The project brief was to design a community hub of the future – providing an engine room for collaboration, connection and innovation while showcasing the potential for leading sustainable timber construction.

The contractors, Perkins Builders, and Peter Hobbs Architects developed an 80% design with BG&E prior to sending it to a carpentry subcontractor for final design. The new Shire of Dardanup Community Hub – comprising a library, council chambers, administration centre, makerspace plus mixed-use of community spaces – is a modern two-storey, L-shaped building clad predominantly in stringy bark with charred jarrah timber as accents. The L-shaped building will allow for a formal civic courtyard space, accessible from the library and council chambers. Chosen to suit local fabrication, BG&E designed the structure using Laminated Veneer Lumber (“LVL”) columns, beams and bracing, and light-weight timber floor cassettes.

BG&E Scope

• BG&E was the structural designer on the project. Our brief from the Client was to design a timber structure that could be sourced from the local supply chain. The Client had already been in preliminary discussions with a local timber fabricator, and our role was to design with consideration of their preference for LVL framing
• The building required a hybrid lateral system due to the large plan area, combining concrete shear walls for the lift structure and timber bracing elements in areas of the façade
• The FRL considered was 30 minutes, with timber columns and beams remaining exposed

Key Technical Achievements & Innovations

• The project was designed using a LVL cassette system that was able to be prefabricated and transported to the site and installed by traditional carpentry trades in the WA market
• Large twin-beam cantilevers ran either side of the columns to support the curved facia elements that were unique to the structure