MODULAR HIGH-RISE WORKSHOP SNAPSHOT
PRESENTED TO AROUND 50 OF THE RECENT COUNCIL ON TALL BUILDINGS AND URBAN HABITAT (CTBUH) CONFERENCE’S DELEGATES, THE MODULAR HIGH-RISE CONSTRUCTION WORKSHOP, HOSTED BY MULTIPLEX AND CHAIRED BY PROFESSOR JAMES MURRAY-PARKES (THE INSTIGATOR OF THE HANDBOOK FOR THE DESIGN OF MODULAR STRUCTURES), FEATURED PROMINENT SPEAKERS AND AN ANALYSIS OF THE CHALLENGES, DEVELOPMENT AND FUTURE TRENDS OF MODULAR CONSTRUCTION.
Murray-Parkes started the workshop by sharing his passion for and insights on modular construction.
He explained how the lack of cohesion and availability in technical references for modular construction had driven him to unite consultants and contractors that typically compete with one another, to get together to write the handbook.
He emphasised that the Victorian Government understood the need for a standard for the industry, and had been supportive of its development.
Angus McFarlane, Structural Engineering Leader, Engineering Excellence Group, Laing O’Rourke, presented on Modular Construction & DfMA. “Traditional construction and conventional design is a serial mistake as it is inefficient, unsafe and environmentally unfriendly.
The new construction method should be based on the principles of Design for Manufacture and Assembly” (DfMA) and modular construction as they are efficient, safer and more sustainable.”
“Traditional construction and conventional design is a serial mistake as it is inefficient, unsafe and environmentally unfriendly. The new construction method should be based on the principles of Design for Manufacture and Assembly” (DfMA) and modular construction as they are efficient, safer and more sustainable.” Angus McFarlane, Structural Engineering Leader, Engineering Excellence Group, Laing O’Rourke.
The workshop also saw Dr John Stehle, Director of Advanced Science and Engineering, KPMG, sharing his insights on modular construction in Australia and the advancement of modular construction using timber. He emphasised that despite modular construction having many advantages, not all designs were suitable to adopt it, adding that parametric design or physical modelling would greatly help in decision making.
Simon Lincoln, Partner and Architect at Make Architects, shared on the concept of ‘Pure Modular’, encompassing the various projects that he had been involved with that adopted modular construction. He concurred that modular construction was not suitable for every project while his presentation also focussed on salient issues such as acoustics and transportation of the modules.
With BIM taking modular construction to higher levels, Jos Hoonhout, CEO, Vericon Ingenieurs BV, presented on Integrating Engineering, demonstrated how BIM can change the way we build and our business. “BIM can let people from everywhere in the world to walk through the design in virtual reality and save a lot of time in coordination meetings. It is a very useful tool to integrate design into fabrication and construction, and especially useful for complicated structures.”
“BIM can let people from everywhere in the world to walk through the design in virtual reality and save a lot of time in coordination meetings. It is a very useful tool to integrate design into fabrication and construction, and especially useful for complicated structures.”
Jos Hoonhout, CEO, Vericon Ingenieurs BV.
Joseph di Pasquale, PhD candidate at Politecnico di Milano, shared on Hybrid Modular Architecture for Emerging Housing Behaviours Joseph di Pasquale, PhD candidate at Politecnico di Milano, presented on Hybrid Modular Architecture for Emerging Housing Behaviours. He outlined a future vision in which modular construction can be a way of life with the real estate market changing according to new social behaviour. Particularly significant was the potential of hybrid modular to break down houses into smaller components which can have plug in and plug out substitution of housing pods, giving the owner or tenant the flexibility to mix and match the pods to suit their needs.
The workshop ended with an informative questions and answers session.
The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) Conference took place at venues in Sydney, Melbourne & Brisbane from 30 October to 3 November 2017.■
James Murray-Parkes is the co-founder of the Modular Construction Codes Board (MCCB) based at Monash University. Professor of Practice in the Faculty of Engineering at Monash University and head of the Brookfield Multiplex Engineering Innovations Group.
