A WORLD FIRST FOR A MULTI-STOREY STEEL-FRAMED BUILDING

In 2007 the Victoria University of Wellington undertook to provide additional student accommodation and facilities, with a targeted occupation date in 2009. Situated on an elevated, steep and exposed site at the southern end of the Kelburn Campus, the new project will offer 348 dormitory rooms, 298 studio rooms and three two-bed apartments. These will be a mixture of single and apartment style dorm rooms, with some shared and common facilities. Architectus Auckland partner, Michael Thomson, says the design concept has been developed within the Victoria University Design Guidelines. Three separate accommodation buildings are linked by an amenities level. On Fairlie Terrace, the Terrace building is a low rise development of four levels. It is linked to the second building, the Tower, by an entry courtyard and administration wing. Taller than the Terrace but with a smaller footprint, the Tower contains dormitory rooms, each with a single window, varying in location to generate a random pattern. A bridge at the common amenity level, containing the dining area, links to the third building, the Edge, which consists of a long form running on the north/south axis along the steep contours of the eastern edge of the site. Hawkins Construction was engaged by the client in a design/build contract to construct the Architectus design. At the request of Victoria University of Wellington, the Consulting Engineers firm of Connell Wagner was tasked with incorporating in the design the latest advances in Damage Avoidance as applicable to structural steel framed buildings under severe earthquake attack. Connell Wagners Sean Gledhill explains: In the philosophy of Damage Avoidance Design, the bracing structure is designed to withstand a major earthquake with minimal and readily repairable damage. This typically involves incorporating mechanisms in the structure that can control loads and sustain large deformations. Victoria Universitys objective was to ensure that, after a large earthquake, the student accommodation buildings could utilised as an administration facility while other university buildings were under repair. In short, the university would be functional.

An artists impression of the new student accommodation at VUW, to be known as Te Puni Village.
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 Creating damage avoidance design features is often complicated by the building form. Short, stiff, heavy buildings with low periods are typically suited to base isolation, but few options are available for tall, relatively light, flexible buildings. Damage avoidance features available on the market are often viewed as expensive and complicated and have not been widely utilised. To meet the challenge Connell Wagner developed a cost-effective new system for damage avoidance applicable to highrise steel framed buildings. Sean Gledhill: To compliment the architecture, a seismic resisting scheme was developed that included perimeter longitudinal moment resisting frames with transverse concentrically braced frames. In the damage avoidance system, the CBFs were coupled with stepping bases controlled through prestressed Ringfeder springs and sliding hinge joints between columns and the foundation. The system also incorporates steel beams with sliding hinge joints. The sliding hinge joint was developed by Dr Charles Clifton, Assistant Professor
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of Civil Engineering at the University of Auckland, when he worked for HERA, the Heavy Engineering Research Association of New Zealand. The solution is based on using standard structural steel components in new ways without any especially demanding or novel fabrication. Connell Wagner has adapted the design by substituting steel shims for brass, improving cost, durability and buildability. Sean Gledhill continues: To develop a damage avoidance solution applicable to the VUW student accommodation, Dr Darrin Bell and Geoff Sidwell of Connell Wagner pursued the idea of using a tension fuse at the junction of the CBF frame and its foundations. Conducting an in-depth search, they found that researchers at the University of Auckland had investigated the use of the Ringfeder spring beam column joint with the purpose of protecting the frame. Connell Wagner adapted this application to place the Ringfeder spring at the base of the CBF. Dr Charles Clifton comments: These springs are part of a stepping foundation system located at the base of the CBF

columns. The purpose of the stepping detail is to limit the earthquake design actions in the CBF and hence the whole superstructure of the building. This in turn means smaller member sizes and minimisation of damage. At the end of the earthquake, the preload in the springs brings the frames back to rest in their pre-earthquake position. As far as I am aware, this is a world first for a multi-storey steelframed building. MJH Engineering Ltd is the steel constructor on this project. Managing Director Malcolm Hammond says: The damage avoidance solution was simple to fabricate and install. The sliding hinge joints presented the challenge of establishing a suitable bolt tightening sequence, but we met this with a detailed construction methodology to ensure the tolerances were achieved. From an engineering perspective, the solution minimised seismic mass, whilst an excellent speed of construction was maintained. This enabled main contractor Hawkins Construction and MJH Engineering to maximise shared cranage for erection of steelwork and placement of precast flooring.

Left page - The Terrace building reflects the adjacent residential context with a series of vertical bays topped by individual roof forms. Top left The Terrace Top right The Tower Middle The Edge, which runs along the North/ South axis of the site. Bottom left A sliding hinge joint with the cantilever brackets that will support the faade. Bottom right A typical sliding hinge joint connected to a Concentrically Braced Frame.

DRAUGHTING STEEL FABRICATING ERECTING

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