House of the Year award makes it a 'ton' for Better Building Services

Better Building Services chalked up a century of awards when it took out the House of the Year at the 2018 Master Builders ACT Building Excellence Awards at the National Convention Centre.

It was the eighth time Better Building Services had won House of the Year, this year for Onyx, a three-storey display home at Denman Prospect in the Molonglo Valley.

The company, along with DNA Architects and Sugar Designs, also won the Display Home more than 225 square metres category, with Wisteria, at Googong.

Managing Director Ivan Juric said the team was overwhelmed with the success, which also includes nine national awards over the 24-year life of the company.

“That’s a huge result for us and our team,” he said. “We never thought we’d get there but that’s a lifetime of work.”

It’s due reward for the company’s focus on quality.

Mr Juric said that with Onyx the company wanted to showcase the talents of its designers, suppliers and contractors.

“It pushes the boundaries of what most builders and sub-contractors could actually deliver for that sort of standard, because it was super complicated,” he said.

It had the ‘wow factor’ but not only for what could be seen.

“You can make a house look good but what you can’t see you can feel, so when you walk into the house it feels like a beautiful, comfortable home,” Mr Juric said. “Over the 25 years that I’ve been doing this, that is the hardest thing to achieve, to make a house feel right.”

The house features Matt Colorbond steel roofing and cladding and Bluckbutt timber panelling on the outside, while inside Hebel silent floors on the upper levels, German manufactured double glazed windows, and maximum ceiling and wall insulation provide acoustic and thermal comfort.

Sealed tight, the house achieves an energy rating of 7.8 stars, not easy to do in a building of this size.

“It’s really easy to build a single-storey house to rate six or seven stars,” Mr Juric said. “But multi-storey houses are really difficult because of the volume and the amount of glass. This has lots of volume and lots of glass. It’s just attention to detail. That’s what my team focuses on.”

The use of a German manufactured pre-fabricated kitchen required precision workmanship, with accuracy within a millimetre, before installation.

Mr Juric said a home like Onyx would be a 12-month build and work out to about $1.5 million all inclusive, depending on the site. It is open Saturday to Wednesday 10:00 am – 4:00pm.

Other winners included Built for Project of the Year, the Brindabella Christian College Junior School; Project Manager of the Year Sean Hague from Manteena Commercial; Emerging Residential Builder of the Year Joel Valtonen from Finnished Projects; and Apprentice of the Year James Hubbard, with Master Builders ACT

The awards brought together the building industry and wider business community to recognise and acknowledge the excellence in craftsmanship, quality, safety and building construction of the local building and construction community.

CEO of Master Builders ACT, Michael Hopkins, said the awards highlighted innovation and those coming through the ranks to make their mark on the industry.

“Innovation in building has seen the creation of spaces that will influence the lives of Canberrans in areas such as education, health and community. The finalists and winners of these projects should be proud to have played their part in evolving our city,” he said.

“We also welcome the emerging leaders in our industry. This year’s awards saw the median age of finalists and winners drop considerably. After many years of long-standing members consistently upholding our industry standards, a new generation is budding. We look forward to seeing where this new generation takes us as we move into the future.”

The full list of winners:

House of the Year
Project: “Onyx”, Denman Prospect
Name: Better Building Services, DNA Architects and Sugar Designs

Project of the Year
Project: Brindabella Christian College Junior School
Name: Built

Subcontractor of the Year
Parliament Constructions

Project Manager of the Year
Sean Hague, Manteena Commercial

Onsite Construction Manager of the Year
Ross Greenup – Shaw Building Group

Emerging Residential Builder of the Year
Joel Valtonen – Finnished Projects

University of Canberra Student of the Year
Catherine Kambouris

Professional of the Year
Andrew Naylor – BCA Certifiers

Apprentice of the Year
James Hubbard – Master Builders ACT

Supplier of the Year
CE Construction Solutions

Apartments and Units
1) Apartments and Units – Up to three storeys
Project: Gateway
Name: Core Building Group

2) Apartments and Units – four storeys and above
Project: Greenwich Park
Name: Chase Building Group

3) Apartments and Units – High-Rise Living
Project: Infinity
Name: Geocon

Bathroom Design & Construction
1) Bathroom Project less than $30,000
Project: “Wisteria”, Googong
Name: Better Building Services and Sugar Designs

2) Bathroom Project more than $30,000
Project: Capital Veneering and Brother Projects – Yarralumla
Name: Capital Veneering and Brother Projects

Best Use of Material
1) Commercial (Exterior)
Project: AIS Basketball and Netball Centre Upgrade
Name: Built

2) Commercial (Interior)
Project: Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet
Name: Parliament Constructions

3) Residential (Exterior)
Project: “Onyx”, Denman Prospect
Name: Better Building Services

4) Residential (Interior)
Project: Red Hill
Name: Monarch Interior Solutions

Chief Minister’s Affordable Housing
Project: Boss Constructions – Narrabundah
Name: Boss Constructions

Civil Projects
1) Civil – Bridgeworks
Project: Strengthening of Bridge 5179
Name: Complex Civil

2) Civil – Roadworks
Project: Dickson Bus Station
Name: Cord Civil

3) Civil – Hydraulic
Project: IWC East
Name: Guideline ACT

4) Civil – Subdivision
Project: Throsby Residential Estate Stage 2
Name: Canberra Contractors

5) Civil – Other
Project: West Basin Boardwalk – Stage 1
Name: Chincivil

Commercial Building
1) Commercial Building under $5 million
Project: High Commission of Samoa
Name: Manteena Commercial

2) Commercial Building $5 million to $20 million
Project: Brindabella Christian College Junior School
Name: Built

3) Commercial Building $20 million to $50 million
Project: St Christopher’s Cathedral Precinct Development
Name: Hindmarsh Construction Australia

4) Commercial Building more than $50 million
Project: Calvary Bruce Private Hospital
Name: A W Edwards

Commercial Fit out, Refurbishment or Alteration and Buildings
1) Commercial Fitout, Refurbishment or Alteration less than $1million
Project: Microsoft Office Fitout
Name: Projex Building Group and AMC Architecture

2) Commercial Fitout, Refurbishment or Alteration $1million – $5million
Project: Erindale Vikings Club
Name: Projex Building Group and AMC Architecture

3) Commercial Fitout, Refurbishment or Alteration more than $5million
Project: Australian Public Service Commission, Treasury Building
Name: SHAPE Australia

Custom Built Homes
1) Custom Built Homes less than 150 m2
Project: Inspired Building Group – Moncrieff
Name: Inspired Building Group

2) Custom Built Homes 150 m2 to 250 m2
Project: 360 Building Solutions – Hackett
Name: 360 Building Solutions

3) Custom Built Homes 250 m2 to 350 m2
Project: R & A Andriolo and DNA Architects – Yarralumla
Name: R & A Andriolo and DNA Architects

4) Custom Built Homes more than 350 m2
Project: Brother Projects – Yarralumla
Name: Brother Projects

Display Homes
1) Display Home less than 225 m2
Project: “Wisteria”, Googong
Name: Better Building Services, DNA Architects and Sugar Designs

2) Display Home more than 225 m2
Project: “Onyx”, Denman Prospect
Name: Better Building Services, DNA Architects and Sugar Designs

Kitchen Design and Construction
1) Kitchen Project less than $30,000
Project: Blackett Homes and Pioneer Kitchens – Denman Prospect
Name: Blackett Homes and Pioneer Kitchens

2) Kitchen Project more than $30,000
Project: Capital Veneering and Brother Projects – Yarralumla
Name: Capital Veneering and Brother Projects

Landscape Design and Construction
1) Commercial
Project: National Boer War Memorial
Name: Glascott Landscape and Civil

2) Residential
Project: The Linden
Name: Kolak Living

Medium Density Housing
1) Medium Density Housing – Dual Occupancy
Project: Shaw Building Group – Hughes
Name: Shaw Building Group

2) Medium Density Housing – Townhouses and Villas
Project: Mizura Villas
Name: Core Building Group and DNA Architects

Project Exhibiting Technical Difficulty or Innovation
Project: The Canberra Hospital – Essential Services Infrastructure
Name: Shaw Building Group

Project Homes
1) Project Home less than $300,000
Project: Achieve Homes – Googong
Name: Achieve Homes

2) Project Home more than $300,000
Project: MSL Projects – Moncrieff
Name: MSL Projects

Renovations/Extensions
1) Renovation/Extension less than $250,000
Entrant: Build Professional – Griffith
Name: Build Professional

2) Renovation/Extension $250,000 – $450,000
Entrant: Status Living and The Mill, Architecture + Design – Nicholls
Name: Status Living and The Mill

3) Renovation/Extension $450,000
Entrant: Walmsley Building – O’Connor
Name: Walmsley Building

Sustainable Construction
1) Residential
Entrant: Bespoke Building Services and Light House Architecture & Science –
Campbell
Name: Bespoke Building Services and Light House

2) Civil Project: Modified Capeseal
Name: Downer EDI Works

Work Health & Safety
1) Targeted Risk Management System
Project: Horse Park Drive Duplication Stage 2, 4 and 5
Name: Canberra Contractors

2) Work Health and Safety – Subcontractor
Project: RCS Risk Management
Name: Pacific Stone

3) Work Health and Safety – Commercial
Project: Infinity
Name: GEOCON

4) Work Health and Safety – Civil
Project: Tuggeranong Parkway
Name: Downer EDI Works