The Design Hub is a Greenstar Certified Project achieving a 5 Greenstar

Architects: Sean Godsell
Area:
13000 ?
Year:
2012
Manufacturers: Fisher & Paykel, Lysaght, lightmoves

Introduction

This unusual features of the façade of the Design Hub is that it has the capability of collecting solar energy

throughout most of the day, as the surface is covered in operable disks. Although, as of 2013, there are no solar panels installed, it has the capability to accommodate this technology in the near future with its facade system. To achieve harvesting energy at an optimum level, ganged disks are fitted with an actuator which will allows thedisks to be exposed to the sun as much as possible. With the current material of sandblasted glass, the disks operate as a ‘second skin’ controlling solar gain and access. An internal computer controls this façade by adjusting each cell with rotational motors, according to Melbourne’s daily weather.

Diagram

prototype

Materials 

Panels: Acrylic  Frames: MDF  Nodes: Z-ABS  Structure: Wooden sticks  Base: Plywood

Data

Video

credits

The digital fabrication façade of RMIT design hub is a project of IAAC, Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia developed in the MAA01 2020/21 by Students: Xingyu Zhang Karthy K. Vijaya, Uri Lewis, and Faculty: Lana Awad, Ricardo Mayor, Shyam Zonca