Leadership in construction

The ICE Knowledge Hub is a digital platform by the Institution of Civil Engineers that offers expert insights, technical guidance, and case studies in civil engineering. It supports professional development through articles, videos, and podcasts on topics like safety, sustainability, and infrastructure delivery. 

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Bringing contractors into a project early can dramatically improve cost, schedule, and sustainability outcomes for infrastructure projects.

In this Lunch and Learn session, Brian Perry Civil's Paul Botha shared insights from a six-year PhD journey exploring Early Contractor Involvement (ECI) and its impact on New Zealand’s horizontal infrastructure sector. His research, drawing from real-world lessons from post-earthquake rebuilds, asks: When is the ‘optimal’ time to engage contractors? Can ECI help reduce NZ’s carbon emissions that come from construction?

Paul's research has produced a practical framework for industry – grounded in both academic rigor and industry experience – that shows how ECI/Pre-Construction Services (PCS) can deliver better project outcomes and a lighter carbon footprint.

In this Lunch and Learn session, Brian Perry Civil's Hayden Chapman discusses the Silverstream Pipe Bridge project. Hayden outlines its innovations, key moments, lessons learned, and guidance for future projects.

The Silverstream Pipe Bridge, located in Upper Hutt, Wellington region, is a resilience project for Wellington Water that safeguards a critical bulk water pipeline crossing the Hutt River and the Wellington fault line. The pipeline supplies 100% of Porirua’s drinking water and about 40% of Wellington City’s, so ensuring its integrity during extreme floods and earthquakes was paramount. 

In this Lunch and Learn session, BPC Senior Geotechnical Design Engineer Baqer Asadi and Geotechnical Engineer Taniela Napa'a talk about a new method BPC has been using to check the integrity of cast in place (bored) piles.

The National Infrastructure Pipeline (Pipeline) is New Zealand’s national dataset of infrastructure initiatives providing transparency on investments and activity to maintain, renew, and improve the infrastructure we all rely on. This important evidence base includes thousands of projects and programmes at various stages of planning, commitment, and delivery from central government, local government, and private sector infrastructure providers.

Click to visit the Pipeline website

In this Lunch and Learn session, Commercial Manager Nicky Leman and Systems Coordinator Annie Kang discussed Fletcher Construction's new Subcontractor Prequalification process. They explained why Fletcher Construction introduced a unified prequalification system for contractors, how it works, and what benefits it brings, followed by a Q&A session addressing practical concerns.

Liveable Streets South Rural, the team from Higgins and HEB who look after the roads in South Rural Auckland for Auckland Transport, is turning waste into opportunity. In 2021, the team faced a challenge with discarded road edge marker posts (EMPs). By 2025, thanks to a partnership with WasteXpert and Plastics Recycling NZ (PRNZ), a joint venture between Waste Management New Zealand and Aliaxis New Zealand, over 1 tonne of EMPs have been diverted from landfill — nearly 100% of what was collected!

The team at Liveable Streets cleaned and sorted the EMPs, in bins provided by WasteXpert. These are then sorted into collection bins. The EMPs were soaked, cleaned, dried, and then transported to PRNZ for recycling. This initiative avoided 143 kg CO₂-e emissions and showcased how innovation can drive real environmental impact. The recycled material is now being repurposed into new products at Aliaxis facilities across New Zealand.

It's a great example of systems that work!

In this Lunch and Learn session, Project Engineer Kyle Marshall presents a detailed account of the Brian Perry Civil project's scope and innovative work methodologies implemented by the team to successfully deliver this challenging project for the Department of Conservation in Wellington Harbour.

This Coast and Ports Paper outlines the environmental and ecological strategies implemented during the Seaview Wharf piling project in Wellington, New Zealand, with a focus on protecting marine life and the Waiwhetu Aquifer. It details the collaborative development of mitigation measures—such as acoustic monitoring and bubble curtains—to manage underwater noise and safeguard biodiversity during construction.

This report from Te Waihanga explores how New Zealand’s construction sector can improve project outcomes by adopting better contracting practices. Drawing on interviews with 26 industry participants, it highlights persistent issues with contract selection, working relationships, and dispute resolution—particularly around the widespread use and modification of NZS 3910. The findings offer practical insights and opportunities for more collaborative, transparent, and effective infrastructure delivery across the country.

This discussion paper from Te Waihanga outlines how New Zealand can improve infrastructure delivery by moving beyond traditional, lowest-cost procurement models. It introduces seven principles—ranging from systems thinking and digital transformation to integrated teams and value-based delivery—that help public sector clients become more sophisticated and outcomes-focused. The report draws on international best practices and local case studies to offer a roadmap for achieving better infrastructure results, greater efficiency, and long-term value.

This case study highlights the rapid reconstruction of the SH25A Taparahi Bridge in Coromandel following severe storm damage in early 2023. It showcases how emergency provisions, collaborative procurement, and accelerated delivery enabled the bridge to be completed in under 12 months—unlocking significant economic benefits for the region. The document offers valuable insights into fast-tracked infrastructure delivery and lessons for future resilience planning and project execution.

We invest in cutting-edge technology to ensure the health and safety of our workers. We’ve introduced the use of the Hilti Nuron SensTech Grinder which offers a new level of safety for angle grinders. This grinder does not have a traditional mechanical deadman switch, a long-required safety feature. Instead, it features Hilti's SensTech system which uses touch-activated sensors and includes a 3D Active Torque Control (ATC) system.

The SensTech system is equipped with capacitive sensors that detect the user’s grip. If the sensors detect that the user's grip has moved or loosened, the system activates an auto-shutoff to prevent potential injuries. Additionally, the 3D ATC system senses if the grinder suddenly jerks in one direction or spins out, triggering the grinder to shut off before injury or damage can occur. This innovation enhances safety by replacing the mechanical deadman switch with a touch-activated system, without compromising the tool's performance.

Implementing this new grinder not only enhances safety on the job but also ensures compliance with updated safety standards.

The Eastern Busway project team faced a major challenge: how to streamline the construction of Rā Hihi, a 17- span public transit flyover in East Auckland. Traditional concrete monitoring methods were slowing them down.

The team turned to Converge and Canzac to track concrete curing and strength development in real time. With 34 bridge components requiring temperature monitoring, project engineers needed a reliable and user-friendly system to track concrete curing.

By using Converge sensors, the team safely accelerated their concrete cycle. This optimisation saved over a month on the project’s critical path, ensuring that construction remains ahead of schedule and is on track to be completed on time.

Reducing embodied carbon is a complex journey requiring collaboration and common understanding.

This 101 Guide from WaterNZ provides resources for Aotearoa practitioners in the water sector, and includes best practice case studies from Brian Perry Civil and Fletcher Living.

Click to view the document

The Brian Perry Civil Central Region team is constructing a piling platform for the BPC piling crew at the Te Maunga Bioreactor 2 ground improvement project. The selection of materials is crucial to ensure stability, cost- effectiveness, and environmental sustainability. Approximately 1800 tons of GAP65 will be required to construct the platform. This material is costly, considering the temporary nature of the platform, which must be removed upon the completion of the piling operation to allow for the installation of the topping concrete slab.

Crushed Concrete CC65 was proposed by the project team as a better alternative to construct the piling platform, providing several advantages:

Environmental Sustainability

• Recycling: Crushed concrete is a recycled material, which means it helps reduce the demand for virgin aggregates and minimises waste.
• Lower Carbon Footprint: Using recycled concrete reduces the carbon footprint associated with the extraction and processing of new materials.
• End-of-life scenarios: Can be reused for hardfill on other projects. Also, can be sent for recycling via quarry sites.

Cost-Effectiveness

• Lower Material Costs: Crushed concrete is often more affordable than GAP65 due to its recycled nature.

Ease of Construction

• Simple Installation: Crushed concrete is easy to install and compact, which can speed up the construction process.
• Versatility: It can be used in various construction applications, including sub-base layers and foundations.

In this lunch and learn session, Brian Perry Civil's Senior Project Manager Phil Wild and Senior Project Engineer Pavan Satish share the project team's key lessons from the large-scale infrastructure upgrade of the Whenuapai Airbase.

BPC Site Superintendent Paddy Molloy recognised an opportunity to improve environmental practices by avoiding used safety glasses being sent to landfill.

Working with Project Administrator Sue Hodder at their Seaview Wharf site, they’re now ensuring an average of 70 pairs of glasses are being recycled each month.

They’re working with Terracycle, a company offering a range of recycling options for construction site waste. The next objective is to introduce recycling  boxes for gloves and other personal protective items.