State Emergency Services Facility

WGA AU | Wallbridge Gilbert Aztec - Photo: State Emergency Services Facility

The Project

This project involved the construction of the State Government's purpose-built emergency services headquarters, housing the South Australia Fire and Emergency Commission, Metropolitan Fire Services, Country Fire Service & State Emergency Service. The new precinct provides timely, efficient and effective services to the community and acts as a symbol of "home" for staff and volunteers alike. Key features include a 5,500 sqm purpose-built four-storey office and response facility, 500 bay six-level car park, and warehouse and logistics compound.

Technical Solutions

WGA led the project's structural, civil and geotechnical components and assisted in the site selection and master planning process with the developer. Key design considerations included the requirement for the office facility to remain fully functional following a major disaster such as a flood, fire or earthquake. Given this, the building was designed to Importance Level 4 standards. Careful consideration during planning was taken to ensure flood waters would not impact the office building through extensive hydraulic modelling.

Client Focus

To meet the client brief and comply with the requirements of an importance level 4 structure, the office building needed to be designed to remain fully operational following a 1:500-year earthquake event. The primary building elements, in addition to any essential equipment and services, were required to remain undamaged following the event. During the planning stage, WGA helped guide the building layout, selected materials and construction methods adopted to maximise the building's overall seismic performance. The careful detailing of the concrete elements designed to resist the expected lateral loads was critical to the design. With construction completed in 2022, 300 emergency services employees were collocated to the precinct. 


The State Emergency Services Facility is included in the following services.
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