Cooler Cleaner Schools Program

Design & Construct, Education

The project involved the supply, installation, and upgrade of 526 air-conditioning units and associated electrical services across 84 buildings in the Gold Coast, Redlands, Greater Brisbane, and Moreton Bay regions—enhancing comfort and learning environments for students and staff.

Queensland Department of Education

South East QLD

2022

11M

Project value has been adjusted to reflect approximate current-day value as at 2025, based upon industry recognised construction indexation published by Rawlinson.

Project Highlights

Delivered air-conditioning upgrades across 10 schools and 84 buildings, improving learning environments while maintaining safe and uninterrupted school operations.

Multi-Site Delivery

Alder delivered four packages of works across 10 schools in the Gold Coast, Redlands, Greater Brisbane and Moreton Bay regions. The project included the installation and upgrade of 526 air-conditioning units across 84 buildings.

Live School Environments

Works were completed within operational school campuses, requiring detailed staging, planning and coordination to minimise disruption to students, staff and daily activities.

Night Shift Works

High-impact activities were scheduled outside school hours, including night works, to reduce interruptions to campus operations and maintain safe access throughout construction.

Safety Management

Comprehensive health and safety controls were implemented across all sites to protect school users, project personnel and visitors during the upgrade works.

Complex Retrofits

Retrofitting existing buildings presented challenges associated with working at heights and over operational structures. Careful planning and coordination supported the safe delivery of these works.

Asbestos Compliance

Several older school buildings contained asbestos-containing materials. All works in affected areas were undertaken safely and in accordance with requirements by qualified contractors where necessary.

Electrical Upgrades

The project included significant upgrades to main switchboards and coordination with Energex to support the new air-conditioning infrastructure.

Delivered in live school environments, the works required detailed staging, night shifts for high-impact tasks, and strict safety protocols, particularly around asbestos-containing materials in older buildings. Significant electrical upgrades, including main switchboard interfaces with Energex, were also completed. The project achieved strong social outcomes, with 32 apprentices engaged (including 3 Indigenous trainees), and over $6.6 million injected into the local economy. Partnering with 50% Indigenous-owned Project HVAC, Alder supported local employment, Indigenous participation, and workforce upskilling through targeted training and development initiatives.