Hub scoops a 2005 Steel Award

The Innovation Hub was recently named the winner of a Steel Award in the category Excellence in Execution for the innovative application of steel structures at the Hub's new precinct. Announced in August this year at the 2005 Steel Awards event, which is held annually under the auspices of the Southern African Institute of Steel Construction (SAISC), the award acknowledged the bold statements made by the steelworks at the site.

The judges commented specifically on the dramatic cable-stayed structural steel canopy at the entrance to the Hub (pictured above left), which bridges six lanes of traffic and offers shelter for security personnel and visitors, as well as providing visitors with an "innovative arrival" experience, according to the August issue of Steel Construction, the journal published by SAISC. Special mention was made about the detailed bus shelter, where the design is function-driven with steel used for the roof, back wall and seat - "a superb little masterpiece".

The site also boasts exposed steel that "catches the eye" and dominates the Hub's two core buildings, the Innovation Centre and the Enterprise Building, such as the staircase pictured above right.. The buildings are rounded off by galvanized steel trim that surrounds exposed edging, while balcony edges are trimmed in galvanized balustrades and steel and aluminum sun shading elements.

The entrances to both buildings provide shelter from the elements through tubular steel entrance canopies which "hang" across the plaza between the two buildings. The extensive and visible use of steel in the construction of the site succeeds admirably in giving it the required high-tech look and feel - a suitable backdrop to the high-tech knowledge worker community in residence at the Hub.

For more information on the awards, read some of the media clippings: