Major contract for Schindler in Melbourne;183-m-tall builiding for Sydney

Schindler to Supply 176 Units for Melbourne Metro

Schindler has won a contract to supply 103 escalators and 73 elevators for the Metro Tunnel Project in Melbourne, largest-ever public transportation project in the state of Victoria, the company announced in March. The project involves the construction of two 9-km rail tunnels and five new underground stations. Because of space challenges, Schindler will install compact escalators and elevators. The installation will include a custom-engineered, 7000-kg machine-room-less elevator fitted with 4-m-tall landing doors. Once the line is in operation, the Schindler equipment is expected to transport more than half a million people a day. The project is planned to be completed in 2025.

Project Would Bring Office Tower, Retail to Sydney Waterfront

Danish architecture firm Henning Larsen has won a design competition for Cockle Bay Park, a development that will bring a high-rise office building and low-rise retail space to the waterfront in Sydney, Dezeen reported in March. The low-rise buildings will be near the harbor, creating a picturesque promenade on what the designers call the “village scale” portion of the development. The office tower, rising 183 m, is the “city scale” part. The tower will be set on elevated pillars and broken up by green spaces that give its blocks an asymmetrical, floating effect. The motivation for Cockle Bay Park’s design was to create “a destination with a different sense of scale,” while introducing a park area in the middle of the city, Henning Larsen partner Viggo Haremst said.

The Cockle Bay Park project is not without controversy, however. When announced in 2016, it ran into opposition from the City of Sydney Council, which has plans to create a Town Hall Square in the area. City officials argue that the development would increase the shadowing on the
future square.