The design was led by architects from the Brisbane City Council (BCC) City Projects Office in liaison with their Sustainable Design team, engineers Aurecon and Hyne.
The brief called for a comprehensive range of environmentally sustainable design elements and materials, focussing on future ease of maintenance.
Deep section laminated timber beams were identified as a means of providing an efficient and low maintenance structural system to span over the salt water laden indoor pool enclosures.
Hyne was approached to provide technical advice, particularly for the challenges presented with on-site assembling and connection of the major structural elements which included beams and columns – many of these being nearly one metre in depth.
The first two projects, undertaken at Runcorn and at Upper Mt Gravatt, used internal steel plated connections requiring deep mortices to be cut into the beams on site prior to erection and bolting in place.
Following ongoing consultation with the builders, the BCC Design team and Hyne, a less labour intensive dowelled and socketed connection method was utilised in the Colmslie Pool project.
Pictured: The Colmslie Pool project
This revised jointing method marked a progression and refinement of the fabrication and construction process.
