Shane Phillips, a standout Keystone scholar of 2008, is mining his life experiences to deliver new hope to one of the world’s most deprived areas.
Shane is general manager, projects, for TSA Riley New Zealand. It’s here, at their high-rise office in downtown Auckland, that he’s talking about a career path that has brought him full circle.
Taurama Aquatic Centre
The self-described small-town boy from Blenheim is currently overseeing a multi-million dollar project in Papua New Guinea for The Fred Hollows Foundation NZ. When complete, the purpose-built eye care training and service centre, called the Centre for Eye Health, will deliver essential eye health services to patients across the Pacific, as well as train eye health professionals. This will enable, among other things, the strengthening of the eye care workforce across PNG.
“Papua New Guinea has one of the highest rates of avoidable blindness in the world,” says Shane. “To build a surgical and training facility for patients, trainees and practitioners will be of great benefit to eye health care in PNG.”
As with so many Keystone stories, this is one built on connections. After graduating from the University of Canterbury with an Honours degree in engineering, Shane switched codes to project management. He first worked on local commercial office and warehouse projects before making the move that continues to resonate today. He spent two years in Papua New Guinea delivering large-scale sporting projects, and it was while he was there that he met and worked closely with a local architect, Derreck Domara.
After returning to New Zealand and more work of a similar nature, the opportunity to work on The Fred Hollows Foundation NZ’s project, boosted by New Zealand and Australian government funding, arose. Shane leapt at the chance and immediately resumed contact with Derreck in PNG – who was quick to come on board. “It’s like getting the old band back together. Derreck is our man on the ground,” says Shane.
The project is of a type that he has never before been involved in. Most of his career previously had involved large-scale commercial, sporting and aviation projects. “I’ve never done health before, and I’ve never worked for a not-for profit organisation before. But I jumped at this project because PNG has got a special place in my heart.”
The timetable is tight: the ground was broken last November; completion is scheduled for April next year. The faculty will comprise two surgical units, as well as consulting rooms and training facilities.
The way Shane sees it: “I love PNG: the island, the culture, the people. I will never forget the two years of my life that I spent there, and being able to give back is very good.”
There’s another innovative component to this offshore project. It’s one that addresses the eternal challenges of receiving up-to-date information from afar. Senior TSA Riley project manager Simon Northey is investigating site monitoring in remote locations, with a particular focus on the Centre for Eye Health development. He is currently using Timescapes cameras on site, as well as a product called ‘OpenSpace’ – a 360-degree camera mounted on a hard hat.
As Shane explains: “Derreck puts that hard hat on and walks around the site. He then uploads the information, and we can look at it from here.” The software is well advanced: Shane has access to a camera that he can look at from his laptop. “This is an innovative work in progress using the latest technology and solving the problem of distance.”
Shane says he has been passionate about the construction industry since he was young (he was working part-time for a civil construction company while still at school). And just like the PNG project is coming full circle for him, so too are his Keystone connections. TSA Riley – who he’s been with for 14 years – is a long-time sponsor of Keystone. A number of Keystone alumni work for the company, and it tries to offer students paid internships while they’re completing their studies. Shane has been a Keystone mentor, and also mentors within TSA Riley.
“The value in Keystone is in the connections and contacts,” says Shane. And these are enduring. “Some of my peer group that I went through Keystone with are now in senior management positions in their respective companies.”
Not that it’s all work: away from the office and site visits (remote or physically) Shane likes to explore life beyond the land. He is a dedicated plane-spotter. He’s also passionate about the ocean and a technical scuba diver – a pursuit he says he just loves.
