Today, construction with Pres-Lam – pre-stressed laminated timber – has become a popular method for its environmental, sustainability, cost, design, weight and performance advantages – as well as its resistance to earthquakes. The technique reduces earthquake damage by dissipating energy and controlling movement in the structure. The latest new build structure using this post-tensioned timber approach is the three-storey, $57 million Ashburton Library and Civic Centre.

As well as the 2,450m2 library, the building includes the Council chambers, a Civil Defence emergency operations centre and an information centre – and has also given a new lease on life to the 107-year-old Pioneer Hall, which sits in the middle of the structure and can be seen from all sides. 

Contech supplied, installed and stressed 218 Macalloy 1030 Grade 25mm bar tendons to secure the building’s 46 lightweight, seismic-damage-resistant cross-laminated timber (CLT) shear walls. The work also included installing 8 No. Macalloy SC460 Stainless Cables supporting laminated-veneer-lumber (LVL) beams, two pairs of Macalloy S460 stainless cross braces in the Pioneer Hall, and 6 No. Macalloy S460 stainless tension rods for the two canopies.