The BESIX Watpac project team of Te Kaha, Canterbury's Multi-Use Arena for Christchurch City Council, has put into place the first of the forty radial trusses that will support the building’s roof. This marks a significant and highly visible construction milestone for the project, and this progress brings the city one step closer to completing the 30,000-seat sports and events venue.
Mastodont trusses
The individual steel components are delivered to the site and assembled into large 37-metre-long radial trusses. Each truss weighs between 45 and 75 tonnes and is being lifted into place by a 400-tonne crane brought in for the job. Passers-by are now starting to see the spectacular scale of the arena as the imposing trusses are put in place. When finished, Te Kaha will stand 48 metres at its highest point, or around nine stories high.
On-schedule
This intricate process of constructing and installing the radial trusses and the roof structure is expected to continue over the next 11 months. The construction of Te Kaha has been progressing smoothly, staying on schedule. In the timelapse below you can witness the incredible progress of the works over 12 months up to November 2023.
David Kennedy, Christchurch City Council’s Te Kaha Project Delivery Chief Executive: “Lead contractors BESIX Watpac and their subcontractors have made great progress throughout 2023 and we start the new year in a good position, with the radial trusses going in and the ground floor concrete superstructure work wrapping up.”
Alongside the radial truss work, BESIX Watpac continues to install the structural steel to the western stand, and east and south seating tiers, along with the precast concrete double tee floors on the western, southern, and eastern stands.
Top-tier venue
Once complete, the Te Kaha multi-use arena is set to become New Zealand’s premier and most accessible, inclusive, and sustainable venue for major sporting contests and international concerts. The arena will provide 30,000 seats with capacity to accommodate 36,000 patrons for large concerts all under the cover of a roof. The stadium is scheduled to be completed in 2026. The ’Warriors’ New Zealand rugby team has already committed to taking the 2026 home game to Christchurch’s new international arena.
Congratulations to the team in Christchurch for this major step ahead, which demonstrates BESIX Watpac’s capability to deliver world-class stadiums and venues, based on BESIX Watpac’s 40+ years of experience.