Monash University says it is delighted that a group of its students were presented the People’s Choice Award at the fourth edition of the Fleetwood Challenge Cup, thanks to a unique beehive-inspired proposal for a site in East Malvern, Melbourne.
The Hexad Studio team, composed of a number of Monash luminaries, drew inspiration from the natural world and bees for the three-dimensional, hexagonal modules that are at the heart of their design. The design was developed with input from Sumitomo Forestry Australia, who are developing the chosen site location at Waverley Road in East Malvern.
Titled the Hexa-Cell Residence, the design aims to showcase innovative, cost-effective and sustainable architecture. A number of apartments, ranging between one and three bedrooms, sit within the building, while a number of shared facilities sit on the ground floor. The residences are entirely adaptable, with the inhabitants able to customise their living spaces to their liking.
“It's very exciting for our team, Hexad Studio, to be awarded the People's Choice Award at this major Australian design competition,” says Hexad Studio Team Lead, Olivia Basilec (pictured top left).
“It highlights the passion and effort we each gave the project. Modular building and prefabrication are still so under-utilised in Australia, so this competition was a great opportunity for us to learn more about the potential for real world applications.”
The Fleetwood Challenge Cup, established by Fleetwood Australia, aims to give teams an opportunity to demonstrate the value and versatility of prefabrication and modular building to find innovative solutions unmatched by traditional construction.
The 2023 theme of “Building for the Future; NOW” saw 14 teams from universities across Australia design innovative properties featuring commercial and residential elements. The awards for the 2023 Fleetwood Challenge Cup were announced at the prefabAUS conference on 22 August 2023.
