17/12/2025

December 17, 2025

The Daily Dirt Aus

By G’day Construction………….…… 

THE MORNING PAPER FOR CONSTRUCTION PROFESSIONALS AND TRADIES

🚨 Safety Updates

From 1 January 2026, like-for-like electrical replacements no longer require a Certificate of Compliance (CoC) under the Electrical Safety Act. This includes replacing equipment with the same electrical characteristics without altering wiring or circuit protection. Alterations or higher-load installations still require a CoC. Information sessions are on 21 Jan and 4 Feb 2026.

From 1 July 2026, South Australia will reduce the high-risk construction work height limit from three to two metres, aligning with national WHS regulations. Construction businesses must prepare Safe Work Method Statements for work with fall risks over two metres, outlining hazards, controls, and worker consultation to improve safety and reduce workplace injuries.

🏗️ Projects

NSW

The NSW government approved Valent Energy’s $209 million Armidale battery project, a 150 MW / 437 MWh storage system, contingent on over $2.5 million in community contributions and $400,000 annually to the New England Rail Trail. The project will support grid stability, renewable energy dispatch, create 100 construction jobs, and strengthen local infrastructure.

Penrith City Council, with NSW Public Works, has appointed AJC Architects to design a new indoor multi-sports arena. The facility will feature versatile sports courts, community spaces, and supporting amenities. Community feedback will guide the design, with construction expected to start mid-2027, funded through the Western Sydney Infrastructure Grants Program.

QLD

The developer says the complex’s design draws on “the eclectic energy of the markets, the tactility of local craft, and the sculptural presence of the surrounding tree canopies”.

The Queensland government has announced what it calls a “landmark development opportunity” for the private redevelopment of two sites on the northern edge of Brisbane’s CBD into a “thriving precinct” ahead of the city’s 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Logan City Council and Griffith University have signed an MoU to explore a major baseball and softball stadium at the university’s Meadowbrook campus. The project aims to attract private investment, support elite athlete development, boost local jobs, and create a lasting sporting legacy, potentially hosting events for the 2032 Brisbane Olympics.

SA

The $15.4 billion T2D Project isn’t just a motorway—it’s creating greener, connected communities along 10.5 km of South Road. Draft designs for 10 new or upgraded open spaces invite your feedback until 21 December. Your input will help shape recreational areas, walking and cycling paths, and lasting community-friendly urban spaces.

South Australia’s Kudla Growth Area is set for 16,000 new homes over 30 years under a major rezoning plan. Covering 2,480 ha, the development includes infrastructure, roads, and the 1,000 ha Northern Parklands. Public consultation starts in 2026, with rezoning finalisation expected by late 2027, shaping Adelaide’s north for future growth.

TAS

TasWater has completed a major upgrade of Hobart CBD’s water mains, replacing 1940s-era pipes on Liverpool and Murray streets after repeated bursts disrupted traffic and businesses. The project improves system reliability and resilience, highlights the need for statewide infrastructure investment, and forms part of a $1.7 billion plan supporting modernisation, growth, and 15,000 jobs.

VIC

Star of the South, Victoria’s proposed offshore wind project, has lodged its Environmental Impact Statement and secured 120 ha for onshore cables. With renewed Major Project Status, the 2.2 GW scheme aims to power 1.2 million homes, supporting emissions reduction and energy security, with construction potentially starting later this decade.

Construction has begun on Melbourne’s $1.62 billion Beveridge Intermodal Precinct, set to become Australia’s largest intermodal logistics hub. The project will shift freight from road to rail, reducing 167,000 truck trips annually, cutting 12.1 million tonnes of CO₂ over 25 years, create 8,000–17,000 jobs, and support double-stacked Inland Rail trains.

WA

The WA Government has announced an $80 million road safety package, funding advertising and education ($27 M), ongoing safety programs ($25 M), expanded camera enforcement ($20 M), and a review of penalties and rewards ($2.5 M). Initiatives aim to reduce dangerous driving, improve school zone safety, and support community partnerships for safer roads.

The WA Government released a draft Renewable Energy Planning Code and Guidelines, seeking public feedback. The Code sets a consistent framework for assessing wind, solar, and battery projects, clarifies application requirements, and streamlines approvals for major developments, aiming to boost investment, jobs, and renewable energy growth across Western Australia.

🧰 Construction Au Other

Hanthi Rajan, CEO of Linarc, predicts 2026 will see AI embedded in daily construction workflows, enabling real-time insights, predictive analytics, and faster decision-making. Contractors will streamline operations, adopt just-in-time deliveries, optimise labour and equipment, and use remote monitoring. Technology supports, rather than replaces, human expertise, improving efficiency, safety, and project outcomes.

Southern Cross Electrical Engineering have secured $90M in new contracts across data centres and rail. Heyday will handle LV switchboards, busways, generators, UPS, cabling, lighting, and power systems for Sydney’s SYD1 data centre expansion. Force Fire covers fire services and demolition, while Trivantage manufactures local switchboards. Rail work includes electrical and communications systems for Sydney Metro St Marys Station, leveraging SXE’s multi-discipline expertise.

🚀 Innovation, Digital & Futuristic Technology

Mycelium, the underground fungal network beneath mushrooms, offers a sustainable future for construction. By binding agricultural waste, it forms lightweight, fire-resistant, and biodegradable blocks and panels. While durability and outdoor use remain challenges, research explores reinforcements, coatings, and AI-controlled growth to create eco-friendly materials for insulation, acoustics, and low-carbon building solutions.

Digital twins transform prefabricated construction by providing real-time, virtual replicas of components from manufacturing through installation and operation. They enable production simulation, quality assurance, logistics optimization, installation readiness verification, and predictive maintenance. Integrated with BIM and IoT, digital twins ensure component condition, streamline schedules, reduce delays, and support proactive lifecycle management.

🌱 Sustainability ​& Environment

In 2025, GBCA advanced sustainable transformation in Australia’s built environment through advocacy, Green Star tools, and collaboration. Key outcomes include progress on Every Building Counts, National Climate Risk Assessment, circular procurement, biodiversity protection, and embodied carbon frameworks. State and local governments adopted policies supporting net-zero, electrification, energy efficiency, and building retrofits.

Australia’s booming data centre sector presents both challenges and opportunities. Rising energy and water demands, driven by AI, risk straining grids and resources. Expert Priya Rajagopalan highlights sustainable strategies—efficient cooling, waste heat reuse, on-site renewables, and biodiversity planning—transforming data centres from resource consumers into community- and climate-positive assets.

Australia’s plastic pipe sector is advancing circular economy principles through durability, repairability, and recyclability. A 2025 study by PIPA, Circular Australia, and UTS found that long-life pipes—often lasting 100+ years—embody circularity even if limited end-of-life material is currently recycled. Industry initiatives, stewardship programs, and evolving standards support responsible sourcing, reuse, and recovery. The research highlights the need for policy recognition, improved data, and national coordination to make plastic pipes a model for circular, sustainable infrastructure.

🌏 Around the World

Consulting engineers Haskoning in partnership with the government of Tonga, Asian Development Bank , Australian Infrastructure Financing Facility for the Pacific and contractor McConnell Dowell managed a $70 million upgrade for the Kingdom of Tonga completed this year. This is why the project was so important to our Pacific neighbours.

Zaha Hadid Architects and partners won the Malpensa Hospital design in northern Italy, linking two existing hospitals. The 90,000 sqm modular facility features dedicated circulation, separate service elevators, and flexible layouts for emergencies. Clinics, surgery, and critical care optimize light, reduce noise, and incorporate sustainable façades and landscaping.

📖 Miscellaneous

Sydney’s Gadigal Station has been named one of the World’s Most Beautiful Passenger Stations for 2025 by the Prix Versailles. Designed by Foster + Partners and COX Architecture, the station blends sustainable design, innovative architecture, and urban integration. Highlights include public art by Callum Morton, sandstone walls, aluminium acoustic panels, full accessibility, and two towers above the station. Serving 15,700 passengers daily, Gadigal Station exemplifies a modern, future-ready transport hub.

Australia will need to triple the volume of installed capacity in energy generation and storage if the nation is to deliver a secure and reliable net zero grid by 2050, according to the latest roadmap.

👷‍♀️ Tradies and Resource

Jon Davies will step down as CEO of the Australian Constructors Association in June 2026, concluding six years of leadership. During his tenure, he guided the ACA through challenges like COVID, launched the National Construction Strategy, advanced the Culture Standard, and promoted gender diversity, leaving a lasting impact on industry culture and government partnerships.

Thanks for reading,

If you have any comments or feedback, just respond to this email!

Alex

PS: Thanks for reading to date, we will be taking a break between 19th December 2025 - 5th January 2026

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