Built successfully delivers project at the heart of an iconic Sydney landmark

We are proud to celebrate the completion of the Sydney Opera House Box Office Accessibility Project, which recently reached practical completion.

This project involved the installation of a new escalator and was part of a larger undertaking around accessibility for the Box Office of the Sydney Opera House. During excavation works for the escalator pit, the team uncovered heritage artefacts in the ground dating back to the original Barbette Wall of the Fort Macquarie Tower.

Fort Macquarie was built in c.1798 and was later demolished in 1901 to make way for the new electric tramway sheds. The tramway sheds depot was then constructed from the remnants of Fort Macquarie and it was later demolished in 1958 to make way for the construction of the Sydney Opera House that we have today.

The artefacts found in ground whilst undertaking the excavation works were of state and national significance and, due to the discovery, the team shifted their focus to assist the client with multiple stakeholder heritage reports and looked for an alternate temporary works installation methodology to be able to protect the artefacts during the installation of the steel structural elements.

Working in a UNESCO World Heritage landmark, and one of Australia’s most iconic cultural precincts, was an exciting challenge that the team wholeheartedly embraced throughout the project. It required careful coordination from the project team when collaborating with the range of stakeholders involved in the project, including the client, subcontractors, heritage consultant, the general public, and more.

The team operated in a very tight space, having only 60mm leeway on either side of the escalator to work within. They also managed disruptions in a busy cultural precinct, with all major works being scheduled out of the normal operating hours of the Sydney Opera House.

“The Sydney Opera House is such an iconic building, it was a privilege to be working there,” said Jon Athey, Site Supervisor, Built.

We’re proud to have delivered this project at the heart of an iconic Sydney landmark.