QUEENSLAND'S GERMAN CONNECTIONS - PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE

Underwater and overhead

The first sun-sails are erected by Thiess as construction begins on the World Expo site at Brisbane’s South Bank. Image (T54-254) courtesy of Brisbane City Council

Notable among these projects were: • the tent structures over Expo’88 in Brisbane, the first incrementally launched concrete bridge in Sydney, the segmental construction of Sydney Harbour Tunnel, the use of high-pressure water blasting to remove concrete cover form reinforcement over 8000m 2 of Port Hedland’s iron ore Wharf 90, and the development of Advanced Blasting Technology using newly-invented electronic detonators for better fragmentation. In 2003 Thiess and Hochtief became joint venture participants in the construction of Sydney’s Epping-to-Chatswood rail link. Since the 1990s Hochtief has systematically expanded its core competencies to encompass construction-related services. It handled major projects as a total system leader, supplying the planning, design, financing, construction, and operation of the facility for which they received the contract. These activities were also introduced to Thiess. Today Hochtief AG owns 55% of Leighton Holdings Ltd, as well as major construction companies in the United States, and satellite holdings in most countries of the European Union, Russia, South Africa, Qatar, Argentina and Chile. Hochtief today conducts complex projects of all dimensions as a total system leader on five continents, and has become one of the largest construction companies in the world. • • • •

Fifteen years later, Dr Schumann became the chief executive of Hochtief AG, and during his reign the construction of nuclear power stations dominated Hochtief’s domestic business. Abroad, in the 1970s, Hochtief flourished with projects like the US$11 billion Jeddah Airport and the Carbora Bassa Dam in Mozambique. Perhaps Hochtief’s single most spectacular engineering feat was the relocation of the temples at Abu Simbel in Egypt’s Nile Valley, ahead of the construction of the Aswan High Dam. Schumann had not lost sight of the possibilities in Australia, however, and in 1977 sent young engineer Hans Ramm to Sydney to re-establish a Hochtief presence. Ramm entered a joint venture with Thiess Brothers to construct the 260m-high chimneys for Victoria’s Loy Yang Power Station in 1979. The following year an opportunity for further expansion appeared to present itself. After the hostile takeover of Thiess Holdings by CSR, the latter found the construction activities of its new acquisition an uncomfortable fit, and offered them back to Sir Leslie Thiess. Hochtief joined Westfield and Sir Leslie in the consortium known as Thiess Contractors, and concluded the sale in 1981, becoming outright owner after Sir Leslie and Westfield sold their stakes two years later. As a foreign company was not allowed to own more than 50% of an Australian company at that time, however, Hochtief AG transferred its Thiess shares to Leighton Holdings Ltd in July 1983. On the morning it was announced that Hochtief had sold Thiess to its major competitor Leighton, every person at Thiess’ office in Sydney dressed in black, believing Hochtief had now administered the final blow. However, Leighton and Thiess Contractors remained as two independent companies which today continue to fiercely compete. Hochtief continued to provide its technical expertise and experience to Thiess, facilitating Thiess’ expansion into new areas of construction.

REFERENCES 1. “Hochtief and its History- from the Helfmann Brothers into the 21st Century” by Prof. Manfred Pohl and Birgit Siekmann 2. Thiess 75 Years – Imagine our Future 3. Information given by Dr Albrecht Schumann to Detlef Sulzer

249