Rottnest Island – WA

Rottnest Island is a Western Australian Heritage icon and Class “A” Reserve that can only be reached by air or sea. Popular with holidaymakers, the 1,900 ha island is visited by some 800,000 visitors each year. In 2006 Programmed Facility Management (FM) was successful in securing the facilities, operations and utilities contract with the Rottnest Island Authority (RIA). We are responsible for the ongoing maintenance of RIA’s assets on the island and decisions regarding maintenance or asset replacement. The contract was renewed in 2014 for a further ten years, with an increased scope that includes housekeeping and cleaning services.

Our management of the Rottnest Island facility is comprehensive, incorporating baggage handling (ferry and airport), power station operation, airport management, fire services, water, facility management, recycling and waste management and property maintenance.

In addition, our operational and utilities services team support and maintain the RIA’s undertaking to minimise damage to the environment through managing waste, power generation and distribution services, and management of wind turbine and water supply. We work with the RIA to continually improve Rottnest Island’s ecological sustainability and minimise damage to the environment, as well as provide a quality recreational facility for its visitors.

The primary goal for the RIA is to protect the natural assets (flora and fauna) and heritage value whilst embracing the island as one of Western Australia’s premier holiday destinations. Programmed Facility Management has aligned our services against this objective, and we measure our performance against both the RIA’s expectations, as well as those of the guests who visit the island. We believe the success of our delivery is due to our partnering approach: we have structured all of our services, from initial employee inductions and training to ongoing asset management reporting, toward achieving the RIA’s objectives.

Wastewater treatment plant and desalination plant

As Rottnest Island is isolated from the mainland with no fresh surface water, providing power and water and disposing of the waste is both difficult and expensive. The logistical challenges to be overcome for contract delivery include ensuring uninterrupted provision of power, water and waste removal, and providing 24/7 fire and emergency services. Staff also had to be transported across 19km of the sea every day, 365 days a year. Programmed Facility Management supplements freshwater via the operation of a reverse osmosis desalination plant (producing up to 500,000 litres per day) and a wastewater treatment plant on the island.