Local primary school students have officially named three tower cranes recently installed to support construction for the $673.3 million Tweed Valley Hospital development.

Kingscliff Public School students, Luana and Emily and Cudgen Public School students Shiloh and Harvey were announced winners of the ‘name the crane’ competition for their creative entries – Jungar, Mil, Hope and Lifty.

Two of the cranes were named in recognition of the traditional owners of the land, the people of the Bundjalung Nation – Jungar, for the crane’s shape, which means Pelican, and Mil, the Bundjalung word for Eye, as the tower crane will look over the construction site.

The third and fourth tower cranes will be known as ‘Hope’ and ‘Lifty’. 

Local Member for Tweed, Geoff Provest said the competition attracted strong interest and provided an opportunity to engage students in the local community about construction for the new hospital.

“Our hospitals are such important pieces of community infrastructure, and it’s great to see our regions youngest residents involved in this project while it’s being built,” Mr Provest said.

“The three cranes Jungar, Hope and Lifty will have a key role constructing the main hospital building, while Mil who is yet to be installed, will help to build the multideck carpark.

“When it opens its doors in 2023, the Tweed Valley Hospital will not only improve access to new and expanded health services for the local community, but also employment and training opportunities for our current and future health workforce”.

The winners of the competition, led by Principal Contractor Lendlease, were recently announced, with each securing a $500 voucher from local bookstore Broadway Books to purchase books for their school.

General Manager of Lendlease Building, Brad Protheroe, said the names selected for the cranes were a great fit for the project.

“The names of the cranes will be attached to the cabs of the cranes and will also be displayed on boards on the hospital site fencing for all the community to see,” Mr Protheroe said.   

 “Our tower cranes mark an important milestone in the delivery of the project and play a vital role in the building process; and it is fantastic to have such personalised names for them as they support the hospital construction.

“We hope that the competition has inspired a new generation of young engineers.”