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Alert – December 2011

Year that was

For many readers 2011 will mark a year of devastating natural disasters and unprecedented events. As Queensland nears the first anniversary of the January floods our focus turns to the enduring human spirit which saw people reaching out to help strangers in need, banning together for a common cause and an overwhelming sense of determination to prevail through difficult times.

Moving forward, the Queensland floods have signalled significant change in the engineering industry with the introduction of new industry standards and an opportunity to rebuild previously dated infrastructure with greater consideration for possible future occurrences.

Approaching 2012, RMA continue to broaden our scope of projects and remain an industry leader in structural, civil and hydraulic engineering fields.
Our portfolio continues to increase to include a strong project management component and it is anticipated that flood repair work will continue to be a significant inclusion in the upcoming year.

Significant projects

Bridge Design

RMA was engaged on behalf of Western Downs Regional Council (WDRC) to design a replacement bridge for the existing timber bridge in Patrick Street Dalby. Totalling a tendered contract of $1.65 million, RMA project managed the design, tender and construction phases on behalf of WDRC. The bridge consisted of 25.5 metres over two spans and featured 2×4.3m traffic lanes, 2×1.5m footpath both sides and was constructed of reinforced concrete. Civil engineering was also required to incorporate entry roads on approach either side.

Kestral Mine

RMA has been enlisted to provide Sommer and Staff with the structural, civil and hydraulic engineering designs for an extension to the Kestrel Mine. The building will be the main bathhouse for the mine, with associated mess halls, offices and facilities.

RMA has provided preliminary concept design, detailed design and documentation, tender documentation and construction documentation. The civil engineering scope of works includes site grading, stormwater drainage design and an Erosion and Sedimentation Control Plan.

RMA has also provided hydraulic design including sanitary drainage, water reticulation, stormwater, fire services and gas reticulation. As this is a Green Star Project, there are many environmental requirements that must be met to ensure the project receives a high Green Star rating.

Dalby office

The Dalby office is now officially open and its launch demonstrates the confidence that RMA has in the ever expanding Surat Basin region and the opportunities that this area presents.

Mr Jac Pijpers has been appointed to manage the Dalby team and brings with him a wealth of knowledge founded in both local government and private enterprise. Jac is an experienced projects coordinator and technical officer with a strong background in infrastructure projects.  He has acted on a number of projects within the region including coordinating major emergent flood recovery projects and managing key local community infrastructure projects on behalf of Council.

Welcome to the team

In response to our ever increasing workload, RMA has welcomed several new team members to the Toowoomba, Brisbane and Dalby offices.

Robert Mottin has joined the Toowoomba civil department as a Civil Technical Officer and brings over 23 years’ experience in civil engineering design, development and construction.  Continuing our commitment to training and development we have also welcomed Tom Blades and Hayden Payne to the Toowoomba team as Cadet Drafters.

The Brisbane civil team grows with the introduction of Matthew Turner as a Graduate Civil Engineer, Richard Morris as a Senior Civil Engineer and Brendon Usher as a Junior Civil Designer/Drafter. RMA also welcomes Bill Zhao to the structural department as a Senior Structural Engineer. Bill is a highly accomplished Structural Engineer having completed a PhD in the field of engineering and has directed a number of high profile projects and is a specialist in Post Tension design.
Matthew Turner, Richard Morris, Brendon Usher and Bill Zhao will all be a very welcome addition to the RMA Brisbane team and we look forward to sharing in their knowledge.

Finally Jac Pijpers, an experienced Technical Officer has been appointed to the role of Dalby Office Manager and will lead the Dalby team.

Men of Movember

The RMA team has once again joined together to raise funds and increase awareness of men’s health issues by supporting Movember. Glen Rowen, Daniel Krisanski, Mark Lobwein and Chris Howard bravely sported a mo, whilst Matt Turner took the daring step to create a mo by shaving his head and fashioning the remnants into a temporary mo. Matt’s efforts awarded him the coveted ‘Man of Movember’ sash.

Through sponsorships and a ‘Mo’ fundraising party RMA raised over $1000 and $12,600 as part of the Synergy network. Congratulations to all involved and thanks to the support of the generous sponsors.

To see photos of the efforts of the RMA Men of Movember log onto the RMA Facebook page.

Holiday Season

The Toowoomba, Brisbane and Dalby RMA offices will be closed from 23 December and will reopen on 3 January 2012. The Brisbane office will reopen on 9 January 2012.
Glen, Philip, Scott and Jason and the RMA team would like to thank our valued clients and fellow industry members for their support throughout the year and wish everyone a happy and safe Christmas.
We look forward to working together in 2012.

Alert – August 2011

RMA opens new office in the Surat Basin

RMA Engineers is pleased to announce that we are opening an office in Dalby to provide civil, structural and hydraulic engineering design services to support the rapid growth occurring in the region.

Having operated out of Toowoomba for over 20 years and Brisbane for the past eight, opening a Dalby office was the logical solution to address the growing demand in the Surat Basin region and the next step in the growth of the company.

Based on Local Government figures, the growth of the LNG and resources industry combined with the impact of the January flood event has seen a spike in the number of development applications in the region. This growth has put a strain on resources within the region.

“By opening a new RMA office in Dalby, we are clearly demonstrating our belief in the region and its future growth. We passionately believe in being face-to-face engineers and we are looking forward to being on the ground, assisting our Surat Basin clients,” said RMA CEO, Philip Meyer.

RMA will continue to provide civil, structural and hydraulic engineering design and coordination and civil contract administration to local government departments, local developers, builders and resource companies with interests in the region, but with a renewed focus on local employment.

The office will be managed by former Toowoomba Regional Council Project Coordinator, Jac Pijpers.

Jac has a strong background in infrastructure projects, having acted on a number of projects within the region including coordinating major emergent flood recovery projects and managing key local community infrastructure projects on behalf of Council.

Jac will be supported by over 38 engineers, project managers and support staff located across the Dalby, Toowoomba and Brisbane offices.

“We are delighted that our efforts to meet the needs of the Surat Basin locally are culminating successfully,” added Mr. Meyer.

“We look forward to many years of growth and local development.”

To find out more about our Dalby office, contact us on 07 4639 4100 or via email on info@rmaeng.com.au

Beat the Pack: Charlton Industrial Park

RMA has just completed the civil design for Charlton Industrial Park, an industrial subdivision that is currently for sale in the heart of one of the fastest growing resource and energy regions in Australia, the Surat Basin.

Charlton Industrial Park is on the Eastern side of the Surat Basin, a region which has an expected capital expenditure of over $140bn to be driven by sales and regional power generation.  Currently, the Surat Basin is the largest underutilised energy provinces in the world.

The Surat Basin Scoping Study undertaken by the CSIRO found that, “The Queensland government has identified mining and energy production as a priority sector within the Queensland economy… The Surat Basin will play an increasingly important role in this economic development path because of its large resources of open-cut thermal coal and coal seam gas. Production in the Surat Basin is thus intended to increase over the coming years with a focus on coal, coal seam gas and electricity production from coal.”

Located adjacent to the major intersection of the proposed Toowoomba bypass and the Warrego Highway, the Charlton Industrial Park site takes advantage of it close proximity to the Surat Basin resources  and its location adjacent to the proposed rail hub, linking the development to other major development centres including Gladstone and Moree.

With a scarcity of industrial land in the Toowoomba region, the development represents an opportunity for transporting and warehousing businesses to capitalise on the expected increase in demand in the Surat Basin region and secure premium industrial sites from 20,000m2.

Although the site currently falls within the current Toowoomba Regional Council (TRC) Town Plan as transport and warehousing, Council have commenced development of a new structure plan for the area and have given indications that they would look favourably upon light industry.

In addition to its premium location, the site offers a 12.5 metre road adjoining the Warrego Highway, 25 metre wide internal road passing six lots and traffic management for turning vehicles to and from the Warrego Highway.

For more information go to www.chartonindustrial.com.au.

Raising the Q100 level

As a result of the flood event in South East Queensland earlier this year, more than 22,000 homes were submersed above their floor boards. Many of these dwellings should have been safe having been built above the current 100 Year ARI design storm flood level, more commonly known as Q100 flood level.

A significant amount of new data on the factors contributing to large flood events in the region was produced during the flood and the recent Commission of Enquiry suggested that significant work is required to review the region’s 100 Year ARI design storm flood levels in the light of this new information.

But there is still confusion about what a 100 Year ARI storm flood level actually means. The term ARI stands for Average Recurrence Interval and it is the average or expected value of period of time between rainfall / storm events of certain intensity. A 100 Year ARI storm is not an event which will only occur once every 100 years.

Furthermore, 100 Year ARI flood levels are not necessarily equivalent to the highest flood level in the region. Local authorities set a Defined Flood Event which is generally based on historical flood levels from floods such as those in 1893, 1974 and 2011.

These levels are used to inform planning and policy, in particular the level that Councils require habitable floors to be built above to provide protection against floods up to the magnitude of a Defined Flood Event.

In light of the data and information gathered during the 2011 floods, many Councils are revising their 100 Year ARI flood levels. In particular, Brisbane City Council has already announced that new homes in flood-affected areas will have to be built 800mm to 2m higher to ensure the habitable floor level of a new home or development in a flood-prone area is built 500mm above the flood level recorded there during this year’s disaster.

For more information on what revised 100 Year ARI flood levels throughout Queensland will mean to your business or industry, call RMA civil engineers on 07 4369 4100 or email us at info@rmaeng.com.au.

Alert – March 2011

RMA fast-tracks applications

RMA is pleased to announce our participation in Brisbane City Council’s Minor Water and Sewer Process Pilot Program.  The program is aimed at expediting assessment and full certification for operational work associated with approved High Level Applications.

RMA’s participation in the program means that we may provide our clients with professional design certified to comply with Council and QUU standards, perform compliance audits to ensure construction is to standards and lodge as constructed plans and On/Off-maintenance information.

RMA Managing Director, Philip Meyer, says that RMA is proud to be one of the few engineers invited to participate in the program and welcomes the opportunity to provide clients with this fast-tracked service.

“Our certification in this program is evidence of our strong working relationship with Brisbane City Council and our strong track record in providing engineering designs for minor sewer and water works.  We are looking forward to using our participation in this program to deliver significant time and ultimately cost savings to our clients, ” he said.

Through the removal of the current application and approval process for works defined as Minor Water and Sewer, our clients will have access to a range of benefits,  including:

  • Greater certainty of outcome
  • Reduced time-frames for low risk applications – up to eight weeks less than traditional applications
  • Less interaction with Council
  • Reduced development costs for Operational Work applications
  • The elimination of application and approval periods resulting in faster construction.

When combined with the Council’s RiskSmart Development Assessment (DA) process, RMA clients eligible to obtain Minor Water and Sewer Certification could save up to 6 months off the development process. All projects must meet a number of eligibility requirements.

If you would like to see if your project is eligible, or would like to find out more about the program, please call us on 07 3846 5885 to talk to one of our Minor Water and Sewer experts.

 

Alert – November 2010

RMA Announces New Services

RMA Engineers announced today that they have increased their structural engineering capabilities and now provide a post-tensioned slab design service to complement their existing civil, structural and hydraulic engineering practice.

RMA Director, Philip Meyer, said that by continuing to expand the services RMA offers, the company is demonstrating its commitment to providing their clients with greater choice and flexibility.

“RMA are committed to continuing to renew, refresh and revise the services we offer our clients.  The addition of post-tensioned slab design to our traditional structural engineering services demonstrates our commitment to working with our clients to achieve greater design flexibility and cost savings,” he said.

Under the direction of Senior Structural Engineer, Max Hodas, the team’s ability to offer post-tensioned slabs offers RMA clients the ability to achieve:

  • Reduced structural depth of slabs. Reducing the thickness of slabs in high rise building translates into overall construction cost savings.
  • Greater clear spans. Unlike conventional reinforced slabs, post-tensioned slabs can be economically used for larger spans. This provides greater flexibility in the design of interior space and partitioning, as fewer structural columns or walls are required.  It also has the added benefit of providing additional cost savings.
  • Greater crack control and lower post construction maintenance. Post-tensioned slabs have improved durability and lower maintenance costs as they require fewer joints than traditional slabs.
  • Solutions for difficult soils. Post-tensioned slabs are ideal for use as raft footings in locations where the foundation soil presents a low bearing capacity.

Enhanced construction speeds. Post-tensioned slabs allow larger concrete pours which translate in reduced construction time. The installation of the prestressing reinforcement – tendons – is faster than the installation of conventional reinforcement, further increasing the speed of construction.
For more information on how RMA can assist you achieve greater economy and design flexibility through post-tension slabs, please contact Max Hodas on 07 3846 5885 or max@rmaeng.com.au.