Dan Wilkie

INTERNATIONAL mining firm Downer EDI has launched a mobile equipment training facility that will be based in remote Western Australia as part of an initiative to increase its indigenous workforce.

Mirabela Nickel has announced a major milestone with production starting at its Santa Rita open-cut nickel mine in Brazil.

THE tough conditions experienced by developers during the past six months have been reflected in half-yearly results, with major property developers Australand and Port Bouvard announcing significant losses.

THE owners of Kingsway City shopping centre in Madeley are "reasonably confident" of gaining the necessary approvals to redevelop the site, after the Supreme Court ruled the State Administrative Tribunal would have to re-examine the proposal.

THE redevelopment of Subi Centro is entering a new phase, with three mixed-use projects in the northern part of the suburb moving closer to construction.

Debra Goostrey relishes the daily challenges of her professional life, and wants to help other women build their careers.

Investors are returning to the market as the first homebuyer boost nears its end.

THE Urban Development Institute of Australia hopes the state government's funding of a study of Carnaby's black cockatoos is the first step towards a more streamlined planning and approvals process.

PART of the third stage of the contentious Pretty Pool development at Port Hedland has been stalled by the environmental watchdog, which ruled it threatened a nesting site for flatback turtles.

THE peak body representing regional councils has called on the state government to clarify its long-term strategic vision for waste management.

WITNESSING the plethora of electronic products being sent to his local tip inspired the founder of a Western Australian IT recycling firm to try and make a difference.

STATE government disincentives to the disposal of waste in landfill have met with an unfavourable response from local governments, which say they were not consulted in the policy's development and that they will not benefit from its introduction.

A WESTERN Australian not-for-profit organisation has proved the old saying that one man's trash is another man's treasure, by recycling waste materials from mine sites and donating the proceeds to charity.

Rapid changes in the uptake of technology are presenting waste issues for our disposable society.

ONE of Western Australia's biggest real estate groups has launched a new index to track market trends because it says median house prices do not accurately reflect Perth's property market.

THE first $1 million is always the hardest to earn, or so the saying goes.

The secret to successfully managing an expanding privately owned business is to act like it’s public, according to John Georgiou.

A CITY-BASED accountant will soon swap his calculator for a steering wheel and launch a four-wheel drive assault on an unsuspecting outback.

THE Residential Development Council of Australia has forecast the need for 17,000 homes per year for the next five years, warning of further house price rises if that demand was not met.

WESTERN Australia's construction sector has been boosted with the awarding of $342 million in contracts to builders across the state as part of the federal government's infrastructure funding program.

AGED-CARE providers have a simple objective - to provide care to those in the community who need it most.

A MAJOR barrier to expansion in Perth's retail sector has been lifted with the release of the state government's draft 'activity centres policy', according to the peak industry council.

PREMIER Colin Barnett has announced changes to the planning process that will establish the Department of Planning as the lead agency in major redevelopment projects, including the Perth waterfront and Northbridge Link.

INTERNATIONAL industry groups have commended a Duncraig-based publishing firm's efforts to simplify the production of high school yearbooks.

THE University of Western Australia has vowed to press ahead with its contentious development of bushland at Shenton Park, despite suffering another setback last week.

PUBLIC buildings won most of the gongs at last week's Australian Institute of Architects (WA) awards, but it was a masterful apartment development in Cottesloe that scored the top award.

THE State Administrative Tribunal has upheld the right of commercial landlords to veto the sale of retail leases if they object to the prospective purchaser.

PERTH-BASED engineering and construction firm Decmil has been awarded the largest work-order in its history, to build a construction village for Chevron's Gorgon LNG project.

COMMERCE Minister Troy Buswell will introduce legislation into parliament the government says will create a more equitable retail environment.

PERTH could soon have a new tourism and entertainment precinct at Belmont Park after Planning Minister John Day tabled a rezoning amendment in parliament last week.

The state government has released a new planning framework that abolishes limits on the size of shopping centres and cuts the target for urban infill from Labor's "unrealistic" goal.

WESTERN Australian architects and builders are set to cash in on the federal government's latest building industry stimulus package.