DEVELOPMENT APPLICATION

Springwood Community and Cultural Facilities Upgrade

104 Macquarie Road, Springwood, NSW, Australia

STRUCTURAL AND CIVIL WORKS DESIGN REPORT

As prepared by Taylor Thomson Whitting

for Blue Mountains City Council
JUNE 2012

DA-400

Structural

Schematic Design Report - Structural

Engineering

Springwood Community & Cultural

Facility
for fjmt
28 May 2012
111104

Taylor Thomson Whitting (NSW) Pty Ltd Consulting Engineers ACN 113 578 377
48 Chandos Street St Leonards NSW 2065 PO Box 738 Crows Nest 1585
T 61 2 9439 7288 F 61 2 9439 3146 ttwsyd@ttw.com.au www.ttw.com.au
This document is copyright and is the property of Taylor Thomson Whitting (NSW) Pty Ltd
and must not be used without authorisation. 2012 Taylor Thomson Whitting

Admin 506/4/06.05.2010/Structural Report Format/ 2012 Taylor Thomson Whitting)

SYDNEY
CANBERRA
MELBOURNE
QEC 22375

fjmt
Schematic Design Report - Structural Engineering

111104

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Section

Page

1.0

INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................... 3

2.0

EXISTING BUILDING SUMMARY ............................................................................... 3

3.0

PROPOSED WORKS .................................................................................................. 3

4.0

5.0

3.1

CIVIC CENTRE........................................................................................... 3

3.2

LIBRARY .................................................................................................... 4

3.3

GALLERIA .................................................................................................. 4

3.4

THEATRE ................................................................................................... 5

3.5

EXTERNAL CAR PARKING AND CIRCULATION ...................................... 6

DESIGN LOADS .......................................................................................................... 7

4.1

SUPERIMPOSED DEAD LOAD .................................................................. 7

4.2

LIVE LOAD ................................................................................................. 7

4.3

WIND AND EARTHQUAKE LOADS ........................................................... 8

4.4

SNOW LOAD .............................................................................................. 8

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR INVESTIGATION........................................................... 8

Taylor Thomson Whitting (NSW) Pty Ltd

Admin 506/4/06.05.2010/Structural Report Format/28
2012 Taylor Thomson Whitting

Page 2

1.0

INTRODUCTION
At the request of fjmt, Taylor Thomson Whitting (NSW) Pty Ltd (TTW) were
commissioned to provide Structural Engineering advice for the Schematic Design
stage of the Springwood Civic Centre redevelopment.
The site is located at 104-108 Macquarie Road, Springwood and currently houses a
Library, a Civic Centre including Theatre space, a Neighbourhood Centre, and
district Council Offices. The site is bounded by Macquarie Road to the North, David
Road to the South, offices and residential buildings to the East, and a cafe/hotel
building and car parking to the West. The site falls from 372m AOD at the Northern
boundary to 360m AOD at the Southern boundary.

2.0

EXISTING BUILDING SUMMARY

The site houses three structures, the Civic Centre to the Northwest circa 1966, the
Library and Council Offices building to the Northeast circa 1976 and Braemar, a
heritage building dating from circa 1892. The Southern portion of the site is
terraced and used for on-grade car parking. The site is split North-South by a
service road.
No existing Structural Engineering drawings were available at the time of
undertaking this study. Architectural plan and section drawings for both the Civic
Centre and Library buildings were available and have been used to infer existing
structural framing conditions. In addition site walkovers on 15 May 2011 and 4 July
2011 by staff from TTW have been undertaken, together with a timber inspection of
the Civic Centre Theatre and stage floor areas by Forests NSW.
As no as-built Structural Engineering drawings are available, specific as-built
information relating to the structure will need to be confirmed on-site during
construction and via in-situ testing during the design development phase of the
project.
The refurbishment of Braemar is not considered further in this report.
Please refer to the TTW Masterplan Report for detailed descriptions of the existing
buildings.

3.0

PROPOSED WORKS
The scheme broadly comprises the demolition and rebuilding of the Civic Centre
building and alterations to the facade of the existing Library building, the removal of
the central road and providing a link building between the two buildings. Externally
the car parking to the South of the site is to be regraded with the creation of a two
tier parking arrangement.
Please refer to TTW sketches SK120529.01 to 06 for current Schematic Design
information.

3.1

Civic Centre
The existing Civic Centre comprises a Theatre, Neighbourhood Centre, Kitchen and
Dining Hall.

Taylor Thomson Whitting (NSW) Pty Ltd

Admin 506/4/06.05.2010/Structural Report Format/38
2012 Taylor Thomson Whitting

It is proposed to demolish the existing Neighbourhood Centre to the North of the

Civic Centre and the two storey link portion between the Neighbourhood Centre and
the Theatre. Works to the existing Theatre, Kitchen and Dining Hall are to comprise
the removal of the stepped height roof and perimeter masonry walls. Further
demolition is to include the chair store/amenities areas and the external terrace on
the east of the building.
The new Civic Centre structure at Ground Floor comprises part concrete slab on
ground, and part suspended concrete structure above the Early Childhood
Centre/plant spaces below.
Level 1 comprises PT slabs and bands supported on concrete columns and pads
founded on shale, with the bands orientated in a North-South direction. To the
North of the building the concrete structure cantilevers out from the Columns below,
with steel members cantilevered from the slab edge to complete the awning above
the Ground Floor entry.
The roof structure comprises a lightweight steel roof with primary rafters spanning
North-South, with purlins running perpendicular. Long span transfer beams/trusses
will be utilised above the galleria.
Stability to the North portion of the structure is in the form of a combination of
restraint from the concrete lift core, the Theatre box, and frame action in the
columns for the low rise 2 storey structure.
A predominant feature of the Civic Centre is the inclusion of the rammed earth
walls. It is currently proposed for this development for the walls to act purely as
cladding elements. Research is ongoing in to looking to gain potential structural
benefits from the rammed earth.
3.2

Library
Structurally, works to the existing Library building are minimal, with works including
adjustments to the West facade to suit the interface with link structure and
alterations to the existing retaining wall around the North-West corner of the
building.
As no existing structural documentation is available for the Library structure, the
structure for the new link building will abut the existing Library, but remain
structurally independent.

3.3

Galleria
The Galleria forms the link area between the existing library and re-constructed
Theatre/Civic Centre spaces. The ground floor area will comprise a combination of
concrete slab on ground and PT slabs and PT bands in areas that are suspended
above water tanks and the Early Childhood Health Centre. The bands are to be
orientated in the North-South direction. The suspended structure will be supported
on RC columns on shallow pads/bored piles depending on the depth to the
underlying shale.
The lower ground floor area will comprise concrete slab on ground, with in-situ
concrete walls to the water tanks to the North, which double as retaining walls on
the North and East sides.

Taylor Thomson Whitting (NSW) Pty Ltd

Admin 506/4/06.05.2010/Structural Report Format/48
2012 Taylor Thomson Whitting

To remove the requirement to underpin the existing Theatre footings along its
Eastern boundary a retaining wall is to be constructed parallel to the existing footing
at a distance sufficient to allow for a temporary batter to be constructed between the
existing building and the lower ground floor of the Galleria without undermining the
existing footings.
At level 1 the Galleria comprises a scissor stair and link bridge. Scheme options for
both include concrete and steel options, with further coordination with fjmt required.
The roof over the Galleria is a continuation of the roof over the Civic Centre which
comprises a mono-pitched lightweight steel frame.
3.4

Theatre
In the proposed scheme, the volume for the new theatre is higher than the existing
and runs the full width of the existing building footprint.
Results of opening up works of the existing masonry cladding to examine the size of
the existing embedded steel columns along the eastern facade of the theatre,
combined with the increase in height of the columns and increased roof span results
in a requirement for the columns to be replaced.
The structure for the proposed theatre comprises steel portal frames running in an
East-West direction. Scheme options with frames at centres to match the existing
frame setout and a double spacing have been considered. Along the Eastern
boundary it is envisaged that the existing footings will be retained following trial pits
to determine their size. Along the Western boundary where loads are increased
from previous, new footing beams + pads/piers to shale will be required.
Stability for the theatre in the North-South direction will be provided via vertical
cross-bracing between portal columns.
It is currently proposed to maintain the existing suspended timber floor and masonry
piers to the theatre hall section, along with the structure to the existing stage.
The timber floor to the existing main hall and dining areas and the stage have been
inspected by Forests NSW (report no. 5245a-36800). The timbers were found to be;
Main Hall

Bearers 120 x 100, grade F27

Joists 120 x 50 @ 400 centres, grade F27

Female Dressing Room

Bearers 100 x 75, grade F27

Joists 120 x 50, grade F27

Stage

Joists 300 x 75, grade F11*

* Inspection to these joists was limited, and size should be confirmed on site during
Taylor Thomson Whitting (NSW) Pty Ltd
Admin 506/4/06.05.2010/Structural Report Format/58
2012 Taylor Thomson Whitting

the works.
A copy of the timber inspection report is presented in Appendix B.
Following design checks on the timber, the existing floor is suitable for use as a
theatre and stage. Specific superimposed dead loads are to be reviewed during the
design development phase, including the weight of any proposed operable raked
seating in both the in-use and stored scenarios. Strengthening works are likely to
be required beneath the runners of the operable seating.
Alterations to the floor support structure along the south end of the existing Theatre
space will be required to suit the installation of toilets and plant/storage below.
Steel beams on the alignment of the existing timber bearers are proposed to span
between masonry walls, part existing, part new, to allow for demolition of the
intermediate masonry piers whilst enabling re-use of the existing timber joists.
The balcony to the theatre space is to comprise composite concrete slabs
supported on steel beam and columns.
The extension to the stage is proposed to be of timber construction.
3.5

External car parking and circulation

Options are currently being considered for the parking layout to the South of the
site. All options include the introduction of retaining walls, adjustments to existing
batters and the creation of a split level parking layout to ensure code compliance
whilst minimising the extent of cut and fill and height of retaining walls around the
perimeter of the site. The lower car park has ingress and egress from David Road
to the South of the site, whilst the upper car park has ingress and egress from
David Road via a separate entrance together with ingress only from Macquarie
Road.
One of the options also includes the provision of additional parking on a suspended
deck above the lower parking level. This not only increases parking space
numbers, but allows for levels to be graded around the South-East corner of the
existing library without the requirement for shoring whilst keeping required retaining
wall heights around the boundary to a minimum.
Option A without the suspended car park deck comprises 108 spaces, whilst
Option B with the suspended car park deck comprises 146 spaces. The final
number of spaces is subject to review pending advice from the BCA and access
consultant regarding access between the two levels of parking.
The structure for the suspended deck would comprise PT bands with a cantilever
towards the South and PT slabs supported on concrete columns founded on the
shale below. The retaining wall between the upper and lower car park levels would
be supported on a strip footing at the base and the car park slab at the top, with
thrust walls provided along the east and west edges of the deck.
In each of the schemes two accessible spaces are to be provided adjacent to the
main entry.
Service vehicle access will be provided off Macquarie Road to the two loading
docks for the Theatre and Library.

Taylor Thomson Whitting (NSW) Pty Ltd

Admin 506/4/06.05.2010/Structural Report Format/68
2012 Taylor Thomson Whitting

The proposed layouts work towards maintaining the existing batters to the South of
the Western portion of the car park in lieu of retaining walls where possible.
4.0

DESIGN LOADS

4.1

Superimposed Dead Load

The determination of the Superimposed Dead Loads (SDL) will be undertaken
during the design development phase of the project after receiving proposed floor
build-ups from the architect.
As no existing Structural Engineering drawings are available for the buildings, it is
recommended that the weight of the proposed finishes on suspended portions of
existing structure be similar to those currently applied.
Requirements for catwalks, lighting bars, speaker arrays, rigging points etc within
the Theatre are to be established during the design development phase, preferably
as early as possible.

4.2

Live Load
Live Loads will be determined from AS1170.1:2002. A summary of the proposed
loads is provided in the table below;
Area

Live Load

Amenities

2.0kPa

Community Dining, Neighbourhood centre,

Early Childhood Health, Offices, Dressing
Rooms, Green Room

3.0kPa

Multi-purpose space, Theatre balcony, Upper

Galleria, Stairs and Corridors, Orchestra Pit

4.0kPa

Theatre, Galleria, Public lounge, Civic Centre

Foyer and Cafe, Community Kitchen, Open
plan recreation

5.0kPa

Stage and back of stage

7.5kPa

Cool rooms

TBC upon receipt of product information

Roofs
- steel framed

0.25kPa

- concrete

1.5kPa

Specific point load requirements for the particular areas to be checked as per the
requirements of AS1170.1:2002.
It is recommended that areas of compactus are located either on slabs on ground,
or areas of new suspended structure.

Taylor Thomson Whitting (NSW) Pty Ltd

Admin 506/4/06.05.2010/Structural Report Format/78
2012 Taylor Thomson Whitting

4.3

Wind and Earthquake Loads

Wind and Earthquake loads will be determined in accordance with AS1170.2:2011
and AS1170.4:2007 respectively.
The Importance Level of the building is to be determined in consultation with the
client. If the Civic Centre is to be designed as a building that is essential to postdisaster recovery it will be Level 4, else typically a building of this nature will be
Importance Level 3.
Importance Level to be confirmed by the BCA consultant.

4.4

Snow Load
In accordance with AS1170.3:2003 the site falls outside the sub-alpine region and is
therefore exempt from for snow loading.

5.0

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR INVESTIGATION

Allowance should be made for the following investigations during the design
development phase of the project;

Trial pits to determine the existing size, and founding level of the footings
to the East Facade of the existing Theatre

Trial pit adjacent to the proposed lower ground floor entry in to the library to
allow review of proposed column footings and slab on ground tie in details

Prepared by:
TAYLOR THOMSON WHITTING
(NSW) PTY LTD

Authorised by:
TAYLOR THOMSON WHITTING
(NSW) PTY LTD

Richard Milsted
Senior Engineer

Richard Green
Director

P:\2011\1111\111104\Reports\TTW\111104 Springwood Structural schematic design report 120528.doc

Taylor Thomson Whitting (NSW) Pty Ltd

Admin 506/4/06.05.2010/Structural Report Format/88
2012 Taylor Thomson Whitting