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Congratulations to our Sydney Opera House, Concert Hall Renewal and Gordon Quarter project teams for their recognition at the Master Builders Association of NSW’s 2023 Excellence in Construction Awards.

Across 150 entrants, Taylor’s projects received accolades in the following categories:

• Restoration / Adaptive Re-Use of an Historic Building $100 Million & Over – Sydney Opera House, Concert Hall Renewal
• Lifestyle Living Over 55’s: $100 Million & Over – Gordon Quarter

The Sydney Opera House is recognised as a significant cultural landmark across the globe, hosting some of Australia’s best performances in theatre, dance and music. To maintain its world leading status and provide exceptional acoustic performance spaces, an upgrade was required to ensure the best possible experience for decades to come.

The Concert Hall Renewal Project provided significant upgrades to three specific areas; the Concert Hall, Creative Learning Centre, and Entry Foyer. The once-in-a-generation renewal of the Concert Hall involved improving acoustics, accessibility, theatre machinery and system upgrades. The Creative Learning Centre is a dedicated space for young people to play, learn, and experiment in an environment that reflects the Sydney Opera House’s creative spirit. Entry Foyer works focused on upgrading accessibility between the Entry Foyers and Concert Hall via a new lift, ramp, and stairs.

Read more about the project here.

As part of our Learning Partnership Program with Roseville College, Taylor collaborated with the curious minds of a kindergarten class at Roseville College. Embracing the lessons from ‘The Three Little Pigs’, the girls ventured into the world of building and materials, transforming the classic tale into a practical learning experience.

The students were given the task to design and construct houses out of cardboard that would be put to the test by the ‘big bad wolf’ who huffed and puffed but could not blow their houses down, with each house surviving the test of stability. Taylor was represented by Ben Folkard, General Manager Refurbishment & Live Environments, James Drury, Post Contracts Manager and Jacklyn Wickham, Senior Marketing Manager. Together they facilitated an interactive workshop. To captivate the girl’s imagination, the team showed a timelapse video of the Roseville College Sport and Wellbeing Centre, currently under construction next door. They watched the fast-paced movement of the crane and the flow of the concrete pumps which sparked a series of insightful questions and discussions.

In October, the Property Council of Australia NSW Future Directions Committee ran an exclusive Graduate Event for its members. Five representatives from Taylor attended the informative session hosted at Lendlease’s Sydney Headquarters.

The event commenced with a light breakfast accompanied with networking, followed by a panelist discussion moderated by Lizzie Cittenden, Development Manager at Lendlease. The discussion flowed across topics on networking strategies, building personal brand, and accelerating professional development. Thank you to all speakers for sharing their experiences and insights – Filomena Beshara, Alessandro Biondi, Miranda Swift, and Celia Reynolds.

Taylor is a long-standing and proud series sponsor of NSW Future Directions, represented on the committee by Senior Marketing Coordinator, Georgia Barnes. Investing in our next generation, Future Directions is an initiative developed to support young property professionals under 35 years old, by providing pathways and networking opportunities through engaging events, committees, research, and learning.

Thank you to our emerging Taylor leaders who attended:

• Dorna Faghireh, Cadet
• Scott Chapman, Cadet
• Sian Thomas, Cadet
• Joe Cavallaro, Contract Manager
• Georgia Barnes, Senior Marketing Coordinator

The Taylor team at our Roseville College site hosted ten migrant and refugee women who are training to enter the construction industry. The women are supported through the University of Newcastle’s (UON) programme for culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) women and are the first cohort of students studying a Certificate II in Construction at TAFE NSW (Belmont).

UON Professor Temitope Egbelakin teamed up with the education provider to launch a training program to help local migrant and refugee women enter the workforce and break into the construction industry. As a migrant herself Temi, understands the challenge of joining the construction industry with the additional adversity of starting over in a new country.

In the course, the women learn real-world carpentry, plumbing and electrical skills, which will not only will set them up for paid jobs and apprenticeships in the future, but also restore confidence that women can do whatever they want. Many of the women arrived in Australia in the search for freedom and a better life after fleeing their home country.

Congratulations to Amanda Bruhn, Cadet, for her Apprenticeship Careers Australia nomination as Trainee of the Year and becoming a finalist for the Women in Trades – Trainee of the Year Award.

Amanda’s career journey began in 2020, when she was searching for a job after high school. While looking for jobs across various industries, Amanda came across School Infrastructure NSW’s Traineeship Program. She applied for the Project Management Traineeship, thinking the program resembled events management, which she originally intended to pursue a career in. Reflecting back, Amanda states it “was a very big shock to the system” when she discovered her traineeship was in the construction industry.

The traineeship spanned two years and involved rotations through three sectors of the construction industry. Completing her first rotation at Taylor, Amanda gained insights into project management and the industry while working on a New Build Project. During the traineeship, Amanda successfully completed her TAFE NSW Certificate IV in Project Management whilst organising Program-related events and assisting with fundraisers for Mates In Construction.

At Taylor, our people are the key to our success. We understand the importance of taking time to connect with each other and meet new team members as a key element in nurturing and building on our thriving culture.

Recently, employees from all facets of the business met at Taylor’s historic Refurbishment and Live Environment project site, Rosebery Engine Yards, for the last Let’s Get Together of 2023. Following the cessation of construction activity for the day, the Taylor team came together to reconnect while enjoying food and beverages from a selection of local food trucks.

To begin the brief formalities, Steve Ziaziaris, Senior Project Manager at Rosebery Engine Yards, welcomed guests and outlined the scope of the project. George Bardas, Chief Executive Officer, then provided an overall update of the business, followed by Mark Taylor, Managing Director, and Clive Wickham, Chief Financial Officer, presenting employee milestones and length of service awards.

On Thursday 5th October, the Property Council of Australia NSW Future Directions Committee hosted their annual Fireside Chat with Mark Bouris AM at The Fullerton Hotel, welcoming property leaders across all ages and levels of professional experience. Ten representatives from Taylor attended the captivating conversation, No Bull with Mark Bouris, moderated by Amy Williams, Head of Strategic Growth & Partnerships at Growthbuilt.

Known as one of Australia’s most well-respected financial advisors, Mark Bouris shared his insightful journey to success. Mark started by delving into what he was like in his childhood and adolescence, followed by his career trajectory and growth, then onto launching Wizard Home Loans. The conversation naturally flowed with reflections on his relationship and key learnings from valued mentor and friend, Kerry Packer. 

The successful entrepreneur continued by sharing insights surrounding his unique business model and operations which effectively disrupted the industry landscape of the time. He then finished by answering various questions from the audience, communicating his thoughts on topics including Artificial Intelligence and Longevity. 

As a proud Gold Sponsor of the UTS Built Environment Association (BEA), Taylor attended the BEA’s Industry Cocktail Night on Friday, 29 September 2023, hosted at the UTS Aerial Function Centre. 

The Industry Cocktail Night is a professional networking and careers fair event held in collaboration with the UTS School of Built Environment and Industry Partners. Over 350 First and Second-year students attended from three universities; UTS Built Environment Association, UNSW Built Environment Student Association, UNSW Architecture Society, and Sydney University Designer’s Association. 

The event provides opportunities for Construction, Property and Architecture students to meet potential employers and forge connections with industry professionals. Team Taylor was represented by Emily Carlton (People Relations Coordinator), Christina Succar (Graduate Site Engineer), and Ervin Bunic (Project Engineer), who informed students about Taylor’s projects, culture, and Cadet Program.

At Taylor, we understand the challenges women face in our industry, and are actively working to raise awareness and drive gender balance across our business, and the industry. Our sector-leading Taylor Women in Construction (TWIC) program provides engagement opportunities for our female members across all facets of the business. Through TWIC, we work to strengthen the internal and industry connections for our women, as well as provide the chance to catch-up and meet new faces.

On 25 September 2023, Taylor’s Scape Kingsford project hosted our recent TWIC Tea and Tour. The event began with light pastries and tea as attendees caught up with each other, learned about the TWIC Committee, upcoming industry and company events, and gained an overview of the Scape Kingsford student accommodation project and its key innovations.