Austral Precast is contributing to the target of a six-star green building rating for the new Australian Institute of Management Western Australia (AIMWA) Learning and Development Centre in Perth.
The new learning centre is the first commercial building in Western Australia to be built using the Austral Precast concrete panels which incorporate recycled materials, adding to the green credentials and durability of the product and the building.
Austral Precast sales and marketing manager Yuen Leow said precast concrete was becoming an increasingly popular construction solution around Australia and the benefits offered would see its use grow, particularly in the high rise residential, commercial and industrial sectors.
"Structural precast concrete panels are a strong, durable and versatile building material, particularly well suited for the harsh environmental conditions in Australia. It can be moulded and shaped to suit architectural design and form and yet it has the properties to meet safety and structural engineering requirements," Yuen said.
"AIMWA’s new learning centre is a world-class environmentally sustainable building both in terms of design and our technical experts have worked with the architects to add value to the green credentials of the building," he said.
"The use of recycled materials in the precast product, such as fly ash, slag or silica fume, not only means these materials are not going into landfill, the recycled materials actually improve the strength and durability of the product.
"The use of recycled steel for reinforcing the precast elements, minimised waste in the manufacturing process and the ability to recycle the entire building also add to the building’s overall green credentials."
From a building perspective, the advantage of using the Austral Precast panels is that the building process is not restricted by weather conditions. The individual blocks are produced undercover, and the blocks are simply assembled and bolted together, reducing downtime on the building site.
PS Structures project manager Nathan Phillips who is overseeing the construction of the AIMWA building said construction guidelines ensured all panels and bolting aligned, making site installation simple, quick and easy.
"The precast panels are a mixture of walls and cills which are fixed by bolting, using stainless steel bolts that remain accessible, rather than conventional methods for precast construction. This is due to the design achieving specification for GBCA Mat 08, Design for Disassembly, meaning the building is completely demountable and the panels can be recycled or reused, even if the building is no longer required," Nathan said.
"Basically all the panels can be unbolted, removed and recycled without the need for demolition on site," he added.
Architect John Lee of Cox Howlett and Bailey Woodland said the panels had given the building a sense of weight and substance.
"Austral Precast was chosen because the product is very versatile, and is a robust, durable material which works well in contrast to the transparency of the glazed glass used," he said.
"It's a versatile product, and different finishes can be applied to further improve the longevity of the building. For this building, a concrete stain was applied to the precast to create continuity between the new building and two others on the campus," John said.