Alliance Contracting Industry Leader Profile: Andrew Stevenson, Baulderstone by Andrew Stevenson

Alliance Contracting IQ interviews Andrew Stevenson, Alliance Construction Manager for Baulderstone.

Andrew has a wealth of technical expertise, as well as a proven track record in alliancing and a fundamental understanding of community issues. With over five years in a design role, Andrew understands the challenges and opportunities faced by both designers and constructors in an alliance.

Alliance Contracting Q&A

In a nutshell, what’s your role and what responsibilities are involved?
I am the Alliance Construction Manager for Baulderstone civil in Victoria. My role is to assist alliances in Victoria to be successful and I am involved in leadership, challenge and catalyst teams to support that goal. I also work with alliance teams to look for solutions to problems and also to provide technical expertise where needed across the teams.

How long have you been engaged in alliance contracting?
I’ve been working in alliance contracting for ten years! My first alliance was the Northside Storage Tunnel in Sydney which was completed just before the Sydney Olympics. I joined Baulderstone 6 years ago and I have been involved in a number of project and program alliances across the road and water sectors.

If you could use three words to describe what alliance contracting means to you – what three words would you use?
Opportunities, relationships and collaboration.

What were your drivers to engaging in this specific project delivery methodology?
It is about the efficient delivery of infrastructure projects within complex urban environments. The alliance contract delivery method is ideal where there is a large number of unknown risks, as it enables all parties to be involved in creating the right solution.

What are your key lessons learned and what pitfalls would you recommend avoiding?

A key lesson is to ensure a clear definition of individuals responsibilities and accountabilities early in the formation of an alliance contract. Many alliances teams struggle to set up an effective decision making framework in the early stages of the alliance. This causes confusion and frustration amongst team members. Early clarity of individuals roles avoids this confusion and streamlines the decision making process to assist in meeting the objectives of the alliance.

Contracting Methodology & VFM Q&A

How has alliance contracting changed the way that you do business?
Alliance contracting has emphasised the importance of people to the successful delivery of projects. It has increased awareness of the value that everyone can bring to the table. In traditional contracting parties can misunderstand each other and grow frustrated with each other as their sphere of influence is constrained. However, alliancing gives everyone an equal voice.

Value for money is always a critical factor in alliance projects – what is your best practice tip to ensure the anticipated return or ‘value’ in a project?
All parties need to understand what value means on each particular project and this definition needs to be shared with the team at the start of that project. Everyone needs to have a shared goal and to understand what is important for the alliance.

What innovation are you most proud of in relation to your alliance project portfolio?
It is specific to an innovation delivered on the Tullamarine-Calder Interchange. There was a noise wall proposed to be built adjacent to the freeway as a way of managing noise levels for the local community. However, after consultation with the community a change was made to attenuate that noise offsite and instead to improve the noise attenuation characteristics of individual properties. The community saw this as a significantly better option and it was also a far safer option for the constructors. It was a great win for all involved and demonstrated that listening to a community can make a difference.

Lessons Learned and The Future of Relationship Contracting

If you could go back and do anything differently – what would you change?
I would plan succession of individuals to assist with growing the resource pool for future alliances. I would consider the options for key roles in an alliance and move people across roles, where appropriate. This enables individual grow and also better supports industry skill sets.

What’s the future for alliance contracting in your opinion?
I think the future for alliance contracting is strong – for the right project. A project needs to have a set of parameters that lend itself to an alliance such as; unknown risks, multiple stakeholders, complex environmental approvals, urban environments and construction in an operating environment.

Alliance Contracting IQ thanks Andrew Stevenson for his time!



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