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Farmland Rehabilitation Video 08

Videos, UC QuakeStudies

A close-up video of liquefied soil on a farm near River Road in Lincoln. Contractor Tony Fisher, of Fisher Agricultural Ltd, is jumping lightly up and down to demonstrate the soil's jelly-like structure.

Photograph by Neil Macbeth 489

Images, UC QuakeStudies

Contractors conferring on the Anzac Drive Bridge in New Brighton. In the background, an excavator is lifting a piece of metal to place on one of the bridge's lamp posts.

Photograph by Neil Macbeth 326

Images, UC QuakeStudies

Liquefaction piled on the sides of a road in north-east Christchurch. The liquefaction has been dug out of the properties and piled on the side of the road to be collected by road maintenance contractors.

Photograph by Neil Macbeth 338

Images, UC QuakeStudies

A collapsed section of road in north-east Christchurch. In the background, residents have piled liquefaction from their properties on the side of the road where it will be collected by road maintenance contractors.

Photograph by Neil Macbeth 339

Images, UC QuakeStudies

A collapsed section of road in north-east Christchurch. In the background, residents have piled liquefaction from their properties on the side of the road where it will be collected by road maintenance contractors.

Below the belt: part 2

Articles, Christchurch uncovered

Last week on the blog we introduced you to the 1881 South Belt sewer beneath Moorhouse Avenue: how it was built, how it got blocked, and how recently as part of SCIRT’s horizontal infrastructure rebuild program, their Downer delivery team and sub-contractors Donaldson Civil … Continue...

20130130_1832_1D3-67 Clarendon Towers

Images, eqnz.chch.2010

Haha! This is the day before Mainzeal (see sign on fence at left) announced they had gone into receivership owing millions to the banks and sub-contractors like Smiths whose equipment is here.

The impact of subcontractor use on performance in civil construction: lear…

Research papers, University of Canterbury Library

Principal contractors can achieve better financial performance in civil construction projects by increasing the proportion of works delivered by subcontractors. However, anecdotally the use of subcontractors is thought to be make principal contractors less competitive due to compounding profit margins. This study found that projects with a higher proportion of subcontracted work exhibit better financial results than projects with less work delivered by subcontractors. This study uses the Christchurch Infrastructure Alliance (known as the Stronger Christchurch Infrastructure Rebuild Team, SCIRT) as a case study to observe why principal contracting firms engage subcontractors and the effect subcontracting has on the overall performance of a construction project. Five top tier civil contracting firms (known as ‘delivery teams’) participated in the alliance. Each team was responsible for the delivery of individual projects. A sample of 334 individual SCIRT projects were analysed, and key delivery team staff were surveyed, to investigate the effect subcontractor engagement has on performance. Between the five delivery teams there were clear differences in how much work was delivered via subcontracts. The extent of this subcontractor engagement had a significant effect on the relative performance of the principal contractor. A positive correlation between subcontractor engagement and overall financial performance is observed, and a negative correlation is observed between subcontractor engagement and non-financial performance. Although the causes of these relationships appear complex, the primary reason appears to be that subcontracting fosters increased productivity by cascading financial performance incentives closer to the physical construction task. To maximise competitiveness and financial performance, principal contractors must embrace the use of subcontractors and develop efficient systems of managing subcontracted work.

From bottle to basement: uncovering a repository of information

Articles, Christchurch uncovered

Late in 2014 we were contacted by contractors working on a rebuild project in Christchurch’s city centre. It was reported that a number of bottles had been uncovered during routine earthworks and the area cordoned off until our arrival. The bottles … Continue reading →

Farmland Rehabilitation Photograph 06

Images, UC QuakeStudies

A photograph of contractor Tony Fisher of Fisher Agricultural Ltd. inspecting a dug-out soil pit on a farm near River Road in Lincoln. There is a thick layer of saturated sand between the topsoil and the subsoil where the grass roots end.

BeckerFraserPhotos September 2010 photograph 024

Images, UC QuakeStudies

A police officer and soldier talk with a demolition contractor on Victoria Street. Tape has been placed across the street to create a temporary cordon. In the distance, a pile of rubble from a demolished building can be seen.

BeckerFraserPhotos September 2011 photograph 714

Images, UC QuakeStudies

Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "The plan for this building in Lichfield Street (as relayed to Ross by the contractors) is to remove the roof and open as a bar within 3 weeks".

BeckerFraserPhotos September 2011 photograph 715

Images, UC QuakeStudies

Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "The plan for this building in Lichfield Street (as relayed to Ross by the contractors) is to remove the roof and open as a bar within 3 weeks".

Relationship Between Early Contractor Involvement and Financial Performanc…

Articles, UC QuakeStudies

A paper written by Paul S Botha and Eric Scheepbouwer for the Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board, No. 2504, Transportation Research Board, Washington, D.C., 2015, pp. 66-72.

Photograph by Jocelyn Kinghorn 1718

Images, UC QuakeStudies

A CERA information sign on the fence in the Cathedral Square, placed to provide information to the public about the buildings seen from Cathedral Square. This one says "Clarendon Tower: This will be demolished. Currently CERA is working towards the appointment of an accredited demolistion contractor".