Storage King Wollongong

Total Construction completed the design and construction of the brand new Storage King facility in Wollongong NSW, for Abacus Group. The project involved the demolition of an existing one-storey warehouse, making way for the construction of a new 4-storey self storage facility.

The project involved:

• The use of post-tensioned suspended slabs, a structural steel roof frame, metal roof sheeting, and siphonic drainage.
• Façade works include Kingspan cladding, Trimdek Cladding, glazing, two stage louvres, and Storage King brand signage.
• A new HV substation installed with modifications to the current electrical supply infrastructure.
• External improvements involving ‘Work to Public Assets,’ such as resurfacing a public road and footpaths adjacent and in front of the site.

Key Stats

• 710 total storage units built
• 4,250m³ concrete used
• 343 tonnes of reo used

A key challenge during construction was the difficult ground conditions, including the site’s existing in-ground structures buried throughout the ground slab. To overcome this, the team set-up isolation zones and cut structures out of the ground. We then had to re-stabilise the ground by laying and compacting suitable material.

Another challenge faced during construction was the existing site material was coal-wash, which is unsuitable to bear scaffold and structure. As a result, the team was required to cut the unsuitable material, cart offsite and import suitable GSW.

The site’s adjacency to the Illawarra Rail Corridor posed challenges that required the approval and close coordination with Sydney Trains. Site constraints required the demolition of walls to be performed by hand to facilitate safe and controlled construction activities.

The neighbouring property houses a Medical Imaging facility, including an MRI service which requires meticulous management of vibrations. The team explored alternative solutions, ultimately deciding to replace the preliminary design of bored piers with screw piles to effectively minimise vibration risks while maintaining the integrity of the existing building slab.

The Kingspan façade utilised recessed cassette panels fixed to 100mm rainspan panels as the backing. To expediate the programme, Total construction and Kingspan created a design where the rainspan backing panel sits on top of the slab rather than suspended off the edge. The challenge with this was that the design needed to allow for slab deflection. Ultimately, the team were able to create a design which satisfied this with slotted holes in the steel angles. Ultimately, this expediated programme as the team could start on façade works and install the panels before the scaffolding was dismantled.

Another condition which Total Construction had to comply with was designing and implementing a ground slab which could withstand floodwater, debris and buoyancy. The team implemented a design which utilised the existing slab by chemsetting dowels and concrete ribs throughout – essentially tying down the new slab to the existing. Void former was also installed throughout the slab, allowing water to pass through.