The Birrarung Marr Playground had become rundown and required a painting overhaul to restore it to its former glory.

The Birrarung Marr Park within Melbourne's inner-city plays home to a range of facilities. Its iconic playground that has brought smiles to the faces of children since its construction, had become dilapidated and required some tender-love-and-care.  

The challenge

The playground’s condition had been worsening for years, with the steelwork fading, slides becoming discoloured and graffiti ubiquitous. Our Melbourne Team was engaged to not only rejuvenate life into this playground but also provide a solution that will withstand its rigours.

The life of the paint was dire, with surfaces subjected to flaking and a bevy of graffiti. Developing a coating system that would reduce future peeling was a necessity, which provided a unique challenge.

While finding an appropriate coating was difficult enough to determine, the application proved to be just as challenging. Due to the complexity of the painting specification, any unsolicited pedestrian traffic throughout the project would yield significant ramifications and cause extensive delays to the project.

Solution

After lengthy consultation with Dulux, a hybrid coating system was developed. The durable coating system we selected was comprised of Dulux Durabild, Dulux Weathermax and Dulux Surfaceshield. The Durabild and Weathermax aimed to protect against the environmental conditions, while the Surfaceshield operated as an anti-graffiti coating.

Prior to application, extensive temporary fencing was erected to ensure the safety of the public and curtail any threat of vandals. Our operations team featured three of our longest-tenured experts, to ensure that we catered to the project’s nuances. The operations plan involved staged repaints over two-months, and focussed on steelwork, rendered retaining walls and paths, slides and FC sheet panels.

At the completion of the final stage, a Serco representative met our Project Manager on-site to assess the works and sign the project off. 

Results

The finish was as vibrant as the space itself, with the works pleasing Serco and the City of Melbourne alike. 

“Higgins provided us with an extremely professional service, from the planning stage to the end product. They’ve rejuvenated the playground by applying an extensive protective coating system, in big, bold and bright colours. The City of Melbourne and Serco were very impressed with the dramatic transformation. I would recommend their services to others looking for a quality painting job and we look forward to working with them on our next project.”

Senior Capital Works Manager, Open Space Management & Maintenance