The Centre of Excellence for the Digital Child project included the fit out and refurbishment of the existing office space, meeting rooms, and the reception area of part of the ground floor of B209 at the Curtin University campus. The purpose of this project is to provide a new research function area along with “hot-desking” and children activities. The refurbishment includes soft demolition works, reconfiguration of walls, construction of new walls, new doors, new finishes, painting, new joinery and cabinetry, new furniture, reuse of existing furniture, AV equipment, and adjustment of the existing services (plumbing, HVAC, and electrical).
Rawlinsons were engaged to provide a Project Definition Phase cost estimate where we have factored in all known COVID-19 related cost implications at the time of the estimate to represent accurate costings to the team. Rawlinsons helped the project team save costs after in three value engineering processes to help return the project back into the allocated budget. We suggested the reuse of existing furniture, some design alternatives for acoustic treatments, possible HVAC scope reductions, and similar items. This helped the team try in bringing back the project cost into a more appropriate budget for the works. We ensured that all costs are transparent so the University may understand the cost implications of every scope of work and client decision. This proved to be extremely useful in visualising the cost implications of their choices and also reduce turnaround time in decision-making.
