Grocon grew from a small family concreting business established in Victoria, by Luigi Grollo after he emigrated from Treviso, Italy in 1928. A one-man operation, Luigi Grollo set up his own business in 1948 and completed small concreting projects, such as paving, shopping centre car parks, sewerage infrastructure and swimming pools.[1] His sons Rino and Bruno joined the business at the age of 15. The business expanded rapidly in the 1950s by continuing with concreting of municipal swimming pools and petrol stations in Melbourne. In the years following, the Grollo Group would transition from the building of local community assets throughout the 1960s to constructing landmark developments.[2]
In the 1970s, Grocon moved into concrete construction, such as shopping centres and high-rise buildings and started developing the projects themselves. It was also during the 1970s that Luigi Grollo handed the company over to his two sons and the business continued to rapidly expand.[1] In 1975, Grocon moved to Darwin for 18 months after winning a large contract for rebuilding after Cyclone Tracy. This contract involved the construction of 400 houses for the government.[3] Following this, the Grollo Group went on to develop buildings and operate businesses in a wide cross-section of industries, including commercial, residential, industrial, education, retail, sporting and tourism.[2]
In the 1980s, many developments owned by the Grollo family were sold.[4]
This included the selling of such assets as The Hyatt, Shell Corner, 200 Queen Street and a suite of shopping centres. At this stage, the Grollo family only retained one major development – the Rialto Towers.[4]
In 2000, the construction business was split between a construction-centric business owned by Bruno and Daniel Grollo and a property development operation owned by Rino Grollo. As part of this shift, Rino Grollo secured Equiset and the Grollo Group (including its family properties).[5] In 1999, Bruno's youngest son, Daniel, assumed control of Grocon as chief executive officer.[6] Daniel Grollo was appointed chairman of the Green Building Council of Australia[7] and the Prime Minister's Business Advisory Council.[8]
In March 2012 the construction business was split again into a construction business, owned by Daniel Grollo, which is the current Grocon, and a property development business owned by his older siblings, Adam and Leeanna.[9]
In December 2013, Grocon launched a five-year, A$10 billion joint venture, called UBS Grocon Real Estate, with Swiss investment bank, UBS.[10] The joint venture created UBS Grocon Real Estate, a full-service real estate and asset management platform that had first right of refusal for Grocon's A$2 billion development pipeline.[11] The venture was chaired by John A. Fraser, chairman and CEO Global Asset Management at UBS[12] and Daniel Grollo acted as a non-executive director.
In 2014, Grocon was named as the preferred developer for the 2018 Commonwealth Games Athletes Village on the Queensland Gold Coast.[13] On 24 February 2014, deputy chief executive officer Carolyn Viney succeeded Daniel Grollo as chief executive officer of Grocon. Daniel Grollo assumed the role of executive chairman whilst retaining full oversight and ownership of the business.[14] In November 2020, parts of Grocon were placed in administration.[15][16] Cost blowouts for the athletes village for the Games topped $1 billion led to Grocon from having permission refused from the state government to start a project in Queensland.[17]
Awards and accolades
As a company, Grocon was the recipient of numerous awards. In 2010, Grocon was named the Forest Stewardship Council Developer of the Year,[18] and was also the National Master Builders Association Builder of the Year in 2011.[19] Grocon received two The National Association of Women in Construction awards in 2013 for both outstanding and young achievement.[20] In 2011, the company was the recipient of the ANZ–BRW Excellence in Community Practices prize.[21] Grocon won the 2008 Safe Work AustraliaBest workplace health and safety management system award[22] and received the WorkSafe VictoriaOHS Management System of the Year prize.
Industrial disputes
Grocon was involved in conflict with the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) from 2002[23] over the CFMEU's rights at Grocon developments including occupational health and safety management, union access, and the wearing of union badges.[citation needed] This conflict culminated in the CFMEU's picketing of at least one entrance to the Emporium development which resulted in an impassable physical barrier, preventing access to the site through that entrance for Grocon workers.[24][25] Grocon subsequently launched an A$10.5 million compensation claim in the Supreme Court of Victoria for the blockade. It also sought contempt orders against the union for allegedly breaching two Supreme Court injunctions that ordered an end to the blockade. Justice Cavanough held that free access to the site for Grocon workers was prevented by the CFMEU as access could only be obtained through 'elaborate' police assistance.[24] The Fair Work Building and Construction, the relevant regulatory body, subsequently also launched legal proceedings against the CFMEU.[26] In June 2015, judgment was made against the CFMEU and they were ordered to pay Grocon A$3.5 million in damages.[citation needed]
Swanston Street wall incident
On 28 March 2013, during wind gusts of up to 102 kilometres per hour (63 mph),[27] a brick wall on the boundary of a Grocon development on Swanston Street collapsed killing three people. The wall's safety, the role of the billboards Grocon had attached to the structure,[28][29][30] and the self-supporting nature of the structure designed by the previous owner were initially identified as possible causes. The billboard extended one metre (three feet) above the wall and was suggested to have acted as a sail.[31][32] There was early speculation as to the role of the advertising hoarding and whether a permit had been granted[28] or whether a permit was needed.[32] There were also questions surrounding the role of tree roots in destabilising the wall.[32] An unidentified spokesperson for the Victorian Government asked unions not to block productivity over the case.[33]WorkSafe Victoria filed criminal charges against Grocon and Aussie Signs who were employed by Grocon to construct the billboard. Police acting in the case have stated that Grocon representatives refused to give evidence, and the company did not release an engineering report the court has asked for access to, saying it "was not relevant".[34]
In November 2014 Grocon was fined $250,000 in the Magistrates Court after it pleaded guilty to a single workplace safety charge "... relating to the risk posed by the wall, rather than causing it to fall down."[35][36]
Alleged sabotage
Grocon experienced two fires[37] on separate Victorian construction sites, and various other acts of suspected sabotage[38] in June 2014.
Modifications to the former global headquarters located at 380 Collins Street, that comprised a 37-storey post-modern commercial office skyscraper on the site of Verdon Chambers
Located at 8 Whiteman Street on Melbourne's Southbank and part of the Crown Casino, the hotel was the recipient of the Master Builders Association Award in 1998 and upon its 1997 completion, the largest casino in the Southern Hemisphere
Using carbon neutralPixelcrete concrete, Australia's first carbon neutral office building. Pixel was awarded the Best Sustainable Building Award from the Master Builders Association and received the Premier's Sustainability Award for the Built Environment
An Australian Institute of Building National Professional Excellence Building and Cbus High Rise Award recipient, the 243-metre (797 ft) residential tower completed on the Gold Coast's waterfront in 2012
An A$550 million development featuring 1,252 dwellings with a mix of apartments and townhouses, a 5,840-square-metre (62,900 sq ft) retail precinct, green and landscaped spaces built around a 'Village Heart'. Strategically located on prime real estate within the Gold Coast Health and Knowledge Precinct, 3 kilometres (2 mi) from Southport CBD and 5 kilometres (3 mi) from Surfers Paradise.
Ground-level and split-level homes recognisable by the small protrusion on the roof which held the water heater. These houses were built in the aftermath of Cyclone Tracy as an effective means of providing housing for Darwin's population. The houses were designed by Leo Hammond, a Melbourne architect.
Located at 750 Collins Street, the redeveloped A$240 million ten-storey building in Melbourne's Docklands was the winner of the 2009 Property Council of AustraliaVictorian Award for Office Developments
Located at 655 Collins Street, the commercial office building served as the publication centre for The Age, and adjoined Southern Cross railway station. The building was the 2012 Colliers Award recipient for Best Office Development
Located at 660 Elizabeth Street. this eleven-storey, 131-room community housing initiative was built at cost with the support of the Victorian and the Australian governments
Formerly the T&G Building, located at 161 Collins Street, Grocon redeveloped the building as commercial offices for KPMG, and has subsequently been occupied by other tenants.
An A$40 million medium-density residential development in Fairfield that comprises 77 apartments through a mix of one, two and three bedroom apartments inclusive of social housing, with adjacent retail tenancies
Mixed-use redevelopment in Manly comprising residential and retail components on the site of a Telstra Exchange, featuring 490 square metres (5,300 sq ft) of commercial / retail net lettable area, 26 apartments, a multi-level basement car stacker and a refurbished Telstra Exchange
Located in Collingwood and designed by John Wardle Architects, The Northumberland development was to include a twelve-level office building and a companion five-level office building with a ground floor café. Fund managers withdrew their support of Grocon when the company entered voluntary administration.
The A$700 million 24-storey redevelopment in the heart of Darling Harbour was planned to provide a new hotel, retail, apartments and commercial hub. Following the demolition of the existing IMAX building, the new building is planned to comprise a reinforced concrete structural steel structure that will cantilever over the public domain, Wheat Road and Harbour Street. The redeveloped building was to comprise approximately 1,799 square metres (19,360 sq ft) of retail, 3,217 square metres (34,630 sq ft) of entertainment, 450 square metres (4,800 sq ft) of commercial office space, 18,260 square metres (196,500 sq ft) of serviced apartments, and 30,820 square metres (331,700 sq ft) for a W Hotel.
^"Grocon ordered to pay $250,000 fine for Carlton wall collapse which killed three". Australia: ABC News. 21 November 2014. Retrieved 21 November 2014. In sentencing, Magistrate Charlie Rozencwajg said there was an extremely large number of people put at risk of serious injury or death. He said the incident represented a significant failure of the company's duty, but acknowledged Grocon had since acted in the manner expected of a good corporate citizen.
^Carlyon, Peta (13 November 2014). "Grocon admits workplace safety breach over fatal wall collapse". Australia: ABC News. Retrieved 21 November 2014. Grocon agreed to plead guilty. The case will now not proceed to the County Court where higher penalties would have applied. The maximum penalty in the Magistrates Court for a single breach on the relevant charge is $305,350. If the case proceeded to trial in the County Court before a jury the maximum penalty for the same offence would rise to $1.1 million.
^Renshaw, Robert (1 January 1975). "Grollo houses"(Photo; black and white; 9 x 13 cm). Territory stories. Government of the Northern Territory. hdl:10070/213087.
