Waterfront Tavern Project | Acacia Joinery

Client Needs

The building comprises four interconnected, gabled pavilions, partially cantilevered over the public boardwalk and waters of Shellharbour Marina below. Clad in Accoya, a high-performance modified timber, the building was designed to maximise sustainability and durability while minimising maintenance in the harsh marine environment. The restrained materiality of the design also enhances its connectivity to the surrounding environment.

Acacia was commissioned to craft the comprehensive suite of external and internal glazed windows and door units in Accoya, including the large hydraulic operable windows for the northern and eastern facades. These expansive windows facilitate open air dining, embracing the coastal atmosphere when the weather is favourable, while providing shelter during the cooler months or inclement weather.

Challenges

This was an exciting project for Acacia, providing the opportunity to design and manufacture a myriad of unusually shaped, raked window frames, and large-scale awning windows to be fitted with the Renlita hydraulic operating system.

The construction timeline was extremely tight, requiring strong collaboration with the building team at New England Constructions, and detailed production scheduling across the five-stage project.

Transport of the doors and windows provided some challenges due to the size and weight of the units, as well as the irregular frame shapes of the raked windows. Cranes were required to lift the large window units from the transport vehicles into position, which in turn required precise coordination with the onsite construction team.

Solutions

Across five project stages, 49 large door and window units were manufactured. As the majority of these units incorporated multiple panels, the number of glass pieces within these units totalled 351. The significant number of unusually shaped frames and glazing required a high degree of design expertise, engineering, and precision manufacturing; an area in which Acacia excels.

Acacia worked closely with the Renlita engineers to ensure the hydraulic operating system was integrated seamlessly into the timber frames. To facilitate this, each awning window frame was designed and fabricated with customised cut outs to allow for the hydraulic hardware.

The Acacia team pulled together to meet tight production timeframes, with the additional shifts to maximise productivity and minimise turnaround. In some cases, the team delivered windows in less than a week from the completion of shop drawings and approval. Delivery dates and times were coordinated with the onsite construction team from New England Constructions. Cranes were used to lift and place the window frames into position, which were subsequently glazed onsite to prevent damage during the installation process.

Awards

Since completion Waterfront Tavern has received several awards and accolades including Winner of the 2022 Australian Timber Design Awards, Winner of both ‘Hospitality Buildings, New $10 million - $20 million’ and ‘Best Use of Timber’ categories at the 2022 NSW Master Builders Association - Excellence in Construction Awards and was shortlisted for ‘Best Bar Design’ in the 2022 Eat Drink Design Awards.

“The Waterfront Tavern project evolved as a contemporary interpretation of the form and materiality characteristic of traditional timber wharf structures. Timber was integral to the design, inside and out.

The project features a range of fixed and operable glazed timber framed fenestrations. All are integrated with complex cladding details in an exposed marine environment. Acacia embraced the spirit of the project, brought their significant experience to the resolution of design and detail, and ultimately their exceptional craftsmanship to the execution of the project.

We very much look forward to working with Acacia again on future projects.”

Glenn Cunnington, H&E Architects, Architect

Waterfront Tavern

Project Details

Project Overview