Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

On behalf the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Works, I present report No. 9 of 2015, Referrals made August 2015.

Report made a parliamentary paper in accordance with standing order 39(e).

by leave—The ninth report of 2015 of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Works deals with three projects referred to the committee in August. The first project concerns redevelopment works at HMAS Stirling for the Department of Defence. HMAS Stirling is the Royal Australian Navy's primary operational support base on the west coast. It also provides administration, maintenance and logistics support to foreign navies. Much of the infrastructure and facilities at HMAS Stirling are approaching 40 years of age. In addition, exposure to a coastal environment has left several areas in need of upgrade and repair. Works will include repairing the existing road network, remediating various wharves and upgrading the electrical, communications and waste water systems. Enhancements to the base entrance, training areas, security and parking facilities are also proposed. The estimated cost of the project is $366.8 million.

The committee received a briefing from Defence and conducted an inspection and hearings on 8 October. At the public hearing, the committee noted matters raised by local residents, particularly the redevelopment of the Mangles Bay Marina. This project is not related to the proposed works at HMAS Stirling, but it is in close proximity. The committee heard that Defence is liaising with commercial developers and the Western Australian government to ensure the projects would not adversely affect each other or local residents. In noting the large scale of the project, the committee requires that Defence provide the committee with a status report when the design stage of the project is complete. On the basis of information provided to date the committee is satisfied that the project has merit in terms of need, scope and cost and recommends that it proceed.

The next two projects are for Airservices Australia. This committee has previously reported that existing air traffic management systems used by Airservices and Defence will be replaced by a combined Civil-Military Air Traffic System. This new system is being implemented as part of the OneSKY Australia Program. Both projects I am reporting on today are concerned with upgrading current facilities to support the new combined system into the future. The first project involves refurbishing control towers in Brisbane and Cairns. These towers were built in 1987 and 1990 respectively and have reached the end of their useful life. The proposed works will extend this by at least 15 years by treating corrosion, upgrading mechanical systems and modernising the internal fit-out. The works will also prepare the towers for the installation of new technology, known as the Integrated Tower Automation Suite. This technology will eventually be integrated with the combined Civil-Military Air Traffic System. Works are expected to be completed by late 2016 in Cairns and mid-2017 in Brisbane.

The committee received a briefing from Airservices and conducted hearings on 16 October. During the briefing, the committee saw photographs of ageing infrastructure. At the public hearing, Airservices noted lessons learned from similar projects, specifically around maintaining air traffic services while the works progress and managing expectations of building occupants. Separately, the works are expected to cost $9.98 million for Brisbane and $13.95 million for Cairns, with a combined total of $23.9 million. At the public hearing, Airservices explained that the higher cost for Cairns is due to the presence of a two-storey building at the base of the control tower. This building requires upgrading and forms part of the scope for the Cairns project. The committee is satisfied that the project has merit in terms of need, scope and cost and recommends that it proceed.

The second project for Airservices concerns constructing additional buildings at air traffic service centres in Melbourne and Brisbane. The proposed works will provide extra operations and training facilities. This will allow the existing air traffic system and the new combined system to run in tandem for four years. Once the combined civil-military system is fully operational it will replace the current system and existing facilities may be repurposed. Works are expected to be completed by the end of 2017, ready for the combined system to be introduced in 2018. The project is expected to cost $107 million.

The committee received a briefing from Airservices and conducted hearings in Canberra on 16 October—we did not go to Cairns, as I had hoped. During the public hearing, Airservices noted that running both systems concurrently will allow staff to become confident with the combined civil-military system before switching over to the new system. During the transition, the two systems will also provide back-up, should one system be unable to meet requirements; thereby reducing the risk of disruption to air traffic services. Airservices also told the committee that the proposed new facilities would have their own power and water supply, providing for reliable and independent operation 24 hours a day.

Given the number of capital works projects in progress, the committee sought and received assurances from Airservices that it had sufficient resources and expertise to manage them all. The committee is satisfied that the project has merit in terms of need, scope and cost and recommends that it proceed. I commend this report to the House.

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