NewsAurecon success at the 2022 Association of Consulting Engineers New Zealand Awards

“From protecting and restoring a Category 1 heritage building while constructing twin rail tunnels underneath, to championing a step change in digital project delivery, to transforming Auckland’s waterfront into a welcoming, world-class space for everyone, the winning projects were both technically complex and transformational for the communities they serve. It’s really satisfying to see our clients and our teams’ hard work and vision recognised with these awards.”

Recognised for complex and transformational projects

The award wins were as follows:

Gold

City Rail Link Contract 1 Britomart Station Redevelopment (City Rail Link Ltd)

Over a period of five years, Britomart Station was transformed from a terminus into a through-station. This required construction of shallow tunnels beneath the Category 1 heritage-listed Chief Post Office building and Lower Queen Street in soft ground conditions. Te Komititanga (the beautiful new civic space), was constructed following the backfilling of the tunnels and the Chief Post Office building’s ground floor was reinstated to maintain the heritage features along with reconstruction of the new Britomart Station entrance. This was a huge engineering and construction feat.

Airport to Botany Rapid Transit and 20Connect Single Stage Business Case (Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency and Auckland Transport)

The Southwest Gateway programme is a series of transport projects that will provide travel choice and reliability for how people and freight travel around the south and east of Auckland, including to and from the airport. The programme aims to provide better public transport, walking/cycling facilities and safer, more efficient freight movements.

Waka Kotahi and Auckland Transport also received a special Client Award in recognition of their collaboration and vision in realising this project.

Downtown Infrastructure Development Programme (Auckland Transport)

The Downtown programme has created a generous and welcoming destination along the water’s edge that is recognisably Tāmaki Makaurau. It involved five separate but interlinked projects:

• Strengthening of the historic underground seawall at Quay Street
• Te Wānanga, the new waterfront public space between Princes Wharf and Queens Wharf
• The revitalisation of Quay Street with wider footpaths, new street furniture and more trees
• The new redevelopment of the Downtown Ferry Basin
• The creation of a new bus interchange at Lower Albert Street

Silver

Trentham to Upper Hutt Double Tracking (KiwiRail)

Trentham to Upper Hutt (T2UH) involved the installation of 2.7 kms of new track on the Hutt Valley line between Trentham and Upper Hutt stations to improve the frequency and reliability of services. This work included level crossing improvements, new platforms and shelters, and a new pedestrian underpass at Trentham Station. T2UH offered KiwiRail the opportunity to drive a digital step-change, with a vision to be the first completely paperless BIM project of its scale in New Zealand. Aurecon brought this vision to life with a fully integrated digital design that incorporated all elements of the duplication of the rail line.

NCTIR Rockfall Canopy (North Canterbury Transport Infrastructure Recovery Alliance)

The final piece of the puzzle in the North Canterbury Transport Infrastructure Recovery (NCTIR) Alliance involved remediating a rockfall-prone corner of State Highway 1, for Waka Kotahi. To protect the road users of the South Island’s main transport route, the team developed the Southern Hemisphere’s first Rockfall Canopy. At the project start, the Aurecon design team showed innovation by employing a digital first methodology, capturing the entire site as a UAV photogrammetric digital elevation model (DEM). This DEM created a collaborative platform for geological assessments and the digital design. The DEM became a defining piece in the project as four weeks after it was captured New Zealand was sent into lockdown. The digital approach enabled the team to exceed client expectations and provide the final design with no delays. The digital model was further developed and became the basis of the visualisations presented to the key stakeholders, local iwi and community.