John Holland: Australia’s Leading Construction Company

John Holland’s expertise covers a wide range of contracting and service capabilities, from building and civil construction solutions in the infrastructure sector to the delivery of major tunnelling, water and environment, energy, minerals, and industrial projects in the energy and resources sector.

John Holland is part of the China Communications Constructions Company (CCCC), one of the world’s largest infrastructure construction organisations. CCCC is ranked #187 on the Fortune 500 list and #4 in Global Contractors by Engineering News Record and is an acknowledged leader in the execution of complex infrastructural projects including bridges, high speed rail, deep water port development and social infrastructure.

John Holland is a tier 1 contractor with a large number of highly successful projects to its credit. The company is also a leading provider of services to the transport sector, with industry leading expertise and capability in railway construction, operations and maintenance.

Green Star Initiatives

Issues such as resource scarcity, urbanization, population growth, ecological decline and climate change are of great importance to John Holland and the company is actively participating with other industry stakeholders to suitably address future social needs.

John Holland has adopted sustainable practices and implemented them throughout the organisation in its effort to effectively manage future risks, increase positive social outcomes whilst reducing environmental impact. It is an active member of the Green Building Council of Australia, Infrastructure Sustainability Council of Australia, Sustainable Built Environment National Research Centre, Australian Constructors Association’s Sustainability Working Party and is a founding member of the Australian Supply Chain Sustainability School.

The Green Building Council of Australia has instituted various rating tools to assess the impact of design, construction and operation of buildings. The Green Star rating tool assesses the social and environmental attributes that relate to the design and construction activities carried out by construction companies. John Holland has excelled in the construction of such projects:

Kings Square 1 (KS1)

KS1 is a commercial high rise tower located in the Perth City Link Precinct, part of one of Australia’s most significant CBD urban renewal developments. The building offers 23,156 square metres of A Grade commercial office space across 19 levels with 680 square metres of ground floor retail.

The tower features advanced energy efficient systems, locally sourced materials and efficient destination controlled lifts amongst a host of other features resulting in a 5-Star Green Star rating being awarded to the project.

Medical Science 1 & 2, Tasmania

The company’s expertise in this area is exemplified by the University of Tasmania’s (UTAS) Medical Sciences Precinct, which became the first educational building in Tasmania to achieve a Green Star rating for environmental design.

The precinct includes the $42 million UTAS Medical Science 1 stage, a five-storey structure and refurbishment of a student accommodation building. The second stage, MS2, was valued at $62 million and houses clinical research facilities for the Menzies Research Institute, UTAS School of Medicine and the Royal Hobart Hospital.

The 5-Star Green Star – Education Design v1 rating awarded by the Green Building Council of Australia was based on a number of key innovations implemented by John Holland. These included an 80,000 litre rainwater harvesting tank serving toilets, solar hot water, energy-efficient lighting units with proximity sensor activation and daylight controls.

The building also has a number of other features to make it energy efficient. Extensive contoured sun shading serves to reduce power consumption. Thermal insulation breaks in the precast panels and high performance glazing systems serve the same purpose.

Provision has been made for rain water storage for use in toilets and for landscape irrigation. Outgoing water is treated before being pumped away. The interiors use natural rubber-based flooring, recycled timber and recycled content carpets. The entire construction activity has been done using sustainable materials.

The award-winning building provides facilities for 1,000 undergraduate students and office and laboratory facilities for 450 staff and postgraduate students. The company has succeeded in erecting a building which not only provides excellent facilities for students and staff, but also minimises the environmental impact.

John Holland’s and UTAS’s commitment to sustainable practices have also resulted in UTAS being conferred the Australasian Campuses Towards Sustainability Award of Excellence and the MBA National Commercial/Industrial Construction Award ($50 million to $100 million category).

University of Tasmania, Institute of Marine and Antarctic Sciences

John Holland executed the University of Tasmania’s Institute of Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS) project where it successfully achieved a 5-Star Green Star rating. The $40 million facility is situated on Hobart’s Princes Wharf No 2 site in Sullivan’s Cove.

The project has been jointly promoted by the University of Tasmania, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation and the Tasmanian government to explore and conserve Australia’s Southern Ocean and Antarctic Territories.

The IMAS building project is an initiative of the Australian Government which falls under its Education Investment Fund. The facility has a gross floor area of over 7,500 square metres and provides a suite of managed learning spaces. Lecture theatres and research hubs complement general and specific laboratories, some requiring physical and quarantine containment.

The construction involved the creation of controlled temperature and centralised culture facilities. All aspects of the building including its layout, orientation, façade treatment, material selection and building servicing were executed keeping in mind the UTAS brief to achieve a 5-Star Green Star design rating.

A number of specific features have been incorporated into the construction to make the building eco-friendly and give it a design that reduces its carbon footprint. Appropriate sun shading and management of solar thermal loads has been provided for.

The design allows natural daylight ingress to the inner part of each floor plate via skylights and central voids. The building is naturally ventilated and its design allows effective cooling and air change. John Holland received the Master Builders Association, Tasmania Award for ‘Commercial Building $20 – $50 million’ category for this project.

University of Newcastle Student Accommodation, Newcastle

Another contract for which John Holland has earned accolades for the implementation of eco-friendly concepts in its planning, design and construction, is the University of Newcastle student accommodation project. Four eight-storey towers were erected, with a total of 335 apartments accommodating 778 beds.

Each building was provided with a ground floor common area, a combination of apartments including six, five, two and one bedroom configurations as well as studios and a multi-use common room on each floor.

The buildings have been built to a 4-Star Green Star Design rating, which includes the installation of a cross-ventilation system and features the largest hydronic heating system installation in Australia.

Project Manager, Glen O’Connor says, “Natural energy is used to heat and cool the apartments through a cross-ventilation system with hollow core concrete floor planks acting as ducts, and a natural gas hydronic water system with 910 heating outlets. These features have a significant positive impact on the building’s internal environment, and provide a long-term advantage to cost saving and future building maintenance.”

John Holland has 16 Green Star-qualified staff members participating in the Green Building Council of Australia’s continual professional development program. Eleven staff members have completed IS Foundation Training with the Infrastructure Sustainability Council of Australia.

The company’s green initiatives and practices have served to differentiate it from its competitors and establish John Holland as a leading Australian construction firm for clients who wish to contribute towards preserving the environment.

The Way Ahead

Over the years John Holland has gained experience in a wide range of industries and sectors and has a well-deserved reputation for being a highly competent and capable construction firm. Now that it has become a part of the China Communications Construction Company Ltd, it will have even greater scope as it will be able to leverage the opportunities offered by its parent.

With increasing stress being laid on sustainability and green issues, John Holland is at a distinct advantage as it has attained numerous Green Star ratings for its work. The company has embedded sustainable practices in every part of its business in a manner that enables it to intelligently weigh the economic, environmental, social and governance aspects on its long-term ability to prosperously sustain the business and the communities in which it operates.

John Holland is well-positioned to take advantage of its unique set of skills and experience to benefit from the projected growth in Australian infrastructure and to capitalise on the new possibilities presented by virtue of being a subsidiary of one of the largest international construction companies.