39
november 2014
international
construction
LARGESTRUCTURES
Scaling new heights
Among US companies adopting advanced 3D modelling
for construction is Rafael Vinoly Architects, whose latest
US$ 1.2 billion project, the super-slim 432 ParkAvenueTower
inNewYork, is nearing completion.
The 424 m, 104 luxury apartment block has been billed as
the largest residential tower in the Western hemisphere and
has attracted global headlines over its property prices of up to
US$ 95million for its sky-high penthouse.
Building contractor Roger and Sons teamed with Doka
formwork to deliver the distinctive building, which also used
latest GPS-based vertical alignment systems from Leica to
ensure the accuracy of its construction at great height.
Themain core of the building features an advanced automated
formwork system from Doka. One of its major cost-saving
elements is the fact that climbing on the exterior walls has not
required a crane.The Xclimb 60 automatic climbing formwork
transports the steel formwork custom-made to clients’
specifications.
The formwork includes a total of five levels dedicated to
different tasks frompouring tohydraulic lifting and installation.
Another eye-catching construction venture that has made
extensiveuseofBIMdesign is theUK’sCrossrail project–which
is believed to be a first for a nationally significant infrastructure
undertaking.
TheUK£15billion (US$24billion),100km routeconnecting
Heathrow inWest London through to South East London is
expected to increase the city’s rail capacity by 10%.
As the only element of this huge infrastructure project to run
Big structures tend to be complex to build and
require innovative solutions from equipment
suppliers to help keep them on time and on budget.
Neill Barston
reports
>
Scaling new
heights
New York’s super-slim
432 Park Avenue has
mademany architectural
headlines and is set to
be the tallest residential
block in theWestern
hemisphere.
T
hecomplexityof large-scaleconstructionprojectscanpose
some unique challenges, but it is crucial for contractors
to stay on top of safety, costs and the programme while
grapplingwith these issues.
The development of building informationmodelling (BIM) is
one tool being used tomanage the construction process, and it
is increasingly trickling down to smaller projects from the large
civil and oil& gas sectors where it was pioneered.
According to a survey of infrastructure experts commissioned
by law firm Pinsent Mason, two thirds of respondents said the
key benefits of using BIM were improvement in the design
process (63%), riskmitigation andhealth and safetymonitoring
(57%), while 47% believed that its usage brought greater
transparency for clients.
Rob Charlton, managing director of architectural services
company Space, believed computer modelling had been hugely
influential for large-scale construction development.
He said, “BIM is being adopted increasingly across the globe.
Initially its adoption was confined to particular sectors or
geographies, but it is nowuniversal to a greater or lesser extent.”
