The Adelaide Oval Redevelopment has won the highest honour conferred at Engineers Australia’s South Australia (SA) Engineering Excellence Awards, triumphing over entrants from large infrastructure works to complex software systems, planning and policy reports and maritime history.

Taking home the prestigious Malcolm Kinnaird Engineering Excellence Award, along with the Buildings and Structures Excellence prize, the $535 million project has transformed the previously aging venue into a state of the art, 53,500 seat stadium, whilst revitalising the city’s riverbank precinct.

Arup, Aurecon, AECOM and Wallbridge & Gilbert collaborated closely on the project, which involved construction of a new southern and eastern stand, and retained the heritage scoreboard, grassed northern mound, and views of the St Peters Cathedral.

The team worked closely with Cox Architects, Hames Sharley, Walterbrooke and Lend Lease to address a site that had inherent problems relating to low to medium levels of environmental constraints, ranging from contamination to mixed fill types resulting from earlier development projects.

Image: ABC

New benchmarks set for engineering excellence in SA were also recognised at the awards, with Thiess and York Civil winning the Project Infrastructure Award for the Goodwood Junction Rail Grade Separation.

The project involved a 550-metre grade separation of the existing interstate freight and passenger lines from the Seaford line, which removed the need for trains on either track to stop and give way.

Image: Thiess

Other winners of the night include Saab Australia for the ANZAC ASMD – Australia’s World Leading Naval Combat Management System, which provides the ANZAC class with a significantly enhanced level of self and local area defence against modern anti-ship missiles.

SA’s Engineering Excellence Award winners are now eligible to nominate for the National Engineering Excellence Awards to be held at the Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre on Monday, November 24.

Full list of winners:

Malcolm Kinnaird Engineering Excellence Award

Adelaide Oval Redevelopment – Arup, Wallbridge & Gilbert, Aurecon, AECOM

Project Infrastructure

Goodwood Junction Rail Grade Separation – Thiess and York Civil

Control Systems, Networks, Information Processing and Telecommunications

ANZAC ASMD – Australia’s World Leading Naval Combat Management System – Saab Australia

Building and Structures

Adelaide Oval Redevelopment – Arup, Wallbridge & Gilbert, Aurecon, AECOM

Commendations

Buildings and Structures
City of Adelaide Clipper Ship Retrieval Project – Aztec Analysis
South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute – Aurecon Australasia Pty Ltd, Norman Disney & Young

Innovation / Research and Development
An Accessible Gaming System for Children with Limited Hand Function – Flinders University, University of South Australia, Women's and Children's Health Network

Resource Development
Copper Crude Ore Bin Life Extension Project – Jacobs, MCA Engineering Group