Strength, adaptability and diversification

2020 was a strategic year, rebranding the business as BESIX Watpac and repositioning as an engineering-led multi-disciplinary contractor specialising in complex projects. At the same time, the COVID-19 global pandemic unfolded and created impacts that are still being felt throughout the industry. Through this period of uncertainty, our business readily adapted to the challenges and changing conditions; and our people demonstrated remarkable resilience, flexibility and fortitude.

Despite this upheaval, we delivered a commendable consolidated profit before tax of $12.2 million. We made progress on projects such as Brisbane’s Herston Quarter STARS building, South Australia's Underdale High School, Wurun Senior Campus and Geelong Civic Centre in Victoria and Singleton Mid-Term Refresh, Naval Guided Weapons Maintenance Facility and Hornsby Ku-ring-gai Hospital in New South Wales. We also commenced our first successful diversification into heavy industrial civil through the Sun Metals Zinc Refinery project in Townsville. All these projects were contributors to our $920 million turnover in 2020.

This year also marked an important step in our journey towards reconciliation. We launched our Reflect Reconciliation Action Plan for the first time. Since then, we have taken major steps forward to building lasting opportunities for First Nations People. As of mid-2023, we have invested over $14.5 million in procuring goods and services from Indigenous businesses and have a national average of 2.1% Indigenous participation on our projects.

BESIX Watpac finished the year in a strong position, winning an extension and upgrade of a maximum-security prison in Melbourne, a commercial building in Sydney’s Macquarie Park, and the ECI stage of a nationally significant medical and research facility for global vaccine manufacturer, Seqirus.

In 2019, Jean-Pol Bouharmont joined the Australian business after being a senior executive for BESIX in the Middle East for over two decades. He was appointed CEO of BESIX Watpac in late 2019.

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Embracing a new journey towards reconciliation

In 2020, BESIX Watpac took its biggest step on its reconciliation journey, and subsequently launched their very first Respect Reconciliation Action Plan to prepare the company for its cultural journey. This important step forward is helping pave the way for a sustainable future for First Nations People. Two years on, the company launched its Innovate Reconciliation Action Plan, this outlines our actions and deliverables to be achieved over the following two years. As of 2023, we've invested over $14.5 million in Indigenous business, and have a national Indigenous participation average of 2.1 per cent on our projects.

Melbourne's Casey Hospital Expansion reaches completion

In 2020 we also completed the Casey Hospital Expansion project for Department of Health and Human Services (now VHBA) through a modified Public Private Partnership (PPP) contract. Completed in a 24/7 operational environment and handed over during the COVID-19 pandemic, the expansion provided 60% increased floor area including the hospital’s first intensive care unit (ICU). The project enabled Monash Health to treat an extra 25,800 patients, perform an extra 8,000 surgeries and procedures and support an extra 1,300 births every year, with clear expansion zones built in to cater for future growth. This project expansion allows Casey Hospital to meet the soaring demand for healthcare in Melbourne’s outer south east.

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BESIX Watpac’s impressive track record of delivering large-scale and technically complex building and infrastructure projects continued throughout 2020, thanks in no small part to our acclaimed in-house engineering department. It was a busy and productive year for the team, which is part of a group of more than 150 engineers and methodology experts, focused strongly on maximising value and delivering project certainty for our valued clients. Located in Brisbane, Dubai and Brussels the global engineering team operates as one, drawing on expertise and learnings, incorporating world’s best practise, and sharing the latest innovation trends both locally and internationally.