Malpi Village Nhulunbuy

These residences were constructed on behalf of this investment group for rental to the Alcan Mining Group.  The quality and finish of these buildings was expected to be a high standard in meeting this market.

Location:  Gove, Northern Territory.  Construction completed in a remote location of the 900 km from Darwin requiring extensive planning and resource management to meet exact requirements.

Services: Project Management, Construction, Procurement, Site Establishment

Value: $8m

Challenges:  Wildgeese Building Group Australia met a number of challenges in the construction and management of this project.  To achieve outcomes relevant to specifications we were able to utilise an informed decision making process that applied internal systems, harnessed technical knowledge and analysed situations / circumstances as they arose.  The specific challenges relevant to this project that demonstrates our capacity to achieve results include:

• Project Delays:  A significant issue was the interruption to this project by the client relevant to the availability of funds.  Initial construction of concrete slabs were completed in the first three weeks with a significant delay experienced after this time.  We utilised effective planning in order to minimise the additional cost to subcontractors and progressed through to completion when requested.
• Weather: The extension to this timeframe also required the capacity to then complete works during the wet season.  We also dealt with a number of challenges relevant to cyclones and other major weather issues.
• Supply Chain:  The delivery of services within a remote location required extensive planning and management of the supply chain in order to secure materials with sufficient lead time for transport by barge to this location.  Utilising an internal methodology and procedure we were successful in managing a liaison between head office and the site representative to ensure the effective delivery of all materials.  The link between head office, site management and the client was essential to maintaining this supply chain. 
• Local Industry:  With a proven philosophy of engaging local industry where possible we sought to engage subcontractors within this region.  This required a capacity to identify appropriately qualified tradespeople and organisations to deliver results while also sourcing other subcontractors from Darwin where necessary.  Decisions were made in relation to this process while delivering an outcome within the required budget.  In this process we were able to build relationships with local suppliers and maximise the use of local industry for the completion of this project.

The benefit of meeting these challenges demonstrates a capacity to manage changing and fluctuating situations while maintaining a project schedule and budget.  An analysis of the specific environment to this region also indicates the capacity to establish a timeframe that ensured construction was completed without interruption.

Personnel: The following mixture of tradespeople, subcontractors, management and trainees applied to this project:

Subcontractors:                56

Indigenous Trainees:                      4

Apprentices:                                     2

Apprentices (subcontractors)        7

Outcomes:  This project was received as a high-end product meeting all specifications and the expectation of the client.

Benefit:  Wildgeese Building Group Australia demonstrated through this project the capacity to complete similar elements as required for this project.  This specifically includes:

• Complete management of a subdivision from a bush site
• Total clearing of the site and construction of all civil works
• Delivery of duplexes demonstrating experience in the design concept
• Achievement of outcomes inside timeframes and budgets