The Sustainable Built Environment National Research Centre (SBE Australia) is the successor to the CRC for Construction Innovation.
Established on 1 January 2010, the SBE Australia is a key research facilitator between industry, government and research organisations servicing the built environment industry. The three research streams focus on environmental, social and economic sustainability, areas identified by national industry stakeholders as the key areas that will drive productivity and industry development in the built environment industry.
Vision
To enhance the performance of Australia’s built environment through our achievements as an enduring world-class research and knowledge hub for sustainable infrastructure and building design, construction and management.
Mission
To motivate, facilitate and translate industry value through high quality collaborative research.
Values
Professionalism; Impact; Integrity; Excellence; Passion.
Our Core Partners
We are proud to work closely with the following partners.
OUR BOARD AND RESEARCH AND UTILISATION COMMITTEE
Governing Board
The SBE Australia Governing Board meets quarterly and determines Centre policy, strategic direction, budget allocation and monitoring of accountability on all matters relating to the Objective and the Activities of the Centre. The Board is chaired by John V. McCarthy AO.
John is a recognised industry leader, with a breadth of experience across various commercial and industry disciplines. He served as inaugural Chair on the Australian Sustainable Built Environment Council (ASBEC), as Chair of the Australian Construction Industry Forum (ACIF), President of Property Council of Australia (PCA) and member of the Australian Building Codes Board (ABCB). He was Australia’s first industry representative on the Board of the International Council for Research and Innovation in Building and Construction (CIB) – an organisation he served as global President (2010-2013).
Melinda Fitzgerald is the Deputy Vice Chancellor, Research (Interim) at Curtin University, John Curtin Distinguished Professor and CEO of Connectivity Traumatic Brain Injury Australia.
In her role as Deputy Vice Chancellor, Research, Prof Fitzgerald has responsibility for the portfolios of Research Partnerships, the Mining Technologies and Critical Minerals Trailblazer, the Curtin University National Resilience and Security Program Office, Research Services and Systems, and Research Excellence. She manages strategic initiatives to empower Curtin University to lead research that Australia and our global partners need now and for the future.
Prof Fitzgerald also leads a team of researchers and post-graduate students in nationally coordinated research focused around understanding and preventing the loss of function that occurs following neurotrauma.
Professor Wakefield is currently Professor of Construction, Associate Deputy Vice-Chancellor International, Dean of the School of Property, Construction and Project Management and Interim Dean of the School of Global, Urban and Social Studies at RMIT, Australia. Ron researches and teaches at RMIT in the areas of process simulation and modelling, residential and commercial construction and uses of information technology in construction management. He has degrees in Civil Engineering, including a PhD and BE (Hon 1) from the University of New South Wales and an MSE from Princeton University. He has over 165 publications including books, journal articles and conference papers.
Prior to joining RMIT, Professor Wakefield was the William E. Jamerson Professor of Building Construction in the Department of Building Construction and the Associate Director for Building Technology Research at the Center for Housing Research, Virginia Tech. Ron has over 25 years’ experience as an international researcher, consultant and engineer in building construction. He is a Director of Launch Housing and JJR Consulting and a co-opted member of the Victorian Building Practitioners Board. He serves on the Boards of CIB (International Council for Research and Innovation in Building and Construction) and SBEnrc (Sustainable Built Environment National Research Centre), and he is the Chair of the Board of Tract Consulting.
Doug (BE, MBA) has more than 25 years of experience in road, traffic and transport regulation areas within Main Roads WA. In his current role as Executive Director Planning and Technical Service Doug manages the engineering, technical, asset data and road planning aspects of Main Roads’ business.
Distinguished Professor Brian G. Falzon is the Dean of Engineering, Design and Built Environment at Western Sydney University. Between 2021 and 2023, he was Distinguished Professor and Chair of Advanced Composite Materials and Aerospace Structures at RMIT University, Director of RMIT University’s Space Industry Hub, Director of the Victorian Node of the Smart Satellite Cooperative Research Centre (SmartSat CRC), and Education and Training Program Manager for the Australian Composites Manufacturing Cooperative Research Centre (ACM CRC). He was Head of the School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Queen’s University Belfast, from 2015 to 2021, and was appointed to the prestigious UK Royal Academy of Engineering – Bombardier Chair in Aerospace Composites in 2013.
Between 2008 and 2012 Prof Falzon held the Foundation Chair in Aerospace Engineering at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia, where he was also Director of Research, Head of Aerospace Engineering, and Deputy Head of the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. Between 1996 and 2008, Prof Falzon was at Imperial College London where he joined as a postdoctoral research fellow before becoming an academic staff member. He holds Adjunct Professorships at Queen’s University Belfast, Monash University and the University of New South Wales and was a Visiting Researcher at the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). Prof Falzon graduated with a PhD in Aeronautical Engineering from the University of Sydney in 1996 and was the recipient of the Golden Jubilee graduate prize. He also gained a Bachelor of Engineering in Aeronautical Engineering with first-class honours and a Bachelor of Science with a double major in Physics and Pure Mathematics from the same University.
Prof Falzon is a passionate engineer and is internationally renowned for his industry-driven work on the computational analysis, design, manufacture and testing of advanced composite structures. An accomplished world-leading researcher (in the top 1% in the field of Material Science - Elsevier ranking 2023), his work has had global impact. He has published over 240 peer-reviewed journal/conference papers and book chapters, one book, and edited four others. He made seminal contributions to the analysis of structural stability of thin-skinned composite aerostructures which had a significant influence on the innovative designs subsequently implemented by Boeing Aerostructures Australia on the Boeing 787 and FA-18E/F programs. Prof Falzon was also key in helping define new modelling methodologies for the UK government-backed research program, ‘Next Generation Composite Wing’. His work on composite failure mechanisms, impact damage modelling and fracture toughness characterisation have helped the NASA Advanced Composites Project, which focused on developing reliable methods to predict structural failure. He has fostered extensive industry collaborations and in addition to the industry/government partnerships mentioned above, he has also delivered projects for Airbus, QinetiQ, UK MoD/dstl, McLaren Racing, Rockwell Collins, Thales Australia, DSTG, and Artemis Technologies.
He is the recipient of three awards from the Royal Aeronautical Society and in 2009 he was honoured with an Australian Leadership Award, from the Australian Davos Connection (ADC), in recognition of his contribution to issues of national importance and demonstrated leadership in his field. He is a Chartered Engineer, a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society, member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, several professional organisations, scientific and thought leadership committees, and sits on the Editorial Board of four journals. In 2010 and 2012 he was selected to serve on the Research Evaluation Committee panel for the Australian Research Council’s Excellence in Research for Australia (ERA) exercise. Prof Falzon is also the co-founder of Veryan Medical Limited, a company spin-off from Imperial College London, established in 2003, which developed a new vascular biomimetic stent (for which he holds two patents). Veryan was acquired by Otsuka Medical Devices UK Ltd in December 2018. In 2022 the stent was granted a Good Design Award from the Japan Institute of Design Promotion. In 2018 Prof Falzon was awarded the ‘Belfast Ambassador of the Year’ award by Visit Belfast for promoting advanced manufacturing in Northern Ireland and consequently winning the bid to host a major conference for the city, the 23rd International Conference on Composite Materials, which took place in August 2023.
Driven by a need to succeed at the highest of levels, Kelvin is an ambitious individual always looking forward, in search of novel and innovative knowledge, competencies and perspectives to incorporate into the current work environment.
A senior leader with a winning mentality with over 15 years’ experience, specialising in the leadership, development, management and delivery of people, systems and processes whilst leading and delivering the companies vision and strategy to customers and stakeholders. Kelvin is determined and inspirational, with the natural ability to turn teams into high performers through exceeding expectations and influencing at all levels.
A senior leader with a winning mentality with over 15 years’ experience, specialising in the leadership, development, management and delivery of people, systems and processes whilst leading and delivering the companies vision and strategy to customers and stakeholders. Kelvin is determined and inspirational, with the natural ability to turn teams into high performers through exceeding expectations and influencing at all levels.
Leon McIvor is the Deputy Director General, Housing and Assets at the Western Australian Government’s Department of Communities. Leon is responsible for leading the policy, planning and delivery of land, housing, and built-form construction, refurbishment and maintenance activities of the agency.
Leon has held various Executive Director and Assistant Director General roles in the WA Department of Health, where he was responsible for the COVID-19 Logistics Cell within the State Health Incident Coordination Centre, major health contracts, delivering election commitments for Government and leadership roles in the delivery of major health infrastructure projects.
Leon has held roles in other WA Government agencies and in the Australian Army, where he served as a Commissioned Army Officer for more than a decade
Daniel is an experienced executive with over 25 years’ management experience in Construction Materials across Australia and overseas.
Beginning his career in Perth, Western Australia with Pioneer Concrete he led various Pioneer business units across Australia before moving back to Western Australia as the group’s Executive General Manager responsible for Western Australia/South Australia and then subsequently Queensland /NT.
In 2015 Daniel was appointed Chief Executive Officer for Hanson’s UK business, a complex vertically integrated building materials company of AUD$2 billion turnover and more than 3,500 employees.
Daniel returned to Australia with his family in 2019 to take up the role of CEO of BGC Australia, a private construction and materials company with a revenue of AUD$2.5 billion and more than 4,000 full time employees and contractors.
Bill Haddrill is a senior Executive with 15 years’ experience in local and state government with a proven ability to drive business excellence through the development and implementation of contemporary long-term strategies that respond to future and organisational and community needs.
Bill held the position of Chief Strategy Officer between 2019 and 2023 guiding the Sunshine Coast Council’s strategic planning process and corporate strategy implementation to assist in achieving a successful organisation, delivering on the Community’s vision and Council’s strategic priorities.
Bill’s current role as Group Executive provides oversight of balancing the need for sustainable residential, commercial, environmental, infrastructure and waste management to meet the needs of the region’s growing population.
Recent key achievements include leading the development of the Sunshine Coast UNESCO Biosphere Nomination, guiding the development of a suite of Council strategies and plans including the Environment and Liveability Strategy and Sunshine Coast Resource Recovery Strategy and leading the Sunshine Coast Workplaces Program including completion, opening and occupation of Sunshine Coast City Hall.
National Hydrogen Commercialisation Manager working in the Hydrogen Department at Sumitomo Australia, focusing on development of hydrogen ecosystems, net zero society and pathways for commercialisation.
Previous extensive in-house legal and in private practice experience, focusing on international trade, energy and mineral resources industries.
Previous extensive in-house legal and in private practice experience, focusing on international trade, energy and mineral resources industries.
Christian is a strategically minded executive leader, championing organisational vision, strategy and innovation, building high performing teams in complex customer centric environments and delivering transformation across business clusters.
His experience covers asset management, strategy setting, assurance, governance, financial management, configuration, risk and technical delivery across a multi-modal $168bn assets portfolio. across state government and international consulting bringing experience from Australia, UK, USA, New Zealand, the Middle East and others.
As a recognised Engineering Executive and Fellow across UK, Australia and APEC in leadership & management, he is recognised for his influential and delivery skills with ability to rapidly absorb complex information to deliver solutions and manage stakeholder relationships.
As the Director of Engineering at Transport for NSW, he is accountable for leading the strategic engineering and technical capability frameworks alongside assurance and risk management across the lifecycle of the $168bn network assets portfolio, covering heavy rail, light rail, metro, roads, buses and maritime.
Christian offers expert, influential and strategic advice to the executive and assurance, including operational and cost improvement strategies, to ensure that the condition, performance and integrity of transport assets are suitable at all times for the safe and efficient delivery of multi-modal services. Furthermore, acting as a representative for Transport at State and Federal Government level in relation to engineering and assets and building relationships with stakeholders to ensure the continued safe operations.
Christian brings strong corporate governance with senior committee appointments including: Safety Assurance Board, Configuration Control Board, Network Assurance Committee, Asset Management Steering Committee, Major Projects Network Assurance Committees, Asset Strategy Councils and others.
Career Highlights
- Technical authority lead for $168bn of multi-modal network assets.
- Creating over $500M organisational value across the asset lifecycle through strategic leadership.
- Profit, loss & risk accountability for circa $40M/ annum professional engineering services.
- Managing circa $22M of funding to promote technology and innovation in asset management.
- National harmonisation of standards across Australia.
- Technical expert on materials durability and bridge asset management.
Research and Utilisation Committee
The Research and Utilisation Committee meets quarterly and its primary objectives are to assist the Board in discharging its responsibilities relating to:
- Determining the SBE Australia’s research, utilisation and intellectual property arrangements;
- Reviewing the Centre’s research and utilisation projects; and
- Assisting the CEO in developing research and utilisation projects
- Ensure that appropriate procedures exist to monitor and assess the performance of research and utilisation projects.
- Examine any other matters referred to it by the Board.
The Research and Utilisation Committee is chaired by Louis Bettini, Main Roads WA.
Louis Bettini is Principal Advisor Sustainability in the Strategy team at Main Roads Western Australia. Louis has an Environmental Business Management background and overseas Main Roads’ approach to implementing sustainability both corporately and within major infrastructure projects including facilitating Net Zero Transition and Circular Economy outcomes. Louis is English Speaking Secretary of the World Roads Association Technical Committee 4.5 Decarbonisation of Road Construction and Maintenance.
Having qualified in 1982 in the UK, Dean has a wealth of architectural expertise gained from work in both Europe and Australia, largely in the commercial sector but including some heritage and government projects. Dean currently holds the position of Principal Architect, Building Research & Technical Services (BRATS) in Building Management and Works (WA Department of Finance). The BRATS team provides a range of technical advice and expertise to the state’s program of non-residential building projects and their maintenance.
Driven by a need to succeed at the highest of levels, Kelvin is an ambitious individual always looking forward, in search of novel and innovative knowledge, competencies and perspectives to incorporate into the current work environment.
A senior leader with a winning mentality with over 15 years’ experience, specialising in the leadership, development, management and delivery of people, systems and processes whilst leading and delivering the companies vision and strategy to customers and stakeholders. Kelvin is determined and inspirational, with the natural ability to turn teams into high performers through exceeding expectations and influencing at all levels.
A senior leader with a winning mentality with over 15 years’ experience, specialising in the leadership, development, management and delivery of people, systems and processes whilst leading and delivering the companies vision and strategy to customers and stakeholders. Kelvin is determined and inspirational, with the natural ability to turn teams into high performers through exceeding expectations and influencing at all levels.
Carl is the Head of Environmental, Social and Governance at BGC (Australia) Pty Ltd, one of Australia’s largest home builders that manufactures nearly all products which form part of the construction. He leads the group’s delivery of its ESG Strategy and targets, is workstream lead for sales and acquisitions and leads procurement of the group’s fuels, gases, electricity and waste management contracts.
Prior to this, Carl worked in a variety of State and Commonwealth Government roles, including the Australian Trade Commission, Regional Development and the (then) Sustainable Energy Development Office where he was involved with some of the earliest wind farm and solar projects in Western Australia.
Carl has a Bachelor of Science with first class honours in Natural Resource Management and a Master of Business Administration.
Dr Sacha Reid joined Griffith University in 2009 to develop, with industry, the Real Estate and Property Development major within the Bachelor of Business. Prior to this she worked in Commercial Agency, having established the research capacity of DTZ (Australia) in Queensland. As the Foundation Director of Research she established all corporate research strategies and dissemination to support decision making for both internal and external stakeholders.
Sacha’s main research interests include social and affordable housing, high rise and strata title (apartments) living and the sociological aspects of increasing densities. She is the Chair of the Griffith University Strata Title conference, a cross-sectoral industry-based conference. She has also led several competitive research grants and tenders, including; Professionalisation of the Construction Sector (Australian Research Council Linkage Project), Crime in High Rise Buildings in Surfers Paradise (Criminology Research Council funded) and Residential Building Compliance (PICA Group). She has supervised to completion 8 PhDs, 3 Honours and has 6 current PhD candidates examining tourism and real estate and property development issues.
Andrew has a strong foundation in Mechanical Engineering and has gained valuable experience in the oil and gas as well as the mining sectors. His expertise lies in successfully delivering and managing various projects and programs within the WA and NSW state government. These initiatives have included focusing on residential and social housing energy efficiency, renewable energy, passive solar design, and the development of net zero grant programs for high emitting industries. Andrew is well-versed in emission reporting and has a proven track record in developing customised models and conducting thorough cost benefit analyses. His diverse background and practical experience make him a valuable asset in addressing complex challenges related to energy efficiency and emission reduction.
John has worked in the WA Property sector at a strategic, program and project management levels. In a career of nudging 30 years he has contributed to Government policy, corporate strategy, major project submissions, business case preparation, land assembly, project approvals, tendering, sales and leasing and corporate governance.
His work has shaped many projects including Joondalup, White Gum Valley, Craigie Cool Earth, Canning Vale, Wangara Industrial area, the Australian Marine Complex, Latitude 32 legislation and delivery strategy, Peel Business Park and more recently making the investment cases for Colliecrete and the Australian Automation and Robotics Precinct at Neerabup.
John led the development of DevelopmentWA’s first Reconciliation Action Plan in 2019 and he is committed to working for Aboriginal people, businesses and communities in Western Australia.
Distinguished Professor Vivian W. Y. Tam is the Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering and a world-leading researcher in the field of construction engineering and management. Her findings have found applications and impact for tackling climate-change issues for green buildings and recycled concrete. She is currently the Director of Centre for Infrastructure Engineering, Associate Dean (Research and HDR), Associate Dean (International) and Discipline Leader (Construction Management) at School of Engineering, Design and Built Environment, Western Sydney University, Australia. She was nominated to the College of Expert, Australian Research Council, Australian Government in 2018-2021. She is currently the Editor-in-Chief of International Journal of Construction Management and Senior Editor of Construction and Building Materials. She has published over 330 referred journal articles. She has been awarded fifty-three research grants (totalled over $5 million). Her work has been recognised by peers nationally and internationally, which has been exemplified by seven Australian Research Council projects and over 30,000 citations with a h-index of 91. Vivian is also named as 100,000 Top-Scientists (Top 2% Scientists) in the World for since 2017. Vivian is also nominated as a Runner Up, Scopus Researcher of the Year Award 2019, Excellence in Research Impacting a Sustainable Future, Scopus, and her team has won the Gold Award, 2021 Urban Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition, Guangzhou International Sister-City Universities (GISU), from this project development.
Priya is a building scientist and the Director of the Sustainable Building Innovation Lab (SBi Lab) and the Associate Dean, Research and Innovation at School of Property, Construction and Project Management, RMIT University. Priya’s research interests span from sustainable building design, energy benchmarking and labelling, urban heat island, indoor air quality, to citizen science in urban microclimate monitoring, mitigation and adaptation. She has coordinated several projects in building performance for various climate zones and has published more than 100 scientific papers. Priya is also the President of the Architectural Science Association (ANZAScA).
Priya teaches in the Master of Energy Efficient and Sustainable Building Programme which involves a unique blend of courses that focus on key principles and practice of designing and delivering environmentally sustainable buildings, infrastructure and developments, where she challenges and helps students to build skills in energy efficient and sustainable building design for navigating the complex and rapidly changing built environment.
Rochelle has a diverse career which has enabled her to gain valuable expertise in business development, research development, program management, team-orientated leadership, operations and business strategy and strategic partnerships. She can influence, sell and deliver transformational programs at all levels of an organisation.
Most recently, Rochelle held executive roles within the cybersecurity industry, partnering with multi-national organisations towards developing sovereign cyber security solutions for critical infrastructure.
Throughout her career she has built a strong track record in developing and managing cross-sector, multidisciplinary, and interdisciplinary collaborative programs. With a drive to cultivate strong stakeholder engagement to connect diverse groups and manage complex mutually beneficial relationships.
Rochelle's passion is to facilitate innovation with impact by helping to build strong, sustainable partnerships between organisations that will facilitate lasting research impact, that supports our communities, and industry. Tackling those challenges ahead of us, both grand and not so grand, by bringing people together.
Bill Haddrill is a senior Executive with 15 years’ experience in local and state government with a proven ability to drive business excellence through the development and implementation of contemporary long-term strategies that respond to future and organisational and community needs.
Bill held the position of Chief Strategy Officer between 2019 and 2023 guiding the Sunshine Coast Council’s strategic planning process and corporate strategy implementation to assist in achieving a successful organisation, delivering on the Community’s vision and Council’s strategic priorities.
Bill’s current role as Group Executive provides oversight of balancing the need for sustainable residential, commercial, environmental, infrastructure and waste management to meet the needs of the region’s growing population.
Recent key achievements include leading the development of the Sunshine Coast UNESCO Biosphere Nomination, guiding the development of a suite of Council strategies and plans including the Environment and Liveability Strategy and Sunshine Coast Resource Recovery Strategy and leading the Sunshine Coast Workplaces Program including completion, opening and occupation of Sunshine Coast City Hall.
Experienced Director of Program Operations with a demonstrated history of working in the government administration industry. Skilled in Customer Service, Strategic Planning, Change Management, Research, and Contract Management. Strong program and project management professional with a Bachelor of Applied Science - BASc focused in Biology/Biological Sciences, General from QUT (Queensland University of Technology).
OUR LEADERSHIP TEAM
Executive Management
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) reports to the Governing Board and has overall responsibility for the Centre’s strategic direction and its research and outreach programs.
Professor Keith Hampson is an energetic executive leader with more than 40 years of industry, government and research leadership, and international experience and scholarship in the built environment. His expertise and leadership strengths have been honed operating in complex multidisciplinary environments in planning, design, construction and maintenance. From leading university teaching, industry and government teams, to initiating and building national and international collaborations in research, technology diffusion and commercialisation, Keith is committed to building a more internationally competitive Australia by promoting access to better education, technology and innovative practices.
For nearly 30 years, Keith has consistently been at the helm of leading translational research for a traditionally non-research focused industry – the built environment industry – creating processes and organisations that have successfully delivered value for industry and driving cultural change that captures the value of research and academia working hand in glove with industry.
Throughout his career, he has led industry-focused research teams that have successfully secured approximately A$70 million in competitive and industry R&D funding.
Ammar Shemery is an accomplished senior executive with over 25 years of multifaceted experience. Ammar has a proven track record of driving strategic initiatives across diverse sectors, including construction, asset management, facilities management, engineering, and education. Currently, Ammar is the Chief Operating Officer at the Sustainable Built Environment National Research Centre, Australia, leading national business growth and strategic transformation. Ammar’s portfolio includes managing high-impact industry-led projects in circular economy, digital engineering, urban planning, sustainable procurement and green energy transitions.
Ammar’s career is distinguished by his ability to create and implement strategies in complex environments, optimise operations, and manage large-scale budgets. He has successfully established and executed strategic plans, built high-performing teams, and leveraged networks to generate new business opportunities and valuable partnerships.
Ammar holds an MSc in Facilities and Operations Management and a BSc in Mechanical Engineering. He is on the path to finishing a PhD in Management (Digital Transitions) from Curtin University, along with executive education credentials from INSEAD, the University of Cambridge, and the Australian Institute of Company Directors. This diverse educational background, combined with extensive professional experience, equips Ammar with the strategic insights and operational expertise necessary to drive innovation and sustainable growth.
Business development has been a key component of Ammar’s roles, where he has successfully secured funds to support strategic projects and initiatives. In his current COO position, he has been instrumental in attracting new partners and leveraging funding to support the execution of the long-term strategic plan, which has significantly increased the bottom line.
Ammar is passionate about leading transformative projects that deliver measurable value and competitive advantage. His commitment to excellence and innovation continues to drive success in achieving organisational objectives and fostering a culture of continuous improvement.
MESSAGE FROM OUR CEO
Our Centre aims to be an enduring world-class research and knowledge broker in sustainable infrastructure and building design, construction and management.
We are achieving our mission thanks to our Program Leaders and the research teams involved in our three programs of activity. The valuable research outcomes our projects deliver have largely been due to our strong focus on industry and government collaboration. Our Centre would not be able to continue growing without the commitment and support of our core partners and we thank you wholeheartedly.
