The McConnell Dowell team will oversee and carry out scaling and ground support of the bluffs above Sumner Road, excavate a large catch bench below the bluffs to catch any falling rocks, and construct a large reinforced earth embankment. All of these measures will protect future road users from the risk of rockfall.

McConnell Dowell has been constructing major infrastructure in Christchurch since 2005 and has been involved in the rebuild of Christchurch since 2011 as part of the SCIRT alliance, undertaking repairs to horizontal infrastructure including roads, bridges and water and wastewater pipes and pump stations. We are pleased to be able to continue to assist the Christchurch community with ongoing repairs, remediation and infrastructure development.

“This crossing loop will help to deliver more reliable services for passengers on the Ballarat line by enabling trains to make up time from any unexpected delays,” Ms Allan said.

Reflecting on the project's completion, McConnell Dowell's General Manager for Rail, Malcolm Tinkler, said this new rail infrastructure makes a positive contribution to Victoria's regional transport network and McConnell Dowell fully supports the State Government's rail improvement and enhancement program.

Pictured from left Moorabool shire mayor Allan Comrie, Buninyong MP Geoff Howard, Public Transport Minister Jacinta Allan and Public Transport Victoria's Glenn Abercrombie.

  

He and his business partner Jim Dowell founded the company in Auckland in 1961 with the vision of ‘doing things better’. By the end of the 1970s McConnell Dowell had expanded into six more countries and had won projects like the Marsden Point Power Station (NZ’s first 1 million pound contract) and the Maui pipeline (The largest contract awarded in New Zealand at the time). Today, McConnell Dowell is active in 18 countries across Australia, New Zealand, the Pacific Islands, South East Asia and the Middle East.

The innovation Malcolm championed remains a hallmark of McConnell Dowell’s work to this day. At Marsden Point, he and his team applied world-leading flotation and submerge construction techniques. He also developed innovative cross-country pipelining techniques, helped form two organisations to export New Zealand’s engineering, technical and management skills and services, and played a part in forging relationships with multinational organisations such as the World Bank, the United Nations Development Program, the World Health Organisation, and the Asian Development Bank. He was also one of the initiators of Geothermal Energy New Zealand, and a director of New Zealand Railways Corporation, the DFC, the Saudi NZ Capital Corporation and NZ Steel.

Malcolm’s passion for ‘making things better’ also extended to his support for a range of charitable causes including education, NZ Opera, and Outward Bound, which McConnell Dowell still makes available to employees through a scholarship programme.

Malcolm passed away in 1995 and is remembered as a man of immense passion, energy, drive and vision.

Pic caption: McConnell Dowell founders Jim Dowell (left) and Malcolm McConnell (right)

Together with JV partner Hawkins, McConnell Dowell will be responsible for installation of a stormwater diversion tunnel by pipejacking, strengthening a part of an existing Sewer Main, and construction of a 350m cut and cover tunnel – all within the Auckland CBD.

The project will be particularly interesting due to its location on one of the busiest streets in the CBD of New Zealand’s business city. It involves moving numerous services, maintaining traffic flow, meeting extremely strict health and safety conditions, numerous consents aiming to minimise disruption for businesses and residents, and extensive liaison with a wide range of stakeholders.

More than 100 years in the making, the City Rail Link will connect Auckland's existing rail infrastructure to double the speed and capacity of the rail network and allow for future expansion to the North Shore.

It will be built in two 3.4km twin tunnels up to 42m below the city centre, and when completed, will extend the existing rail line underground through Britomart to Albert, Vincent and Pitt Sts, and then cross beneath Karangahape Rd and the Central Motorway Junction to Symonds St before joining the western line at Eden Terrace. Two new stations near Aotea Square and Karangahape Road, and a redeveloped station at Mount Eden, will also be completed.

Benefits are expected to include $1.30 of benefit for every $1 spent, halved travel times for many commuters, and contribution to the transformation of Auckland into a truly international city.

Find out more about the CRL project at https://at.govt.nz/projects-roadworks/city-rail-link/