HUNTLY STEEL DEAL TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE Fulton Hogan and HEB Construction are in the spotlight after a Chinese steel deal turned out to be too good to be true as part of the Huntly bypass $458 million project. Two of the four have used the weak steel, according to Radio New Zealand, now reinforced with concrete, and the contractors have asked the importer, Steel & Tube, for replacement tube piles for the two others. RNZ reported that a source “warned by other reputable and highly experienced tenderers that they were likely on very shaky ground” with the Steel & Tube bid, and that “the price was too low to be of compliant standard”. Some 900 or so steel tubes, up to 900mm in diameter and 40 tonnes each comprise the project. RNZ reported that other sources say the winning bid was 30 to 40 percent below average market prices of about $1.5m for 1600 tonnes - which also happens to be the ballpark bill to take remedial measures and a bid was well shy of any others and that this should have “set off serious alarm bells at Fulton Hogan”. http://tinyurl.com/hfctpb6 NZTECH PLEASED BY INVESTMENT IN TECHNOLOGY Budget 2016 is an encouraging boost for technology NZTech chief executive Graeme Muller says. “It’s heartening to see the $761 million for Innovative New Zealand, a package of science, skills and regional development initiatives to help grow and diversify the economy. “We can see technology playing increasingly important roles in science and innovation and it is great to see the Budget allocating $410.5 million in these areas producing the 21st century skills New Zealand needs to grow our digital nation,” Mr Muller says. INNOVATIVE ENGINEERING IN PIPE RENEWAL Contractors have started work on relining sewer mains in Rotorua’s Whakatau area using an innovative process called inversion which involves manufacturing new pipes within old pipes using polyester resin. The $1.03 million wasterwater pipe renewal project, which puts a flexible resin liner inside existing pipes, should be completed this month. DRILLING ON TRACK AT GEOTHERMAL PLANT Drilling is underway on the first of three wells for the Te Ahi O Maui geothermal power project near Kawerau. Project manager, Ben Gibson, says that the drilling process will target known sources of geothermal fluid, which could be as hot as 200- 300 degrees Celsius. “It’s this high-temperature fluid that will ultimately fuel the geothermal power plant,” he advised. The Te Ahi O Maui project team is working with internationally recognised drilling specialists including the New Zealand owned and operated rig contractor, MB Century; ancillary service provider, Halliburton; and supervising engineers, 11 Jacobs (formerly SKM). N E W S the rest of the motor car industry in designing and building pressed steel bodies, ‘designed to serve as a perfect blank canvas upon which patrons of luxury could express their tastes and lifestyles’. The 103EX features a lightweight carbon fibre structure and is powered by a zero emission drivetrain with electric motors positioned both at the front and the rear. At 5900mm in length, it provides seating for just two on a sofa like bench seat positioned at the rear of its rakish cabin. Engineers from WelTec’s School of Engineering and the School of Creative Industries have teamed up to design and build a prototype cellphone charging tower powered by solar energy. Engineer Frans Weehuizen designed the electronics for the ‘green’ cellphone tower and Darren Ward incorporated the Maori legend of how Maui captured the sun into the design of the tower giving the story a 21st century edge. Tutorial and technical staff from the School of Engineering contributed to the project with Wel- Tec’s engineering fabrication students welding the stainless steel tower together. The tower is 3.5 metres high with a solar panel at the top to harness the sun’s energy allowing up to eight users at any one time to use five volts of energy to charge their cellphone. This is the typical amount of voltage required to charge a cellphone for half an hour. The rate of charge required varies according to individual cellphones, but users may only need to wait ten minutes before they get enough charge to last them until they get home or to their place of work. Lower Hutt Mayor Ray Wallace says, “It’s great to see this kind of innovation in Lower Hutt. It’s always exciting to see new technology introduced and the creative applications that result, especially sustainable technologies that also improve our residents’ quality of life.” Mr Weeihuzen adds, “The idea is that Lower Hutt New Zealand’s first solar powered cell phone charging tower On the charge with WelTec has several cellphone charging towers located near a coffee van or picnic table or outside The Dowse Gallery so that while your phone is being charged you can be nearby enjoying a coffee or catching up with friends,”. “We are hopeful now that a telecommunications company sees the benefit that this prototype can bring to a local community and helps us to build these towers around Lower Hutt in safe and secure locations.” The solar powered cellphone charging tower is symmetrical so it can be oriented in any direction. The panel is rotatable and can be set up to point north to maximise energy collection.
EN-Jul16
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