- Gooday Construction Newsletter
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- 06/08/2025
06/08/2025
🏗 🚧 🌏 🛠🚀 🦺 ♻ 🤖 🧱 🏛 🧰
THE MORNING PAPER FOR CONSTRUCTION PROFESSIONALS AND TRADIES
🚨 Safety Updates
TAFE NSW has launched a mental health initiative during Tradies National Health Month, encouraging conversations through bright TradeMutt shirts worn by teachers. Featuring a QR code linking to support services, the campaign aims to reduce stigma, support apprentices, and promote wellbeing across NSW’s trades workforce facing increasing mental health challenges.
SafeWork NSW is visiting all the state’s snow resorts this week, conducting proactive checks on operations to confirm workers and the million visitors who stay in the area each season are being kept safe.
A man has died and another is fighting for life after the pair were involved in a construction site accident in Carlingford. Paramedics were called to a Meriton construction site on Pennant Hills Road in Carlingford in Sydney's north-west yesterday morning. They found two men, one in his 30s and one in his 40s, suffering serious injuries after a concrete pump had fallen on the pair.
âś’ Headlines & Industry
Application lodged for permanent legal protection of Victoria Park, where state and federal governments plan to spend billions on sports infrastructure. A First Nations group has applied to halt construction of the main stadium planned for the 2032 Brisbane Olympics. The state and federal governments plan to spend $3.8bn on a 63,000-seat stadium at Victoria Park in inner-city Brisbane.
The Albanese Government has partnered with Amazon’s Project Kuiper to deliver high-speed broadband to up to 300,000 remote Australian homes and businesses via low Earth orbit satellites. This upgrade will replace existing Sky Muster services, boosting connectivity, productivity, and public safety across regional and rural Australia.
🏗️ Projects
ACT
Canberra Airport will invest $1 million in a breeding program for the endangered Canberra Grassland Earless Dragon as part of its road upgrade project. The road, improving freight access by sealing the gravel surface, includes underpasses and fencing to protect wildlife. The ACT Budget adds $4.5 million for habitat restoration.
NSW
A $122 million redevelopment is proposed for a longstanding aged care site in Woonona. IRT Group has lodged a State Significant Development Application (SSD-73910208) to transform the site into a mixed seniors housing estate. The proposal, now on public exhibition from 29 July to 25 August 2025, aims to provide integrated care and independent living in one location.
QLD
Australia – Gold Coast mayor floats hydrogen powered trams as alternative to electric light rail. Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate wants the Queensland government to explore the feasibility of hydrogen-powered trams with plans for stage 4 of the city’s light rail still up in the air.
SA
Horizontal directional drilling (HDD) has been completed on the Pre-Lay Shore End (PLSE) landing for the Sydney-Melbourne-Adelaide-Perth (SMAP) cable in South Australia. This work sets the stage for the first ever subsea cable landing in South Australia. With the HDD bore complete and tested to spec, SUBCO is now positioned to begin installing the shore end of the SMAP cable – the critical section that connects the subsea system to its land-based infrastructure.
BMD will build a new link road and upgrade the South Road/Price Street intersection in Adelaide, improving traffic flow and safety. Part of the $850 million Torrens to Darlington Project, it includes signals, crossings, and turn lanes. Completion is expected by late 2026, easing congestion for local drivers.
TAS
The Hobart Airport runway upgrade is now complete, enabling direct international flights and boosting Tasmania’s economy by $122 million annually. The $130 million project, co-funded by the federal government, enhances freight exports, tourism, and Antarctic access. It’s expected to create 1,200 jobs and significantly benefit Tasmanian agriculture and tourism.
VIC
With 15,000 new homes, eight schools and four town centres, this new Melbourne suburb is set to be huge.
The Victorian government has approved the Beveridge North West Precinct Structure Plan (PSP), which will pave the way for a new suburb located within Mitchell Shire, 40km north of Melbourne.
A powerful shift toward clean energy is taking shape in central Victoria, Australia, where Spanish renewable energy developer Acciona is advancing its massive $990 million Tall Tree wind and battery project. With construction slated to begin in 2027 and operations launching in 2029, the initiative promises to bring cleaner air, a stronger local grid, and new green jobs to the region — all while helping Australia cut its reliance on dirty fuels.
AusNet has appointed Zinfra as its new delivery partner under a major service model overhaul. The partnership, which began on 1 August 2025, falls under the two-year Distribution Operations and Maintenance Services Agreement (DOMSA), with options for two one-year extensions. It covers AusNet’s 89,000-square-kilometre distribution footprint across eastern and north-eastern Victoria and Melbourne’s northern and eastern suburbs.
WA
The Pavilion is a new aquatic and health centre at the WACA Ground precinct in East Perth, operated by BlueFit. It features pools, gym, fitness studios, and a splash park, blending sport and community wellness. The $154.7 million WACA redevelopment includes $22.5 million from WA Government and $25 million from the City of Perth for the aquatic facility.
Macmahon subsidiary Decmil is set to deliver further upgrades to the Marble Bar road upgrade project in Western Australia.
Decmil has received a notice of award from HanRoy Iron Ore Projects, a Hancock Prospecting subsidiary, for approximately 46km of road construction upgrade works along Marble Bar road that meets Main Roads Western Australia’s standards. The works are expected to commence this month and will span eight months. The award will also add $104 million to Macmahon’s secured order book.
Ground has broken for construction of Western Australia’s latest big battery in Merredin, a $220-million project which could improve power reliability in the state’s east.
A seven-storey self-storage facility proposed in West Perth has been given a tick of approval and is expected to cost $27 million to build.
🧰 Construction Au Other
Boral’s flagship recycled glass sand has received official approval from Sydney Water, marking a major step towards more sustainable construction practices in New South Wales. The Boral Blended High-Grade Compaction Sand (HGCS), made with up to 40 per cent double-washed glass sand derived from kerbside recycled glass bottles, has been accepted for use as a non-standard product in Sydney Water infrastructure works.
Laing O’Rourke’s 2025 pre-tax profit surged to £41.5 million on steady £4 billion revenue. Net assets and cash improved, with a record £11.9 billion order book. Growth driven by direct delivery, modern construction, and digital engineering, despite supply challenges. Defects provisions rose slightly. Strong financial management supports future growth.
🚀 Innovation, Digital & Futuristic Technology
AI is unlocking the next evolution in building infrastructure: truly autonomous buildings, writes Susanne Seitz, CEO of Siemens Buildings Smart Infrastructure.
Ever wonder what a CO2-free train track might look like? Picture rails crafted from water and renewable electrons. On July 29, 2025, voestalpine AG made that vision a reality at its Donawitz plant in Austria, rolling out the world’s first hydrogen-based railway rail.
🌱 Sustainability ​& Environment
As part of Seymour Whyte’s commitment to building sustainable infrastructure and leaving a positive legacy in the communities where we work, our M1 Pacific Motorway Upgrade – Palm Beach to Tugun (PB2T) project team is trialling an innovative, nature-based solution to stabilise the banks of Saltwater Creek at Currumbin on the Gold Coast.
In a first for Seymour Whyte, more than 300 kilograms of oyster shells—sourced from local restaurants and fish markets—have been repurposed into living barriers that enhance biodiversity, prevent erosion, and improve water quality.
🌏 Around the World
A group of landowners in Texas is taking legal action against the Trump administration, trying to prevent their land from being taken to build the border wall. The recent budget bill signed by President Donald Trump allocated nearly $50 billion to build the wall.
In October 2020, 50 Neom project staff relocated from Riyadh to the site near Tabuk. Launched in 2017 to diversify Saudi Arabia’s economy, Neom includes megaprojects like “The Line,” a 170km skyscraper housing 9 million. Since its 2021 announcement, feasibility concerns have persisted.
đź“– Miscellaneous
The Crisafulli government has launched a year-long inquiry into the Queensland CFMEU and the broader construction industry, following Geoffrey Watson SC’s report detailing systemic violence and abuse. Led by Stuart Wood AM KC, the inquiry will examine misconduct’s impact on safety, productivity, housing, and infrastructure across Queensland.
The new buzzword in hotel design is “biophilic” and it’s transforming city properties.
Australia’s construction price growth picked up in the June quarter, with output prices rising 0.7% in building construction and 0.8% in civil engineering. Over 2024/25, prices increased 2.2% (building) and 1.9% (civil). Rising labor and material costs, including timber and copper, are driving this resurgence.
Stantec, a global leader in sustainable design and engineering, has closed its previously announced acquisition of Page, a 1,400-person architecture and engineering firm headquartered in Washington, DC.
👷‍♀️ Tradies and Resource
The NSW Government’s 2025/26 Elsa Dixon Aboriginal Employment Grant supports hiring and training Aboriginal staff across government, councils, and Aboriginal organisations. Named after pilot Elsa Dixon, it funds wages and upskilling for apprenticeships and jobs. The program fosters diversity, creates secure jobs, and helps close the employment gap.
Australia’s infrastructure boom demands skilled precast concrete workers for projects like Torrens to Darlington and Sydney Metro. National Precast has launched micro-credentials—short online courses covering safety, quality, and technical skills—to bridge workforce gaps. Funded by Queensland, this training reduces risks, improves compliance, and supports local and overseas workers.
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