Bulk liquid
BERTHS 2
2008, the NSW Government granted approval for the development of a second bulk liquids berth (BLB2) due
to an increase in demand for bulk liquids and gases, imported and exported through the existing bulk liquids berth (BLB1) at Port Botany, 11 km south of the Sydney CBD.
BLB2 will ensure that New South Wales has adequate berth capacity to satisfy existing and forecast demands for the import and export of bulk liquids for the benefit of the NSW economy.
The A$56 million BLB2 steel-piled pier multi-user berth was constructed for the Sydney Ports Corporation, adjacent to the existing BLB1, at the south-western end of Brotherson Dock. BLB2 was designed to accommodate 120,000 dead weight tonne vessels.
Marine-based construction comprised 3km of piling (manufactured in Korea); a central working platform with berthing face (including bollards and fenders) and marine loading arm; adjacent berthing dolphin shells; walkways and working platform; and an access bridge to connect the working platform with the shore.
For terrestrial construction activities,
a range of civil amenities and related services were constructed and installed including a sophisticated PLC (Programmable Logic Control) system to control all lighting, electronics and hydraulics from a touch screen in the central control room and extensive fire services for emergency events.
SMEC provided contract management services (throughout the tender evaluation, construction and defects liability phases) and construction supervision in collaboration with John Holland as the main contractor to the final value of $1.6M. There were 108 variations in total, largely as a result of design discrepancies and a lack of clarity regarding contracted responsibilities all of which were successfully negotiated through effective communication with the Contractor.
Despite the construction phase coming in within budget, additional design support and reviews required more financial support allocation and would have reduced the amount of design issues encountered. Risk was limited due to good cooperation and effective management between stakeholders and contractors.
Luke Gladwish, SMEC’s contract & project manager, received excellent client feedback demonstrating superior skills in business performance including project management, client relations and delivery of additional services beyond the contract.
Construction of BLB2 is now complete after commencing in June 2011 despite operations starting later than planned and delays experienced from the fire and electrical system. Effective time management and having the correct technical representatives on site would make for efficient decision-making in the future and would have resolved issues more successfully.
SMEC received a
5 out of 5 for Understanding the brief, Client relations & Project Management.
SMEC staff apart from Luke who had integral roles in this project are: Patrick Mackay, Tara Matkovich, Andrew Celona and Kris Reed.
In
BLB2 opens its berth for service