16 | Tasman Alliance T T Hugh de Lacy Innovative alliance working well The Tasman Alliance maintains 1099km of Tasman District roads. REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT Innovations that include the development of a pioneering emulsion stabilisation mill has helped Downer’s Transport and Infrastructure team cement a collaborative maintenance and renewals contract with the Tasman District Council that is now nearing the end of its first four-year term. Called the Tasman Alliance, it reflects a transition from the traditional road maintenance contract in that it offers a comprehensive agreement that includes minor capital works, network inspections, asset management, vegetation control, street cleaning, incident response and annual resurfacing. It also covers the maintenance of sealed and unsealed pavements, drainage, traffic signals and road marking. Most notably it has seen Downer build a mobile emulsion stabilisation mill by retrofitting a traditional mill with the ability to directly inject emulsion to the mill-head, allowing a range of standard aggregates like basecourse, sub-base and crushed concrete to be mixed with the likes of lime and cement, and bound with bitumen emulsion. The effect is to reduce the reliance on standard aggregates, and thereby to significantly reduce the cost of transporting them from often-distant quarries. A new binder, called Enviro Base which was separately developed by Downer’s Road Science division, has shown through laboratory testing a standard of performance that is greater than traditional stabilisation. It’s a room-temperature product which, alongside the resultant increased health and safety advantages, reduces emissions in comparison to traditional bitumen. “The environmental impact from water emulsifying the bitumen over cut-back bitumen using kerosene can only be the way forward as the industry looks to become more environmentally sustainable,” Tasman Alliance Manager Drew Hayes says. “Since completing the trials and proving the method, we have delivered 15,000m2 of emulsion stabilisation over the past three seasons, and we now have no fewer than five other emulsion mills in service with Downer, with further builds under way. “This is the very definition of the alliance team’s innovative thinking and its challenging of the norm,” he says. The Tasman Alliance maintains 1099km of Tasman District roads, 741km of them sealed, along with 235km of footpaths, 5763 culverts, 6700 sumps, 1172km of kerbing and channelling, nearly 8000 signs and numerous walkways and cycleways. Both Downer and district council staff are represented on the Alliance Leadership Team, and they work out of the same office, which results in true collaboration, Drew says. Earlier this year Downer gifted the Tasman Alliance 2000m3 of concrete that had been crushed by tender-winner CJ Industries into 65mm and 100mm material size, with the cost of the material turning out to be 29% lower than alternative materials, as well as diverting material from landfill. The alliance is backed up by principal sub-contractors that include Delta Utility Services for vegetation control, and Ezi-Sweep industries for street-cleaning, litter collection and sump cleaning. Treescape Limited provides aboricultural services, CJ Industries performs some drainage renewals, while Independent Kerb and Concrete maintains the footpaths and offers other concrete services. The alliance structure was first adopted by Downer and the Tasman District Council in 2020, and the contract will run through into 2024. “This refreshed ‘best-for-network’ approach has resulted in excellent outcomes in terms of building a high-performing team, in asset management and ownership of the network, customer focus and engagement, and improvements in the delivery of services,” Drew says. “We are trusted to make decisions and act on behalf of the council. “This is a skill set and attitude we have developed through a commitment to the Tasman Alliance enabled by the trust that the Tasman District Council has in us. “We continue to develop and foster true collaboration through the alliance’s co-location, and our engagement with councillors,” he says. 0800 873 396 treescape.co.nz Up high, or down low, Treescape® safely clears theway. Maintenance to keep things clearer and greener for the future. Sustainable solutions for your GreenAsset Management plans. Congratulations to Downer Nelson on becoming a finalist in the 2023 CCNZ awards. Treescape looks forward to continuing the successful partnership with Drew and the excellent team at Downer. We are Approved Contractors with the Nelson and Tasman District Councils meaning we can complete that entranceway shaping, driveway adjustment or new crossing that you may require. • INDUSTRIAL SITES • TENNIS COURTS • PATHS • DRIVEWAYS • DRAINAGE • CARPARKS 0274 222 176 | 021 547 684 | 03 928 0676 | 19 McPherson Street, Richmond, Nelson 7020 jarod@asphaltandconstruction.co.nz | jason@asphaltandconstruction.co.nz johnny@asphaltandconstruction.co.nz | www.asphaltandconstruction.co.nz DELIVERING QUALITY SOLUTIONS Talk to us about any job, no matter the size Proudly Working with the Tasman Alliance
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