KBR win Infrastructure Project in Australia

expat network

KBR win Infrastructure Project in Australia

KBR announced it has been awarded an alliance contract by the Victorian Government for Railroad Crossing Removal Projects in Victoria, Australia.

Under the terms of the contract, KBR and John Holland will remove four railroad crossings in Victoria. This work is expected to be performed over three years, with KBR providing design services for the railroad crossing removals and associated works in an integrated alliance with John Holland, VicRoads, Metro Trains Melbourne and Public Transport Victoria.

The grade separations will be the first undertaken by the Victorian Government as part of its program to remove 50 of the most dangerous and congested railroad crossings across Melbourne. The project will remove railroad crossings at Centre Road in Bentleigh, North Road in Ormond, McKinnon Road in McKinnon and Burke Road in Glen Iris.

Delivering the grade separations and station rebuilds at four sites as one coordinated package should create efficiencies in costs, reductions in disruptions to rail and road users and create accelerated delivery of safer transportation infrastructure.

KBR’s Engineering & Construction President for the Asia-Pacific, Ivor Harrington, said “we are looking forward to working with the alliance to deliver safer roads and railways for all Victorians, through this transformational infrastructure project”.

“The rail line will be lowered under the road at each location and stations will also be rebuilt to provide street level access down to the platforms. They will be safer, more accessible and will have better connections to other public transport modes,” Harrington said. “This work fits with both our Australian business plan and our core skills in the transport sector.”

For more than 50 years, KBR has contributed to many of Australia’s landmark transportation developments, including the continent-bridging Alice Springs to Darwin railway, and the Regional Rail Link which delivered Victoria’s largest rail network upgrade in 40 years.

The contract value was not disclosed. Expected revenue from the contract will be included in KBR’s second quarter 2015 backlog of unfilled orders for its Engineering & Construction business line. Work on the projects has commenced and is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2017.

Source and Link: The EPC Engineer

Moving Abroad Checklist

Initial Considerations

Will your partner be travelling with you?

If so, what will they be giving up in your present home and will they be able to continue with their career in your new home? You will need to check whether a separate visa is required for your partner to work or if your visa gives that right. If they are unable to work you will need to decide on the effect on your finances and what alternatives are available to give a fulfilling life (home business, training, voluntary work).

Are you taking family with you?

Moving with family raises many exciting opportunities, but also can create challenges. The HSBC Expat Explorer survey indicates that expat kids can take six months to settle in to their new country (see article). Getting young or even older children to prepare to move and leave their friends and family behind can be a challenge and should be thought through.

The options for education is another area that needs to be thought through.

Moving your child to a new country with a different education system can be a great opportunity to broaden their experience, but if they are close to key exams the timing can make this inadvisable. If you do take your family with you, it is important to decide between joining the local school system or choosing an international school.

Where will you be living?

Whether you will be living in a house or apartment, furnished or unfurnished, these decisions will affect what you need to take with you. The time you are planning to live overseas will also affect whether you should leave your property at home empty, rent it out or sell it. See the article Sell, Store or Ship.