Project Scheduling in Perth

Project scheduling services for Perth projects

We develop tender programs with the contract baseline in mind, carrying the bid’s logic and assumptions forward and recording agreed changes after award, then keep the program current through delivery.

• Tender programs: sequence, procurement windows, Indirects and resource demand, prepared for the tender submission with the Basis of Schedule and Methodology.

• Baseline programs: the agreed reference program established in accordance with the contract, with subsequent baseline changes controlled and recorded.

• Program updates: actual progress and remaining-work forecasts recorded in the current program, compared with the baseline, with variance reporting and an archived record of each update.

• Shutdown and turnaround planning: outage programs planned in hours, with the critical path, resourcing and methodology for work on operating plant.

• Schedule recovery: a recovery program built from actual progress, with options tested, costed and agreed with the delivery team.

• Schedule risk analysis: completion dates at chosen confidence levels, with contingency sized from the analysis.

• Forensic delay analysis: extension of time and delay claims built on contemporaneous project records.

Western Australian experience

Our capability draws on Western Australian project experience across three sectors:

• Quarrying: extraction and processing operations, including work alongside ongoing production

• Minerals processing: plant construction, upgrades and shutdowns on operating processing facilities

• Transport infrastructure: roads and bridges, staged around traffic and network access

We work for asset owners, head contractors and specialist contractors, on both Perth-based and remote projects. That work shapes how we program Western Australian projects: remote mobilisation and rosters, long supply lines to site, and work on plant that has to keep producing.

Western Australian conditions built into the program

• Remote rosters and mobilisation. Fly-in fly-out rotations, camp capacity and charter flights set when crews can actually be on site. We use roster calendars to represent working rotations and changeovers, and separately identify mobilisation lead times and applicable flight and accommodation constraints. Resource assumptions are reviewed with the delivery team rather than treating the workforce as continuously available on site.

• Cyclone season for northern sites. The official cyclone season runs from 1 November to 30 April. For sites in the north of the state, we program preparation, securing the site, suspension, inspection and restart as separate activities, and allow for disruption to roads, ports and flights that supply the site, not only the weather at the work front.

• Working calendars checked against the location. Western Australia has its own public holidays, including WA Day in June and the King’s Birthday in September, and some regional areas hold the King’s Birthday on a different date. We distinguish public holidays from roster breaks and agreed shutdowns, and use separate calendars where site crews, Perth-based teams and suppliers have different working days and availability.

Western Australian project pipeline

The WA State Infrastructure Programme sets out a record $44.3 billion asset investment program from 2026-27 to 2029-30, including a record $13.2 billion in 2026-27.

What the pipeline means for a Perth program

• The market is at or close to peak capacity. RLB’s September 2026 report describes Perth’s market as at, or close to, peak capacity, with thin Tier 1 contractor and subcontractor markets and some firms reluctant to bid.

• Perth has the highest escalation forecast of the capital cities RLB tracks. RLB forecasts Perth tender price escalation of 6.5% in 2026, 5.9% in 2027, 5.5% in 2028 and 5.1% in 2029, and Perth was the only city where RLB upgraded its 2026 forecast.

• Labour is short nationally. Infrastructure Australia’s November 2025 report estimated a shortage of 141,000 workers on public infrastructure works in October 2025, forecast to peak above 300,000 in mid-2027.

• Port and energy projects are building up. The program includes $647 million for Westport from 2025-26 to 2029-30 and $1.87 billion for Clean Energy Link, alongside new wind farm capacity.

In a constrained market, packaging and procurement timing can affect bidder interest, supplier availability and delivery dates. We make those assumptions explicit and identify when subcontractor, crew and supplier availability needs confirming.

Western Australian approvals in the program

Working with the project’s approvals advisers, we identify the approvals pathway and distinguish assessment activities, information requests, conditions and subsequent approvals, then link each decision to the work packages it releases.

For mining projects, published departmental targets include determining 80% of Mining Development and Closure Proposals within 30 business days and 80% of native vegetation clearing permit applications within 60 business days. These are performance targets, not guaranteed project approval dates. We distinguish departmental assessment time from the full approval journey, including application preparation, information requests and dependencies on other decisions.

Where Part IV environmental assessment or Aboriginal heritage approvals are required, we establish the applicable stages and timing assumptions with the project’s advisers. Part IV has some statutory steps, including the EPA’s notice within 28 days of referral on whether it will assess, but its overall duration is project-specific, and the program shows the two separately. Our article on scheduling project approvals explains the method.

Frequently asked questions

Do you provide project scheduling for Perth projects?

Yes. We provide Primavera P6 project scheduling for mining, minerals processing and transport infrastructure projects in Perth and across Western Australia, from tender and baseline programs through progress updates, recovery and delay analysis.

How do you schedule fly-in fly-out projects?

We use roster calendars to represent working rotations and changeovers, and separately identify mobilisation lead times and applicable flight and accommodation constraints. Resource assumptions are reviewed with the delivery team rather than treating the workforce as continuously available on site.

How do you handle WA mining approvals in the program?

Working with the project’s approvals advisers, we treat published departmental targets as performance targets rather than approval dates, distinguish departmental assessment time from the full approval journey, and link each decision to the work packages it releases.

Can you work to Perth hours?

Yes. We work AWST for Perth projects, including progress meetings, tender deadlines and program submissions.