BROOKFIELD Multiplex has been appointed the job to design and construct The University of Melbourne’s new $100 million Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning Building.
Brookfield Multiplex Victoria regional managing director Graham Milford-Cottam said the company’s expertise in the education sector is growing and this latest contract follows the successful completion of numerous education projects including the Swanston Academic Building at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, the University of NSW’s Tyree Energy Technologies Building and the Melbourne Brain Centre also for UOM in 2011.
The building will house the FABP at the University of Melbourne, regarded as the country’s leading education and research centre focusing on the built environment, and revitalise the campus core.
Spanning six levels and 17,488 sqm, construction will commence in May, 2013 and be completed by the end of 2014 in time for the 2015 academic year.
John Wardle Architects in Melbourne and NADAAA from Boston were the successful winners of a design competition for the building which received more than 130 submissions from 15 countries.
The heritage listed facade will be retained. Originally from the old Bank of NSW on Collins St, it was built in 1856 and relocated to the University Of Melbourne in 1932.
The building will also feature a suspended studio that will hang from the atrium and a Japanese room with cladding that alludes to traditional Japanese construction. Another special element of the building is an underground library with glazed skylights that will open into the building.
“The project is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the Faculty, including the Melbourne School of Design, to articulate its strategic objectives, demonstrating a commitment to innovation through the design and delivery of an outstanding centrally located campus building,” University of Melbourne Dean of FABP Tom Kvan said.
Property Review
