The purpose of the Design Hub is to provide accommodation in one building for a diverse range of design research and post graduate education. RMIT is a world leader in design research however post graduates are currently dissipated across various campuses and facilities. The Hub provides a collegial research base where post graduates in fields such as fabric and fashion design will work alongside those involved in architecture, aeronautical engineering, industrial design, landscape architecture, urban design and so on.
Research groups have the ability to locate and fine tune their accommodation within ‘warehouses’ - open plan spaces where research teams can set up and tailor their work environment to suit their particular needs. Teams may stay for anywhere from six months to three years depending on the nature of and funding limits to their research and education programs. Research may include the need for workshops to make physical models to be located alongside computer studios, three dimensional printing, virtual reality modelling and so on. Given the time frames associated with research projects all the warehouses require a high level of adaptability and flexibility. In that sense these spaces are designed to accommodate the organic nature of research - ever evolving, adapting, changing and growing.
The plan of the Hub acknowledges the desire for incidental cross pollination where researchers from one field encounter those from completely unrelated other fields as part of their day to day use of the building. An exhibition space and design archive provide a public interface with both industry and research outcomes. These spaces combined with a variety of lecture, seminar and multi purpose rooms facilitate high level exchanges in a number of forums.
The Hub has a large number of ESD features and incorporates strategies of water, waste and recycling management that are the equal of any ESD focussed building on the planet. In particular the outer skin of the Hub incorporates automated sunshading that includes photovoltaic cells, evaporative cooling and fresh air intakes that improve the internal air quality and reduce running costs. The cells have been designed so that they can be easily replaced as research into solar energy results in improved technology and part of the northern façade is actually dedicated to ongoing research into solar cells to be conducted jointly by industry and RMIT. The entire building façade, in other words, has the capacity to be upgraded as solar technology evolves and may one day generate enough electricity to run the whole building.
The façade comprises a specifically detailed double glazed inner skin on each face of the building and an automated operable second skin shading device. The second skin shading device surrounds the entire building, from the ground floor to the roof plant level. It is made up of nominally 600 mm diameter sandblasted glass disks, which are fixed to either a horizontal or vertical aluminium axel. Each axel is fixed to the outer face of a galvanised steel cylinder of a slightly greater diameter and nominally 130 mm in depth.
21 glass discs and steel cylinders are fixed together in panels of nominally 1.8 m by 4.2 m, which are supported on a secondary galvanised steel frame set out about 700 mm from the curtain wall face of the building. These are accessed by an external service walkway on each level.
Each typical panel is made up of 12 operable glass discs and 9 discs which are fixed. At the ground and plant room levels all glass disks will be fixed. There are 86 panels on each level and therefore 774 panels for the nine levels of the building.
Perimeter air intakes and fine mist sprinklers incorporated into the double glazed inner skin provide passive cooling to the UFAD system. The water used in this ‘Coolgardie safe’ system is harvested from the roof. Fresh naturally cooled air provides a less expensive, lower energy consumption and more desirable thermal comfort alternative to a wholly conditioned work environment.
Materials
Structural System
Steel reinforced concrete columns
Post tensioned concrete slab
Major Materials
Steel, Glass, Concrete
Exterior Cladding
Masonry Boral Concrete block
Metal Panels 2mm Zincalume sheet
Level 10 Pavilions: VM Zinc cladding Colour: Anthracite’
Facade Double glazed inner skin, custom made galvanized steel window frames
Automated operable second skin shading device comprising,
17,000 sandblasted glass disks supported on galvanised steel substructure
Off form concrete Off form concrete, Class 2 finish
Moisture barrier Volclay ‘Voltex’
Paving Cut bluestone, stainless steel control joints
100x100x50 ‘salt and pepper’ granite cobblestones
Tactile Indicators ‘DTAC’ stainless steel tactile indicators
SW Drains ‘Aco’ slot drains
Roofing
Metal Lysaght ‘Kliplok’ Zincalume metal deck roofing
Windows
Metal frame Custom galvanized steel frame windows to Architect’s detail Thermally split mullions
Glazing
Glass Internal glass façade: Argon filled double glazed units 6-12-6 Building corners 10-12-10 double glazed units
Skylights Argon filled double glazed units 10-12-10
Doors
Entrances Ground floor entry doors: Frameless glazed external sliding doors, Dorma EL301 low profile automatic door operator
Metal doors Custom galvanized steel frame doors to Architect’s detail Custom circular stainless steel cover plate to floor springs
Sliding doors Exhibition Room entry doors: Frameless glazed external sliding door, Dorma EL301 low profile automatic door operator
1200 x 8500 and 4200x3300 flush panel shop primed mdf cavity sliding entry doors
Fire-control doors Flush panel shop primed fire rated doors
Automated hopper window
Special doors Level 10 Seminar Rooms: ‘Airport Doors’ bi-folding motorised door with VM Zinc lining inner and outer faces
Hardware
Locksets ‘Legge Pacific’ Hardware
Closers: Glazed external doors: Dorma Low Profile Automatic Door Operator Warehouse entry doors: IGS floor spring
Exit devices Request to egress push buttons
Pulls ‘Legge Pacific’ furniture
Security devices Proximity card readers
Interior finishes
Acoustical ceilings Atkar ‘Audilux’ Perforated cement sheet with acoustic backing
Cabinetwork Mdf factory applied paint finish to architect’s detail
Paints and stains Dulux 101 Low Sheen PVA ‘Natural White’ Walls and Ceilings
Wall coverings Painted mural to Level 1 corridor
Wall cladding 2mm perforated Zincalume
30 x 3 galvanized steel grating : Rhino Grating
Boral Plasterboard
Special surfacing Hot dip galvanized industrial grating utilised for wall and ceiling linings
Floor and wall tiles Bathrooms: Circular mosaic tiles, supplier: Floortech
Resilient flooring 40mm granolithic topping screed, stainless steel control joints 2mm 100% rubber flooring, Colour: Black: Activa Rubber Flooring Lecture Theatre: 4mm Hot dip galvanized mild steel perforated sheet Door mats entry / entry flooring: 3M Nomad Scraper mat Kitchen Areas: Forbo Surestep Vinyl Original 17199 Charcoal 7mm ‘Sussex’ loop pile carpet 100% wool: Godfrey Hirst
Raised flooring Raised access floors: Tasman ‘Tascor’
Special interior finishes Floor boards and exterior deck (Level 10) Recycled tallowood, Howard’s Orange Tung Oil finish
Furnishings
Office furniture Mobile office furniture including desks, shelving and filing units, custom made to detail
Fixed seating Class 2 off form reinforced concrete to architect’s detail
Corian lecture theatre seating to architect’s detail: Fabricator Solidwerks
Chairs ‘Miles’ conference chair – Schambugalvisse
Folding tables (Level 10) – Wilkhan
Workstation chairs – Stem Intelligent Seating
Stackable chairs – Stem Intelligent Seating
Lighting
Interior ambient lighting Warehouse spaces and Longrooms: Surface mounted linear extrusions, incorporating emergency and exit lights, smoke detectors, motion detectors and fluorescent lighting
Downlights Typical floors: Custom recessed extrusions housing Reggiani Axel fluorescent downlights, movement sensors, security cameras, sprinklers and fire alarms
Custom suspended lighting track, housing Reggiani Zagra flood lights
Exhibition Room 1: Low voltage track mounted Erco Emonon spot lights
Task lighting Artemide ‘Tolomeo’ desk reading light
Exterior Lumascape ‘Vedi Mini’ in ground LED external uplights
Lighting controls DALI lighting control system
Conveyance
Elevators Schindler Australia Pty Ltd
Plumbing
Water closet: Caroma Leda
DDA water closet: Caroma Invisi
Cistern: Caroma Water Wafer MK3
Urinal: Caroma Cube 0.8 litre
Hand basin: Caroma Flora500
Drinking fountain: RBA stainless steel floor mounted wall fixed fountain
Hand basin taps: Enware 1000 series
Kitchen taps: Scala sink mixer
Appliances
Hand dryer: JDMcDonald recessed stainless steel paper towel/dryer
Boiling water unit: Whelan Industries thermal tap
Dishwasher: Intergrated single drawer Fisher & Paykel
Refrigerator: Intergrated under bench bar refrigerator LG
Zanussi PT3 Series glass door refrigerator
Oven/Cooktop: Zanussi Snack 600 oven and cooktop
Rangehood: Zanussi Master M-line
Refrigerator: Zanussi PT3
Dish washer: Zanussi LS-5 undercounter stainless steel dishwasher
Energy
Building Management System
All mechanical services + Façade automation are driven by a centralized building management system
Ambient light is sensor controlled
The building facade incorporates solar power infrastructure
Black, grey and rainwater harvesting / recycling
Fresh air intakes to habitable spaces
Photovoltaic system
The outer skin of the Hub incorporates automated glass sun shading cells that include solar power infrastructure and fresh air intakes that improve the internal air quality and reduce running costs.
Bike racks Bicycle Victoria ‘Ned Kelly’ bike racks
Signage Designed by Sean Godsell Architects
