Maintaining One of Australia’s Busiest Jetties

The underside of the 500 meter-long Kwinana Bulk Terminal Jetty in Australia was in need of maintenance and repair due to years of heavy usage, corrosion and damage from weather and the ocean. Accessing the underside to fix it, however, is challenging as it requires safe access that is well-protected from large ships and harsh weather conditions.

Operated by Fremantle Ports, the jetty houses Kwinana Bulk Berth 2 (KBB2) and is one of Australia’s major bulk cargo ports. The jetty is often bustling with ships loading and unloading various bulk products including grain, iron ore, liquid petroleum gas, and several other commodities.

SMS Group Services – an established scaffolding firm with a long-standing relationship with Fremantle Ports – was enlisted for the project. The firm offers a full range of scaffolding services including access management, engineered access solutions, shutdown services, and more.

This project was challenging and unique from the beginning. Not only did the crew need safe access to the underside of the jetty, they needed to ensure that the port was still functioning as normal during the scaffold build. The scaffold also needed to protect crew members from the weather conditions during maintenance.

Prior to building the scaffold, SMS Group developed the design using Avontus Designer. With this industry-leading scaffolding design software, they were able to visualize how the scaffold would tie into the jetty, and how to navigate the difficult build areas.

Using the software, they could also identify any safety hazards prior to erection to avoid project delays upon the build phase. It also enabled them to transfer 2D fully functional 3D models, which are easily and quickly amended if needed.

The firm decided to use the Haki Scaffolding System for the project because of the efficiency and ease that the system provides. With Haki, they could save plenty of time during the build because of the variety of bay sizes available, light and durable equipment, and less equipment needed.

The result was a large hanging scaffold on the underside of one section of the jetty that allowed for full functionality of the jetty during the build and erection phase. By using Haki and Designer, SMS Group was able to maintain high efficiency during limited build windows and overcome the initial safety challenges accessing difficult areas of the jetty.

James Bush, the firm’s operations coordinator, said, “Avontus Designer gives us an edge over our competitors, because we can provide a defined scope of what we’re going to build, giving our clients a clearer understanding of the project delivery plan, even in the concept stage. The engineers can efficiently review our work, enabling them to certify that the design will not only be compliant with legislation but also engineered to specifically fit the project’s needs.”