From Disaster to Development: AECOM Increases Safety in Australia
AECOM was selected as principal program consultant to safely restore, repair, and rehabilitate damaged road networks following a number of natural disasters in Queensland, Australia.
From 2010 to 2013, Hinchinbrook Shire Council (HSC) in Queensland, Australia, suffered a number of natural disasters, including category 5 Cyclone Yasi and subsequent flooding events. AECOM was selected as the principal program consultant — tasked with guiding a supply chain of local constructors to safely restore, repair and rehabilitate 2,087 square kilometers (806 square miles) of damaged road networks.
The National Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements (NDRRA) project was designed to use as many local contractors and plant operators as possible, which posed an increased safety challenge for AECOM as it directly supervised construction work.
“From the outset of the program, the team designed a safety framework for staff and contractors to use to increase safety awareness, deliver a safe work program, and integrate construction and traffic management best practices,” said Dyrick Hobbs, AECOM program manager on the project. “The project team also worked proactively with individual contractors to assess and refine their safety systems and procedures, and incorporated safety training and regular safety planning audits.”
The result has been a marked increase in local contractor safety awareness and the use of safety systems and protocols by operators and contractors. Many contractors on the project now use systems designed, developed and implemented by AECOM.
“The AU$140-million (US$120-million) HSC NDDRA program holds an impressive safety record and has positively impacted the local construction industry,” said Hinchinbrook Shire Councillor David Geoffrey Carr, Portfolio — Engineering Services.
About AECOM
With nearly 100,000 employees — including architects, engineers, designers, planners, scientists and management and construction services professionals — serving clients in more than 150 countries around the world following the acquisition of URS, AECOM is a premier, fully integrated infrastructure and support services firm. AECOM is ranked as the #1 engineering design firm by revenue in Engineering News-Record magazine’s annual industry rankings. The company is a leader in all of the key markets that it serves, including transportation, facilities, environmental, energy, oil and gas, water, high-rise buildings and government. AECOM provides a blend of global reach, local knowledge, innovation and technical excellence in delivering solutions that create, enhance and sustain the world’s built, natural and social environments. A Fortune 500 company, AECOM companies, including URS Corporation and Hunt Construction Group, had revenue of approximately $19.5 billion during the 12 months ended Sept. 30, 2014. More information on AECOM and its services can be found at www.aecom.com.
Media:
AECOM Technology Corporation
Ed Mayer, +1.732.564.3380
Vice President, Corporate Communications
Ed.Mayer@aecom.com
