Melbourne Project Redesigned with Solar Skin

12 November 2021 | Melbourne, Australia

435 Bourke Street will be built in Melbourne's Central Business District. Image credit: Jorge Lascar, licensed under CC BY 2.0

A new design for 435 Bourke Street has been revealed. Previously scheduled to start construction in 2020, the project was delayed because of the Covid-19 pandemic. The project's architect, Bates Smart, used this delay as an opportunity to redesign the project in efforts to future-proof the design. The most significant design change to the project was the façade which is now composed of translucent photovoltaic panels.

This solar skin will generate 20 percent of the project’s electricity needs. This collected energy, along with all-electric building operations, will make the tower save 430 tonnes (470 US ton) of carbon dioxide emissions each year. The remaining energy will come from renewable sources off-site. The project is designed to meet net zero carbon emissions in operation. Both 6-star Green Star New Buildings rating as well as a Platinum WELL certified rating have been targeted.

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A new development application has already been submitted to the Victorian Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP). The project is estimated to cost AUD$1 billion (US$ 730 million). Construction on the office tower is scheduled to being in 2022.

For more on this story, go to ArchitectureAU.