Rigby Downs Consulting (RDCons) was established in 2007 as a vehicle for it's Principal, Robert Rust, to provide consultancy services to both Government and private sector organisations.
Robert Rust is a Civil Engineer with an MBA. He has spent the majority of his 45-year career working on major projects for both the private and public sectors, including several PPPs in the economic and social infrastructure sectors, and working across the full range of delivery models. He has been involved in and taken lead roles in project development, procurement and delivery on both the client and contractor sides.
His public-sector work has been at the Chief Executive and Chief Operating Officer level, involving both developing and delivering a portfolio of projects for NSW Health and developing and awarding the first two stages of the WestConnex Project in Sydney. He built an effective team with a proven record of major project delivery. He has a detailed understanding of the workings of government in the capital procurement and capital budgeting areas.
Most of his private sector work has been in joint venture, including with French, Japanese and Korean companies, and he has been instrumental in setting up and managing these arrangements. He has been Bid Director on several major PPP projects and brings a strong commercial and technical focus to project development and delivery with a successful background in claims resolution.
He now provides consultancy services and has taken on several board positions, including as Chair of Inland Rail Pty Limited, a board member of Infrastructure SA, and a Non-executive Director of Reliance Rail. He sits on board committees in the areas of risk and assurance.
He is also Chair of the Independent Dispute Avoidance and Resolution Panel for City and South-West Metro and Chair the Joint Project Committees (JPC's) for all three Metro Projects, the peak forum for collaboration between Contractor's and Sydney Metro. He also does assurance work for various State Governments on major projects.
More recently he was a member and for 3 months acting chair of the EnergyCo NSW Advisory Committee, a member of the New Dunedin Hospital Project Steering Group, on the board of Ontoit Global for 5 ½ years, the Chairperson of the School Infrastructure Advisory Council for over 5 years, on the board of Infrashore (the PPP company operating the Royal North Shore Hospital) for 2 ½ years and the Interim Chief Executive of Inland Rail for 3 months.
As a director of RDCons, Robert consults in the area of the initiation, development and delivery of major infrastructure. Having had extensive experience on both the client and service provider sides of transactions, Robert is equally at home providing advice in either area.
In particular, Robert can provide advice on:-
is included on the Federal Department of Finance Assurance - Reviewer Services Multi Use List in the following Categories of Expertise:-
is prequalified on the NSW Government Procure Point Performance and Management Services Scheme in the following areas*:-
is included on the NSW Department of Premier and Cabinet - Local Government Amalgamation - Supplier Panel.
has been appointed to the Victorian Department of Treasury and Finance Professional Advisory Services (PAS) Panel in the Key Advisory Area and Service Category:-
is registered on the NSW Infrastructure Investment Assurance Framework - Gateway Reviewer Panel with Infrastructure NSW.
is registered as a Gateway Reviewer with the Queensland Treasury - Gateway Review Team.
is registered as a Gateway Reviewer on the Victorian Gateway Database with the Victorian Department of Treasury and Finance.
is registered as a Gateway Reviewer with the WA Department of Finance - Gateway Unit.
is a preferred supplier on the Infrastructure Advisory Services Panel established by the Federal Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development in the following categories:-