Investa Office Fund has reached a major construction milestone at its Barrack A- Grade commercial office development at 151 Clarence Street in Sydney’s CBD, in collaboration with leading contractor Built, conducting the first concrete pour on the 18-level tower.
The concrete pour marks the end of a 12 month excavation process, which saw the existing B-Grade building on-site demolished. The next stages of the construction will see concrete pours for the footings, slabs and lift-cores, followed by floor by floor structures.
It is estimated the Barrack Place project will see a total of 40,000 cubic metres of concrete used and will generate a total of 2,000 jobs.
Mark Tait, Group Executive and Head of Commercial Development, Investa said we are extremely excited to reach this next milestone with our project partners and see the development coming to realisation.
“Barrack Place will deliver something new to the Sydney CBD office market and will provide an important connection to Martin Place through to the Western Corridor. The open courtyard through site-link and retail precinct offering is set to create a new city destination. It will also complete at a time when the CBD market is lacking brand new quality office stock, so we expect tenant demand to continue to be strong,” said Mr Tait.
Brett Mason, Managing Director, Built said they were proud to partner with IOF on the Barrack Place project which is utilising a range of construction innovations.
“Barrack Place has provided us with the opportunity to demonstrate the future of construction showcasing new levels of Building Information Modelling (BIM),” he said.
“We have worked closely with the project team to develop a highly detailed virtual model that goes beyond 3D modelling, to 6D modelling that links programme, cost control and facilities management modules. This allows us to steer the most efficient construction process with one source of truth, removing cost, co-ordination and duplication inefficiencies. The model will also continue to inform the ongoing performance and optimisation of the building long after project completion.”
Designed by Architectus, Barrack Place will deliver a 22,000 square metre state-of-the-art next generation workplace to the Sydney CBD, blending harmoniously with the surrounding heritage streetscape. It has a future-proof design with flexibility at its core, aiming to cater for open-plan offices and dynamic workspaces complimented with smart building technology.
Engineering group Arup has already pre-committed to 35 per cent of Barrack Place on the podium levels from Level 1 to 6, and discussions continue with prospective tenants in the marketplace.
David Cannington, Head of Research at Investa said Investa will deliver around 60 per cent of the brand new stock to come on-line between now and 2020 with our Barrack Place and 60 Martin Place developments. Market conditions are expected to tighten sharply, with the vacancy rate likely to be driven below 3 per cent, representing the tightest leasing market conditions in Sydney for 30 years. .
Penny Ransom, Group Executive and IOF Fund Manager said the strategy being implemented by the project team demonstrates IOF’s commitment to maximising long term value for our unitholders by optimising the health and wellbeing and technological benefits available to tenants who will occupy the building.
Barrack Place is scheduled for completion in late 2018.
Photo from L to R: Jonathan Callaghan, Chief Executive Officer, Investa, Peter Whyte, Director – NSW Construction, Built, Shen Chiu, Senior Development Manager, Investa, Mark Tait, Group Executive and Head of Commercial Development, Investa, Penny Ransom, Group Executive and IOF Fund Manager, Investa, Hugh Irving, Development Manager, Investa and Nicole Quagliata, IOF Assistant Fund Manager, Investa.