Brookfield PropertiesBay Adelaide Centre has grown impressively over the past year. Fifty-two weeks ago on the construction site there was little more than a one-storey tall concrete box; the beginning of the building's central core. In the year since, the core has risen to within a few floors of its final 44-storey height, with the steel skeleton of the office tower following seven floors behind.

Bay Adelaide East rising next to the west tower, image by Forum contributor Razz

Designed by KPMB Architects and Adamson Associates Architects, with heritage work by ERA Architects, Bay Adelaide East will add 1,020,000 square feet of real estate to the Financial District, alongside the existing 51-storey Bay Adelaide West Tower.

Bay Adelaide East rising into the downtown skyline, image by Forum contributor Razz

The speed at which the east tower has been constructed can be attributed to two factors; the frame of the tower is being built with structural steel, while the concrete tower core is being built using the jumpform method—the full name of which is Automatic Climbing System (ACS) Jumpform. According to builder Brookfield Multiplex,

The use of ACS Jumpform is less common in Canada than in other countries; however, this technology offers some notable advantages:

  • ACS Jumpform was developed for large, elaborate building projects and is safer and more efficient than conventional approaches to construction of tall commercial structures. The system installs the frame and walls of a modern office tower using pre-assembled metal forms that climb the outside of the building on rails, propelled by hydraulic jacks.
  • ACS Jumpform technology allows for construction in weather conditions that would otherwise curtail operations. Using this technology, Brookfield Multiplex Canada can erect a higher quality building in less time than required by traditional construction approaches, with fewer cranes on site.

In the image below, we can see the jumpform section atop recently poured core levels, viewed from the Bay Adelaide Centre's West Tower.

A view of Bay Adelaide East's upper floors viewed from Bay Adelaide West, image by Martin

A few floors below the current top of the concrete core, the steel structure of the tower floors is keeping a steady pace. The image below gives us a detailed view of a the current uppermost tower floors, as well as a rare chance to see the connection points between the steel skeleton and the concrete core.

A view of Bay Adelaide East's upper floors viewed from Bay Adelaide West, image by Martin

Additional information about the Bay Adelaide Centre East can be found in our dataBase file, linked below. Want to get involved in the discussion? Check out our associated Forum thread, or add your voice in the comments section provided at the bottom of this page.

Related Companies:  Adamson Associates Architects, ANTAMEX, entro, Entuitive, LRI Engineering Inc., Multiplex, Trillium Architectural Products, Walters Group, WZMH Architects