Electrical Engineering Building | Estate Management

PROJECT OVERVIEW

The home of discovery and breakthroughs since the 1960s, the Electrical Engineering Building needed a complete refurbishment to prepare it for the next generation of world-class research and teaching in electrical engineering.

This building already had a strong history of discovery and breakthrough from within its labs. In 2017, the Australian Centre for Space Engineering Research, based in this building Australia's first EC0 satellite in 15 years. Now UNSW's students and staff in the School of Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications (EE&T) can build on that achievement with new learning, teaching and research spaces.

UNSW Estate Management collaborated closely with the Faculty of Engineering and the School of Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications collaborated throughout the five-year major project campus development. The result: an award-winning building in the centre of campus - an inspiring and modern development,t also housing Nura Gili - the Centre for Indigenous Programs.

Project Highlights

The Electrical Engineering Building features Australia’s first quantum engineering teaching laboratory, taking UNSW’s leading quantum engineering efforts from research into the classroom.

It also houses Australia’s largest software-defined networking and Internet of Things (IoT) research testbed, which is a new facility for industry collaboration; and Australia’s largest power electronic and drives research laboratory, paving the way for electric vehicles and renewable energy grid integration.

The refurbishment also includes a new laboratory for power microgeneration and energy storage, developing capabilities for microgrids that can operate both independently and with a grid connection; large audio and radio frequency anechoic chambers for future mobile telecommunications and acoustic systems development; and a new laboratory designed specifically for technology-based and remote learning and teaching.

Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications research and academic workplaces are based primarily on the upper two levels of the building to support and promote research cluster co-location, interaction, and collaboration. The refurbishment also included laboratories designed for technology-based and remote learning and teaching; large new hubs to encourage self-directed learning; and informal collaborative learning areas to provide an outstanding educational environment for students.

Awards

2020 NSW Architecture Awards - Educational Architecture award.

2019 Master Builders Association Award - Winner: Tertiary Building $75-100m

2018 Master Builder Association Award - Safety Innovation

Project Collaboration

Development: UNSW Estate Management

Project Manager: Root Partnerships

Architect: Hassell

Contractor: A W Edwards

Photography: A W Edwards

Completed: 2014 - 2019