Dust and Noise Control During Construction of New Suncorp Tower in Brisbane

Project Overview

In 2021, Suncorp decided to create a brand-new post-pandemic workplace for their staff. The new facility would be based in Brisbane, Queensland, and would boast impressive sustainability credentials. Steve Johnstone, CEO, said, "It will be a different workplace, with more collaboration spaces, and teams will be able to choose a work setting best suited to the task in hand."

Challenge

During the fitout, Trieste Global were cutting tiles on multiple floors of the Mirvac Construction site. Cutting tiles creates fine Respirable Crystalline Silica Dust particles (RCS) which can get lodged deep in your lungs. Over time, this causes inflammation and scarring and can result in Silicosis - an irreversible, fatal disease. As such, a dust control solution was required to protect the workforce.

Solution

As specialists in silica dust control, RVT Group were asked to specify and supply a suitable solution. RVT Group recommended a DUSTEX Raptor unit coupled with ducting and a capture hood, installed in our SOUNDEX Multi Purpose enclosure. RVT then adopted the 3 C's methodology (Capture, Contain, Control) to ensure RCS was controlled in the most efficient way.

CAPTURE: A DUSTEX Raptor extraction unit (with HEPA filtration) was positioned as close to the activity as possible to ensure that dust was captured at source.

CONTAIN: A SOUNDEX Acoustic Enclosure was supplied to contain the work area, and reduce noise.

CONTROL: The DUSTEX Raptor provided an airflow of 1000m3/hr, which enabled us to create a negative pressure environment and ensure zero dust migration.

The client was happy with the solution, and everyone on site remained protected from exposure to Silica dust.