Demonstrating how 21st century University buildings should prepare the professions for their futures. 

Congratulations to the University of Technology Sydney (UTS), fjcstudio (formerly fjmtstudio) and DJRD with Lacoste + Stevenson (Original Broadway Podium Design) for winning the Educational Architecture Award in the 2023 NSW Architecture Awards with UTS Central.

RCC is proud to have been involved in the construction of the impressive 17-storey vertical campus in the heart of the Broadway Campus. The glass-encased building features state of the art learning commons and collaborative spaces, a new UTS Library, a super lab, UTS reading room, food court and Faculty of Law and Engineering accommodation and learning facilities. The team worked with numerous end users throughout the construction period to deliver unique fit out requirements that meet faculty needs whilst working with the curved façade and building voids.

The UTS Central project comprises a number of trademark features including a double helix staircase, geometric automated shade panels on the northern façade and a water recycling scheme sourced from the neighbouring Central Park. This initiative was a contributing factor to achieving the building’s 5 Star Green Star Design rating.

As cited by the Awards jury, “The diverse and varied teaching and study spaces provide options for both intimate and group work as well as centralised or satellite tutorial. The refined detailing, finishes, co-ordination of services, acoustics and lighting of UTS Central, demonstrates how 21st Century University buildings should prepare the professions for their future.”

Take a look inside UTS central:

 

Uncle Terry Denzil is paving the way for Aboriginal design and inclusivity at Alexandria Park Community School.

Across every generation, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elders have played, and continue to play, an important role and hold a prominent place in local communities and families.  

They guide younger generations and pave the way – not only through generations of advocacy and activism, but in everyday life.  

In 2022, RCC worked closely with Schools Infrastructure NSW and Tanner Kibble Denton (TKD) to deliver Alexandria Park Community School – a vibrant and unique Kindergarten to Year 12 school located in the heart of Sydney. It was an honour for our project team to work closely with local Elder and school mentor Uncle Terry Denzil throughout the school’s design and construction.  

In 2022, Uncle Terry’s commitment to Aboriginal education in NSW public schools was recognised at the 17th Nanga Mai Awards, where he received the Outstanding Contribution to Educational Achievement by an Aboriginal Community Member Award for his work at Alexandria Park Community School. Nanga Mai is an Eora (Sydney) word “to dream.” You can read more about these awards here. 

RCC worked closely with TDK to design Alexandria Park Community School in a way that paid respect to the traditional custodians of the land – after community-wide consultation, it was decided to name the gymnasium “The Denzil” in honour of Uncle Terry’s contributions.  

Working with the school’s leadership team, Uncle Terry sought knowledge and permission from Shayne Beckham, Cultural Mentor, to name school buildings and significant spaces in the Gomberee language, and introduced Gomberee language lessons into school programs. 

Through consultation with Uncle Terry and Aunty Deb, Aboriginal influences from local areas were incorporated into the core of the design, including: 

• An Aboriginal dot painting inspiration via perforation patterns on the dominant façade screening 

• Incorporating historic NAIDOC Week posters and a Welcome to Country Mural on the main wall of “The Denzil” 
• Inclusion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander plants within landscape works, with a focus on native species from the local area 
• Inclusion of edible native plants in the garden outside the teaching kitchen spaces    

This NAIDOC Week, we would like to acknowledge and thank Uncle Terry, Aunty Deb, and all Elders who have made, and continue to make, significant contributions in their communities.  

 

Tower Crane 1 successfully installed at City Tattersalls Club Redevelopment.

First Sponsor, ICD Property, Deloitte PDS and RCC recently celebrated the completion of a major milestone at the City Tattersalls Club Redevelopment – the successful installation of Tower Crane 1 (Favelle Favco M630D).

This is an incredible achievement by the entire City Tattersalls Club Redevelopment team, who have been diligently planning and preparing for this moment for 3-months.

50+ traffic controllers and 12 highly skilled Marr Contracting riggers covered shifts over the weekend, with the delivery and installation requiring a full street closure of Pitt Street and a partial road closure of Market Street for 48-hours. All roads were cleared, cleaned at re-opened to the public just after 8:00pm on Sunday 2 July 2023.

Tower Crane 1 was delivered in segments and installed by a 400-tonne mobile crane positioned on the street. We are immensely grateful for the support from the NSW Police, who worked alongside our project team to ensure that over 50,000 pedestrians safely passed the installation.

At 32m high and with a 55m boom, Tower Crane 1 is an impressive feature – with a maximum lifting capacity of 25 tonnes, it will enable a safe, effective, and efficient demolition of the non-heritage components of the redevelopment.

Elliot Hicks, Construction Manager, reflected on the milestone, “The successful installation of Tower Crane 1 will pave the way for significant works over the coming 12-months, and is the first of three tower cranes that will be installed at the City Tattersalls Club Redevelopment. We are cognisant of the clubhouse’s 127-year history – the importance of this massive undertaking is not lost on us. We look forward to working with First Sponsor ICD Property and Deloitte PDS to ensure the success of this landmark project.”

A big thanks to all our trade partners – your collaboration, professionalism and attention-to-detail was second-to-none. Once complete, the redevelopment will breathe new life into the Club – creating a mixed-use destination encompassing retail, dining, event spaces and carefully curated guest rooms and residences in a 50-storey tower.

Changing the narrative one day at a time. 

NAIDOC Week is a time to celebrate the histories, cultures and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples – an important time to recognise the oldest, continuous living cultures on Earth.  This year’s NAIDOC Week theme is For Our Elders.  

At RCC, we want our legacy and positive impact to go beyond the built environment. We don’t baulk at this challenge. We see the role we can play in changing the narrative from one of ‘compliance’ to ‘personal reward,’ from ‘too hard’ to ‘it’s worth it.’  

In 2021, we unveiled our Indigenous Impact Plan (IIP) – our roadmap to achieving greater engagement, building our reputation with Government clients and improving our partnerships with local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. 

In line with Reconciliation Australia’s core dimensions of equality and equity, race relations, institutional integrity, unity and historical acceptance, our IIP has been designed to utilise the unique skills and perspectives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander jobseekers. With a focus on creating legacies in local communities, this plan helps create a sustainable, positive impact on all RCC projects and the local communities of which we are part of.  

We look forward to sharing further NAIDOC updates with you in the coming week. 

Congratulations to the Art Gallery of New South Wales, design architect SANAA and executive architect Architectus, for receiving the esteemed Sulman Medal for Public Architecture in the 2023 NSW Architecture Awards. This is the highest accolade in the public architecture category for these awards.

“Rethinking the orthodoxies of the art experience in relation to both enclosure and circulation, Sydney Modern provides a new type of gallery experience that is freer in movement, more connected to the landscape surrounding it, and more diverse in the scale and type of art it can house,” the Awards jury said.

The Sydney Modern Project is one of the most significant buildings delivered by RCC – a complex project with a bespoke design, executed with innovative and industry-leading construction methods. Thank you to our dedicated project team – we are proud to have delivered such an important building, now recognised with a Sulman Medal for Public Architecture.

The Art Gallery’s expansion has a 6-Star Green Star design rating, with over 8,000sqm of green roof and landscaped areas populated with Australian native species, and 735 solar panels covering close to 1,500sqm of rooftop space. Repurposing a former WWII naval oil tank as a spectacular art space was a highlight for all involved.

Suspended over one of Sydney’s busiest freeways, the new exhibition space is an expression of the city’s deep love for the arts – well done to all involved.

Congratulations to our valued construction partner for being awarded the William E Kemp Award for Educational Architecture.

Congratulations to Cranbrook School, Architectus and RCC’s project team for bringing home the William E Kemp Award for Educational Architecture at the 2023 NSW Architecture Awards.

A combination of enduring architecture and connected spaces, the redevelopment will help Cranbrook School nurture students and foster learning into the next century.

“This redevelopment project incorporates two exceptional new buildings combined with beautiful outdoor settings. The Vicars Centenary Building houses purpose-designed teaching and learning spaces, a drama theatre, a chapel, and an assembly hall,” cited the Awards jury.

Key features of this project included the new Murray Rose Aquatic and Fitness Centre – situated beneath historic Hordern Oval – encompassing:

• 50m swimming pool with regulated race timing equipment and water polo layouts
• 20m Learn to Swim pool
• Grandstand to accommodate 350 spectators
• Multi-purpose sports hall catering for indoor soccer, basket and netball, cricket practice nets and a spin room
• Indoor sprint and hurdles training track
• State-of-the-art Gymnasium
• Ancillary functions across approximately 6,036sqm of new accommodation.
• New 124 space carpark

The new Hordern Oval includes:

• Full size rugby and soccer fields
• Cricket pitch and nine practice nets
• Maintenance accommodation for equipment and ground staff

Architectus led the design of the future-focused environment, with the new buildings demonstrating a strong connection to place through physical qualities inspired by “Sydney’s coastal topography of rock platforms, horizontal terraces, cantilevers and headlands.”

RCC is proud to be leading the push to future-proof education facilities across private, public and tertiary education infrastructure. We are focused on delivering outcomes that create sustainable learning outcomes for current and future generations, and are proud to have the Cranbrook School Hordern Oval Precinct redevelopment recognised in this prestigious category.

With the Centenary Building and Chapel structure now complete the Cranbrook School redevelopment team has reached a significant milestone in delivery, having ‘topped out’ the tallest structure. The 2,500m2 rooftop is the foundation of the Centenary Lawn which will be enjoyed by Cranbrook students and staff once complete.

The RCC project team are now focused on fitout works to the Centenary Building, as well as continuing works to the Aquatic & Fitness Centre, learning labs, the Centenary Hall, dining commons, commercial kitchen, theatre, boardroom, and orchestra space.

 

THE AQUATIC & FITNESS CENTRE

Using over 2000 rectangular sandstone tiles weighing 53kg each, the facade of the Aquatic & Fitness Centre was designed to replicate the local coastal cliff face, mimicking a cave entrance into a rock pool. Interestingly the rectangular tiles have been used to create a conical shaped facade which curves in two directions. This design and engineering feat has been delivered with a precise stone cutting to create the effective feature.

The main 50m pool within the Aquatic & Fitness Centre requires 2.5 million litres of water to fill.

Next to the pools is a column free space for the basketball courts. This impressive space has been achieved with the use of 42m trusses which weigh 200 tonne and span throughout levels 3, 4 and 5.

Above the Aquatic & Fitness Centre and carpark is the oval which features 14,000m2 of Agridark Couch grass, the same grass used at ANZ Stadium. The oval will be used for cricket with an additional 10 practice wickets, as well as rugby, soccer and a 400m athletics running track.

 

FUN FACTS

• Over 450,000 hours worked on site
• 14,000m3 of concrete poured – equivalent to 5 Olympic Swimming pools
• 2,000 sandstone tiles installed, weighing 53kg each
• 37m clear span beams above the pool
• 90,000m3 material excavated from site
• 4,200 bolts used in steel truss supporting the structure of the Centenary Building
• 252 retractable seats in the theatre

 

Richard Crookes Constructions is putting in place a leadership change in order to respond to the projected downturn of the economy in the coming years. George Bardas will be stepping down from the role of CEO in December and Jamie Crookes will take on the dual roles of Managing Director and CEO.

George’s four-year tenure has been extremely successful – increasing revenue and improving the safety culture across the business. He has played a key role in pivoting the company from its former residential base to a much more diversified portfolio of high value projects including Social Infrastructure, Government and Institutional clients. New clients include Infrastructure NSW, AMP, GPT and the University of Wollongong.

As we have done in previous downturns, RCC will use this period to consolidate, adapt and prepare for the next phase of its growth when the market returns post Covid. As a result, this is the right time for George to provide his expertise to a new leadership opportunity in the construction industry.

The RCC Board wish to thank George for his significant contribution and for helping place the business in such a strong position; we are well positioned to adapt to the expected downturn in the construction industry pipeline, through the achievement of our strategic intentions over the past four and a half years.