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Louise Adams Appointed as New Group CEO of Aurecon

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Louise Adams succeeds current Group CEO, William (Bill) Cox, whose six-year leadership term saw Aurecon achieve record growth helping clients solve increasingly complex problems including energy security, clean water, urbanisation and climate change.

Aurecon Chair Giam Swiegers said Ms Adams’ outstanding track record of building an engaged culture, delivering strong financial performance and excellence in client services was key to the next phase of Aurecon’s success.

“Louise is a globally recognised business leader, with decades of experience across Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the Middle East,” Mr Swiegers said, adding, “She has honed razor-sharp insights and strong business acumen over the last four years delivering exceptional results as the group’s current Chief Operating Officer. This combined with Louise’s deep expertise in Asia will continue to enhance our people, trade and investment links across Asia Pacific, supporting our vision of a connected and networked Aurecon.”

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As Aurecon’s first female Group Chief Executive Officer Ms Adams will lead approximately 7,500 people in 31 locations across Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia, Macau, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and Greater China.

Ms Adams said Asia Pacific remains one of the fastest growing regions in the world, marked by economic development, technological advancements, and increasing global influence.

“In today’s world, engineering is not just a means to an end – it’s a force for good. The skills and capabilities that we, as engineers, uniquely bring to the table are key to providing safe and sustainable outcomes for society,”

Ms Adams said. “Immense change is occurring across Asia Pacific and in response Aurecon has diversified our service offerings to address our clients’ most pressing challenges including combating climate change, transitioning to renewable energy and investing in the right technologies. I look forward to using this new role to continue elevating our important work.”

Ms Adams joined Aurecon in 2000 after graduating from the University of South Australia as one of only two women in the graduating class of engineers. Since then, she has remained a strong advocate for equality in STEM, becoming the first female Executive Director on Aurecon’s Global Board and remains a global spokesperson for women in leadership through the Chief Executive Women programme.

Mr Swiegers extended the Board’s gratitude to Mr Cox for his leadership at Aurecon and the contributions he has made during his 35-year distinguished career in engineering advisory services.

“Under Bill’s leadership, Aurecon achieved record profits and expanded its geographical footprint with Aurecon becoming one of Asia Pacific’s largest employee-owned engineering and advisory companies,” he concluded.

Mr Cox will continue to work closely with Ms Adams over the coming months and following 1 July plans to expand his significant and valuable commitment to the broader engineering sector through his directorships and other roles.

Aurecon Acquires CHT International to Expand Engineering Capabilities

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International design, engineering and advisory company Aurecon has acquired CHT International Sdn Bhd (CHT), a prominent mechanical and electrical (M&E) engineering consulting firm based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. This acquisition, effective from 1 June 2024, marks a significant milestone in Aurecon’s strategic expansion across Malaysia and the wider Asian region.

 

The addition of CHT’s experienced and respected team of 85 professionals takes Aurecon’s workforce to almost 280 in Malaysia, making it one of the largest engineering consultancy firms in the country.

 

“We are thrilled to welcome CHT into the Aurecon Group. The deep technical expertise and strong client relationships of the CHT team supports our strategic growth plans and enhances our ability to deliver comprehensive engineering solutions across the region. Growth in Asia is a key focus for Aurecon, and expansion in Malaysia is a key pillar of our strategy to deepen our presence and enhance our ability to support local and multi-national clients,” said William Cox, Chief Executive Officer of Aurecon.

 

“This acquisition marks our sixth strategic investment in Asia since 2021 across Malaysia, Hong Kong and Singapore. Global clients increasingly seek service providers with multi-country and multi-disciplinary expertise, and the inclusion of CHT strengthens cross-border collaboration and unlocks new opportunities. With our growing presence and talent pool, we are looking forward to helping drive growth and partnering with clients to bring ideas to life in Malaysia and the wider Asian region,” said Stephane Asselin, Aurecon’s Chief Executive of Asia.

 

Malaysia presents a compelling destination for Aurecon’s continued investment, particularly in the mechanical and electrical (M&E) engineering space, driven by its robust market potential. The country’s significant data centre build program is driving demand for M&E services, driven by the increasing size and complexity of data centres and the imperative for energy efficiency. This acquisition also enhances Aurecon’s capability to meet the growth in the industrial and manufacturing sectors in Malaysia and the region. Across Asia, Aurecon has already completed more than 60 data centre projects, evidence of its leading position in this high-growth segment.

 

“Joining forces with Aurecon is a tremendous opportunity for CHT and our clients. It will facilitate knowledge transfer and innovation, combining Aurecon’s global experience with our local expertise. Together, we will drive advancements in engineering solutions and service delivery,” said Ir. Tey Chai Heng, Managing Director of CHT.

 

 

Why Engineering Design Matters for Tomorrow’s Infrastructure Investments in Asia

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Asia’s future infrastructure is facing increasing scrutiny in terms of its sustainability, constructability, bankability, and resilience. A range of factors, not only the engineering design process, require attention if the region is to meet its ambitions of future-proofing tomorrow’s projects, say Aurecon’s Chief Executive, Asia, Stephane Asselin and Principal, Infrastructure Advisory, Jasmin Abad Lock

Although infrastructure markets and policies are shifting, the Asia and Pacific region remains one of the largest in the world, with some US$900 billion spent each year. However, according to the Asian Development Bank, this figure falls short of the US$1.7 trillion that the region should spend to keep pace with climate change and economic growth.

National governments have recognised this and have already put in place necessary policies, public funds and other measures to increase private sector participation, including openly inviting international partners to support their infrastructure development ambitions.

Despite setbacks caused by COVID-19 and some slowing of programs, many Asian countries are still pressing on to build up their infrastructure. These countries are keen to keep up with development trends; of which there is stronger public support and increased appropriations for public infrastructure spending.

There is also a shift across private stakeholders in the form of transitioning investments from purely real estate-oriented (commercial mixed-use developments) to infrastructure-oriented developments. There is favour for larger government-backed and international community supported projects such as mass transport networks, bridges, clean energy, and water treatment systems. While there is interest in Public Private Partnerships, there is also a growing interest in the private sector and private equity-led development infrastructures like renewable energy plants, waste-to-energy facilities, smart city (district) systems, or green data centres across Southeast Asia.

Overall, we are seeing increased market potential, new technologies, better accessibility to finance and a changing mindset. Everyone now has a role to play in terms of getting it right when designing future infrastructure.

Climate change and net zero prompting change

Climate change is influencing the type and quality of infrastructure being built and operated now. It is also prompting consideration in relation to its immediate and future impact. As such, we have observed major shifts in infrastructure investments of interest.

The realisation of an impending climate emergency with a global movement to address this crisis gathering pace means some infrastructure will be rendered either stranded or obsolete. Future projects increasingly must be green, renewable, circular, sustainable, and low/zero carbon. Making infrastructure environmentally responsible and resilient is not only a major goal but a global journey. For example, there is a keen focus on renewable energy, floating solar, battery storage projects now as these projects present opportunities to supplement energy-intensive uses. Mass transit systems, too, are also exploring using energy from waste. While we are moving in this direction, there is still a long way to go to being fully reliant on renewable energy.

Asia is entering a phase where there are multiple opportunities to not only build infrastructure but to design higher quality and better infrastructure that not only addresses capacity issues, but offers concrete social, economic, and environmental benefits. Given the times, these projects must tick the box not just at the delivery stage but also during the operations and maintenance phases.

As a result, the role of engineering and advisory companies like Aurecon is becoming increasingly important. Clients and investors want to be ensured that the physical integrity of an infrastructure’s design, its impact, its financing, its overall lifecycle and operability, and in some cases even its disposal and reuse, have all been thought through comprehensively and creatively.

Although infrastructure investments in Asia are attractive, there is pressure for higher standards and better outcomes. Investments will favour specific projects that match the values of local as well as international communities. Infrastructure projects like power, water, transportation, smart and IT cloud-based developments remain attractive – presenting high benefits and returns. There is immense interest in new sources of clean and renewable energy, as well as in resilient infrastructure. Countries in Asia have policies and are exploring instruments to promote investments and financing in this space. This includes Hong Kong, Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, and Vietnam.

Ushering in a new era for Asian infrastructure 

We are entering an exciting new era of infrastructure development in Asia, and the good news is there is no shortage of funds to support these programs. However, lenders are demanding more of infrastructure investments and putting weight on non-financial requirements.

For example, there is increasing emphasis on addressing ESG (Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance) as well as climate change-related disclosures. There are also new green financing windows opening like the World Bank’s City Climate Finance Gap Fund. This is a financing program that aims to unlock over EUR4 billion of investment in new infrastructure on the condition that it focuses on climate-smart projects and the urban climate initiative.

We must recognise that designing Asia’s infrastructure of tomorrow is an evolving and maturing process.

As much as Asia is attractive and unique in terms of its scale and required capacity for development, there are also higher expectations of design, quality, lifecycle, bankability, and operability that matter more now with increasing demands from investors and stakeholders. As engineers, we need to be open to new ways of doing things and remain agile. Every country has its own priorities, which investors must pay heed to, and it is interesting to note how this varies:

  • [Hong Kong] Attention remains focused on transit-oriented developments and rail as it helps connect the community. However, there are entertainment investments for example, in large-scale iconic venues. The city also strives to be a leader in digital transformation and to become a smart city. At the same time, there is interest to keep the city’s critical infrastructure resilient.
  • [Indonesia] The market is hot for cloud-based infrastructure and data centres, but at the same time, international investors are exploring the use of renewable forms of energy for these developments, at least for non-critical functions. There continues to be an interest in transport-related infrastructure and infrastructure investments leverage on the country’s immense population.
  • [Philippines] The Philippines is in a ‘Golden Age of Infrastructure’. In addition to high-quality toll roads, bridges, airports and mass transit, there is a push for other types of infrastructure such as greenways, water transmission, renewable energy, and hospitals/cancer centres.
  • [Singapore] The government’s attention is focused on critical infrastructure, integrated water, drainage, climate change resilience and readiness. There are major initiatives around coastal and flood protection, the circular economy, wastewater treatment and moving infrastructure underground.
  • [Thailand] The focus is on connectivity (both physical and digital). The country will use infrastructure investment to spur the development of a number of new smart cities and corridors. These projects include the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) and regional corridor developments like the Belt and Road initiative.
  • [Vietnam] Vietnam’s priority is to become a digital society. At the same time, it is strongly pursuing a national energy grid powered primarily by renewable energy, which includes South East Asia’s largest solar power plant. It is also pursuing its own share of climate change adoption and integration projects.

Embracing digital engineering to design resilient infrastructure 

Delivering and commissioning such a varied group of projects makes design thinking critical. A big part of the upcoming solutions will leverage digital engineering. To plan for the impacts of climate change on infrastructure, we must consider an increasingly wide range of scenario planning. And the only practical way to run the complex calculations that are needed to simulate the performance of infrastructure in limitless scenarios is through digital engineering and modelling.

Investors also now want to see the long-term cost, operability, and security of their asset investments either through management or monitoring systems or digital twins. A great way to demonstrate this is via digital engineering, or a “model first” approach that provides instant visualisation to the audience. Digital engineering can show owners and governments how to better design, as well as manage and monitor the infrastructure asset once it is built and will open the door to further possibilities like operational efficiencies down the line. Although digital engineering remains a relatively new concept in construction, it is exciting to consider the potential it offers.

Smart infrastructure will determine Asia’s ability to withstand climate change and drive emissions reductions and a greener way of living. By focusing on good design and getting smart about technology, we have the power to shape a bright new future. And one that ensures we remain an attractive investment opportunity for the whole world.

Anita Ho joins Aurecon as Director, Major Projects, Greater China

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International engineering, design and advisory company Aurecon has appointed Anita Ho as its new Director, Major Projects, Greater China with effect from 6 December 2021. Anita is based in Hong Kong and will report directly to Aurecon’s soon-to-be-announced Managing Director for Greater China

To aid its comeback from the COVID-19 pandemic as well as boost its economy, the Hong Kong government announced a stimulus package earlier this year of HK$120 billion (US$15.4 billion). A large portion of the investment will be channelled to four main infrastructure projects aimed at enhancing mobility and integrating the city more closely with others along the Pearl River Delta. Further investment is expected in the future too, as over the next decade or so, Hong Kong’s annual capital works expenditure is estimated to be HK$100 billion per year.

With its strategic location making the city a gateway for trade and investment between Mainland China and ASEAN countries, and Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) economies accounting for 73% of its merchandise trade last year, the importance – and potential payback – of these infrastructure schemes cannot be underestimated. As such, Aurecon is taking a proactive approach to further bolster its leadership team as it looks to strengthen its position further in Asia.

“One of the key attributes we are looking for in this role was a comprehensive understanding of the Greater China market, and Anita brings extensive experience with her to Aurecon,” said Stephane Asselin, Aurecon’s Chief Executive for Asia. “Over the past 25 years, she has worked on a diverse portfolio of engineering projects in Greater China and in Asia, from planning and feasibility studies to design and construction. She has an excellent talent for harnessing strong analytical and problem-solving skills to successfully manage large and complex infrastructure projects, including multidisciplinary engineering designs for government projects.”

“Growing our business in this region is a key strategic objective for Aurecon. With Anita on board, I am confident that she will strengthen our ability to deliver greater value to clients, bring ideas to life and grow our business.”

A member of the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (East Asia Branch), Anita has 25 years of extensive experience in all aspects of project management. This includes 20 years of working in the design and construction management of infrastructure projects.

Leading Aurecon’s major projects in Greater China, Anita will be responsible for the smooth delivery of major projects in terms of quality assurance, risk mitigation, management and review. She will also develop and implement Aurecon’s strategy to increase cooperation with government agencies, as the company seeks to cement its reputation as a Tier 1 provider for engineering and advisory services in Asia.

“I am excited to start in my new role at such an innovative organisation, one that is growing so rapidly in Asia and working on some of the largest infrastructure projects in the region,” said Anita. “I share Aurecon’s strong desire to leave a lasting legacy, and I hope to make good use of the experience I’ve gained over the years to work with key clients in the public sector to solve their complex challenges.”

Anita joins Aurecon from her role as Chief Project Manager (Design) at Hong Kong’s West Kowloon Cultural District Authority where she led a team of design consultants and project managers engaged in the creation of one of the world’s largest cultural quarters.

Prior to this, she spent just under four years as Technical Director at AECOM, where she managed several transport-related projects. These include the Kuala Lumpur–Singapore High-Speed Rail RDC06 package and the Klang Valley Mass Rapid Transit schemes in Malaysia, as well as the Third Runway Concourse Design at the Hong Kong International Airport. She has also worked on the Hong Kong – Guangzhou Express Rail Link project during her earlier time with the organisation as Principal Engineer.

Earlier in her career where she spent her time with several well-reputed international project management and engineering organisations, Anita managed numerous large-scale projects in Asia. Key projects that she was involved with included being the Contract Administrator for the Cathay Pacific New Cargo Terminal Project, the Project Manager for DHL Central Asia Hub Expansion Project at the Hong Kong International Airport; she was also the Project Manager for the Astra Sunter Jakarta Masterplan. During her time with the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation, she was also the Planning Engineer for the Shatin to Central Link Project and Northern Link Project. Her first post-graduate position was as a graduate engineer at Hyder Consulting Limited, where she was engaged in various utility assessments, engineering studies and design projects.

Aurecon Wins Prestigious Construction Industry Council Innovation Award In Hong Kong

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After a rigorous judging and interview process, global engineering, design, and advisory company Aurecon has won the ‘International 2nd Prize’ in the Construction Industry Council (CIC) Innovation Awards in Hong Kong for its innovative Drone Rock-Mapping Technology. The award was presented at a ceremony on 18 December.

The biennial awards program is one of the flagship events for the construction and engineering industry in Asia, promoting divergent thinking and innovative solutions through new technology applications and scientific breakthroughs, spearheading the sustainable development of the industry.

The award-winning technology was developed by Camilla Gibbons, an Infrastructure Associate and Team Leader at Aurecon, along with her team, which were tackling the challenges faced in New Zealand by post-earthquake projects to remediate damaged cliffs and landslides.

To safely enable construction work underneath the 80-metre-high cliff at Deans Head in Christchurch, and on the surrounding unstable land, the project team engineered the unique and cutting-edge smart drone mapping technology. Combining laser scanning of the cliff and use of drones with photogrammetry techniques provided the inputs to Aurecon’s new digital rock-mapping tool: the first technology of its kind to be used in New Zealand.

Ms Gibbons said the need for accurate rock-face data to address safety concerns was what drove them to innovate.

“To work safely, we needed an accurate 3D photogrammetry model of the site, which would have been impossible without the drone,” she said.

“The technology marks a positive step forward for the industry by offering an alternative to old-style manual rock-mapping techniques, in which safety was a major challenge to overcome.”

Not only did drone-mapping capture vast amounts of information very quickly, but the extracted data was transformed into highly accurate three-dimensional models using sophisticated software. The innovative digital rock-mapping tool then extracted the information required to undertake stability analysis, directly from the digital model.

Aurecon’s Managing Director for Greater China Johnny Lam said that Aurecon is very proud to receive this award in recognition of the team’s effort and contribution to driving construction safety.

“At Aurecon, our passion for digital is reimagining engineering and driving us to use our engineering and advisory expertise to support our clients with creative solutions,” he said.