street. It is due for completion in August.
Stockland’s green industrial warehouse due for completion
While green industrial developments are still relatively new on the horizon, more developers are now getting serious about sustainability for various reasons, including their ESG profile which can appeal to financiers.
In a major project with green credentials Stockland is about to deliver the Willawong Distribution Centre in Queensland, targeting 5 Star Green Star Design and As Built ratings.
Work has started on the final phase of construction to add to the first three stages of the centre, which consists of 57,000 square metres of in five fully operational buildings. Tenants in these buildings work in industries that cover logistics, materials for new housing construction, and healthcare.
The 100,000 square metre distribution complex, is equivalent to 13 rugby league fields, has been strategically located to relieve demand from the fast-growing region, including for parcels, products, goods, and services.
Once completed, the warehouse will feature five 99-kilowatt photovoltaic solar systems, designs that use natural daylight, energy-efficient LED lighting, and water and energy metering systems to help tenants reduce occupancy costs and provide improved environmental quality.
The developer’s executive general manager Tony D’Addona said the facilities had been planned to make internal configurations easily modifiable, meaning tenants can change the space, grow, and adapt the facilities as needed.
Old Berlin passenger vessel goes green
The historic 138 year old ship, Kaiser Friedrich, which burns more than 150 litres of diesel per operating hour, has returned to service after its owners engaged electric mobility manufacturers Torqeedo to retrofit the 100-ton steamer with a modern, emission-free electric drive system.
The vessel will now be powered by twin 50i motors and a 400 kilowatt/hour battery bank. In 2022, experts in historic boat conversions purchased the ship and engaged the Tangermünde Shipbuilding and Development Company to complete its electrification.
On Monday, the 150-passenger vessel’s return was celebrated in a ceremonial christening in central Berlin.
Curtain University in bid to decarbonise chemical treatments
Researchers at by Curtin University’s School of Molecular and Life Sciences, say the chemical industry is forced to use fossil fuelled heat rather than electricity and chemical alternatives to water for processing due to organic materials not dissolving well in water. They say that the chemical industry is desperately searching for more ways to rely on greener resources.
According to the research lead associate professor Simone Ciampi chemical reactions in water can be dramatically sped up and become more efficient by adding a water-resistant material to an electrode – a process known as “fouling”, which will help tackle environmental and safety risks caused by current chemical processing.
Ciampi said that fouling generally goes against the conventional requirement of having clean instruments when processing chemicals by polluting the chemicals with plastic or oil. The result is a six times faster reaction than regular “clean” chemical reactions.
Dutch delegates visit Western Sydney to share waste management ideas
A high-level delegate group of government and local and international firms from the Netherlands visited Western Sydney this week to strengthen ties and share ideas for achieving sustainable development goals, with a focus on waste.
Delegates visited Brisbane and Sydney as part of the Waste Business Australia Netherlands Partners in Business Program 2021-2024 and attended the Waste 2024 resource recovery conference in Coffs Harbour.
Western Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils President, Councillor Barry Calvert, said the council shared details of regional collaboration between councils on circular economy and waste strategies with the delegates, who shared the same waste management challenges.
The Council hopes the collaboration was the start of sharing ideas with their Dutch counterparts.
Climate index pointing to increased disease risk
Australian Actuaries Climate Index has published new data for the summer of 2023/24. Notably, the lowest and highest temperatures were warmer than usual and extreme rainfall and wind levels were higher than usual – as recorded by Eastern Queensland, NSW, and Victoria – all shared the highest record minimum temperature index to date.
The index is a warning that while higher minimum temperatures are overlooked, it could raise the risk of pests and diseases spreading to parts of Australia and affect agriculture as insects and pathogens would change its geographic scope – since they will not be killed off as early in the year as usual. Rade Musulin, the index’s lead collator, said the nation should focus on future proofing building codes and land use policies.
A love letter to Melbourne’s trees
Researchers from the universities of Melbourne and the Wollongong are asking for residents to flag concerns with local tree maintenance has inspired a short film on the deep connection between humans and plants.
Arbor-Amor is a short film sparked by more than 3200 emails from City of Melbourne residents between 2012 and 2018. Many of these reflected love and loss, comfort and difficulties, and connections with local trees.
The project was brought to life by researchers of the PlantCities team, who went through the thousands of submissions made to the City of Melbourne’s online “Melbourne Urban Forest – Visual” initiative. The team believed the project was key to achieving more sustainable cities.
The short film below, directed by Polygraph Productions’ Tom Lowe, attempts to capture the complexities of the Plant Cities project and a glimpse into the emails residents sent to their beloved trees.
New toolkit to clear airs on artificial intelligence and human rights
The Responsible Investment Association of Australasia has launched a new toolkit to help investors navigate the human rights risks and issues created by artificial intelligence.
The Artificial Intelligence and Human Rights Investor Toolkit is designed to provide a framework and practical resources for those unfamiliar with the issue – and focuses on financial and human rights risks associated with AI. The toolkit also helps investors avoid unethical practices, biased algorithms, and data privacy breaches, leading to further consequences.
Aware Super’s heard of responsible investment and co-chair of the toolkit subgroup, Liza McDonald, said the company “prudently” uses AI to design efficient services for its members, and it was important to “invest in robust technical and human security measures in collaboration with the appropriate regulatory authorities, to help mitigate these threats.”
Flexspace Group acquires end of lease consultant
Instant Group, a provider of a flexible workspace marketplace, has acquired the Sydney-based Navigate Property Consulting to meet the rise in demand for flexible workspaces in Australia. The acquisition will allow Instant Group to expand its service as demand grows. Compared to 2022, demand in Sydney has risen by 9 per cent, Perth by 46 per cent and Adelaide by 14 per cent. Demands on the Gold Coast are also up by 59 per cent in the first half of 2024 compared to Q1 of last year.
The acquired consultants specialise in managing the entire lifecycle of commercial tenancies in Australia, specialising in finding cost-effecting the end of lease resolutions on behalf of their tenants and managing risks. By joining forces, both groups hope to offer clients comprehensive services, including the entire lifecycle of commercial tenancies.
The Instant Group’s chief client office for the APAC and EMEA, Sean Lynch, said the acquisition will also help clients access complementary services tailored to their unique needs and requirements.
New facility turns plastic waste into building materials
CRDC Global has opened its first Australian RESIN8 facility in Tottenham in Melbourne’s west. The centre will turn traditionally hard to recycle hard to recycle plastics into building materials that can be used in structural and non-structural building applications.
The facility is the result of a partnership between the company and the Australia and New Zealand Recycling Platform (ANZRP), a not-for-profit that provides free and easy e-waste disposal for Australian households and small businesses. The company is also collaborating with the Soft Plastics Recycling Taskforce to find a solution to recycling supermarket soft plastic waste. The facility is understood to have the capacity to process 1 metric tonne of plastic per hour.
Building 4.0 CRC in new housing work
Building 4.0 CRC and the New South Wales government have embarked on a $4 million research and development program to work on new ways to build homes and include a series of prototypes and medium density social housing projects.
The program will use modern methods of construction (MMC) in the 50:50 funded partnership.
CEO of Building 4.0 Professor Mathew Aitchison said the o?site manufacturing system would deliver certainty, safety and higher quality design and sustainability outcomes.
“We have deep MMC expertise and innovation locally that we can grow, and we will be working closely with the local manufacturing industry to scale and upskill,” he said.
Seafarer’s Rest begins construction
Property developer Riverlee has started construction on Seafarers Rest Park, a proposed 3500 sq m public park on the Birrarung (Yarra River) in Melbourne.
The park is set to form a key link within the City of Melbourne’s Greenline Project. The Project is due to rehabilitate the northern banks of the Yarra River, as reported by The Fifth Estate last year.
The park will form part of Riverlee’s Seafarers Precinct on the river’s north bank and will offer a green oasis that acknowledges its indigenous cultural heritage and maritime history in its design.
The park is due to be completed later this year as Riverlee continues to restore and redevelop the heritage-listed Goods Shed No.5 into a $600 million mixed-use precinct – due to house 114 hotel-branded residences, 277 hotel rooms by 1 Hotel and Homes Melbourne.
Procurement policy
Gongs for Environment and Water Minister Tanya Plibersek at least on one score recently after she delayed some of the expected environmental protection measures recently after pressure from the mining industry (do they ever go to sleep?). The Infrastructure Sustainability Council says the new Environmentally Sustainable Procurement Policy has will be useful for the council as one of the metrics endorsed by the new policy was achieving a verified rating from the ISC.
New facility turns plastic waste into building materials
CRDC Global has opened its first Australian RESIN8 facility in Tottenham in Melbourne’s west. The centre will turn traditionally hard to recycle hard to recycle plastics into building materials that can be used in structural and non-structural building applications.
The facility is the result of a partnership between the company and the Australia and New Zealand Recycling Platform (ANZRP), a not-for-profit that provides free and easy e-waste disposal for Australian households and small businesses. The company is also collaborating with the Soft Plastics Recycling Taskforce to find a solution to recycling supermarket soft plastic waste. The facility is understood to have the capacity to process 1 metric tonne of plastic per hour.
HIA calls for skilled labour in the federal budget
The Housing Industry Association says the building sector has an acute shortage of skilled trades and is “compounded by other government programs drawing workers away from the residential building industry”.
The HIA managing director Jocelyn Martin has called on the government to increase skilled labour and apprentices in Australia via this year’s upcoming federal budget, stating that the 1.2 million new homes promised in the government’s national housing accord “can’t be built with only a few hands”. She has asked the government to maintain the current national priority wage subsidy arrangement for employers to take on apprentices beyond 1 July, when the Australian apprentice incentive system is reviewed.
EV chargers bring economic benefits, says new research
Electric vehicle charging providers JOLT has found that communities local to EV chargers receive up to $90,000 in incremental spending every year for every charging station installed. In research conducted across the company’s customer base, including hundreds of EV drivers nationwide, customers indicated they specifically visited retail locations by the street side chargers and wouldn’t have if the chargers were not there.
Popular activities during a 30 minute charging session include shopping, grabbing a coffee or enjoying a meal at the local café or restaurant.
Of those surveyed, 68 per cent indicated it was important to access an EV charger near a local business, 57 per cent indicated that they align their charging with access to retail activity, and 70 per cent indicated they spend up to $50 at a local business during a single charge.
As EV ownerships grow, JOLT is expecting spending to rise up to $150,000 per charger.
New tech to prevent pole-top fires
Dr Tariq Nazir and his team at RMIT have collaborated with UNSW to create power pole insulators that are resistant to fire and electrical sparking.
Power poll tops can catch fire with consecutive days of hot, dry, and windy are followed by damp and misty conditions.
In March, power pole top fires cut power to more than 40,000 properties in Perth.
The engineers now want to transition the research to larger-scale production processes.
New art exhibition to promote thoughts about nature
Something fun: Touring exhibitionZOONOSES will open at the Hurstville Museum and Gallery this week. The collection by Dr Nicola Hooper explores the relationships between humans and animals especially on the contradictory perception of certain animals to a fear of zoonoses – animal diseases that can infect humans.
The exhibition will be displayed from 4 May to 28 July at Hurstville Museum and Gallery as part of its regional and metropolitan tour around Australia.