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DECEMBER/JANUARY 2012

HELSINKI IFME CONFERENCE

& STUDY TOUR

THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE INSTITUTE OF PUBLIC WORKS ENGINEERING AUSTRALIA

BRIDGES ROAD CONSTRUCTION

& MAINTENANCEWASTEWATER &

SEWAGE TREATMENT

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IPWEA NATIONAL BOARDPresident: Paul Di Iulio (SA) Past President: John Truman (NSW) Immediate Past President: David Harris (WA) Directors: Michael Kahler (Qld), Greg Moran (NSW), Paul Di Iulio (SA), Mark Varmalis (Vic), Ross Goyne (Vic), Brian Edwards (Tas), David Wiskar (Qld), Martyn Glover (WA)

National CEO: Chris Champion ph (02) 9639 3650, fax (02) 9283 5255 email cchampion@ipwea.org.au

New South Wales: Mark Turner ph (02) 9267 6677, fax (02) 9283 5255

Queensland: Suzanna Barnes-Gillard ph (07) 3000 2200, fax (07) 3257 2392

Western Australia: John Ambrose ph (08) 9427 0870, fax (08) 9427 0871

South Australia: Jane Gascoigne ph (08) 8100 9975, fax (08) 8232 5455 email sa@ipwea.org.au

Tasmania: Gary Neil

ph 0428 535 416

Victoria: Anne Gibbs ph (03) 9005 0860, 0417 376 930 email agibbs@ipwea.org.au

www.ipwea.org.au

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■ SPECIAL FEATURES

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CANBERRA CONFERENCE FEATURE BEST PAPERS AWARD 7

Training Works Officers paper 9

Asset Management — Theory & Practice Paper 12

IPWEAQ Excellence Awards 17

Aus-Spec News 20

National Overseas Study Tour 31

IPWEA role in Local Government workforce strategy 32

Sharp fall forecast in road construction 38

Road Construction & Maintenance 42

Bridges 52

Waste Water & Sewage Technology 54

President’s Report 2

Coming Events 4

CEO’s Report 5

News 22

Training Calendar 65

State Action 66

Advertisers’ Index 80

THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE INSTITUTE OF PUBLIC WORKS ENGINEERING AUSTRALIA

DECEMBER/JANUARY 2012

IPWEA NATIONAL

Now that I have had a couple of months to settle into the role as National President, I am looking forward to challenges and opportunities facing IPWEA.

At the recent AGM, the constitution was altered to provide two Directors from each State Division irrespective of the numbers of members they have. I think this is a great step forward and I would like to thank the membership for supporting this change in our governance structure. I am sure that this change will help us in delivering our vision, namely:

‘IPWEA is recognised nationally and internationally as the leading professional association that effectively informs, connects, represents and leads public works professionals for Australia.’

The IPWEA Vision aligns very closely, or should I say complements, my personal vision to ensure that around the country we work collaboratively together to achieve amazing things. There is no doubt that with National and the State Divisons working in unison we can achieve our vision and definitely be the leading professional association in public works.

Governance ReviewAt the last National Board meeting, we had the privilege of being joined by Ross Butler, a renowned governance expert in Australia and New Zealand. One of the most crucial tasks Ross performed was to facilitate a review of the National Board’s performance. Although there are always areas for improvement it is very pleasing to note that over the past 12 months there has been a significant

improvement in our corporate governance practices and systems. This significant improvement will ensure the long term success and viability of IPWEA as the annual reviews focuses on:1. Role, performance and effectiveness of

management and the Board;2. Duties and responsibilities as Directors;3. Identification and management of risk; and4. Strategic and financial planning.

I am sure that we will remain focussed on our mission which in general terms is “to enhance the quality of life of our communities through public works and services”.

In addition over the past two Board meetings, National has adopted a Board Charter, Work Plan and a Code of Ethics to ensure we act competently and with integrity, show leadership and promote sustainability.

ValuesAlthough you would all have been exposed to the values within your own organisation, I would like to highlight the values that the National Board has agreed to. We have adopted six core values, namely:

Respect, Integrity, Passion, Excellence, Recognition, Ownership.

I know these are only words; however, the challenge to all of us is to ensure that we live our values. Successful organisations not only agree on values, but live them every day. I am very committed to ensuring that IPWEA lives these values. I think that if we are all committed to operating within these six values that we will have no trouble in achieving all our goals.

LIVING OUR VALUES AND IPWEA IPWEA PRESIDENT, PAUL DI IULIO

THE IPWEA’S NEW PRESIDENT SHARES SOME OF HIS THOUGHTS ON THE PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE OF THE ASSOCIATION.

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I think the tribute to the late Keith Wood at the Canberra Conference optimises the values of IPWEA.

I would go so far as to say that all IPWEA’s values were on display; however, there is no doubt that the tribute recognised the unbelievable contributions that Keith made to the IPWEA and the passion he had to assist others around him achieve the things they have over many, many years.

In my mind, Keith Wood epitomises everything IPWEA stands for and the values we have adopted could easily be attributed to the way Keith led his life.

International Study ToursYou may have already received information regarding the 2012 Study Tour to Helsinki; however, I couldn’t resist reminding you and asking you to seriously consider attending. Next year’s tour will be led by Ross Moody and I am sure that the experience will be one that you will never forget. The tour has been planned to coincide with the International Federation of Municipal Engineering (IFME) World Congress and includes a visit to Helsinki City Council, Vantaa City Council and Espoo City Council prior to the congress, and then concludes with a Technical Tour in Stockholm.

ContactIf you would like to discuss any ideas you have or how we can make IPWEA even better, I invite you to contact me either by phone (0418 856 085) or email pdiiulio@campbelltown.sa.gov.au at your convenience.

Festive SeasonAs this will be my last article prior to Christmas, I would like to wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a very happy and prosperous 2012.

IPWEA NATIONAL

COMING EVENTSEvent Date Location ContactIPWEA EVENTS

IPWEA (WA) Division State Conference 14–16 March 2012 Esplanade Hotel Fremantle manager@ipwea.asn.au

IPWEA (NSW) Division State Conference 7–9 May 2012 Novotel Coffs Harbour michelle@ipwea.org.au

OTHER EVENTS

17th Triennial IFME World Congress on Municipal Engineering 4–8 June 2012 Helsinki, Finland www.ifme.info

2012 APWA International Public Works Congress & Exhibition 26–29 August 2012 Anaheim Convention Centre, California www.apwa.net

DECEMBER/JANUARY 2012 | PWE 5

The Board has reinforced our vision is “to be recognised nationally and internationally as the leading professional association that informs, connects, represents and leads public works professionals for Australia”. It is worth outlining some of our work in the international space where IPWEA is kicking some good goals.

International Infrastructure ManagementThe first edition of the International Infrastructure Management Manual (IIMM) was published in 2000 jointly with our New Zealand colleagues INGENIUM. This has been the launch pad for IPWEA internationally in asset management. The 2011 4th edition was recently published and the IIMM is widely adopted as the international reference book and framework of infrastructure asset management.

IPWEA is playing a significant role in the development and moulding of the draft ISO Standard for Asset Management to ensure it accommodates work in this field for municipal and public infrastructure.

Peter Way is Chair of IPWEA’s NAMS.AU Committee and has been a lead contributor to this work. Peter Way is representing IPWEA on the Australian Mirror Committee and was part of a seven-member delegation from Australia to the recent Washington DC Meeting in the USA.

A Global Network of Asset Management Societies (gNAMS) is a recent initiative of the International Federation of Municipal Engineering (IFME). I have been appointed to convene this group under the umbrella of IFME. The group will have a focus on municipal and public physical infrastructure assets. This will be an opportunity to further enhance and exchange ideas, experience and resources in infrastructure asset management.

Initial countries that will play an active part are Australia, New Zealand, Canada, USA and South Africa.

IPWEA’s NAMS.PLUS Workshops have now been piloted in British Columbia and Saskatchewan, Canada with eight small communities. Our presenters are delivering a second round of workshops in Regina SK at this time. I recently participated as the Invited Keynote Speaker at the Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association (SUMA) Conference on Asset Management held in Saskatoon where case studies were also presented on the success of the first round of NAMS.PLUS workshops in Canada. The Mayor of one community titled his presentation “Sceptic Converted” giving a glowing testimonial to the benefits and impacts of IPWEA’s NAMS.PLUS approach.

Overeas contacts are a benefit of IPWEA’s international work. Jamie Maslen of the NSW State Library enquired about contacts in the United Kingdom and I was able to assist in his placement working with AMEY, a large consulting company specialising in municipal and asset management work. Jamie received an Endeavour Award Scholarship to undertake work with AMEY. Many of the international contacts that I have made are also able to help us when planning our international study tour visits.

RedR is Registered Engineers for Disaster Relief. IPWEA is a founding member organisation and is represented on the RedR Board by IPWEA member David Swan. It is regularly noted that engineers and other technical staff from local government are the most sought after professionals to assist in the work of RedR due to their hands-on practical approaches. See www.redr.org.au to find out how you can join the standby register and assist.

IPWEA NATIONAL

IPWEA KICKING GOALS INTERNATIONALLYIPWEA CEO, CHRIS CHAMPION

THE NATIONAL BOARD HAS RECENTLY SPENT SOME TIME REVISITING OUR CORE PRINCIPLES, VALUES, PURPOSE AND GOVERNANCE ARRANGEMENTS. THIS REFLECTS THE DEVELOPING MATURITY OF OUR ORGANISATION.

6 PWE | DECEMBER/JANUARY 2012

IPWEA and its members have undertaken international study tours for many years. There is an annual national study tour to align with the APWA Public Works Congress each year. In 2012 however the study tour is centred on the IFME Triennial Congress on Municipal Engineering in Helsinki. See www.ipwea.org.au/2012studytour for opportunities to participate in the 2012 tour through the valuable support of the State Foundations.

Every two years, the IPWEA Asset Management Tour to New Zealand is organised and will again be held in 2012. Last year, some 27 participants were richly rewarded from their involvement in this unique tour of best practice in asset management. The tour will align with the INGENIUM Advanced Asset Management Form being held in November 2012.

AssetMates is our discussion forum on asset management and has many international participants that provide a platform for international exchange. This very active forum will soon become the basis for transition to our new Communities of Practice in Asset Management (www.ipwea.org.au/AM).

It is interesting and a learning experience to participate or even just ‘watch’ the discussion. One recent helpful reply came through on AssetMates from a program manager of a large research organisation based in the USA who is an international participant in our forum.

IPWEA’s International Partnerships are very much valued where we have long established relationships with other international associations and organisations with similar goals. These partnerships include INGENIUM, APWA and IFME and provide an opportunity for exchange of international practice, skills and experience.

If you would like information on any aspect of IPWEA’s international programs, please contact me at cchampion@ipwea.org.au.

IPWEA NATIONAL

IPWEA Presenters John Howard & Allen Mapstone with NAMS.PLUS Workshop participants, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada

IPWEA DELIVERS FLEET TRAINING TO HONG KONG POLICE

In early November, IPWEA delivered a two day fleet management best practice training program for the Hong Kong Police Force.

The training program was based on the highly successful IPWEA Fleet Management Certificate with modifications to suit the role of the fleet manager in the Hong Kong Police.

The Hong Kong Police Force has a diverse vehicle fleet of approximately 2,500 vehicles ranging from small (250 cc) motorcycles to heavy goods vehicles, including armoured personnel carriers.

Fleet management is responsible for all vehicle procurement, starting with preparation of technical specifications and ending with tender evaluation. Subsequent maintenance is subject to an exclusive Service Level Agreement (SLA) with a single service provider.

While the management team had previously received no formal training in fleet management, they all have a strong frontline operational background which provides them with an understanding of end user expectations and requirements.

By all reports the program was a great success and IPWEA has been invited to submit a proposal for further training in 2012 this time over three days.

From left Hong Kong Police Force Motor Transport Superintendant Martin Cadman, IPWEA National Executive Officer Ross Moody, Uniqco Managing Director Grant Andrews and Police Inspector David Donnelly at the training session at the Hong Kong Police Academy.

Our Premier Event

Best Paper Awards

AWARD WINNERSEJ (Ted) Hooper MedalRussell Burke, Eurobodalla Shire

NAMie AwardMick Raby, Fairfield City Council (NSW)

CANBERRACONFERENCE

8 PWE | DECEMBER/JANUARY 2012

CANBERRA CONFERENCE Best Paper Awards

EJ (TED) HOOPER MEDAL

NAMIE AWARD

Russell Burke from Eurobodalla Shire was awarded the

E.J. (Ted) Hooper medal to recognise the best paper presented at

the Canberra Conference.

The paper titled Training Works Officers — Fortune Favours the Bold

looked at how Eurobodalla Shire Council went about training 18 of its

Works Officers in Certificate IV in Civil Construction Supervision.

For many councils in NSW, finding works officers who have the

skills, knowledge and attitude suitable for providing the wide range of

services required by the community is often a daunting task. Where

are these works officers and how do you get them to work for Council?

Well, your problems are over; invest in developing your own staff and

reap the rewards. The training was provided by Riverina TAFE over

a two-year timeframe as part of a Federal Government funded pilot

e-learning training program with Eurobodalla Shire Council agreeing

to participate and test the training program. Taking on the training

program was a challenge given that Eurobodalla Shire Council was the

first council in Australia to be involved and that the works officers were

not accustomed to studying, but fortune favours the brave and the rest

is now history.

The best paper was one of the 132 papers presented at the

conference and was judged on factors including; relevance to the

conference theme, national applicability, originality, potential benefit to

public works engineering and the author’s presentation, ability to hold

audience’s attention and to stimulate and answer questions.

Judged from the papers presented in the asset management streams,

the winning paper was presented by Mick Raby from Fairfield City

Council (NSW) for his presentation A Works Guy’s Thoughts on Asset

Management Theory. The National Asset Management Award (the

NAMie) was presented to the paper that best demonstrated the most

significant contribution towards advancing AM within an organisation —

where it additionally has scope to also be applied in other organisations.

As with the EJ Hooper Medal, judging was on content and presentation.

The paper describes FCC’s efforts to bring the works teams

into the fold regarding asset management and discusses the early

results which include: maintenance cost reductions; a move to highly

sustainable recycled materials; an evolving zone-based team theory;

water sensitive urban design lessons; increases in productivity;

and challenges to historic assumptions regarding construction and

maintenance materials and methodologies.

In common with much of the local government sector, Fairfield

City Council (FCC) is well along the pathway to a comprehensive

Asset Management (AM) System. The theory of Advanced AM is

complex, and the processes which support it require considerable

change across functional areas. The challenges presented by AM

impact not only on the planning disciplines, but also on the work

site. Assuming the right asset is already in the right place, a primary

driver of AM becomes the struggle to ensure that best value whole-

of-life cost principles are applied to the processes which surround

maintenance and rehabilitation decisions. Many of the inputs to

such processes can be enhanced by ensuring a robust engagement

with the guy on the end of the shovel. FCC has searched for the

mechanisms of such a “ground-up engagement” to connect works

staff with the asset rehabilitation and maintenance decision-making

processes. This activity has highlighted two areas of potential value:

information and intelligence is potentially available from works

teams who are, by the nature of their work, constantly engaged with

communities on what communities are actually seeking from council;

and secondly works teams are in a prime position to challenge

many of the rehabilitation/renewal methodologies and materials

assumptions upon which the planning echelon’s decisions are based.

Russell Burke (left) receiving the EJ

Hooper Medal for the best paper from

IPWEA(NSW) President Greg Moran

IPWEA NAMS.UA Committee Chair Peter Way

(right) presenting Mick Raby with the NAMie

Award at the Komatsu Grand Gala Dinner

DECEMBER/JANUARY 2012 | PWE 9

Abstract For many councils in NSW finding Works Officers that have the skills,

knowledge and attitude suitable for providing the wide range of

services required by the community is often a daunting task. Where are

these Works Officers and how do you get them to work for Council!

Well, your problems are over, invest in developing your own staff and

reap the rewards.

This paper presents an overview of how Eurobodalla Shire Council

went about training 18 of its Works Officers in Certificate IV in Civil

Construction Supervision. The training was provided by Riverina TAFE

over a 2 year timeframe as part of a Federal Government funded pilot

e-learning training program with Eurobodalla Shire Council agreeing to

participate and test the training program.

Taking on the training program was a challenge given that

Eurobodalla Shire Council was the first Council in Australia to be

involved and that the Works Officers were not accustomed to studying,

but fortune favours the bold and the rest is now history.

IntroductionEurobodalla Shire Council is located on the far south coast of NSW

and covers approximately 110 kilometres of coastline stretching from

Batemans Bay in the North to Narooma in the South of the Shire.

The Shire has a population of approximately 37,000 people which

peaks up to 150,000 in the summer season. Council delivers a wide

range of engineering services which includes water and sewer, waste

management, roads and drainage, bridges, wharves, jetties, boat ramps,

footpaths and cycle-ways, airport and parks and gardens.

To support these range of services, Council employs approximately

200 engineering related staff with approximately 110 staff involved in

the construction and maintenance of Council assets.

In 2003 Council set about training all operational staff at every age

and every stage, ranging from labourers to Supervisors in Certificate III

Local Government Operations. This training was implemented by NSW

TAFE based at the Bega Campus and involved a small component

of classroom training. Operational staff members were deemed as

competent if they could meet the course subject criteria based on their

practical experience, which was assessed and tested in the workplace

by TAFE workplace assessors. The purpose of this training was to

provide a career path for existing and future staff, but did not assist in

the development of supervisory skills.

TRAINING WORKS OFFICERSFORTUNE FAVOURS THE BOLD

THE FOLLOWING PAGES

FEATURE THE PAPERS

WHICH WON THE EJ (TED)

HOOPER MEDAL AND

THE NAMIE AWARD AT

THE IPWEA CANBERRA

CONFERENCE.RUSSELL BURKE, DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION MANAGER, EUROBODALLA SHIRE COUNCIL, NSW, AUSTRALIA

Once all operational staff was trained in Certificate III, Council set

about finding a Registered Training Organisation to provide Supervisory

training at Certificate IV level. This task was found to be much more

difficult than expected as there was no training provider in Australia

with a training course on offer at Certificate IV level or higher suitable

for training local government supervisors.

In 2008, this all changed with a chance meeting with a Head Teacher

from Riverina TAFE at Albury. Riverina TAFE had been successful in

receiving a Federal Government Grant to write and provide training via

e-learning delivery for Certificate IV in Civil Construction Supervision.

The Head Teacher at Riverina TAFE was looking for a group of

students to trial the new course, and Council was looking for a course

to train our Construction and Maintenance supervisors and Coordinators

in supervisory level training.

A relationship was formed with Riverina TAFE in 2008 to provide

the supervisory training Council needed and Council in return would

assist in “ground-truthing” the training and provide feedback for

improvements. The unique way Council went about supporting this

pilot training program and the benefits achieved from the training are

outlined in this paper.

What we didThe major deterrents to training Local Government Works Officers was

the quality, cost and availability of training. These issues were leading to

skills shortage in supervisory roles and were preventing Council’s from

up skilling and retaining existing supervisors.

How Eurobodalla Shire Council overcame these Construction

Industry short comings was to form a training relationship with Riverina

TAFE. This training relationship involved the choice of subjects (units of

competency) that suited Council’s needs and TAFE had course material

that was written, up to date and available for assessment. Subjects

were chosen which covered the areas of occupational health and safety,

risk management, environmental policies and procedures, leadership,

project planning, managing plant and resources, and road construction

and maintenance.

These subjects were also chosen with the intention of providing a

broad range of learning to each supervisor and a stepping stone to

higher level training such as Diploma, Advanced Diploma, Bachelor of

Technology or degree level.

Experience gained in training Council staff in previous courses

such as Project Management and Frontline Management showed

that without proper support, the failure rate of Works officers was

unacceptably high. This was overcome on day one with the decision

to provide a learning environment which focused on the needs of the

Works Officer, many of which were mature in age.

CANBERRA CONFERENCE Best Paper Awards

10 PWE | DECEMBER/JANUARY 2012

This support involved a range of measures

which were adapted and changed as the need

arose and consisted of the following;

• providetutorial/mentorsupporttostudents

using Council engineers

• provide4hourstutorialsupporteachweek

in Council time for duration of training

course (2 years)

• advicetostudentsonhowtolearnand

where to find information

• providealargeandcomfortable

training room

• providealaptopcomputertoeachstudent

which the student could take home

• providepens,paper,flashdrives,textbooks

• providethebestmorningteamoneycould

buy — we ended up eating our way through

approximately 300 packets of biscuits,

mostly chocolate

• Provideguestspeakerstoattendtraining

sessions to speak on specific topics and

make training more interesting. This

included a local Work cover inspector,

Council General Manager, Directors, NSW

Fisheries, Batemans Bay Marine Park

Authority, Geotechnical Officer, Plant

Manager, HR personnel.

• Allowstudentstohavefrequent

breaks and have some control over the

learning environment

• Trainingwascontextualised(maderelevant)

to Council projects and operating systems.

Students could walk away from the training

with something they could apply on their

job right away

• FieldtripstoCouncilprojectsandlocal

contractors such a Downer EDI to check,

test and discuss information required

for assignments

• Subjectinformationandassignments

provided by TAFE were proof-read by

Council engineers prior to issue to students.

This resulted in changes to make training

course notes and material more practical

and suit local conditions, operating systems

and standards.

• Studentscurrentandfutureprojectswere

used as assignments where possible, such

as drawing up erosion and sediment control

plans, developing a bar chart to assist in

project planning, determining plant and

materials requirements, developing an

inspection and test plan for pavement works

• Usedtrainingsessionsasaforumfor

discussion on current issues such as OHS,

environmental, quality, and productivity

issues affecting Council projects

• Usedtrainingsessionstoinviteother

Council operating staff such as in Parks and

Gardens, Water and sewer, workshop to

listen to guest speakers and discuss project

management issues

• OpportunityforCouncilExecutiveLevel

staff to attend training sessions to have

discussions and interact with supervisors

What this learning environment succeeded

in achieving was an excellent relationship and

transfer of knowledge between engineers and

works officers, and between works officers from

the more experienced to the less experienced.

The weekly tutorial sessions were positive

and proactive; the absentee rate by works

officers was low, with lively discussions taking

place centred on the supervisory skills required

to achieving Council’s Works program.

What we achievedAt the very outset of training, it was decided

to monitor and evaluate the progress of the

Works officers through the training course so

that benefits could be measured and changes

made when needed.

The initial assessment of Works Officers

skills was conducted by Riverina TAFE at

Moruya which involved determining levels of

literacy and numeracy skills and IT literacy

levels of each Works officer. It was obvious

that some Works officers had never turned on

a laptop computer before, where other Works

officers were used to using a computer and

sending emails.

To assist Works officers in getting used

to using computers, IT literacy training was

provided each week, commencing on very

basic tasks until confidence and competency

was reached. Some Works officers preferred

to write out assignments and never mastered

typing assignments and sending off

assignments by email, but this was OK as we

decided to cater to the lowest level so that all

Works Officers felt supported in their quest to

achieve their supervisory qualification.

The objective of this training course

was to utilise e-learning mechanisms for

delivering Certificate IV level Civil Construction

qualifications in a work based and flexible

learning environment.

This e-learning training model proposed

by TAFE required Works Officers to contact

their teacher via email and through this

mechanism have questions answered and send

in assignments. This clearly did not work for all

Works Officers as they were mostly IT illiterate

and did not have access to email, except at

Council’s works depot. It was decided that

Works Officers that did have IT skills could

type up assignments and send to TAFE by

email, and those that couldn’t yet master the

computer could write out their assignments

and Council’s Engineer Tutors would arrange

for sending assignments to TAFE by email on

their behalf.

Council also took advantage of learning

by Teleconference which involved Works

officers and tutors attending a Teleconference

classroom at Moruya TAFE to receive a lecture

broadcast from Riverina TAFE at Albury. This

form of teaching was very exciting to the

Works officers and allowed teaching to take

place without having to attend Albury TAFE.

Throughout the two year training program,

follow up performance monitoring took place,

with assessments made on improvements in

computing and learning skills.

At the end of the Certificate IV training

program, each Works officer was asked to rate

their understanding of the key competencies

of each subject before and after the training

provided in each subject.

This monitoring revealed an average of 30%

improvement in knowledge and skills gained

by Works Officers over the entire course. This

demonstrated a clear benefit to Council from the

training and supports Council bold investment in

this pilot e-learning training program.

The definition of success of this

training was fourfold being a benefit for the

Works Officer, a benefit for the Engineer

tutors, a benefit for Council and a benefit

for the community.

Each party needed a “buy in” to make it

worthwhile in investing time and money in

the training.

The Works Officer benefitted from improved

supervisory skills, knowledge and attitudes

which could lead to progression through the

Council ranks and the opportunity to earn a

higher income.

The benefit for the Engineer tutors was a

skills update, improvement in coaching and

management skills and benchmarking of

staff competencies. The benefit for Council

was a higher trained supervisory workforce

which could implement Council projects in

accordance with policies and systems which

achieved the required OHS, environmental,

quality cost and time outcomes. The

community benefit was an improvement in the

delivery of service s by a highly trained and

confident Council workforce committed to the

community’s diver se needs.

Where to from hereThe initial success of this training program

resulted in 15 supervisors completing their

training and graduating with an apprenticeship

andaCertificate4inCivilConstruction

DECEMBER/JANUARY 2012 | PWE 11

Supervision qualification in August 2010, and

the remaining 3 supervisors completing their

studies and graduating in December 2010.

This is a significant achievement as all

Works Officers who started the training

course in September 2008 completed

the training by December 2010, which

was 1 year ahead of the training schedule.

This however is not the end; it is just the

beginning as this achievement has generated

significant interest at Council, with 12

more construction and maintenance staff

commencing studies for Certificate IV in

Civil Construction Supervision in September

2010. These new Works Officers are Assistant

Works Supervisors and up and coming staff

members who show leadership potential.

Council’s first group of Certificate IV

graduates is now involved in tutoring the

new group of Assistant Works Supervisors.

This development will allow supervisors an

opportunity to pass on their knowledge and

experience to fellow Works Officers and at

the same time reinforce the learning already

undertaken by the Supervisors and improve

their coaching and management skills.

The training of Works Officers by fellow

Works Officers is a goal of this round of

training and is seen as a major achievement of

Council’s training program.

Council also recently commenced training

of Works Officers in the Diploma in Civil

Construction Management. This training has

been offered to Supervisors who have recently

completed their Certificate IV supervisory

training and supervisors from others sections

of Council.

This training course is offered by Riverina

TAFE with 13 Works Officers now enrolled

in the training which commenced in March

2011. This training will also be supported

by tutorials from Council engineers but in

a revised format. Tutorial sessions will be

providedfor4hoursevery4weeks,witha

greater reliance on Supervisors to study in

their own time.

It is proposed that the Diploma will focus

on a major project to be chosen by each

Works officer which is either in the Council

Management Plan or on the drawing boards

ready for commencement. The 5 core

Diploma subjects focus on risk management,

environmental management, OH&S

management, quality management and team

effectiveness. These subjects will be studied in

a cluster, relating in part to the major project

chosen. This allows for each Works Officer to

be working on a major project in detail which

Council will be getting an immediate benefit

from as well as Works officers using this as a

way of answering assignments and passing

the course competency requirements.

Councilhasrecentlyrecruited4civil

construction apprentices for a four year

period who will be trained in Certificate

III in Local Government Operations

and Certificate IV in Civil Construction

Supervision whilst gaining on the job

experience. These apprentices will then

be encouraged to progress these studies

further to either a Bachelor of Technology or

Universitydegree.

Council has also recently been recognised

at the NSW Institute of Public Works

Engineering Australia (IPWEA) Engineering

Excellence Awards with an Innovation Award

for e-learning course development and

delivery of Certificate IV and Diploma studies.

This award validates the training

model established with Riverina TAFE in

addressing the skills shortage in engineering

supervisory staff and promoting a

sustainable level of supervisory skills

at Council.

Council has also been successful in

attracting grant funding from the Drilling

Mining and Construction Skills Council

(Skills DMC) for 26 training places under

the Enterprise Based Productivity Places

Program and from Riverina TAFE under their

Board of Vocational Education and Training

(BVET) program. This grant funding will

cover a major proportion of all training costs

and is a further indicator that the training

programs provided suit current best practice

in the construction industry.

It is clear that the way forward for

Council is to develop today’s and tomorrow’s

supervisors on the job where they can

work on solving problems regarding civil

construction projects supported by training

programs aimed at learning by doing. The

development of supervisory skills in this

way will allow Works Officers to become

conscious of not only what they do but why

they do it.

ConclusionIn local government and in the Civil

Construction Industry in general, there is

emerging a shortage of skilled workers with

supervision and management skills. This is

because until recently the training offered

was either of low quality, high cost or was

unavailable.

This has meant that if you need a

supervisor at your Council, then you either

procured or poached this person from

somewhere else or you promoted a person

from within with skilled operator experience

but may have lacked supervisory skills.

The answer to this dilemma is to develop

the capacity of your own supervisory

workforce from within by adopting the

training model implemented by Eurobodalla

Shire Council in partnership with Riverina TAFE.

This training model will enable Works

Officers to complete a Certificate IV or Diploma

level qualification level through an e-learning/

work-based learning approach. The distance

education/e-learning component will provide

the theory, while the practical experience

component will be provided through learning

in the workplace, supported at a technical level

by Council managers and engineers.

ReferencesDMC National Industry Skills Council

(March 2010) “Civil Construction Occupation

Review Report”

Author Biography Russell Burke is the

Design and Construction

Manager, Eurobodalla

Shire Council. Worked

at Eurobodala Shire

Council (twice).

He has worked at

Gosford City Council, Kogarah Municipal

Council, Burwood Municipal Council, Ryde City

Council and Ku-ring-gai Municipal Council.

He has also worked as a Consult ant for

Aus AID in developing Countries such as

Samoa, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands

and Cambodia. Member of the IPWE A Bridge

Working Party

His main professional interests are

in Bridges, training and development,

international development. Lives in Narooma,

married with 2 children and enjoy surfing

and swimming.

Contact Details: Eurobodalla Shire

Council, PO Box 99 Moruya N SW 2537:

(P)0244741208(M)0429460503

(F)0244741042

(e) russell.burke@eurocoast.nsw .gov.au