Project Description

This 16,000m2 teaching facility is the first and largest mass engineered timber (MET) building ever constructed in Western Australia. The structure radically reduced the building’s overall embodied carbon by 55%. This project also created a test bed for innovation. Academia and industry collaborated to improve safety and construction productivity using robotics.

Judge’s comments

Constructed from glulam and cross laminated timber, this pioneer building is the first and largest mass-engineered timber (MET) building in Western Australia.

The timber structure radically reduces the overall embodied carbon of the project. The engineers cleverly created large column-free teaching spaces in the main 180m long building. In the associated pavilion building, 30m portal frames were achieved in glulaminated timber with deft engineering.

The project was a catalyst for Western Australia’s timber industry to emerge. The project team engaged with suppliers early and established collaborative workshops with the timber industry across the area to identify risks and opportunities. The result is a fantastically innovative space perfect for education.

Project overview

Structural Designer

  • Aurecon

Client Name

  • Murdoch University

Location

  • Perth, Australia

Architect

  • Lyons

Principal Contractor

  • Multiplex

Year Submitted

  • 2023

Key attributes

  • Profession, Planet