v for vision

TWIN TOWERS might suggest twin-track construction, with two teams constructing each tower in parallel. That was certainly the expectation in Volt's early days.

In fact, Scarbro Construction, the lead contractor on the project, chose to construct the towers one at a time. The question was: could the towers be constructed as quickly and cost-effectively?

The company suggested this approach as a way of managing resources more effectively and making the task less daunting for everyone, says Scarbro's general manager Garry Scarborough. It was also a practical way of working on a city centre site with few access points.

"A key part of our proposal was that we were only prepared to build one tower at a time we didn't want to open it into one enormous project," he says.

"In our opinion, there was only enough access on site to feed one tower crane, and we didn't want to take up two towers with one crane."

Working only one tower crane, he estimated the job would take 24 months, three to four months longer than estimates based on two tower cranes. On site, things moved quicker than expected partly because the company used Natform, an Australian perimeter platform screen system that eliminates the need for scaffolding and improves safety and productivity.

"The system is still new in New Zealand but it gave everyone the discipline to stay on track and provided a safer working environment for the subcontractors working outside the building," says Scarborough.

Scarbro trialled Natform during construction of the 20-storey Altitude Apartments, a similar project in Auckland, before using it on Volt.

"First we had to get the staff and subcontractors to buy into the system and understand how it could help us. Once we were on site, it worked we delivered three months early, within the original 24 months. I put that down to our systems, and the determination to finish before Christmas."

Scarbro Construction managed more than 50 subcontractors on the project, with around 200 people on site at the height of the construction. One of the challenges, says Scarborough, was keeping the teams motivated and challenged on site for two years he believes a collaborative team approach went a long way towards keeping everyone on board. The com-pany's experience on similar projects also helped.

"We had already built more than 500 apartments and concrete structures for a further 700, so this was just on a larger scale," he says. "Volt is an impressive building and we are very proud of the result."

The two towers are a mix of structural steel, pre-cast and reinforced concrete. The exterior cladding is aluminium, glazing and painted concrete. As well as the 416 two-bed apartments and six retail outlets, the 17-storey Volt on Queen has a swimming pool, gym, integrated car parking and external courtyard.

For more information, contact Scarbro Construction, phone (09) 580 2554, fax (09) 579 4271. Email: scl.admin@scarbro.co.nz, or visit the website: www.scarbro.co.nz.

Story by: Trendsideas