Gamuda Rise NewsletterGamuda Rise NewsletterCopyright © 2021 Freepik.com
Burson Cohn & Wolfe (BCW)
From the beginning, Gamuda’s plan in Australia has been to blend the best local talent with the Group’s international subject matter experts. This provides a combination of global experience, fresh thinking, and local knowledge to the team.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020, the team members based in Australia and internationally took remote working in their stride. Using video technology to connect made working across borders much easier.
The Australian team now has more than 50 members based in Sydney and is growing rapidly. We’ve hired experienced local team members who’ve worked on some of the biggest projects this country has seen, like Operations Manager Richard Petaccia, who worked on Sydney’s ANZAC Bridge and M5 East tunnel motorway, Melbourne’s Bolte Bridge and London’s Wembley Stadium.
Another senior team member, Simon Hussey, is a Project Director who has extensive experience working on the Sydney Light Rail. This local talent is complemented by several Malaysian experts, like Geotechnical Director Dr Ooi Lean Hock and Project Manager Kenny Lim, who have current, expert knowledge of subject areas like tunnelling and rail.
All our senior team members in Australia work closely with their fellow Gamudians in Kuala Lumpur, such as Gus Klados and Ng Hau Wei. Gus is one of the leading global tunnel builders with nearly 50 years’ experience in the industry. Hau Wei is our Deputy Project Director who has worked with Gamuda for the last 19 years and led the pioneering team that developed the first Autonomous Tunnel Boring Machine (A-TBM). Gus was also a crucial member of this team, providing the inspiration for the development of this system and its capabilities and advising and supporting the younger engineers as they delivered this revolutionary innovation. Both will play a key role in Gamuda executing the same level of world-class innovation in Australia as it has done overseas.
On the topic of working collaboratively to submit tenders throughout the pandemic, Operations Manager, Richard Petaccia, said, “COVID-19 has presented all of us with new challenges, but it has also shown us how effectively we can work together, even when we are physically apart.”
Project Director, Simon Hussey, echoes these thoughts. He said, “Remote working during the pandemic meant we each had to adjust to new ways of working. Communicating via digital tools became the norm for all of us and proved that the physical distance between our colleagues in KL and us means nothing.”
Gamuda’s subject matter experts who have been working closely with our Australian team, participating in market soundings and tender interactives.
In Australia, we have the best of highly experienced local talents with a blend of culturally diverse people.
This sentiment was also apparent in KL, where Gus said, “Naturally, due to the distance, we were already communicating virtually with the Australian team, but everyone is now more accustomed to this new way of working.”
Hau Wei commented, “The whole team has embraced the challenge of submitting tenders throughout the pandemic. We have all been flexible, worked hard and leant on each other’s knowledge and expertise to deliver high quality outputs.”
The pipeline of future projects is significant and there have already been some early milestones for the business. In April 2020, we were shortlisted to tender for the AUD$2.6bn M6 Stage 1 motorway project as part of a joint venture with BMD Constructions.
In August 2020, a joint venture with fellow tier one contractor Laing O’Rourke was shortlisted to tender for the first stages of the AUD$20bn Sydney Metro West Project.
In March 2021, a joint venture between Gamuda Australia and John Holland was shortlisted to tender for the Station Box and Tunnelling package for the Sydney Metro – Western Sydney Airport project.
Gamuda Australia has also been working to build partnerships with local training academies. Creating jobs and providing training opportunities for local people is a fundamental aspect of our approach in Australia. Should our current tenders be successful, we will replicate our Tunnel Training Academy in Kuala Lumpur here in New South Wales, enabling us to upskill local workers for the benefit of the industry, communities, and country.
Follow the Gamuda Australia company page on LinkedIn for regular news updates from the business.
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