New Sydney Fish Market
The largest wooden roof in the southern hemisphere
Location:
Pyrmont, New South Wales, Australia
Client:
Infrastructure New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
General contractor:
Multiplex Constructions, Sydney, Australia
Architects:
3XN Architects, Copenhagen, Denmark, BVN Architects, Sydney, Australia, GXN innovation, Copenhagen, Denmark
Timber construction:
Rubner
Dimensions:
584 different glulam beams, 1,800 m³ glulam, 60 tonnes of steel for connections
The New Sydney Fish Market in Blackwattle Bay is one of the most significant timber construction projects worldwide and serves as a flagship project for the Government of New South Wales to promote tourism and the fishing industry. Designed by 3XN Architects, BVN Architects and GXN Innovation, the complex preserves the identity of the historic market whilst redefining its relationship with the water, the city and public space. At its heart is an iconic, wave-shaped timber roof inspired by the movement of water and the marine world – and the largest timber roof in the southern hemisphere. Sydney’s new fish market was officially opened on 19 January 2026: in its very first week, it attracted over 230,000 visitors and sold more than 160 tonnes of fish. At full capacity, the complex is designed to accommodate over 6 million visitors per year – twice as many as at the previous site.
We were responsible for detailed design, prototype development of the connections, prefabrication of bespoke elements, specialist transport, technical assembly support and on-site coordination.The technical planning of the gigantic timber roof took around 15 months and required the coordinated collaboration of seven teams. This was based on a highly optimised structural system comprising a three-dimensional glulam grid with a total of 594 beams, designed for use in combination with high-performance metal joints. For the fish market’s 12,000 m² sales area, we produced over 110 primary beams (10 to 33 m long), around 100 secondary beams (approx. 14 m long) and almost 350 tertiary beams (just under 7 m long). In the planning phase, we followed the principles of Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DFMA) to incorporate manufacturing, transport and assembly at an early stage, thereby reducing time expenditure, sources of error and material wastage.
The beams, made from around 1,600 m³ of spruce glulam, were loaded at the port of Monfalcone (ITA) and travelled some 11,500 nautical miles to Australia.
Thanks to a detailed loading plan, we were able to arrange the components in exactly the order required for installation in Sydney. On-site assembly finally began on 9 May 2024 and lasted for around eight months: first, the cross-braces were positioned, followed by the 110 main girders.
Finally, the diagonal main girders with hook connections were added. The use of prefabricated elements and roof modules optimised assembly times, increased safety on site and reduced the amount of work carried out at height. In addition to the glulam girders, connections made from over 150 tonnes of steel were installed.
The finished timber roof of the New Sydney Fish Market is a symbol of architectural value, environmental friendliness and engineering complexity: skylights bring natural light into the upper floors and act as a shading system, integrated photovoltaic modules cover part of the daily energy requirement, and the roof surface is designed to collect rainwater and treat it for reuse. With over 40 retailers and food and beverage outlets, the New Sydney Fish Market is one of the city’s most important social and tourist destinations – and at the same time sets a global benchmark for what contemporary timber construction can achieve.
“As Rubner’s partner in Australia, we were involved right from the start. The Multiplex team asked us to precisely calculate the order in the tender phase. The challenge was clearly formulated: to find the most sustainable and efficient solution for transport and fast assembly, while remaining as faithful as possible to the original project.”
Adam Shears, Director of Theca Timber
