Two iconic CSR brands were selected to offer innovative design solutions for the prestigious Royal Adelaide Hospital, billed as one of the single biggest infrastructure projects undertaken in South Australia’s history.

Bradford Insulation and CSR Gyprock were specified to meet the internal lining requirements of the new Royal Adelaide Hospital (nRAH). Both of these iconic brands have been market leaders in the Australian construction industry for more than half a century and are part of CSR, one of Australia’s most respected building materials companies.

When completed, the nRAH will be Australia’s most advanced hospital incorporating innovations from hospitals around the world and providing world-class care for the people of the state. Commencing in 2011, the project is led by the SA Health Partnership (SAHP) consortium, which includes Leighton Contractors, Hansen Yuncken and Spotless. The contract for internal walls and ceilings was issued as a design and construct contract to the sub-contractor, Brighton Australia Pty Ltd. While the structure and façade are complete, the hospital’s internal fitout and commissioning will be accomplished in 2015.

The Gyprock and Bradford brands were able to offer practical and innovative design solutions for this state-of-the-art healthcare facility, meeting the high performance standards specified by SA Health and enabling energy efficient and increased comfort and safety solutions to be designed into the building.

Given that the facility was nominated as ‘Critical Infrastructure’ and also built in a seismic zone, the combined technical resources of CSR’s DesignLINK team, which included the Research and Development division, were required to provide fully supported wall and ceiling solutions that would meet the Deemed-to-Satisfy Provisions of the National Construction Code (NCC).

CSR Bradford’s Acoustigard Glasswool insulation rolls and semi-rigid Glasswool Supertel boards were used to fill the interior partitions and walls internally and externally. Available in various densities and thicknesses to suit different cavity in-fill applications while concurrently providing excellent acoustic and thermal performance, Acoustigard complies with the stringent requirements of the nRAH, which is built in a seismic zone.

Since the external walls were designed with structural steel elements placed unconventionally 300mm apart, Bradford supplied semi-rigid Glasswool Supertel boards in custom 300mm wide strips, which assisted in making the overall assembly of the walling system more cost-effective and allowed faster installation. The Supertel insulation boards were also used for HVAC linings, helping to streamline the number of suppliers in this area.

Early consultation with the acoustic engineer employed by the sub-contractor, Brighton Australia helped streamline the range of products used to reduce complexity for the installation team, while still ensuring that the acoustic walling requirements for over 50 wall types could be achieved with the reduced range.

Additionally, Bradford’s Safebridge purlin roofing system was also used as one of the main roof systems for the nRAH. Unlike conventional roof spacer systems, the Safebridge purlin roofing system does not raise the height of the roof and allows for a lower roof line while still ensuring even insulation recovery across the entire roof to achieve BCA Section J thermal insulation values.

CSR Gyprock’s high performance EC08 Complete, a premium, multi-function plasterboard, was also selected for the wall and ceiling linings throughout the nRAH.

DesignLINK offered a customised design solution for the combined CSR system and construction needs, including developing Revit Families for all the wall types and providing support and advice on managing the Revit Model; preparation of shop drawings for installation details and coordinating the details of Gyprock and Bradford; providing site visits to respond to ongoing site installation matters; developing new installation methods and commissioning supporting fire assessments; developing specialist details for seismic construction; responding to ongoing technical enquiries relating to the coordination of services; and providing written support to the main contractor as required.

The nRAH is the largest healthcare project that CSR has been involved in to date. CSR Lightweight Systems Commercial Segment Manager, Barry Fitzharris recognises the magnitude of the project and what it means for Gyprock and Bradford to be involved, commenting that it has been a privilege to be associated with Australia’s most advanced hospital right from the construction phase.