Containerised Solutions
Royal Wolf and Tennis Australia recreate a Melbourne landmark with net gains
The Project
Royal Wolf supplied and modified over 100 containers to create vendor spaces and support structures for Tennis Australia’s high-impact eating and drinking precinct at the 2022 Australian Open.
Summary
Royal Wolf delivered a complex, multi-level container installation featuring five stacked areas, walkways, and kiosks, with custom modifications to ensure safety and uniformity. The solution incorporated cantilevered LED screens, welded walkways, and precise cladding coordination, enabling a visually striking, functional precinct that engaged the public and accommodated multiple vendors seamlessly across the 38 x 38-metre space.
Challenge
Tennis Australia required a large and highly coordinated container solution across multiple precincts, including a double-stacked entrance, the main and V-stacked areas at the Grand Slam Oval, a double-stacked screen at Northern Beach, and a triple-stacked screen at the Lower Terrace. The project involved sourcing and installing 104 x 20-foot containers, 4 x 40-foot containers, and 1 x 10-foot container, all of which needed to be carefully stacked, modified, and integrated to meet safety, functional, and aesthetic requirements for the event.
Solution
Royal Wolf’s extensive stacking credentials meant speedy turnarounds for the stacking components. External engineers took five weeks to wrap the more complex design for the Grand Slam centrepiece with its kiosks, laneways and bars.
“The area is 38 x 38 metres. It’s double-stacked. There’s a cantilevered LED screen that weighs over a tonne so we put lots of ballast inside the containers,” says Patrick Weber, conveying the challenge scale.
Walkways constructed out of floating containers had to be welded; with special locks installed.
Collaborating with the cladding crew, Royal Wolf carefully revised how to connect their containers.
“We couldn’t have anything protruding too far because the cladding needed to be exactly uniform across the project,” says Patrick Weber.
“We were asking the engineer, ‘Can we do this? Can we remove that?’,” expands Patrick Weber.
“There were a lot of things that were unique about this Australian Open project. But we got it done and we got it done safely.”
Solutions provided
- Creative logistical solutions
- Container modifications
- Modifications for structure safety
- Engineering
- Containers sourced from several Royal Wolf locations
- Containers delivered on-site
Outcome
“What Tennis Australia has done this year in that Grand Slam Oval, compared to last year, is extraordinary,” says Patrick Weber. “Our product has engaged with the public in a way that has really activated the space. Everyone’s drawn to it.”
