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May 2026 – North East Link (Hoddle to Burke)

Dex Arounsavat served as Structural Design Manager with Seymour Whyte on the Hoddle to Burke Project, contributing from the project’s early inception stages (RFP-I and RFP-F) through to construction delivery.

Throughout the project lifecycle, Dex played a key role in the Urban Design and Landscape Plan (UDLP) and was instrumental in driving value engineering initiatives, achieving significant cost savings from the RFP-I phase. His responsibilities included cost planning, stakeholder engagement, compliance management, constructability reviews, and multidisciplinary coordination to ensure efficient and compliant project delivery.

Dex’s leadership and technical expertise ensured the successful integration of structural, architectural, and operational requirements across this complex infrastructure project.

The scope of the project included a diverse range of structural and civil infrastructure elements, including:

Bridges:

Yarra Shared Use Path (SUP) Bridge: A three-span space truss pedestrian bridge featuring architecturally distinctive Y-shaped tree piers.

Westbound Busway Bridge over Eastern Freeway at Chandler Highway: A two-span curved twin steel box girder bridge.

Chandler Highway Eastbound Exit Ramp Bridge: A single-span, heavily skewed and curved Super-T girder bridge.

Burke Road Eastbound Exit Ramp Bridge: A three-span curved twin steel box girder bridge.

Belford Road Bridge: Public Safety Barrier Upgrades

Existing Yarra River Bridges (both eastbound and westbound carriageways) – Barrier and Drainage Upgrades

Retaining Walls:

Architecturally treated walls designed to integrate with the surrounding environment.

Noise Walls:

Architectural plastic panel noise walls with concealed posts, ranging in height from 3 m to 8 m.

Signage and Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) Structures:

Cantilever, Portal box and Truss gantries

Ancillary Infrastructure:

Off-structure barriers and miscellaneous elements including high mast lighting.

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November 2023 – Coffs Harbour Bypass

Ferrovial Gamuda Joint Venture (FGJV) has been engaged to deliver the Coffs Harbour Bypass project, a major infrastructure development aimed at improving regional connectivity, enhancing transport efficiency, and increasing safety for motorists.

The project comprises approximately 14 km of dual carriageway, including 17 bridges, 2 interchanges, and 3 tunnels, along with associated buildings and ancillary structures. The bridge scope incorporates a range of structural systems, including integral precast plank bridges, multi-span Super-T girder bridges, and multi-span steel box pedestrian bridges spanning creeks, roads, and rail corridors. These structures are founded on a combination of pad footings, bored piles with pile caps, and monopiles.

Dex recently supported FGJV in delivering the Coffs Harbour Bypass project by contributing to value engineering initiatives in collaboration with both the construction and design teams. His role included undertaking detailed reviews of design packages to drive standardisation of structural elements, improve long-term maintenance outcomes for the client, and optimise material efficiency. This involved reducing structural steel quantities in buildings and reinforcement requirements in bridge structures, as well as implementing design refinements to enhance constructability and overall project delivery.

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May 2023 – Shepparton Corridor Upgrade

The Shepparton Corridor Upgrade project encompasses a series of infrastructure improvements along the Shepparton Rail Corridor between Seymour and Shepparton. The scope includes enabling VLocity train operations to Shepparton, undertaking culvert structural repairs, and upgrading the corridor to achieve Track Class 2M. These works support increased line speeds of up to 130 km/h and an enhanced axle load capacity of 21 tonnes (TAL).

Dex was engaged by the Alliance (Coleman Rail and KBR) to undertake a comprehensive risk assessment and prepare a supporting report to determine the necessity of guard rails at various bridge structures along the corridor. This involved applying a risk-based methodology to assess potential train derailment scenarios, comparing the existing risk profile with the proposed operational conditions, and evaluating outcomes in accordance with the “so far as is reasonably practicable” (SFAIRP) principle.

The assessment covered numerous underbridges and overbridges along the Shepparton Line and incorporated a review of Level 3 structural investigations, particularly in relation to the consequences of train collision events.

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January 2023 – Brunswick 8 Level Crossing

Project Overview

The project involves the proposed removal of eight level crossings along the Upfield rail line, extending from Park Street in Parkville to Albion Street in Brunswick. The scope includes the construction of a new rail bridge and the delivery of new stations, designed to integrate with and complement the recently completed Bell to Moreland level crossing removals.

Role and Responsibilities

Seconded to KBR as Technical Advisor and Civil Structures Lead, contributing to the development phase of the North West Program Alliance. Responsibilities include providing specialist technical input, overseeing civil structural considerations, and supporting design development to ensure alignment with project objectives.

Project Status

The project is currently on hold.

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May 2020 – Pakenham 3 Level Crossing

Seconded to KBR as Technical Advisor and Civil Structures Lead, contributing to the North West Program Alliance for the removal of three level crossings at McGregor Road, Main Street, and Racecourse Road along the Pakenham Line. My involvement spanned from development of the Target Outturn Cost (TOC) through detailed design and into the construction phase.

The project comprised the delivery of a ~2 km long elevated rail viaduct, consisting of twin U-trough structures formed by 68 spans of precast, prestressed and post-tensioned girders. Key elements included the introduction of 30 m long U-trough beams, the construction of a new premium station at Pakenham, the extension of the metropolitan rail line, and the delivery of the new East Pakenham Station underpass. The scope also incorporated approximately 5 km of architecturally treated retaining walls.To meet challenging corridor constraints and maintain continuous dual-line rail operations during construction, several innovations were implemented. These included the use of 2.7 m diameter monopile foundations and long-span (30 m) prestressed beams, enabling efficient construction while minimising disruption to the surrounding community.

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August 2019 – Bell to Moreland Level Crossing

The Level Crossing Removal Project at Bell, Munro and Reynard Streets in Coburg, and Moreland Road in Brunswick, involves the elimination of four level crossings through the elevation of the Upfield rail line. This will be achieved via the construction of a 68-span, 1.8 km twin viaduct comprising pre-stressed and post-tensioned U-trough structures.

The rail-over-road solution extends between Moreland and Coburg stations and is designed to deliver significant community and transport benefits. These include the creation of new activated open spaces beneath the viaduct, enhanced east–west connectivity, and upgrades to the Upfield Bike Path, including a continuous dedicated cycling corridor.

To minimise disruption to the local community, all four level crossings will be removed concurrently. The project also includes the construction of two new stations at Coburg and Moreland, while preserving and repurposing the existing heritage-listed station buildings.

A key challenge of the project is the delivery of the viaduct within a constrained and highly congested urban environment, including major construction activities undertaken during a 90-day rail occupation period, as well as staging works alongside live rail operations.

Dex Arounsavat is seconded into KBR as a Technical Advisor, serving as Structures Lead for the Additional Works Package 4 (Bell to Moreland). In this role, he is responsible for leading and delivering the structural design packages through to Issued for Construction (IFC), ensuring adherence to program and budget constraints while driving value engineering outcomes and optimising design efficiency.

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