From the CEO
As we head towards school holidays and the Easter break, the team and committee members at UDIA are very busy working on a range of policy & advocacy issues that are impacting industry. Last Friday we heard from WAPC Chairman, David Caddy on the outcomes to date from the State Development Assessment Unit (SDAU) and what we can expect from the proposed Special Matters DAP together with Ray Haeren from Urbis. UDIA WA is finalising our submission supporting the continuation of the SDAU along with its power to approve developments that fall outside scheme requirements and deliver a significant benefit to the State.
We had the opportunity to meet with DWER Director General Michelle Andrews and members of her senior leadership team this week to discuss industry concerns regarding resourcing, assessment timeframes, strategic water mapping and licensing both within DWER and the EPA. I’m pleased to report that there is a lot of activity underway to address these issues as well as the prioritisation of greater alignment and collaboration between DPLH & DWER.
I’m excited to report that there is a lot of great work and enthusiasm from members of our Climate Change Advisory Group on the role UDIA and its members can play in addressing the challenges we are already facing in adapting & responding to a net zero future. As an industry we are responsible for leaving lasting legacies – it’s critical that we ensure we are creating sustainable communities for our children, and their children to enjoy for decades to come.
On that note, for those of you with children I wish you an enjoyable and safe (isolation free) break over the school holidays.
HV Pool Governance Committee meeting
The HV Pool Governance Committee met recently for an update from Western Power on the progress of the HV Pool.
In the meeting Western Power noted that the HV Pool balance continues to decline and for February 2022 is at $11.2m, largely reflecting the lowering of the System charge to $150/kVA and an increase in payments from the pool.
In the absence of lowering the system charge the balance would have been $15.9M.
UDIA is seeking to further reduce the system charge with a decision in the near future. At UDIA’s request, Western Power will investigate if pool payments for earthing, environmental bunds and Earth Potential Rise reports can be made.
A review of the HV Pool is planned with timing to reflect resource availability.
For more information and to view the presentation slides from the meeting, click here.
WA, the innovation capital of Australia
PropTech Hub WA officially opened February 2021 and quickly became the leading advocate in Western Australia connecting innovation to the largest industry, property & construction. Voicing the opportunities to industry and promoting cutting edge innovation that is changing how the sector operates today, tomorrow and in decades to come.
For example, uDrew helping homeowners get pool, patio and shed permits quicker, Scantek verifying identification easier for land transactions, Realtime Conveyancer simplifying settlements, Realty Assist processing finance options better, Openn negotiation selling homes more transparently, Phaeton creating crypto currency backed by property and powered by renewable energy, Inspect Kit reporting land faster, Whizzl making it easier for community to communicate with local government, Our Towns creating an open source format for community interaction and the list keeps going on and on.
The point is, you’re either embracing innovation and pulling it into your organisation or, you’re not. Think Blockbuster and Netflix. The biggest companies can fall because they didn’t pull in the opportunities that innovation offers.
To read our guest blog written by Cullum Ashton, General Manager of PropTech Hub WA, click here.
Round two of committee meetings
UDIA’s Climate Action; Community Engagement & Education; and Economic Committees met this week discussing a broad variety of issues, challenges and opportunities for both the development industry and government providing valuable feedback and insight to UDIA.
The Climate Action Advisory Group discussed a framework and options for a climate position statement, whilst the Economic committee agenda focused on Development Contribution schemes, overcoming challenges within the regulatory approval framework and discussed population and migration trends.
UDIA’s Community Engagement, Environment and Industry Workforce are set to meet today, tomorrow and Monday to close out round two of meetings
Western Power industry update
Western Power have provided an update on supply delays as a result of global supply chains being fractured by heavy port congestion, vessel delays and shipping container shortages, whilst the aviation industry is yet to recover from a collapse in air cargo capacity.
These scenarios are universally delaying cargo onboarding, progression, transit and completion resulting in many Western Power material suppliers’ supply chains experiencing continued disruptions, commonly manifesting as delivery delays on raw material and finished products. Impacts of COVID and weather events on Eastern States workforces, and the recent COVID lockdowns in China and Shanghai are currently compounding these issues.
This is causing approximately four to six week delays to deliveries to our Jandakot Distribution Centre.
How does this affect you?
- Replenishment of stock items are impacted. The current list of critical inventory items and current indicative lead times from placement of requisition are:
- Ground mounted transformers – maintained at 180 days
- Exceptions are the following stock codes
- MPS units – XA2414, XA2416, XA2422 – extended to 230 days
- NMPS – XA2446, XA2450 – extended to 230 days
- Metering units – range XA2426 to XA2432 – extended to 240 days
- RMUs
- 24KV standard –230 days
- 24KV non standard – 280 days
- 36KV – 300 days
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- EC1102 – indicative lead time from placement of requisition is now 60 days
- Lead times remain extended by four to six weeks for made-to-order items to increase visibility of this issue and allow for realistic planning.
- Air freight availability has decreased and prices have increased. Advice is to not rely on air freighting options without consulting with us.
- Ground mounted transformers – maintained at 180 days
The impact of the COVID 19 pandemic on manufacturing and distribution supply chains is global, sustained, and comprises of simultaneous significant disorder to organisations’ logistical networks. The resulting disruption is widely recognised as a worldwide commercial constraint.
Whilst there is uncertainty surrounding the lifecycle of this phenomenon, global supply chain disruption and the associated economic and delivery security challenges are reasonably expected to continue to influence manufacturing and logistics into 2024.
To assist Western Power at this time they have provided the below ideas to ease their supply constraints:
- Reducing bulk-ordering: this will allow us to re-distribute the product accordingly, prioritising fault works and keeping in mind the community as our end customer.
- Placing your requisitions in Ellipse well in advance: the more lead time provided, the best we can manage our inventory levels and suppliers.
- Providing forecast: this will allow us to procure items with long lead times (3 to 5 months) that haven’t been requisitioned yet.
- For projects designed and constructed by Western Power: customers submit an application and enter into early undertaking contract for long lead items.
The Western Power Supply Chain team continue to actively manage the impacts with Western Power suppliers to ensure they maintain visibility of the interdependencies each supplier is responding to, along with supply capacity and alternatives.
Supply Chain progressively informs the Executive Committee and Board on the contributing factors, their impacts on the value chains of Western Power’s material suppliers, and how risks associated with the disruptions are being addressed by the Commercial function for inventory network materials.
You will be contacted by the relevant Supply Chain Specialist if your requisition or project has been impacted by any other issues not listed above.
For more information, click here.
Homes for Homes Opens First Funding Round
Homes for Homes is delighted to announce a new grant funding round for social and affordable housing projects, with up to $160,000 available for the first time across NSW and WA. Up to $80,000 will be available in both NSW and WA.
From Monday 11 April social and affordable housing providers in NSW and WA are encouraged to apply for grant funding.
This funding milestone marks the fifth round of grants released to community housing projects by Homes for Homes. Previous grant rounds have seen $1.28 million granted to social and affordable housing providers in the ACT and NT, VIC and Qld, totalling thirteen projects providing housing for 96 people. Visit our website for more information on our funded projects.
Homes for Homes will continue to take a flexible approach to the projects it supports, and is open to applications from any organisation that can create social and affordable housing. Housing providers can apply for grant funding in either NSW or WA, or both. Applications will be assessed by expert, industry-based advisory groups in NSW and WA.
The funding round closes on Friday 13 May. To apply, visit homesforhomes.org.au/funding.
RBA retains cash rate but rise likely this year
At its monthly Monetary Policy Decision meeting, the Reserve Bank of Australia chose to retain the cash rate target at 0.1%, however with inflation increasing sharply in many parts of the world a rate rise this year is looking more likely.
In announcing the decision RBA Governor Dr Philip Lowe said the Australian economy remains resilient and spending is picking up following the Omicron setback with household and business balance sheets in generally good shape. He then pointed to an upswing in business investment underway with a large pipeline of construction work to be completed.
Dr Lowe also highlighted the strength of the Australian economy was evident in the labour market with the unemployment rate dropping to 4% in February and underemployment at its lowest level in years.
“The RBA’s central forecast is for the unemployment rate to fall to below 4% this year and to remain below 4% next year,” Dr Lowe said.
“Wages growth has picked up, but, at the aggregate level, is only around the relatively low rates prevailing before the pandemic. There are, however, some areas where larger wage increases are occurring.
“Given the tightness of the labour market, a further pick-up in aggregate wages growth and broader measures of labour costs is in prospect. This pick-up is still expected to be only gradual, although there is uncertainty about the behaviour of labour costs at historically low levels of unemployment.”
Regarding inflations Dr Lowe acknowledge it had increased in Australia but it remains lower than in many other countries; in underlying terms inflations is 2.6% and headlines terms is at 3.5%.
“Higher prices for petrol and other commodities will result in a further lift in inflation over coming quarters, with an updated set of forecasts to be published in May,” he said.
“The Board’s policies during the pandemic have supported progress towards the objectives of full employment and inflation consistent with the target. The Board has wanted to see actual evidence that inflation is sustainably within the 2 to 3 per cent target range before it increases interest rates.
“Over coming months, important additional evidence will be available to the Board on both inflation and the evolution of labour costs. The Board will assess this and other incoming information as its sets policy to support full employment in Australia and inflation outcomes consistent with the target.”
For more information and to read the statement in full, click here.
Delivering outcomes: a roadmap to improve infrastructure industry productivity and innovation
A new report by Infrastructure Australia looking at how we plan and deliver infrastructure in Australia was released at the end of March.
The report, titled Delivering outcomes: a roadmap to improve infrastructure industry productivity and innovation identifies that a transformational change is needed in how we plan and deliver infrastructure in Australia. This change must focus on delivering better outcomes for the community and for business through a more productive, innovative and sustainable infrastructure sector.
The reforms in this roadmap focus on changes to the way projects are procured and delivered, however the consequences reach into how an asset is managed, operated and maintained across its lifecycle. The reforms identified by this report will have long-term consequences for the services received by infrastructure service users and the community.
To achieve this step-change, seven focus areas of reforms are needed:
- Outcomes for people and places – Infrastructure investment is driven by delivering economic, social and environmental outcomes to enable people and places to flourish and prosper.
- Systems – Managing and planning infrastructure as a system drives more informed decision-making leading to higher quality, faster and cheaper infrastructure solutions that better align to the needs of people and places.
- Digital – Digital transformation will drive productivity and innovation in infrastructure delivery.
- Collaboration – Collaboration and integration across the ecosystem will drive a financially sustainable and high performing infrastructure industry.
- Commercial – Commercial alignment and optimisation drives industry financial sustainability and enables innovation.
- Innovation – Delivery integration and innovative techniques enable increased productivity.
- People – People wellbeing and resilience
For more information and to read the report in full, click here.
More than 170 new social houses to be delivered through $39 million grants program
This week Housing Minister John Carey announced nine community housing organisations and local governments will share in nearly $39 million worth of grants to deliver more than 170 new social housing properties in Western Australia.
The grants are being provided through the Department of Communities’ Social Housing Economic Recovery Package (SHERP), a $319 million housing stimulus package that the Government announced in June, 2020.
The SHERP New Build Grants will allow registered community housing providers and local government authorities to build suitable homes to meet the demand for social housing throughout WA.
The estimated total value of all projects being supported through the SHERP New Build Grants program is around $62 million.
The new properties will include houses, units, transitional housing and crisis accommodation to support either Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, young people, people with disability, seniors, women and children leaving family and domestic violence situations or those having difficulty accessing housing.
New Western Australian Governor announced
This week Premier Mark McGowan announced Police Commissioner Chris Dawson had been appointed Western Australia’s 34th Governor.
Mr Dawson’s ascension to the role of Governor follows 4 and a half years and has coordinated the State of Emergency since March 2020 and was responsible for the Vaccination Program from September 2021 to January 2022.
Mr Dawson replaces outgoing Governor His Excellency the Honourable Kim Beazley AC’s whose tenure has been extended until June 30.
Updated requirements for entering UDIA WA office
As Perth, Peel and beyond begin to experience an increase in Omicron cases due to community transmission, it is more critical than ever to ensure that UDIA WA takes all the necessary steps to minimise the risk of COVID-19 exposure in the workplace.
The WA State Government has mandated COVID-19 vaccinations for many Western Australian workplaces. Further to consultation and endorsement from UDIA WA Staff and Council, UDIA WA has implemented a new COVID-19 Vaccine Policy that requires all workers and visitors to be fully vaccinated prior to entering the workplace premises in Subiaco. This means that all personnel conducting work at the UDIA WA workplace must have received two doses of an approved COVID-19 vaccine.
From 31 January 2022, all visitors to the UDIA WA workplace (Level 1, 3 Wexford Street, Subiaco) will be required to allow a staff member from UDIA to sight their vaccination status or proof of exemption. Anyone who doesn’t show evidence when requested will be denied entry.
In line with Western Australian government health directions, our event venues could also start to introduce mandatory entry requirements.
Crown Perth have stated that as of 31 January 2022 all visitors (aged 18 years and over) to the Casino and Pearl Room and visitors (aged 16 years and over) to all other venues including hotels, Crown Spa and events and conferencing facilities must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Crown Perth will request official proof of vaccination or medical contraindication certificate for guests wishing to gain access to these venues. Entry will be denied if official proof of vaccination or a medical contraindication certificate cannot be presented.
Please ensure you keep an eye on our event pages for any venue entry mandates and proof of vaccination requirements.
Please note that in line with the State Government policy, the requirement to manage the COVID-19 vaccinations for your organisation’s personnel solely resides with your organisation.
Further information from the State Government can be accessed via the following link here.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at udia@udiawa.com.au.
Access to UDIA WA website changed
Access to the UDIA WA website recently changed as part of our aim to provide exceptional member services.
UDIA WA has invested in new technology that will integrate our member database with our website and online event registration capabilities with our new UDIA WA online Community Portal providing our members with seamless, integrated services and up to date information at the click of a button.
As part of the change all login details for the website were removed and each member organisation’s Key Representative was granted access initially and the Key Representative can now provide access to a further 2 representatives for their organisation.
All the necessary information was emailed to Key Representatives last week and can be accessed here for more information.
Once active the UDIA WA Community Portal includes exclusive member only access to:
- Urban Express weekly news
- The Urbanist quarterly magazine
- The Urban Development Index quarterly market update
- The Urban Intelligence economic data report
- UDIA WA Members Directory listing details of all UDIA WA members
- UDIA WA Diversity Toolkit
- Relevant governance documents including the UDIA WA Annual Reports and Constitution
- Ability to update you and your organisations details
For more information or any queries, email membership@udiawa.com.au