This warehouse conversion has transformed a 100-year-old car assembly factory into a flexible three-bedroom home.
Originally constructed in 1926, the building’s robust concrete frame supported an assembly line of carriages and vehicles for several companies including Rolls Royce. In the late 1990s, the building was converted into apartments, but they were poorly planned and did not make effective use of their generous volumes.
The architect decided to demolish the interior of the existing apartments to reveal the building’s concrete shell. From here, the aim was the construct a series of flexible living spaces using movable partitions supported by a lightweight steel frame.
Each space opens towards the main volume, making the space feel generous and well-connected. Indeed, the spaces can all open to function as one large room, or as a series of private pavilions within the volume.
There is a clear distinction between new and old. The scale of the existing concrete board-formed columns and heavily textured ceiling contrasts with the refined steel detailing of new glazing and balustrades, including a glass bridge that retains the feeling of the living space as a single whole, without disrupting light flow.
Key products/materials
- Colorbond Windspray Klip-lok roof decking - Roofing - Lysaght
- External glassdoor –Doors - Aluminum & Glass Constructions Pty Ltd
- American Oak timber floor– Flooring - Havwoods
- Comfort Plus glass - Viridan
- Track lights and downlights – Lighting - Brightgreen
- Leda tapware in Chrome - Caroma
- Kitchen sink – Kitchen – Oliveri Santorini
- Bathroom sink – Bathroom - Kohler
- Blinds and curtains - Ozshade
