Client: Tasman District Council

Duration: 2018 - 2027 (held since 2001)

Background

Downer has partnered with Tasman District Council since 2001 to operate and maintain the region’s Three Waters networks and treatment facilities; including 17 water supply schemes, 15 water treatment plants, 44 reservoirs, 7 wastewater treatment plants, 86 wastewater pump stations, 15 stormwater systems and a reticulated network in excess of 1,200km.

Delivery Solution

The Tasman contract is managed under a collaborative framework within NZS: 3917. Our relationship with the Tasman District Council is such that we are transparent, trusted, and can come together to solve problems together. Key challenges have included:

  • Improving the network’s condition ratings through the introduction of new technologies and system integrations to enhance asset data collection and compliance with DIA requirements
  • Meeting Taumata Arowai’s requirements through the development of water safety plans for some of the council’s treatment plants and schemes
  • Collaborating with other council contractors to provide whole-of-life inputs around future operability and maintainability of treatment plants undergoing major upgrades
  • Establishing a local water engineering branch of the Engineering Services team in Nelson to enable design and construct projects to be designed and delivered by local specialists in collaboration with our maintenance teams.
Outcome

Council has attributed cost savings of $2M over the first four years of the contract to using a collaborative contracting model, compared to a traditional measure and value. The team has actively implemented the principles of collaboration into their daily working life, and our contract management personnel engage weekly in-person with their council counterparts. This deliberate approach to regular contact and ensuring we maintain a customer-first philosophy has enabled enriched professional trust and collaboration on network activities. Our joint work on improving asset data has resulted in a 30% decrease in reactive work, which has enabled council to invest the cost savings in proactive maintenance, capital works and network improvements.

 

We have a skilled Water Services & Projects team proudly working with the Tasman District Council to deliver three waters services to the Tasman region. The strong collaborative working relationship we have with the Tasman District Council has allowed these projects to be efficiently designed and built using Downer’s internal capability – from Engineering Services to Water Projects and Automation. Learn more about the team and the services we deliver.