More than 1,500 trenchless professionals gathered at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre to share knowledge, see the latest technologies, products and services, as well as celebrating the latest achievements in the Australasian no-dig industry in September.
Training courses
Prior to the opening of No-Dig Down Under’s conference and exhibition, three ASTT Training Courses took place, which more than 55 attendees participated in.
The Cured-In-Place Pipe Good Practices course was presented by AECOM Canada’s Chris Macey and ASTT NSW Councillor Sudipta Basu, while the Horizontal Directional Drilling Good Practices course was presented by ASTT Queensland Councillor and Bamser Managing Director Ben Crosby.
The New Installation Methods Good Practices course was presented by ASTT NZ Councillor and Interflow NZ General Manager Blair Telfer, ASTT WA Councillor Trevor Gosatti and Pezzimenti Tunnelbore NSW Manager Jim Shooter.
Conference
The world class program – comprising the installation, rehabilitation and utility location streams – attracted 245 delegates during the conference.
The opening plenary session featured keynote presentations from the industry’s top minds, including Queen’s University’s Dr Ian Moore; Yarra Valley Water’s Alberto Vela; McConnell Dowell’s Paul Cooper and Watercare’s John McCann; and APA Group’s Ross Larsen.
The plenary concluded with a panel session on the impact of urban development on underground infrastructure, moderated by Mr Basu.
Exhibition
This year, more than 1,500 people attended the exhibition hall and visited the 98 exhibitor booths to see the latest products and services, and to network with colleagues.
Sponsored by Vermeer, the official Exhibition Opening took place on Tuesday night after the training courses to mark the opening of the busy exhibition space and offered attendees the chance to connect over mini-golf or jump into the photobooth for a quick snap.
Over the following days, guests visited exhibitors while gaining useful knowledge, watching demonstrations and conducting business.
On the final day of the exhibition, Great Southern Press General Manager Annie Ferguson presented two awards: the Best Exhibition Stand Award, which was won by TRACTO-TECHNIK Australia, and the Most Inventive Merchandise Award, which was won by HDI Lucas.
Social events
Following the Exhibition Opening, the Networking Reception – also sponsored by Vermeer – took place on the banks of the Yarra River at Common Man in South Wharf on Wednesday night.
Attendees enjoyed a relaxed opportunity to catch up with new and old friends over drinks, while indulging in food from three food-truck style stations.
Later in the evening, guests took advantage of the ever-popular whisky bar, which opened from 9–11pm.
On Thursday night, the prestigious ASTT Gala Dinner and Awards Evening – sponsored by National Environmental Equipment (NATEE) – allowed attendees to celebrate the achievements of professionals and companies in the Australasian industry.
Five awards were presented: New Installation Project of the Year; Rehabilitation Project of the Year; New Technology; ASTT Young Person of the Year; and ASTT Person of the Year.
The New Installation Project of the Year Award recognises innovation, advancements in technology, environmental benefits and occupational health and safety benefits in new installation projects using trenchless technology and was awarded to Pipeline Drillers and Unitywater for the Caloundra Sewerage Transport System.
The Rehabilitation Project of the Year Award recognises innovation, advancements in technology, environmental benefits and occupational health and safety benefits in rehabilitation projects using trenchless technology and was awarded to Interflow and City of Gold Coast for the Eastern Force Main Rehabilitation.
The New Technology Award recognises the practical development of trenchless systems or equipment that result in benefits during their application and was awarded to Herrenknecht for its Direct Pipe® technology.
The ASTT Young Person of the Year award recognises the important role younger members (aged 36 or under) of the Australasian trenchless community play in the growth of the industry by engaging and promoting the technology, making significant contributions over the past two years and this year was jointly awarded to Qenos Market Segment Manager Jeroen Wassenaar and AECOM New Zealand Principal Civil Engineer Punam Halai.
The ASTT Person of the Year award recognises an individual (aged 37 or over) who has made major and sustained contributions to the trenchless industry and was awarded to Interflow Managing Director Geoff Weaver.
All award winners will be profiled in the December edition of Trenchless Australasia magazine.
No-Dig Down Under Sponsors
Organiser Great Southern Press, publisher of Trenchless Australasia, and the ASTT would like to thank the event’s sponsors for their generous support in 2019.
This year’s event was supported by Platinum Sponsor NATEE; Gold Sponsor Vermeer; Silver Sponsors KRE Engineering, Pezzimenti Trenchless and Vivax Metrotech; and Bronze Sponsors Interflow, Smart Lock and Ashapura.
No-Dig Down Under 2021
No-Dig Down Under 2021 will take place on 5–8 October 2021 at the International Convention Centre (ICC) in Sydney, Australia.
The event will comprise the industry standard ASTT Training Courses, a technical conference program over two days, an exhibition hall over 4,500 m2 and sponsored social functions for networking.
Details will be updated on the event website and distributed by Trenchless Australasia’s free e-newsletter as they are confirmed.
To stay up to date with latest No-Dig Down Under news, subscribe to the e-newsletter.
If you have an event you would like featured in Trenchless Australasia contact Managing Editor Chloe Jenkins to discuss promotional opportunities at cjenkins@gs-press.com.au