ONE PLACE

COMPLETE SERVICE

ONE CHOICE e-struct News

Happy belated

New Year f rom

e-struct News

We hope everyone enjoyed a

relaxing Summer break, it’s a

distant memory now! We’re

looking forward to seeing the

projects this new year brings

and working with you to ensure

your design, testing and report-

ing needs are catered for.

As we look to the year ahead,

we will continue to strengthen

our services ensuring an innova-

tive and responsive approach to

design and field work. We are

looking forward to road testing a

new drill for soil testing, launch-

ing our new website and devel-

oping new ways to support our

clients.

With over 5000 projects un-

der our belts, we pride our-

selves on delivering quality

service across a broad

Project Profile: Inner City Townhouses

beginning right to the end.

this issue

Project Profile P.1

Dirt Diggers’ Corner P.2

Staff Profile P.2-3

Professional Development P.2-3

I S S U E

M a r c h

03

For streamlined, stylish living you can’t go past a

townhouse. Modern, sleek, close to the city with

all the amenities of a house but fewer demands

involved in its upkeep, its a win-win solution for

many people who want to free up their finances

and maximize their time without compromising

their lifestyle.

These 17 boutique triple level, three bedroom

townhouses are beautifully designed to embrace

open planning and to create welcoming spaces.

This project was completed last August but such

was the popularity of these townhouses, all were

sold before construction began. It is easy to see

the appeal of these structures when examining

their cross-section (pictured top right). Light has

been maximised by the thoughtful placement and

angle of the windows all the while cleverly retain-

ing privacy of the bedrooms and balconies. In

contrast, the second storey is completely open

creating a generous living area.

We were delighted to be able to work with our

affiliates, literally from the ground up, supplying

soil testing, structural and drainage design and

energy rating services. It is always rewarding to

be able to see through a project from the very

ting herself to further study.

Dirt Diggers’ Corner—What’s the Dirt on BALs?

Q: What is a Bushfire Attack Level?

A: The BAL is a rating given to your

property that is based on many

measures including: a Fire Danger In-

dex (from Australian Standard

AS3959), the slope of the land, the

types of surrounding vegetation and

proximity to buildings.

If you are in a designated Bushfire Prone

Area or your property is subjected to a

planning overlay in relation to Bushfire

Management Overlay (BMO) or Wildfire

Management Overlay (WMO) you will

need a BAL for your property.

The aim of all BAL ratings is to guide the de-

sign and construction of your building so as to

improve its ability to withstand a bushfire at-

tack. As a result, the BAL level may affect the

type of construction your property requires.

e-struct will organise a site visit to assess your

property. From our field assessment, a report

is produced which will indicate the BAL for

your site based upon your proposed develop-

ment. BALs range from low right up to a rating

of FZ. Each rating provides for a level of con-

struction that will withstand a particular level of

ember attack threat.

If you’d like more information regarding BALs

or would like to arrange one for your property,

please contact the office.

Staff Profile

Jade Triffitt,

Receptionist and

Printing Specialist

“When I finished Year 12 in

1998, I decided to take a

year off before going to uni-

versity so I could travel.

After arriving at Melbourne,

I fell in love with it and

moved here for good.”

Originally from NSW, Jade’s family

moved to the Northern Territory when

she was five years old so its not sur-

prising that as she grew up, her sights

were set on travelling having experi-

enced it from a very early age.

Drawn in lots of different directions

during her school years and with a

certificate in IT under her belt, like

many, Jade thought that a gap year

might be the way to go before commit-

Introducing Jade, who is aptly

named, for she is our office

gem.

It soon followed that it wasn’t just

Melbourne that captured Jade’s

heart; she met her husband-to-be

soon after settling here and a

happy beginning in her new

hometown was established.

In the traditions of travelers every-

where, Jade found herself work in

a variety of roles in the field of

hospitality. Whilst she enjoyed

working with people, the hours

didn’t always fit in with her new

role as wife and mother and so

she looked for other opportunities.

Moving into the world of retail

came about in 2007 when

Ritesafe offered her a job. Again,

she enjoyed working with people,

Waffle Raft Slab

Issues in the

Western Suburbs of

Melbourne

A recent presentation hosted

by the Australian Society of

Building Consultants (ASBC),

related the latest research

about the issue of Waffle Raft

Slab failures. These failures

occur mostly in the basaltic

and limestone clays of the

Western Suburbs of Mel-

bourne. These clays are con-

sidered to be highly reactive

(or expansive) soils. This

means they shrink and swell

considerably which creates

large, repeated soil volume

changes over time.

The key vulnerability of Waffle

Raft Slabs in these cases is

caused by drainage issues.

This can be seen in methods

of construction that have

mostly been adopted by large

Volume Builders. Quick con-

struction of residences has

led to inadequate attention

being given to the surrounding

site area. This leads to an

ingress of surface water adja-

cent to the slabs. This phe-

nomenon is called edge

heave.

Find Moorooduc Hwy Plan Printing at our

e-struct off ice . We print colour or black &

white la rge format plans up to A0 , scan in black

& white up to A0 and laminate up to A2 .

For f r iend ly and prompt serv ice, emai l your p lans to

mai l@mhplanpr in t . com.au or drop in to the o f f i ce !

It’s your

www.mhplanprint.com.au

\

AS3727-1993 Guide to Residential

Pavements is the Australian Standard

that sets out the requirements for

driveway & pathway infill slabs. Not to

be confused with AS2878 which co-

vers structural slabs, its primary focus

is in relation to workmanship perfor-

mance. This code is not referenced in

the NCC, Vol 2, but in the Building

Commission (VBA) Guide to Stand-

ards & Tolerances (2007).

The performance criteria applies to

both concrete & bituminous pave-

ments. It sets out the minimum criteria

to meet acceptable pavement design

& installation.

An example of a criterion is crack

width. Table 1 states for “Cracking in

bound pavements” that a maximum

width of 1.5mm is allowed. It also sets

out standard pavement specifications

for concrete driveways. This is typical-

ly 3-4 metres spacing in both direc-

tions.

The standard is an old one. Some of

its criteria have been superceded in

other codes (like AS3600-2009, Con-

crete Structures Standard). In terms of

its relevance for defect assessment in

legal disputes, it is very much relied

upon to gauge what is a defect & what

is not.

If you are unsure about this & any

other Australian standard relating to

building, contact us for advice on how

“Moorooduc Hwy Plan Printing is

my ‘baby.’ I enjoy helping our cli-

ents meet tender deadlines, ensur-

ing they have all the prints they

need in the timeframe they need it

by. It has been great to see this

business within a business evolve

and I’m looking forward to building

up more services this year.”

understand it…

do it…

During her time at e-struct, Jade has

gone from working full-time, to part-

time, then on leave becoming a moth-

er again in 2013 and returning to part-

time work in 2014. She has benefit-

ted from e-struct’s family friendly

staffing approach, striking a good

balance between work and childcare

responsibilities. E-struct benefits in

retaining an excellent staff member.

She anticipates returning to full-time

work when her boys are older.

“The best thing about work-

ing at e-struct would be the

fact that though each of us

have separate responsibili-

ties in our small business,

everything is achieved

through close team work. I

value both the relationships

I have developed with cli-

ents and the support I re-

ceive from my colleagues.”

Edge heave results from ex-

cessive moisture being ab-

sorbed by the soil predomi-

nately under the edges of the

slab. It has a rapid effect and,

insofar as defects go, will oc-

cur soon after construction is

completed. Edge heave has

led to what some have

deemed the ‘home defect cri-

sis of the Western Suburbs.‘

Recent court cases involving

the disastrous effect of edge

heave have led to adverse

findings for some large build-

ing companies (subject to ap-

peal).

Identifying contributing factors

is not straightforward. An argu-

ment has been made that own-

ers are mostly at fault, as land-

scaping is not usually part of

the builders’ responsibility.

However, VCAT has dismissed

this (in reported cases to date).

Though these rulings are sub-

ject to appeal, the outcome

demands builders pay the

owners’ costs to cover the

complete demolition and re-

construction of the residences,

as a result of the fluid nature of

the problems encountered.

Essentially, edge heave is dev-

astating for all parties affected.

looking after clients but she also

found she quite liked the adminis-

trative duties her role provided.

All these elements led Jade to a

new focus, to pursue finding an

administrative role and she was

successful when offered her re-

ceptionist job at e-struct in 2010.

Aside from running the e-struct

office, juggling geotechnical sched-

ules and learning more about engi-

neering than she ever probably

could have anticipated, Jade is our

resident printing specialist.

e-struct News Issue 03 March 2015

Residential Soil Testing

Commercial Soil Testing

Distressed Footing Assessments

Tree Effects Assessments

Bushfire Attack Level (BAL)

Landslide Risk Management (EMO)

Percolation Testing (Soaker Drainage)

Land Capability Assessments (LCA)

Feature & Level Surveys (inc AHD)

Neighbourhood Feature Reports

DCP Testing

Flood Hazard Assessments

Wind Zone Assessments

Energy Rating &

Sustainability

Residential & Commercial Rating

6 Star Assessments

FirstRate5 Energy Rating

NCC, Vol 2, Sec 3.12 DTS

NCC, Vol 1, Sec J DTS

Artificial Lighting Rating

WERS Glazing Spec.

Sustainable Design Assessments (SDA)

STEPS, SDS, STORM

Standard & Waffle Slabs

Strip Footings

Tree Effects Footings

Timber, Steel & Concrete Design

Tecbeam & Tecslab

Masonry & Hebel Design

Retaining Walls

Bracing Design

ICF Design

Swimming Pool Design

Basement Structure Design

Distressed Structure Reports

Preliminary Assessments

Geotechnical

& Soil Testing

Civil

Engineering

e-struct

@estructengineer

www.e-struct.com.au

(03) 9770 1738

1300 E STRUCT (1300 378 782)

e-struct-consulting-services

mail@e-struct.com.au

Our Services

Structural

Engineering

(03) 9770 1740

Stay in touch

PO Box 7095

Karingal 3199

SaveSaveSaveSave $130$130$130$130 on Double Storey Energy Rating

New Savings are Staying!New Savings are Staying!New Savings are Staying!New Savings are Staying! SaveSaveSaveSave $100$100$100$100 on Single Storey Energy Rating

At e-struct . . .

Drainage Design

Retention Systems

WSUD

Soakage Systems

Pumps Systems

Driveway Designs

Easement Drains

Outfall Drains

Culverts

Basement Drainage

Car Park Design

Open Channel Design

Overland Flow Path

Bushfire Management Statements (BMO)

Waste Management Reports

Site or Environmental Management Plans

Tree Root Protection Works Specifications

Design & Development Overlay (DDO) Reports

Structural Assessment for Planning Compliance

Erosion Management Overlay (EMO) Reports

PlanWay

Consulting Reports