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- Consistency of Roading Terminology
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With the SCIRT programme involving people from hundreds of different organisations, it was key that everyone used the same terminology to avoid confusion and errors throughout design and in the preparation of construction drawings and specifications for roading related earthquake repairs.
A Designer Guideline was developed and agreed with the Asset Owners, Christchurch City Council and the NZ Transport Agency, for a new set of terminology to describe roading-related earthquake repairs across the programme.
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- AutoCAD - a Drafting Tool
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SCIRT integrated standardised software systems and developed macro tools to maximise design and drawing efficiencies. One of these systems was AutoCAD, used for construction and as-built drawing preparation.
Throughout its five and a half year programme, SCIRT designers produced more than 30,000 wastewater, storm water, water supply, and roadway drawings. These included lift stations, pump stations, pipe replacement, manhole replacement, pipe linings, patch repairs, and segment repairs for wastewater and storm water networks. The water supply network required replacement pipes, hydrants, valves, and thrust blocks. Roadways required repairs to grading, kerbs, footpaths, and berms.
AutoCAD was compatible with 12d design software, and helped automate many repetitive tasks, making the design process faster.
Specific AutoCAD tools were created in-house and maintained consistency across the team. Time and cost savings were achieved by automating plotting, file naming, and titleblock updating of drawings.
Training was provided for people who had not previously used AutoCAD, and ongoing support was provided to users for the duration of the SCIRT programme.
Across all members of the design team, more than 24,000 hours were estimated to be saved with development and implementation of integrated, automatic AutoCAD and 12d tools.
The attachments below include three AutoCAD manuals and two zip files containing SCIRT CAD customisation tools.
Glossary terms
- CAD (Computer-Aided Design)
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- Retaining Wall Design Solutions
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The Canterbury earthquakes caused significant damage to Christchurch City Council-owned retaining walls. SCIRT assessed approximately 3000 walls then designed repair or rebuild solutions for 440 walls within SCIRT's scope of work.
SCIRT carried out initial condition assessments of approximately 3000 walls to determine which were within SCIRT's scope of work (walls supporting or protecting the road network or other council infrastructure). 440 walls were subsequently reassessed and design solutions developed as required.
The attached papers and magazine article outline the damage observed to retaining walls, explain SCIRT's design philosophy, detail some of its chosen refurbishment and repair solutions, and present a case study of a complex retaining wall rebuild, Cunningham Terrace in the port town of Lyttelton.
The technical papers were written by Louise Kendall Riches, a Chartered Professional Geotechnical Engineer from Aurecon, seconded to SCIRT between 2011 and 2017.
"Observed Earthquake Damage to Christchurch City Council Owned Retaining Walls and the Repair Solutions Developed" was presented at the 6th International Conference on Earthquake Geotechnical Engineering, 1-4 November 2015.
"Repairing Christchurch City Council Owned Retaining Walls Damaged by the Christchurch and Canterbury Earthquakes" was presented at 12th Australia New Zealand Conference on Geomechanics, 22-25 February 2015.
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- Refurbishment of Gabion Walls with Anchors - a Trial
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SCIRT proposed that damaged gabion retaining walls could be refurbished by installing anchors through the existing baskets, secured into the ground behind them. This could provide a cost and time saving because baskets would not need to be removed or replaced and, therefore, significant volumes of excavation and backfill work could be avoided with resulting reduced construction time. In order to establish if this solution was feasible, two test anchors were installed by Rock Control in March 2014 to determine if the process was practical and was an efficient means to refurbish such walls.
The following observations were made:
- Drilling of the anchors was possible and while the mesh at the rear of the basket was awkward to penetrate, it could be done.
- During grouting there was no grout recovery and, therefore, uncertainty regarding the completeness of the grout penetration. This meant all anchors had to be load tested.
- Galvanising and sacrificial steel were the only corrosion-protection measures for self-drilling anchors.
- The testing regime needed consideration because measuring deflection while holding load might prove challenging and required designer testing requirement approval.
- It was suggested that loads for anchor tests be derived for individual or zones of anchors to ensure the load was not excessive. This would require specific load definition, rather than simply applying the largest load for the whole wall and testing all anchors.
- The gabion baskets were damaged by the plate used in testing. Therefore, using a textile layer or other protection under the plate might be advisable. Alternatively, the basket might need to be patch repaired.
- Anchors should be installed in the middle of baskets to allow sufficient space for the pressure plate to span.
In conclusion, both the installation and testing of the trial anchors through gabion baskets were successfully completed. For the future implementation, it was recommended the above lessons be adopted into the design and specification for installing anchors through existing gabion baskets.
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- Design of an Automated Flushing Siphon System
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SCIRT developed a Design Guideline for an Automated Flushing Siphon System to reduce the frequency of blockages in the wastewater network caused by pipe dips and flat grades.
The Christchurch wastewater network consists of pipes laid at typically shallow grades in the flat regions, and pipes laid at steeper grades in the Port Hills. Historically, these shallow grades led to blockages forming in areas where there were insufficient flows to maintain a free flowing network. These blockages sometimes resulted in problems for residents from blowbacks, the inability to flush toilets, and wastewater overflowing onto private property.
To reduce this risk, the Christchurch City Council installed more than 1600 flush tanks and flush manholes around the city. These chambers were concrete structures, usually located at the head of wastewater pipelines, which contained either a flap valve or a plug to isolate them from the rest of the network. A water supply connection to the chambers was separated from the rest of the water supply system by an air gap separator.
Operation of these chambers was part of the Council's proactive maintenance regime; the flushing was carried out at set time intervals (approximately every five weeks).
Operation of about 1000 of the flush tanks and flush manholes was discontinued before the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes as part of a water conservation measure. Maintenance cycles in blockage-prone areas were maintained, most notably around malls, to mitigate the build-up of fat deposits within the wastewater network.
Council maintained a list of all the flush tanks and flush manholes and had them surveyed in 2011 and 2012 for operability. This survey revealed a lot of them were in good condition.
The 2010 and 2011 earthquakes created dips along wastewater pipes and reduced some pipe grades. These pipes had an increased risk of blockage, especially where they suffered from low or infrequent flows.
Whereas dips can generally be repaired using a short section of new pipe, restoring flat graded pipes can require relaying hundreds of metres of new pipe and possibly the installation of a lift station. To avoid this extensive relaying of pipes, which structurally may have many years of service left, it was an option to install flushing siphon devices at points around the wastewater network to provide frequent flushing of flat pipes to minimise the risk of blockage and odour emission. The majority of dips within the flushing zone of influence might in turn not need repair.
SCIRT prepared a Design Guideline for an Automated Flushing Siphon System to reduce the frequency of blockages on the wastewater network caused by pipe dips and flat grades.
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- Technical Groups and Technical Newsletters
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To share knowledge and make the most of combined expertise, Technical Groups were formed within SCIRT during the design phase for each engineering discipline, including wastewater, land drainage, geotechnical, structures, pump stations and roadways.
Technical Groups met on a regular basis and were established to utilise the shared knowledge of the wider SCIRT to:
- Share lessons learned with the wider Design and Delivery Teams in order to share ideas and provide consistency of approach across all projects
- Streamline the design process
- Provide constructability input to design ideas
- Generate and investigate innovations
- Prepare standard details and specifications
- Resolve technical issues
A chairperson was assigned to each Technical Forum with one of their key responsibilities being to drive progress within agreed timeframes. Each Technical Group included the CCC Technical Lead for that discipline, one representative from each Design Team and representation from the Delivery Teams. The Technical Leads represented the asset owner participant organisations, Design Team members identified issues/concerns and innovations, and the Delivery Team members provided constructability input to technical solutions and innovations.
Updates on innovations and technical developments from the Technical Groups were captured and published in the form of newsletters which were disseminated to the SCIRT Integrated Services Team (IST), asset owner representatives and Delivery Team representatives. The newsletters typically included updates on standard details, specifications, Designer Guidelines and innovations developed by both SCIRT Designers and Delivery Teams.
The benefits of the Technical Groups were speed in decision making; ready dissemination of information on the latest agreed approaches, and consistent, widespread adoption of agreed technical solutions and innovations.
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- 12d - One-Stop-Shop Design Tool
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12d Model was the terrain modelling, surveying and civil engineering software package selected for design at SCIRT.
12d Model's field-to-finish capability meant only one design package was needed, enabling a streamlined approach through survey, design and as-builting phases.
SCIRT's design team developed tailored 12d tools to enable increased efficiencies when modelling and designing wastewater, water reticulation, storm water and roading projects.
At its peak, SCIRT had 176 designers from more than 20 different consultancies. All needed to learn how to use 12d quickly, and needed to use it consistently. A 12d training programme was created for this purpose, enabling designers to gain basic 12d operating skills within exceptionally short timeframes.
The zip file below contains the suite of SCIRT's 12d training manuals and files.
SCIRT's 12d team presented at bi-annually at the 12d Model International User Conference. The videos of these presentations are available on YouTube:
- 12d Model International User Conference 2012: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luXZyk7Aobo
- 12d Model International User Conference 2014: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MT-wTdptDRk
- 12d International Conference 2016: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrlLiwKpQ4c
The 12d team also presented at the International Federation of Surveyors Working Week in 2016: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WXxe3HNC5A
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- Pipe Damage Assessment Tool (PDAT)
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A pipe damage assessment tool (PDAT) was developed to give a risk based prediction of pipe condition to avoid the need for a CCTV survey of every pipe in the city.
With more than 2,500 km of storm water and wastewater pipes needing to be assessed for damage before design work could start, SCIRT needed to develop a fast, cost-effective way of determining pipe damage, without having to Closed-circuit Television (CCTV) survey every pipe.
SCIRT's Asset Assessment and GIS teams developed a pipe damage assessment tool (PDAT) that predicted the structural condition of pipes that were not CCTV surveyed.
The PDAT used a range of key damage indicators to predict pipe damage, including CCTV completed on other pipes in the area, pipe material and age and land damage indicators.
SCIRT found the PDAT accurately predicted the conclusions of a CCTV survey for 75% to 95% of the pipes in a catchment network based on CCTV samples of 5% to 30% of the total network.
Glossary terms:
- CCTV: Closed-circuit Television
- PDAT: Pipe Damage Assessment Tool
- RAMM: Road Assessment and Maintenance Management (software)
- LPI: Liquefaction Potential Index (assesses the damage potential of liquefaction)
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- SCIRT Standard Details
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SCIRT standard details were developed to ensure a consistent approach to common design elements, and to save design time by providing a quick reference to an agreed standard design rather than creating new design drawings of the same element. For example, a standard drawing for a water supply backflow preventer.
Standard details also clarified the requirements of the Infrastructure Recovery Technical Standards and Guidelines (IRTSG) and the Construction Standard Specification (CSS), for example when the information was out of date.
Standard details were required because SCIRT's four design teams had different approaches, potentially resulting in variation in the design outputs and confusion for Delivery Teams and sub-contractors.
Standard details were developed within the Technical Groups in consultation with:
- Design Teams
- Estimating Teams
- Delivery Teams
- Asset Owners
- Asset Owners' Maintenance Team representatives
- Technical Leads
- Manufacturers/Suppliers
The benefits of standard details included improved quality of construction through consistency of requirement, cost savings through reduced design and construction time, and more efficient operation and maintenance as details were standard across the network.
Once each standard detail was developed and approved by the Technical Leads, it was uploaded to Project Centre where it was available to both Design and Delivery Teams.
A reference index for SCIRT standard details and CSS details was compiled In order to clarify where conflicts existed between the two and where SCIRT standard details took precedence.
Many of the SCIRT developed standard details were adopted by the Christchurch City Council, and included in later versions of their CSS.
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- Asset Owner's Representatives and Technical Leads
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Asset Owner's Representatives and Technical Leads from the New Zealand Transport Agency and Christchurch City Council were co-located with the team at SCIRT's central office. There were one or two Asset Owner's Representatives and Technical Leads per asset type. Their role was to provide an Asset Owner's perspective to the rebuild of the city's infrastructure.
Asset Owner's Representatives worked closely with the Project Definition, Asset Assessment and Design teams to assist with developing SCIRT's scope of work in accordance with the Asset Owner's standards and guidelines.
Technical Leads worked as technical advisors with Design teams through the detailed design and construction phases of projects.
Some of the benefits from having Asset Owner's Representatives and Technical Leads as part of a co-located team included:
- Providing expert, hands-on, in-depth, historical knowledge of the assets and their management, including technical understanding.
- Fast, expert advice to assist with trouble shooting and issues arising.
- Assisting designers to understand special circumstances, risk and issues likely to affect design and construction.
- Supply of expert knowledge of Asset Owner's systems, policies and procedures.
- Bridging the gap - providing a single point of contact for the SCIRT team with the Asset Owners, and business as usual asset maintenance teams.
- Providing an Asset Owner's strategic, whole-of-network viewpoint and advocacy and an understanding of the impacts of decisions on related assets. This included whole-of-life considerations, funding implications, and developing innovations.
- Providing Asset Owners with confidence in decision making.
- Enabling faster, better informed decision-making and technical assistance, resulting in expedited workflow.
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- Liquefaction Trial Report
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The challenges of rebuilding underground infrastructure in liquefaction-prone Christchurch were put under the microscope in a controlled field assessment of the performance of below ground infrastructure in simulated liquefied soils.
The Liquefaction Trial was carried out after the Canterbury Earthquake Sequence (CES) of 2010-2011 prompted the Christchurch City Council (CCC) to amend infrastructure design standards to incorporate more conservative detailing aimed at providing greater seismic resilience. Changes were made to pipe and chamber material selection, design detailing, and backfill material type.
In the trial, a range of pipes, chambers and backfill materials were assessed. Liquefaction was triggered within the soils through a sequenced detonation of explosives within an array of boreholes.
A report covered the findings and interpretations from the trial, and discussed the current theory around the performance of buried infrastructure during liquefaction events.
The trial provided evidence to support the resilient design solutions incorporated into the SCIRT rebuild, which were found to be pragmatic and practical, exhibiting an appropriate level of resilience and optimised value. The standard details used by SCIRT were appropriate for most conditions in Christchurch and other areas which showed susceptibility to liquefaction.
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- Huntsbury Reservoir
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Among Christchurch's most hard-hit earthquake-damaged facilities was the Huntsbury Reservoir. Water drained from the shattered 35,000-cubic-metre storage basin, the city's principal drinking water storage facility. Innovative design and prompt decision-making proved paramount in the rebuild process.
At 12.51 pm on February 22, 2011, a high-intensity earthquake emanating from under the Port Hills of Christchurch pounded the city.
Across the dry slopes, the damage was immense as the reverberations were felt far and wide. Among the most hard-hit was the all-important Huntsbury Reservoir. Water drained from the shattered 35,000-cubic-metre storage basin, disappearing into the cracked hills.
Ongoing tremors further fractured the city's principal drinking water storage facility.
Built in 1952, the reservoir was badly battered. A reinforced concrete structure - measuring 77.4 metres by 63m - with a 7.25m water depth, the roof was overlaid with soil and grassed, and the walls ranged from fully buried to exposed, cut into a sloping site.
Responsibility for much of the damage lay with an undiscovered "shear zone" under the reservoir. As a result, not only was the main storage facility out of operation, there was extensive damage to the pump station.
Shear surprise
Complicating repairs was the shear zone. Geological probes utilised boreholes to confirm the surprise find. An inspection of the borehole material revealed interfaces where rock-to-rock faces had slid across each other. It was estimated that the last shear zone movement occurred 15,000 years ago.
To accommodate future shear zone movement, structural changes were needed.
Two trapezoidal plan-shaped reservoirs were built either side of the shear zone.
A floor slab was overlaid on the existing slab and a reinforced concrete foundation and walls adjacent to the shear zone were built, along with a reinforced concrete roof.
The existing perimeter walls remained, while the roof column supports were reused.
The roof slab was designed to allow a crane to operate on the surface during construction. It was overlaid with a fibreglass-reinforced PVC sheet membrane.
Under the pump
In a paper on post-earthquake work on the reservoir, contractors Beca and Fulton Hogan and the Christchurch City Council detailed the damage, including "a broken inlet/outlet pipe flanged connection, extensive dislocation and cracking of floor slabs, cracking of the roof slab and some movement at wall joints adjacent to the corners of the structure".
However, the associated pump station was "damaged beyond repair".
Filling the void
A nearby inspection revealed other issues. The inlet/outlet pipe traversed an adjacent road, Huntsbury Avenue, via a tunnel. A tunnel check revealed collapsed roof sections.
The inlet/outlet pipe proved to be intact. The void between the pipe and the tunnel was filled with foam concrete, protecting the pipe from any falling roof material and cushioning it from further movement.
The restricted site access, confined space, tunnel debris hazards and the risk of future earthquakes influenced the rebuild decision.
Stage one of the reservoir and a new pump station were commissioned in December 2011, allowing water to be pumped to areas above the zone served by the reservoir. Stage two was commissioned in November 2012.
Teamwork, prompt decision-making, astute risk assessment and community consultation were key elements in the success of the project. However, the need for reservoir resilience and the attention to design details were paramount.
Huntsbury Reservoir repairs timelapse: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmOh_Uyf5j4
Where has all Huntsbury's water gone? News story: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swVrPNB4q8o
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- Pipe Profilometer and Design Guideline
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A guideline to inform designers of the pipe profilometer operation, including requesting profile surveys, standards, and the assessment of the survey results.
Inspection of the gravity wastewater pipes was typically undertaken by Closed Circuit Television (CCTV).
However, one limitation of CCTV was its relative inability to accurately quantify pipe dips with the precision demanded by the Council or Industry Specifications.
The pipe profilometer programme for measuring dips in gravity wastewater pipes was an innovative use of technology from the geotechnical engineering industry for assessing the amount of vertical pipe movement in areas that had experienced significant differential settlement.
A trial was undertaken of different profile measuring technologies and the one found most suitable was Geotechnics Ltd's "profilometer", typically inspecting to an accuracy of +/- 5mm. Launched and controlled from a custom built twin axle trailer, the profilometer crew and traffic management requirements were similar to that for CCTV.
The Geotechnics Pipe Monitoring Team created their own trailer from which to run their profilometer operation, and won a Bill Perry safety award in recognition for the number of safety hazards the trailer eliminated: http://strongerchristchurch.govt.nz/article/underground-investigators-break-new-ground-in-health-and-safety-design
A profilometer, or level sonde, was pulled through the pipe (typically from a downstream manhole to an upstream manhole), recording the elevation of the sonde in relation to a base station at specified intervals, typically one metre. The resulting graph, or "profile", was shown as a pipe longsection displaying pipe inverts at 1 m intervals.
A Designer Guideline was created to inform SCIRT designers of the operation and how to interpret and use its outputs within the design framework of the Infrastructure Rebuild Technical Standard and Guidelines (IRTSG).
Glossary terms:
- Profilometer: a level sonde that is pulled through the pipe (typically from a downstream manhole to an upstream manhole), recording the elevation of the sonde in relation to a base station at specified intervals, typically one metre.
- CCTV: Closed Circuit Television.
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- Retaining Wall Assessment and Prioritisation
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The attached paper shares the assessment and prioritisation philosophy created for approximately 1000 Christchurch City Council retaining wall assets within the Port Hills in Christchurch. Following this assessment, a prioritisation score was developed for each wall which was used to select and prioritise the repair of 440 walls that were included in the SCIRT rebuild programme.
The paper includes lessons learnt during the early data collection stages with the collation from various sources of earthquake damage investigations; the importance of quality asset information, particularly the completeness and standardisation of key data; and the benefits of data management through a centralised, readily-accessible electronic database. These learnings will assist Road Controlling Authorities and Councils in managing their assets, and illustrate the importance of early data capture in preference to during the challenging times of a post disaster event.
The principle of fully understanding your assets can be applied to all businesses managing assets worldwide.
"Assessment and Prioritisation of the retaining wall rebuild in Christchurch after the 2010/2011 Canterbury Earthquakes" was presented at the IFME World Congress on Municipal Engineering and IPWEA International Public Works Conference, 7-11 June 2015.
Glossary terms:
- RAMM - Road Assessment and Maintenance Management
- IFME - International Federation of Municipal Engineering
- IPWEA - Institute of Public Works Engineering Australia
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- Design Library and Template Documents
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The SCIRT design library was created to provide an accessible (single) location for electronic design-related information to be held for use by the design team.
The library contained a suite of 63 design guidelines and commonly-used templates, and was created in Project Centre (a web-based project delivery system) so designers could view and download library documentation. Document control for the library was the responsibility of the SCIRT librarian, to ensure consistency of document naming convention and filing structure.
The design guidelines provided clarity/assistance with required process, including interactions with external parties for agreements/approvals (including utility providers and the Christchurch City Council's heritage and arborist teams); information on the expectations and responsibilities of roles created to ensure compliance with the processes (such as the roles of technical advisors and the technical forums); and guidance on bespoke design tools developed by designers which could be used by the team.
It was possible to search through key descriptions attached to each design guideline for keywords, information relating to the author, the technical category to which the guidance applied, original date of submission and the revision number.
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- Design Management Plan
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A suite of 31 management plans were developed under the Interim Alliance Agreement prior to the start of SCIRT, to intentionally guide the organisation. These plans were reviewed annually and updated as required.
SCIRT's Design Management Plan provided the framework for effective design activities and explained how those activities were to be undertaken to meet requirements and support the achievement of rebuild objectives.
The plan concerned all design activities associated with permanent works for a rebuild programme. The overarching goals were to:
- Define the organisational requirements and objectives that impacted on design.
- Streamline and simplify the design process to minimise durations while not compromising the overall quality of a final product.
- Identify quality assurance requirements, including approvals/sign-offs/reviews.
- Provide efficiency in coordination and cross referencing.
- Assist in decision-making.
The plan was a working reference system used by SCIRT's designers, enabling them to understand the design management systems and quickly locate design criteria and control data.
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- Design Teams Work Together for Common Goal
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How separate design teams from previously competing organisations came together and operated in a collaborative way. The consultancy organisations involved in SCIRT's design team were recognised for their collaboration with an ACENZ Innovate NZ Award of Excellence in 2016.
Design services were not part of the formal SCIRT Alliance, but were engaged separately from various consultancy organisations as well as the Christchurch City Council.
In July 2011, four Lead Design Organisations (LDOs) were selected. The decision on four teams would allow for competition and collaboration within the overall design team.
A Professional Services Advisory Group (PSAG) was created by representatives from the consultancy organisations, and in September 2011 established guiding principles.
The goal was agreed as: "Pride in the legacy we are creating in our people, our profession and our city."
A key challenge for the team was the need to establish what to design and how to design it. For example, where to design for ground liquefaction; how to approach resiliency in design; how robust should the designs be and how repairable should they be; and how many design earthquake events should a solution withstand?
The solution was to quickly develop world-leading expertise in resilient design and risk management through collaboration and sharing of knowledge and expertise.
Another challenge related to everyone working with the same design tools regardless of what their home organisation was used to using. Particular training and development went into the GIS and 12d design tools.
From the outset in September 2011, it was made clear that, while collaboration was encouraged, the teams were expected to compete with each other, with the best performing teams ultimately receiving a greater share of the overall scope of work.
The collective response, however, was to put aside any notion of commercial competition between the teams. Teams agreed to focus their combined attention solely on establishing the best solution for the people of Christchurch.
At its peak the design team consisted of 176 designers, each month delivering concept and detailed designs for projects with a combined construction estimate more than $50 million.
The below award submission gives further details into how the design team supporting SCIRT was formed, and how successful design delivery was achieved.
Glossary terms:
- ACENZ: Association of Consulting Engineers of New Zealand
- FIFO: Fly In Fly Out
- LDO: Lead Design Organisations
- PSAG: Professional Services Advisory Group