McConnell Dowell

McConnell Dowell

Industry	construction and engineering
Founded	1961 (1961) in Auckland, New Zealand[1]
Founders	Malcolm McConnell and Jim Dowell
Owner	Aveng Limited[2]
Number of employees	over 5,600[2] (2015)
Website	macdow.com.au

McConnell Dowell is a major infrastructure construction company founded in New Zealand in 1961. In 2003 it became a wholly owned subsidiary of Aveng, which is listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange in South Africa.^[2][3] McConnell Dowell operates in New Zealand, Australia, Asia and the Middle East.

History

McConnell Dowell was formed in 1960 by two New Zealand engineers, Jim Dowell and Malcolm McConnell. It was involved in pipeline projects in New Zealand before expanding to Australia, Asia and the Middle East in the 1970s.^[4]

McConnell Dowell was listed on the New Zealand Stock Exchange in 1983 as part of the arrangements to take over Hamilton construction company Hawkins Holdings. During the remainder of the 1980s, McConnell Dowell also ventured outside of the engineering field int banking and finance, through shareholdings in National Insurance Company of New Zealand, National Pacific Corporation, Renouf Partners, Kupe and property development of the Robert Jones Tower in Auckland.^[4]

Following the 1987 stock market crash, McDonnell Dowell merged with Inter-Pacific Equity,^[5] an Australian investment bank, and sold off National Pacific to Government Life Insurance. Morrison Knudsen (USA) took up 48.9% of McConnell Dowell in 1991, but in the mid-1990s sold its share to Dominion Bridge Corporation (Canada) who then held 63%. In 1999, Dominion Bridge sold its share to LTA Ltd (South Africa) which was acquired by Aveng the next year.^[4] Aveng acquired full ownership from the remaining minority shareholders in 2003 via a scheme of arrangement.^[6][7]

McConnell Dowell bought a majority interest in South Australian company Built Environs in 2008.^[8]

McConnell Dowell is one of the construction partners in Stronger Christchurch Infrastructure Rebuild Team which is responsible for rebuilding infrastructure in Christchurch following the Christchurch earthquakes of 2010 and 2011.^[9]

Major projects

Some of the major projects that McConnell Dowell has built include:

• ANZ Centre, Auckland, New Zealand
• Marsden Point Oil Refinery, New Zealand
• Te Mihi Power Station, New Zealand
• Barwon Heads Bridge, Victoria
• Beauty World MRT Station, Singapore
• Marina Bay Cruise Centre Singapore
• O-Bahn Busway Adelaide Access Project, South Australia
• Barangaroo ferry wharf, Sydney
• Gold Coast Light Rail, Queensland^[10]

Safety

In the early 2010s, McConnell Dowell was accused of lacking safety culture, and encouraging workers to report injuries as having occurred in their own time to preserve clean injury reports to leverage getting future large contracts.^[11] It claims to have improved its safety practices significantly over the last 30 years.^[12]

Incidents

EPA vs Trevor Morgan, 1995

In 1995, McConnell Dowell's CEO Trevor Morgan was found guilty of an offence in the Land and Environment Court, New South Wales. Morgan had signed a return which showed that McConnell Dowell had only rarely contravened the licence’s permitted pollution level when, in fact, there were many occasions the level was exceeded. Morgan was fined $4000.^[13]

Woolloomoolloo oil spill, 2003

In 2003 Moltoni Corporation Pty Ltd, a subcontractor working for McConnell Dowell in New South Wales was deemed responsible for the discharge of oil into the waters of Woolloomooloo Bay. A pipeline was damaged at the Finger Wharf during construction works. In a court action initiated by the EPA against McConnell Dowell was found not guilty. The court found that McConnell Dowell "could, and did, direct what was to be done, where it was to be done, and when it was to be done … it could not, so far as Moltoni was concerned, direct it as to how it was to be done.”^[14]

References