ARV the Ponds RACFThe Ponds, New South Wales

Construction of a 104-bed residential aged-care facility.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

Total Construction was engaged by Anglican Retirement Villages to construct their new residential aged-care facility in The Ponds.

The facility comprises 104 beds in eight wings specifically tailored to the needs of the various levels of care required by the residents. The new RACF also includes two large commercial kitchens, cafe, hairdressing salon, chapel and wellness areas; as well as extensive external courtyards, golf putting-green, and break-out areas.

A simplistic structural design, using primarily prefabricated lightweight steel frames and trusses ensures the new RACF can deliver a sleek and modern design, while clever landscape architecture provides a warm and inviting facility.

The single storey structure over a large and expansive site has enabled the design team to incorporate large gathering spaces. These are a prerequisite of ARV’s facility designs, and offer residents various activities outside of the confines of their rooms.

OVERCOMING CHALLENGES

Total faced an extremely competitive program. As a result, the facility was divided into two zones. Both zones were completed concurrently using multiple works crews to ensure the programmed objectives were achieved.

INNOVATIONS

In keeping with the need to accelerate and achieve an ambitious program, an innovative approach was adopted to pre-fabricate the building structure using lightweight steel framing and trusses. There are significant time and cost benefits associated with pre fabrication, as well as the opportunity to complete walls and ceilings at the same time.