Builder: WATPAC Constructions NSW Pty Ltd
Architect: Architectus Sydney
Engineer: SPC Consulting
Type: Multi-Level Office-Commercial Building
No. of Panels: 71
Area: 970 m2
Location: Bella Vista, New South Wales
Project Overview:
The aptly-named Versatile building in Norwest Business Park in Sydney’s west is a fairly typical example of the application of precast panels. The project, developed by Capital Corporation, is a strata-titled commercial building, housing a variety of tenancies, as well as meeting rooms, showrooms and a cafe/restaurant.
Austral Precast (then Sasso Precast) supplied 71 panels for the Versatile project, each weighing a maximum of 12 tonnes. That’s a fairly average-sized project although our Sydney operation has supplied up to 2000 panels for a single high-rise project!
Each panel is designed in-house to the architect’s specifications, allowing for different panel sizes and for openings such as doors and windows. The panels are then cast on massive German-made tables. The Sydney plant has 40 of these tables, moving on a production line.
A laser line generated from the drafter’s drawings traces the panel outline on the table, thus allowing precise placement of the formwork, the temporary boarding used to contain the concrete while it hardens.
This laser system supplied by LAP Laser ensures an unprecedented level of accuracy that ensures all components are placed in their precise location, eliminating costly mistakes that can result from ‘human error’ when using manual measuring methods.
Use of the laser has improved the speed with which these fittings can be put in place by removing the need to measure the panel and manually mark the location of components. The result has been a complementary improvement in speed of manufacture and number of panels produced, creating obvious returns for the Austral Precast business.
In the words of Austral Precast (NSW) Drafting Manager Ludo Skerlik
‘Austral Precast continues to lead the market with a number of key strengths including: quality, service, innovation, and use of cutting edge technologies. Use of the LAP Laser is one of the tools were using to help us achieve those goals.’
For the Versatile project, Austral Precast supplied loadbearing panels and slightly thinner cladding panels. All panels had a natural, smooth finish that was painted on site once the panels were craned into position.
With such economies and efficiencies underpinned by cutting edge technology, it’s not surprising that precast concrete panels have become an increasingly popular form of construction for commercial and industrial buildings as well as high-rise residential structures.