One of the most fascinating developments in Toronto at the moment is the Queen Richmond Centre West (QRC West), developed by Allied Properties REIT and designed by Sweeny Sterling Finlayson &Co. Architects and Stephenson Engineering, with its awe-inspiring delta frames. In our last look at the QRC West project we noted the start of construction on the "table top" portion of the structure that is the start of the 11-storey office space.

Two delta frames and diaphragm structure under construction at QRC West, image courtesy of Indrid Cold

Thanks to our Forum members for keeping an eye on the development we can see that construction has progressed to the point where all three of the spectacular delta frames have undergone initial assembly and are joined to the web of steel, forming part of the tower's initial floor plate.

View of delta frame, diaphram and heritage building at QRC West, image courtesy of Jasonzed

The delta frames however, are still not yet ready for prime-time. In order for the frames to realize their full structural capabilities they need to be filled from bottom to top with concrete. This process can only commence once when all of the node-to-pipe joint welds on the delta frames and the entire "table-top" steel structure have been finished. Carlos de Oliveira, CEO and Principal Structural Engineer at Cast Connex says this is necessary due to "the unbalanced weight that results as each leg is filled from the base up 70-feet [which] would cause some lateral movement if the steel diaphragm wasn't complete."

QRC West delta frame being tied into structural diaphragm, image courtesy of Jasonzed

QRC West structure starts to rise above its neighbours, image courtesy of The Fusionist

We cannot wait for the next steps here, so be assured that we will return to bring more up-to-date shots of the development as it progresses. In the meantime to find out more about QRC West, visit our dataBase file, linked below. Want to get in on the discussion? Choose the associated Forum thread link, or add your voice in the comments section on this page.