The Early Years
THE PLAY WORKS began in Geebung in the Northern suburbs of Brisbane
in 1984 manufacturing play equipment for an established playground
company based in Adelaide. At the time we mostly worked in CCA pine
logs with a few bits like handles and poles fashioned in galvanised
water pipe, fibreglass slides adding the main dash of colour.
We gained much of our technical expertise working on projects such
as the Suncorp playground at the World Expo 88 in Brisbane, and
working with artists such as John Underwood of Artbusters. He rose
to prominence with the “Human Factors” sculptures, and
gained many commissions for dynamic sculptural features reminiscent
of the miraculous machines of Heath Robinson. We built the mechanics
and electronics for several of these wondrous creations, further
expanding the range of our manufacturing capabilities.
Early Childhood Development
By 1990 we were hearing loud calls from teachers and professionals
for play equipment suitable for the early childhood field. Most
particularly Prue Walsh, an early childhood playground consultant
with a deep understanding of children's play and the role it has
in their development, gave us a good grasp of the particular requirements
of that field, and steered us towards the solution.
The resultant Flexideck concept incorporated large deck spaces
to encourage social and dramatic play, interchangeable play elements
to allow variety day to day, and various linking systems to integrate
the main structures with the other flexible equipment already in
use in many early childhood playgrounds.
Durable Playgrounds
In 1996 we developed a working relationship with Logan City Council,
experimenting with equipment, materials, process and practices
to overcome chronic maintenance problems they were having. We experimented
with replacement parts made from powder-coated galvanised steel
instead of the plastics and timber of the originals. The impact
on maintenance requirements was dramatic, reducing over the next
few years to a fraction of the original level.
We went on to design the Duration range of equipment incorporating
the lessons learned from that exercise, a range that has always
been popular with Councils around the country due to its proven
durability in harsh environments. While not every organisation takes
the same long-term view of lifetime cost and recognises the true
value of genuine low maintenance construction and manufacture, we
take it as axiomatic that durability is an essential component of
good value.
Australian Standards for Playgrounds
1996 also saw Managing Director Don Wark’s appointment to
the Standards Australia Playground Safety Committee as the Australian
Industry Group's representative. Thus began an extensive association
with the development and propagation of new playground standards.
The release of the AS/NZS 4486.1 brought into focus the importance
of Playground Safety Management Systems for playground operators,
prompting us in 1997 to set up our Contract Playground Maintenance
Division. This allowed us to use our long experience and wide expertise
with all types of playground construction materials and styles to
offer professional services for repairs, maintenance and inspection.
Thematic Playspaces
In 1998, we won a tender for the design and construction of a playground
on the theme of alternative energies. We recognised this as a worthwhile
issue, and a valuable opportunity to get playground equipment outside
the square. So we took the concepts and icons of the alternative
energy field and made play structures of them.
For the kids it was fun, interesting and different. For the council
it was the opportunity to make a significant statement of its recognition
and support for the issue, and for parents, a prompt to discuss
the subject and the environmental implications with their kids.
It demonstrated that it was possible for playgrounds to be much
more than just standardised modular structures with no particular
relationship to the community or cultural environment of which they
were part.
We have since designed and built many Concept Playspaces. We now
offer a lot of the custom designed components used in them as separate
elements from which other playground designers can select to put
together their own thematic playgrounds, or to add a quirky touch
to lift a tired installation.
Our first major international project came in 2001 when we won
the contract to design and construct the new playground for the
Yokohama Country and Athletics Club in Japan. This was a major logistical
exercise with all components individually designed and manufactured
in Brisbane, packed and shipped to Yokohama, delivered to site on
18 two-tonne trucks, unloaded in the middle of a typhoon, shaken
by an earthquake, assembled and installed in a millimetre precise
space - all virtually without a hitch. It was an exciting project
outcome for the playground committee of the YCAC, and a proud achievement
for our project team.
Everyone Can Play
The playground industry is still young by any measure. The last
twenty five years have seen enormous changes. Playground design
is advancing in leaps and bounds. Led by advocates for children's
right to play, the community is coming to understand that playgrounds
can offer so much more than a crude structure to climb up, swing
on or slide down. The better open space designers are exploring
the exciting possibilities that bold design approaches can open
up. We have been privileged to work extensively with Playspace Designers
on projects at the forefront of playspace design. These Designers
help to facilitate a wider understanding of how good playspaces
can be as community facilities.
In 2006, in a joint project with Caloundra City Council and the
Queensland Government through Disability Services Queensland, we
designed and constructed a major All Access playground at Pioneer
Park in Landsborough on the Sunshine Coast. The cooperative, consultative
process was a credit to all involved, particularly Lisa Hand for
Disability Queensland and Abby Stevens from Caloundra City Council.
The outcome was an innovative, functional all access playspace that
is a major asset for not only the local area, but for other groups
from as far as Brisbane and beyond. The project won the 2006 PRAV
Play Space Innovative Award as well as the 2006 Kidsafe National
Playspace Design Award for Innovation in Industrial Design.
A Future For All
There are still plenty more mountains to climb. The incorporation
of accessibility into playground design so that it becomes an unnoticed
yet integral part of all substantial playgrounds is a major challenge.
With this in mind in 2007 the Playground and Recreation Association
of Victoria produced the ‘Good Play Space Guide’ on
accessibility in playgrounds for the Victorian Government. It is
an excellent document and sure to make a substantial contribution
to the evolution of playground design along these lines. The attention
to accessibility is helping to bring a better appreciation of play
value as a factor in our design choices.
Guided by the skilled leadership of Barbara Champion, Executive
Director of PRAV, we are seeing the gradual professionalisation
of the industry. All elements of the industry are becoming better
informed and the overall outcomes improving for everyone through
the provision of information resources, standards development and
implementation, encouragement of industry networks and training
programs.
The Play Works has also been instrumental in the formation of the
Australian Playground Contractors Association Inc., a group formed
initially to provide an industry voice for practical, sensible implementation
of Licensing for playground installation in Queensland, and ultimately
throughout Australia. We also see the Association as encouraging
the development of training programs specifically for the particular
practical tasks that are part of playground construction but not
well covered by other trade training.
The Future
Play opportunities offer children many substantial benefits. Children
play in many different ways. The products we offer cover a wide
range of play activities – from basic physical play, to dramatic
play, social play, mental challenges, interactive engagements and
more. We are continually developing new products to extend the types
and quality of experiences that we can offer to children in the
places they go to play. If there is a secret it is that we still
enjoy the process almost as much as the people we do it for.
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