Global Speakers

Conference Chairperson

Ms. Marks is a member of Modular Building Institute (MBI) and serves on its Public Relations committee. She is a highly sought after keynote speaker for many international conferences on construction. Recently, Amy was appointed by the Government of Singapore to a two-year position on an International Panel of Experts focused on Construction and Productivity. She is also the founder and moderator of the Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) Group on LinkedIn. As an MMC Consultant, Amy works with clients all over the world to enable the optimization of off-site elements into projects’ design.

Angus is Structural Engineering Leader in Laing O’Rourke’s Engineering Excellence Group. Laing O’Rourke is a multi-national contracting organization with more than 15,000 staff worldwide and 4,000 in Australasia.

Angus has presented throughout Europe, the Middle East and Australia. He was a member of the steering group for, and is a contributing author to, the Concrete Society’s Guide to Design of Concrete Structures in the Arabian Peninsula, which was published in October 2008. His paper on the design of high-strength concrete columns was published by the Institution of Structural Engineers in March 2007.

Angus lives with his family in Sydney and is currently working on several projects, including: high-rise buildings; renewable energy developments; and large-scale oil, gas and mineral resource projects.

Daniel has a strong passion for Innovation in Engineering & Construction and delivering practical results in Digital Engineering. Prior to joining Ridley, he worked extensively in the application of BIM processes for the Leighton Group (now CIMIC Group Companies) from Design & Construction through to Facilities Management.

Daniel was responsible for developing BIM and digital engineering throughout the CIMIC Group’s Asia-Pacific operations. His standing in the digital engineering industry is reflected in his membership of the Standards Australia working group developing a new international BIM standard.

Daniel also holds a decade of Design and Construction experience tendering and delivering over $30 billion of engineering projects in the industries of Rail & Road Infrastructure, Water, Mining, Oil & Gas, Buildings and Manufacturing, accompanied by a strong experience in business via a previously owned mobile apps company.

Bill McCorkell is passionate about architecturally-designed sustainable homes and the intersection of architecture with prefabrication and new technologies.

Prior to founding ArchiBlox, Bill was Director of a Melbourne architecture and interior design firm, and Director of McCorkell Constructions which has contributed to his well-rounded design and building skill-set today.

Bill is a Registered Architect and Registered Building Practitioner. He is also a Board Member of PrefabAUS and member of Australia Institute of Architects.

After several formative years practicing architecture, Alexander Symes felt unsatisfied with his architectural approach to sustainability. Motivated to change this, Alex joined multi-disciplinary technical services firm Arup and in 2010 begun a process of up-skilling himself as a building physicist and facade engineer.

Over the 4 years at Arup, Alex learnt the fundamentals of environmental quantification, sustainability governance frameworks and developed his capability to detail striking facades that were also responsible. Alex established Alexander Symes Architect in 2014 and has since delivered a number of award winning projects for Austinmer beach house, butterfly house and Dresden mobile and was awarded the 2016 Sustainability Awards Best Newcomer.

Philip has been employed as the Sustainable Building Advisor at Master Builders Victoria for the past 12 years and on building and construction related projects for the last 16 years. Phil’s extensive experience in education and training has informed the development of nationally recognised sustainable construction training programs and the national roll out of the accredited Master Builder Green Living program.

He has provided advice on sustainability solutions and onsite environmental management on projects ranging from large infrastructure developments to small residential building companies. Phil has also spent time working for the Environment Protection Authority Victoria, Melbourne Water, local government and as an academic.

In 2014 he received a fellowship from the International Specialised Skills Institute which enabled him to travel to Germany in 2015 to investigate job skills in the prefabricated construction industry.

Philip has a PhD in Ecology and land management, Masters of Environmental Science and a background in education.

David is a leader of insights and implementable actions as the transformation of construction embraces the modern construction era. He advocates that those who do not see the disruption of modern construction coming do so at their peril. He defines modern construction as being ‘measurably better construction for less’.

David draws on extensive Australian and international construction experience. He has been appointed Adjunct Fellow – Construction at Western Sydney University and works with academic and research colleagues to help inform construction’s next cohort of graduates about the exciting future prospects that lay ahead in an industry that is quickly transforming to its digital, industrialized and global future. He believes Smart Construction Enterprises will be just as important as Smart Construction Projects in successfully delivering tomorrow’s built world.

Dr Mary Hardie has been a registered architect for more than 30 years since graduating from UNSW in 1979. She has worked in Design and Construct building companies as well as in architectural design practices. She has a particular interest in sustainable construction and in construction innovation. The implementation of Passive Solar Design principles along with green or vegetated roofs, compressed earth block structures and rainwater storage systems for housing developments have all been areas where she has been actively involved.

In 2011, she completed a PhD researching technical innovation delivery by small and medium Australian construction enterprises.

John is a Principal of Wood and Grieve Engineers based in the Melbourne Office. John holds a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering from the University of Melbourne and prior to working in engineering consultancy spent time working in the defense / aerospace manufacturing sector.

In his time at WGE, John has been involved in numerous modular projects in a variety of sectors including health, hotels, residential and correctional.

He is a Director of Prefab Aus and the chairperson of the Modular Construction Codes Board advisory committee. John is focused on enhancing construction and buildings through collaboration and technology implementation.

Nick has more than ten years’ experience as a structural engineer in both the UK and Australia before joining XLam as the Technical Manager in 2016.

He has a particular passion for engineered timber and was involved in the design of a number of landmark cross-laminated timber buildings. He is now leading the design of a new wave of CLT construction across Australia and New Zealand.

Tim is a thoughtful engineer and experienced management consultant who believes in breaking things to make them better. In his role at Holmes Solutions, Tim works around the globe helping manufacturers of prefabricated construction systems gain a competitive edge. Experienced in strategy, construction and product development, his experience and advice are highly sought after by industry leaders who are seeking inventive solutions and measurable ROI.

Tim is also Co-Chair of PrefabNZ’s Board of Directors. PrefabNZ is focussed on how prefabrication and off-site technologies can achieve a better built environment – superior quality, smarter, greener, safer, faster, and more innovative building solutions.

Besides winning multiple awards for his contribution to the science community, Dr Ngo also plays a key role in the PrefabAUS. He has carried out numerous research collaborations with industry and government agencies to conduct R&D experiments on prefabricated modular components of building structures (facades, wall panels and floor slab systems).

He has successfully coordinated a large Training Centre for Advanced Manufacturing of Prefabricated Housing funded by ARC and industry. The national and international research interactions have given Dr Ngo widespread recognition amongst the scientific community and industry as an expert in design and manufacturing of building components and systems using high performance materials.

Waco comes with well rounded and extensive working experience in industries such as architecture, construction, hospitality, international trade, manufacturing, supply chain and travel.

In 2009, Waco successfully executed the launch of PowerHouse Homes in Australia. The company specializes in R&D, manufacturing and construction of prefab buildings that cater for both residential and commercial markets. Leveraging cutting edge automotive style supply chain methodology, PowerHouse Homes has revolutionized the approach to the traditional building methodology in Australia. PowerHouse Homes combines an innovative and unique formula that has placed it amongst the global market leaders in the prefab industry.

Tim is a regional partner and executive director in the Thomson Adsett Group, a registered architect in Australia and Papua New Guinea, a Property Developer, Marketing and Development Consultant, Project Manager, Company Director, and Justice of the Peace.

Tim commenced business in construction in the late 1970’s in the manufacturing and modular housing sectors. He first joined Thomson Adsett in the mid 1980’s, but then had a 20 year private practice in Cairns before returning in 2008 to take up a partnership in the firm.

The 37 years of hands on expertise in the construction and design industry, delivering projects from remote parts of Australia and internationally from Nigeria, Mozambique, Vietnam, Cambodia, Bali, Lombok and throughout Papua New Guinea and the Pacific Islands, has provided Tim with an acute appreciation of industry trends and transitions.

Since 2012 Tim has been dedicated as a corporate driver in Thomson Adsett modular research and development initiatives, looking at the opportunities for the integration of global manufacturing techniques for local and international markets particularly of health, affordable housing, elder care and hospitality.