Over the past decade and longer, many Australian universities have experienced exponential growth. The influx of international students, and a wider uptake in domestic students to both onsite and online learning facilities have seen universities increase their infrastructure assets, including the construction of new buildings.
Over the Easter weekend, while many of us were at home, doing our bit to stave off the widespread effects of coronavirus, a massive project was completed. Six months ahead of schedule!
AMCouncil April Meeting Point e-news is out now, packed with all the latest and greatest AMCouncil happenings and news from the past month, including links to some great technical maintenance, transport and government articles.
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It will come as no surprise to our well-read members that Italy is now the country with the most cases of coronavirus; the deaths alone number over 80001. The pressure placed on the medical infrastructure and surrounding industries is beyond compare.
And so, the Asset Management Council brings you the fourth in our Fluidity in Assets series. This time we’re looking at an Italian-based engineering start-up that used 3D printers to create respirator valves.
A bridge in Aulla, in northern Italy, collapsed in early April. The bridge normally experiences high traffic throughout the day, however, due to the coronavirus and its ensuing lockdown status in the country, only two vans were on the bridge at the time. Both drivers were taken to hospital and fortunately survived the incident.
The collapse of the bridge highlights the necessity of maintenance on infrastructure, and particularly in Italy. It is the third bridge to collapse in two years, with forty-five people dying in 2018 after the collapse of the Polcevera Viaduct in Genoa, and in November 2019, a motorway bridge in Liguria collapsed after a landslide.
Thank you to all those who attended our online conference last week which occurred in rather unique circumstances that we all find ourselves in. The online discussions reflected on dual responsibilities of risk and value. What do we need to do to protect our people whilst preserving value of the assets that provide essential services to the communities we serve?