Category Archives: Developer Practices

Building Defects, Dangerous Defects, Defects Dilemma, Developer Practices, Project Structures- Building and Development, Property Development

Dr Drane’s ‘Defects Dilemma Initiative’ Gets Ministerial and Departmental Recognition

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The ‘Defects Dilemma Initiative’ which helps bring peace of mind to high rise apartment owners due to fear of dangerous defects, today obtained a formal positive Ministerial level response and Departmental Recognition from the Department of Finance Services & Innovation Department dated 3 April 2019.

The endorsement was issued in a letter by Mr John Tansey, Executive Director, Regulatory Policy 
Better Regulation Division. John is also a Board Member of the Building Professional’s Board.

The letter was in response to Dr Drane’s written submission to the Minister for Innovation and Building Regulation, Matt Kean after the Minister’s release of an announcement on 11 February 2019 titled ‘Biggest Overhaul of Building Laws in NSW History’.

The overhaul includes the creation of a Building Commissioner and was in response to the Shergold-Weir Report commissioned by the Building Minister’s Forum in August 2017.

There have also been other major  reports by Wallace (2014) Lambert (2015), BPIC (2018) and Shergold-Weir (2018) which have investigated the building regulatory system.

I guess these thing take time, but there is much to be done still.

Dr Drane’s initiative includes a Research Project  based on an initial free ‘Defects Assessment Model’, which supports a  Consumer Education Focus as well as an  Industry Action Group called The Property Development Doctor . The initiative is outlined in his campaign article published on 20 March 2019  titled ‘Help Give High Rise Apartment Owners Peace of Mind  from Defective Buildings‘ dated 20 March 2019.

Dr Drane is recognised for his comprehensive multi-layer understanding of the processes and structures of property development and construction with an emphasis on the decay of professional practices and systems over history, which have led to the devastating level of dangerous defects in the high rise multi-apartment sector.

Dr Jonathan Drane

How Can You Support the Defects Dilemma Initiative ?

Apartment owners are able to lobby their body corporate committee and building manager to participate for free in our initial assessment process which includes an initial survey.

Participate for Free in our free building defects analysis which includes a free assessment and a quick survey.

Register  for a place at our upcoming webinar series  which provides updates and industry engagement related to the ‘The Defects Dilemma’

Learn More about how the historical decay in property development and building systems have contributed to the level of defects in high rise apartment buildings.

Learn More about our Linked In Group called ‘The Property Development Doctor’ which is dedicated to bringing peace of mind to multi-storey apartment owners. Please join.

Building Defects, commercial property development, Corrupt Property Developeer Practices, Developer Practices, Uncategorized

Free Building Defects Assessment

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Having Problems with Defects in your Multi-Apartment Building?

We are interested in hearing from you if you are in the following situation:

-The building is a multi-story apartment building that is above three levels.

-The building has been constructed in the last 10 to 15 years and is showing signs of multiple defects.

-The building defects are substantial, potentially dangerous and could lead to structural or fire related issues. This could included the installation of Aluminium Composite Panel that is currently stable but a potential fire risk.

And your relationship to the building is one or more of the following:

-You represent a majority of the  building community ( e.g. body corporate committee member)

-You are the building manager.

-You are the body corporate manager

-You are a lawyer representing a client or stakeholder related to the building

-You are a builder or building professional who constructed the building.

-You are a developer who developed the building.

-You are an estate agent or financial intermediary representing the property developer of the building.

-You represent a peak body related to the building or the situation.

Help our Research Project: ‘The Defects Dilemma’

The high rise apartment building is in a state of crisis across the globe as a perceived safe form of accommodation for our families.

Our own Australian tragedies and misadventures include (Bankstown 2012, La-Crosse Docklands 2014, Opal Tower Sydney 2018, Neo Melbourne 2019) and then there are the international cases like Grenfell (UK 2017) and the Torch Tower (Dubai 2017).

The peace of mind of normal apartment owners is stretched to the limit.

So how can you help solve this complex problem?

Please help us bring peace of mind to apartment owners and  understand the nature and extent of the defects as part of our research project and we will ask you to fill in a short survey.

Upon filling out the form below and the survey which we will send you we will provide a free assessment of your situation.

The assessment will help you understand the causes of the defects from a systemic view i.e. how the property development and construction system that created your building has contributed to the defect levels you are experiencing. It is not a defects inspection.

Learn More about how the historical decay in property development and building systems have contributed to the level of defects in high rise apartment buildings.

Learn More about our research project called ‘The Defects Dilemma’.

Register  for a place at our upcoming webinar series  which provides updates and industry engagement related to the ‘The Defects Dilemma’

Learn More about our Linked In Group called ‘The Property Development Doctor’ which is dedicated to bringing peace of mind to multi-storey apartment owners.

Next Step:

Fill out the form below and we will provide you with:

a) the survey (your identity is anonymous and is used for research purposes).

b) upon filling out the survey we will provide an initial free assessment of your situation as noted above.

c) by filling out the form and sending it to us you acknowledge and agree with the waiver and conditions noted below.

Dr Jonathan Drane

Optimum Search Pty Ltd

Waiver:

Any assessment is made by Optimum Search Pty Ltd and is an initial assessment only and does not include any site visits.

The assessment does not cost you and there are no guarantees or warranties associated with the assessment.

The assessment is based on our own research data and a survey that is issued by us and filled out by you.  The survey collects data on building defects that help with our research project and processes. Your identity remains anonymous.  

The assessment is confidential and not to be issued by you to other parties nor relied upon for any legal, mediation or dispute processes.

Optimum Search Pty Ltd reserves the right to not assess your situation at its discretion due to non relevance to the objectives of our research project.

Any further requests for advisory services  are subject to a contract arrangement that is separate to this initial assessment and conducted by Optimum Search Pty Ltd.

Building industry project structures, City Growth, commercial property development, Corrupt Property Developeer Practices, Developer Practices, Entrepreneurship in Property, history of property development, Project Structures- Building and Development, Property Development, urban development

Understand the History of Property Development and Discover the Foundations of Entrepreneurship: Mirages, White Shoes, the 80s and the GFC

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Understand the History of Property Development and Discover the Foundations of Entrepreneurship: Mirages, White Shoes, the 80s and the GFC:

Building Defects, Dangerous Defects, Defects Dilemma, Developer Practices, history of property development, Property Development

Defects: A Builder’s View- by Dr Jonathan Drane

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This paper gives a plain English history lesson on how the property development and construction processes have decayed over the past 6 decades. It was originally presented at the Strata and Community Title in Australia for the 21st Century 2015 Conference at the request of City Futures Research Centre’s Hazel Easthope .

It was then posted on the Building Professional’s Board web site at the back end of the Lambert Report of 2015. I hope it helps people understand the longevity of decay and that it is a labyrinthine system and really a mess.

As I re-read the major reports by Wallace ( 2014) Lambert (2015), BPIC (2018) and Shergold (2018) I see the challenges they often faced as independent parties to understanding the complexity and even the language and dialects that existed across professional, planning, legislative and accreditation participants.

Link to paper:

Defects A Builders View By Dr Jonathan Drane

 

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#buildingtragedies

Building Defects, Building industry project structures, commercial property development, Corrupt Property Developeer Practices, Developer Practices, Entrepreneurship in Property, Project Structures- Building and Development

Dr Drane Reveals the History of Decay in Property Development Processes Leading to Defects and Tragedies

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This is a history note and an update to place an important national event within the chronicle of tragedies and misadventure in the high rise multi-apartment sector of the Australian Property Development Industry which is currently focusing so much on the Opal Tower.

A Building Regulatory Reform Summit was held in February 2018 with the objective of addressing these issues at all levels from Government, Industry and Consumer perspectives.

Here is the summit web page with the emergent White Paper that was the product of the summit. The summit was expertly put together by the Building Products Innovation Council with other industry and government support.

BPIC Building Regulatory Reform Summit Link

The summit resulted in a white paper, a cohort of national experts and an ongoing initiative to solve this problem. I was an invited speaker at the summit because of my historical, systemic emphasis on understanding defects rather than a current technical emphasis.

This was brought to light in my earlier article ‘Defects a Builder’s View’ which was presented at the  Strata and Community Title in Australia for the 21st Century 2015 Conference run by Griffith University. Here is the link to that conference and my article which drew some media attention at the time.

Griffith Uni Strata Conference 2015 Link

Defects: A Builder’s View By Dr Jonathan Drane Article Link

I also attach this image gallery which places The Opal Tower in  perspective with the emerging history of these issues.

I have also appended  my web article at the time which covered this event on my web site when I was with Western Sydney University. See below.

That is all for now and I watch the Opal Tower matter unfold from the safety of the arm chair. For now at least.

BTW: If you want to learn more about the history of property development and how developer’s systems have aided these issues in the lower developer tiers, come to one of my Master Classes on Commercial Property and City Development Dynamics

Master Classes

Dr Jonathan Drane

Building Regulatory Reform Summit 2018- Dr Drane Invited Speaker on Industry Decay

Developer Practices, Entrepreneurship in Property, Property Development

Dr Drane’s Master Class : Becoming a Street Smart Property Developer

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Book Here:

This is the first of a number of  online webinars for College and University students (undergrad and postgrad), which are designed to supplement your current College and University studies and help your career aspirations to come to life in the complex and exciting world of commercial property development.

The Master Classes are designed to provide you with real life skills and street smart tools to get you on the road to success. Whether you want to  follow a career employed in property development and/or become a property developer in your own right, these webinars are for you.

I have spent a lifetime in the commercial property development and construction industry and been a property developer in my own right. Over those years I have mentored executives and managers and lectured to hundreds of students across four academic institutions including Sydney University, UNSW, WSU and ICMS. I am also an alumni of UNSW and MGSM.

The universities are all attempting to steer their coursework and offerings toward an ‘industry ready’ framework and my webinars are offered as a supplementary tool kit which helps students to be ‘fit for purpose’.

My webinars are designed to be affordable and provide a range of skills and tools that will stay with you for life.

My two themes are ‘Work Ready’ and ‘Street Smart’.

Work Ready relates to you melding into the property development process and being an instant asset to your employer.

Street Smart relates to you always keeping your eye on your ability to be an entrepreneur in property development and a free ‘journey person’ throughout your life.

The Agenda Includes:

– Your life in Property Development– learning hunting skills and being able to move between employment and self entrepreneurship as a life strategy toward freedom and agility.

-The Current State of Property Development: An introduction to a brief history of Property Development and the new order of DIY Property Developers- which needs to be professionalised ( very much).

– Your Place in the Property Development Industry: How the industry works and how it ties into other professions including financiers, architects, engineers, builders and subcontractors.

-Dr Drane’s Bridge Into the Industry: A brief introduction to the tools of the trade which are brought to life in Dr Drane’s Property Development Game Play which hones your skills from the start.

-Your voice: Tell us what you need to move into the industry and the skillsets that are missing. An anonymous  survey conducted during the session and the results discussed.

Book now for the introductory seminar, see details below.

To assist you with your calendar choice this webinar is run twice :  A weeknight, and Weekend Sunday afternoon.

I look forward to seeing you.

Dr Drane

www.jondrane.net

Book Here:

Beyond EconomicLens, Building Defects, City Growth, Corrupt Property Developeer Practices, Developer Practices, dormant cityscapes, Measuring City Growth, Post graduate coach- mentor, rejuvenation of cityscapes, Uncategorized, urban development

Dr Drane’s Greenshoots Update

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Dr Jonathan Drane: Greenshoot News Update

Regional City Growth Dynamics: A Research Focus

I have recently left academia after 6 years at both UNSW Built Environment and then Western Sydney University’s School of Business. I am returning to my prior independent research and advisory profile which I have operated through Greenshoot Investments since 1993 which will aim to grow into a research and teaching centre in its own right as time goes by.

The Outer West Dormancy and Growth Dynamics Research Project which started during my MBA at MGSM in the 1990s then through my doctorate at UNSW and continued in my time with WSU will continue, and I will be seeking funding, sponsorship and collaborations. But early days.

See my research page which pays tribute to MGSM, UNSW and WSU where the dormancy research found its genesis, grew and now matures as time goes by.

For More Information : http://www.jondrane.net/research/

The Parlous State of Contemporary Property Development 

The Property Development Industry in the commercial multi-apartment sector is plagued by the advent of DIY developers who clearly did not get the memo related to quality and integrity through the application of professional practices. When this resulted in two girls having to jump off a balcony to escape a fire and the death of one of those girls ( Bankstown 2012)  , the industry finally said no.

This research found its genesis through my chronicling of the degeneration of professional property development practices while at UNSW City Futures where I was invited to write a conference article and speak on what I thought was the boring subject of defects. To my surprise, the audience was lit up by the talk and paper, because it brought to life the decay of property development professional structures over several decades.

A simple article grew into an invited appearance at the National Building Regulatory Summit in February 2018 where I found myself an accidental historian of the industry. There I chronicled the decay in development structures across finance, design, construction and statute, an integrated view previously unseen.

For More Information: http://www.jondrane.net/research/the-state-of-contemporary-property-development-structures/

Property Development Master Classes: ‘Work Ready’ and ‘Street Wise’

The universities continue to attempt to steer coursework and offerings toward an ‘industry ready’ framework and for students to be more ‘fit for purpose’.

With this in mind, I am offering a number of  online webinars for College and University students (undergrad and postgrad), which are designed to supplement their current College and University studies and help their career aspirations to come to life in the complex and exciting world of commercial property development.

The Master Classes are designed to provide  real life skills and street smart tools to get students on the road to success. Whether they want to  follow a career employed in property development and/or become a property developer in their own right.

The first master class is in three sessions in early November. You can learn more or book a seat here:

Book Here

https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/dr-dranes-master-class-becoming-a-street-smart-property-developer-tickets-51576187766

Thank You Academia

I have spent a lifetime in the commercial property development and construction industry and been a property developer in my own right. Over those years I have mentored executives and managers and lectured to hundreds of students across four academic institutions including Sydney University, UNSW, WSU and ICMS. I am also an alumni of UNSW and MGSM.

I have loved working with the students and teaching is in my wiring. Being a creature of the wilderness and not the citadel, I now stand on the outside looking upward at these past institutions, my teachers and colleagues. Thank you for helping to get here. I look forward to working alongside some of my past colleagues toward issues heralded in the initiatives above.

Sincerely

Jon

Dr Jonathan Drane

Director Greenshoot Investments

and Optimum Search est 1993

www.jondrane.net

 

 

Building Defects, Building industry project structures, Corrupt Property Developeer Practices, Developer Practices, Project Structures- Building and Development, Uncategorized

Apartment Defects and a New Breed of Property Developer

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Book Now For Dr Drane’s Master Classes on Property Development 

choice-article-15-sept-16-image

Image from Choice Article by, Jemma Castle, ‘Apartment Building Defects, What to look out for’  ( 15 September 2016) https://www.choice.com.au/money/property/buying/articles/apartment-building-defects

This Choice article is an important piece of journalism and research, not only for its exposure of the frightening scale of apartment development in Australia but the systemic failures in the industry which make our habitable apartment developments  increasingly vulnerable to defects.

Defects have always plagued buildings even with the best developers, builders and subcontractors. The quality of buildings has traditionally and historically been policed by the architect who  designed the building and together with what was called a Clerk of Works ( a long time ago)  inspected each element on site to ensure the works were installed properly.

‘Defects A Builders View’ Read More on How the Industry Got Here

With the advent of ‘design and construct’ practices which gathered full force in the 1980s, the architect’s role was subordinated to the builder who took over the role of design overview and quality inspection reducing the architect’s commission to a design and ‘attendance’ role which was a much diluted form of their previous ‘full supervision’ role. The Clerk of Works also vanished and is now a museum piece. (I would love to hear from Clerk of Works who worked in this important role).

Adding to this the advent of private certification in the early 2000s, the quality of BCA outcomes (fire safety and egress put simply) meant that the overall quality of both the design and the fire safety  integrity of the building was eroded further.

Book Now For Dr Drane’s Master Classes on Property Development 

Adding to this the rise of private property development in Australia and its entry into the multi-apartment sector, the advent of a lawless, unknown developer employing a design and construct builder with an architect reduced to a ‘sketch designer’ status and a questionable private certifier meant that this breed of private property developer had a license to almost do whatever they wanted.

And this is exactly what is happening in a part of the multi-apartment sector which is between 3 stories and 8 stories high ( need sprinklers above this approx.). After all the quality developers and builders of which there are many in Australia can’t all be across every site that can be developed in the emergent cityscapes like Green Square.

Access to sites in these burgeoning precincts is not always the province of large balance sheet high quality developers, but that of ‘deal men’ who can put a foot on a site, package up a concept, obtain funding and become the developer of an important habitable building.

The ‘deal men’ are invisible to the naked eye and hide behind ‘sacrificial vehicles’ which are used specifically for project ventures. This makes these developers almost untouchable. This is the new breed of property developer.

Dr Jonathan Drane

www.jondrane.net

Read this article as a pdf:

dd2-the-special-breed-choice-article

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Key Papers and Events

Book Now For Dr Drane’s Master Classes on Property Development 

The New Breed of Property Developer

‘Defects A Builders View’ Read More on How the Property Development Industry Got Here

Read More on the State of Contemporary Property Development

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