What an amazing day as in partnership with BMD Group (BMD), Major Road Projects Victoria, Arcadis and Kallibr Training (RTO 32365), we launched our Victorian Pilot Program. Featuring 20 early-stage professionals, the pilot will comprise an eight-day training and development program that will see participants undertake the construction of the Victorian Bridge, a unique prefabricated structure commissioned to be the centrepiece of the program in Victoria.
So, let’s begin at the beginning. For over a year we have been planning today and before we tell you what our cohort has been up to on day one, we must thank and acknowledge the amazing people, who have made this pilot possible. To everyone who has supported us, contributed to the program, provided support and services, donated time, and passion – we appreciate you all and thank you. The spirit of collaboration that you have demonstrated is a credit to you, your organisations, and the industry that we are all proud to be part of.
As the day dawned in Melbourne, it's fair to say that the Constructionarium Team were wondering what on earth we had got ourselves into…for a bunch of Queenslanders we experienced a severe shock to the system…the Melbourne weather. Sure, it is a cliché, sure we had been warned, but nothing could prepare us for the reality of the wind, the rain, and the ominous grey skies. So armed with thermals, hand warmers, gloves, beanies and about 27 layers, we headed to our training site at Kallibr’s Maidstone Campus to meet our new cohort and our Victorian partners.
As we set up and prepared for the day with our partners at MRPV, BMD and Arcadis, our cohort began to arrive, a buzz of anticipation, an air of nervous energy and naturally in such situations an element of apprehension about what lies ahead.
Harry Hartman started the day, welcoming our cohort, setting out expectations – do not whatever you do turn up late – and providing an overview of the opportunity our cohort has been given and how to make the most of the coming 8 days and what they will experience.
Joining us were VIPs from across the industry, keen to share their experiences, to welcome our cohort to the program and show their continuing support for Constructionarium Australia. Thank you to Peter Anusas, Tanya Barmby and Daniel Rowse from BMD, Steve Cornish, Rajiv Ramanathan, and Dipal Sorathia from MRPV, Belinda Virant, Andrew Kyriacou, and Ash Pender from Arcadis for giving up their time to meet with our cohort and support them as they start their Constructionarium Australia journey.
Following the initial introductions, Alex Ibarra welcomed the participants to country, discussing more than the ceremony, imparting to our cohort the reasons, practicalities, and stories behind the welcome to country and the opportunities that connection and reconciliation offer to our entire community of which construction and infrastructure projects are part.
BMD’s Andrew Welton joined us for arguably our most important session of the week – safety. One of the biggest misconceptions we have when discussing Constructionarium Australia is the scale of our structures. Typically, people envisage a structure, maybe a metre long, comprising Lego and lolly sticks all held together by PVA glue. The reality is somewhat different. The bridge our cohort will construct is a bit of a big beastie, weighing in at 12.5 tonnes, 25m in long and 4m wide. Construction will require multiple lifts, full safety plans, and multiple elements to be fixed and connected and it all must be delivered safely. Safety is therefore paramount and is something we cannot stress enough to our cohort, a message that they were only too willing to hear.
Our next session looked at communication, branding and how engineers can use their technical excellence to tell the stories of their projects. Thanks to James Flaherty, Emily Alvis and Tanya Barmby for a thought-provoking session and for bringing their passion for infrastructure storytelling to our cohort. We can’t wait to see how our participants tell the story of their build to their communities and embed storytelling into their upcoming tender.
Before lunch, we split the cohort into two for the competitive element of their build. Armed with request for tender documentation, the two teams began to digest the first major exercise, preparing for the competitive tender on Friday. Advised by Alex, Harry, Tanya and project manager Dan Rowse, the teams are expected to produce a tender to the standards or a real-world project, fully costed, complete methodology, roles, and organisational charts, with the teams competing to win the contract to build the Victorian Bridge. The tender is intended to mirror the practicalities of a real project as much as possible and will be evaluated by a panel on Friday with the winning team’s methodology used to construct the bridge next week.
For our first lunch and learn the cohort was joined by Richard Wilkinson and Rajiv Ramanathan who discussed MRPV’s philosophy. In a highly informative session, it was fantastic for our cohort to hear from one of the state’s leading clients about how they approach the planning and delivery of the critical works that are shaping Victoria and laying the foundations for the state’s ongoing prosperity.
The afternoon session was focused on the tender process as the teams broke down their tasks, allocated roles, and responsibilities and most importantly – interrogated every aspect of the tender documentation to ensure that what they will propose will meet the client’s needs and objectives. As they headed to the site and inspected the materials and site conditions the requests for information came thick and fast as each team began to settle into the swing of a build program and the forming of the relationships and networks that will be central to their success.
For our final session, we were joined by Christine Knappstein and Mark Harper of Bentley who provided an initial overview of their Synchro Perform system that is used for the project’s cost control and scheduling. Again, like in a real project, success will be defined by performance and budget management; with the ultimate goal to make a profit. Will they? Time will tell, but the final celebrations of the program are dependent upon the all-important fiscal performance.
All in all, day one was a fantastic way to start our first program in Victoria. Thank you to everyone who has supported the program so far, we can’t wait to keep you up to date with how our cohort delivers the first Constructionarium Australia build in Victoria.
