LSAA 2007 Design Awards Entry 3348 Category:Projects -- Glazing

Entrant: Taylor Thomson Whitting
Client: University of Sydney      Architect: FJMT
Structural Engineer: Taylor Thomson Whitting
Specialist Consultant(s): MPG Façade Innovations
Builder: A W Edwards      Fabricator(s): Long Span Steel

Application and Function: This is an office and lecture building. It forms the entrance to the Engineering walk.

Design Brief

The brief was to produce a design for the support structure of the acoustic screen. The screen has two functions:
The screen principally acts as an acoustic screen against the noise of the traffic on Cleveland Street. Note that the screen is closed off at the base and the ends. The secondary function is to provide some sun shading to the facades.

LSAA 2011 Design Award Entry Jagged Edge - Queenstown NZ

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

An Atypical design and Construct project involving a house for a confidential client. The design was prepared and presented as a “Design+Construct” package that was purchased as a package by the Client. The Builders Team had prepared preliminary documentation based on advice from specialist consultants and Architects. The design was then proposed for sale to the market as a complete delivery vehicle.

The project is a residential building built on the side of hill with an impressive vantage point. The main goal of the design is to maximise transparency to optimise the view.

Other Structural Forms - Cablenets, Glazing, Facades, Spaceframes

The LSAA has groups of members interested in cablenets, high technology glazing and facades.

In fact one main reason for the creation of the LSAA  from the MSAA was to cater for the growing number of projects which involved large glazed areas being supported by pretensioned cable truss systems or cablenets.

In modern times, when the overall energy usage for the life of a building is taken into account, the use of high technology facades will become more important. There is also a growing use of "green facades" or vertical gardens.

The traditional spaceframe structures are becoming rarer - those with many small elements that are man-handled and connected together on site. Labour costs and erection times are now outweighed by fewer larger assemblies that can be installed quickly by cranes.

The LSAA would welcome articles and links to projects in this category. as well as entries to our Design Awards.

Entered in the LSAA 2009 Design Awards (1099)

Entrant: Aurecon - Adelaide - Designer / Consultant
Location: Adelaide Botanical Gardens - North Terrace Adelaide SA

A new glasshouse was required to replace the dilapidated Victoria House, in a very sensitive location in the centre of Adelaide’s Botanic Gardens. The heritage-listed 1867 Lily Pond in the Victoria House had to be preserved and the design was not to detract from the adjacent heritage-listed buildings.  Glass was chosen as the main structural material as the designers wanted a solution that would not detract from the surrounding heritage buildings, but that would still provide a modern, minimalist and elegant centrepiece for the Gardens’ future.

LSAA 2013 Design Award of Excellence: Wintergarden Art Façade

Judges Comments

"Will probably settle in to become a heritage icon in Brisbane."

"Now that's how to disguise a carpark. Makes a great contribution to the public realm. Vivid, joyful - makes excellent use of contemporary steel design and fabrication technology."

APPLICATION OF PROJECT:

The vertical façade works is part of the redevelopment of the wintergarden shopping centre. This façade creates a uniform streetscape, providing a visual barrier to a number of existing carparking levels and different buildings along Queen Street Mall.

This project was entered in the 2013 LSAA Design Awards (Cat 5, #5202)

WorkZone Perth: Light weight Facade structure used to control interior environment

Aluminium tube sun shade screen designed by Fitzpatrick & Partners to control interior environment and to add to overall aesthetic impact of building.

Structural Dynamics Australia contracted by Colt International (sun shade fabricator and installer) to help design, supply and install stainless steel cable system to structurally support this element.

LSAA 2011 Design Award Entry (Cat 2, 2019)

Separation Enclosure for Chimpanzees at Taronga Zoo

The Taronga Zoos’ chimpanzee troop is one of the largest captive groups in the world with recognized wild behavior patterns and a sophisticated social hierarchy.  With its population including four maturing sub-adult males jockeying and promoting themselves within the group, the zoo cited a need for the construction of a fully enclosed and semi-transparent separation paddock within the chimpanzee exhibit to allow the chimpanzees to be easily divided as needed, without moving them to an entirely new location, and thus avoiding potential commotion.

Entered into the LSAA 2007 Design Awards (3837) Project Category Cablenets

Entrant: UFS Australasia Pty Ltd

Client: Sydney Attractions Group
Architect: Misho & Associates/ RIHS Architects – Misho & Gerry Rihs
Structural Engineer: Fabric: Wade Consulting - Joseph Dean, 
Steel: S2 Corporation Murray Allen    Fabricator(s): Fabric Shelter Systems Graham GriffinApplication and Function:

Located on the eastern side of Darling Harbour the recently opened Sydney Wildlife World adds an iconic landmark to the Darling Harbour foreshore. The urban zoo is an extension to the facilities at the Sydney Aquarium. The wildlife park has been created to accommodate Australian wildlife in as natural an environment as possible to give short stay Sydney visitors exposure to the unique Australian fauna and floor.

Ronstan Ribbons of Light

Ronstan Tensile Architecture provides full-service engineering, design assistance, and installation services for an innovative catenary lighting system that spirals through the Watergardens Town Centre in Taylor Lakes, Victoria.Watergardens Town Centre is a 56 hectare community hub that offers shopping, dining, entertainment, hospitality, and other business services. The area has been a vibrant and growing part of Taylor Lakes township since its 1997 opening, attracting droves of visitors to its 200+ specialty stores and community events.

Recently, the Centre has expanded to include a dining-focused "eat street" called Station Streat, which is now outfitted with a custom Ronstan catenary lighting system. This system, designed by Electrolight and Ronstan, stylishly assists in making the area functional after dark without being obstructive to walking paths. More importantly, the system creates a spectacular entry statement with its unconventional 3-D "ribbon like" design that speaks to the geometric language of the Centre's existing graphic motif.

"The idea was to create a lighting scheme that gives a sense of movement and direction," explains Paul Beale, Director at Electrolight. "We endeavoured to create a visual link from the Centre's train station to the main entrance and shopping areas, while also highlighting the eddies of other parts in the complex that may have otherwise gone unnoticed."

The simple, thin curves of the system are intended to reinforce the Watergardens brand and encourage engagement with the precinct as a whole. Conceptually, the structure creates a luminous manifestation of the journey made by visitors from their arrival to their destinations within the complex. Strategic points along the paths employ a "bursting fireworks" design in which smaller lines emanate from larger points, reminiscent of iron filings drawn toward a magnetic centre. This composition helps to draw attention to specific areas while promoting a continuous flow of traffic throughout Watergardens.

"This system is wonderfully representative of the potential that tensile architecture can achieve," says Sascha Humphreys, Sales Manager for Ronstan. "The structure is intricate in design and installation, but its execution appears effortless. We are proud of the way our products can accommodate innovative concepts like this one, and we are glad to contribute to the project with technical assistance."The complex system employs Ronstan ACS2-Type 1 cables with toggles and turnbuckles. A rolled steel tube structure upholds luminaries from above, creating overlapping tracks of light that wind through the space in whimsical contours. The tubes are bent to various radii and lengths, then are joined together and rotated at joints to create the smooth spline curves. The steel tubing is held in place by a series of tensioned cables, which tie back to surrounding buildings. The fixtures are rigid and durable, but optically provide an impression of motion that is appropriate for the communal atmosphere of the Centre.

"The great thing about the Ronstan design is that it reduces the visual clutter in the precinct by minimizing supporting infrastructure like poles," continues Beale. "Ronstan products are designed to be as visually unobtrusive as possible, and the end result is stunning."The project team for Watergardens Centre consisted of design and concept specialist Electrolight (Melbourne, VIC) and general contractor Thinc Projects (Melbourne, VIC).

"We have worked successfully with Ronstan on previous projects, and we knew we needed the market leader to partner with us on such a challenging enterprise," says Beale. "As expected, the Ronstan team was very accommodating and worked with us very collaboratively throughout the entire process."