pharmacy australia centre for excellence

pharmacy australia

centre for excellence

The Pharmacy Australia Centre of Excellence is a world-class

research, education, clinical practice and industry precinct on a 1.7ha site in the centre of Brisbane, adjacent to Princess

Alexandra Hospital.

PACEPACE comprises state-of-the-art scientific, teaching and business infrastructure within an innovative collaborative zone, liking academia, science and industry, government and community, research and clinical practice.

PACE is a partnership between the University of Queensland’s School of Pharmacy, the Pharmacy Guild of Australia, the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia and the Queensland Government.

The architectural philosophy behind PACE is to create a precinct that not only provides for world class research and education, but invites, engages and encourages interest and enjoyment from the general public.

To achieve this goal the building envelope has been developed along the site boundaries, while leaving the heart of it as a public plaza space. The 360-seat lecture theatre sits raised, as a sculptural centrepiece which provides shade and houses the indoor-outdoor café underneath.

This plaza provides pedestrian access to the building from the street via a gentle ramp, extending the public amenity. Landscaping and islands of green planters are strategically located throughout the site, to provide both a verdant atmosphere and shade. Symbolically, it will provide a large stage for everyday public activity.

The streetscape along Cornwall Street is articulated by three different architectural elements in order to make it attractive in scale, order and expression. It also acts to reinforce the urban character of the site and provide an anchor to the street corner.

From west to east, sympathetic to the bulk of the residencies opposite, the first architectural element begins with a long, predominantly glazed, three-storey high prism which extends to the solid bookend element housing the core and services. Next to it is the secondary entry and lobby behind.

The second element is the East Block, housing the laboratories. Being six-storeys in height it has been further removed from the street, and sits behind a huge existing fig tree. This tree was salvaged from another place of the site where building works took place.

The third element is the main entry space, which occurs where the previous two collide. Appearing as a narrow street corridor, the entry’s geometry changes from orthogonal to skew, dramatising the view axis and distribution of light. The widening corridor, with both its high and low corridors, windows and bay window arrangements, lighting, colour, materials and scale improves the quality of the space as a ‘meeting place’.

Great attention was paid to glass selection to increase the transparency of the building in order to create vision corridors and axis. This also enhances pedestrian access to public space, and creates a context of openness and interactivity through integration with the surrounding built form.

The project had a very extensive and well developed brief. It asked for cutting edge research and development facilities containing office, laboratory and teaching space to house the University Of Queensland School Of Pharmacy and other project partners.

Other areas included a 360-seat Lecture Theatre, break out rooms for group learning, case studies and computer assisted peer group learning, seminar rooms, mock pharmacy rooms and additional specialized training rooms, meeting rooms and food service areas.

The design fully answered the entire desired outcome and a lot of attention was given to the spaces which were not in the brief, but which with a right approach can enormously improve the building amenity, appeal and functionality. These areas were the entries, lobbies, the plaza, terraces etc.

The design response was “flexibility and more flexibility” to allow for growth and retraction of the changing needs of the pharmacy, biotechnology and other industry tenants.

The intensity and complexity of the project existed due to the high serviceability of the laboratory and associated spaces. It required very close and extensive collaboration with specialists in laboratory design, mechanical and electrical engineering, hydraulic, structure, landscape and others.

PACE was a product of a unique partnership between the pharmacy industry, the education centre and the Queensland Government with very complex relationships and requirements which constantly needed innovative and creative solutions.

PACE multifaceted project, involving costs not only in design and construction, but in the procurement and instalment of highly technical equipment. The 15,800square metre project cost $97million, which was a particularly positive outcome for all parties

typical floor plan

The floor plate design of the building is such (length to width ratio) that provides good intake of natural light to penetrate the inside even in the laboratory spaces. This makes possible the constant reference to the outside to be a part of the work environment.

Appropriate design of the sun shading made the work spaces glare free and reduces the pressure of the air conditioning system. The number of floors, the position of stairs, access to break out spaces, lobbies, balconies and external spaces encourages healthy work environment reducing the need for usage of lifts, artificial lighting etc.

A bike store and associated change rooms are provided as part of the end of the trip facilities.

Specialist laboratory design is a complex process. The requirements of the PACE facility are very unusual in that they necessitate co-mingling of a range of functions, but also with distinct physical separation, although there should be no visual impairment between functions such as research facilities and areas occupied by academics, undergraduate students or members of the public.

Project Team:

Architects: Woodhead

Interior design: Woodhead

Project Managers:

Builder:

Developer:

Consultants:

Photography:

For further information contact; #@woodhead.com.au

In addition, it should be appreciated that there are activities undertaken within the facility which will be of a highly sensitive commercial nature and which will require very strict protocols to be in place and which will need to be the subject of stringent physical security.

Further, the animal house and support facilities also need to be subject to strict security arrangements. Any unauthorised access or inadvertent contamination could result in substantial losses of research effort, with serious consequential commercial outcomes.

Small scale drug production is also envisaged. This will require the storage and management of hazardous and flammable materials.

The architectural challenge was to develop a design which provides the necessary level of physical security without impacting on the open feel of the building, and at the same time providing a sense of inclusion and co-operation between the parties. To achieve the desired functional outcome required, a lengthy iterative design process and extensive involvement of stakeholder representatives was required.

woodhead.com.au