CASE STUDY: Nugent Street Building Façade
A new façade for an existing bridge, with complex structural challenges.
CUSTOMER: Dominion Constructions & Jasmax Architecture
PROJECT: Reconstructive Surgery
This architectural concept required a visually-striking façade for an existing building – to blend into the rapidly-changing face of Nugent Street in Auckland’s Newmarket. Jackson was commissioned to create the formwork for the façade.
Dominion Constructors approached Jackson Industries in the early design stage of this project. The façade would need specialist concrete moulding design experience – as well as CNC manufacturing facilities.
To be successful the intricate Voronoi pattern had to be poured in situ, in a single stage – using a concrete mix Dominion developed specifically for the project. The concrete had to be pumped from the ground up, to eliminates any air pockets.
Jackson’s unorthodox solution involved the combination of 3D CAD modelling and five-axis CNC machining services. This resulted in building large blocks to generate a cavity into which the concrete was pumped from to a height of three stories.
Some 26 ‘modules’ were constructed from multi-axis machined polystyrene with form-ply tool-faces. Each was finished with a high-quality mould surface. Significantly, each module was sufficiently lightweight for manoeuvring into place by hand.
In addition, a large-scale jigsaw puzzle template was machined to create a 1:1 layout guide for the modules.
The finished building has attracted high praise from Nugent Street tenants keen to see the area’s aesthetic and cultural feel enhanced. The project also won an award at a 2017 New Zealand Concrete Industry event.