Project Details
- Client: Melbourne School of Design
- Type: Commercial
- Location: Centre of the University of Melbourne’s Parkville campus, Australia
- Date: October 2015
- Estimated Lifespan: 60 years
- LCA authored by Umow Lai from Cerclos
The Melbourne School of Design, located at the centre of the University of Melbourne’s Parkville campus, is a state-of-the-art academic facility, designed by John Wardle Architects (Melbourne) and NADAAA (Boston) in collaboration. A large-scale laboratory for built environment education and research, the building sets a new standard for design education in the Asia-Pacific region.
The design of the building facilitates collaborative interdisciplinary engagement and the critical exploration of complex built environment issues. The unique transparency of the space supports the vision of a pedagogical building. Exposed materials and structures, such as the underside of the Y-Stairs, give insight into construction techniques and fabrication. Features such as the steel mesh balustrade and open top gallery allow for sight-lines and transparency between levels.
Results Summary
Project Features
Design life
The project was assessed according to the Green Star Materials Life Cycle credit and has a proposed design life of 60 years. The building is expected to remain on-site for a longer period that this given the expense, planning and foresight of the University of Melbourne. However, at the time Green Star required all buildings that are assessed for the credit to assume a 60 year design life, this requirement has since been relaxed.
Materials
The roof beams that span the atrium were prefabricated off-site as LVL (Laminated Veneer Lumber) beams replaced significant amounts of steel and also providing shade to the atrium below through their angular form.
CLT (Cross Laminated Timber) composite concrete slabs were considered for the project and extensive testing was completed, but due to cost and programming implications, this measure was unfortunately not included in the final construction.
Operational Energy
The following innovative energy strategies provide significant savings over a business as usual BCA compliant design:
- Mixed mode building that uses mechanically driven natural ventilation for extended periods of the year, significantly reducing energy consumption.
- A combination of user controls, occupant education and automatic building management systems enable the building to continually seek to improve the energy performance of the space.
- High performance building envelope with double glazing, extensive shading and increased insulation levels.
- Atrium provides daylight into deep plan building.
- Highly efficient water cooled chillers (using recycled water from rainwater harvesting)
- LED lighting throughout.
Benefits for the University
The building has been a huge success since it was opened, with students filling the spaces and enjoying the new building’s excellent indoor environment quality.
