About AJCE
The Association of Japanese Consulting Engineers (AJCE) was established in 1974, andwas approved by the Science and Technology agency of Japan (currently, Ministry of
Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology) as a legal entity in 1977.
Representing Japanese consulting engineers, AJCE is a member of the International
Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC).
AJCE strives to enhance the position and quality of private consulting engineers (CEs)
who are independent and impartial of manufacturers, contractors and others. By doing so,
AJCE contributes towards the advancement of science and technology, the developmentof industry, the building society's well-being and sustainability, as well as the enhancementof human security and welfare.

Address: 3-16-4, Ueno, Taito-ku,
TOKYO 110-0005 JAPANTel : +81-3-3839-8471
Fax: +81-3-3839-8472
Email: info@ajce.or.jp
Web:http://www.ajce.or.jp/en/index.htm

CONTENTS

AJCE and its Activities

Akihiko HIROTANI

02

New Development Paradigm

Hiroto ARAKAWA

04

Globalization of Engineering Consulting Industry in Japan

Konomu UCHIMURA

06

ASPAC Activities 2007-2009

Masakazu MAEDA

07

Establishment of Young Professionals(YP) Sub-Committee in AJCE

Kazutoshi AKASAKA

10

AJCE Activity 2009
Young Professionals Exchange Programme(YPEP)2009-A bridge of friendship connecting Australia and JapanSummit Meeting between AJCE, KENCA and CNAEC
Memorandum of Understanding with Uzbekistan (UZACE) and Azerbaijan (NECSA)AJCE Annual Seminar 2009

12
14
20
21
22

Project Accomplishments by AJCE Members

25

Editor's note

44

AJCE Members

Illustration
Masatoshi Tsutsui, Tsumiki Kobo

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NEWS LETTER 2010

AJCE and its Activities
The Association of Japanese Consulting Engineers(AJCE) was established in 1974 and was approved asa legal entity by the Science and Technology Agencyof Japan (currently, Ministry of Education, Culture,
Sports, Science and Technology) in 1977. AJCE is amember of the International Federation of Consulting
Engineers (FIDIC), representing the interests andviews of the Japanese consulting industry.
Our issue
Today, the world faces numerous challenges.
While the global economy appears to haveemerged from the worst stage of the financial
crisis, it is still difficult to predict its future
prospects. The recession has provided abackdrop to other important global issues suchas climate change, increasing population andthe need for stable energy.
Last summer, the Japanese people chose,through a general election, to change thegovernment. The new Cabinet declared that themain pillars of its policy for the year 2010 wereEmployment, Environment and Economy. Priority
was given to the effective measures forunderpinning the economy and employment,
and for reducing CO2 emissions.
We believe that only consulting engineers who
have the capability to satisfy the demand forsustainable, safe, and efficient infrastructure canpromote the establishment of a healthier future
for the people worldwide. We have to mobilize
our resources to apply our experience andknowledge across the borders and then we areable to deliver sustainable solutions to thechallenges we are facing.
Our activity
Every year, AJCE members participate in the
FIDIC annual conference to contribute in various
roles, demonstrating that AJCE is one of the mostactive member associations of FIDIC.
In September 2009, the FIDIC annual conference"Global Challenges - Sustainable Solution" washeld in London, where the AJCE members

2NEWS LETTER 2010

participated in several seminars and workshops.
AJCE encourages its members to develop therelationship with other FIDIC member
associations.
● In March 2009, several members of AJCE,
including the president who chair ASPAC, AsiaPacific Regional Groping of FIDIC Member
Associations, participated in the FIDIC/ASPAC
Kathmandu conference held in Nepal. About
300 people from the Asia and the Pacificregions attended the conference. They
discussed the topic entitled "Making
globalization work and the role of consultants".
● In March 2009, AJCE and Uzbek Association ofConsulting Engineers (UZACE) agreed toconclude a memorandum to cooperate andsupplement each other's resources with a view
towards promoting private/public initiatives forsustainable development of the engineering
industries in both countries.
● In April 2009, AJCE and National Engineering
Consultancy Society of Azerbaijan (NECSA) also
agreed to conclude a memorandum tocooperate and supplement each other's
resources for the same purpose.
● In October 2009, four young Australianengineers visited Japan for three weeks under
the Young Professionals Exchange Program. This
program has been continuing for more than 10
years to foster the relationship between AJCE
and its sister associations in Australia and New
Zealand, and to train internationally-minded
professionals in each country.

seminar with an aim of improving the linkage
between Consulting Engineers and otherprofessional fields.
All of the AJCE's eight committees continue to bevery active. These committees are: Ethics, Policy
and Planning, General Affairs & Finance,
Membership, International Activities, Professional
Development, Engineering Development andPublicity & Relations.
AJCE will continue these activities in the coming
fiscal year. We will also participate in the FIDIC
activities, including the annual conference in
New Delhi in September 2010.
For the future
In the FIDIC 2009 general assembly meeting in
London, I was elected as a new member of the
FIDIC Executive Committee. As a member of theCommittee, I will make efforts to improve thestatus and visibility of consulting engineers ingeneral, and of the FIDIC organization inparticular, throughout the world. I will emphasize
the Quality-based Selection as the mostsignificant issue, and make our joint efforts for its
standardization, together with other vital issues,
ranging from sustainability to risk management
and engineering ethics.
At the same time, the general assembly meetingof ASPAC was held, and Mr.Konomu Uchimura, avice president of AJCE, was elected as one of
new member of ASPAC Executive Committee.
He will pour all his effort to enhance the activities
of ASPAC while supporting the new chair of
ASPAC , Mr. Dennis Sheehan.
AJCE is trying to improve its social recognition,and to enhance the quality of all professionals of
the Consulting industry, including manufacturers,
contractors and others. In its capacity, AJCE
contributes to the advancement of science andtechnology, the development of industry, thewell-being and sustainability of the natural andbuilt environment, and the enhancement of
human security and welfare.
Thank you.

AJCE carries out activities to enhance theprofessional capability of Consulting Engineers.
● In July 2009, AJCE held the annual seminar ,with the focus on an important issue - Prospectsof the global market for Consulting. Three
lectures gave different perspectives on the
future global market. Many members of AJCE
as well as non-members participated in theseminar.
● In November, AJCE held the 5th special

3NEWS LETTER 2010

New Development Paradigm

Hiroto ARAKAWA
Senior Special Advisor,
Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)

1. Where are we now in traditional aid architecture?
Dynamism of global changes has affecteddevelopment assistance for a decade. Today,
donors and developing countries have closely
worked together in line with two international
commitments: the Millennium Development
Goals (MDGs) and the Paris Declaration on Aid
Effectiveness (Paris Declaration).
The MDGs are a set of eight goals to beachieved by 2015 that respond to the world's
main development challenges and the MDGs set
indicators especially in sectors of social welfare.
Many development actors have been working toachieve these goals; however, they have left out
the importance of economic growth as well as
emerging global agendas. Promotion of growthand increase in national revenue areindispensable for sustainable economic growth,and its indicators need to be set up properly.
Although it is crucial to secure global public
goods, prevent future economic crisis and its
downside risk, mitigate and adapt negative
impact of climate change, and bringappropriate attention to fragile states, theseissues are not well addressed in the MDGs.
Not only financial commitment, but also
encouragement of effective and efficientdevelopment is critical for achieving the MDGs.
Therefore, the Paris Declaration, endorsed on
March 2, 2005, is an international commitment towhich over one hundred ministers and heads ofagencies adhere to increase their efforts inharmonization among donors, align withrecipient countries' systems and improve
management for development results with a setof monitorable actions and indicators. The
declaration emphasizes ownership of recipient
country governments, reducing transaction costs,
providing budget supports, and assisting
capacity development, such as public financial

management and procurement could bringpoverty reduction. Nonetheless, the Paris
Declaration has some shortcomings which should
be properly addressed. Budget support andlimited efforts of capacity development could
not always secure service delivery necessary forpoverty reduction.
Furthermore, traditional resource flows fromdeveloped countries to developing countries isonly assumed; therefore, diversity of aid
modalities such as guarantee and insurance
tools, which could enhance scaling up
development
activities,
is
not
well
accommodated.
2. New Challenges in the Horizon
Today we are faced with new global challenges
such as global climate change, global foodsecurity, global macroeconomic and financial
imbalance, fragile states, and infectious disease.
Emerging countries may be able to contribute tosolving these challenges, while at the same timethey may cause these challenges. Thus, it
becomes inevitable to consider a new financial
architecture to mobilize and align with thesediversified resources to cope with various
challenges beyond the traditional aid
architecture.
3.1 Diversification of Aid Channels: More actors andmore modalities
Aid channels have become proliferated andcomplex due to the growing number ofdiversified actors and modalities. Emerging donor
countries which are non-DAC members such as
China, India, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Brazil
and India, etc are becoming increasingly
important as development actors. In addition to
the sovereign actors as mentioned above, wehave seen private sector involvement in

4

NEWS LETTER 2010
developing countries and emerging roles of nongovernmental organization such as philanthropic
foundations and CSOs (Civil Society
Organizations). With development actors
diversified, the volume of non-traditional
resources to developing countries is growing.

- Transparency in selection of the top
management (WB/IMF); and- Strengthening surveillance system (IMF).
5. New Architecture and Approach
As discussed previously, there is a gap between
the present development challenges and those
identified in international agreements such as
MDGs and Paris Declaration in that today's
globalized world is dynamic; thus, we need tofundamentally rethink the current aid
architecture and explore a new approachbased on lessons learnt from the past practices.
First of all, we should establish decentralized
coordination, i.e. a "Network of Networks"
architecture by improving knowledge systems,
adopting a principle of mutual understanding ofobjectives and practices, and empowering
actors through the dissemination of necessary
information. Secondly, building horizontal
relationships between recipients and donors areimportant: deepening dialogues and trustbuilding with local partners, implementing a trial
and error process, respecting ownership ofrecipient countries, and committing themselvesin a longer term, as we have experienced
through successful development in Asia. Thirdly,
it is important to look at development outcomes
rather than inputs by donors. Fourthly, we
believe that diversifying aid modalities can bringmore resources to the international communityand deliver aid more effectively. Last but notleast, it is crucial to strengthen policy level
coordination among donors.

3.2 Challenges to institutionalize participation of
emerging political and economic power: From
G7/8 to G20
To tackle the financial and economic crisis thatspread across the globe in 2008, the G-20
members were called upon to further strengtheninternational cooperation, and with theimportance of the G-20 increasing more andmore, they should take the initiatives in setting
principle of international cooperation. A half of
the G-20 countries are emerging donor countries,
and it makes us realize the importance ofbuilding partnership with emerging donors.
4. Reflection of today's challenges: Governance Reformof World Bank and IMF
International institutions including World Bank, IMF
and OECD DAC are considering governancereform reflecting these challenges. For instance,
World Bank, and IMF have been drawn up reform
plans and followings are some of critical ones:- Revision of voting power allocation andcomposition of executive board members(WB/IMF);- Required vote for approval on critical issues(WB) : 70-75% proposed (as reduced fromcurrent 85%: a single country would not beable to have veto);5NEWS LETTER 2010

Globalization of Engineering Consulting
Industry in Japan
Konomu UCHIMURA
Vice president, AJCE
Member of the ASPAC Executive Committee
Managing Director, CTI Engineering Co., Ltd.

My career
I started working at CTI Engineering co., Ltd., oneof the representative engineering consulting
companies in Japan, as soon as I graduatedfrom a University in 1974. During the first 25 yearsof my career, I conducted engineering
consulting services relating to the flood control
and the water resources management plans inJapan. The following 10 years, up to the present, I
have been engaged in the company's
management as a director. I became a memberof the Association of Japanese Consulting
Engineers (AJCE) in 1990, where I have been
serving as a vice president since 2005. In theseyears, I attended the annual conferences of theInternational Federation of Consulting Engineers(FIDIC) 12 times in a row from 1998 in Edmonton
through 2009 in London.

stepping forward to be actively involved into theglobal market more than ever.
In order to expand our business into foreign
markets under the globalized economy, aknowledge of the status of business operations
and contracting standards of foreign
engineering consulting companies is aprerequisite for us. At the same time, we need tosolve issues of the domestic consulting market
from a global point of view. In this context, FIDIC
provides an effective interface for solving
vulnerable points of our contacts.
QBS is an example of this. Until about 10 years
ago, cost based selection (CBS) was the only
contracting method for engineering consulting
services in Japan. In an attempt to change thissituation, AJCE invited Mr. Lewis, the FIDIC
president at the time, and organized a seminaron the QBS process in 1997. The seminar turned
out to be a great success, contributing to asignificant advancement of QBS in Japan overthe past 10 years.

AJCE
Depending on its area of works, such as civilengineering and electrical engineering, etc., theJapanese engineering consulting firms
established their own associations, with AJCE as
an exception that represents all areas of theJapanese consulting engineers. AJCE joined
FIDIC in 1974, while the size of its membership is
yet to be increased.
Nevertheless, many AJCE members attended the
FIDIC conferences every year, and some of themplayed respectful roles in its subcommittees.

Activities of ASPAC
I was appointed to a member of the Executive
Committee (EC) of the FIDIC Member
Associations of Asia-Pacific Region (ASPAC)
during its general assembly meeting, which wasorganized as a part of the FIDIC annual
conference held in London in 2009. ASPAC is oneof the regional associations of FIDIC, consisting of
21 countries and territories in the Asia-Pacificregion. FIDIC has now as large as over 80
member associations, and for this reason, I
believe activities of local characteristics, such as
those of ASPAC, will have a significant meaning.
As a member of ASPAC EC, I will devote myself tothe promoting activities of ASPAC.

Why FIDIC?
In the prospect of an aging society with declining
population in Japan, engineering firms expectthat domestic capital investment in infrastructuredevelopment will be reduced to cover thesoaring social security spending. For this reason,
the engineering consulting industry in Japan is6NEWS LETTER 2010

ASPAC Activities 2007-2009

Masakazu Maeda
Past Chief of Secretariat,
ASPAC Sub-Committee of International Activity Committee, AJCECTI Engineering International Co., Ltd.

Our Mission
ASPAC aims firstly at providing a platform for thefree exchange of information among FIDIC
Member Associations within the Asia and PacificRegion. Secondly, we pursue to share theinformation and make recommendations to FIDIC
concerning particular matters affecting theinterests of consulting engineers in the region. Our
mission is finally to foster the consulting engineering
industry in accordance with the principles andconstitution of FIDIC and contribute to sustainable
development in the region.

ASPAC (FIDIC Asia-Pacific Member Associations)
was established in 1977 for commoditizing
information and expanding business chances in
the area, and now it is composed of 21
associations. The activities of ASPAC weremanaged by the secretariat of the Association ofJapanese Consulting Engineers (AJCE), since Mr.
Akihiko Hirotani, chairman of AJCE, became achair of ASPAC in 2006.
During the FIDIC London Conference 2009, thechair of ASPAC switched from Mr. Hirotani to Mr.
Dennis Sheehan, past president of the Associationof Consulting Engineers Australia (ACEA), and thesecretariat also switched from AJCE to ACEA. The
activities of ASPAC during the years of 2007 and2009 were remarkable. The secretariat promoted
the Action Plan formulated in 2007, and proposed
other new issues, such as the capacity
development program and the young professional
forum. In addition, the secretariat organized
several FIDIC/ASPAC meetingsin Pakistan, Korea
and India to reinforce communication among themember associations, and to accelerate theseactions. Those activities in 2007-2009 aresummarized below.

ASAPC Action Plan 2007-2009
ASPAC Action Plan 2007-2009 was established toaim at promoting better relations among ASPAC
member associations to commoditize informationand expand business chances in the Asia-Pacificregion. These actions resulted in enhancing
interaction within the member associations, and in
expanding their business opportunities. These results
also brought in an increase of the number ofconsultant associations, representing countries thatwished to join ASPAC, and consequently the
number of FIDIC member association increased.
The target was set up each year. The results of theactions are enumerated as follows:• The target of the first year (year of 2007) was“Raising
AwarenessandCreating
Communication Environment among themember associations”. ASPAC Region News was
issued periodically to sensitize importance ofcommunication to the member associations.
Simultaneously, information of each member
association was exchanged by country reports
and newsletters.
• The target of the second year (year of 2008) was“Gathering and Arranging Information from themember associations and Providing it for their
Needs”. To achieve this target, ASPAC pages of

Left: Mr. Akihiko Hirotani, AJCE
Right: Mr. Dennis Sheehan, ACEA

7

NEWS LETTER 2010
ASPAC 2008 Quebec GAM also agreed that thecapacity development for young professionals
should be carried out in the ASPAC region.
ASPAC secretariat was involved in thispreparation for establishment of ASPAC Young
Professional Forum. The detail of ASPAC Young
Professional Forum is presented in another article
in this news letter.
• The target of the last year (year of 2009) was“Securing Consistency and Sustainability of
ASPAC Activities, and Presenting Directions
toward the Future”. In the final year of the threeyear Action Plan, continuation andreinforcement of the past activities wereregarded as indispensable. Therefore, thesecretariat reviewed the performance inthree years, and proposed the general
directions of the follow up actions for ASPAC.
Recommendations towards the future activities
of ASPAC are summarized below:

ASPAC Region News Issued Periodically

FIDIC website were updated by FIDIC and
ASPAC secretariat. FIDIC website then was linked
to websites of each member association. Almost
all of member associations opened their website,
and information such as technical seminars for
consulting engineers, and the directory of theirmember firms was displayed.
ASPAC General Assembly Meeting (GAM) held in2008 at Quebec agreed that the capacity
development program should be carried out in
the ASPAC region. Based on this decision, ASPAC
secretariat carried out a survey to collectinformation on capacity development programfrom FIDIC and the countries that have alreadyheld seminars or workshops . As a result, 17
member associations out of 19 already held or
planed seminars or workshops in cooperation
with FIDIC.

Towards the Future
The world is now becoming flat and the businessenvironment has been more complicated. In
particular, the region covered by ASPAC is abroad expanse of countries and economies
including a wide variety of races, religions andcultures. Under these circumstances, consideringthat the role of ASPAC will become more
important, the following actions should be carriedout:• ASPAC member associations will continue to
dispatch information by news and website toshare their experience and knowledge.

ASPAC in FIDIC Home Page (left) and ASPAC Home Page on the Website (right)

8NEWS LETTER 2010
• ASPAC/FIDIC will support the following activities:> ASPAC/FIDIC regional conference> ASPAC/FIDIC regional training programs> ASPAC/FIDIC regional young professional
forum> Establishment of FIDIC regional office in
Asia/Pacific (ASPAC permanent secretariat)
In terms of the regional training programs, although
FIDIC provides several training programs as part ofits own International Training Programme tosupport the member associations, it isrecommendable that regional training centers willbe established in some regions to offer a programof courses, mainly in the local language. Finally, it is
crucial to ensure that the younger generation,
filled with vitality and creativity, enters the fields ofengineering to strengthen and maintain theindustry. In this sense, it is necessary for
ASPAC/FIDIC to support the ASPAC Young
Professionals Forum for capacity development ofyoung consulting engineers.
Acknowledgement
I was so honored to work as a secretary general of
ASPAC secretariat for those three years and reallyappreciate the hard work of my colleagues, Mr.
Kazutoshi Akasaka, Ms. Eiko Watatsu and Mr.
Takashi Nakajima. My deep gratitude also goes to
Mr. Akihiko Hirotani, former chairman of ASPAC
and FIDIC executive committee member, and Dr.
Yoshihiko Yamashita, secretary general of AJCE
secretariat. They always supported me warmly andproperly. Lastly, I would like to express my sincere
appreciation to Mr. Goro Fujie, former secretary
general of AJCE secretariat, staff of AJCE
secretariat, and other members of AJCE
International Activity Committee. Without theirappropriate help and suggestions, I had neverfulfilled this important mission.
Thank you.

9NEWS LETTER 2010

Establishment of Young Professionals (YP)
Sub-Committee in AJCE

Kazutoshi AKASAKA
Chair, Young Professionals Sub-Committee
Nihon Suido Consultant Co.,Ltd.

1. BackgroundIn support of FIDIC (Federation Internationale desIngenieurs-Conseils; International Federation ofConsulting Engineers) YPF, ASPAC (FIDIC AsiaPacific Member Associations) YPF will beestablished in near future. As consequences,
activities of the Young Professionals haveenhanced. Platform of sharing information
among young professionals has established andgrowing firmly year by year.
In the light of globalization, it's very important tocollect such information in real time, and give it
to domestic young engineers.

> Enhance activities of raising interest ofConsulting Industry, young professionals inparticular including college students.

2. Objective
In the context of such background, executive
board of AJCE agreed to establish Young
Professionals (YP) Sub-Committee in 2009. The
goal of YP Sub-Committee is as follows.
> Support training and networking of theyoung professionals through the participation
to FIDIC/ASPAC activities etc. for promoting
business opportunities of consulting engineers
in the global market.

3. Activity
Activities of the YP Sub-Committee are as follows.
a. Information collection through the
FIDIC/ASPAC-YPF and Networking with FIDIC
YP groups.
b. Study global market through the FIDIC news
and FIDIC documents etc.
c. Networking among domestic young

AJCE
Professional Development Committee
Professional Development Promotion Sub-Committee

FIDIC Policy Promotion Sub-Committee for
Young Professionals Sub-Committee
Young Professionals Group (supporting body of YP)
Figure-1 Position of YP Sub-Committee

10NEWS LETTER 2010
5. Function of YP Sub-Committee
The YP Sub-Committee has the following threefunctions, namely, Linkage to FIDIC/ASPAC YPF,
Networking and Public Relations. They areinterrelated each other. This Sub-committee
carries out the external activities in support ofYoung Professional Group.

professionals
d. Support Young Professionals Exchange
Program (YPEP) with Australia (ACEA)
e. Plan and implement events such as site visit
etc. for college students
f. Outreach ourselves to young engineers andstudents
g. Promote activity of young professionals
through “young professional award”

6. Activity in the future
We would like to further expand current activitiesof young professionals in cooperation with
FIDIC/ASPAC YPF. Since its establishment, YP subcommittee functions as a platform of
exchanging information and enhancing activitiesof young professionals not only in AJCE but also
outside bodies so that the consulting industry canbe presented aspromising body. It
is my expectationthat I can reportprogress of ouractivities in thenext newletter.

4. Position of YP Sub-Committee
The YP Sub-committee is positioned under theProfessional Development Committee, one of theeight standing committees of AJCE.

Professional Development Committee

ObserverYP Sub-Committee

Chair
FIDIC/ASPAC YPF

YP Networking

Public Relations

1. FIDIC-YPF Activity
2. ASPAC-YPF Activity
3. News Letter
4. Translation anddissemination of FIDIC
information
5. Study FIDIC Documents

1. YP Networking
2. Support of YPEP
3. Study meeting etc.
4. Plan and implement Events(Site visit etc.)
5. YP Award

1. Public Outreach
2. Business Development
3. Secretariat
4. Industry Promotion andSupport for Students

Cooperation
AJCE-YPG Young Professionals
Figure-2 Function of YP Sub-Committee11NEWS LETTER 2010

AJCE Activity 2009 at a glance
January

February

March

April

Seminar
Conference
3/10-13 FIDIC/ASPAC Kathmandu
Conference 【p.7】■Title "Making Globalization Work:
Role of Consultants"

Topics
1/7 AJCE New Year
Celeblation Party

Publication

3/12 Inauguration of
MOU between AJCE
and UZACE 【p.21】

Bulletin Vol.32 No.4

4/27 Inauguration of
MOU between AJCE
and NECSA 【p.21】

News Letter Vol.30

12

May

Jun

NEWS LETTER 2010

e

July

AugustSeptember

7/14 AJCE Annual Seminar 【p.22】■Title "A Big Leap into the World Market-Potential Opportunities for the Consultant "OctoberNovember

December

10/23 Chair and Presentation, 11/20 Professional Career
9/13-9/16
FIDIC London Conference
Development Seminar
FIDIC 2009
LondonConference

10/14 Summit Meeting
between AJCE, KENCA andCNAEC 【p.20】

11/26 KENCA
Visited Japan

8/21 Ishii Past AJCE
President Visited FIDIC

10/23 Cerebration of
FIDIC EC and ASPAC
EC electees (Aki andKonomu)10/13-10/30
AJCE/ACEA Young Professionals
Exchange Program【p.14】

Bulletin Vol.33 No.2

Bulletin Vol.33 No.1

13

NEWS LETTER 2010

AJCE Activity 2009

Young Professionals Exchange
Programme (YPEP) 2009
-A bridge of friendship connecting Australia andKeiichi KANAIJapanChair, Professional Development Promotion Sub-Committee
CTI Engineering Co., Ltd.

In October last year, AJCE welcomed four young
Australian professionals who spent 3 weeks at
selected AJCE member firms as they wereparticipating Young Professionals Exchange
Programme (YPEP), established in 1996 topromote good relationship and friendshipbetween Japanese and Australian young
consulting engineers.

proved to be one of the key elements of the
programme.
The schedule of YPEP2009 was as follows;
January
Host firms recruited and selectedFebruary
Selection of visiting young
professionals
April
Pre-visit dialogue started
October 13
Orientation & Welcome Party
October 24-25 Trip to Kyoto & Nara
October 30
Young Summit Meeting &Farewell Party
In the “Pre-visit Dialogue” period, the Australianengineers communicated by e-mails with thementors or other people at the host firms on thewide range of topics from technical issues in theirbusiness area to practical information and tips forstaying in Japan.
During 3 weeks of visit, four Australian engineers
worked with their mentors at each hostcompany, location of which dispersed all overJapan from Sapporo to Sendai, Tokyo andFukuoka. The programs varied by host company,
but mostly included presentations, seminars,
discussions, site visits and, of course, many social
events.

Signing Ceremony of MOU in 1995

Due to the global economic depression, there
were not as many visiting engineers this time as in
the past years. However, well-prepared training
programs and warm hospitality of the host firms
made this year's YPEP even more productive andfruitful. “Pre-visit Dialogue”, introduced for the firsttime in 2007 to make the training more effective
and efficient, was carried out smoothly and it

Trainees of YPEP

1

GHD

Jamie Chapman

Host Company
in Australia
Oriental Consultants Co.,Ltd.,

2

GHD

Nobu Ito

Oriental Consultants Co.,Ltd.,

Tokyo

3

Arup

Hilary Pocock

CTI Engineering Co., Ltd.

Sendai, Fukuoka

4

Kellogg, Brown and RootDavid Dixon

Chodai Co.,Ltd.

Sapporo, Tokyo

NO.

Company

Name

14

OfficeTokyo

NEWS LETTER 2010

Welcome Party

Young Summit Table discussion

The weekend trip to Kyoto and Nara, former
capital cities of Japan and famous for their oldshrines and temples, offered to the visitors agood opportunity to explore the rich history ofJapan.
On the last day the Young Summit Meeting washeld in Tokyo, in which all the participants fromboth countries got together to report and listen
to the outcome of their 3 weeks of training, andto exchange their views and opinions on someinteresting isuues such as the difference of work
environment and systems in two countries. After
the Australian engineers' report presentation, we
had roundtable discussions, topics of which were
(1) What “Consulting Engineer” means for yourcareer and life, and (2) What you expect yourfirm to do for your “Capacity Building”. In thediscussion for topic (1), they exchanged various
experiences and views; the reasons why they
had chosen this profession, the gap between
their original expectation for the job and thereality they are facing, the huge social
responsibility and challenge of the profession,and so on. For topic (2), they talked about theirown firms' policies of human resources
development, how they want their superiors to
guide or educate them in the daily work, andwhat they would do to your subordinates in the
future. It was a valuable and meaningful meetingfor all participants, and one of the highlights ofthe entire program.
While YPEP's primary purpose is to provide young
engineers with opportunities to touch different
cultures, to learn new engineering skills, and tocreate an extensive network of young
professionals, we hope that in the future this will
be growing into close business relationship

Farewell Party

between the participating firms in two countries.
We have already started preparing for this year's
YPEP, in which AJCE will be sending Japaneseyoung professionals selected from its member
firms to Australia, and we believe that it will be
another success in YPEP's outstanding history.

Trainees and their hosts in YPEP2009

15

NEWS LETTER 2010

AJCE Activity 2009

Summary of YPEP 2009 Experience

Jamie Chapman
YPEP2009 Trainee
GHD

Introduction
During the 2009 YPEP to Japan, I was given theopportunity work with Oriental Consultants in their
Tokyo office where we exchanged knowledge
through discussions and site visits. While in JapanI stayed with two different families and was alsoable to travel to various parts of Japan toexperience the culture.

Cultural Experience
During the weekends I was able to visit manydifferent places throughout Japan. A tour wasorganised by AJCE through the historic cities of
Kyoto and Nara. Through the guided tour, I
learnt much about the history of Japan.
I was also able to experience much of the nightlife in the city of Tokyo and the more weekend
atmosphere in places like Yoyogi Park andAkihabara.

Work Experience
Each day I travelled to Nishi-Shinjuku Gochomestation using the high frequency train system
which was an interesting experience. My workwith Oriental Consultants involved many
discussions with employees with topics ranging
from YP Issues to pavement design differences
between Japan and Australia.
I was also able to visit a number of project sites,some completed and some under construction.
These visits were very valuable and informative as
design and construction constraints vary
between Japan and Australia.

Summary
The exchange program to Japan has been very
rewarding and valuable. I have made a lot offriends while here in Tokyo working with Oriental
consultants and I hope to continue thesefollowing my return to Australia. I was able toexperience the wonderful hospitality that theJapanese are famous for. This was a great
experience and I recommend it highly to all
young professionals and I thank ACEA and AJCE
for their effort to make this possible.

16NEWS LETTER 2010

AJCE Activity 2009

YP Exchange Program 2009 Report
Nobu ItoYPEP2009 Trainee
GHD

1. Introduction
As an YPEP trainee, I havebeen served with Oriental
Consultants (OC), Railway
Group within the Global
Consulting (GC) Division.
Although it was a short stay, I have been given
some opportunities to expose myself to general
discussion with YPs, railway grade separation
construction site (non-OC project).
2. Discussion with OC's YPs
Discussion session was held forthe purpose of exchanging
opinions on differences
between Australian andJapanese
consultancies
including• Working Hours and Environment• Dress Code (introduction of casual Friday)• Drug and Alcohol Policy

are the advantages of using the tunneling method• Future urban renewal planning• Community friendly• Construction time reduction• Not affecting the Existing operation• No traffic control required.
Continuous bridge grade Separation:
The continuous bridge grade
separation project at one of
the busiest level crossing for
Keikyu line Kamata station
where two major roads cross,are carried out by Keikyu
Railways. It is constructed for the purpose of
improving the current traffic situation andfollowings are other advantages.
• Construction time reduction• Improvement of noise and vibration• Future urban renewal planning• Car and bike parking space under thecontinuous bridge

3. Major Grade Separation in Metropolitan Area
The traffic congestion caused by railway levelcrossing has been a large issue in metropolitan
area and occasionally, the maximum wait at thelevel crossing goes over 30mins so that often two
solutions are suggested for mitigation: undergroundand continuous bridge grade separation
Shield and cut and cover tunneling:
Keio Railways is performing the total length of
3.7km underground grade separation between
Chofu and Kuniryou station forthe purpose of easing thetraffic congestion at levelcrossing, reducing the levelcrossing accident and urban
renewal. The following factors

4. Conclusion and Acknowledgement
Through this program, I have had a tremendous
time staying with Oriental Consultants and othertrainees to experience Japanese culture, working
environment, unique construction techniques andbuild a valuable relationship for future networking
Thereby, I thank AJCE and ACEA for organizing theamazing opportunity for young professionals who
are aspiring and developing the knowledge andexperiences, Oriental Consultants Railway Group,
road group and Safety and QM staffs for creating
comfortable work environment as well as sharing
their knowledge and experiences and special
thanks to Mr. Kamiyama for his consistentassistance and organizing the training programs at
OC

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NEWS LETTER 2010

AJCE Activity 2009

YPEP2009 Report- My experience in JapanHilary Pocock
YPEP2009 Trainee
Arup

1.A Week in Sendai with CTI Engineering
My first few days in Sendai were spent visiting
local rivers, sights and impressive engineeringfeats. I was able to see a flood retarding basin,
levee bank and flow control infrastructure as wellas enjoy a cruise along the picturesque Mogami
River in the Yamagata Prefecture. Also in thisprefecture, I saw Nagai Dam and was taken to
the elevated construction
site of Ogawa Bridge. Sitevisits always included lunchthat reflected the quality of
the local produce, namely
very delicious Soba Noodles.

desalination plant and many other water saving
measures. I was able to draw many similarities
and differences between the way water ismanaged in each respective city, and cameaway with some ideas for improvement of somewater systems in Australia. A well informed site
visit to their desalination plant and also to thehighly esteemed research Professor Jinno from
Kyushu University was valuable.
During my time in Kyushu I was also able to visit
the very active Mt Aso volcano and again
experience local fooddelights such as raw chicken,
lots of ramen, beef intestinesand one of the mostconfronting, pig foot from a
local Yatai.

Through the kindness of the Sendai people I wasable to experience very unique culturalexperiences through the many meals shared at
traditional Japanese restaurants. After dinnerparties were also great fun and afforded me thepleasure to understand what Japanese karaoke
is really all about! I was also lucky enough tohave a home stay with Koichi Saito and his
family, play softball and attend an Imoni party
with the entire office.

3.Lasting Impressions
My time in Japan exceeded all expectations I
had previously held. The kindness of the people,
the charm of the Japanese culture as well as thetechnical exposure to the state of play of waterin Japan has meant my experiences here havebeen entirely unique. I congratulate the AJCE for
hosting such a successful program and would liketo thank the people of CTI Engineering formaking my time in Japan so valuable andenjoyable. Special thanks go to Yohei Takita,
Koichi Saito, Asuka Ukese
and Toshiaki Ishimoto whowere exceptional hosts. I
feel very grateful to havebeen part of this program
and look forward to visiting
again in the near future.

2. A Week in Fukuoka with CTI Engineering
During my week learning about water resource
management in Fukuoka I quickly came torealize that not all water engineering issues inJapan are focused on flood control and riverplanning. Similarly to myhome city Adelaide,
Fukuoka experiences
water shortages which
have
meant
the
establishment
of
a

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NEWS LETTER 2010

AJCE Activity 2009

My Time in Japan with Chodai
Consulting
David Dixon
YPEP2009 Trainee
Kellogg, Brown and Root

During my three week exchange with Chodai I
was fortunate enough to experience working life
in Japan. The first week I spent in Hokkaido at the
Sapporo office; here I was introduced to their
GPS Information System. This system allows users
to utilize the features found on their mobile
phones, such as the camera, GPS and internet toprovide immediate information to the office. I
was also taken to a bridge inspection
approximately 110km north of Kushiru. While in
Sapporo I visited the Sapporo Bier Garten to
enjoy some tasty
Japanese beers andfood. A weekend trip
to Otaru and further
west for sight seeing
allowed me to witness
some of the traditionaland more natural
Sashimi in Sapporo
areas of Hokkaido.

monitoring room all the expressways can bemonitored for congestion. This was great to see,as I have never visited the control centre in
Brisbane. In order to witness Tokyo congestion first
hand, I was taken on a trip to the Odaiba area
across Rainbow Bridge. On the way I was able totravel at speeds, that on occasion, exceeded
5km/h.
For two days I was able to ride the Shinkansen to
Kyoto with the other YPEP members. Here I visited
a couple of temples and shines in Kyoto. The
following day I made the trip to Nara to seesome more equally impressive shines andtemples. For the night we stayed in a rather
traditional room with tatami mats; with the 6am
wakeup earthquake included at no extra cost.

I returned to Tokyo for the following two weeks.
During my first week in Tokyo I was able to witness
construction of 10km of new railway that would
provide a second rail link to Narita airport. While
here I had the opportunity to visit the Tekken
Corporation training facility. The training facility isimpressive; the start involved a short briefing
about the facility and following this briefing I wasshown their training site. This site is 150m long andis a working reconstruction of a station platform
and level crossing with various construction works
on display.

Kimonos at Kiyomizu-dera, and Kinkakuji(Golden Temple) in Kyoto

Everyone at AJCE, Chodai and the other hostfirms were exceedingly welcoming. I would like tothank all of those involved in this program as I
believe it has increased my engineeringexperience; as well as given me the opportunity
to experience Japanese culture.

I was able to visit the Metropolitan Expressway
control room and the NEXCO traffic control
centre for the Kanto area. From a large

19NEWS LETTER 2010

AJCE Activity 2009

Summit Meeting between AJCE, KENCA and CNAEC
On October 14, 2009, summit meeting between
the Association of Japanese Consulting Engineers(AJCE; President, Aki Hirotani), the Korea
Engineering and Consulting Association (KENCA;
Chairman, Hun-Il Moon) and the China National
Association of Engineering Consultants (CNAEC;
Secretary General, Tang Ping) was held at theinternational conference center in Seoul.

hosted 2005 FIDIC Beijing Conference to advice
and support the Conference.
Aki Hirotani, AJCE President, who has served as
the chairman of ASPAC for the last three years
from Sept. 2006 to Sept 2009, then elected as a
FIDIC executive committee member in Sept. 2009
addressed that cooperation between the threeassociations will contribute greatly in thedevelopment consulting industry in ASPAC
region. Through this cooperation, he stressed, I
would like to exert myself for the enhancementof ASPAC activities. He further added thatcapacity development of young professionals
and their entering in our industry are urgent
issues. Our mission for achieving this objective is
to raise our status in society to be respected andattractive figure. Aki stressed in this connectionthat we need to nurture our cooperation
continuously.

Front from the right
Aki Hirotani, AJCE President
Hun-Il Moon, KENCA chairman
Tang Ping, CNAEC Secretary General

Tang Ping advised KENCA that visa issue is quite
time consuming and important for enhancing
participation in FIDIC conference, therefore,
early visa preparation is recommended for theSeoul Conference. Regarding technicalinformation exchange between the associations,she stressed that translation of technicalinformation or others in native language should
be avoided not only it is time consuming but also
ineffective. English should be the governing
language in sharing information in the internetage.

In the meeting, it was acknowledged that thethree associations from Japan, Korea and China
further promote mutual cooperation for thedevelopment of consulting engineering industry
in Asia and Pacific regions based on FIDIC
ASPAC activities. Role of ASPAC has been
increasing in FIDIC activities, thus cooperation
between AJCE, KENCA and CNAEC is expected
to be a strong driver in this context.
Organizer of the summit meeting, Hun-Il Moon,
KENCA chairman addressed that we would liketo further promote business opportunities andexchange of technical and engineeringexpertise through continuous dialogues between
the three associations. With regard to successfully
prepare and implement 2012 FIDIC Seoul
Conference, he requested AJCE who hosted
1991 FIDIC Tokyo Conference and CNAEC who

After
the
announcementof next meetingin Beijing in
2010,
the
s u m m i tmeeting was
adjourned.

20NEWS LETTER 2010

AJCE Activity 2009

Memorandum of Understanding with Uzbekistan(UZACE) and Azerbaijan (NECSA)MOU between AJCE and UZACEOn March 12, 2009, the Association of Japanese
Consulting Engineers (AJCE; President, Aki
Hirotani) and the Uzbek Association of Consulting
Engineers(UZACE;
Chairman,
Mirodil
Mirakhmedov) concluded the Memorandum ofUnderstanding (MOU) at Yak and Yeti Hotel in
Kathmandu, Nepal for mutual cooperation andpromotion of business opportunities. Fivemembers from AJCE and UZACE participated in
the MOU signing ceremony.
At the beginning of the Ceremony, chairman
Mirodil Mirakhmedov addressed that UZACE
expects the development of consulting industry

like to support the development of consulting
industries in the central Asian region.
The MOU was concluded between Aki Hirotani
and Mirodil Mirakhmedov, following the approvalof UZACE as the associate member of FIDIC at
the 2008 FIDIC Quebec Conference.
The period of MOU is 3 years and will be
extended after mutual agreement forcontinuation. The MOU covers i) exchange of
information, ii) joint hosting of seminars andworkshops, iii) promotion of business
opportunities, iv) promotion of capacity building
among young professionals.
MOU between AJCE and NECSA
The MOU between the Association of Japanese
Consulting Engineers (AJCE; President, Aki
Hirotani) and National Engineering Consultancy
Society of Azerbaijan (NECSA, President ,Ibrahim
Mammadzadeh) was concluded on 27th April,
2009.
Proposal of the MOU was initiated at the ASPAC
Conference held in March 2009, Kathmandu,
Nepal. Through mutual dialogues since the
ASPAC conference, both associations came toconcluding the MOU. Contents of the MOU are
similar to those with UZACE.

Left; Mirodil Mirakhmedov ,UZACE Chairman
Right; Aki Hirotani, AJCE President

and rising of technical expertise in own country
as well as in the ASPAC region through AJCE who
has long experience and achievements as oneof the leading consulting associations in thesame region. He added further as the results, we
expect long lasting and rewarding relationshipbetween the two associations.
Aki Hirotani, President of AJCE who has been
serving as the chair of FIDIC ASPAC since Sept2007 addressed the importance of signing MOU
with UZACE who is expected to be a new
addition to ASPAC member in 2009 FIDIC London
Conference. AJCE will support raising technicaldevelopment in Uzbekistan by exchange of
newsletters, technical information and others.
Through Uzbekistan, it is our hope that we would

Left; Ibrahim Mammadzadeh, NECSA President
Right; Aki Hirotani, AJCE President

It should be mentioned that UZACE and NECSA
joined as ASPAC members at 2009 FIDIC London
Conference.

21NEWS LETTER 2010

AJCE Activity 2009

AJCE Annual Seminar 2009
A Big Leap into the World Market- Potential Opportunities for theConsultant
Professional Development Committee, AJCE

1. Introduction
AJCE held its annual seminar on 14 July 2009 in
Tokyo, with 65 participants from the consulting
industry. The seminar entitled "A Big Leap into theWorld Market" focused on potential future andnew markets for Japanese consulting firms.

AJCE invited three speakers from different
disciplines to share their foresights on the trendsof the world market and the role of theconsultants in such markets. These speakers are:Mr. Hiroto Arakawa, Senior Special Advisor of theJapan International Cooperation Agency (JICA);
Mr. Kei Hara, Director of Value Planning
International, and Dr. Shunji Kusayanagi,
Professor of the Kochi University of Technology.
2. Presentations
1) Role of Consultants in New Paradigm (by Mr. Hiroto
Arakawa)
The speaker highlighted climate change as oneof the worldwide issues, and commented on the
involvement of consultants in such projects.
Concerning issues, he expects Japan to lead thetrend in the world, taking the initiative as apioneer where there are no frameworks ofsolutions, thus experience and innovative ideasof Japanese can be contributed.

Strong demand on social infrastructuredevelopment is expected to be continued inorder to realize sustainable economic growth inemerging countries.
Implementation of
economic-stimulus packages is also pushing up
infrastructure development demand in the
recent years.
Japanese consultants have achieved a certain
level of success in their overseas businesses,
which depended largely on Official
Development Assistance (ODA) projects.
However, we have to seek a wider range ofbusiness opportunities, exert more effort ingaining international competitive edge required
for managing mega-scale projects, and boost
our presence in the world market.

Mr. Hiroto Arakawa, JICA

The speaker cited two projects related to climatechange. One was the study on the impact of

22

NEWS LETTER 2010
climate change at seaboard cities in thePhilippines, which was jointly conducted by ADB,
JICA, and IBRD. The study forecasted future
variations in temperature rise, sea level rise,
precipitation and ocean waves to formulate
urban and infrastructure development plans. The
other was the climate change program loan toIndonesia conducted by JICA.

a project is not regarded as a public project but
as an investment project. The private sector
usually gains benefits from the project operation
over a long period.
There are differences in approach between ODA
projects and PPP projects. For example, under
ODA projects, the public sector's role is as
employer to the private sector, which is thecontractor. In PPP projects however, both sectors
act as partners.

These projects require consultants to have broad
networks and trust relationships with governmentorganizations and residents of recipient countries.
These sometimes require consultants to step up
policy reforms of recipient countries. The
consultants have to give thoughtful advice,respecting the partner's standpoint and without
interfering in the country's affairs.

Consultants also act as partner under PPP
projects. Thus, in the consultants' approach to
PPP, they have to understand the above
difference and to change their way of thinking.
The speaker commented that cross-border"integration of knowledge" and "creation of
wisdom" would be the basis to sustain PPP in Asia.
The hope is that consultants would play a keyrole in contributing to the huge demand of
infrastructure development in Asia.

Japanese consultants are expected to succeedin these projects as such accomplishments build
up the sustainable cooperation between Japanand the countries involved.
2) Public Private Partnership (PPP) in the Asian Region(by Mr. Kei Hara)
The demand for infrastructure development in
Asia is estimated at US$ 200 billion or more perannum. Developed countries cannot cover thisdemand with their public assistance alone. The
PPP approach has attracted attention incontributing to cover such demand.

3) Issues to Tackle and Future Perspective for our
Construction Industry (by Prof. Shunji Kusayanagi)
The speaker sent hearty cheers to consultants
mentioning the fundamentals in construction
business environment in Japan.
In 2008, Koch University of Technology (KUT)
conducted a questionnaire survey of public
offices, construction firms, and consultants
regarding contract administration for
construction projects in Japan. The survey
revealed that projects were being implemented
even when contract administration was scarcely
known.

The speaker cited past projects which adopted
the PPP approach, e.g., Ulaanbaatar Urban
Development Master Plan in Mongolia, andHyderabad Outer Link Highway ITS Project andEnnore Port Logistic Hub Advancement Project,both in India. From the private sector viewpoint,

Dr. Shunji Kusayanagi, KUT

Mr. Kei Hara, Value Planning International

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NEWS LETTER 2010
On the one hand, such business environment wasfunctioning well and had achieved the rapid
development of social infrastructures in Japan
during 1960 to 1970. However, it did not haveeffects on international projects, and isconsidered as one of the causes of thediminishing international competitiveness of theJapanese construction industry.

construction industry overseas. To support suchplan, consultants are required to be independentand impartial.
3. Acknowledgment
All three speakers, from differnet viewpoints,
encouraged the consultants and provided manyhints regarding future business promotion. The
seminar participants were so interested andenthusiastic that the seminar room seemed filledwith a sense of tension throughout the session.
AJCE annual seminar is one of the mostimportant and visible events, which has always
followed the major interest of consulting industry
in selecting its main topics. In the era ofglobalization, AJCE, as the only organization
representing Japan in the FIDIC, will continue tobe the leading body to enhance the quality of
the Japanese consulting industry.

The speaker mentioned that a three-party
structure (Employer-Engineer-Contractor) prevails
in the international construction market. This
three-party structure more definitely guarantees
process control in projects as compared to thetwo-party (Employer-Enginer/Contractor)
structure prevailing in Japan.
The speaker concluded that a strategy is needed
to create a business environment that meets theinternational market fundamentals, in order toimprove the competitiveness of the Japanese24