RMIT University has appointed Watpac Construction as the contractor for the 12,000sqm Design Hub. The building, designed by architect and RMIT alumnus Sean Godsell, will sit on the former CUB site and feature a smart ‘second-skin’ of 16,000 sand-blasted glass discs that will rotate with the sun to heat, power and cool the eight-storey building.
RMIT Vice-Chancellor and President, Professor Margaret Gardner AO, welcomed the appointment of Watpac Construction to the project. “Watpac are renowned for their expertise in education projects, but also their commitment to environmentally sustainable design,” Professor Gardner said.
Researchers at the Design Hub will work across disciplines on projects to develop world-class concepts and initiatives in industrial and urban design, fabric and fashion design, as well as architecture and landscape architecture.
The building will feature a 300-seat space, a 250-seat lecture theatre, seminar and function rooms, exhibition spaces, a café, and a Design Archive housing permanent collections, and warehouse floors — open-plan areas supported by flexible furniture layouts and break-out spaces that will provide space for researchers and postgraduate students to work together in teams on projects.
The building's translucent smart skin will include glass cells fitted with photovoltaic collectors for harnessing solar power, helping ensure the building achieves at least a five-star rating under the pilot Green Star Education Rating scheme.
The project is expected to be completed mid-2011.
