Auckland Art Gallery
Year of Completion 2010
Auckland Art Gallery (toi o Tamaki) is currently undergoing a $121 million redevelopment that includes returning the heritage building to its original splendour and providing a contemporary new addition that wil increase display space by at least 50%.
The project also includes a bold new gallery entrance - a dramatic statement of stainless steel and glass designed by Holmes Consulting that uses Macalloy tension bars and, for the first time in New Zealand, the ingenious Macalloy 'TechnoTensioner'!
Supplied by BBR Contech to Hawkins Construction, the bars have a critical role in the design, as they hold immense panels of glass in place so that they hang vertically as if floating in the air. Macalloy bars are also used horizontally within the roof level to maintain the tension in the overall glass façade. The installation and tensioning required careful attention to detail, and the use of innovative equipment like the TechnoTensioner - a special stressing jack that can tension the bar from an internal coupler position.