Precinct Apartments - Accommodation
Client: Kitchener Group
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A busy, narrow, inner-city street, and a structure that needed to be built to all four boundaries added to the challenge of this project. The building plans were re-designed with significant input from Mainzeal, to reduce the amount of critical time-related truck deliveries.
The floor slabs, balconies and beams were re-designed as in situ concrete, rather than precast concrete, so deliveries could be more easily controlled, and crane hook time could be reduced. All deliveries were also scheduled on a just-in-time basis.
Mainzeal imported the industry-leading Ischebeck Titan floor system to form up the floor slabs. This system also reduced crane time and meant that work could proceed virtually regardless of weather and wind. This was particularly critical, due to the very tight building programme.
Project Data:
Location:
Auckland
Client:
Kitchener Group
Safety was paramount at the site. Climbing screens were employed to give full-edge protection on the top floor, and for the three floors below. In addition, catch nets were installed on Level 12.
The piling proved a major challenge. After demolition of the existing structure on the site, exploratory test bore drilling revealed a deep volcanic blow hole. This meant that pile depths needed to exceed the design depth of 25m by more than 30m, which gave a depth of approximately 60m – through unstable material. This in turn meant the use of casings almost all the way down.
Specialist equipment was procured from Asia to oscillate the casing, and extract it during concreting operations. The difficulties were exacerbated by the high water table, which required all the concrete to be tremmied to displace the water.