Set to house approximately 23,000 office workers and some of Sydney’s best retailers and restaurants, Barangaroo is now open for business.

Located on the world-famous Sydney Harbour, Barangaroo offers scale and quality on par with the world’s best office precincts. The development’s three high-rise, premium grade office buildings known as International Towers Sydney, collectively offer over 280,000 square metres of office space; the equivalent Net Lettable Area to Governor Philip and Governor Macquarie Towers, Aurora Place, Deutsche Bank Place, Chifley Tower and 8 Chifley Square combined.

So far, the project has consumed over 12 million construction hours with an average of 1,500 workers on site. This includes the A.G. Coombs Projects team, who were the specialist HVAC and mechanical services contractor for Tower Two, which was completed and opened 1 July 2015, and Tower One, which is set to open at end of 2016.

As of July 2016, 7,000 office workers had moved into Tower Two, 25 retailers were trading across the precinct, and office workers had started moving into the newly opened Tower 3, approximately 2,000 at a time!

When the tenants were in transit, A.G. Coombs began delivering HVAC and mechanical maintenance services to Tower Two and Tower Three as well as to plant and equipment in the shared services basement, which also houses the site’s centralised precinct services.

Ensuring continuity of building services with minimal disruption to everyday operations has been of critical importance. Preventative maintenance schedules must always consider office tenant and retailer requirements, including security. The team has had to remain flexible.

We had to ensure that the best teams were involved in the maintenance of the towers; people who understand the evolving needs of the large corporate occupiers, as well as the Precinct’s environmental requirements. A.G. Coombs ticked all the boxes and, to date, have shown high levels of professionalism, expertise, and understanding in their delivery of maintenance services whilst remaining mindful of ongoing operations and tenant activity.Tony Byrne, General Manager, Towers Two and Three, International Towers Sydney

Servicing buildings in a precinct that is under construction is a major challenge. Commissioning and fine tuning of the building’s systems is ongoing, in part to meet changing requirements. Fortunately, the maintenance team can draw on the knowledge of the A.G. Coombs Projects team to keep on top of the changes.

Several major tenants in Tower Two have moved across from older properties, and were familiar with more tightly controlled office temperatures compared to the modulating environmental control that is a feature of the new 6 Star Green Star facilities. A.G. Coombs’ National Customer Service Centre was kept busy after move-in, logging calls regarding these temperature ‘issues’. A.G. Coombs worked closely with client and facility manager JLL, as well as Building Management and Controls System provider Honeywell, to rectify issues and to help educate tenants on the new conditions.

Being one of the most significant waterfront transformations currently underway anywhere in the world, and Australia’s largest precinct development, Barangaroo is constantly in the watchful eye of the media. When complete, the site is expected to attract some 18 million visits per year, with more than fifty percent of the precinct being open public space, and all of the foreshore to be fully accessible to pedestrians and cyclists. The HVAC and mechanical services play a significant role in the buildings’ operational energy usage and environmental impact. When complete International Towers Sydney is targeting 5 Star NABERS Energy ratings. All this adds pressure to the maintenance team in ensuring that International Towers Sydney continues to operate effectively, efficiently and safely.

“The development of International Towers Sydney is positive for the city’s global profile,” explained Tony Byrne, General Manager, Towers Two and Three, International Towers Sydney. “We had to ensure that the best teams were involved in the maintenance of the towers; people who understand the evolving needs of the large corporate occupiers, as well as the Precinct’s environmental requirements. A.G. Coombs ticked all the boxes and, to date, have shown high levels of professionalism, expertise, and understanding in their delivery of maintenance services whilst remaining mindful of ongoing operations and tenant activity.”