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Flagship building reaches major construction milestone

Image of the new building taken today (Monday 4 May 2009) from the live webcam.
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Monday, 4 May 2009

A new $100 million building at the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥ of Adelaide's achieves a major construction milestone this month to be celebrated with a "Topping Out" ceremony on its upper level today (Monday 4 May).

The ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥ is following a building and construction tradition that marks the completion of the highest point of a building's structure. It will dedicate a native ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥n Eucalypt, to be planted at the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥'s , to commemorate this milestone.

"The realisation of this new nine level, state-of-the-art , which will house the , signifies an important step forward for the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥," said the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥'s Vice-Chancellor and President .

"This is the flagship project in the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥'s extensive with more than $400 million being spent on state-of-the-art research and teaching facilities across the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥'s campuses.

"The completion of the building will mark a new era for the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥, where we will start to see a balance on the North Terrace Campus between our beautiful and historic sandstone buildings and new, contemporary spaces. These new spaces are designed to cater for growth in student numbers and the changing needs of staff and students, such as more flexible teaching and learning spaces, up to date computer resources and greater access to support facilities," Professor McWha said.

Professor James McWha will acknowledge the role of the project consultants, , and the main works contractor, , during the ceremony today.

Through this redevelopment the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥ will increase the number of physical links between new and existing buildings on multiple levels to simplify access while also strengthening and defining pedestrian routes through and around the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥'s North Terrace Campus. It will offer improved student amenities, including a cafe, computer labs, exhibition area, teaching spaces and 24-hour, seven-days-a-week access to major resources and support facilities.

Scheduled for completion in April 2010, the building incorporates significant environmentally sustainable design initiatives and has been registered for a Green Star Design Rating with the .
Environmentally sustainable design features include:

• Thermal chimneys to provide efficient and effective airflow throughout the building;
  
• High thermal mass combined with under-floor air displacement ventilation, providing low energy consumption;
  
• A co-generation plant for heating and cooling which utilises geothermal piping through the building's foundations to manage temperature;
  
• Rainwater collected from this and surrounding buildings will be harvested and captured for reuse in building mechanical systems.

The building will be an intelligent and interactive space that can be used as an education tool for engineering students by displaying data from building control equipment. The equipment will monitor the building's energy use efficiency and the performance of structural elements via sensors in the building's structure and facades.

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