Local Government
South Perth
Region
Metropolitan
95 Canning Hwy South Perth
Dyson Business Centre
South Perth
Metropolitan
Constructed from 1989
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Type | Status | Date | Grading/Management | More information | |
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Category | Description | ||||
Local Heritage Survey | Adopted | 14 Nov 2000 | Category D |
Category D |
• The place has aesthetic value as a good intact example of late twentieth century style incorporating solar design principles.
• The place has historic value for its association with the development of environmental awareness in the Western Australian construction industry.
• The place has social value as the first place for the public to gather information about solar energy.
• The place has research value as one of the first examples of passive solar design in the metropolitan area.
The Solar Energy Advisory Centre (Former) is a long narrow rectangular building, with a truncated entrance at the street corner which reflects the angle of the street intersection. Although the address is Canning Highway, the building has a greater relationship with the secondary street, Dyson Street, rather than with the main highway.
The building is of two storey reinforced concrete construction with additional rooftop accommodation for mechanical plant. The entrance to the building is below pavement level with steps down to the doorway and a ramp extending around the long edge of the structure.
The two levels of the building present in a similar manner. The upper level incorporates a continuous band of recessed tinted aluminium framed windows, partially shaded by a louvered canopy. The lower level is similar, albeit with a mix of windows including full height windows, half height windows with panelling below and aluminium framed glass doors to both the main entrance and the side entrance on Dyson Street. All these windows are also protect by a louvered shade structure.
The majority of the roof is obscured from view due to the parapet wall construction but is said to be a flat roof of “sandwich” construction on a steel frame.
Being of an experimental nature and quite extensive, the functional mechanical elements of the building are exposed to the streetscape. The appearance of these elements has been treated as part of the architectural design of the building, which fits into the accepted model for an office structure.
The Solar Energy Advisory Centre (Fmr) was designed by architect Garry Baverstock (b.1949) a Perth-based architect, property developer, author and scientist, specialising in energy-efficient building design. In 1969, he founded the firm ‘Ecotect Architects’. He is Adjunct Professor and Built Environment Program Manager of the Research Institute of Sustainable Energy at Murdoch University, and became president of the International Solar Energy Society in Western Australia after holding the position of Honorary Secretary from 1979-1986.
The concept of the Solar Energy Advisory Centre (Fmr) was to accommodate display and tenancy spaces in the building which, by means of passive solar design, achieve a high level of thermal performance and human comfort. The building was constructed for the same cost as a conventional office building of the same size, but uses 69% less energy.
The building received the Australian Design Award in 1990. In 1993, it was awarded the Building category in the (then) Department of Primary Industries and Energy’s National Energy Awards. At the time, it was the only privately operated organisation in Australia to provide an information service to the public about solar energy in buildings.
Since its construction the solar design elements of the design have been removed and replaced with air-conditoning and a standard metal deck roof.
High / High
Good
Name | Type | Year From | Year To |
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Garry Baverstock | Architect | - | - |
Ref ID No | Ref Name | Ref Source | Ref Date |
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Magazine: article- Solar Energy Information Centre Building, Perth. Solar Building No. 90. | "Solar Progress Renewable Energy for Australasia" Vol13, No2. | 1992 | |
"The Australian" Newspaper | 14/10/1993 |
Individual Building or Group
Epoch | General | Specific |
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Original Use | SCIENTIFIC | Other |
Present Use | SCIENTIFIC | Other |
Style |
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Other Style |
Type | General | Specific |
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Other | CONCRETE | Concrete Slab |
Wall | CONCRETE | Reinforced Concrete |
Roof | METAL | Steel |
General | Specific |
---|---|
OTHER | Other Sub-Theme |
This information is provided voluntarily as a public service. The information provided is made available in good faith and is derived from sources believed to be reliable and accurate. However, the information is provided solely on the basis that readers will be responsible for making their own assessment of the matters discussed herein and are advised to verify all relevant representations, statements and information.