Darwin, Northern Territory
The Darwin Convention and Exhibition Centre (DCEC) is the centrepiece of the Darwin City Waterfront Redevelopment and has transformed the waterfront area to a destination draw card for locals, business travellers and tourists.
Located on reclaimed land forming the eastern edge of the development, the DCEC is appointed on an artificial lagoon. The four storey building, with a total floor space of 22,650m2, comprises a structural steel frame with composite in-situ and precast concrete floors. The basement structure is in-situ concrete on piles.
The external walls comprise an amalgam of glazing, precast concrete, deep profile metal cladding, aluminium composite sheeting and metal sun-shading louvres to the west facade. The roof area of approximately 8,500m2, consists of a deep profiled metal deck roofing material to counter Darwin's annual rainfall.
The building features:
- 4,000m2 exhibition space in four separate halls and a 1,500 seat plenary and convention hall
- three function rooms to seat 357 people and four meeting rooms to seat 194 people
- state-of-the-art audio visual facilities
- kitchen facilities with the capacity to cook up to 1,500 meals a day, incorporating the latest in "cook chill" and "cook serve" technology
- parking for 302 vehicles on site in both basement and on-grade parking
Laing O’Rourke delivered the project under a “turnkey” arrangement and the team was responsible for all aspects of delivery for the client including FF&E, the latest state-of-the-art conferencing facilities, construction management planning and specialist services installation. A number of key construction techniques were adopted:
- precast concrete panels used instead of blockwork for the walls
- steel frame and metal decking to the floors reduced the need for formwork and relevant subcontract resources for the main frame and the ability to continue during wet weather periods without significant delay
- given the specialist nature of the works, the team ensured at an early stage that specialist materials and trades were available in the market, and if not provided alternatives that would achieve the design specifications
- use of Ortech insulation system for the roof - while not new to the market, it eliminated the need for high elevated work platforms, creating a safer and more cost-efficient roof construction
- the use of 3D modelling to achieve the roof profile curves that dynamically curve in 2 plains
CLIENT:
Darwin Cove Convention Centre Pty Limited
AWARDS:
- 2008 National Master Builders Association Awards - Public Buildings over $50 million
- 2008 Territory Construction Awards, President's award
- 2008 Engineering Australia Awards (Northern Division), Engineering Excellence award
TESTIMONIAL:
“I was lucky to be working with Laing O’Rourke. The project manager and I had a very open and honest relationship – we both had great respect for each other’s roles and credentials and we just collaborated well to ensure a very good product.”
Malu Barrios
General Manager
Darwin Convention Centre
