WATCH: Façade upgrade & refurbishment time lapse at 3 Thomas Holt Drive

Buildcorp transformed AMP Capital’s (AMPC) 3 Thomas Holt Drive commercial building in Sydney’s Macquarie Park by upgrading and strengthening the entire building façade, with minimal impact on tenant Foxtel’s live operations. Early design strategy, smart construction methodologies and considered tenant engagement were key to the successful delivery of the refurbishment project which progressed over a 10 month program.

Background

In 2014, Buildcorp successfully completed an upgrade of AMPC’s larger asset at 1 Thomas Holt Drive and was awarded the 3 Thomas Holt Drive project (part of AMPC’s wider plan to modernise the entire Business Park) after a successful Early Contractor Involvement period. During this phase the team challenged and solved the design, construction methodology and tenant management strategy of the proposed refurbishment.

The program consisted of three stages, inside and outside of the building, and included: comprehensive remedial façade upgrade works, the upgrade of the building’s Central Plant that had reached its end of life, three floors of make-good and upgrade, lobby upgrade, end-of-trip facilities and landscaping. The outcomes of the refurbishment gave the building a new and longer lease of life, as the façade repair and upgrade fixed areas in need of water tightness and structural integrity.

Business as usual

The impact on tenant Foxtel’s operations, which included a live broadcasting studio, was kept to a minimum through clever construction methodology and careful program management, including:

• Firstly building a new façade curtain wall outside of the existing façade, so that the building could remain water tight, airtight and ultimately operational during the demolition of the existing façade.
• Programming the internal demolition of the existing façade to occur afterhours and thoroughly cleaning the interiors as these works took place.
• The use of swinging stages instead of scaffolding for all façade works ensured minimal impact on the existing façade’s structural conditions, it also continued to allow light into the building during construction.
• Organising weekend shutdowns to replace chillers, boilers and cooling towers to ensure air conditioning was operational for Monday morning.
• The noisy works for the façade structural reinforcement and use of Aluminium Composite Material were conducted outside of Foxtel’s studio air times to avoid disruptions to their operations.

Safety first

Throughout this process, Buildcorp achieved zero safety incidents across more than 600 sub-contractors, hundreds of Foxtel staff and over 150,000 work hours. The safety focus was reinforced