Jaggera and Turrbal peoples
Queensland
Brisbane
The project is a secure container for plants and their research conditions built-up from the inside out, from the size of a pot (8 pots = 1 tray, 5 trays = 1 trolley, 6 trolleys = 1 small grow room etc).Â
The controlled environment rooms cannot have windows. Embracing the ‘insulated box’ maximises the conservation of energy, with each grow room being its own sealed, insulated container.
The building’s interior research environments are highly manipulated. The public spaces of the corridors respond to this.
Lighting in the corridors, changes the user’s perception of the ‘real’ colours of walls, floors, and ceilings. The changes in light quality also manipulate the user’s perception of the time of day. The shape of the distorted mirrored stainless-steel walls and the bent light continue to play with the perception of the inhabitants.
In this way, the interiors treat inhabitants the same as the plants they are studying.
The building fundamentally enhances how we conduct precision plant research in Australia by bringing people, technology, and growing environments together in a highly integrated manner. By combining purpose-built controlled environment grow spaces with laboratories, offices, and collaborative spaces, the building facilitates rapid iteration between experimentation and analysis, benefiting research outcomes. Clear circulation and visual organisation supports efficient agriculture and biosafety operations in a complex vertical facility, while thoughtful design elements promote wellbeing in highly clinical spaces. Importantly, the building is adaptable and future-focused, supporting evolving research needs and providing a welcoming environment for education, research, industry engagement, and collaboration.
Michael Christensen, Design Architect
Michael Lavery, Design Architect
Fuller November, Project Architect
Jeffery Briant, Project Architect
Hal Chandler, Graduate of Architecture
Bronwyn Grimley, Project Architect
Lindsay Grundy, Project Architect
Katie Hawgood, Project Architect
Clint Mackay, Project Architect
George Taran, Project Architect
Julia Thorpe, Graduate of Architecture
Bligh Tanner, Structural Engineer
Bligh Tanner, Civil Consultant
Bligh Tanner, Facade Engineer
Lusch, Facade Structure
LatStudios, Landscape Consultant
NDY, Dewpoint Group, Wood, Mechanical Engineer
NDY, Design Engineering Solutions, KME, Electrical Consultant
NDY, McIntosh and McNeill, RTL Trades, Hydraulic Consultant
McIntosh and McNeill, RTL Trades, Siphonic Engineer
NDY, Vertical transportation consultant
NDY, Stantec, Section J consultant
Rob Kerslake, Tony Agostino, Controlled environment consultant
Fire Engineers Australia, Fire engineer
DMA Engineers, Fire Boar, Dry Fire Consultants
Certis, Building certifier
Sale Laboratory Architecture Consultancy, Third party assessor
Certis, Access consultant
Stantec, Acoustic Consultant
Hawkins Jenkins Ross, Hazardous area classification consultant
The University of Queensland Property and Facilities Division, Cadence, Ernst and Young, Savills Australia, Project Manager
Steele Wrobel, Quantity Surveyor
191 Consulting, Construction and performance specification consultant
Olivotto Consulting, Glasshouse structural engineer
Croudace, Glasshouse design
Rubidium Light, Artificial lighting consultant
Power Protection Industries, Lightning protection consultant
Hoslab, Specialist gas design
Kusch, MCQ Structures, Gripple, Polypas, Seismic engineer
Architectus Conrad Gargett, Laboratory design review architect
RLB, Project programming consultant
The University of Queensland Institutional Biosafety, Biological safety consultant
Asset Commissioning Management, Independent commissioning agent