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<\/p>\nSunshine Coast Airport\u2019s $170 million Terminal Redevelopment Project has reached a new milestone, with installation now underway on around 30 tonnes of timber chosen for its sustainability and environmental benefits, and reflecting the region\u2019s subtropical landscape and laid-back character.<\/p>\n
When completed it will be Australia\u2019s first mass timber engineered terminal, creating a passenger environment unlike any other airport in the country.\u00a0 As well as reinforcing the terminal\u2019s connection to the landscape that surrounds it, the use of timber over traditional steel and concrete materials reduces the terminal\u2019s embodied carbon with an estimated Global Warming Potential (GWP) saving of roughly 40 tonnes of CO2 equivalent.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The engineered timber, known as glulam or GLT, is being installed to form the terminal\u2019s dramatic raking roof frames – a defining architectural feature designed by global architecture firm Populous: Fentress Studios\u2019 Australian team in partnership with builder McNab.<\/p>\n
Sunshine Coast Airport General Manager Projects and Planning Mr Robin Mace, told The Hotel Conversation seeing the timber structure take shape was a significant moment for the project.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is where the vision our community helped shape really starts to come to life.<\/p>\n
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\u201cThe timber frames will become one of the most recognisable features of our new terminal, and watching them go in is an exciting sign of the progress being made on this $170 million investment in our region\u2019s future,\u201d Mr Mace said.<\/p>\n
The scale of the installation is unusual for an airport project of this size – at around 30 tonnes, it\u2019s a similar weight to an adult humpback whale, a familiar sight migrating past the Sunshine Coast coastline each year.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s genuinely rare for an airport to use timber at this scale,\u201d Mr Matt Findlay, Principal & Head of Aviation, APAC at Populous: Fentress Studios told The Hotel Conversation.<\/p>\n
\u201cMost terminals of this size rely on steel and concrete, so committing around 30 tonnes of glulam to the roof structure is a significant statement about the kind of building we wanted to create – one that feels like nowhere else in Australian aviation,\u201d said Mr Findlay<\/p>\n
Airports are widely recognised as high-stress environments – the noise, crowds and navigation involved in getting from drop-off to departure gate can leave even seasoned travellers feeling anxious. The terminal\u2019s design sets out to counter that through biophilic design, a principle that draws on people\u2019s innate connection to the natural world to help lower stress and improve wellbeing. By replacing concrete and steel with warm, exposed timber, the terminal is designed to have a calming effect on passengers from the moment they arrive.<\/p>\n
The raking glulam frames have been designed to do more than support the roof – they set the tone for the entire passenger journey.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor many people, airports reflect the fast pace of modern life,\u201d Sean Powyer,\u00a0 Associate Principal & Architect at Populous: Fentress Studios told The Hotel Conversation.<\/p>\n
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\u201cThe raking timber frames form a distinctive gateway into the terminal, marking the transition from the pressures of everyday life to the relaxed character of the Sunshine Coast. Warm and natural, the exposed structure is designed to create an immediate sense of calm from the moment passengers step off the aircraft.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Sunshine Coast is the only place in the world that\u2019s home to three continuous UNESCO Biospheres, and our airport serves as a gateway to three of Australia\u2019s five Biosphere Reserves.<\/p>\n
\u201cTimber was a natural choice for the terminal, reflecting the surrounding subtropical rainforest and reinforcing the building\u2019s connection to the landscape it sits within,\u201d Mr Powyer said.<\/p>\n
As a renewable material, engineered timber can lower a building\u2019s embodied carbon compared with traditional steel and concrete construction – one of a number of sustainable design principles being explored across the redevelopment.<\/p>\n
Installation of the glulam frames will continue over the coming weeks, with specialist timber engineering consultation provided by Theca Timber, as the frames form a key structural and visual feature of the new departures hall, ahead of the terminal\u2019s completion in 2027.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sunshine Coast Airport\u2019s $170 million Terminal Redevelopment Project has reached a new milestone, with installation now underway on…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":933166,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[64,63,44],"class_list":["post-933165","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-australia","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/933165","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=933165"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/933165\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/933166"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=933165"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=933165"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=933165"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}