FACTOR

This Studio considers the factory as a site for architectural inquiry. As we emerge from the pandemic the priorities and pathways for the future of local manufacturing are being redrawn. As global supply chains become ever more complex, traditional resources become scarcer and concerns grow over the known and unknown consequences of climate change, manufacturers are being forced to consider more sustainable operations and offerings. The local industries of the future will be driven by significant technological innovation – research and development of sustainable manufacturing and advanced material / frontier technologies are key to a healthier industry ecosystem.

The studio will explore a hybrid typology, both a proving ground for new, small-scale industries and a hub for innovation, research, and learning. Students will identify and research a material technology and production process that promotes circular economic principles, sustainable operations and outputs, and is suited to local manufacture. This anchors itself against emerging fields of knowledge in materials and construction methodologies, encouraging students to be critical about the environmental impacts of architecture and to seek opportunities in existing buildings and landscapes. This research will be presented as a return brief – a proposition for a factory of the future.

The project will be located at the site of the old Glassworks near Scienceworks in Spotswood, chosen for its rich local industrial heritage and its ambitions as a centre of innovation in science, technology and learning. While engaging with the City of Hobson’s Bay, Museums Victoria, and external consultants, students will be required to consider and respond to the critical questions facing the future of manufacturing, construction materials, local industry, and education in a highly localized, collaborative context.

Tom Proctor

STUDIO TIMES

Mon 6 - 9pm

Thu 2.30 - 5.30pm