Crown Group called upon Meld Strategies to assist providing a smart building technology master plan for their mixed-used developments starting with V by Crown in Parramatta Sydney. Buildings Evolved assisted Meld Strategies in the design and delivery of the project as specialist prop-tech subcontractor.

Location: Australia
Industry: Mixed Use Development, Hotel
Scope: 519 Apartments, 49 Hotel Rooms
Project Funding: $150m
Project Website: Crown Group

Scope

The scope for V by Crown called upon the prop-tech consultants to:

• review designs and specifications;
• produce reference schematic designs;
• develop technology development briefs for consulting engineers;
• consider the requirements of a hotel business within the complex;
• improve the occupant experience, focusing on security and access control; and
• provide oversight and acceptance testing of the as-built.

Method

Traditional building calls for division of disciplines between hydraulic, mechanical and electrical for provision of building services. The technology development brief document is intended to bridge the gap between the services, particularly on design and build projects where value engineering can create unintended deviations in delivery marketed outcomes - creating project finance risk.

A technology development brief provides an interdisciplinary design approach to ensure successful delivery of smart building technology functional requirements. This provides a developer with certainty that occupant experiences can be a marketable commodity - the notion that a building should operate much like modern car - a seamless integration of technology and humans.

The inclusion of an operating hotel within the building lifted the functional requirements for the entire building. Upon check-in by a guest, the expectation is that a room will be pre-heating or pre-cooling, lights will be on and blinds will be drawn. Further energy saving provisions were made to ensure that opened windows or balcony doors within a hotel room would render the HVAC temporarily disabled. Rooms also required to be ‘smart’ enough to know if guests were leaving or staying upon entry door opening to shut down the room (or not!).

prop-tech

Technology Scope

The scope called upon the smart building technology development brief to include:

• Fibre to the Premise (FTTP) – Ultra high-speed telecommunications;
• Building Automation Systems (BAS) Network;
• utility metering for power, hot & cold water;
• embedded network for power;
• DAS mobile antenna system;
• MATV master antenna for FTA TV & Foxtel;
• WiFi Hotpsots;
• lift car: WiFi hotspot, video screen, audio speaker;
• hotel guest requirements;
• audio distribution; and
• video distribution;

As-Built

Floor communications cabinets and equipment

Embedded network metering including water and gas

Integrated mobile signal Distributed Antenna System (DAS)

Main communications room