Connecting Advanced Precast & informed clients can deliver productive outcomes

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1 Connecting Advanced Precast & informed clients can deliver productive outcomes Report by: David Chandler June 2013 This report started with my observations of Meriton s current residential development at Macquarie Park. I have been looking for examples where increased off-site manufactures can contribute to more efficient on-site construction productivity. For those interested, it is instructive to have a look around projects under construction to observe those where there are signs of good organisation and preplanning. I am keen to identify instances where smart clients are able to design and procure buildings in collaboration with their consultants and contractors to achieve superior outcomes. Precast concrete is a major building element today, and as it turns out provides a terrific example of what s possible in off-site fabrication and value ad. Constructionedge readers will be familiar with the increasing amount of sophisticated precast panels now being transported onto city construction sites. Few probably have the time to consider the process involved in getting them there. While precast in Sydney construction is a relatively recent development, it has been long used in the Melbourne and Adelaide markets. Most innovations in precast use can be tracked to the southern states. I remember the early tilt-up factory wall panels and pretty horrible advances along the way. For the purposes of this article I am indebted to Advanced Precast (Aust) who operate facilities at Wetherill Park in NSW. AP 1 was founded in Victoria in 1982 moving into NSW and the ACT in 1999 and QLD in The company specialises in engineered architectural and structural precast. I met with NSW State Manager Michael Hayward and Factory Manager Brett Flanagan. Both entered the business as carpenters and have taken their initial skills to new levels with further qualifications and experience. AP employs over 160 people nationally with NSW now the largest operation. The Wetherill Park is on schedule to produce approximately 10,000 panels this year. 1 More information on Advanced Precast (Aust) can be found at

2 The precast industry today is very different to the one I first encountered as a young constructor in the 1970 s and 80 s. Major projects where I have used precast included the Sydney Hilton, a bridge across Albert Avenue in Chatswood and on the New Parliament House project in Canberra. The Parliament House precast came mostly from EPM s South Australian operations and were amongst the first of the high impact architectural panels in the industry. They have stood the test of time. Harry Triguboff s Meriton has been a subject of interest to Constructionedge for some time. Meriton demonstrates a company that knows what its customers want, sticks to its knitting, has a robust strategy to sustain its business through the housing cycle and demonstrates considerable construction and volume procurement expertise. The company has translated the project housing business model successfully into high-rise residential. Triguboff has constantly developed his mix of product and more importantly, the design and built quality of his buildings significantly over the last 15 years or so. Meriton projects operate with lean overheads and a high dependence on key contractors who undertake elements of work almost on a turnkey basis. Advanced Precast (AP) is a great example of how Meriton exercises its informed buyer expertise in building it latest projects. Meriton engages with its contractors early and bases this on developed working relationships over many years. Contractors tend to discuss cost with Meriton on a component of apartment basis not just rates per square meter. Advanced Precast has staff working in Meriton s offices while building design is developed and precast shop drawings are often concurrently produced. On occasions precast drawings can be provided on a Monday and panels delivered just a week later. This is far faster than the norm in the construction industry where weeks can be lost in transmitting architectural, engineering and services drawings to contractors and then sub-contractors, shop drawings then developed off-site, then resubmitted for checking often several times! This all seems to be cut out in the Meriton model. Obvious savings of time, re-work avoidance and on-site delay. Advanced Precast provides engineering design, detailing, manufacture, erection and finishing to Meriton and others who see the benefit of early engagement and collaborative design development. AP State Manager Michael Hayward says there are heaps of opportunities for clients to avoid waste and cost by incorporating precast methods early and not after the development approval plans have been drawn. He says early resolution of complex and expensive transition structures at the basement and ground floor levels can be more efficiently done with precast these days. Factory Manager Brett Flanagan also stresses the need to maximise repetition and simplification of detailing to help improve production efficiency and speed. Lots of mould changes in the pre-casting process are disruptive and expensive he says. My observations are that Meriton projects demonstrate how an informed buyer and a competent contractor (in this case Advanced Precast) can come together like clockwork. This is not just for precast. It applies just as much to windows and doors, site excavation and remediation as it does to kitchens and bathrooms. The included photos show just how well a Meriton project under construction is organised.

3 In the AP factory good shop drawing detailing and coordination pays off. Precast manufacture these days has come a long way in what s possible, the quality being achieved and the incorporation of component parts to ensure ease of onsite assembly. Increasingly AP customers such as Mirvac are seeking cast-ins to precast panels for electrical, water and gas piping to save these needing to be cut-in onsite. Other customers are asking AP to pre-install windows and external doors into the precast before it is delivered to site, thus saving more onsite labour and overheads. Typically precast uses 40mpa concrete. Panels are able to be removed from their moulds 24 hours after casting with progressive strength to 10mpa and transported to site at plus 22mpa. Tolerances need to be tightly controlled with normal joint widths of 16mm + 3mm and at slab juncture joints 20mm + 3mm. Panels will be doweled and grouted using cast in tubes or joined into the structure with cast in reinforcement which can be turned out at site. Damage to panels is carefully monitored and repairs performed with quality materials usually under factory conditions. All panels have cast in identification to ensure full traceability of panel production and installation. The cost of completed panels will vary considerably and depend on detailing, mould utilisation, and finish quality required. Often a quality finish is required on both panel faces. Cost can range from $140/m2 to $400/m2. Again a lot of effort can be saved by early client engagement and concurrently

4 working with the designers and contractors to optimise both design and production outcomes. Documentation quality and co-ordination remains a challenge for the industry. At the factory floor hard copy shop drawings are still used for production setting out and mould checking. Perhaps further productivity benefits will come from more integrated design technology in the future. Panels are held in the casting yard for nominally 3 weeks depending on the number of panels that can be made in a production run and then acceptance rates at site. Preparation for transport can be quite demanding depending on panel complexity and penetrations for windows and other openings. So what does all of this say about construction and productivity in My conclusions are these; An expert and experienced buyer of construction projects and their components can get a better deal in product suitability, innovation and value by early engagement of key elemental trades such as precast. Time savings on site should be as much as 20% if competent work methodology can take full advantage of the off-site manufacture potential. Meriton achieves this and as a result builds faster, cheaper and of equal quality with peers, Early engagement of key contractors and suppliers does not need to be at the expense of cost consciousness or end quality to be offered. What s essential is that clients must know how component cost makes up the whole and be able to deal with each party on an informed and collaborative basis. In this way innovation and smarter assembly techniques can be pursued with direct costs under pressure, not margins, Project managers, designers and their expert consultants need to ensure that designs consider smarter off-site production and on-site assembly possibilities before locking into documentation detail too early. Specialist contractors like Advanced Precast have developed their expertise over many years; they have worked with the smartest engineers and contractors. They are well positioned to transfer best practice and lessons hard learned. The project housing business model has a lot for the general contractor to learn. Project home builders have for too long been assigned to the disregard pile. General contractors have yet to understand how project home builders were first into lean construction, the benefit of repeat design use, establishment of intimate supply chain relationships and volume purchasing. Project home builders have historically used the self-organisation of sub-

5 trades very efficiently, sometimes with less quality assurance than would be desirable, but this is easily rectified, Meriton in it s through the cycle business model has become more than the developer and seller of cheap apartments. Meriton now retains much of its stock in serviced apartments and a large private rental pool. Meriton is now very much focused on quality as it is a long term holder of apartments it builds, so the old race to the end of the defect warranty period seems a lot less important these days. Meriton s certifying consultants and contractors are well aware of this development. Where too for construction from here? I think function, quality and cost are the big challenges to the industry. Clearly the cost of being on-site with supervision, attendant labour, sheds, hoists, cranes and other site infrastructure is a major cost factor. They are all time related and these days can represent up to 25% of project cost. A 20% reduction in on-site construction time is what firms like Meriton achieve. The design, documentation and procurement process across the board has just as much potential. Generally these processes remain fragmented with discontinuous work sequences denying clients the benefits of repeatable best practices, avoidance of waste, better documentation co-ordination and greater off-site value ad. They also sustain less efficient on-site construction methodologies, work practices and quality risk that if addressed could improve construction s future productivity, viability and employment prospects. So the next time you see precast panels on the way to a project near you, just stop and think am I achieving as much as Harry Triguboff? Or can I do better? Report by; David Chandler OAM has a distinguished career in Australia s construction industry. He was the Construction Director of Australia s New Parliament House and is widely acclaimed for ensuring its successful completion in His experiences include responsibility for major projects and construction businesses in Australia and around the Pacific Rim. He has performed roles as program director, CEO, board member and Chairman of a variety of public and private organisations with positive results. He has been at the forefront of construction industry leadership through roles in establishing the Australian Institute of Project Management, a member of the former CSIRO Construction Engineering and Mining Advisory Board, service on various working groups advising on matters related to builder licencing, university course accreditation, affordable housing and urban development. He was awarded an OAM for services to the construction industry and was a fellow of both the Australian Institutes of Building and Engineers Australia. Mr Chandler provides independent advisory for construction clients and businesses in Australia and around the Pacific Rim. He now looks to work with and advise governments and construction companies on productivity policy, strategic direction, capability development, risk management, procurement, succession planning, and creating competitive advantage. Constructionedge is committed to promoting the need for Government and Industry to address Australia s declining construction industry productivity and rising costs. Constructionedge will seek out and report on examples of best practice to demonstrate what is possible and how the status quo must be challenged to assure a viable future for Australia s construction industry. Constructionedge believes that the national government must take hold of leadership and driving a unifying agenda to drive up productivity, foster new innovations and investment in assuring the industry s future sustainability. Follow David s construction industry insights at Contact: david.chandler@resolutionservices.com.au M: