UNSW wins several prestigious 'Excellence in Construction' industry awards

Several of UNSW's recently completed world-class new building and refurbishment projects were celebrated at the 2019 Master Builder Association of NSW  (MBA) Awards ceremony. 

The Biological Sciences North Building won an Excellence in Construction MBA Award under the Refurbishments/Renovations/Extensions for Buildings $100m and over category

The award celebrates the work involved in a complete refurbishment of an existing building which only retained its outer shell. 

Biosciences North Interior

Above: Award-wining internals of refurbished Biological Sciences North Building. 

The extensive work has delivered contemporary services including undergraduate teaching laboratories on Ground and Level 1, shared research laboratories on Level 2-5 and a combined schools office.  

The Biological Sciences North Building, as an extension of the Biological Sciences South Building designed by Woods Bagot and delivered by Multiplex completes the Biosciences project. 

The Biosciences buildings on upper campus now form part of a Biomedical Research Precinct which includes the Lowy Cancer Research Centre and the Wallace Wurth School of Medicine.

The Electrical Engineering Building won an 'Excellence in Construction' MBA Award under the Tertiary Buildings $75m -$100m category. 

The award celebrates a complete refurbishment of a 50-year-old five and six-storey building in the heart of the Kensington campus.

Electrical-Engineering-1

Above: The award-winning building includes many environmentally sustainable design features.

The EEB houses the School of Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications, Learning Environments and the Nura Gili Centre for Indigenous Programs.

The 14,750m2 refurbishment, designed by Hassall and delivered by A W Edwards Pty Ltd, consists of teaching laboratories including a quantum physics lab, technician offices, workshops, computer rooms, lecture theatres, research laboratories and amenities.

The project also involved construction of a new plant room, hot and chilled water plant and cooling towers, water storage and back-up generators were provided along with specialised equipment such as a fibre-optic draw tower, lasers and two anechoic chambers. 

Its sustainable design features include energy efficiency performance 15% above building code requirements, 5 to 6 star WELS rated water fixtures, and at least 50% certified sustainable furniture, flooring, finishes and timber.

The Science and Engineering Building won an 'Excellence in Construction' MBA Award under the Tertiary Buildings $100m and over category. 

The award celebrates the three-year construction of a brand new 10-storey building providing state of the art teaching and research facilities.  

Esme_D8_Exterior

Above: The SEB also takes in the Esme Timbery Creative Practice Lab with its Io Myers and Studio One theatres.

The SEB houses the Schools of Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Arts and Media, the Mark Wainwright Analytical Centre as well as Learning Environments. 

The 25,000m2 space, designed by Grimshaw Architects and delivered by Multiplex, contains wet chemistry laboratories as well as offices and non-laboratory teaching spaces.

The wins celebrate the University’s commitment to significantly investing in world-class research and teaching facilities.

Deputy Vice-President of Finance and Operations Jeff Peers said: “The commitment of UNSW Estate Management staff to lead the development of these great outcomes has seen a tremendous uplift to the enablement of research and teaching at UNSW as well as the sense of place and community we are creating." 

"We are proud to play such a significant part in UNSW’s journey,” he said.