Posts

ARO North Shore Bunkers

/in /by

Auckland Radiation Oncology is developing a new facility in North Shore Auckland.  @structus has been engaged by @focusplan to provide engineering services for this complex project.  The development includes construction of two new linear accelerator bunkers with up to 2.3m thick concrete walls and roof, plus upgrading and redevelopment of the existing building comprising two storey offices over single storey basement carpark.

The bunkers involved extensive research on innovative ways to construct the shielding structures, including collaboration with experts in the UK and Germany.  The final solution landed on insitu concrete roof and walls with precast concrete permanent formwork on the outer face, suspended RC ground floor slab, on RC ground beams and RC bored piles.

The existing building earthquake strengthening includes fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) and steelwork strengthening of slabs, walls and roof.  The refurbishment includes strengthening and shielding for provision of a new CT Scanner, extensive fitout and new porte cochere.

We are pleased to be working again with the quality team of builders at @Argon and thankful to excellent teams at @focusplan and @rcp for the opportunity to be involved with this exciting project.

@structus engineering services for this project include the following from concept design through construction monitoring:

  • Bunkers structural engineering
  • Revit 3D modelling
  • Bunkers fitout and seismic restraints
  • Civil engineering
  • Temporary works engineering
  • Existing building engineering including the following:
    • Detailed Seismic Assessment
    • 80%(IL2) earthquake strengthening
    • Revit 3D model of the building
    • Redevelopment structural engineering
    • Building component seismic restraints

De La Salle Site Visit

/in /by

A recent site visit to De La Salle College provided our team with invaluable insights into a project on site that had only been seen in documentation by most of the team. The tour offered a firsthand look at the transformation of a concept into exciting structures, which are looking great.

Various aspects of the project were taking shape, including the new 3 storey Classroom Block, refurbished Blocks K & J and extensive landscaping, all within a constricted site on an operational campus.  Construction in progress includes concrete filled fire rated steelwork, precast concrete panels and flooring, while the complex driven steel piles with concrete overbores and stepped ground beams have been successfully completed.

The site visit facilitated productive discussions and collaboration among team members, including design considerations, construction challenges, and innovative solutions, leading to enriched understanding and ideas for future projects.  The afternoon was topped off with a nice hearty meal and good chat.

Thanks to Cassidy Construction for hosting us and for the great work on this project to date.

Structus are providing structural, civil and seismic engineering services on this project.

De La Salle College

/in /by

Works have begun on site at De La Salle College, Mangere. The ~0.5km haul road has been constructed, earthworks and building platform commenced, the crane and the pile driving rig are on site. The refurbishment to existing buildings is underway to enable the main project, which includes a new 3 storey classroom block, multi-purpose teaching and administration space buildings.

The new structure comprises predominantly precast concrete superstructure with concrete ground beams, driven steel piles and concrete overbores to accommodate the challenging ground conditions.

This is an exciting project for the Catholic Diocese of Auckland and the School as it will increase the number of teaching spaces and provide more flexibility in room usage. Structus are providing structural, civil and seismic engineering services.

Site Visit

/in /by

Site Visit
Recently our team were pleased to take a trip out of the office to visit one of our exciting projects. Saint Ignatius of Loyola College is in construction on a large greenfield site in South Auckland. Most of the team managed to make it and we had a great day for it. It is a valuable experience for many of the staff, some of whom only see projects in the design phase. A lot of knowledge is gained from seeing the design being built on site, in addition to on a screen.
We were able to view the structure rising for the Chapel, Hall, Music Area and 4 storey Teaching Block, including the steel, concrete and CLT elements, an exciting stage of this project! Thank you to

Site visits

/in /by

The Structus team have been out and about, visiting two of our projects on the North Shore of Auckland.  Both are nearing completion in construction.

Various members of the team have been working on these two particular projects for over 5 years. We visited a 5-storey aged care village site in Browns Bay and a luxury 6 storey apartment block in Milford.

It is always fun to get out to see the projects we have been designing, transformed into the completed structure – ready for Residents.

 

Cross-Laminated Timber

/in /by

Cross-Laminated Timber – Learning.

Structus have designed several buildings over the last 2 years using predominantly Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT), Glulaminated Timber (GL) and Laminated Veneer Lumber (LVL). These Engineered Wood Products (EWP’s) have excellent structural properties and a positive environmental impact, they are sustainable materials that use less resources to produce than alternatives.

Using EWP’s has the added advantage of keeping a building light, yet durable and robust. The Structus team have been attending specialist training to increase our skillset for designing with EWP’s and we are excited to see our projects in this material successfully progress through and into construction.

Bream Bay College

/in /by

Construction is well underway on the site at Bream Bay College, Northland.  Structus has been involved with the masterplanning of Bream Bay College with Ministry of Architecture + Interiors for some time, so it’s exciting to see works progressing on site.  This phase of the masterplan is 2 no. new classroom blocks fully constructed from long span engineered timber, with covered veranda walkways and raft slabs.

Structus are providing full structural, civil and seismic engineering services on this project.  We look forward to continuing to work with the team from NPM Construction (design and build contractor) and Ministry of Architecture + Interiors.

Aria Bay – Stage 2

/in /by

Aria Bay – Stage 2
Progress as we lift to Level 1
Aria Bay is a retirement village located in Browns Bay, Auckland. It is exciting to see Level 1 taking form during our recent construction monitoring visit to site. Level 1 is part of the two 5-storey apartment blocks and link structures that form the last stage of this development, following completion of the Care Wings in 2020. The existing structures on site will be connected to the new facility through complex elevated link structures over several levels.
Structus are pleased to be continuing to work with Arvida, JTB Architects and NZ Strong on this project.

Countdown Regent

/in /by

Works are almost completed

Construction is almost complete on the extension and refurbishment of Countdown Regent.

The project is an extensive redevelopment of the existing supermarket including extension of the existing store, new online customer pick up area, courier pickup area with canopies, instore pharmacy and alterations to the existing supermarket.  The extension to the store has been constructed with architectural precast concrete panels and structural steel roof.

Structus were engaged for structural and civil engineering design, seismic restraints design, seismic assessment and strengthening design, and construction monitoring

Countdown Richmond

/in /by

Construction is complete and the new store is Open. This has been a great project to be involved in, with Woolworths New Zealand committed to sustainability and achieving Green Star accreditation as part of their 2025 Sustainability Plan. This store is their greenest store built to date.
Sustainability was a key factor in the design and build for Countdown so we designed with consideration for sustainable products, life cycle impacts, and responsible building materials integrated into the structural design. Targeted credits were achieved with incorporation of recycled aggregate in the form of pulverised fly ash used as a cement substitute in the concrete, an overall reduction in the steel mass, when compared to a reference case building, and through a pragmatic design and analysis approach.
Structus has enjoyed delivering structural engineering services with an excellent project team on this exciting job.