3rd Year Architectural Studies

“Re-Framing Sofala”

Nestled into the Turon River valley and framing the gateway to the village of Sofala NSW, this proposal organises a public Art Gallery, Artist-in-Residence Studio and Accommodation within a constructed landscape for public leisure, viewing and making art. The design draws as much from the natural forces of the landscape as from the architectural order, scale and character of the historical village - its buildings, streets and planning typology. In response, the proposed buildings and open spaces unfold through a progression of “streets” and “squares” to provide diverse social opportunities along and amongst the tree-lined hillside.

The open square is an important new addition to the village’s urban types. Terraced and constructed along the existing topography, it facilitates a gentle transitional experience for visitors, mediating between the main street, the steep hill and the river below to provide the public with a place for leisure and outdoor activities. This transformation of the hillside brings new possibilities for gathering, both linear and enclosed, centred and on the edge, strengthening the existing relationship between the surrounding streets, the landscape and the people who occupy them.

Inside the Gallery, openness and transparency are created via courtyards and enfilades to allow views through, into and out of the circulation and display spaces, connecting with the ground, the sky and the trees. Between the cutting planes of the solid pisé walls and the hovering sculptural plywood roof, a diverse range of exhibition spaces and rooms are created that are both fixed and flexible, open and closed, naturally and artificially lit, large and small, with spaces for both gathering and refuge.

1st Year Architectural Studies

Architectural Design Studio 4 investigates the former industrial Coal Loader site at Waverton, in northern Sydney. The brief is to conceive an innovative and experimental art site, comprising of a range of buildings and landscapes on the large harbour foreshore site. ‘The Odyssey’, named to reflect the scale of the site and the journey between land and ocean, proposes an intervention that juxtaposes the sites additive construction by introducing a subtractive operation. The design aims to develop the site as a defining monument of the surrounding Balls Head peninsular, without compromising its organically geometric identity. Utilising the subtractive concept by digging into the site, the aesthetic integrity of the Coal Loader’s defining rectangular mass is not compromised, but is instead, re-imagined. Given that the Coal Loader has an incredible, unobstructed vista west along the Parramatta River, an underlying premise of the project is to create a building that facilitates and occupies a space to appreciate the view.

4th Year Industrial Design

Due to the high physiological demands that orchestral musicians face, over 50% of musicians in Sydney’s professional orchestras experience musculoskeletal injuries. To reduce the chances of injuries occurring, a crucial area to investigate are the chairs that orchestral musicians sit on as it significantly influences their posture & therefore, their overall physiological health. The chair ‘Misura’, is a significant improvement to the leading orchestral chair on the market. The chair legs can be moved up & down, the backrest can be moved in four directions & it’s easily stackable. ‘Misura’ is lighter, slimmer, more quietly adjusting, user intuitive & elegant. Every musician is different, ‘Misura’ caters for all kinds of different.

4th Year Industrial Design

The Luminocity exhibition is a virtual tour of design solutions. It begins at the UNSW Red Centre Gallery and takes visitors all over Sydney, demonstrating the global impact of student work on urban, social and environmental challenges.

The UNSW Construction Management & Property student work is exhibited at the UNSW Science and Engineering Precinct construction site. Immersed in an active construction project, students can learn from the construction process undertaken at this site using the latest technology.

Documented in virtual reality to be used as a teaching tool, students can remotely experience the full scope of construction management at the 24,500 square metre site when in-person visits aren’t possible.

The UNSW Industrial Design student work is exhibited in Carriageworks. For over 100 years this industrial site saw thousands of workers design, fabricate and maintain the expanding rail network that has significantly shaped the development of Sydney.

This rich history contrasts the next generation of industrial development showcased in the innovative product design of our Industrial Design students.

The UNSW Computational Design student work is exhibited at the International Cruise Terminal located at White Bay, Sydney. Students in the Urban Data course utilise this location as a test site for computational urbanism.

Student projects link the social characteristics of the area, analysed via machine learning, with the anticipated urban density of the urban renewal site to compliment social infrastructure such as schools or parks as part of the master planning.

This rich history contrasts the next generation of industrial development showcased in the innovative product design of our Industrial Design students.

The UNSW Interior Architecture student work is exhibited in Carriageworks, a rare public space in Sydney for its scale, proportion and heritage. This venue is a great example of adaptive reuse of an existing building for a renewed purpose in Sydney.

Interior Architecture influences people’s lives through the spaces they inhabit. Our student work shows the breadth of this discipline, showing creative solutions to permanent and temporary spaces of all different scales.

YHA Sydney Rooftop

The UNSW Architecture student work is exhibited on the YHA Sydney Rooftop. The skyline of the global city of Sydney unfolds from this space, showing the ever-changing nature of our cities, sitting at the junction of past and future and engaging our natural and cultural heritage.

The Architecture Program at UNSW examines how we can design our future cities and tackle the challenges they face. We are engaged with the way people live, work and inhabit architecture and committed to work in tune with the environment, to lead the fight against climate change.

The UNSW Landscape Architecture student work is exhibited at Sydney Olympic Park. This site represents a globally significant ‘hot spot’ of landscape architecture on the traditional lands of the Wangal people.

The transformation of this site used an approach to landscape planning and design that we now describe as green infrastructure. Landscape architects continue to lead the ecological, recreational and urban cultural landscape evolution. UNSW students and researchers use this location as our laboratory for monitoring change over time in this unique urban precinct.

This rich history contrasts the next generation of industrial development showcased in the innovative product design of our Industrial Design students.

The UNSW City Planning student work is exhibited in the beautiful public spaces surrounding the One Central Park buildings. In the heart of Sydney, this urban renewal project includes residential, commercial and public areas and is a canvas of breathtaking vertical gardens.

This award-winning mixed-used development demonstrates the pivotal role that our City Planning students can have in shaping the future of our cities and regions.

This rich history contrasts the next generation of industrial development showcased in the innovative product design of our Industrial Design students.

3rd Year Architectural Studies

‘The Perimeter’ is a publicly accessible space that is porous and inhabitable. The structure protects the core of a hybrid vertical school. This project explores the brief “nothing matters,” which emphasises the beautiful idea that space which “serves no demanding purpose is what really matters”. The proposition of a perimeter surrounding an urban square and a school emphasises it, protecting, gathering and celebrating the importance of “nothing”.

This project is about an urban stage for people to collectively define the nature of public space through their actions. Carefully articulated to enable ambiguity of use, the timber structure allows people not to feel controlled in their appropriation and making of the space.

The Luminocity exhibition is the annual showcase of our undergraduate student work in Architecture, Interior Architecture, City Planning, Computational Design, Landscape Architecture, Industrial Design, and Construction Management & Property.

The virtual, immersive 360-degree exhibition features inspiring models, animations, videos and audio recordings. Expanding out from the UNSW campus, you will be transported to spaces across Sydney to see the real-world impact of student work. You will learn how they are addressing a diverse range of urban, social and environmental challenges.

Meet the students behind the projects and hear from them firsthand about their experience, design process and how they’re innovating solutions for the benefit of people and the planet.

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3rd Year Architectural Studies

Focusing on Alvar Aalto’s ‘trinity of human, room and garden’, the proposed design ‘The Vale’, explores the interdependence between human experience, the tangible landscape, and architectural design. The project investigates the internal and external changes of space and context, particularly the rammed earth partitions and laminated timber frame structures of varying scales, balances, and social settings. The range of room types establish a particular sense of ambience which results in a multitude of co-spatial experiences to reflect the layered environments. A sense of modernity blends with the historical significance of the site, to project an enjoyable and flexible multi-thematic and emotive atmosphere and reflect the diversity and vivacity of the community of Newtown.

YHA Sydney Rooftop

1st Year Architectural Studies

Architectural Design Studio 2 tasks students to re-design one of the existing building on the National Art School site. Located in Darlinghurst NSW, the site was once a gaol before being repurposed to its current use as a school, planned initially with an ‘anchor’ building in the middle, the rest of the sites building radiate out from this central form. The design brief calls for a mixed-use building consisting of a kiosk in the courtyard, bicycle parking & workshop and an art gallery tower. The approach to the proposed design was simple, making use of the existing window openings to create a grid that connects to the neighbouring buildings. Following the grid, logic of structure and circulation spaces, the building form then develops from it. The diagrams and model shown here balance a contemporary and progressive approach while treating the historical context site with respect.

4th Year City Planning

The proposal forms part of a broader 'Waterfront West Precinct' which envisions an expansion of the Gosford CBD into Brisbane Water, to regenerate and activate the currently underutilised waterfront. The concept design for the site creates a six-storey mixed-use building split into two forms that makes a clear and identifiable gateway icon for the Gosford CBD. The key design drivers for the concept were to address the site's natural constraints, create an iconic gateway, enhance existing and future views, activate the public domain and accommodate pedestrian movements.

2nd Year City Planning

This project establishes a vision for the redevelopment of a site in the Randwick Collaboration Area in line with the UNSW 2025 Plan. The site chosen is the underutilised NIDA Carpark Site, also referred to as the UNSW Regiment Building and Carpark. The main objective was to revitalise the area and subsequently provide a safe, accessible, flexible and green redevelopment to support the performing arts and UNSW community. The proposal forms an extension of UNSW’s main walkway and the construction of new buildings for UNSW to accommodate for higher student numbers, a plaza, multipurpose building for NIDA, cafe and an underground car park. SketchUp and AutoCAD were experimented with to create maps, diagrams and the 3D modelling of the proposed development.

1st Year Interior Architecture

The 1st year Interior Architecture Practice Studio 2 focuses on articulating design ideas through research, thinking, drawing and making practices. Students learn the language and elements of interior architecture practice including notions of spatial enclosure, definition, materiality, assemblage, composition, human scale and form. Through an iterative design process, students explore micro-living and relationships between interior and urban realms to address the broader issue of social sustainability in cities. The project shown here explores micro-living on an ‘artist budget’ and the lively nature of the site, addressing the needs of clients, Japanese artists Ushio and Noriko. The proposal utilises the beautiful mature trees, northern light, and the creativity and skills of the clients to create an affordable, low-tech, multi-functional space that is full of infinite possibilities. Using cardboard, a readily available and recyclable material, for the infill of the grid allows the clients to create art on every surface of their micro-home.

2nd Year City Planning

The project brief was to establish a vision to redevelop a site within the Randwick Collaboration Area. The proposal reimagines the underutilised NIDA car park, also known as the UNSW Regiment and Western Campus car park. The project aims to accommodate better the diverse needs of students and staff and anticipated growth in numbers. The project coordinates with the broader UNSW 2025 strategy, focusing on creating a ‘world-class’ extension of the UNSW campus. The key objectives were to: enhance the cultural landscape of the precinct; support the performing arts; enable more opportunities to participate in recreational and extracurricular activities and extend the range of facilities and services UNSW offers. The proposed vision is achieved through a mixture of flexible and dynamic built and open spaces. The design consists of an outdoor amphitheatre, art gallery, a new multipurpose building that also serves as a plaza and open green space.

4th Year Interior Architecture

The Interior Architecture Graduation Project focuses on the agency of the interior in the context of urban morphologies, civic typologies and communities of the 21st-century city. The recovery and repurposing of White Bay Power Station demonstrates an aligned response to stakeholder feedback with a design proposal that contributes to an urban environment supporting the complex social and cultural conditions of a successful contemporary living city. The project ‘Immerse’ is a centre which identifies and develops a unity of mind and body. With the gentrification of inner-city Sydney, access and engagement with the cultural community has become lesser as cultural centres seem scarcer and out of reach for communities. This paired with constant commercial manipulation and exploitation of technological involvement has inhibited our relationships and connection to our sensorial thoughts and experiences. ‘Immerse’ intends to flip this current site, to create a space which evokes and invites visitors to experience, interact, connect and cultivate.

1st Year Industrial Design

The 1st year Industrial Design Studio 1B introduces students to the essence of sheet material. This project incorporates sheet material in conjunction with an everyday object and reinterprets it into a new product for the home. This fruit bowl is constructed from polypropylene and a wooden picture frame. The organic, woven design considers the durable and flexible properties of polypropylene to create a simple object of beauty and function.

4th Year Interior Architecture

4th Year City Planning

The brief for this project was to create a development vision for a site within the Gosford City Centre. This project built on a previous module which established the vision and opportunities within Gosford City Centre.

Four key themes were established: greater connection with surrounding areas, increasing the accessibility of the urban environment, addressing the number of vacant sites and buildings, and building on the existing heritage.

A key focus of this proposal is the history of the area surrounding the site. This was used to guide the proposal, such as the acknowledgment of the historic context of the area, as well as an increase in activation at street level through the inclusion of a museum. Another key aspect of this proposal is the inclusion of an activated through site link, increasing the permeability to the waterfront.

4th Year Industrial Design

‘Warrior X’ aims to address alcohol addiction through a 2-in-1 product concept that combines a breathalyser and pulse sensor into a single device. Research suggests that mental health should be targeted as part of addressing alcohol addiction. Specifically, evidence suggests that exercise can improve treatment outcomes for many patients with mental health symptoms. The ‘Warrior’ program assists people to track and receive data about their alcohol consumption. At the same time, the ‘Warrior X’ device encourages patients to exercise by providing data that can help them to track their physical improvement.

1st Year Interior Architecture

2nd Year Interior Architecture

OzHarvest ethos is to collect quality surplus food and redistribute it to people in need across Australia. Recently they launched a food truck, fitted out to serve and sell harvested meals to the public. The brief is to design an OzHarvest Eatery: a range of food-related experiences that can be installed in the OzHarvest Headquarters for functions or be packed in the OzHarvest Food Truck and transported to outdoor festivals around Australia. The concept for this design is a series of modules and forms that fit into each other to create forms that have a continuous relationship with one another and encourage user engagement. The design is free-flowing to allow the user to freely interact and move components to suit them. The project is designed to echo OzHarvest’s community engagement and brand ethos that heroes a sense of awareness towards one’s impact on surrounding people and environments.

4th Year Industrial Design

The Coral Cradle is a coral restoration system that allows coral to be re-introduced into an ocean environment far more efficiently than any of its closest competitors.

Coral reefs are significantly under threat. Many organisations are attempting to solve this issue through various research and technologies. An area that lacked attention and stability was the methodologies used in “re-planting” corals once they had been successfully propagated and grown.

The Coral Cradle allows corals to be propagated, transported, and easily replanted all within the same product. This drastically reduces the usual double handling processes this requires and allows for the fast cultivation of a thriving reef, providing an intuitive and elegant design solution to a global problem.

2nd Year Industrial Design

‘Hydria’ takes on the challenge of bringing Greek treasured dining traditions, rituals and love for food into a contemporary setting. During design development, the concept of what it means to share an experience and what makes it special was contemplated. ‘Hydria’ brings a modern twist on a conventional water vessel while maintaining Greek links in from form and shape. Considerations such as constantly fluctuating weather and hot summer were taken when designing the product for the Australian market. The insulated glass has a sleek 2-layer design that creates a dramatic optical illusion, prevents condensation and maintains the temperature of the drink. By utilising double-walled glass manufacturing process that creates a vacuum between the two bodies, this results in the beverages maintaining the correct temperature.

4th Year Industrial Design

A Specialised weed management solution for Bush Regeneration personnel that improves efficiency of their practice and improves overall outcomes. This tailored solution will be equipped to meet specialised needs for targeted applications and robust functionality lacking, of which are lacking in currently-used broad-spectrum equipment and domestic weeders designed for other industries.

4th Year Interior Architecture

The Interior Architecture Graduation Project focuses on the agency of the interior in the context of urban morphologies (urban forms, their formation and transformation) and civic typologies of the 21st-century city. La Perouse headland’s (including Bare Island) recovery and re-purposing demonstrates an aligned response to stakeholder feedback in a design proposal that supports the complex social and cultural conditions of a successful contemporary living city. The site sits at the intersection of multiple climate change projections, including the threat of sea-level rise, loss of biodiversity and erosion of vital dunescapes, exacerbated by the high levels of carbon emissions from the nearby airport and industrial zone. ‘NOPLANETB’ educates and informs visitors on climatic issues occurring at La Perouse through a series of dynamic installations driven by a direct relationship to real-time environmental data. The physical experiences animate the perpetually accumulating data, reminding the visitor that time is running out.

3rd Year Interior Architecture

Interior Architecture Practice Studio 6 introduces a case study of the UNSW Red Centre building, due for an upgrade and more space to accommodate staff and researchers. Students complete a strategic briefing, design development and final proposal of a new open-plan flexible workplace model. In response, ‘Gulp’ is a workplace that lives and breathes, creating ever-changing environments. The forms (microcosm) appear expanded within the space, creating large public spaces around them and smaller private spaces within. Each microcosm holds one activity which users must venture out of to other microcosms to complete their work. This activity of moving between spaces forms relationships and communication between individuals, enriching users' knowledge and workplace experience. Research of the future of workplaces, UNSW Built Environment and sustainable materials and practices have led to a workplace where the spaces can adapt and transform to the future needs of its inhabitants.

1st Year Construction Management & Property

The project ‘Exploring roles in a real-world construction project’ was conducted by a group of ten students working together on a case study of Badgerys Creek Airport. The aim was to demonstrate the groups understanding of a complex construction project, requiring the organisation of essential project requirements, such as principles and structures, objectives, processes, systems, risks, planning, technical requirements, compliance requirements, key considerations, decision, and problem-solving. Each student performed a specific role, such as project manager, project director or site manager, and mirrored the responsibilities they would have to undertake regarding the construction of the airport. Outputs of the project include a website, known as Wiki, to provide insight into the research and highlighted everyone’s role and the responsibilities and a video montage to give an overview of the accomplishments as individuals and as a group.

3rd Year Computational Design

Eden Li, Alec Sanguinsin, Alan Wang, Chris Chidiac

In 3rd year Computation Design Digital Collaboration Studio, students apply the principles of biomimicry to design a kinetic structure and material system for adaptive architecture. In the studio, kinetic performance is informed by using computational thinking and methods to simulate social and climatic environment conditions. Students work collaboratively using digital platforms and computational parametric workflows to refine and resolve a design materially, tectonically, and for behaviour and performance. Design teams communicate the design outcomes by creating 3D animations and assembling physical prototypes.

2nd Year Computational Design

Scarlett Rogers and Stefen O'Neil

‘The Rumble Strip’ is an urban interaction design to reduce the speed of cyclists, while providing a safer and more enjoyable environment for pedestrians at all hours of the day. The system works in two ways. The first incorporates haptic feedback by using uneven cobblestone-like pavers to make the road uncomfortable for cyclists travelling above 10 km/hr. The second aspect includes LED lights built into the grout surrounding the pavers attached to a sensor array. The lights encircle any moving objects on the road in light that changes colour depending on their speed, a soft blue would indicate they are within the speed limit, and a vivid red would warn the traveller to slow down. The project provides a safer nighttime environment for pedestrians, by illuminating them on an otherwise unlit road, while also providing cyclists with a visual cue of their speeds.

2nd Year Construction Management & Property

This research project explores the impact of airport noise on house prices in the Kingsford Smith Airport area. The project has three objectives: examine the noise contour zone within Sydney airport; determine how distance to the airport affects house prices; and finally, to investigate if the condition of houses is a significant determinant of house prices. A large sample of 1284 housing transactions and airport noise contour information was collected to conduct the research. The Hedonic price model was then used to analyze the data, with findings suggesting that airport noise has an insignificant relationship with prices for houses located outside the 25 Australian Noise Exposure Index (ANEI) contour zone.

Overall, the purpose of this thesis was to provide valuable information on airport noise and house price to policymakers to set up noise control and reduction policies, and to airport authorities, to help develop management strategies.

4th Year City Planning

The vision for the area included revitalising Mann Street as a high street with a distinct arts and heritage character, celebrating the historical beginnings of Gosford and attracting people to the area.

With this in mind, the vision for the development is to bring public life to Mann Street, providing a place for people to work, meet and attend events. The proposed development includes a new theatre, open plan working spaces and a café in its lobby, and a nine-storey commercial office tower set back from the street. The site aims to become an important civic institution, sharing its public domain area with the adjoining heritage-listed Council building.

4th Year Landscape Architecture

Urban growth in North Parramatta, Sydney increases traffic density and has a negative impact on public health and well-being. To solve the issue of urban noises, an urban park in the Westmead Hospital Precinct is designed. Design principles are established based on soundscape research. This involves the idea of eliminating anthrophonic traffic noises and introducing biophonic and geophonic sounds to bring nature back to the built environment. Those ephemeral natural sounds of gusty breeze, rustling trees, bird songs and running water are presented to engage people unconsciously into a changing environment. While city dwellers’ perceptions are stimulated, a therapeutic effect can be achieved. The process in exploring connection between audio-visual experience gains interest in inducing soft fascination and human interactions with nature. This will deliver the message of environmental awareness, reassociating people to listen actively to their living environment.

2nd Year Landscape Architecture

With the global concern for global warming, there is a growing awareness of major issues across all industries as seen through art, television, politics and design. ‘The Ice Trail’ aims to subtly raise awareness of rising temperatures that lead to ice melting and sea level rising. Inspiration was taken from the way ice is broken up chaotically and unpredictably by passing ships, such as ice breakers. The ice that forms in Copenhagen’s waterways each winter will not last if rising temperatures continue to rise. Capturing the geometric shape of ice reflects Copenhagen’s winter and will continue to showcase this characteristic to future generations. The proposed bridge caters for both cyclists and pedestrians, providing a series of nodes that allow users to interact and engage with the surrounding environment while most importantly understanding the significance of the global issue.

4th Year Landscape Architecture

How can society help bridge the cultural and social disconnect between white Australia and traditional owners of the land? The river may be an answer. ‘Return to the River’ aims to address issues of urbanisation, and resulting cultural neglect, by implementing traditional principles of ‘caring for country’ in a linear waterfront setting. The design aims to reactivate Westmead’s Parramatta River corridor, a significant traditional convergence of clans and natural systems, by reclaiming unique natural resources and establishing new cultural opportunities. The river has carved the spatial form into the land over millions of years. Cultural installations provide a base for the celebration of art, song and dance of the Darug peoples, creating vital educational opportunities. This project is an example of how other Australian cities may approach urban design to both strengthen the bond between multicultural society and foster a greater understanding of caring for the land.

1st Year Computational Design

In the Advanced Computational Design course, students are introduced to a sports stadium design case study to develop skills in methods of computational structural optimisation and their outputs. Computers are capable of analysing a structure quickly and with high accuracy, allowing for intelligent optimisation techniques and iteration. To harness the relation between form and structure, students learn how to operate scripting for structural design in Grasshopper 3D, as well as physics engine Karamba for analysis and Python for coding. The model shown achieves a logic of connectivity between different platforms to generate a range of design options.

1st Year Landscape Architecture

Undertaken as part of 1st year Landscape Architecture Studio 1, the project 'The Little Prince' uses a combination of physical model forms, illustration and animation to tell the story of an organic landscape. The rough rendering of the landscape was inspired by the works of South African Artist' William Kentridge'. The style was selected for its appropriateness to animate compared to a style of perfect line work with blocky animations. Thematically the darker tone of the renderings highlights the darker side of to 'The Little Prince' narrative. Challenges of the project included correcting the foam core model and smoothing out gradients to represent a natural landform effectively. The physical model created images with authentic perspectives providing a strong reference point to create the animation.

3rd Year Landscape Architecture

Once a site of inextricable connection to the land for the Cammeraygal, the water’s edge at Woodley’s Cove has been changed through decades of industrial activity, including boat-making and an oil refinery. The anticipated construction of the Western Harbour Tunnel will intensify this pattern of disruption. This project questions, how this former industrial waterfront work post-construction, and how do we restore a human-nature relation at Woodley’s Cove? The design aims to address these questions through three guiding principles: experience, social equity and ecology. The experience of rising and lowering with topography and the tides celebrates the cov-e-ness of the cove. The design aims to uplift the physical and social accessibility of the site to achieve a landscape that is inclusive to a broader community of users. The reconstruction of the foreshore focuses on revealing inter-tidal processes and habitat, thus enhancing ecological diversity.

2nd Year Computational Design

Luka Jovanovic and Garry Zhang

The 2nd year Computation Design Urban Data course explores the concepts and methods of computational urbanism, including how artificial intelligence and data science applications can address urban design and planning problems. Students are introduced to machine learning techniques to create digital tools and workflows for the management of urban data. In 2020, students analysed three sites in Sydney: Waterloo, White Bay and Camelia. Social data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), such as age, income or car ownership, were used to analyse the broader context and define the ‘social characteristics’ of these sites. Students set up computational urban design models for each site using Grasshopper and then used ABS data to train a machine learning model to generate a street network, buildings and open spaces to either mimic or complement the surrounding suburbs.

2nd Year Interior Architecture

Parametric Design and Digital fabrication was a core unit for Interior Architecture 2nd year offered as an elective from computational design which introduced me to parametric design having a direct relationship between mathematics and geometry which is then programmed into digitally fabricating physical prototypes. We worked with a visual programming interface Grasshopper (a plugin for the 3D modelling software Rhinoceros) which allowed us to gain skills in the creation of adaptable models and explore the advantages of a flexible design.

My work demonstrates compressive assessments that allowed for my development and understanding of how parametric design can generate adaptable design from modular patterns, translational rational surfaces to scripting of systems using recursion and optimisation, all enabling the rapid exploration of geometric variations to create an parametric design space. Our weekly scripting was developed into digital fabrication processes including laser-cutting and 3D printing introducing us to the system that connects design to fabrication and creating physical prototypes.

Overall this course allowed for fundamental skill development of parametric design programming and how mathematical concepts inform computational design that I now use in other design projects and future industry work. This has opened my mind up to how apparent parametric design is within the built environment today and the potential it has to expand the architecture in the near future within the professional world.

2nd Year Construction Management & Property

The research project ‘Do Green Real Estate Investments pay off?’ assesses the value-added role and performance of Green Real Estate Investment Trust’s (REIT) as part of a mixed-asset investment portfolio. The study compares portfolio statistics and asset performance assessment, in terms of asset allocation and risk-return characteristics, to reflect asset performance at different levels of risk and return. Portfolio optimisation was conducted with constraints that replicate real-world scenarios on daily annualised percentage return data for better accuracy. It was observed that the claims made regarding the superior performance of green REITs is questionable in terms of U.S. market data. This was one of the first studies to have considered and analysed the performance and contribution of green REIT as a dedicated asset class in a portfolio. The results of this study are of utmost importance to investors and would enable them to make informed investment decisions regarding sustainable investments.