Construction World December 2021

OCEAN

res ident ial towers requi red a bespoke column and shear wal l arrangement that did not al ign wi th the parking and retai l structure below the towers and various transfer opt ions were cons idered. A series of 2,5 m deep concrete transfer slabs and beams were des igned to change the structural grid of columns and shear wal ls at the s ixth stor y of each of the two towers . The complexi ty of the structure and the overal l s i ze proved a great chal lenge to the project team. The project adhered to strict heal th and safety protocols to ensure the safe use of the s i te and surrounding publ ic areas . Regular audi ts were done to ensure that the highest safety standards were achieved. The Oceans project i s one of the largest mixed- use developments in South Af rica and proved to be a great chal lenge to the project team. The fast-paced construct ion wi th mul t iple contract ing teams working s imul taneously requi red fast and accurate informat ion f rom the consul t ing team. Careful planning in the lead- up to construct ion, the latest 3D sof tware, and a highly ski l led team working around the clock to produce the informat ion accurately and on t ime. 

T he latest Bui lding Informat ion Model l ing sof tware (BIM) , was used by the profess ional team to des ign and coordinate the complex bui ldings . Revi t , Navi s Works , and Tekla were some of the three-dimens ional des ign sof tware packages that were used by the project team to des ign and coordinate the bui ldings . Snag R App, was used to ass i st wi th real -t ime snagging and sharing of informat ion between the consul t ing and contract ing teams . The App provides a plat form where photos and reports can be uploaded to a mobi le phone or tablet , wi th speci fic reference to a drawing and locat ion of the photo. The App great ly ass i sted the project team to keep track of qual i ty control i tems over the large construct ion areas and keeping up wi th the fast-paced construct ion program. The Oceans development has contributed to job creat ion wi thin the communi ty and i t i s est imated that 15 000 indi rect and 2 500 permanent job opportuni t ies wi l l be created by the development during the construct ion phase and af ter complet ion. The latest 3D des ign sof tware was used to model and des ign the large and complex structures . One of the cost and space saving i tems that were adopted at an early stage was to increase the concrete compress ive strength of the columns in the three high- ri se towers . The increased concrete strength resul ted in a reduct ion in the reinforcing steel in the columns , reduct ion of column s i zes , and of fered cost and spacing savings to our cl ient . As an example, an increase of 20 MPa in the compress ive strength of the columns reduced the s i ze of the columns by approximately 20%, and thi s resul ted in cost savings and more usable space in the hotel and apartment rooms . Another innovat ive engineering solut ion that was developed for the project was the complex transfer structures that were requi red to support the i rregular form of the res ident ial towers . The oval shape of the

PROJECT INFORMATION

• Company entering: Sutherland Engineers • Project start date: 2017 • Project end date: 2022 • Client: Oceans Umhlanga and PIC • Main Contractor: WBHO • Architect: EPA Architecture • Principal Agent: PMSA • Project Manager: PMSA/Betts Townsend • Quantity Surveyor: Crane Group Consulting • Consulting Engineer: Sutherland Engineers

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20 th Best Project Awards 2021