Annual Report 2001-2002 - Western Australian Museum - The ...

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Corporate and Commercial Development
The Board of Trustees endorsed the Precautionary Principle Policy in regard to asbestos in the
Francis Street Building. In brief, the Precautionary Principle requires the Museum immediately
to evacuate the Francis Street Building if there is suspicion that asbestos may have been
released into public or staff areas.
The Francis Street Building was vacated in February 2003 to allow preparation for relocating
staff and collections to an alternative location which subsequently was acquired in Kew Street,
Welshpool.
Planning and preparation for the relocation have gained considerable momentum in light of the
securement of a site to accept Francis Street building functions.
CO-ORDINATION OF THE PERTH SITE REDEVELOPMENT
The Museum’s Perth site lacks modern exhibition spaces, has very limited accommodation for
public programs and collection storage that puts specimens at risk. Staff working conditions,
particularly in research laboratories, present significant OS&H problems.
In response to these issues the State Government appropriated $1 million through the 2002–03
Capital Works Program for planning for the redevelopment of the Perth site. The Minister for
Culture and the Arts appointed a Ministerial Steering Committee to provide advice on
redevelopment options to deal with the Francis Street Building. The Committee took the view
that the relocation of collections and staff from the Francis Street Building was a matter of
urgency.
Initial investigations have proposed an interim relocation to a warehouse and office complex
outside the central business district, which, when the major redevelopment occurs, can be
used as an offsite storage facility. The 2003–04 State Budget appropriated $12.5 million for this
purpose.
Staff have commenced planning for the move of some three million items from the Francis
Street Building collections. Many of the items are fragile, have stringent environmental
requirements and are stored in glass containers with ethanol. The relocation of the collection
will entail stabilising the collection, documenting and labelling individual specimens and ensuring
each item has the appropriate packing and support. The move will give the Museum an
opportunity to reorganise its collection storage and management and overcome many of the
problems that have developed through lack of space in the Francis Street Building.
PROPERTY AND SECURITY
Samson House in Fremantle received maintenance with the external stable walls being painted
and fretting brickwork repaired. The Fremantle History Museum and Conservation workshops
at Finnerty Street have had a new fire alarm system installed and emergency procedures were
reviewed and upgraded
Communications for the Visitor Service Officers at the Perth site and the Geraldton Museum
were improved with new radios and duress buttons.
An ongoing program of building maintenance was undertaken, including management of service
contracts for lifts and security systems.
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
The information technology infrastructure was significantly upgraded in 2002–03 with the
installation of a new network backbone at the Perth site, new servers at the Perth site and the
Maritime Museum, establishment of an optical fibre link between the Perth site and the Maritime
Museum and a similar high bandwidth line between the Perth site and the Department of Culture
and the Arts. The Department of Culture and the Arts will be providing the Museum with the link
to the Internet service provider.
WESTERN AUSTRALIAN MUSEUM ANNUAL REPORT 2002–2003