CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY – AUSTRALIA

Union could face $500,000 in penalties

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 19-Mar-15

Fair Work Building & Construction director Nigel Hadgkiss will pursue significant financial penalties against the construction industry union following a Federal Court ruling. The court has ruled that the Construction, Forestry, Mining & Energy Union’s conduct during industrial action in Melbourne in 2012 was in breach of workplace laws. The union and six officials could face fines of more than $A500,000

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, FAIR WORK BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, EMPORIUM MELBOURNE, McNAB PTY LTD, SUPREME COURT OF VICTORIA, GROCON PTY LTD, MONJON AUSTRALIA

Constructive tactics pay dividends

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Original article by Jenny Wiggins
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 27 : 12-Feb-15

Australian construction group Leighton Holdings has posted a net profit of $A676.5m for the 2014 calendar year, which is 33 per cent higher than previously. The group expects its net profit for 2015 to be within the range of $A450m and $A520m. Shareholders will receive a final dividend of $A0.53 per share, plus a special dividend of $A0.15 following the sale of the John Holland business for $A1.1bn

CORPORATES
LEIGHTON HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX LEI, JOHN HOLLAND PTY LTD, HOCHTIEF AG, GRUPO ACS, CHEVRON CORPORATION, AL HABTOOR LEIGHTON GROUP, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, FLEETCO

Labor plan on Link compo

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Original article by Josh Gordon, Mark Hawthorne
The Age – Page: 6 : 4-Dec-14

The companies contracted to build the East West Link may seek compensation if the new Victorian Government abandons the project. The Australian Labor Party warned before the election that it would stop the toll road. The consortium formed to build the East West Link includes Acciona Infrastructure, Lend Lease, Capella Capital and Bouygues Travaux Publics. The Government may offer them alternative contracts

CORPORATES
LEND LEASE GROUP LIMITED – ASX LLC, LEIGHTON HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX LEI, BOUYGUES SA, CAPELLA CAPITAL PTY LTD, ACCIONA SA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, VICTORIA. DEPT OF PREMIER AND CABINET, VICTORIA. DEPT OF TREASURY AND FINANCE

Home of fraudster who posed as psychiatrist sold for $3m after Supreme Court order

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Original article by Kate McClymont
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: 2 : 24-Nov-14

Supreme Court of New South Wales judge Arthur Emmett on 7 November 2014 increased the amount owed to the Chateau Constructions residential building firm by a serial fraudster to $A1.7m-plus. Vitomir Zepinic had counter-sued Chateau when it sought to recover a final payment of $A223,000 in late 2006 for work done on a mansion at Turramurra in Sydney. Zepinic has previously been convicted, but not jailed, for claiming to be a psychiatrist in Queensland and then the UK. The property has now been sold for $A3m-plus by a court-appointed trustee

CORPORATES
CHATEAU CONSTRUCTIONS PTY LTD, SUPREME COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES, TOOWOOMBA HOSPITAL, LOCAL COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES, QUEEN MARY UNIVERSITY OF LONDON, NEW SOUTH WALES. CONSUMER, TRADER AND TENANCY TRIBUNAL, COURT OF APPEAL (NEW SOUTH WALES)

Firms guilty of negligence over fatal fall at Southbank site

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Original article by Nick Toscano
The Age – Page: 4 : 10-Nov-14

A County Court of Victoria jury has found Keller Australia subsidiaries Frankipile and Vibropile guilty of failing to provide safe systems of work and adequate information, instruction, training or supervision. The two ground engineering companies will be sentenced by judge Peter Wischuse later in November 2014, over the death of Sonny Swaanebeck in May 2011. The 30-year-old had fallen 40 metres when a pile-driving rig at a Southbank construction site collapsed

CORPORATES
KELLER AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, FRANKIPILE AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, VIBRO-PILE (AUST) PTY LTD, COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA, VICTORIAN WORKCOVER AUTHORITY

Construction sector firms

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Original article by Michael Bleby
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 50 : 21-Oct-14

Master Builders Australia (MBA) has reported that non-residential construction has returned to a growth phase. Its quarterly survey of the construction industry suggests that the turnaround, after more than four years of indicating contraction, is not a temporary trend. The MBA’s commercial construction index rose to 54.4 points in the third quarter of 2014, compared with 49.2 in the previous quarter

CORPORATES
LEND LEASE GROUP LIMITED – ASX LLC, MASTER BUILDERS AUSTRALIA INCORPORATED, HANSEN YUNCKEN PTY LTD, ROYAL ADELAIDE HOSPITAL

Lend Lease still busy

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Original article by Michael Bleby
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 34 : 26-Sep-14

Lend Lease gained $A4.94bn worth of construction contracts in 2013. This ranks it first on the Housing Industry Association/Cordell Construction list of the nation’s 100 largest contractors. Thiess and Brookfield Multiplex rounded out the top three, with $A2.88bn and $A2.51bn worth of contracts respectively. Multi-dwelling residential projects accounted for 20.7 per cent of contracts awarded to top 100 companies in 2013

CORPORATES
LEND LEASE GROUP LIMITED – ASX LLC, HOUSING INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION LIMITED, CORDELL BUILDING INFORMATION SERVICES, THIESS PTY LTD, LEIGHTON HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX LEI, BROOKFIELD MULTIPLEX LIMITED, BGC (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, LEIGHTON CONTRACTORS PTY LTD, ABIGROUP LIMITED, BAULDERSTONE PTY LTD, MERITON APARTMENTS PTY LTD, PARKVIEW GROUP, ICON CONSTRUCTION AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Apartment boom crowns Triguboff

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Original article by Michael Bleby
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 42 : 25-Sep-14

Meriton Group displaced BGC as Australia’s largest residential builder in 2013-14. according to the Housing Institute of Australia-Colorbond Housing 100 report. Meriton boasted 7,929 housing starts for the financial year, compared with 5,004 for BCG. The nation’s 100 largest home builders collectively boasted 66,764 housing starts in 2013-14, with apartments accounting for 24 per cent of dwelling commencements

CORPORATES
MERITON APARTMENTS PTY LTD, BGC (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, HOUSING INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION LIMITED, ALCOCK/BROWN-NEAVES GROUP, METRICON HOMES, SIMONDS HOMES GROUP LIMITED, HENLEY PROPERTIES, JWH GROUP PTY LTD, HOTONDO HOMES, MASTERTON HOMES PTY LTD, BROOKFIELD MULTIPLEX LIMITED, LU SIMON PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS, BEECHWOOD HOMES PTY LTD, AVELING HOMES PTY LTD, NICHE LIVING PTY LTD, HOME AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, METRO PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT PTY LTD, JAXON CONSTRUCTIONS, DIPLOMA GROUP LIMITED – ASX DGX, CAVALIER CORPORATION LIMITED, CAPITAL WORKS CONSTRUCTIONS PTY LTD, BOLD PROPERTIES, SOUTHERN VALE HOMES, ADENBROOK HOMES PTY LTD, ESSENTIAL FIRST CHOICE HOMES PTY LTD, J L FITENI HOMES PTY LTD, BOTANIC HOMES PTY LTD, MEGARA CONSTRUCTIONS PTY LTD, NOSTRA HOMES AND DEVELOPMENTS PTY LTD

Leighton emails: ‘disgusting history of incompetence’

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Original article by Nick McKenzie, Richard Baker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 8 : 15-Sep-14

Bribery allegations against former Leighton Holdings employees have been backed by leaked emails. The emails reveal that senior employees planned to make payments to gain work in Iraq. The payments would be disguised by inflating and backdating contracts. The Australian Federal Police will hand a brief on bribery in Iraq to the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions by early 2015

CORPORATES
LEIGHTON HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX LEI, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE, AUSTRALIA. DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS, LEIGHTON OFFSHORE PTE LTD, UNAOIL GROUP, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AL HABTOOR LEIGHTON GROUP

Big projects could be hiding phoenix scams

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Original article by Aaron Patrick, Nick McKenzie
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 8 : 25-Aug-14

Construction is one of the sectors said to be plagued by contractors deliberately letting businesses fail only to resurrect them in a "phoenix" move, designed to avoid taxation and employee entitlement liabilities. The Australian Taxation Office, Australian Securities & Investments Commission and Fair Work Building & Construction have announced they will look into the issue at eight of the nation’s major infrastructure developments. The Australian Federal Police will then hand an evidence brief to the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, AUSTRALIA. OFFICE OF THE FAIR WORK BUILDING INDUSTRY INSPECTORATE, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE, AUSTRALIA. DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS, LEND LEASE GROUP LIMITED – ASX LLC, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO TRADE UNION GOVERNANCE AND CORRUPTION, PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA