The lady doth protest too much, methinks?

Brisbane 2032: A Blueprint for Success or a Legacy at Risk?

Former Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has raised the alarm on Brisbane’s Olympic preparations, calling out delays and a lack of progress. Her criticism cuts to the core of the issue:

"When I left, we had a plan… the tenders would have been out now for the Gabba, and the planning and construction would have been underway."

But is her frustration entirely understandable? The 2032 Games were announced in 2021, and Palaszczuk resigned in December 2023. In March 2024, her successor Premier Steven Miles released a 60-day review declaring the Gabba unsuitable as Brisbane's main Olympic venue. Nearly a year later, we still do not have a confirmed location for the Opening Ceremony, and are awaiting the results of another 100-day review due in March 2025.

Brisbane’s Olympic vision, as outlined in the IOC proposal, was meant to unite and inspire. Today it feels at risk of unravelling. A legacy of inclusion, infrastructure, and sustainability has become mired in debates over stadiums and delays. Athletes, communities, and long-term benefits are being sidelined despite their central importance to this vision.

The Gabba: The Right Solution or the Wrong Legacy?

One of the most contentious issues is the proposal to renovate the Gabba to serve as the main Olympic stadium. While the idea might seem practical on the surface, it raises an important question. The Gabba’s redesign for the Olympics would prioritise athletics for just eight weeks, leaving cricket and AFL fans to deal with compromised sightlines and reduced capacity for decades to come.

Brisbane’s love for live sport is central to its identity, and the Gabba is a cornerstone of that. A short-term fix risks permanently undermining the spectator experience for the sports we love most. Instead of delivering a lasting benefit for the community, we could end up with a stadium that no longer meets the needs of cricket and AFL fans, diminishing its role as a world-class venue.

This approach would not only compromise Brisbane’s sporting legacy but also fail to meet the sustainability, usability, and inclusion standards outlined in the IOC proposal.

Three Years of Planning for Four Years of Panic

This debate over the Gabba highlights a deeper issue. The 3+4 planning framework, introduced in the IOC’s New Norm Report, assumes host cities already have a suitable main venue in place. While this approach might work in some locations, it is fundamentally incompatible with Brisbane’s unique challenges.

Brisbane lacks a flagship stadium, and its venues are spread across a geographically dispersed area. This complexity requires a planning model that prioritises flexibility, real-time collaboration, and integration from the outset. The 3+4 framework, which separates planning and execution into silos, cannot address Brisbane’s specific needs.

Waiting until after Los Angeles 2028 to start addressing these critical challenges is a risk Brisbane cannot afford. Local companies have the expertise to begin work now. Engaging them early would accelerate progress and ensure that Brisbane delivers a meaningful legacy for the city and its people.

Why Brisbane 2032 Needs a 10D Digital Twin

To meet the challenges of delivering the Brisbane 2032 Games, we need to rethink how large-scale infrastructure projects are approached. This is where the 10D Digital Twin comes in.

Far more than a simple 3D model, the 10D Digital Twin is a comprehensive, data-driven platform that connects all stakeholders, eliminates inefficiencies, and ensures Brisbane stays on track to deliver a sustainable and inclusive Games.

To meet the challenges of delivering the Brisbane 2032 Games, we need to rethink how large-scale infrastructure projects are approached. This is where the 10D Digital Twin comes in.

Far more than a simple 3D model, the 10D Digital Twin is a comprehensive, data-driven platform that connects all stakeholders, eliminates inefficiencies, and ensures Brisbane stays on track to deliver a sustainable and inclusive Games.

To meet the challenges of delivering the Brisbane 2032 Games, we need to rethink how large-scale infrastructure projects are approached. This is where the 10D Digital Twin comes in.

Far more than a simple 3D model, the 10D Digital Twin is a comprehensive, data-driven platform that connects all stakeholders, eliminates inefficiencies, and ensures Brisbane stays on track to deliver a sustainable and inclusive Games.

Here is what makes the 10D Digital Twin different:

The platform goes far beyond traditional 3D models, incorporating ten integrated dimensions that provide a holistic approach to planning, execution, and legacy management for the Brisbane 2032 Olympics. These dimensions are not new and all have been used for some time but never on this scale and together within a single platform. It expands past 3D:

• 4D (Time): Real-time progress tracking and scheduling, allowing planners to monitor and adjust timelines dynamically. This ensures that all milestones are met efficiently and delays are identified and addressed before they escalate.
• 5D (Cost): Predictive cost management tools that help planners forecast potential overruns and proactively implement cost-saving measures. This allows Brisbane to stay within budget, avoiding the financial pitfalls seen in past Olympic Games.
• 6D (Sustainability): Advanced tools to track and minimise environmental impact, including carbon emissions, energy consumption, and waste management. The platform supports Brisbane’s Net Zero commitments, ensuring infrastructure and construction meet stringent sustainability goals.
• 7D (Risk): Integrated risk management systems that identify, assess, and mitigate potential project risks in real time. This includes safety concerns, budget risks, and delays, ensuring Brisbane’s Olympic projects are resilient to unforeseen challenges.
• 8D (Facilities Management): Tools for managing the ongoing operation and maintenance of venues and infrastructure after the Games. This ensures that facilities remain functional, efficient, and valuable long after the event concludes, delivering long-term benefits to the community.
• 9D (Lean Construction): Lean construction principles are embedded into the platform, improving efficiency by eliminating waste, optimising workflows, and reducing resource consumption. This ensures that every dollar spent delivers maximum value.
• 10D (Prefabrication and Modular Construction): Support for prefabrication and modular construction methods that speed up delivery, reduce on-site labour demands, and improve quality control. This is particularly important for Brisbane’s geographically dispersed venues and tight timelines.

By incorporating all ten dimensions, the 10D Digital Twin ensures that Brisbane’s planning and execution are collaborative, efficient, and adaptable from start to finish. These tools provide the foundation for delivering a sustainable Games that creates lasting value for the community and avoids the financial and operational challenges faced by past host cities.

1. Local Collaboration By engaging local companies early, Brisbane can tap into homegrown expertise, reduce inefficiencies, and ensure planning aligns with community needs. The Digital Twin provides a unifying platform that enables all stakeholders, from local councils to contractors, to work from a single source of truth.
2. Proven Results Early digitisation avoids costly retrofits and change orders, which are three to four times more expensive than proactive planning. The platform’s measurable benefits include:

a) 30 per cent savings on design ($210M)

b) 20 per cent savings on construction ($710M)

c) 15 per cent annual operational savings ($106M per year)

d) 20 per cent carbon reduction and 90 per cent recycling of construction waste

Why the 3+4 Model Will Not Work for Brisbane

The 3+4 framework relies on fixed conditions and assumes existing infrastructure is suitable. For Brisbane, neither of these assumptions holds true.

Without a main stadium and with venues spread across the region, Brisbane’s planning approach must integrate execution and risk management from the start. Early analysis of Olympic budgets, such as the Oxford Study on Olympics, shows that host cities face an average budget blowout of 159 per cent. Brisbane’s initial budget of $7.1 billion has already ballooned to $10 billion due to the Gabba proposal, and $20 billion is not out of the question.

To avoid this outcome, Brisbane needs a framework that:

• Identifies and mitigates risks before they escalate
• Makes real-time adjustments as circumstances evolve
• Aligns stakeholders at all levels of government, private partners, and the community

The 10D Digital Twin provides the dynamic, real-time model needed to meet these demands and prevent runaway costs.

The Time to Act is Now

As Palaszczuk rightly said: "This is not just a Brisbane or Queensland Games, this is an Australian Games, and everyone needs to pull together."

The 10D Digital Twin is the tool Brisbane needs to unify efforts and deliver on its Olympic vision. For just $1.5M, or 0.02 per cent of the Games’ budget, a Proof of Concept could be developed in just six months.

Waiting until after Los Angeles 2028 to act is not an option. By taking action now and involving local companies, Brisbane can accelerate progress, reduce risks, and ensure the Games deliver a meaningful legacy.

Brisbane 2032 is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to show the world how an Olympic Games can be done right. Success requires leadership, innovation, and a willingness to adopt solutions that match the scale of the challenge.

My submission aims to avoid the latter. In a 10D model, time is fixed as the fourth dimension, leaving cost as the only adjustable lever. Without a 10D approach, Brisbane risks becoming a "BrisVegas slot machine" where costs spiral out of control. A collaborative, outcome-based model is essential to ensure we leave a legacy we can all be proud of.

Let us take action today.