UPDATE:
The recently opened new airport terminal at Coober Pedy designed and Project Managed by Geoff Jarvis at EnvironArc receives Ministerial and Tourism SA Praise.
Some of the photos in the slideshow are taken from the airport CCTV camera monitoring construction. A number of photos taken on the 23 February 2010 show the terminal floor area following pouring of the slab which is covered in water to assist curing (see slideshow below).
Project: Airport Terminal, Coober Pedy
Location: Coober Pedy, SA
Location Challenges: Founded on opal mining in a harsh desert climate, Coober Pedy, with a population of about 3,500, has a unique underground-living tradition and character. This has given rise to a thriving tourist industry and each year nearly 200,000 visitors experience this outback centre and its iconic desert scenery. The existing tiny transportable airport terminal has been long-overdue for replacement and a master plan for guiding the development of the airport was commissioned in 1999 and reviewed in 2008 by Aerodrome Design Pty Ltd, who established a functional brief for a new terminal. In 2009 the District Council of Coober Pedy commissioned EnvironArc Design Pty Ltd to undertake the design process for construction of the new terminal with a budget of $1.3m funded equally by the Council and the South Australian Department of Trade and Economic Development with additional grants from the South Australian Tourism Commission and the Federal Government’s Regional and Local Community Infrastructure Program.
Innovation: The 350 square metre building is based on the functional layout provided by the master plan and provides a departure lounge with seating for 54 persons, check-in and concession counters, airline and airport offices and user amenities. Baggage Make-up and Claim areas are separated to eliminate cross-traffic. The arrangement will allow screening of passengers and isolation of the departure lounge should regional airports require future security upgrading, while the building can be readily extended to cater for increased demand if necessary.
Design Aspects: The design of the new terminal reflects the locality and identity of Coober Pedy. The built-form of the terminal expresses its function by having:
- Wide eaves to shade the walls
- An arched roof form echoing a traditional hangar profile
- Opposing curved canopies invoking the freedom of flight and providing additional shade
- Earth embankments against the walls suggestive of the underground tradition of the area.
- A feature wall of rammed earth to provide local colour and texture
- Internal flooring of polished concrete using local aggregates and embedded green glass chips to add opal-like highlights
- A back-lit display shaft complete with mannequin miner sunk into the concourse floor.
Environmental Innovation: The terminal design, construction and building services are cognisant of its environment and remoteness. Design decisions have been made within the principles established by the Green Building Council of Australia for sustainable buildings. Passive design features include:
- Optimal east-west building axis to minimise solar loading
- Sandwich-panel roofing to provide insulation, long span capability and pre-finished ceiling
- Wide eaves to shade the insulated walls
- Shaded and double-glazed windows for thermal and acoustic insulation
- Light-weight structure to reduce transport costs and speed construction
- Pre-finished materials to reduce maintenance
- Construction and materials that can be recycled in the longer term.
- Inverter-type air-conditioning systems are designed to allow 100% fresh-air ventilation operation when ambient conditions are suitable
- Low-energy high-efficiency lighting systems including some LED fittings
- Building management system to initiate night-time purging of the interior when ambient conditions are suitable
- Power circuits linked to the security system to shut down non-essential power when the building is empty
- Rain-water harvesting and storage for circulation to all sanitary fittings which are WELS-rated for low water consumption.
