Studco and Forman Building Systems took on the challenge to manufacture and deliver 12-metre-high steel studs for internal acoustic walls, for the movie complex at the Ormiston Town Centre in South Auckland, NZ.

Relying on their expertise and proven ability to deliver innovative solutions, project sub-contractors, Mason & Hall Interiors, approached Forman with a request for 12.08-metre long studs to build a wall designed by an engineering firm for the unique cinemas.

Daniel Gibbs, Product Manager at Forman Building Systems explained that “Because of the acoustic requirement to stop sound transmission through the walls, a lot of consideration is given to the way the internal space is designed to deliver the best acoustic experience. The walls at Ormiston were not connected back to the structure. They span from the ground to the roof, which is a greater engineering feat as it doesn’t require support from the structure.”

With this project design, the steel studs could not be spliced and joined through the middle as that would create a weak point, so they needed to be rolled as one continuous piece. However, the longest off-the-shelf steel stud length available is only 7.2 metres.

So, Forman approached Studco to roll custom lengths of steel specifically for the Ormiston project. Knowing 12 metre studs would be a tricky task, the Studco manufacturing team needed to take extra precautions whilst producing the unprecedented studs. As the hollow C-section-shaped steel studs rolled off the machines, three people had to stand by ready to catch each one.

The next big task was to transport the studs from Studco’s manufacturing plant in Melbourne, Australia to the Forman distribution facility in New Zealand. This proved to be a challenge, as containers have a maximum capacity of just under 12 metres, but these studs were just over. They poked out slightly from the ends, but with a lot of care it was still achievable, and the studs arrived safely in NZ.

Despite the challenges involved, Forman and Studco worked closely to ensure a smooth process for the customer and deliver a product that could be installed quickly and easily, without any issues on the building site.

“It certainly was an achievement to have worked through the process of understanding what the client wanted and coming up with a solution that worked brilliantly”, says Daniel.

Being the first to deliver steel studs of such a long length in NZ was not easy, but truly rewarding. Forman and Studco proved it could be done with a successful solution that overcame both manufacturing and transportation difficulties to assist their customer.

Have an upcoming project in NZ? Contact Forman Building Systems on 09 276 4000 for more information or email the Studco team at [email protected]