Kurilpa Bridge wins national building award

Brisbane’s iconic Kurilpa Bridge has been honoured with a Professional Infrastructure Award for Civil Infrastructureat the National Institute of Buildings Awards Dinner in Sydney on Friday night.

Building Industry Minister Simon Finn said two years after its official opening, the multi-award winning bridge continued to impress industry experts.

“Since its official opening in October 2009, this striking piece of infrastructure has been used by thousands of walkers, joggers and cyclists to walk to work, visit Brisbane’s cultural precinct or to enjoy views of the Brisbane River,” Mr Finn said.

“The Kurilpa Bridge is the first major pedestrian bridge in the world to be constructed using tensegrity engineering, which balances tension and compression components to produce a light but incredibly strong structure.

“The bridge is a shining example of the high level of design and engineering talent in Queensland, and this latest award is a reflection of that.”

The AIB Professional Excellence in Building Awards recognises the highest standards of building and construction management, research and development of building projects in Australia.

They are the only awards in Australian that recognise professional excellence in the building and construction process, as opposed to the project or completed structure.

Mr Finn said Australian Institute of Building award was the latest in a winning streak for the bridge, which also includes:

·Engineers Australia (National) 2010 Australian Engineering Excellence Award

·Australian Institute of Architects Award 2010: Karl Langer Medal for Urban Design

·Consult Australia 2010 Awards for Excellence: Gold Award of Merit in Transport & Civil and Award of special merit – Project of the Year

·Australian Steel Institute – 2010 Queensland Steel Awards: Winner Structural Engineering, High Commendation Engineering Projects Infrastructure and Mining.

“Kurilpa was also short-listed for the Bridge Design and Engineering - International Footbridge Awards in Poland in July,” he said.

“The bridge has also been short listed to compete in the World Architecture Festival to be held in Barcelona on 2 to 4 November 2011.

“World Architecture Festival is the world's largest global architectural awards program which provides a unique meeting point for architects, suppliers and clients, attracting hundreds of entries and visitors from all over the world.

“Kurilpa Bridge will come up against structures in China, Sweden, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and the United Arab Emirates in the Completed Buildings (Transport) category."

The design and construction contractors Baulderstone Pty Ltd constructed the Kurilpa Bridge, designers were Cox Rayner Architects and Arup engineers with the procurement and delivery process managed by the Department of Public Works.

Minister’s Office 3225 2987