JUNE 2023

Dear Colleagues

As we come towards the middle of the year, it's great to see our activities ramping up.

Most exciting is the move from theoretical research to works on ground. We have launched three Light House Projects – real buildings that demonstrate our research in action. These projects pair built or to-be-built projects with market leading industry partners. We currently have over 10 Light House Projects in the development pipeline.

We have also launched the first of our Shared Interest Projects – a scoping study to create a circular economy roadmap for Australia’s property and construction industry (check out #48 below). As the name suggests, our Shared Interest Projects cover topics that affect all aspects of the building supply chain – from design to construction to disposal.

Our newsletter gives you a taste of our consortium's activities, but to understand more, come to the Building 4.0 CRC Annual Conference 2023. Here you can see our projects in detail, talk to researchers creating new knowledge, and hear from thought leaders who are transforming the construction and property industries.

I look forward to seeing you there.

Best wishes from Mathew and the Team

Building 4.0 Annual Conference 2023

CULTURE OF INNOVATION

When: Wednesday 11 October 2023

Where: Monash College, Docklands, Melbourne

A unique event in the building innovation ecosystem, CULTURE OF INNOVATION showcases the best and brightest international and national guests, combining presentations, roundtables, demonstrations and exhibitions.

New projects

We currently have 18 active projects, launching three new projects since our April 2023 newsletter:

LHP #1 Monash Smart Manufacturing Hub: A digital twin living lab – This project aims to address challenges preventing widespread use of digital twins in the built environment. It will create and operate a digital twin of the Monash Smart Manufacturing Hub (mSMH).

Partners are Amazon Web Services and Monash University.

#50 Development of Artificial Neural Network and Automated Life Cycle Assessments for Cloud Based Residential Energy Estimations – This project aims to develop a cloud-based artificial neural network for new home operational energy efficiency and embodied carbon.

Partners are uTecture, Monash University and the University of Melbourne.

#48 Scoping Study for Building the Future: Circular Economy – Construction and demolition materials account for 44% of all waste generated in Australia, and the building sector’s energy consumption and CO₂ emissions are at record highs. This study aims to outline the steps and actions necessary to transition to a circular economy.

As a Shared Interest Project, it includes many of our partners. They're all listed on the project description on the website.

SEE ALL OUR PROJECTS

Looking for new project ideas

Following on from the successful first Expression of Interest (EOI) round for project proposals, Building 4.0 CRC will launch its next invitation for EOIs on Monday 17 July.

The upcoming round seeks proposals focusing on 'Automated Construction and Advanced Manufacturing: Robotics, Automation, and Additive Fabrication'.

Keep an eye out for our announcement and link to the webform in mid-July.

Housing affordability article in The Conversation

Housing affordability is a very real concern for many Australians. And that means it’s also a concern for everyone involved in the construction and property industry, including builders, developers, manufacturers, peak bodies, governments and researchers.

What we know is that housing affordability is complex. In a recent article in The Conversation, Building 4.0 CRC CEO Professor Mathew Aitchison unpacks some of the factors affecting housing affordability, and particularly the role of innovation in addressing them.

READ THE ARTICLE

European Research Tour

We conducted a tour of industrialised building companies and sites in Germany, Denmark and Sweden in April 2023.

The tour offered a glimpse into the future of building with Europe's biggest urban development projects: digitally enabled approaches; industrialised approaches with a manufacturing style focus; and decarbonisation as a driving force.

READ THE REPORT

New publications

As well as the European tour report, we released two project final reports:

#35 Prefab housing solutions for bushfire and disaster relief – This report presents a ‘kit of parts’ for immediate post-disaster housing that can be incrementally expanded to create a permanent home.
#37 Australian timber figure insulation scoping study – This report identifies a clear opportunity to establish a timber insulation facility in Australia.

A number of researchers have also released journal articles and conference papers.

CHECK OUT ALL OUR RESOURCES

16 new PhD scholarships

We welcomed our latest round of PhD candidates, offering 16 new scholarships across our three partner universities. This brings our total number of PhDs students to 43. Our new candidates formally start with the CRC in July.

We have a scholarship available in the Faculty of Business and Economics at Monash University. If you are interested, please contact Dr Sarah Breen-Lovett (Engagement and Education Leader) at s.breenlovett@building40crc.org.

Farewell to two Executive Team members

We farewelled two Executive Team members in June 2023. Thanks to Samantha Lemons (previous Research Portfolio Manager) and Verity McDonald (previous Operations Manager) for their valuable contributions.