Latest thinking


Delivering programme excellence

Programme management is most commonly the process of managing a number of interrelated projects to deliver new or enhanced infrastructure, such as a new metro system, an airport, a mine, a power station or even the Olympic Games.

Markets: Government
Expertise: Programme and project delivery

Sugarcane biomass offers hope for embattled Nkomazi farmers

Sugarcane biomass offers hope for embattled Nkomazi farmers

Jean Bouwer, Aurecon Project Manager says that the successful biomass to energy scheme hinges on two essential elements.

Markets: Energy, Renewable energy
Expertise: Renewable energy

Smart grids

Successful smart grids: A fusion of technical and social aspects

To help consumers understand the benefits of smart grids it is essential to integrate energy engineering expertise with a community engagement strategy.

Markets: Energy
Expertise: Power transmission and distribution

High flying approach to line of site analysis cuts telecoms infrastructure costs

Mobile base station

Wayne Sander, Technical Director, Environment & Advisory at Aurecon, discusses an approach to the delivery of telecommunications infrastructure that can reduce costs by 60 per cent.

Markets: Data & telecommunications, Mobile and wireless
Expertise: Information and communications technology, Land infrastructure, Programme and project delivery

Lowering carbon emissions with gas turbine power generation

P40 Gas Turbine Plant, New Zealand

Australia is steadily moving towards a lower carbon economy driven by social and corporate response to climate change and the reorientation of the legislative environment.

Markets: Energy
Expertise: Power generation

Rail boom: how to maximise supply chain efficiency

Aurizon coal train

Rail is becoming bigger, longer, faster and more costly as complex mining provinces are developed in remote locations. Mike Foley spoke to Aurecon’s Ken Devencorn who said supply chain integration and automation are key to facilitating development.

Markets: Resources , Transport
Expertise: Rail, Transport systems and logistics

Building for collaboration

Staircase at the Aurecon Centre, Melbourne

Engineers Australia interviews Aurecon’s Peter Mathieson and Peter Greaves on a holistic approach to collaboration which was a focus in the design of our new Aurecon Centre in Melbourne.

Markets: Property
Expertise: Building sciences, Building services, Building structures

The Bayhead Road upgrade – an exceptional example of safety achievement ‘against all odds’

A thumbnail of the Bayhead Road upgrade

Bayhead Road is one of the highest volume heavy vehicle traffic routes in the world. Against all odds, the project team managed to achieve an incredible Zero Lost Time Injuries (LTIs) on completion of the project, and over 1 000 000 Lost Time-free man-hours.

Markets: Transport
Expertise: Roads

Ensuring the sustainable use of water resources to satisfy multi-lateral needs

Joint Maputo River Basin Water Resources Study, Mozambique

Andrew Tanner, Aurecon’s Specialist Consultant for Water Resources Management, discusses how developing Integrated Water and Resource Management (IWRM) strategies and plans are important building blocks towards achieving both national and multi-lateral objectives.

Markets: Water
Expertise: Water resources management

Safety drives design of mine roads

Road safety

Richard Jois of Aurecon discusses maximising road safety on mine sites.

Markets: Resources , Transport
Expertise: Roads, Mining infrastructure

A critical analysis of the coastal management act

Cape Town, South Africa

With the promulgation and enactment of the National Environmental Management: Integrated Coastal Management Act, a paradigm shift in coastal management has occurred in South Africa.

Markets: Water, Government
Expertise: Ports and coastal, Environmental and community planning

Keeping supplies flowing to meet growing demand in the oil and gas industry

Oil and gas

Aurecon’s Ruben Nielsen navigates the complexities of successful marine supply base development.

Markets: Energy, Oil and gas, Resources , Freight, logistics and infrastructure, Transport
Expertise: Ports and coastal, Bulk material facilities

Hands-on approach drives operational cost efficiencies for train positioner replacement

East Intercourse Island train positioner replacement project

A hands-on collaborative approach to D&C equipment supply drove the best end result for reliability, operability, maintainability and safety.

Markets: Resources , Transport, Freight, logistics and infrastructure
Expertise: Transport systems and logistics, Rail, Bulk material facilities

Is Smart Metering smart enough for Africa?

Smart metering

Kobus van den Berg, an Electrical Engineer at Aurecon, discusses the importantance of understanding the additional functionality of a Smart Metering system and if it meets the specific requirements of Africa.

Markets: Energy, Transmission and distribution
Expertise: Power transmission and distribution

Securing a reliable water source for Paarl’s increasing demands

Meulwater Water Treatment Works, South Africa

Brendon Theunissen, Project Manager at Aurecon, discusses how a novel treatment process has provided significant cost savings for Meulwater Water Treatment Works.

Markets: Water
Expertise: Water and waste water treatment, Bulk water and dams

Protecting vulnerable communities: building bushfire resilience

Gerry Quinn, an expert in programme delivery at Aurecon, presents a case study on a project to identify mitigation measures that could be implemented to reduce risk from bushfires at schools in bushfire prone areas.

Markets: Construction
Expertise: Building sciences, Environmental and community planning

Optimising your bulk minerals export chain

Aurecon's John Leech provides an introduction to some of the typical interactions that exist between the components of a mine to ship bulk export chain. The discussion focuses on the characteristics of two key operating modes along with the relative benefits and the situations where these different modes are best applied.

Markets: Resources
Expertise: Ports and coastal, Rail

The forgotten elements of sustainable lighting design

Sustainable lighting design is more than achieving a watts per metre square target. It should consider the entire lighting system - from the materials used to the location of the manufacturers and the ongoing maintenance.

Markets: Property, Commercial office buildings
Expertise: Building services, Building sciences

The transition towards a sustainable Public Private Partnership regime

The transition towards a sustainable Public Private Partnership regime

Governments across the world are increasingly embracing the use of Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) to deliver infrastructure services.

Markets: Government

Wind farm developments: Getting energy prediction right

Collgar Wind Farm, Australia

Blair Walter, Renewable Energy Leader for Aurecon spoke with Australia’s Energy Generation magazine about wind farm developments and getting energy prediction right.

Markets: Energy, Renewable energy
Expertise: Renewable energy

Grappling with risk complexity: an insight into multi-scalar and multi-dimensional risk scenarios

Grappling with risk complexity

In this article, Simon van Wyk and Carin Joyce discuss the multi-scalar and multi-dimensional nature (complexity) of risks, with a special focus on the interconnectedness of operational and disaster risk, with Civil Engineering magazine.

Markets: Government
Expertise: Environmental and community planning

The way forward on waste management

A picture of refuse bags

Nick Mannie – Technical Director, Waste – relates how the Merafong City Local Municipality took bold steps towards ensuring sustainable waste management solutions, and shares lessons that can be learnt from their actions.

Markets: Government
Expertise: Environmental and community planning

Mining infrastructure: from pit to port

Dalrymple Bay Coal Terminal, Australia

Andrew Keith, Aurecon’s Mining Infrastructure Leader spoke with Australian Mining on the economics of pit to port transportation alternatives.

Markets: Resources , Transport
Expertise: Mining infrastructure, Transport systems and logistics

The vital community element in sustainable projects

The vital community element in sustainable projects

Increasingly, the emphasis on the sustainability of major projects has moved to engaging communities in order to catalyse self-sustaining growth and break the cycle of poverty. We asked Amelia Visagie, Training Projects Coordinator at Aurecon, to give her views on this trend and explain what it entails.

Expertise: Environmental and community planning

Consultants provide fresh perspective on transshipment

Transshipment

Before mining companies embark on detailed discussions with transshipment operators, consultants can provide some useful guidance and information. Andrew Keith and Paulo Cardoso de Campos of Aurecon spoke with AJM's Mike Foley.

Markets: Resources , Transport
Expertise: Mining infrastructure

Setting a new benchmark in lactose manufacturing

The evaporator in Fonterra's Hautapu Dairy Factory

Paul Stephenson, Manufacturing Leader at Aurecon discusses how a novel evaporation system design has set a new benchmark in lactose manufacturing.

Markets: Manufacturing
Expertise: Manufacturing

The role that EIAs are presently playing and can potentially play in promoting sustainability in South Africa

The role of EIA in achieving SD

This paper delves into several sustainability theories with the aim of ensuring a sound understanding of the concept of ‘sustainability’ and ‘sustainable development’ which then poses the question as to what role EIAs have in promoting sustainability in South Africa.

Expertise: Environmental and community planning

Creating solar and natural gas synergies

Dr Amir Tadros, Aurecon Senior Mechanical Engineer Energy Services spoke with Australia’s Gas Today magazine about creating solar and natural gas synergies.

Markets: Energy
Expertise: Renewable energy

Corporate social investment in South Africa: when working together, solutions are possible

A pic of an Aurecon CSI initiative

“As corporates and as individuals, we vastly underestimate the power we have to transform our communities . . . ” - Ronnie Khoza on Corporate Social Investment in South Africa

Markets: International development assistance

A performance-based approach to allow design flexibility and improve stadia fire safety

Perth Arena

An interview with Stephen Logan, Aurecon Technical Director Buildings on performance-based approach to allow design flexibility and improve stadia fire safety.

Markets: Property
Expertise: Building services

Embracing urban sustainability

Community garden

Developing a systems thinking approach to sustainable cities.

Markets: Energy, Renewable energy, Water
Expertise: Building sciences

Mobility in urban environments

Biking in the city

Finding an optimal balance between community needs and economic benefits of the urban expressway.

Markets: Transport, Urban transport
Expertise: Environmental and community planning, Transport systems and logistics

Innovations in heavy haul operations

Full ore wagons being unloaded through tippler rail

Rail Express talks to Ken Devencorn, Aurecon’s Technical Director, Resources & Manufacturing Services about efficient planning and development of remote heavy-haul rail operations.

Markets: Transport, Resources
Expertise: Mining infrastructure, Rail

A new era of crucial focus on achieving increased sustainability

A new era of crucial focus on achieving increased sustainability

In this article, Jeff Robinson highlights a few of the emerging trends he believes have the potential to driver greener ways of going about our everyday lives.

Markets: Property, Transport, Energy, Water
Expertise: Building sciences, Transport systems and logistics, Rail

Comparing institutional forms for urban water supply

More than one billion people in the world today lack access to safe drinking water. The United Nations Millennium Development Goals’ initiative aims to cut this figure in half by 2015.

Markets: Water
Expertise: Water resources management, Water and waste water treatment

Sustainable solutions to South Africa's waste challenges

Dump site

Nick Mannie – Technical Director, Waste – was recently interviewed about finding sustainable solutions to South Africa’s waste challenges.

Markets: Government
Expertise: Environmental and community planning

Creating more compact bus terminals and interchanges

Christchurch Bus Exchange, New Zealand

Brian Smith, Aurecon’s Technical Leader, Transport, explains how more compact bus facilities can better fit within constrained city centre locations and make for improved integration of transport and land use.

Markets: Transport, Urban transport
Expertise: Transport systems and logistics, Environmental and community planning

Tunnelling - delivering modern solutions with proven approaches

Tunnel excavation by roadheader on the Eastlink Project

Tunnels play a critical role in the ongoing delivery and maintenance of the infrastructure required in an urbanising world.

Markets: Transport, Water
Expertise: Ground engineering

Silo technology - Of cones and codes

Silo

Over the past decade, a number of inverted cone silos have suffered well-publicised failures. In this article Hugh McKay, Aurecon's bulk handling storage facilities expert, looks at what steps can be taken to stop this occuring in the future.

Markets: Manufacturing, Resources
Expertise: Bulk material facilities, Asset management