Page 10 - Climate Control News April 2020

News
Industry, government collaborate on $131 million Building 4.0 initiative
REDUCING WASTE, DELAYS and emissions from building projects is the focus of a collaborative initiative between 30 industry partners that received $28 million from the Australian Government.
Monash University, Lendlease, The University of Melbourne, Donovan Group, BlueScope, Sumi- tomo Forestry and CSR, along with 23 other partners, have been successful in securing this funding to establish the Building 4.0 CRC - an initiative seeking to transform how buildings are designed and manufactured in Australia.
Minister for Industry, Science and Technology, Karen Andrews, said the $28m grant will lever- age a combined $103 million from industry, gov- ernment and research partners – bringing the combined research budget to $131 million over seven years.
The Building 4.0 CRC research initiative is fo- cused on use of digital solutions, new products and processes aiming to transform Australia’s building industry to a tech-enabled, collabora- tive future where the customer is at the centre of each building experience and buildings are not only better, but faster, cheaper and safer.
Building 4.0 CRC is funded by the Australian Government Cooperative Research Centre (CRC) Program, which has the potential to boost the economy through job creation and position Australia as a leader in the advanced manufac- ture of buildings.
Completely unique to the Australian and inter- national markets, the Building 4.0 CRC could set trends, break rules and transform the way the in- dustry engages and responds to customers’ needs.
The CRC will be based at Monash University
Grosvenor Engineering appoints COO
L to R: Graham Hindley. Grosvenor Engineering Group managing director, Nicholas Lianos.
L-R: Minister for Industry, Science & Technology, Karen Andrews. Monash University President and Vice-Chancellor, Professor Margaret Gardner. University of Melbourne Vice-Chancellor, Professor Duncan Maskell. Australian CEO of Donovan Group, Gavin Tonnet.
in partnership with the University of Melbourne, and in collaboration with the Queensland Uni- versity of Technology.
Some of the outcomes this initiative hopes to achieve include: a 30 per cent reduction in pro- ject costs through digital technology and off-site manufacturing; a 40 per cent reduction in pro- ject delays and an 80 per cent reduction in con- struction waste and; 50 per cent reduction in Co2 emissions for more
Building 4.0 CRC will bring together expertise in the fields of architecture, design, planning, construction, engineering, business, informa- tion technology and law to develop industry- wide practices and protocols intended to trans- form the entire sector.
It will also leverage the latest technologies, data science and artificial intelligence to enable the application of robotics and digital fabrica- tion to optimise all phases of building delivery – including development, design, production, as-
AUSTRALIAN ENGINEERING COMPANY,
the Grosvenor Engineering Group, has appoint- ed Graham Hindley to the role of chief operating officer (COO).
The company said his appointment is funda- mental to Grosvenor’s efforts to maintain its double-digit growth trajectory underpinned by its pro-active data-led approach to technical as- set management.
Prior to joining Grosvenor in 2016, Hind- ley, a qualified engineer, industrial rela- tions and commerce professional had spent 20 years in senior management roles in Syd- ney, Malaysia, China and Germany for world-class engineering and manufactur- ing companies.
Nicholas Lianos, managing director at Gros-
sembly, operation, maintenance and end-of-life. Monash University President and Vice-Chan- cellor, Professor Margaret Gardner, said Build- ing 4.0 CRC will lead to a growth in high-value employment, a reduction in greenhouse gases, and create better housing that is more afforda- ble, liveable and environmentally friendly for the
future of all Australians.
Professor Duncan Maskell, University of Mel-
bourne Vice-Chancellor, Professor Duncan Maskell, said the initiative has the potential to transform the building industry.
Donovan Group CEO, Gavin Tonnet, wants to create a world where people can visualise and re- alise buildings in real time.
“The purpose is to transform the way that con- sumers and builders design and buy buildings by providing easy-to-use browsing-based software that allows them to custom-design, visualise and price buildings in an engineering compliant way,” he said.
venor Engineering said that as general manager for NSW & ACT for the past three years, Hindley has delivered a proven track record in improving profitability and leading safe and efficient opera- tions across the region.
During his tenure, net earnings in these re- gions increased 118 per cent, with regional net earnings increasing nine-fold.
“Hindley’s operational expertise and people skills are vital as we continue to transition our tradespeople and engineers to become true knowledge workers via integration of emerging property technologies (PropTech) and Industri- al Internet of Things (IIoT) in our day to day op- erations,” Lianos said.
Hindley’s focus will be on increasing operation- al efficiency and working with the group’s Board.
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