East Wall
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Constructing "A" Station
The east wall of "A" Station, the first section built at the East Perth Power Station, was once described as being like three power stations in one due to its impressive scale.
Construction began in September 1913. The Railways Department handled the early groundwork, using local workers and expertise to complete the piling and foundation raft. After that, British contractors took over the construction of the main building and the installation of the machinery.
"A" Station is made up of two large, parallel rectangular buildings — one housing the turbine hall and the other the boiler house. While they are connected by a shared internal space, the turbine hall itself measures 46 metres long and 32 metres wide, which also includes areas for the switch house and pump house. From the basement floor to the roof gutter, the structure stands 19 metres tall — roughly the height of a five- or six-storey building.
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The Start of a New Era
Designed in England by the renowned engineering consultants, Merz and McLellan, "A" Station was completed in 1916. The steelwork for both the buildings and the boilers was supplied by Babcock & Wilcox, a major contractor for industrial projects of the time.
In 1922, the station was expanded to accommodate five generating units, bringing its total capacity to 32 megawatts (MW) — a significant output for that era.
One of the standout features of the east wall was its large, multi-pane, steel-framed windows. This style was typical of early 20th-century industrial architecture. Not only were these windows affordable and highly durable but they also played an important role in flooding the large interior spaces with natural light, reducing the need for artificial lighting during the day.
South Wall
