The elegant landmark residential tower Collins House is Australia’s slimmest tower and the third in the world. The project is significant for demonstrating how a site with a small footprint can be viably developed within the city and for the way in which it successfully resolves several complex structural, planning, heritage and buildability challenges
Situated at 466 Collins Street, Collins House soars 184m from the ground on a 480 sq m site, equivalent to the size of a netball court. The frontage along Collins Street is just 11.5m, with the address previously home to the three-storey heritage-listed Art Nouveau building, built in 1908 for the Victoria shipping company Huddart Park & Co.
The initial design approach utilised a ‘H-frame’ vertical structural strategy, which used four shear walls and a mass damper to provide structural integrity. Negotiations also began with the owner of the adjacent building to purchase air rights, thereby allowing the tower to cantilever 4.5m over the adjoining property.
A conventional precast system was used throughout the building, with a pre-fabrication modular system used from level 14 and above. Overall, 472 modules that integrated the façade and structural slabs were craned into place.
Ultimately, the design turns the building inside out, moving the structural core to the perimeter of the building – making the building itself the core. This creates column free floor plates and allowed the height and slenderness to be maximised.
Collins House is a stylish tower that demonstrates an innovative approach and sets a new benchmark for small sites.
All the information about how to enter the 2020 WAN Awards is here.
We are very happy to offer support so please don’t hesitate to email Georgia, WAN Awards Event Coordinator with any questions at Georgia.Baily@haymarket.com.
Last year more than 40 countries took part in the WAN Awards with strong showings from Europe, the Americas and Asia-Pacific. And we saw some truly outstanding projects, take a look at the winners from last year here.