New RAH Tower cranes take to Adelaide skies

Adelaide’s West End skyline has taken on a distinctively different look with the installation of the first two tower cranes on the site of the new Royal Adelaide Hospital.

The arrival of the tower cranes marks a significant milestone in the construction of the new RAH. A total of eight tower cranes along with a number of smaller, supplementary cranes will progressively arrive on site from October through to early next year.

A highly skilled crew of tower crane operators have been employed by the Hansen Yuncken Leighton Contractors Joint Venture, to operate the eight tower cranes. Local supplier Fleurieu Cranes assisted in the installation of the first two cranes on site which are expected to carry out an estimated 300,000 lifts over their 24 months on site, to assemble the new RAH structure.

HYLC Joint Venture, Development Director Chris Pratt emphasised the installation of the cranes as a significant milestone in the construction of the new RAH.

“The number of tower cranes on the new RAH site reflects both the scale and complexity of this project. It’s exciting to see the first of these cranes arrive on site, adding to the heightened activity we’ve seen over the last few months since piling and structural works commenced,” he said.

“People will really see the structure take shape and the Hospital start to come to life. The two site webcams are a great way to watch the site activity, and the progress of the building works,” he added.

The landscape of the new RAH has been transformed in the last three months with the commencement of piling and structural works. To date, HYLC JV has completed more than 1000 of the 2000 piles with two piling rigs working across the site. Sub structure works are underway at the Western end of the site to create the foundations of the hospital’s main structure, and the bulk earthworks for the future main entry access are also beginning to take shape.

Mr Pratt said “There is a lot of activity on site. We currently have over 300 people working on the new RAH site. This will continue to build to around 1,800 people at the peak of construction.”

The $1.85 billion new Royal Adelaide Hospital will be situated on the corner of West Terrace and North Terrace between the CBD, Parklands and River Torrens. It will be built on a 10 hectare site and comprise 175,000 square metres of fully enclosed space and 76,000 square metres of covered car parking.

On completion in 2016, it will be the largest, most technologically advanced hospital in South Australia and one of the most advanced in Australia, employing close to 6,000 people and accommodating 80,000 inpatient admissions per year.

Progress on the new RAH site can be viewed via two site webcams at www.sahp.com.au

Timelapse Video (quick time software may be required to view this link)
http://www.rendoulis.com/hylcjointventure/octobertimelapse.mov