ALBANY POOL

Albany, Auckland, New Zealand

Project Description

CREDITS: Holmes Consulting / Naylor Love

Hidden Details Affect Large Outcomes

Almost hidden behind the acoustic ceiling panels, large air circulation ducts and a myriad of water features at the new Albany Pool constructed by Naylor Love, is the backbone that holds it all together. Massive Glulam portal frames designed by Holmes Consulting provide the large open internal space that houses the collection of pools and water features.

Making up these impressive portals are 30m continuous length beams, nearly 1m deep and 180mm wide and columns that are 1.4m deep and 4m high. While one of the images shows the portals newly installed, it is the details of the knee connection that make it all work. The real grunt that takes care of the huge forces in the knee joint can also be seen in the images. Twelve M20 threaded rods are embedded up to 1m into the top of the Glulam column. Two 16mm knife plates secured with 44 bolts fit into the rebates. The ability to accurately prefabricate these details is where TimberLab’s 5 axis CNC bridge comes in. Capable of 1mm tolerances and with specialised drilling tools that can accurately drill the 1m deep holes the CNC is proving that new and complex connections are now possible.