And the winner is…
Before we get down to brass tacks, there are a few things to consider ahead of the big reveal.
- Our cohort had not met until 3 days ago.
- They had to form high performing teams, meet a client’s brief, access skills and perform roles and tasks that they have not done so far in their studies or career.
- Even though Constructionarium Australia is a training program, we try to mirror real-world processes as much as possible, and that includes the tender documentation, the level of detail expected and the tight timeframes that bid teams work with.
And when you consider all of those things, what we saw today was nothing short of remarkable. The level of detail, the thoroughness of the teams’ approaches, the professionalism in their presentations and the quality of their work was outstanding.
Both team Else and team Merle deserve nothing but the highest praise for the work they have undertaken over the last three days as they worked to achieve their tender deadline.
Throughout the morning, the teams put together their final documentation, prepped their presentations and ensured that they were ready to hit send on that all-important email ahead of the deadline. It’s fair to say that for both teams, the relief was palpable when their emails went from send, through the outbox and into the client’s inbox.
For today’s lunch and Gareth Baines and Paul Robson of McIlwain took the team through the company’s history, successes and track record of performance that has seen them deliver major works throughout Queensland. From fire remediation works at Binna Burra to the Moggill Road Cycleway Overpass, it was a great insight into McIlwain’s approach to project development, delivery and success.
And then it was on to the main event. The teams prepared like the weigh-in at a heavyweight contest in Las Vegas, with both teams engaging in some playful banter and a little bit of friendly trash talking. All in great fun, it shows the teams’ camaraderie and the relationships and networks that they are forming.
Today’s tender review panel of Harry Hartman, Paul Robson, Deb Lancelot, Gary Parkinson, and Alex Ibarra entered the room at it was seconds away, round one, with Team Else first into the ring. Another key thing to remember is that our review panel treats the bid presentations as they would if analysing a tender in the real world; they will ask the tough questions and challenge the teams when required.
With great visuals, a clear methodology, clear and confident presentation, the team delivered a fantastic pitch to the panel, covering all the key aspects of their project, resourcing, budget and more. But with any tender presentation, even if you have all the bases covered, there is always a potential challenge, and Harry Hartman was first to query the team, challenging their pricing and asking the team a series of tough questions about their budget. Anyone who knows Harry knows that the questions will have been direct and to the point and not something the team is likely to have faced before.
With questions from the panel on everything from local and indigenous content to traffic management, personnel resourcing, and documentation delivery, the panel did not hold back on their interrogation of the team. And all credit to the team; they could handle the questions and provide the clarification the panel requested.
A hugely impressive start. With thanks from the panel for their ‘slick and well developed’ presentation, there was a sigh of relief, and the team took their seats ahead of round 2.
Up next were team, Merle. Once again, we saw an extremely high standard of presentation. With a focus on the skills and capabilities of the team, Merle’s approach emphasised how people can provide a client with confidence before moving into the technicalities and methodologies of the build. Clear, confident, methodical, their presentation covered the critical details required to construct the McIlwain Story Bridge. It was a powerful presentation in which the team articulated their approach well, with an extremely high level of detail, but it was not without question.
The first question focussed on traffic management and how the team would handle the live road environment surrounding their bridge. From there, the panel challenged the team on their crane set-up, management and installation, site assembly point location, construction methodology, and more. It was another challenging set of questions, but the team handled the pressure well, receiving praise for their innovative methodology and budget.
Before we announce the winner, we must congratulate both teams. It was a privilege for the panel and audience to watch the teams in action, see the results of their efforts, and the highly professional manner in which they approached their bid and delivered their presentation. When you consider that they have worked on this project for a few short days, the standard of work is nothing short of outstanding.
With that, the tender panel retired to make their final decision on who will build the McIlwain Story Bridge.
And the winner is…
Congratulations team Merle.
Once again, the spirit of Constructionarium Australia came to the fore with the teams congratulating each other on what they have achieved over the last few days. It’s now time for the teams to have a well-earned rest over the weekend to prepare themselves for build week.
