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Australia’s prefabricated construction sector gathered in Melbourne for the 2026 Smart Building Industry Awards, with projects spanning community infrastructure, education, healthcare, hospitality, private housing and remote Indigenous housing recognised across seven categories.
The third annual awards were held at Zinc at Fed Square on the evening of 3 September 2026, in conjunction with Offsite26, bringing together project teams, manufacturers, designers and other representatives from across the prefabricated building sector.
Alongside the project awards, Jan Gyrn, CEO, Director and Co-Founder of Modscape + Modbotics, was named Sue Rolland Champion of Prefab 2026, recognising his contribution to Australia’s prefabricated building industry.
The judging panel included Victorian Government Architect Jill Garner; Infrastructure Tasmania strategic architecture and urban design adviser Scott Balmforth; WA Government Architect Emma Williamson; Government Architect NSW principal design adviser Kelly Green; Office for Design and Architecture SA supervising architect Sasha Radenovic; and Queensland Government Architect Leah Lang.
Infrastructure — Lagoon Reserve Sports Pavilion by PreBuilt
PreBuilt won Excellence in Prefabricated Building – Infrastructure for the Lagoon Reserve Sports Pavilion in Port Melbourne.
The new two-storey pavilion replaced an ageing facility that had become undersized and poorly accessible for a growing range of community users.
PreBuilt delivered the building using 23 precision-built modules and 100 per cent volumetric prefabrication, with balconies and verandahs also manufactured offsite. Detailed transport and cranage planning enabled the modules to be installed while limiting disruption to surrounding trees and users of the reserve.
The completed pavilion includes subdividable changerooms, a first-floor community room, commercial kitchen and passenger lift.
Education — Condong Public School by Modscape + Modbotics
Modscape + Modbotics won the education category for Condong Public School in NSW, one of the schools rebuilt following the 2022 Northern Rivers floods.
Delivered for School Infrastructure NSW as part of a six-school program, the project incorporated flood resilience as a central part of its design. Core buildings sit three metres above ground on a steel gantry structure aligned to Probable Maximum Flood levels, with the undercroft repurposed as a sheltered play area.
Around 80 per cent of the project was prefabricated, using a combination of volumetric modules and panelised elements. Coloured facade screens reference local Indigenous cultural groups as well as the school’s colours.
Healthcare — Royal Women’s MRI Relocation by Modscape + Modbotics
Modscape + Modbotics also won Excellence in Prefabricated Building – Healthcare for the Royal Women’s MRI Relocation in Melbourne.
The project responded to electromagnetic interference risks associated with construction of Melbourne’s Metro Tunnel, requiring the hospital’s MRI department to be relocated while diagnostic services continued.
A fully volumetric modular facility was manufactured offsite and installed on an upper level of the hospital using a 750-tonne crane. The project was completed under an accelerated program while minimising disruption to hospital operations.
Hospitality — Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa accommodation project by Ausco Modular
Ausco Modular won the hospitality category for accommodation developed within the Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa landscape in the Northern Territory.
The remote and culturally sensitive setting required an approach that avoided conventional road access, heavy machinery and extensive ground disturbance.
Working with Troppo and head contractor Harrold & Kite, Ausco manufactured lightweight pods at approximately 90 per cent prefabrication. Purpose-engineered structural frames and removable lifting eyes allowed the modules to be transported by helicopter following full-scale prototyping and aerial trials.
Sleeping pods, amenity pods and communal Wiltjas were installed across three remote locations.
Residential over $750,000 — Bright by Modscape + Modbotics
In the residential category above $750,000, Modscape + Modbotics won for Bright, a home in Victoria’s High Country.
Designed to operate initially as a family retreat and ultimately as a permanent home, the project used volumetric modular construction with 75 per cent of the build completed offsite.
Dark metal cladding and Blackbutt timber respond to the surrounding Alpine landscape, while stone cladding links the outdoor deck with the principal living spaces.
Residential under $750,000 — Blackheath by MODE Homes
MODE Homes took the residential under-$750,000 award for Blackheath, located on a steep, tree-covered site in the NSW Blue Mountains.
The house combines volumetric modules with factory-built panels manufactured in Sydney, with 90 per cent of construction completed offsite.
Its split-level configuration steps down three levels to follow the slope. A Colorbond steel exterior is paired with Blackbutt timber internally, with the building installed using a 60-tonne crane.
Social, affordable and resilient housing — Wilya Janta Explain Homes by Modular by SHAPE
Modular by SHAPE won Excellence in Prefabricated Building – Residential, Social/Affordable and Resilient/Emergency Housing for the Wilya Janta Explain Homes project in Tennant Creek.
The three-bedroom home was developed with Aboriginal-led organisation Wilya Janta, OFFICE and Troppo Architects in response to overcrowding, poor thermal performance and energy poverty, while incorporating design requirements for Warumungu families.
Approximately 90 per cent of the home was completed offsite in Adelaide before being transported more than 1,000 kilometres to Tennant Creek.
The design includes separate men’s and women’s verandahs, an outdoor kitchen and mud-brick cladding made from local termite mounds. It achieved a 7-star NatHERS rating.
Jan Gyrn named Sue Rolland Champion of Prefab 2026
Separate from the seven project categories, Jan Gyrn, CEO, Director and Co-Founder of Modscape + Modbotics, was named Champion of Prefab 2026.
The recognition placed Gyrn alongside the project teams acknowledged across the awards and gave specific recognition to his contribution to the development of prefabricated construction in Australia.
The 2026 winners reflected the range of applications now being delivered through prefabricated construction in Australia, from education and healthcare projects to community infrastructure, tourism and housing. The projects also demonstrated different approaches to offsite delivery, including volumetric modular construction, panelised systems and hybrid prefabrication, applied across metropolitan, regional and remote settings.
Find the Smart Building Industry Awards 2026 HERE
