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Did You Know?

The Library Rehabilitation in Numbers

The numbers tell a story all their own about the scope and complexity of the Library of Parliament rehabilitation project. Consider the following:

  • Construction time for original Library of Parliament: 17 years (1859 - 1876)
  • Last major renovation of the Library: 1952-1956 (following a fire in the attic)
  • Amount of steel used in the scaffolding: 70 tonnes
  • Area of fabric used to cover the scaffolding: 5,817 square metres (the size of 3,75 hockey rinks)
  • Amount of bedrock removed (without any blasting) to accommodate new basement space under Library: 4,815 cubic metres (approximately equal to half of the Peace Tower)
  • Amount of grout used to stabilize the building structure: 213 metric tonnes
  • Length of masonry joints raked and repointed: 20 km. (there are 23 km of joints on the south façade of the Centre Block.)
  • Number of lead-pane windows repaired or replaced: 147
  • Area of new parquet floor: 444.7 square metres. Oak, cherry, walnut woods replicate the 50's design of the parquet floor.
  • Amount of copper roofing installed: 2,075 square metres
  • Number of people involved in this project since planning started in 1995: over 1,200

 
 
 
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Last Updated: 2006-12-06
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