Project: Saffire Resort
Duration: March 2009 – April 2010
Contract Value: $3,500,000
Architect: Morris-Nunn and Associates
Engineer: Wood and Greave
Building Contractor: Fairbrother Constructions

Description:
Multi-award winning Tasmanian architects, Morris-Nunn and Associates, were given the brief to create an iconic, world class experience.  Located at Freycinet, on Tasmania’s serene east coast, Freycinet Development is nestled in a secluded location with vistas across Great Oyster Bay, to the imposing Hazards ranges beyond.  Saffire will be an inspirational coastal sanctuary which delivers sophisticated five star luxuries.

Contact Electrical was chosen for the head contractor for the installation of electrical and communications infrastructure for what is set to be Tasmania’s highest profile accommodation, from our client Fairbrother Construction.

The project has now been running for almost 8 months and is scheduled to be finished by the end of 2009.  We have a crew of 7 electricians on site and our main project supervisor Gary Brooks was running the project from the Launceston office. Due to the remote location of the site our electricians stay in purpose built accommodation that will later be used for the resort employees.

The lighting design for the project has been custom designed by a specialist lighting company from Sydney.  It will be using an intelligent Dynalite control system to create dynamic lighting scenes to highlight the unique architecture of the building.  One of the key elements with external lighting designed was to prevent stray light  being shown in the eyes of guests, this was to keep the stars of eastern Tasmania’s night sky visible at all times.

June / July 2009

September / October

November / December

February / March

April / May

May / June 

Project Wrap Up

This project was above all, a unique project to work on by both builder and sub-trades. It incorporated all services on an extremely remote site, limited amount of space to work, surrounded by a unique untouched natural environment. Areas were fenced off to avoid any displacement of flora and fauna, vehicles and machines washed before entering parts of site due to the positional possibility of root-rot infestation that could contaminate the site. It was a very unique site to work on and be a part of the construction in this incredible resort.

The basic construction on site, was for a 20 room, 6 star resort, complete with restaurant, conference rooms, day spa, gymnasium and incredible views of the Hazard mountains and Coles Bay.  The rooms incorporated full auto-control of lights, heating & blinds via an extensive Dynalite control system. All lighting, which included mostly LED strip, soft lighting lamps and feature lighting fittings were installed throughout, and specifically designed to enhance the experience of staying in such a place.

The main building incorporates multiple water features, all lit with LED lighting, feature ceilings and spectacular architectural features that make this resort unique. Together with state of the art data centers, video conferencing, background music and CCTV, it brings all the features of a modern world into a remote, hidden away paradise.

Our employees basically ‘lived’ on site for 18 months, venturing home a couple of time a month and then returning to site to push on. The winter of 2009 was particularly wet on the East coast, the wettest for 10 years, this made some work extremely difficult to undertake. Our guys worked right through this and then into the start of the cold in 2010 as well which made this a test of their strength and ability to live on a work site for so long.

The completion of this project was an absolute credit to all those that worked on it, and gave up their lives to be a part of it throughout the construction process. All employees on site were keen to see this project through to the end and are congratulated on providing such a high standard of installation practices.

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