Design for Extended Building Life
Node Leaders
Paola Leardini
Node Leader - Design for Extended Building Life; Project Leader
The University of Queensland
Lisa Ottenhaus
Node Leader - Design for Extended Building Life; Project Leader
The University of Queensland
Opportunity
While the potential for EWP to offer novel design for deconstruction (DfD) opportunity is well recognised, research and application of such concepts remains limited internationally. ARC Linkage Project, LP200301402 – Offsite manufacture reimagined for high-performance adaptable housing, begins to address the paucity of Australian research, assembling the simulation tools, laboratory methods and prototyping facilities required to design an adaptable, low-cost DfD Class 1 building system that meets conventional occupancy performance objectives under five different Australian climatic contexts. The ARC Advance Timber Hub can extend that focus to different building typologies of Australia’s mid-rise market, addressing challenges specific to different timber resources, innovative product types and those same representative climate zones; with Nodes – Performance of Building Components and Building Performance for Occupants providing the necessary performance assessment capabilities.
Approach
An iterative process of design, testing and stakeholder feedback will be used to develop spatially reconfigurable mid-rise building systems that combine reversible EWP connections with interchangeable envelope assemblies, integrating ease of deconstruction with other product and manufacturing objectives. Life-cycle costs analysis will incorporate engineering and architectural-based design assessments of how well the DfD opportunity delivers adaptive building configurations that extend the service life of structural, façade and finish components. Focus group engagement will elicit industry judgement on the effectiveness of the proposed design innovations. Simulation and laboratory-based performance analysis will contrast hygrothermal performance, durability, and operational energy use implications across multiple (the sub-tropical to cool-temperate) climates.
Outcomes
Demonstrated technical prospects for EWP innovation to transform the way that clients, designers and urban planners think about mid-rise building service life, informing technical specifications for inclusion in design guidelines and building codes, and stimulating the uptake of design for adaptability and disassembly into mainstream mid-rise construction practice The service life, materials flow and cost implications will inform analysis of end-of-life options (e.g. remanufacture; waste processing) and greenhouse-gas emission budgets (Node – Towards a Low Carbon & Circular Economy), macro-economic stimulus (Node – Socio-Economic Opportunity) and value chain opportunity (Node – Value Chain Innovation).
People
Arianna Brambilla
Project Leader; Chief Investigator
The University of Sydney
Eugenia Gasparri
Project Leader; Chief Investigator
The University of Sydney
Project/s
CIRCULAR [RE]DESIGN TO ENABLE DISASSEMBLY AND REUSE OF MID-RISE TIMBER BUILDINGS
CONNECTION SYSTEMS FOR EXTENDED BUILDING LIFE – DESIGN PRINCIPLES
ENVELOPE SYSTEMS FOR EXTENDED BUILDING LIFE