Situated in a research campus setting the new westside development includes a new structures testing lab, fire research and resistance testing labs and a supporting administration building.
Due to the complex and unique nature of the design and client requirements, and the expected activities within the laboratories we were involved in a series of briefing workshops with each research area. Each research team has their own very unique set of requirements, from needing to test the behaviour of housing construction in large earthquakes, to investigating the by-products of a car fire, to management of clients and confidentiality, before collating results and writing up for scientific publications.
We then, as a design team, presented our designs back to the stakeholder group for comment and review before sign-off of each design stage.
We are also having to liaise with the suppliers of specialist equipment, all based overseas, in order to ensure the buildings are suitably serviced and fit for purpose.
The project also includes high standards for sustainability, with BRANZ wanting to role model responsible design, construction and operation of their campus to the construction industry. We have included a low energy design proposal utilising natural light and ventilation where possible, and connection to an existing campus heating system for times where additional heating is required.