As our guest speaker on Monday night our club welcomed Glen Sim, a building expert witness and litigation support specialist, accompanied by his wife Audra. Glen is currently operating his business Awesim Building Consultants from Tamworth after relocating with his family two years ago.
Glen, originally from New Zealand, was born into the industry and began his career as an apprentice carpenter mainly in Sydney and completed his carpentry apprenticeship through TAFE NSW. In his late twenties Glen explained he moved into project management and then around 17 years ago transitioned from hands-on project management to the niche field of providing expert reports for building disputes. Glen explained that his role is to act as an independent expert in legal proceedings, assessing building defects by applying Australian Standards and building codes, then outlining a step-by-step rectification method and associated costs. He explained that he enjoys doing the tribunal work providing factual independent technical advice on the defect issues at hand.
The complexities of Glen's work often involve high-stakes disputes between homeowners and builders in court or the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal. Glen provided a number of broad scenarios where such disputes can occur and how they can often be resolved through careful remediation and council cooperation. He also commented when questioned on the broader housing crisis, attributing ongoing challenges to rapidly rising material costs and labour shortages, which create financial pressure on fixed-price contracts and extend project timelines significantly.
Thanks to Peter Dillon and James Hindmarsh for the notes.
12th October Duty Roster
Room Setup: Ron Carr, David McDonald
Door: Jim Bannigan, Don Eather
Toasts: Graham Crane
Welcome: Noel Bennet
Intro Speaker and notes: Phillip Lyne
Thanks: Scott Edwards
Sergeant: Alan Guan
19th October Duty Roster
Room Setup: Ron Carr, Don Eather
Door: Jim Bannigan, David McDonald
Toasts: Noel Bennet
Welcome: Graham Crane
Intro Speaker and notes: Scott Edwards
Thanks: Phillip Lyne
Sergeant: Brian Cox
RELIEVING/RELIEVED/REPLACEDPRESIDENT’S REPORT
Last meeting was well attended to hear from Glen Simms about his life in the building and construction industry, which has taken him to become an advocate for any party requiring assistance with th construction/engineering issues that may arise from the building process. Please see notes supplied by James/Dillo and our friend at AI headquarters. Jim Booth is off retracing the steps off his ancestors in 1824, on the Hume and Hovell Track. The walk is in support of Shelter Box, a cause we support each year as a Rotary Club and will again by supporting Jim on his quest. We wish him well on his trek and is able to complete it without harm.
Tony Summers is on duty as a roady for his son who is jet skiing 2000km down the Murray from Albury to Goolwa raising funds for Motor Neurone Disease. We hope his journey is uneventful (apart from the raising money bit). I am pleased to announce the approval of two new members, Rob Moran and Ronald McDonald, who will be inducted at their next meeting. It is great to see rising interest in our club and what it offers to both individuals and our community. There are several projects on the boil at present including Brighter Day event 24th October, CanAssist BBQ, and the Domestic Violence Awareness day in November. Keep an eye on the Bulletin and ClubRunner for further details. I would like to thank the Board members for their efforts in making the "short term" President position work for this Rotary year and I wish James well for his commitment for the next quarter. The Club is in good hands. YIR Gav
Tony Summers is Road Crew Support for his son’s team who are raising money for Motor Neurone Disease by jet skiing 2000km down the Murray River from Albury to Goolwa.
