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The council in one of Australia’s surfing heartlands—the Gold Coast—has thrown its support behind plans for the city’s first wave park.The centrepiece of the $300-million resort-style proposal now approved by the Gold Coast City Council is a 4ha dual-zone surfing lagoon capable of generating “up to a 26-second end-to-end barrelling six-foot wave ride” with technology by Endless Wave.It will sit alongside an existing 18-hole golf course at the site at Parkwood, about a 15-minute drive from the Glitter Strip’s world-famous surf breaks.The golf course will undergo a $10-million redevelopment as part of the Parkwood Village proposal, which also includes 225 residential apartments, a hotel, and retail and medical components, as well as an entertainment and dining precinct.The approval has been a long paddle for its proponents—the plans were <a style="color: #0563c1; text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/plans-lodged-for-300m-gold-coast-surf-park-village" data-mce-href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/plans-lodged-for-300m-gold-coast-surf-park-village" data-mce-style="color: #0563c1; text-decoration: underline;">first submitted to the council</a> in October, 2021.Parkwood Village managing director Luke Altschwager said the project took the best parts of surf culture, golf, leisure and entertainment to create “the ultimate integrated resort”.<span class="mce-preview-object mce-object-iframe" contenteditable="false" data-mce-object="iframe" data-mce-p-data-mce-fragment="1" data-mce-p-allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-p-frameborder="0" data-mce-p-src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/890886162?h=0d58d904ea"><iframe src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/890886162?h=0d58d904ea" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/890886162?h=0d58d904ea"></iframe> “The&nbsp;Endless&nbsp;Surf&nbsp;Wave&nbsp;Pool,&nbsp;childcare,&nbsp;retail,&nbsp;food and beverage, commercial and medical tenancies&nbsp;will&nbsp;dovetail&nbsp;into existing&nbsp;uses&nbsp;at Parkwood Village to become a readily&nbsp;walkable&nbsp;precinct,” Altschwager said.“There is nothing more quintessentially Australian than surfing and, complemented by the upgraded golf course and the nearby Titans training facilities, we want to make sure Parkwood becomes the heart of sport here on the Gold Coast.”Endless Surf president Paul Chutter said the project was “truly a world-class venue in the making”.“As one of our first signed contracts from when we launched Endless Surf three years ago, this project is a special one.“Hitting this milestone means that Parkwood’s impressive dreams are coming to reality and that we are a huge step closer to bringing an unrivalled surf park experience to this global surf mecca.<div id="24qGEJlxi8XQrVSVNyIhN9"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/rH2XNeFGxw0vcdbwRBAZ2/02dd714c32b55723694336d20a032c43/48_Parkwood_Surf_HQ_Final_Variat.jpeg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/rH2XNeFGxw0vcdbwRBAZ2/02dd714c32b55723694336d20a032c43/48_Parkwood_Surf_HQ_Final_Variat.jpeg"></picture><div>▲ A render of the Parkwood Village redevelopment, which includes a 300m wave pool. </div></div>“We know that Gold Coast surfers have big expectations, and we are ready to deliver pure perfection to the Coast.”&nbsp;The Endless Surf lagoon at Parkwood Village will “offer near limitless wave customisation and industry leading operating flexibility” with waves to suit surfers of all abilities.The first pool to use the Endless Surf technology, O2 Surftown on the outskirts of Munich, is due to open next year.<div id="eVmfoDNPmSIqQMGwzjajD"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/7iuei20EgGkfQKansZH4ON/c08c514862edda2e56fed8047f7b22d0/pexels-taryn-elliott-4652247-2.jpeg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/7iuei20EgGkfQKansZH4ON/c08c514862edda2e56fed8047f7b22d0/pexels-taryn-elliott-4652247-2.jpeg"></picture><div>▲ A $10-million redevelopment of an 18-hole golf course is also part of the Parkwood plans. </div></div>Endless Surf was launched in 2020 by Canadian operator WhiteWater, which completed its first wave pool in 1989.Altschwager said the Gold Coast project had a projected completion date of early 2026.There is currently just one wave pool available to the public in Australia, Urbnsurf, which opened near the Melbourne airport in 2020.<div id="3ouQJ0OfjF3VMLgMjQMkh8"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/60LLlYUgIo6Js2hc4Rzu12/8978e047c8ee9870815246fdb8e62c0e/48_Parkwood_Villas_Variation.jpeg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/60LLlYUgIo6Js2hc4Rzu12/8978e047c8ee9870815246fdb8e62c0e/48_Parkwood_Villas_Variation.jpeg"></picture><div>▲ Home break: 225 apartments are included in the approved plans. </div></div>The operator is building <a style="color: #0563c1; text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/urbnsurf-homebush-sydney-surf-park" data-mce-href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/urbnsurf-homebush-sydney-surf-park" data-mce-style="color: #0563c1; text-decoration: underline;">another pool</a>, this time in Sydney.There are numerous proposals for pools across Australia, including a <a style="color: #0563c1; text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/developer-southern-hemisphere-biggest-wave-park-perth" data-mce-href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/developer-southern-hemisphere-biggest-wave-park-perth" data-mce-style="color: #0563c1; text-decoration: underline;">$100-million wave pool</a> on government land in Perth’s Jandakot, and <a style="color: #0563c1; text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/wave-pool-developers-sunshine-coast-court" data-mce-href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/wave-pool-developers-sunshine-coast-court" data-mce-style="color: #0563c1; text-decoration: underline;">two pools have been approved</a> on the Sunshine Coast.<span class="mce-preview-object mce-object-iframe" contenteditable="false" data-mce-object="iframe" data-mce-p-allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-p-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/DzyukiEG6D4?si=-g4qKYE4h7ICDvva"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/DzyukiEG6D4?si=-g4qKYE4h7ICDvva" width="560" height="314" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/DzyukiEG6D4?si=-g4qKYE4h7ICDvva"></iframe>

The Gold Coast project that also includes a hotel and golf course has received resounding backing from the Glitter Strip’s council…

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Plans to return train manufacturing to Queensland have been boosted with a major overseas firm signing a $30-million deal.The deal involves Korean company Hyundai Rotem establishing a standalone presence on the Fraser Coast with the purchase of an industrial site and plans to establish a factory to produce sub-components for train car bodies.The Hyundai Rotem facility is in addition to the Queensland Train Manufacturing Program site being built at Torbanlea at a facility operated by Downer Group.Downer was awarded the Design Build Maintain Contract for the program this year and has partnered with the Hyundai Rotem Corporation for the manufacturing of the 65 new trains.Major works are under way at the Torbanlea facility to transform a former pineapple farm into Australia’s newest state-of-the-art train manufacturing facility.The government said the Queensland Train Manufacturing Program would support 800 construction and manufacturing jobs.Hyundai Rotem will use roll forming to produce the components.Roll forming involves the continuous bending of a long strip of sheet metal (typically coiled steel) to make sub-components for train car bodies.This kind of component has been made overseas for decades but will now be made on the Fraser Coast, creating 20 jobs.<div id="70J85oD3ioYSC9TLl0nN1A"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/1c0l1xyKNqo1r6B4HAJc1U/39c5e2c998babfb8b041f96e579993bf/torbanlea-train-manufacturing-fa.jpeg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/1c0l1xyKNqo1r6B4HAJc1U/39c5e2c998babfb8b041f96e579993bf/torbanlea-train-manufacturing-fa.jpeg"></picture><div>▲ A render of the manufacturing facility under construction near Maryborough on Queensland’s Fraser Coast. </div></div>Once the first train has been built in 2026, it will begin testing before entering passenger services in 2027.All 65 trains are expected to be in service in time for the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games while helping to run additional services that will be delivered by the Cross River Rail and Logan and Gold Coast Faster Rail projects.A co-design process was ongoing with the disability sector to inform the design of the new trains to ensure they were compliant, functional, and accessible for all passengers, the government said.Early works to upgrade local intersections within Torbanlea started in August 2022 ahead of the start of construction on the train manufacturing facility.Minister for Transport and Main Roads Mark Bailey said the project would “train a new generation of highly skilled Queensland workers in train manufacturing, which will have long-term benefits to our economy, transport infrastructure and manufacturing industry”.

Queensland’s plans to have locally made trains on the tracks before the Olympics has been boosted by a $30-million commitment…

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At last count, there were more than 16.1 million buildings across Australia along about 2.3 million kilometres of roads.But around $60 million from the public coffers is about to be splurged to construct another building that none of these roads lead to.In fact, it will not even be in this wide brown land.Nevertheless, for six months it will attract an estimated five million or so visitors, sharing the title of Australia’s most visited building with the Sydney Opera House that each year draws a tad more than 10 million.The Australian Pavilion for Osaka’s World Expo 2025 will be a striking antipodean oasis among Japan’s cherry blossom trees—albeit with a few token eucalypts.But while its existence will be fleeting compared to the closer-to-home cultural icon this year celebrating its 50th birthday, the importance of Expo as an enabler and showcase for cutting-edge built form cannot be underestimated.The pavilion designs invariably provide a glimpse of the possibilities and path ahead for shaping our cities and urban environments.<div id="carousel-root" data-reactroot=""><image-carousel-remove-button><div class="rm-carousel-wrapper"><button id="rm-carousel" class="rm-carousel-btn">Delete</button></div></image-carousel-remove-button><div class="slider-wrap"><image-carousel><div class="slider-el"><img style="height: 100%;" title="1.jpg" src="http://images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/6JBwnm33ttDyYrUS5UhMtu/93c7749a08994ae7803fece09a67eac0/1.jpg" data-mce-src="http://images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/6JBwnm33ttDyYrUS5UhMtu/93c7749a08994ae7803fece09a67eac0/1.jpg" data-mce-style="height: 100%;"></div><div class="slider-el"><img style="height: 100%;" title="2.jpg" src="http://images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/4Xu8wsz973bv1akNVnqXQo/037f3e20d3e60eeb0e46776a33bfbe67/2.jpg" data-mce-src="http://images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/4Xu8wsz973bv1akNVnqXQo/037f3e20d3e60eeb0e46776a33bfbe67/2.jpg" data-mce-style="height: 100%;"></div><div class="slider-el"><img style="height: 100%;" title="osaka ring construction sized.jpeg" src="http://images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/29GPcx0RRMqRWWPLjzTnLS/cc073c3274cb6c775fe28ded202564f9/osaka_ring_construction_sized.jpeg" data-mce-src="http://images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/29GPcx0RRMqRWWPLjzTnLS/cc073c3274cb6c775fe28ded202564f9/osaka_ring_construction_sized.jpeg" data-mce-style="height: 100%;"></div><div class="slider-el"><img style="height: 100%;" title="3.jpg" src="http://images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/2Fv3k3cfjgO0u2mPrYCNca/13166dbe57f865730dee2a0acf48f64b/3.jpg" data-mce-src="http://images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/2Fv3k3cfjgO0u2mPrYCNca/13166dbe57f865730dee2a0acf48f64b/3.jpg" data-mce-style="height: 100%;"></div></image-carousel></div></div> “It’s where the seeds of future ways of living will be sown, and Expo 2025’s impact will be seen in our cities and urban landscapes across the decade that follows,” says Australian Pavilion lead architect and Buchan senior associate Nataly Ernst.“Expo 2025 is about solving global challenges and will be a place for architects around the world to explore regenerative design, sustainability and innovation in materials and building methodologies.“The emphasis is very much on creating a future that is carbon-positive and energy self-sufficient.”The overarching theme of Expo 2025 is “Designing Future Society for Our Lives”.About 150 countries and 25 international organisations will participate in the event, which is to be staged from April to October, 2025 on Yumeshima, a 390ha man-made island in the southern Osaka Bay area. It is expected to attract more than 24 million visitors.Setting the Expo’s design tone, work is under way on what will be one of the world’s largest timber structures—a ring-shaped wooden canopy that will rise five storeys and encircle the exhibition precinct.The gently sloping accessible “grand roof” has been designed by local architect Sou Fujimoto and draws inspiration from traditional Japanese timber craftsmanship that uses no nails.<span class="mce-preview-object mce-object-iframe" contenteditable="false" data-mce-object="iframe" data-mce-p-allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-p-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Wq7ravMwEyo?si=3ensJSpsUPrhy0kO"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Wq7ravMwEyo?si=3ensJSpsUPrhy0kO" width="560" height="314" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Wq7ravMwEyo?si=3ensJSpsUPrhy0kO"></iframe> To be constructed from 20,000 cubic metres of wood, it will be 615m in diameter and have a 2km circumference.Not only will it be symbolic but it also will serve as a massive multi-dimensional, 30m-wide passageway and sheltering structure, topped by a 60,000sq m green-filled aerial corridor offering panoramic views of the Expo site and Osaka Bay.Fujimoto describes the aim of the colossal canopy as providing a platform from which people “can see the future positively”.“I designed a large ring-like platform that people can walk on and this will make a link of people and cultures from diverse worlds,” he says. “Here we share one sky above us.“It is a place where people from all over the world will unite their thoughts, respect each other and experience something special together.”The first World Expo—the Great Exhibition—was held in London’s Hyde Park in 1851. It was housed within the Crystal Palace—a glass-and-iron building longer than 11 Olympic swimming pools and twice the height of the landmark Hollywood sign in Los Angeles—that became a symbol of Victorian England and the industrial revolution.Ever since, participating countries have been upping the ante on their pavilion designs for the gathering of nations, which happens every five years as a platform for sharing scientific, technological, economic and social progress with a view to finding solutions to global challenges.<div id="VNBF7fbzjAehR6QXqQ0qE"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/4HaaWikrjtFrKk2VTQDmfT/896eb31dd54a1c17e901c6af7c593e4f/aust_expo_88_Ken_Woolley.png" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/4HaaWikrjtFrKk2VTQDmfT/896eb31dd54a1c17e901c6af7c593e4f/aust_expo_88_Ken_Woolley.png"></picture><div>▲ The Australian Pavilion at World Expo 88 in Brisbane, designed by Ken Woolley and featuring Ken Done art. </div></div>Buchan’s concept design for the Australian Pavilion's 3504sq m allocated plot at Expo 2025 was recently unveiled by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.Like renowned architect Ken Woolley’s famed pavilion design—boldly adorned with artist Ken Done’s colourful giant letters spelling Australia—for Brisbane’s 1988 World Expo, it aims to capture the essence of the nation.And although the latest design is somewhat less retina-busting—hey, that was the 1980s, folks—it is no less era-defining and visionary.Thirty-five years on, Australia’s population has grown from 16.5 million to nearly 26.5 million people—creating a national identity of greater substance, sophistication, diversity, creativity and ingenuity.Encapsulating the nation’s ongoing evolution, Buchan's team has conceptualised the Australian Pavilion for Expo 2025 under the theme “Chasing the Sun”.Ernst describes its form as “an abstraction of a eucalyptus gumnut”.“We wanted a fresh, distinctly Australian concept,” she tells The Urban Developer. “Australia is vast and its regions are all different.“In our research phase, we identified that the gum tree is common to all. There are more than 700 species, with a huge variety of forms, textures and colours. The gumtree and its nuts and blossoms provided our inspiration as an expression of diversity, resilience, growth and optimism.<div id="6AlEMB4r9sNsbggVKEsw94"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/5UiNF4j1Y5X8GsHVsYcemc/079c98e43338fb0a242891a3526c01f2/1.jpg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/5UiNF4j1Y5X8GsHVsYcemc/079c98e43338fb0a242891a3526c01f2/1.jpg"></picture><div>▲ The Australian Pavilion is as “an abstraction of a eucalyptus gumnut”, says lead architect and Buchan senior associate Nataly Ernst. </div></div>“The gumnut has a protective shell and its colourful blossom bursts from within. Our facade has been conceived as a protective skin with an aperture that provides space for vibrant programming and activity to blossom.”She says the concept also responds to the Expo 2025’s sustainability theme of “Designing Future Society for Our Lives” through the adaptability of the eucalypt to many conditions.“Our design explores the concepts of circular economy, sustainability and our architectural responsibility to society.“We’ll be primarily re-using a modular construction system that can be disassembled and re-used again, and most of the structure will have a second life.”As well as the Australian Pavilion, the covers recently have come off a number of other inspiring and innovative Expo 2025 pavilion designs.London-based studio Foster and Partners has designed the pavilion for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, modeling it after the organic forms of traditional Saudi villages.It also has an emphasis on sustainability and is committed to reaching a net zero operational carbon target using solar technologies for electricity generation, rainwater recycling, low-carbon materials, and energy-efficient lighting.<div id="1Yd72YNstZB1mkxGKzT5xI"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/1gQFafBsHjoMROdzdgDTuf/59cc11fea5d72674ef9701fcfca67a1b/the-pavilion-of-the-czech-republ.jpeg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/1gQFafBsHjoMROdzdgDTuf/59cc11fea5d72674ef9701fcfca67a1b/the-pavilion-of-the-czech-republ.jpeg"></picture><div>▲ A render of the Czech Republic Pavilion for World Expo 2025. </div></div>The design for the Czech Republic Pavilion is the work of Zurich-based Apropos Architects and features an ascending spiral form with a glass exterior paying homage to the country’s long tradition of glassmaking.Spirals also are an integral part of the Poland Pavilion designed by Paris-based Interplay—providing inherent stability on a site exposed to wind and seismic forces. Timber is its chosen eco-friendly primary building material due to its low carbon footprint.Milan-based studio AMDL Circle is behind the Nordic Pavilion, taking a sustainable and circular approach, purposely designing the structure for disassembly and reuse. It is planned to be built entirely of forest-managed wood.China, Italy and Brazil are among the other countries to have revealed innovative, state-of-the-art Expo 2025 pavilion designs.“Expo is a platform for Australia to showcase our design capability and innovation and participate in a global exchange of ideas,” Ernst says. “The event is an opportunity to explore architectural expression free from many of the usual constraints and is an important platform for architectural visioning for the future.”She cites Rotterdam-based MVRDV’s Netherlands Pavilion for the World Expo 2000 as a classic example of design ingenuity that has come from the event.Featuring six artificial landscapes stacked into a tower as a solution to future land needs, it became a lauded sustainable design for creating a building as a self-contained eco-system.<div id="3pvbwWsavKu2mGWSf09rdy"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/45vFCi0degIVR76in9O5ll/259e8100a3f393a47438d6fffee4d6fb/MVRDV_s_Dutch_Pavilion_for_Expo_2000_2.jpeg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/45vFCi0degIVR76in9O5ll/259e8100a3f393a47438d6fffee4d6fb/MVRDV_s_Dutch_Pavilion_for_Expo_2000_2.jpeg"></picture><div>▲ MVRDV’s Netherlands Pavilion for the World Expo 2000. </div></div>“It had an internal forest of trees and running water—revolutionary at the time—and was a catalyst for what we see in many buildings today in terms of integrating nature, and the way we repurpose and share space,” Ernst says.The pavilion was subsequently converted into a co-working office building with two structures for student housing and parking.Noting the vibrant Australian Pavilion design from Brisbane’s coming-of-age 1988 World Expo as a “bold expression of our growing confidence and our playfulness”, Ernst says: “Looking back across the years we can see how Australia's pavilions reflect the times.“Expo is a place for experimentation and pushing boundaries—architects and designers everywhere will be looking to Expo for inspiration and ideas.“It plays a significant and valuable role in driving innovation and creativity and showcasing it in one location. And our goal with the pavilion is to make an indelible impact, without leaving a trace.”<div id="5DDrSPIuXYsa1pKT4Ct4QL"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/1zpHBgzOorcKygMznZYroJ/70147317bab145236681122cdef45540/21-09-26-brazil-pavilion-expo-20.jpeg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/1zpHBgzOorcKygMznZYroJ/70147317bab145236681122cdef45540/21-09-26-brazil-pavilion-expo-20.jpeg"></picture><div>▲ A render of the Brazilian pavilion planned for Expo 2025. </div></div> <hr> You are currently experiencing The Urban Developer Plus (TUD+), our premium membership for property professionals. <a href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/membership-plans" data-mce-href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/membership-plans">Click here to learn more.</a><div id="2GhuueZl01Zwo2aFfjNVi2"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/12UMq5eMSEOh0QxJVBYaDt/d7507cf4ceb1365cc9ce7eaff84d06cc/tud___banner.jpg" alt="TUD + Banner" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/12UMq5eMSEOh0QxJVBYaDt/d7507cf4ceb1365cc9ce7eaff84d06cc/tud___banner.jpg"></picture></div>

Lessons learnt from expo pavilions continue to impact our cities and how we live, say proponents, as designs for Osaka 2025 are revealed…

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The lack of co-ordination between Australia’s different levels of government is a key barrier to achieving comprehensive and integrated climate change adaption strategies in Australian cities and towns, according to new research.&nbsp;The research by the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI), Improving Australian climate change adaption strategies: learning from international experience, undertaken by researchers from Curtin University, examines successful climate change adaptation practices, strategies and policies implemented internationally that could support the sustainable development of cities and towns across Australia.&nbsp;“Adaptation strategies focus on reducing the impact of climate change on our cities and towns,” says lead researcher Dr Francesca Perugia, of Curtin University.&nbsp;“An example of an adaption strategy from our research is Riba-roja de Túria in Spain, where the town planted 35ha of low-flammable vegetation to protect the town from bushfires while also promoting community awareness.“These adaption strategies are different to mitigation strategies, which concentrate on tackling the causes of climate change.”Australia currently lacks a strong overarching direction in climate change adaptation, including legislation and funding.In a peer-reviewed 2019 assessment of adaptation plans of 54 countries, Australia was the worst performer. This poor performance can be linked to the narrow scope of Australia’s approach to adaptation, including the lack of political leadership, the division of powers, and allocation of responsibilities, across the three tiers of government.“While adaptation is a shared responsibility between governments at all levels; businesses, communities and individuals, state governments need to lead the way and deliver strong leadership,” Dr Perugia said.<div id="66rsvdFqF5NkJdyvfkNvoA"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/45bgUwCYKsL89KdEV4SIOK/95fefc148eafa3e9cbbd1631f7a12692/2.jpg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/45bgUwCYKsL89KdEV4SIOK/95fefc148eafa3e9cbbd1631f7a12692/2.jpg"></picture><div>▲ Flooding in Tulsa in the US Mid-West. </div></div>The research interrogated urban adaption strategies in three international case studies: flooding prevention in Tulsa, US; bushfire reduction in Riba-roja de Túria, Spain; and cyclone proofing in Florida, US.In Tulsa, adaption strategies are supported by overarching national policy and funding frameworks, and the combination of top-down and bottom-up solutions provide the best results.All three case studies emphasise active community participation and leadership in devising and delivering their adaption strategies.&nbsp;“Building community resilience and preparedness includes increasing awareness of climate change for households and communities, including improving their preparedness and understanding of natural disasters,” Dr Perugia said.“Climate change resilience is also improved by strengthening stakeholders’ networks between different sectors and between institutions and community.”The research found that Australian cities and towns should incorporate three main strategic approaches for effective climate change adaptation—long-term investment and holistic approaches; building community resilience to deal with the impacts of climate change; and innovation in structural solutions that respect and reinforce the local ecological system as a way to build resilience.

The lack of co-ordination between different levels of government is stopping comprehensive and integrated climate change adaption strategies…

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Those behind the planned giga-project in Saudi Arabia have revealed another aspect to the project, Epicon.The Saudis said the new upscale coastal destination featuring two pointed skyscrapers would be built within the sustainable regional development in northwest Saudi Arabia.Positioned along the Gulf of Aqaba, Epicon “aims to redefine hospitality and architecture standards” within the wider NEOM mega-city, envisioned as a high-tech, sustainable urban and economic hub in the north-west of the country.The Epicon project compromises two towers—225m and 275m—housing a premium 41-key hotel and 14 suites and apartments.<div id="1efLUAVP2tNck0MtGJ6Y8D"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/5BMvv4qSmImgm1RyWxHZl6/56bec0f19bb67cf7b30042ed8eb7d8f5/neom-unveils-epicon-towers_2.jpeg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/5BMvv4qSmImgm1RyWxHZl6/56bec0f19bb67cf7b30042ed8eb7d8f5/neom-unveils-epicon-towers_2.jpeg"></picture><div>▲ A render of Epicon on the Gulf of Aqaba, at the northern tip of the Red Sea. </div></div>Nearby, the Epicon resort will include 120 rooms and 45 beach villas. According to NEOM it is “designed to be a haven from everyday life, providing experiences varying from high-end cuisine to water sports”.“The goal of Epicon is to redefine high-end living by seamlessly merging cutting-edge design and first-rate services. The project boasts spa-tailored wellness treatments and beachside relaxation. In fact, it offers complete visitor and resident care, fostering a luxury experience,” a spokesperson said.Facilities include a gym, library, workstations, pools, and lounges and panoramic views of NEOM's shoreline.The launch of Epicon coincided with the declaration of Leyja, another ecotourism destination in NEOM; both “align with the Kingdom's larger goals to enhance its ecotourism range”.<div id="7334UIyyKddbngyBo7malL"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/2J6CDpsnXa0MOqVd1zfGxu/2ed59af36c6405afbbd41d87f688e22c/neom-unveils-epicon-towers_4.jpeg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/2J6CDpsnXa0MOqVd1zfGxu/2ed59af36c6405afbbd41d87f688e22c/neom-unveils-epicon-towers_4.jpeg"></picture><div>▲ The resort would be part of the NEOM giga-project in Saudi Arabia. </div></div>NEOM is planned as a cross-border city development project in Saudi Arabia. Its intentions are to be a futuristic, sustainable city in the northwest region of the kingdom in order to drive innovation and technology, the Saudis say.In October, Zaha Hadid Architects unveiled plans for a striking 330m skyscraper within the Trojena ski resort, also in the NEOM development.Trojena would be the first major outdoor skiing destination in the Arabian Peninsula, and is planned for a site about 50km from the Gulf of Aqaba coast.The crystal-like skyscraper would be located on a mountain overlooking a central artificial lake.NEOM first made headlines with the unveiling of The Line, a 170km-long city in the precinct, in January, 2021.Other projects planned for NEOM include the residential Neom Bay; Neom Bay Airport; Oxagon, a floating industrial complex in the shape of an octagon covering about 250sq km; and Sindalah, a luxury resort complex off the city coast with an 86-berth marina and three luxury hotels.<div id="aI0R8mSf1RqSBm1Sjky1A"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/0VUjGzT6SW8PPoBb4pJpS/4d0099d5b0ed89383190f3fbf0c0102f/neom-unveils-epicon-towers_5.jpeg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/0VUjGzT6SW8PPoBb4pJpS/4d0099d5b0ed89383190f3fbf0c0102f/neom-unveils-epicon-towers_5.jpeg"></picture><div>▲ A render of a beachside villa at Epcon. <iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/mSQfApUwqBo" width="560" height="314" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/mSQfApUwqBo"></iframe> </div></div>

A resort on the Gulf of Aqaba comprising two towers up to 275m plus beachside villas are the latest plans for the Saudi giga-project…

Housing innovation PCA EDM.jpg

Australia should learn from international examples of public-private partnerships, and 3D-printed and modular homes to solve the housing crisis.Growing populations and declining residential construction pipelines meant that change was imperative,&nbsp; PRD chief economist Dr Diaswati Mardiasmo has told a Property Council of Australia event in Brisbane.However, she highlighted some of the work being done globally to cut construction costs and timelines that Australia could and should learn from, despite the bleak outlook.“So what are the options? Suggestions include build-to rent, asset repurposing, community-based land initiatives, public-private partnerships, modular homes and also shopping container, 3D-printed and tiny homes,” she said.Laying out examples, Dr Mardiasmo highlighted the <a data-mce-href="http://www.teeplearch.com/portfolio/60-richmond-east-housing-development/" href="http://www.teeplearch.com/portfolio/60-richmond-east-housing-development/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Richmond East Housing Co-Operative,&nbsp; a</a>11-storey, 85-unit development in Toronto, that is a collaboration between the city council and a hospitality workers union, with tenants primarily from the service industry.&nbsp;Asset repurposing has been a boon in other countries too, such as Vancouver’s co-housing Quayside Village, where existing materials were repurposed when it was turned into a co-living development,&nbsp;In Dubai, the government is targeting <a data-mce-href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/05/25-of-dubai-s-buildings-will-be-3d-printed-by-2025/" href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/05/25-of-dubai-s-buildings-will-be-3d-printed-by-2025/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">25 per cent of buildings to be 3D-printed by 2030.</a>Mathew Aitchison of Building 4.0 CRC, an industry-led research initiative co-funded by the Australian government, said that technology-driven construction will be the way forward.Many of these options seem futuristic given the technology-averse state of Australian construction and development.&nbsp; <div id="7G9lEeHPHIfZRuxPMLqHVA"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/4qVfpAxdICHjcc1tD8Bu1x/02fb18bbe9220b01dd431b83e65eebd3/Mid_article_resizes__24_.jpg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/4qVfpAxdICHjcc1tD8Bu1x/02fb18bbe9220b01dd431b83e65eebd3/Mid_article_resizes__24_.jpg"></picture><div>▲ KODA by Kodasema from Estonia, a compact modular home product touted as a housing crisis solution. </div></div>“It’s all about coding; the entire building production value chain has been coded and automated,” Aitchison said.“It is very different from the industry which has a number of software vendors, and where packages of software and consultants working in concert.“It takes enormous amount of time and energy out of the process and the design and development time is halved.”Modular developments across the world were discussed, including Estonia’s KODA by Kodasema, a compact modular home product introduced into the UK in response to its housing crisis, and launched in Australia in late 2022.Elsewhere, the next frontier is scaling multi-storey modular, but the issue with growing the sector in Australia is ‘short-termism’, Aitchison said.“The quick answer [to why Australia is not on par with other countries in terms of innovative housing solutions] is time.&nbsp;“Our industry really suffers from short termism and places we’ve seen [those solutions] work have a much longer time frame than we see today in Australia.“[Other countries have] been at it for decades, slowly and incrementally improving, and that’s the long-term thinking we need.”&nbsp;<div id="1JwjHtMwx2lzpfjvP1rroB"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/36Yhz6dsEqaeoLPuvvcryo/0c5a1d0e104ee49614b7e8c7902f3340/Copy_of_In-article__2_.jpg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/36Yhz6dsEqaeoLPuvvcryo/0c5a1d0e104ee49614b7e8c7902f3340/Copy_of_In-article__2_.jpg"></picture><div>▲ Toronto’s Richmond East Housing Co-Operative. Image: Shai Gil </div></div>A fundamental change to the way we think about construction needs to happen, he said.&nbsp;“We’re constrained with labour force, constrained with land ... why aren’t we doing simple things to make efficient, well-designed houses.&nbsp;“Why isn’t there variety—different subdivision types and models ... we can make housing that is more flexible, that allows for dual occupancy or a sublet if the family needs to augment income.“All these things are simple, but we don’t see them here and that’s a challenge to the industry.”Tamika Smith, founder of My Bella Casa said there was a need to start looking at projects at scale.&nbsp;“[We should look at] innovation as a bigger picture,” she said.&nbsp;“With off-site construction, the stigma that is catching up is we can build off site at high quality, everyone is catching onto that, but methods are only as good as the outcomes they deliver.”

International examples of private public partnerships, asset repurposing and 3D-printed or modular homes should be a guide to Australia according to a PCA panel...

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Changing the approach to warehouses has never been more important as logistics pressures bite and land remains at a premium, but with every change comes growing pains.With Australia’s first multi-level industrial development at 42-52 Raymond Avenue in Sydney’s Matraville due for completion complete by December this year, there has been another wave of activity in the market.&nbsp;Belvoir Property announced it was bringing its multi-level project, Podium in south-western Sydney to market, as is Hale Capital with its 37,526sq m space at 339 and 349 Horsley Road, Milperra, also in west of the NSW capital, which is offered for lease via Colliers.&nbsp;In the pipeline is Stockland’s multi-level project at Padstow, 21km south-west of the Sydney CBD, with a capital investment value of $333 million±and it’s a sign of things to come for that developer.“We’re accelerating our $6.4-billion national logistics development pipeline, which includes creating the next generation of industrial facilities in metropolitan Sydney,” Stockland’s executive general manager for logistics, Tony D’Addona told The Urban Developer.&nbsp;“Stockland’s multi-storey developments, at Banksmeadow, Padstow and Yennora, will meet the critical demand for quality logistics hubs in highly strategic infill locations that are close to major consumer markets, infrastructure and employment hubs.&nbsp;“These locations will help improve productivity by moving consumer goods efficiently around Sydney, including to homes and businesses, while supporting jobs and the NSW economy.”&nbsp;<div id="3YiSRFsezlb8brUNFZUCZN"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/1GxIsMgGkCuRMtl4PWl8sE/86af07ac3065a93cdd81c74bbbd83df6/Mid_article_resizes__7_.jpg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/1GxIsMgGkCuRMtl4PWl8sE/86af07ac3065a93cdd81c74bbbd83df6/Mid_article_resizes__7_.jpg"></picture><div>▲ Japanese tool and component distributor Monotaro’s multi-level Inagara Distribution Centre in Hyogo Prefecture, Japan. </div></div>But that’s not to say that multi-level or vertical warehouses aren’t facing their own specific challenges.<h2>Location, location, location</h2> Logistics and warehousing has always been beholden to location, and that <a data-mce-href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/multi-storey-warehouses-south-sydney-feasability-logistics" href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/multi-storey-warehouses-south-sydney-feasability-logistics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">drive for demand in specific locations</a> is fuelling the rise of multi-level.“We have large landowners who have to look at the highest value and best use of that land, which has meant some industrial has moved to residential, for example,” says director in charge for Colliers Sydney South Michael Crombie.“So when land is that expensive, and some of these warehouse sites are in the most expensive suburbs in the country, you need more value in the land—a multi-level warehouse could at least double their floorspace.”&nbsp;Colleague Trent Gallagher was involved in the sale of the Qantas Mascot Land Portfolio<a data-mce-href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/logos-consortium-buys-up-qantas-mascot-land" href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/logos-consortium-buys-up-qantas-mascot-land" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> to industrial developer Logos for $802 million—</a>Colliers itself has reportedly handled 73 per cent of the $1.6 billion in logistics land sales for multi-level warehouses.Gallagher says the conditions of the Sydney market lent itself to multi-level.“We’re super constrained in Sydney for industrial land,” he says.&nbsp;“But in Asia, they develop multi-level because there is no supply in those infill locations, and they need them for lots of e-commerce uses.”<div id="5qYw9x0QjitcW6JRU0Erp2"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/77gK13iVc4oQLKXc2j6sRh/a3fbe9682b34b658e97518588d222578/Stockland_Padstow_mid.jpg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/77gK13iVc4oQLKXc2j6sRh/a3fbe9682b34b658e97518588d222578/Stockland_Padstow_mid.jpg"></picture><div>▲ Stockland’s Padstow site will comprise 14 warehouse tenancies totalling 73,759sq m of warehouse gross floor area. </div></div>It is from these Asian examples that developers are learning.&nbsp;“As the market is getting accustomed to multi-level, developers and their architects have had to travel to Singapore, China and Japan to understand it,” Michael Crombie says.“It’s been a big learning curve.“Not every developer can deliver multi-level, it’s something they’ve had to upskill for and they’re all fighting to be multi-level specialists.“But everyone had to be trained up on it—only a handful of developers can do it, and builders are having to get up to speed too.”<h2>Stacking up</h2> Industrial, as any other real estate class, has been hit hard with what KPMG estimates is a 30 per cent rise in construction costs in recent years.&nbsp;But while multi-levels might be the new kid on the block, that doesn’t mean they necessarily command more in terms of rents per square metre, rather, their expanded GFA contributes to the bottom line.“Whether multi or single, we’re expecting rents to be the same. On the leasing side, there’s no difference in terms of bottom to top levels, it’s all driven by demand for location,” says Gallagher.<div id="sf2BrIEhqDiIaj8mvhOuF"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/5OsZXVjWAdSUEUeFMDxTw6/4f9f5ea47db91296dea03b5b1343bd40/Belvoir_Podium.jpg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/5OsZXVjWAdSUEUeFMDxTw6/4f9f5ea47db91296dea03b5b1343bd40/Belvoir_Podium.jpg"></picture><div>▲ Belvoir Property’s Smeaton Grange site has been aimed at food processors by supplying units with grease traps and gas connections. </div></div> “The big difference is that outgoings are reduced significantly with multi-level. They might have a bigger footprint, but land tax is the biggest killer and is going up rapidly.&nbsp;“Outgoings can be half of a traditional single level, so that’s a big cost saving for the developer.”However, one of the major issues for vertical warehousing is the planning permissions required above and beyond that of a single-storey shed.Building height restrictions for the area and the visual impact of the higher buildings are cause for consideration.<h2>Planning a multi-level warehouse</h2> Angus Halligan at Ethos Urban says there are<a data-mce-href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/planning-hold-ups-choking-industrial-growth" href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/planning-hold-ups-choking-industrial-growth" target="_blank" rel="noopener">&nbsp;challenges to vertical warehouses</a> that those lower to the ground do not face because of the current scale of multi-level development.&nbsp;“You’re effectively developing a state significant development in Sydney, so requirements on the applicant are not much different from building a tower in the Sydney CBD,”&nbsp; he says.&nbsp;“It can take two-and-a-half years to get through those application processes, and then you have practical issues such as water development servicing, and that infrastructure is a huge additional cost.&nbsp;“You’re dealing with government entities outside planning, so there’s a challenge in responsiveness and agreements of where appropriate road infrastructure can be placed.&nbsp;“You might have a great design and demonstrated demand, but you’re hitting this roadblock of infrastructure.”&nbsp;<div id="1T1ajqMMKFFTErivfkKbZS"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/etRlys2yQVjintRv7Ucuq/cdbc7413971f0bacdeb72a86cce52395/Belvoir_Podium_Cushman.jpg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/etRlys2yQVjintRv7Ucuq/cdbc7413971f0bacdeb72a86cce52395/Belvoir_Podium_Cushman.jpg"></picture><div>▲ Smeaton Grange comprises industrial factories, self-storage units and an 80-place childcare centre. </div></div>Of course, that is a problem not just for multi-level but for warehouses in general. But raising a building higher makes it more visible to the surrounding community, and it’s something planners and designers have had to adapt to.“On the outskirts of the city you could build a warehouse quickly, but with a vertical offering there is a greater need for visual impact assessment,” says Halligan.&nbsp;“We’re seeing a need for early consideration of facade treatments and a better idea of what this is going to look like, as lots of developments creep into areas that are mixed use rather than just outer periphery locations.”&nbsp;Then there are other issues industrial developers and planners have not necessarily had to deal with at such a scale before.“It’s early days but the introduction of the design review panel processes and connection to country is becoming more essential in the early phases,” Halligan says.&nbsp;“You need to demonstrate at the DA phase that you are front foot in engaging with Indigenous landowners, rather than it being a second thought or tokenistic, as this will bring your application to a grinding halt.&nbsp;“Keeping that consideration in front of mind is essential.”<h2>The future of multi-level&nbsp;</h2> Generally, Sydney is the centre of this multi-level revolution, according to Colliers’ Gavin Bishop.“It’s all driven by shortage of land supply, and where rents are high enough to makes multi level feasible—the only other location that might suit it right now is Port Melbourne, so realistically they are the two main areas,” he says.Sydney is leading the pack in terms of multi-level warehouses with major projects in the works for the likes of Charter Hall, Logos and Stockland.The latter of which has filed an application for a 15,000-square-metre distribution centre at Banksmeadow, and is in the early stages of a state significant development approval at the Yennora Distribution Centre precinct.But vertical industrial sites raise other issues about the future of industrial.&nbsp;“In Sydney, we generally have an older style of warehouse. But multi-level is about flight to quality—you’re demolishing older sheds and building modern buildings with superior heights. We’ve learnt from our mistakes over the past 100 years,” says Crombie.&nbsp;<div id="5sdNSyoDc8UDDluNAO6Cr4"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/5BSiArqNZjTSpSO6qN0Z2q/5ea6ce918936cc1053252dd9ba42c4c4/Milperra_Colliers.jpg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/5BSiArqNZjTSpSO6qN0Z2q/5ea6ce918936cc1053252dd9ba42c4c4/Milperra_Colliers.jpg"></picture><div>▲ Colliers is marketing a new 37,526-sq-m multi-level space at 339 and 349 in Milperra, south-west of the Sydney CBD. </div></div> From an Environment Social and Governance (ESG) standpoint, the learnings of multi-level will be essential.&nbsp;“For a lot of big corporations who need to do that box ticking exercise a lot of older sheds can't provide that ESG solution,” says Crombie.“They're always going to have to work out what is best for the business, but if you assess all your options and see a 10,000 sq m warehouse and a brand-new multi-level warehouse for the same price, the latter would make more sense for these companies.”&nbsp;The other issue is that at currentl;y, scalability has been key to institutional investors in this space.&nbsp;“Multi-levels are actually not new, we’ve been doing it for years but on a much smaller scale ... but institutional investors and funds are going for scale.&nbsp;‘It’s hard to develop multi-level on less than 20,000sq m site—you need decent land size to build institutional multi-level product.”&nbsp; <hr> You are currently experiencing&nbsp;The Urban Developer&nbsp;Plus (TUD+), our premium membership for property professionals.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/membership-plans" data-mce-href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/membership-plans">Click here to learn more.</a><div id="2GhuueZl01Zwo2aFfjNVi2"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/12UMq5eMSEOh0QxJVBYaDt/d7507cf4ceb1365cc9ce7eaff84d06cc/tud___banner.jpg" alt="TUD + Banner" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/12UMq5eMSEOh0QxJVBYaDt/d7507cf4ceb1365cc9ce7eaff84d06cc/tud___banner.jpg"></picture></div>

Changing the way we design warehouses has never been more important as logistics pressures bite and land comes at a premium, but with every change comes growing pains…

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The construction industry is ripe for disruption thanks to a huge mismatch between delivery and the growing need for housing.According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the rate of home building in 2023 is not faring well with a 250,000-home target slipping out of reach.Meanwhile, construction costs keep rising, timelines have blown out even futher and labour shortages are far from solved.But investment is here and so is innovation, and if planning regulations allow, creating a new high-rise or home could be as simple as the copy and paste functions on your computer.In Germany the housing crisis is affected nearly three times as many people as here.Looking for solutions from new sources, artificial intelligence and robotics are being employed to <a data-mce-href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/floor-per-day-prefabrication-german-construction-gropyus" href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/floor-per-day-prefabrication-german-construction-gropyus" target="_blank" rel="noopener">manufacture high-rises offsite</a> in suprisingly short amounts of time.Using these technologies, buildings could be replicated again and again, solving the housing crisis altogether, all by using that keyboard shortcut.And artificial intelligence has applications in architecture, design and procurement, not just construction.As well, these innovations can in turn increase the number of workers thanks to an increased diversity in the workforce plus extending the working life of of those already in the industry.&nbsp;<h2>Halve the time, double the money</h2> Archipelago founding director Peter Edwards spoke to The Urban Developer and said the skills and demand are here, but the capacity that is lacking.“We’ve got this massive requirement line for housing going through the roof with people moving to the regions, needing a plot, needing a house but our capacity to deliver is a line that’s particularly shallower,” Edwards says.“You are seeing the kind of moment where the maths is pointing to an opportunity to disrupt.“The disruption opportunity in the housing sector in Queensland is something that really needs interrogation because we think there’s opportunities for innovation in the delivery.“We think the design for manufacture and assembly space will continue to emerge in Queensland and feature in housing options for architects.”<div id="6EwUTvr9xDIOdRcaLxNPV"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/7c5p2xRRh7jZkmxfvMhbvl/82b06e76cf7ae83be87da0aea57b6b4d/Copy_of_Mid_article_resizes__82_.jpg" alt="the side of a prefabricated highrise overlooking the German countryside" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/7c5p2xRRh7jZkmxfvMhbvl/82b06e76cf7ae83be87da0aea57b6b4d/Copy_of_Mid_article_resizes__82_.jpg"></picture><div>▲ Gropyus built this high-rise in Germany in three months, much of it in its factory, which co-founder Philipp Erler says is faster—and safer for workers.</div><div> </div></div>Archipelago senior associate Josh Spillane says the investigations had revealed major advantages—for example, once the pre-built components were onsite, the actual construction time could be reduced by 50 per cent.“Those savings are not only in preliminaries and craning but also for projects with incoming revenue and long-term stakeholders who have tenure interest in getting people in housing faster and bringing that revenue forward,” he says.“So the monetary benefits flow to post-construction as well.”Spillane says there is also a higher degree of control in the manufactured process, leading to more benefits.&nbsp;“The control of construction process and trade involvement also brings the ability to minimise waste and optimise the use of materials,” Spillane says.“There are social benefits through that innovation as well.“We can invite a more diverse cross-section of society to participate in the construction industry that’s not only about fostering gender equality but people who might have mobility issues.”He said more pre-fabrication also means it is practical for people already in the industry to stay working longer—the process is less taxing on the body that building from scratch.&nbsp;<h2>Look global, work local</h2> Building 4.0 CRC chief executive Mathew Aitchison says developing a culture of innovation will tackle the two biggest issues facing the industry.“They are: How can we grow market capacity and how can we decarbonise our industry?” Aitchison says.&nbsp;“There’s a 70,000 difference between actual housing starts a year and what we need to be doing.“The industry is really struggling—we all know the level of insolvencies at the moment.&nbsp;“But there’s some fresh ideas out there about how we can solve this.”This month, hundreds of higher-tier developers, builders and architects explored possibilities at Building 4.0 CRC events in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane.<div id="4cNVjZtHbfNTT0HLMC1TPj"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/5Pjmu9oM80rMsKzwvdb2j4/7c719b6d9e0fbe8190f13e30eb3a6171/Copy_of_Mid_article_resizes__84_.jpg" alt="Two images side by side of a building under construction and once complete." data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/5Pjmu9oM80rMsKzwvdb2j4/7c719b6d9e0fbe8190f13e30eb3a6171/Copy_of_Mid_article_resizes__84_.jpg"></picture><div>▲ This multi-storey residential development in Spring Hill, Queensland achieved a seven floors of backbone structure above the podium in just 11 days. </div></div>Kope.ai co founder David Flynn is a UK-based architect who developed a system that lists and order parts for a build as soon as plans are drawn up.“Buildings are not made of marshmallow, they’re made of concrete, steel, metal, timber ... so how about we digitise the simple aspects of that and get that onto a platform,” Flynn says.“We decided we would build a company around that idea called Kope—Kit of Products Engine.“This is all completely automated so as soon as you select your suppliers you’re able to click a couple of buttons and everybody is making it.“This happens in real time—it takes about five or ten seconds to do something that previously could take four or five hours.”AI enables users to look at more local suppliers for products, multiple if needed, say if the project scope changes, and also measure up materials to reduce waste.<h2>Flatpack, high-rise</h2> In Australia, PT Blink chief operating officer Wayne Larson is looking at structural technology to create high-rises offsite using their digital platform to send details to offsite manufactures.“Once we can control the geometry then we know we can take the structure and manufacture all the parts and fit them together,” Larson says.“From that file we go straight to the factory.“We’re able to manufacture entire superstructures for multi-storey buildings in a factory, flat pack them and install them very quickly.”This technology meant the construction time for a 31-apartment, seven-storey building in Brisbane’s Spring Hill was halved from an industry benchmark of about 15 months.“The superstructure went up in 11 days, so it was very, very quick,” Larson says.<span class="mce-preview-object mce-object-iframe" contenteditable="false" data-mce-object="iframe" data-mce-p-allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-p-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BI5NtwebHEQ?si=VriHmisXxkjrJWra"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BI5NtwebHEQ?si=VriHmisXxkjrJWra" width="560" height="314" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> “It’s pretty powerful because what we’re trying to do is change an industry that doesn’t want to change and can’t do it on its own.“The culture of innovation is important and there’s a number of us talking about the same thing.“Getting change in automation or people to adopt innovation is difficult because no one wants to be left behind and no one wants to be first. So it’s a race to be second.” <hr> You are currently experiencing The Urban Developer Plus (TUD+), our premium membership for property professionals. <a href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/membership-plans" data-mce-href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/membership-plans">Click here to learn more.</a><div id="2GhuueZl01Zwo2aFfjNVi2"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/12UMq5eMSEOh0QxJVBYaDt/d7507cf4ceb1365cc9ce7eaff84d06cc/tud___banner.jpg" alt="TUD + Banner" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/12UMq5eMSEOh0QxJVBYaDt/d7507cf4ceb1365cc9ce7eaff84d06cc/tud___banner.jpg"></picture><div> </div></div>

The gap between housing demand and the capacity to deliver is widening, but the solution could be in a few computer shortcuts… 

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Rome wasn’t built in a day but its construction legacy has lasted through the ages—now mega-corporations are stepping up to fund the development of new-age concrete.Ancient Rome’s Colosseum, and many other structures have survived two millennia and in January this year a paper published in Science Advances revealed the secret—“self-healing” concrete.&nbsp;MIT professor of civil and environmental engineering Admir Masic worked on the study with investigators from Harvard University, and laboratories in Italy and Switzerland.They found lime clasts and various forms of calcium carbonate but the real secret was super heating the concrete mix.&nbsp; “Since I first began working with ancient Roman concrete, I’ve been fascinated by these features,” Masic says.&nbsp; “These are not found in modern concrete formulations, so why are they present in these ancient materials?” To test the technology the team produced samples of hot-mixed concrete that incorporated ancient and modern formulations. They deliberately cracked it and then ran water through the cracks. Within two weeks the cracks had healed and the water could no longer flow.“It’s exciting to think about how these more durable concrete formulations could expand not only the service life of these materials but also how it could improve the durability of 3D-printed concrete formulations,” Masic says. <div id="7KeyhCtlFxSztTxQecZUcF"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/7qFxiEBTlBIGQKHkLVwV0N/dba16e242276b4ede94af92d47f4239c/Copy_of_Mid_article_resizes__74_.jpg" alt="A Roman wall next to a magnified piece of concrete, searching for the secrets." data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/7qFxiEBTlBIGQKHkLVwV0N/dba16e242276b4ede94af92d47f4239c/Copy_of_Mid_article_resizes__74_.jpg"></picture><div>▲ An unexpected ancient manufacturing strategy held the key to designing concrete that lasts. Image: MIT </div></div><h2>Superfunding concrete mixes </h2> Mega tech-corporation Microsoft this month announced a $1-billion Climate Innovation Fund to research greener construction for its campuses and data centres, specifically in concrete. The creation of concrete and cement produces 8 per cent of global greenhouse emissions, and is also a big proportion of the company’s carbon footprint, which it wants to be negative by 2030. One of the technologies funded by Microsoft is an algae-based concrete model called Bio-Block by Prometheus Materials, and Skidmore, Owings &amp; Merrill. <div id="1H02nEn2jTRdEQufY1a4uF"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/2QIEXwKVJ0qgi9bTOj051z/a51181b65064862c74efd6f9430b1bc3/Copy_of_Mid_article_resizes__75_.jpg" alt="Render of the Microsoft corporate campus in Redmond, Washington has 17 new mid rise office buildings." data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/2QIEXwKVJ0qgi9bTOj051z/a51181b65064862c74efd6f9430b1bc3/Copy_of_Mid_article_resizes__75_.jpg"></picture><div>▲ Twelve building on the Microsoft Corporate Campus in Redmond, Washington, will be replaced with 17 new ones, creating nearly 279,000sq m of office space. </div></div>SOM design partner Scott Duncan spoke to The Urban Developer about the new material on show at the Chicago Architecture Biennial opening. “It’s not a surprise that we need to make a change in the way we build, and materials are such a big part of that,” Duncan says. “Concrete masonry blocks are so ubiquitous that it’s a very logical choice to attack those problems of carbon neutrality. “We see huge promise in it—we’re not only architects but structural engineers and sustainability engineers. “We’re able to consider all those things ... the structural performance, the aesthetics that are very similar to a concrete masonry unit but also all the carbon aspects and energy performance aspects that are serving as a thermal envelope.” SOM partnered with the International Masonry Institute to “connect the idea to reality” by having tradespeople on the table from day one for an installation at The Mews in Fulton Market, Chicago (main image and below). The change in materiality and carbon footprint could have a big impact on how future buildings are designed. “Carbon has begun to drive the way we think about designing the forms of our buildings,” Duncan says. “We are reducing the amount of surface area on our buildings, for example, on the skins to minimise the amount of material that goes into them. “Once you have a net-zero or zero-carbon solution for the skin, the envelope, you have more freedom to explore shapes and surface area.” <div id="4XPJwCUGOPPWbHKM7HuAtf"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/6n4kOI1Cf7zkRzPIroiATd/ba6800ecda605bacc9578a185a5db951/Copy_of_Mid_article_resizes__73_.jpg" alt="Trades installing a bio-block spiral near a busy street. " data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/6n4kOI1Cf7zkRzPIroiATd/ba6800ecda605bacc9578a185a5db951/Copy_of_Mid_article_resizes__73_.jpg"></picture><div>▲ SOM showcases an algae-based, net-zero concrete alternative in a spiraling form composed of bio-blocks. Image: Dave Burk </div></div>Algae is not the only concrete composite in the mix—lobster shells, rubber tyres, personal protective equipment, construction waste and coffee-based mixes are under development in Australia.&nbsp; Depending on what is used, the concrete could be more flexible, have increased tensile strength or get rid of cement all together. RMIT research fellow Rajeev Roychand said items that would usually go to landfill could further reduce the carbon footprint and the cost of new concrete. “There’s a lot of waste ending up in landfills ... you have to invest money to dispose of it, you have to spare precious land and there are a lot of environmental and health issues,” Roychand tells The Urban Developer. “If we can create a circular economy you save valuable space, you’re not investing in disposing of it but transferring it into a valuable resource. &nbsp; “In terms of organic waste in Australia, it produces about 6.87 million tonnes of waste that ends up in landfill. “It amounts to 3 per cent of Australian greenhouse gas emissions.” The researchers looked at coffee as a replacement for sand but had to use a pyrolysis process—heating without oxygen—to enable the grounds to be a suitable substitute. The former structural design engineer also looked into fly ash, a residue of coal used in thermal energy production. &nbsp; “We even developed a zero-cement composite which was totally replacing conventional cement with fly ash, slag and some chemical additives,” Roychand says. “We saw a significant increase in the durability of the concrete for instance when you build any structure in a marine environment.&nbsp; <div id="016cLOOVGYe4riER8P6Ex8"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/1IdpR5yYeVWbDs3LTt0pc3/f41bb97f21e43895f26c43c2b0adda89/iStock-1290281515.jpg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/1IdpR5yYeVWbDs3LTt0pc3/f41bb97f21e43895f26c43c2b0adda89/iStock-1290281515.jpg"></picture><div>▲ The huge amount of PPE waste during Covid got researchers thinking... </div></div>“And when we tested it in a sea environment it was 96 per cent better than conventional concrete, so there was no corrosion visible.” However, the future of thermal-powered coal plants is limited, so the research team continued into greener mixes. “There was a lot of PPE waste such as facemasks during Covid, so we had a chat to see if we could use it—and concrete is our core domain,” Roychand says. “We shredded the PPE waste into a fibrous material and added it in to concrete because it was strong in tension. “So any crack that formed was bridged by this fibrous material.”Roychand says there’s a lot of support from industry taking up such solutions. “In the near future we will see a real closed-loop curricular economy where we can create value out of whatever waste is going to landfill,” he says.&nbsp; “We are rolling this out in the next few months and are sorting out the logistics at the moment.” <span class="mce-preview-object mce-object-iframe" contenteditable="false" data-mce-object="iframe" data-mce-p-allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-p-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MRiHjK9IY3g?si=63bN71Nc6ir1GrXH"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MRiHjK9IY3g?si=63bN71Nc6ir1GrXH" width="560" height="314" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" data-mce-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MRiHjK9IY3g?si=63bN71Nc6ir1GrXH"></iframe><h2>Carbon neutral right now </h2> Meanwhile, as research, funding and evolution in the industry is under way, Brickworks is producing a carbon-neutral brick made at its Longford, Tasmania plant. During the past 10 years, the ASX-listed company has gained national certification for its products.The firm uses sawdust as a biofuel in the brick kilns at the Longford plant with the sawdust supplied by the local timber industry, while raw materials for the bricks are extracted on site.Waste, and water and electricity use has been reduced as a result. In fact, it has added up to a 70,000 tonnes reduction of carbon emissions while remaining emissions were offset by purchasing carbon credits. As one of the greatest creators of carbon, the construction industry must move towards technology that reduced, not adds to the problem.With time, money and motivation, there are many such solutions not only on the horizon but close to reality. <hr> You are currently experiencing The Urban Developer&nbsp;Plus (TUD+), our premium membership for property professionals.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/membership-plans" data-mce-href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/membership-plans">Click here to learn more.</a><div id="2GhuueZl01Zwo2aFfjNVi2"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/12UMq5eMSEOh0QxJVBYaDt/d7507cf4ceb1365cc9ce7eaff84d06cc/tud___banner.jpg" alt="TUD + Banner" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/12UMq5eMSEOh0QxJVBYaDt/d7507cf4ceb1365cc9ce7eaff84d06cc/tud___banner.jpg"></picture><div> </div></div>

Algae, Covid-era facemasks and the Ancient Romans—researchers are casting the net wide to create carbon-reduced building materials…

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A German software engineer has invented a process that will put up a nine-storey residential building, with 54 apartments and a gross floor area of just under 4200sq m, in about three months.And&nbsp;Gropyus AG’s co-founder and chief technical officer Philipp Erler has the building to prove it.In March last year the Vienna-based company completed its nine-storey prototype—variously known as “Gropyus Building #00001” and “Im Wohnpark Nette 6”—on the banks of the river Nette, about 15km from Koblenz in Germany’s west.This week in Melbourne, several hundred delegates to the annual convention of Building 4.0 CRC—an industry-led research initiative co-funded by the Australian government—were given a glimpse into what Gropyus AG calls a Building Operating System, and how it may well be a solution to this country’s housing crisis.In truth, the convention was told, the proof-of-concept project took a lot longer to put up.That three-month boast did not include the building’s concrete foundations. And at the time, Germany’s regulations decreed the building’s stairwell and lift-core also be made of concrete. That added six months to the process.“But when we came with our parts from the factory we built the ground floor in two weeks,” Erler said.<div id="49dJC01DzbxoicCjmEOkgu"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/7eiPyowfocyPwO5ZiUfwsx/176d70cfe6b9e4682f90de22df80cb85/4.jpg" alt="A composite photo of Philipp Erler and Gropyus Building #00001: Later versions will be built in around three months." data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/7eiPyowfocyPwO5ZiUfwsx/176d70cfe6b9e4682f90de22df80cb85/4.jpg"></picture><div>▲ Philipp Erler and Gropyus Building #00001: Later versions will be built in around three months.</div><div> </div></div>“And then we started to rack them, floor by floor.”&nbsp;“The last two floors were erected in a total of one week, so that’s two days per floor, plus a little bit of equipment changeover in between.”Since then, German regulations have eased, and it is now possible to build lifts and stairways from wood.&nbsp;And while Building #00001 has 22 per cent less embodied carbon than a traditional build, with the concrete core gone Erler says they expect to get that reduction to as much as 40 per cent.“The government now understands that particularly for ceiling slabs, elevator and stairway courses, you can also use wooden material,” he says. “And that’s very helpful for us, since it’s faster if everything can be made out of the same elements in one assembly flow.”And it’s that assembly flow back in one of their two factories in Germany where the digitally integrated, end-to-end magic happens.It starts with the initial building design and leads all the way to building operation.<div id="bjEKYmR87fhSB5Y9qwONL"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/7ocuu4h89gU7QUGaCdL9jQ/6040b6b5082e1bf6b4bded92454cf8ea/3.jpg" alt="It's all about the automation. The robots are off the shelf, but Gropyus has acquired a subsidiary to build the robotic attachments." data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/7ocuu4h89gU7QUGaCdL9jQ/6040b6b5082e1bf6b4bded92454cf8ea/3.jpg"></picture><div>▲ It’s all about the automation. The robots are off the shelf but Gropyus has acquired a subsidiary to build the robotic attachments. </div></div>“Our software very easily pushes together a multi-family [build-to-rent] residential building design that fits your needs on a particular plot of land,” Erler told The Urban Developer after his presentation on Wednesday.&nbsp;“A very simple draft, something a developer usually does internally, takes half an hour. If it is a more complex plot of land, it might take a day.“This essentially cuts down your planning time from months to minutes,” he said. “Or at least the time you need from a creative point of view to make floor plans.“You can build small, larger, angled, whatever. Also, somewhat architecturally diverse buildings can be made out of this kit of parts, and then you can make sure that design, sourcing, production, assembly and operations are all done super-efficiently by integrating everything.“No longer do you have to have individual projects where you’ve tried to solve every question over and over again. We’ve developed a kit of parts, but it’s very, very flexible.“And over time AI [artificial intelligence] will help us a lot with that, once our data sets are large enough.”The software and process are fully trackable and traceable, which gives the project owner a better overview of timelines. There’s less disruption, faster delivery, it’s more efficient, bad weather doesn’t hold up production, and there are less unforeseen costs and therefore less risk.<div id="2RgnDBpgdmibTfezqFoMRP"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/3LvIsqCuk0Z1TVCEHCxe1n/9c21ef1b32e8c3414452b720333262b5/2.jpg" alt="A composite photo of the Gropyus operation. The company is ramping up production with two factories, 400 staff and six locations in three different countries. " data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/3LvIsqCuk0Z1TVCEHCxe1n/9c21ef1b32e8c3414452b720333262b5/2.jpg"></picture><div>▲ Gropyus is ramping up production with two factories, 400 staff and six locations in three different countries. </div></div>“What’s also happening automatically is every single screw in a timber frame or every single staple, every single millimetre of silicone, acrylic, whatever, is already calculated,” Erler says.“I can give you an exact price, not just a price range.”And since prefabricated cable trusses are assembled by lay-people back in the factory, the officially registered tradesmen only come to the building site to make the connection to mains power.Automation and software are the bones of the company. Soon after it was founded, Gropyus acquired a 30-person-strong automation subsidiary.It builds robotic arms.“Essentially, we buy the industrial robots off the shelf, but what’s really important, where the value lies, is in the experience. We now build a lot of those effectors ourselves.”<div id="5IjIhCLXVtgknsPykOyvZ5"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/TwcwbaIVnQOZfOURSTmzk/849dd469fad1ee25056540f0a00de510/1.jpg" alt="Photo apartment interiors. The company says their software allows flexibility in building design and floor plates, and Artificial Intelligence is set to improve upon that." data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/TwcwbaIVnQOZfOURSTmzk/849dd469fad1ee25056540f0a00de510/1.jpg"></picture><div>▲ The company says their software allows flexibility in building design and floor plates, and artificial intelligence is set to improve upon that.</div><div> </div></div>Sound too good to be true?The German government doesn’t think so. In the four years since Erler and his business partner Markus Fuhrmann built the company they’ve played host to Germany’s Minister for Housing, Urban Development and Building Klara Geywitz on at least eight occasions.The latest data shows Germany has a construction backlog of 846,500 apartments.The investment community doesn’t think so either.This year the Austrian start-up announced it had raised about €100 million ($A166 million) in fresh cash from a group of investors led by Vonovia SE, Germany’s biggest landlord, bringing its total capital raising to about twice that.But perhaps most importantly, the clients are on board.&nbsp;Gropyus now counts 400 staff in six locations in three different countries. It has a pipeline of 38 multi-residential projects, mostly five to seven storeys.Legally, the company is listed as a general contractor but Erler shies away from traditional labels.“We market ourselves as a product company,” he says.“We are delivering a multiple-family residential product that is sustainable and affordable to residents and developers.” <hr> You are currently experiencing The Urban Developer Plus (TUD+), our premium membership for property professionals. <a href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/membership-plans" data-mce-href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/membership-plans">Click here to learn more.</a><div id="2GhuueZl01Zwo2aFfjNVi2"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/12UMq5eMSEOh0QxJVBYaDt/d7507cf4ceb1365cc9ce7eaff84d06cc/tud___banner.jpg" alt="TUD + Banner" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/12UMq5eMSEOh0QxJVBYaDt/d7507cf4ceb1365cc9ce7eaff84d06cc/tud___banner.jpg"></picture></div>

Lauded as a gamechanger for construction—and a ‘green’ housing crisis solution—the company behind the tech is looking for an Aussie partner…

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One of Australia’s oldest home builders could be about to crack the 10-week house-build benchmark, ushering in a new era in residential construction.AV Jennings has spent a good part of this century searching for technology to take it through the next 100 years of residential development. It says it has found it in a prefabrication system devised in Australia.And although now these homes are built in Bosnia &nbsp;in south-eastern Europe and sent here in shipping containers, AV Jennings will soon be able to create more than 2000 homes a year in Australia.The ASX-listed company has signed a joint-venture deal with prefabricator Pro9 and plans to build prefab homes indistinguishable from current detached home stock.As Australia struggles to meet the housing needs of its growing population, AV Jennings chief executive Phil Kearns told The Urban Developer they had taken a huge step forward with onshore production to start next year.“It is Western Australian technology but it’s being produced in Bosnia because the guy who invented it is Bosnian,” Kearns says.“It’s being shipped to Australia from there, however, we have entered a joint venture with the company, Pro9, to establish a manufacturing plant on the Central Coast of NSW.“We plan to begin manufacturing there during the first quarter of next year, so somewhere between January and March.”Unlike typical modular housing, Pro9 allows builders to have the exact design they want.As well, Pro9’s wall system is multi-storey load bearing without the need for columns or beams, allowing multi-storey builds.The walls consist of three components—a steel frame for strength, external proprietary ProBoard for fire resistance and finish, and polyurethane for insulation.And they have a best-in-class standard of insulation and air tightness, as well as being delivered with electrical wiring and windows already installed.So far 10 of these homes have been built in Australia as the company streamlines the process that could mean homes will be built in as little as nine weeks.<div id="1cyquEn7MsmKal7oCJbes3"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/7eMAHeNE7pUMBQYUYXVMuI/bf1a9517ba0a3ab284592dfdf37b9d80/1.jpg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/7eMAHeNE7pUMBQYUYXVMuI/bf1a9517ba0a3ab284592dfdf37b9d80/1.jpg"></picture><div>▲ Ten AV Jennings homes have been built using the Pro9 technology to date. </div></div>“AV Jennings’ impact on the technology is that we are making it more buildable,” Kearns says.“We’re not there yet but we are aiming to have it somewhere between two and three months as we get better and more efficient with putting together these structures.“The whole wall fits into a shipping container—the windows are already in, the electricals are in, it goes into a container and on to the site where a crane lowers it on to the slab.”The homes can be built to a number of AV Jennings designs that are part of the Stellar Collection. Two of these homes built at Riverton, Queensland, achieved a 9.4 NatHERS rating.The proportion of Pro9 homes in AV Jennnings’ portfolio is expected to scale up quickly with a pipeline planned for the 2024 financial year. The company has 14,094 lots under its control as part of its “strategic restocking” in south-east Queensland and NSW.Kearns says the technology not only saves considerable time getting to lock-up stage but produces high-quality homes with strong sustainability outcomes.<div id="5XMmGXqIotrqxAMbNOR0dr"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/6bd5Y9B8N173oDP5C2GZr0/5c54d57eee4e46a5cc1449f5bff9ce32/4.jpg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/6bd5Y9B8N173oDP5C2GZr0/5c54d57eee4e46a5cc1449f5bff9ce32/4.jpg"></picture><div>▲ AV Jennings chief executive Phil Kearns: Huge step forward. </div></div>“AV Jennings has been looking at prefabricating homes for probably 15 years,” he says.“We’ve tried a few things but nothing we’ve really liked or hit the quality we were looking for.“About four or five years ago we came across Pro9 and we liked what they were doing.“We’re very excited about it—when its up and running the factory will be able to do about 1000 homes a year or, in two shifts, 2000 homes a year.“And we are certainly interested in talking with other builders who want to embrace the technology.”However, AV Jennings is not the only developer looking to technology to improve build costs, completion times and quality.Printing homes is also gaining traction—NSW-based company Contour3D <a data-mce-href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/3d-printing-australia-dubbo-advances" href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/3d-printing-australia-dubbo-advances" target="_blank" rel="noopener">plans to print an entire tourist park at Dubbo, </a>constructing the buildings in days.Before construction blowouts during and after the pandemic, the average time it took to build a home was just over six months.&nbsp;<div id="2eOPgvpZYMUm80M6IqJLKX"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/19vWyvZEERJhhq5raDrGON/623ae343d4f58aada7ac8c3b9dfffb89/2.jpg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/19vWyvZEERJhhq5raDrGON/623ae343d4f58aada7ac8c3b9dfffb89/2.jpg"></picture><div>▲ Two of the homes at Riverton, Queensland, achieved a 9.4 NatHERS rating. </div></div>Australian Bureau of Statistics data shows this completion time remained relatively unchanged from 2009 to 2019.Queensland was the fastest place to build a home at just over five months compared to about seven months in NSW and Victoria.&nbsp;This was pushed out to 12 months or more during the pandemic.“It’s really been tough for the whole industry—it’s been difficult but I think we can see light at the end of the tunnel,” Kearns says.“It’s been an incredibly tough couple of years for the whole industry and we’re not immune to that.“We’re in pretty reasonable shape. The war in the Ukraine began and led to a whole bunch of supply-chain issues, which meant price increases for products.“Through Covid we lost a lot of labour out of the country—tradesmen went home, which caused prices to increase and the time to build was extended massively.<div id="4BE7DCAq0007PElVtdFsoE"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/2070JdUvveR2cqlAcgPEfJ/099d05a98267cb094ed6885468fd5ed0/3.jpg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/2070JdUvveR2cqlAcgPEfJ/099d05a98267cb094ed6885468fd5ed0/3.jpg"></picture><div>▲ In terms of the type of construction there hasn’t been really groundbreaking methodology, says AV Jennings chief Phil Kearns. </div></div>“Then we had seven months of rain and that caused futher issues. A big part of what we do requires big bits of yellow machinery digging and moving earth.“Then we had 12 interest rate rises in 13 months.“Hopefully people in the industry are generally a little more optimistic about where we can head from here.”<h2>Methodology innovation stuck</h2> A tech shake-up could be exactly the thing to reactivate innovation in the dormant construction industry.&nbsp;“In terms of the type of construction there hasn’t been really groundbreaking methodology,” Kearns says.“There’s been individual innovations in terms of different products and solutions for things such as stone in houses and technology around solar roofs.“But homes are still pretty much built the same way they were built for the past 40 or 50 years.”Solutions to the Australian housing crisis are many and varied—and the rise of new technology to help delivers homes faster is certain to play an increasing role in the not-too-distant future. <hr> You are currently experiencing The Urban Developer Plus (TUD+), our premium membership for property professionals. <a href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/membership-plans" data-mce-href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/membership-plans">Click here to learn more.</a><div id="2GhuueZl01Zwo2aFfjNVi2"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/12UMq5eMSEOh0QxJVBYaDt/d7507cf4ceb1365cc9ce7eaff84d06cc/tud___banner.jpg" alt="TUD + Banner" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/12UMq5eMSEOh0QxJVBYaDt/d7507cf4ceb1365cc9ce7eaff84d06cc/tud___banner.jpg"></picture></div>

One of Australia’s oldest home builders is about to crack the 10-week house build benchmark, ushering in a new era of construction…

The Executive Centre - flexible work EDM.jpg

The future of the office has been hotly contested in the world of post-pandemic real estate.Will we, as acclaimed author and property expert Dror Poleg <a data-mce-href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/five-stages-of-grief-as-office-bounceback-hopes-fade" href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/five-stages-of-grief-as-office-bounceback-hopes-fade" target="_blank" rel="noopener">suggested at Urbanity 23 in September,</a> be rid of offices as we know them or will we return in droves?JLL Australia and New Zealand chief executive officer Daniel Kernaghan is firmly in the latter camp.&nbsp;Also speaking at The Urban Developer’s Urbanity 23 last month, Kernaghan said a return to the office is inevitable.“Culturally, companies are saying well, we want our people back together for our culture. We want our people back together because from a productivity perspective, we know they’re much more productive together, and that’s how we get innovation,” he says.“But there’s a real movement towards quality office space.”&nbsp;<div id="3IYoLrhK9d7Ez6OunZeVSY"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/77wiv1tcgjsG5Ldzs9a7TE/0fb46795e2b594e2a5a17ed901a3f6d3/In-article__44_.jpg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/77wiv1tcgjsG5Ldzs9a7TE/0fb46795e2b594e2a5a17ed901a3f6d3/In-article__44_.jpg"></picture><div>▲ The top 10 flexible workspace operators and landlord offerings make up 88 per cent of the flex market. </div></div>The truth could be somewhere closer to the middle, according The Executive Centre general manager Australia Jacob Feenstra.Feenstra, who is also a board member with Flexible Workspace Australia,&nbsp; says it will be a diverse landscape of working formats negotiated between the business and the employee and their respective needs.“On the coalface it is so broad and varied that depending on who you will speak to there’s a different answer, there’s not a consensus today and I doubt there ever will be,” the flexible workspace operator head says.&nbsp;“Even if you speak to other workspace operators, we all have different client sets and nuances to our business and the clients we serve.”But trends in the world of work can be illuminating to the office sector and its future—one of the latest is the “workation”—the ultra-hybrid model of being able to plug your laptop in, attend meetings, make podcasts and more in an office space wherever you are in the country or even the world.<h2>New horizons for the flexible workplace</h2> Hybrid work increased considerably during the pandemic with some statistics suggesting that 34 per cent of Australian workers are now working this way.This increased flexibility also means that people are working not only from home or the office, but from the elusive “third space”. In the world of digital interconnectivity, that could be almost anywhere.Brussels-based flexible workspace provider IWG found that 88 per cent of hybrid workers “worked from anywhere” last year, while almost 57 per cent extended holidays by working from abroad.&nbsp;Sydney, it found, scores highly for the phenomenon, with the availability of flexible office space tourism adding to its attraction.Feenstra says that The Executive Centre and Flexible Workspace Australia members have seen the impacts of the trend.“We’ve seen [the workation happen] and will continue to see it,” he says.&nbsp;“We’ve had members from The Executive Centre network holidaying in Australia landing in Sydney or Melbourne and making use of our locations in those cities on their way in or out.“It was always the case—now it’s becoming more visible.”<div id="4Bmb2RbirTsHU8RVqlNuY4"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/6imgry6RZ1UL2b1OaUEfio/0eae831d3592de5418fa5c0f6aef934c/Mid_article_resizes__82_.jpg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/6imgry6RZ1UL2b1OaUEfio/0eae831d3592de5418fa5c0f6aef934c/Mid_article_resizes__82_.jpg"></picture><div>▲ The Executive Centre general manager Jacob Feenstra. </div></div>This is thanks to the increasing number of flexible workspaces and the willingness of companies to invest in them, he says, even after the huge impacts of Covid.“What has changed is work travel. It’s anecdotal but obviously work travel was a lot more common [before the pandemic],” Feenstra says.“Previously people travelling for work travelled business class—but the cost of business travel is so high so they are going economy or premium economy, and are travelling less for business. So when they do travel for business, they want to include a holiday.”And the rise of the workation means the fortunes of flexible workspaces could again be on the rise.<h2>The reputation of flexible working</h2> Flexible workspaces were initially tipped to benefit from the uncertainty of lockdowns, but the slower-than-expected return to the office led to a degree of consolidation within its market, according to a report from CBRE last month.However, flex operators are bouncing back, it says, accounting for 2.7 per cent of office stock (still down on its 3.1 per cent peak in June, 2020) and looking for ways to adapt to the new working landscape.The recovery of flexible workspaces has been divergent across Australian cities.While the Brisbane market has grown “significantly”, it has declined in Melbourne, where flexible work dropped to 2.2 per cent of stock in mid-2023, while Sydney is somewhere in between.<div id="7kew7L2EFrcjiYaJuWpV6t"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/7g73Iq13ajpgfehEg3slTv/7644439fb6ff5980f9af391834b90eec/In-article__47_.jpg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/7g73Iq13ajpgfehEg3slTv/7644439fb6ff5980f9af391834b90eec/In-article__47_.jpg"></picture><div>▲ During the past three years, according to CBRE, the average flexible workspace centre has grown 30 per cent to 2300 square metres. </div></div>The idea of flexible working has taken a hit recently as the market watched the fortunes of WeWork—it is struggling to stay afloat after a collapse, with some media reports suggesting that its decline could put $900 million worth of rent payments in Australia at risk.“They expanded aggressively,” says Feenstra.&nbsp;“When they were entering the market and growing, there was significant discounting and brokering ,which hurt the industry as a whole,&nbsp;“The industry and office real estate as a whole is bigger than WeWork, but it will certainly leave a legacy.“But what it did do was bring [flexible working] to the notice of a market and a population that didn’t necessarily know about these offices and ways of working.”The fortunes of the flexible work space sector though are still bright.“It’s not radical change, but there is an evolution,” says Feenstra.“Changes are nuanced, but there are big changes in this space that organisations are committing to, because they had too much space before.“There have always been empty desks, and now with people in the office fr just three or four days this is even more noticeable.&nbsp;“So we will have more flexible workspaces, smaller offices on shorter terms—and we’re seeing that and we’re listening.”<div id="2GjfVrlLC3xoZkvcHDq1B5"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/6j6oCbFKd1XDxFlnZR8ZkJ/156c44b7f0f65d39cffc7381fbb241d5/In-article__48_.jpg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/6j6oCbFKd1XDxFlnZR8ZkJ/156c44b7f0f65d39cffc7381fbb241d5/In-article__48_.jpg"></picture><div>▲ Offshore operators such as IWG and The Executive Centre make up more than 50 per cent of the flex footprint in the east coast market, according to CBRE. </div></div>It also means that flexible operators with standard offices are having to adapt quickly to the digitally driven demands of customers.&nbsp;“One of the things that has changed for us is that as we’re evolving our work products,” says Feenstra.&nbsp;“The pandemic put Zoom and Teams at the forefront and there is more of that than ever before.“In our new centers we’re building digital pods and meeting rooms for one to two people with built-in screens, all the audio equipment and connectivity you need.”<h2>A future of diverse needs</h2> JLL’s Dan Kernaghan agrees that there is no “one size fits all” for the office market now.&nbsp;“It’s got to work for the organisation, its culture, and the type of work that it is doing,” he says.“I'm a five-days-in-the-office person, I“m very open about that. I love being in the office, I love being around my colleagues, my people. But at the end of the day, I understand that is different for differesnt people for different reasons.“But I“ll give you a stat—office rents in Sydney CBD during the past 12 months are up 6.8 per cent.&nbsp;“That will continue as it’s been led by a number of factors but it’s clear that there’s much more movement and momentum that’s building in that space, and the positivity around office and everyone getting back together.”<div id="1Z1zOFyvOKKSqqtxfw4XxX"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/3fcWfgGTYm2D09GOdMxldZ/1612f2f0bb3623e4c121784eca0ec144/2.jpg" alt="null" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/3fcWfgGTYm2D09GOdMxldZ/1612f2f0bb3623e4c121784eca0ec144/2.jpg"></picture><div>▲ The Executive Centre began in Hong Kong almost three decades ago. </div></div>The Executive Centre was founded 29 years ago in Hong Kong and it has collectively experienced plenty of change and adaptation in the sector. Feenstra expects even more.“We’re in so many different markets, but generally, we’re seeing positive uptake in flex workspace,” he says.“Some are performing better than others, and Australia is doing really well but we have higher costs—as the cost of living is high so the cost of working is high.&nbsp;“If we look at the office and the way that we work, even in 20 years I’m not sure we can imagine what it looks like.&nbsp;“The office won’t go away—as humans we’re wired for connection in person. We can achieve a lot in a virtual world but there is still a need for most of us in a business setting to meet.“Overall it’s a really positive sentiment and an indicator of what’s still possible for the times ahead.” <hr> You are currently experiencing&nbsp;The Urban Developer&nbsp;Plus (TUD+), our premium membership for property professionals.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/membership-plans" data-mce-href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/membership-plans">Click here to learn more.</a><div id="2GhuueZl01Zwo2aFfjNVi2"><picture><img src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/12UMq5eMSEOh0QxJVBYaDt/d7507cf4ceb1365cc9ce7eaff84d06cc/tud___banner.jpg" alt="TUD + Banner" data-mce-src="//images.ctfassets.net/8pr762qjocl3/12UMq5eMSEOh0QxJVBYaDt/d7507cf4ceb1365cc9ce7eaff84d06cc/tud___banner.jpg"></picture></div>

Flexible workspaces are experiencing an uptick as people find new ways to work at home and abroad…

TECHNOLOGY