Tag Archives: Graduate Program

Careers, Community, Education

Cementing Opportunities Within Construction

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Foundations have been laid for a fantastic working relationship between local Edward John Eyre High School (EJEHS) students and the new Whyalla Year 7-12 Secondary School site currently in development. On Tuesday 17th November, a small group of Year 11 students enrolled within the school’s ACEE Program (Automotive, Construction, Electrotechnology, and Engineering) connected with our site Project Manager Terry Kildea, Site Supervisor Jack Croudace, and Construction Graduate Adrian Condello, to learn about the plans for the new site and undertake a tour while construction is well underway.

Under the guidance of their school program leaders, Belinda McEvoy and Megan Cox, the students undertook an immersive educational experience that highlighted both the practical intricacies involved in a multimillion dollar construction project, and discussed opportunities with our team that may present themselves within the world of, and pathways to, construction; and how best to maximise such opportunities when they present themselves.

With a similar career education and industry exposure opportunity in early December 2020 for Year 10 students from schools across the Whyalla Partnership who have been newly accepted into the EJEHS ACEE Program commencing next year, 2021 is looking exciting.

We’re looking forward to supporting various opportunities for students to put their program and VET learnings into practice in collaboration with our many subcontractors.

A very big thank you to our Project Manager Terry Kildea and his team, Hannah Taylor from the Department for Education Vocational Learning and Pathways directorate, and also to David Marino, Principal at EJEHS, and his team for engaging and working so effectively together to support and promote opportunities within the construction industry for school students.

Community, News, Our Values, Residential

Building a ‘House of Respite’ for Families Affected by Autism and Cerebral Palsy

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Living Without Limits Foundation (LWL) is an incredibly worthy charity with in-depth knowledge of some of  the toughest challenges faced by South Australian families. For those parents or primary caregivers looking after children affected by Autism or Cerebral Palsy, it’s “hard yards – for life,” according to the not-for-profit, which was established in 2012.

For the majority of these families, there is simply no respite. They have little to no break from their 24/7 around-the-clock caring role and limited time (or money) for a holiday. Sarah Constructions wanted to help change that.

Building the ‘House of Respite’ team

Steve Maras, Co-Founder and Vice Chair of LWL, is also President of the Property Council. He said, “We found through our journey that the money people spend on therapy for their children often means there’s little left for anything else, let alone a holiday. 

“It’s so important for families to have a break and re-connect, especially with their other children, and this is exactly what we wanted to offer them in the form of a ‘House of Respite’.” 

As Vice President of the Property Council, Chief Executive Officer Adrian Esplin became aware of the opportunity to offer the company’s services in support of the good cause. “It was an easy decision to make,” he said. “At Sarah Constructions, we live and work by our values, one of which is to put people first. Not only did getting involved in the House of Respite mean we could help South Australian families in need, but it also gave us an opportunity to give our graduates valuable hands-on construction experience working for a valuable cause.”

With Adrian Esplin on board, it was time to assemble the team that was going to bring the ‘House of Respite’ to fruition. Operations Manager, Terry Tsapaliaris, followed by Construction Manager Salem Tredrea, who manages the Graduate Program at Sarah Constructions, saw the project as the ideal opportunity for graduate involvement. Michael Kilmartin, Design Manager at Sarah, said, “It’s been a great opportunity for our graduates, not only to give back but also to be involved in a front-line, hands-on, construction project. They have all thrived throughout the process. It’s given them greater autonomy and exposure to the entire build process.”

Donations of time, expertise and goodwill

From May of this year, Michael Kilmartin has been heavily involved. The House of Respite will be professionally serviced, managed and maintained by Novita, one of the State’s leading providers of disability services; they provided the project brief. 

“Novita provided us with a brief around what they thought would be the ideal result. I then went through Sarah’s detailed design review process, as I would for any client. The graduates got involved in the procurement process, engaging the trades and negotiating what could be donated,” he said.

“Some materials had to be bought but a lot of the trades’ time and all of Sarah’s time was donated.”  

Nick Palmato is one of the graduates involved in the project. He said, “It feels great to be able to give back to the community and support such a fantastic and worthy cause – not only through the donation of Sarah’s time but also by leveraging the strong relationships we have within the construction industry to ensure we can add as much value to this project as possible, ensuring Living Without Limits gets the best result.

“Since our initial visit, Sarah has taken on the role of driving the conceptual design process, acquiring development approvals, actively seeking out further support and donations from the industry and coordination of the building process through to handover.” The house, which is being built on a block of land in Goolwa, is set to open in December in time for the Christmas break.

To ensure the house provides a safe, relaxing space for children with physical access needs, specific and detailed plans were developed. Chydem Ayik, an integral part of the Sarah team, was tasked with the responsibility of developing the house plans, in consultation with LWL. “Extensive documentation that included drawings of every component, detail and selection was developed in order to meet the significant compliance requirements for the house. This allowed the graduates on the job to have a very clear understanding of the compliance requirements for the build.”

Investing in the community and in Sarah’s people

By supporting LWL and its service users, Sarah Constructions is also developing community-minded, solutions-focused construction professionals of the future with invaluable, hands-on experience.

Graduate Nick Palmato explained that, by being given responsibility to drive the project and make it their own, the graduates have been able to learn valuable lessons. Graduates have learned first hand the importance of the design phase, cost management and procurement, through to onsite collaboration with subcontractors and consultants to identify and implement creative solutions to the challenges they have faced. “This process has driven my own professional development,” he said, “and prepared me well for the next step in my career.”

For LWL and the hundreds of South Australian families that will benefit from the House of Respite every year, the support of Sarah Constructions and all of the involved trades has been gratefully received. “If it wasn’t for the support of Sarah, and all the superb trades and suppliers, this project would still be sitting on the drawing board,” said Steve Maras.  

“We are absolutely thrilled with the support of Sarah. They have been truly magnificent and it’s been a pleasure to work with their passionate and dedicated team to get this all-important project off the ground.”

To find out more about the House of Respite, follow Living Without Limits Foundation on Facebook. 

 We would like to expressly thank the following wonderful contributors to this project: Revolution Roofing/ Nexteel, International Ceramics, Maka Plasterboard, Supaloc, Proform, Glow Heating and Cooling, Chris Henderson Electrical, LA Concrete, Drew Rudd Engineering, Bluescope, Next Gen Flooring, Advanced All Energy, SA Commercial Blinds, Hindmarsh Plumbing, Filips Roller Doors, Bianco Reinforcing, Aluco, USG Boral, ADX, PGH Bricks and Pavers, Spence Doors, Fletcher Insulation, G and G Tiling, Astec Paints, Harvey Norman Commercial, Adelaide Marble Specialists, Direct Mix, Chris Hart Earthworks, Roofmax, Dulux, Katnich Dodd, Priority Earthworks, South Coast Excavations, Ranieri Bricklaying and Developer Direct Online.

Sarah Contributors:

  • Sarah Graduates (Nick Palmato, Elvio Sinopoli, Paul Schultz, Matt Grimwade, Tyson Rogers, Luke Barbon, Paul Constantine)
  • Salem Tredrea/Terry Tsapaliaris (Project Management)
  • Steve Blackmore (Site supervision/Management)
  • Ian McKnight (Site supervision/ Management)
  • Bill Stevenson (Site Assistance – Services)
  • Dave Hiley (Site supervision/ civil works management)
  • Dena Van Zyl  (Safety/QHSE)
  • Emily Lawson  (Safety/QHSE)
  • Chydem Ayik (Design and Project Development)
  • Michael Kilmartin (Design and Project Development)
Education, News

UniSA Grants Program: Supporting The Future Of Construction

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By Jon Anderson

During my time at University, work placement was not included as a course component, so it wasn’t until I entered the workforce that I was able to gain practical site experience. For today’s students, the UniSA Grants Program provides a hands-on opportunity to work with Sarah Constructions and gain practical experience, working in construction as a unit of their studies. 

Over the 12 week program, we involve students on a number of different commercial construction projects, providing exposure to multiple departments and experiences; giving them a head-start in their career by getting them out of the classroom and into real-life job scenarios. For the students that have potential and are a good cultural fit, the grants program can extend into longer term career progression for them, through transition into our Graduate program. A pathway that we are very proud to offer at Sarah, to help foster and develop the next generation of construction professionals.

Applying For The UniSA Grants Program

When you apply for a job later in life, it’s common that you have a network of people who know you and you’re work history. Through previous work experience, you have developed referees and people who can provide a more complete overview of who you are and what you can offer. Where as students are brand new to the industry and don’t have that network, so our collaboration with UniSA helps make sure we get a complete picture of who they are, when they’re applying for the grant positions.

We achieve this additional insight that might traditionally come from an applicants referees, by including a UniSA representative on our interview panel. The UniSA faculty staff knows the student candidates, can act as their referee and provide a greater depth of knowledge on the students potential. This collaboration provides beneficial insight, as often interviews don’t give us a complete understanding of a person. Having someone who can vouch for them and tell us what they’re like away from the interview environment, help us make informed choices, and we’ve made strong selections as a result.

Benefits Of Participating In The UniSA Grants Program

All students eligible for the grant have to complete 12 weeks of work experience as part of their degree. One of the real benefits of our program is that we support our students by making sure they’re paid for the time they spend with us. This also demonstrates to the students that we value their time and input. They’re not just someone doing work experience – we are genuinely invested in their contribution and we value the opportunity to work with them, as much as they do us.

While they’re at Sarah, we make sure participating students get a broad range of experience. They’ll be guided through the tender process, learn first-hand from our expert design team, and spend time on a variety of different sites, working on a range of different projects. Building is a very tangible process, and we like to deliver solid practical experience that will provide genuine benefits to the students in their final year of study. I know from first-hand experience that there’s only so much you can learn through study. Hands-on experience makes for a much stronger graduate, which not only benefits the individuals, but also the industry as a whole.

Paul Schultz was one of our successful grant recipients in 2018, and who is still with Sarah, participating in our Graduate Program. A great piece of feedback I had from him was around the assignment of his mentor, Evan Kellaris, with whom he ‘felt like he won the jackpot’. After his 12-weeks with us he said he had a much better understanding of the industry and because of that, he was able to better grasp the principles he is studying at university.

“Even though the Senior Managers at Sarah are incredibly busy, they always take the time to answer my questions and give me the help I need. Within industry, sub contractors for example, love working for Sarah and I think this comes down to the values and Sarah culture. Everyone helps everyone, it is absolutely a collaborative team environment. At Sarah it’s about building positive relationships and this approach trickles down from the very top. The experience has been amazing and I would 100% recommend it.” Paul Schultz

Career Progression After UniSA Grants Program

When we bring someone onboard with this program, we’re not just thinking about the next 12-weeks. We’re looking to invest in someone and to build a long-term relationship. So, if a student shows the right attitude, there’s a real opportunity for longer term career progression, which benefits everyone involved. It’s great for the student because they have a job lined up before they’ve even finished their degree, and we see ourselves getting the best the market has to offer.

Since we started the program, we’ve seen most of our students take those extra steps. More often than not the paid grant program has turned into a cadetship, which has then turned into a full-time position with us in our graduate program. 

I think the success of the UniSA grants program really shows how much we can all benefit by investing our time and energy into the next generation. The students, and therefore our industry as a whole, will all be that much stronger, for the time and commitment we put into our students of today.

Information on eligibility for the program and application requirements can be found on UniSA’s scholarship page for the Division of Information Technology, Engineering, and the Environment.

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Careers, Residential

SARAH Construction Graduates – Minda PKC Cost Neutral Bathroom Project

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The Sarah Construction Graduates worked in partnership with Minda in the delivery of two renovated bathrooms within Minda’s existing Pat Kaufmann Centre (PKC) nursing home in Brighton. This project was a key objective of the 2017 Graduate Program, designed to be a collaborative effort between each other as well as Minda, one of our significant clients. The design team also consisted of consultants in architecture (Cheesman Architects), services engineering (BESTEC), and structural engineering (Wallbridge Gilbert Aztec). The graduates were tasked with overseeing the entire project from design conception, contractor procurement, and ultimately the construction and handover, providing a real-world experience for them to take ownership of and learn from while also providing a service for some very deserving members of our community.

The Challenge? Deliver a cost neutral project for our client.

The challenge put forth by Sarah Constructions to the graduates was to manage and produce two refurbished bathrooms at cost neutral to the client. This meant the graduates had to call upon relationships built over the past year with their subcontractors and suppliers to negotiate labour and materials to complete the job. In turn, this created difficulties with scheduling and programming as some subcontractors had conflicting job commitments which took precedence. This created a domino effect as the delays of certain trades affected the critical path of the construction program which the Graduates had to manage.

Due to the limited documentation and drawings available for a relatively small project, the graduates took initiative to request and review existing drawings. This lead to the discovery of footings and reinforcement situated in both bathrooms where service trenching was required. To remediate this potential issue, the graduates proposed a different floor finish to reduce the extent of concrete cutting required. This was beneficial in terms of both program and cost.

Minda entrusted the graduates with transforming their existing hydrobath bathrooms into fully compliant (with DDA Standards) bathrooms. This resulted in a high-quality project displaying the collaborative efforts between Sarah Constructions and Minda, as well as all others involved in the project.

The Graduates worked closely with PKC’s Clinical Services Manager, Cathy, to minimise disruptions to the day to day lives of the residents and staff. This was achieved through constant communication with Cathy, allowing her to stay updated with the current construction activities on site.

While this project has provided a fantastic new facility for the PKC residents, it has also been extremely beneficial to our Graduates learning and professional development. We would like to extend our sincere thanks to Michelle Gheorghiu and Wayne Coutts for their mentoring throughout the duration of the project; and also to the fantastic consultants, subcontractors and suppliers who generously donated their services to make this project possible.

A huge ‘Thank you’ goes to:

  • Michelle Gheorghiu & Wayne Coutts (Minda), for their mentorship to the graduates and assistance to the project.
  • Gary Fong (Cheesman Architects), for his architectural consultation and design advice.
  • Mark Battams (BESTEC), for his assistance and advice with hydraulic services.
  • Shane Rosie (WGA), for his assistance and advice with structural engineering.

The Sarah Constructions Graduates would also like to acknowledge and thank the following subcontractors for their significant contributions (including time, labour, materials, or cost reductions):

  • Jordan Plumbing –  all hydraulic services
  • Reece Plumbing & Bathrooms – new fixtures and fittings
  • Nilsen – Electrical services
  • Complete Pest Control – termite treatment
  • Deconstruct – Demolition and concrete cutting
  • Suez – Bin hire
  • Bianco Hire – Temporary fencing
  • Spence Doors – Door supply
  • Italia Ceramics – Wall Tile Supply
  • G & G Tiling – Tiling
  • SJS Group Nominees, – Painting
  • Premier Linings – Making good gyprock walls and installation of sundry items
  • Access Hardware –  Supply of sundry items

The graduates would also like to thank Terry Tsapaliaris & Dena Van Zyl (Sarah Constructions), for their leadership and advice with construction methodology, practices and safety.

This project has greatly supported the development of our future construction leaders and enhanced the lives of some of our communities most deserving people; together with Minda we are tremendously grateful.

Paul Marino Project Manager Sarah Constructions Winning Award
Careers

From Graduate To Project Manager In Under Five Years

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– by Paul Marino, Project Manager (pictured above right)

I’m very proud of my rapid career progression at Sarah Constructions. The journey has taken a lot of hard work but I’ve had plenty of support from the business, so if I can help just one reader on their journey to a top career in construction here at Sarah, then I’m happy to give something back.

My name is Paul Marino, I’m 28 years old and I’m a Project Manager at Sarah Constructions. Currently I’m working with Minda on one of Sarah’s biggest projects to date, but I only started with the business 5 years ago, after graduating from Uni SA with a degree in Construction Management and Economics.

I’ve achieved a great deal in a short space of time; I’ve been pretty lucky and had a lot of opportunities, but that came from a lot of hard work and having a clear vision of what I wanted.

How my career in construction began

I’ve been around construction my whole life; my father was a bricklayer who then started his own domestic construction company, so I was exposed to it at a young age, labouring with my old man, and developing a good appreciation for the evolution of a structure and the different facets of the building industry.

Not just building, but interacting with different types of people and seeing satisfaction in clients. I suppose that’s what drove me to follow this career path.

My career progression at Sarah

I started as a Project Assistant for the first couple of years at Sarah, then moved to a Project Administrator role, running smaller type projects on my own. After that, I became a Project Manager.

I was based on site with the Site Manager when I first arrived, learning the detail of how a structure actually goes together. Then I transitioned back into the office after 6-8 months and learned the admin side of project management; RFIs, variations, and client meetings, for example.

That first year was a solid foundation for me as a junior to absorb as much information and technical knowledge as I could.

Investing in and supporting people

My Project Manager back then saw that I had potential and that I really wanted to progress, so he invested a lot of time in me. Plus, receiving constant feedback from management gave me plenty of opportunity to prove myself.

I believe that it comes down to how much you want to succeed. If you want to go far, if you want to push yourself to be the best you can be, learn as much as you can, and develop as a person and a professional, then this is the place to do it.

“Sarah will invest as much time and money as they can in your development to ensure you get to where you want to go.”

 

For me, it’s not just a job at Sarah, there’s a career here. Friends of mine in the industry that work with different companies just don’t have the support that we do here. The business values mirror those that we have as individuals, which means that we’re all on the same page working together as a team.

Sarah is like a family. We’re all striving to be the best we can be, not only as individuals but as a business. I guess that’s why the business is growing so rapidly and constantly, because we all know what we need to do to achieve success.

Opportunities for Graduates

There are a lot of different career opportunities here; if not in Project Management, there are other areas, such as Estimating, Design Management, or Site Supervision. The Sarah Graduate Program is such a great initiative because it shows you what we’re about and the various areas of the business in which you can succeed. We’ve got so many good experienced people here, that Graduates gain terrific knowledge and exposure to what we do.

As a business we’re quite youthful; it shows that Sarah is investing in the future, bringing in the right people and training current staff to develop the younger recruits. It’s great for me because previously I’ve been investing in myself and increasing my own knowledge, but now I’m the one investing in juniors and helping to develop them, which allows me to grow professionally. Being selected to participate in the Sarah Future Leaders program last year, which is all about nurturing leadership skills within existing Sarah staff, was a big part of that.

My advice to you

On site I learned so much. Your university degree doesn’t provide you with the day-to-day work experience you need to understand what this industry is all about, so I highly recommend work experience to anyone. Even if it’s unpaid, get involved as much as you can.

The biggest piece of advice I can give you, if you’re lucky enough to come and work at Sarah, is to work hard. If you work hard, the technical and soft skills will follow. You just need to be patient on the journey because opportunities will arise here.

“The sky’s the limit here. There isn’t another builder within Adelaide that can provide what Sarah can to a Graduate.”

 

So much more than building

At the end of the day, a career in construction is so much more than building. With teamwork and collaboration, it’s trust that we build, not just buildings. Clients invest a lot of time and money into a product that we need to produce at a high quality, so we need to think like the client and their customers, as well as builders.

That’s why it’s so rewarding to be recognised within the industry. We recently won building excellence awards from the Master Builders Association and also the Australian Institute of Building, for our work on the Wilderness project. I get a huge sense of satisfaction from seeing my client happy; not just with a job well done, but also from having received external commendation for our work together. It’s especially rewarding to know that, because we won the category here in SA, we are also entered into the national award, which supports our position as industry leader nationwide.

Sarah Constructions is all about opportunity, reward, and work life balance. Whatever you’re going through in your life, they’ll be there for you to help you succeed. It’s a great place to work! All of us here count ourselves pretty lucky.