As part of our commitment to the tertiary education sector, Capital Insight has been sponsoring, participating in and presenting at the TEFMA annual conference for over 15 years.

We are proud of this commitment, as well as our various roles partnering with our tertiary education clients around Australia on some of the country’s most challenging and exciting projects.

In 2023, Capital Insight saw an opportunity to continue our sponsorship by recognising the contributions the internal University project management teams make during their projects.

With the support of the TEFMA Board, we have established the TEFMA Capital Insight Project Management Award to recognise outstanding project management practice that demonstrates a holistic, collaborative and innovative approach to project management resulting in a high-value outcome for the client – all attributes that we strive to deliver on our projects.

The 2023 winner of the Capital Insight Project Management Award was Geoff Cottee and Grant Gordon from Southern Cross University for their extraordinary efforts during a time of crisis in supporting the Lismore community, secondary schools, TAFE, health services and all emergency services, including hundreds of Defence personnel.

On the 28 February 2022, Southern Cross University was stood up as an evacuation centre for six plus weeks at the exclusion of all staff and students in response to a record flood of 14.4m, a full 2.3m higher than the previous records set in 1954 and 1974. Geoff and Grant led the on-ground response.

Geoff and Grant then led and managed all projects immediately following the floods including:

• refurbishment of P Block to a new Health Clinic;
• redesign and refurbishment of A Block to accommodate displaced staff;
• convert R Block and E Block to a high school and a primary school;
• strip out and remediation of a 60-bed accommodation; and
• repairs to all flood-damaged roads, footpaths and the oval.

Please join us in congratulating Geoff, Grant and Southern Cross University for their incredible efforts over the past year, which still continue on several projects on the campus.

Capital Insight encourages the tertiary education sector to submit applications for next year’s Project Management Award in 2024.